Media Rights Group's Open Letter to Maliki

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http://www.iraqslogger.com/index.php/post/2883/Media_Rights_Groups_Open_Letter_to_Maliki

Media Rights Group's Open Letter to Maliki
Committee to Protect Journalists Urges PM to Reverse Ban on Bomb Site Coverage


The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has issued an open letter to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki urging the government to reverse the recently imposed ban on journalists at the site of bombing attacks.

Other watchdog organizations have issued statements opposing the new policy, including the Journalists Freedom Observatory, an Iraqi press freedom organization, and the International News Safety Institute.

The Iraqi Interior Ministry has claimed that the ban is in force to protect journalists.

Full text of the CPJ letter follows:

May 21, 2007

His Excellency Nouri Kamal al-Maliki Prime Minister c/o Embassy of the Republic of Iraq 1801 P Street NW Washington, DC, 20036

Your Excellency:

The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned by the Iraqi Interior Ministry’s recent decision to limit journalists’ access to scenes of bomb attacks. We are further alarmed by the enforcement methods employed by Iraqi police last Tuesday, when officers turned away journalists by firing shots in the air.

Brig. Gen. Abdul-Karim Khalaf, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry, announced on May 13 that journalists would be barred from the scenes of bomb attacks for one hour. He said the order was effective immediately and would be implemented nationwide.

Among the cited reasons, Khalaf said the ban would protect journalists from a second bomb attack at the same site. Agence France-Presse also quoted him as saying, “we do not want evidence to be disturbed before the arrival of detectives,” and that he “does not want to give terrorists information that they achieved their goals.”

Journalists in Iraq believe the ban is intended to limit their coverage to information that is filtered through the Interior Ministry, obstructing their ability to report independently.

Iraqi police enforced the order two days later, when they prevented journalists from covering the aftermath of a twin bomb attack at Baghdad’s Tayaran Square. Two bombs in plastic bags exploded in two shops, killing seven civilians and wounding 17 others. Camera operators and photographers who sought to report at the scene were met by Iraqi police who fired shots in the air to disperse the press.

While we recognize security concerns at scenes of violence, the Interior Ministry’s ban appears to be an attempt to limit press coverage of unwelcome news. Journalists, not governments, should determine whether a story is too dangerous to cover. The ministry’s assertion that perpetrators rely on the media for confirmation of an attack is not supported by any factual evidence and, in any case, is no justification for obstructing the news reporting. Neither does the Interior Ministry offer any evidence supporting its insinuation that journalists tamper with evidence at crime scenes.

The ban imposed May 13 is not the first instance in which your government has issued decrees that hinder the work of journalists. On September 7, 2006, your government closed the Baghdad bureau of the Dubai-based satellite channel Al-Arabiya for one month for allegedly fomenting “sectarian violence and war in Iraq” without providing evidence. Previous Iraqi governments have banned Al-Arabiya and competitor Al-Jazeera from working in Iraq for alleged incitement, though no evidence was cited in those cases either.

As a nonpartisan organization of journalists dedicated to the defense of press freedom worldwide, we call on you to reverse the May 13 ban, to instruct officers not to use their firearms to enforce press rules, and to allow the press to carry out its reporting without hindrance from your government.

Thank you for your attention to this important matter. We look forward to your reply.

Sincerely,

Joel Simon

Executive Director

CC:

His Excellency Jalal Talabani, President His Excellency Burham Saleh, Deputy Prime Minister His Excellency Salam Zaubai, Deputy Prime Minister His Excellency Jawad al-Bulani, Interior Minister His Excellency Hoshyar Zebari, Foreign Minister His Excellency Wijdan Mikhail, Human Rights Minister Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, Speaker of Parliament Hon. Ryan Crocker, U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Louise Arbour, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights American Society of Newspaper Editors Amnesty International Article 19 (United Kingdom) Canadian Journalists for Free Expression Freedom Forum Freedom House Human Rights Watch Index on Censorship International Center for Journalists International Federation of Journalists International PEN International Press Institute The Newspaper Guild The North American Broadcasters Association Overseas Press Club Reporters Sans Frontières The Society of Professional Journalists World Association of Newspapers World Press Freedom Committee