Reporters Without Borders Slams Bahrain Imprisonment of Journalists, Activists

Local Editor

Reporters Without Borders has criticized Bahrain for imprisoning journalists and human rights activists.

In a statement posted on its website on Monday, the organization said "We are sounding the alarm about the recent arrests of journalists and human rights activists in Bahrain and we condemn the government's nearly two-year-old policy of harsh repression."

"The authorities clearly want to obstruct journalists and prevent the flow of information about demonstrations and their suppression by the security forces," the statement added.

RWB cited the examples of Ahmed Humaidan, a Bahraini photojournalist, who has been in custody since December 29, 2012, and Sayed Yousif al-Muhafda, a human rights activist, who will go on trial on Tuesday on charges of circulating false news.
Al-Muhafda, who is the vice president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights and the head of its documentation department, was arrested on December 17 and held for a month, but was finally released on bail on January 17.
He is charged with deliberately disseminating false news on Twitter with the aim of inciting violence.

The organization has asked the Bahraini judiciary to drop charges against al-Muhafda, saying the charges were only filed to punish him for his commitment to the free flow of information about the human rights situation in Bahrain.
Over 30 international human rights organizations, including Reporters Without Borders, have sent a joint letter to the US president, calling on him to pressure the Bahraini government to free all the human rights defenders and activists being held in the Persian Gulf kingdom.

Source: Websites, edited by moqawama.org