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<div class="header reader-header" style="display: block;"
dir="ltr"> <a class="domain reader-domain"
href="http://www.addameer.org/news/world-press-freedom-day-2018-bleak-picture">addameer.org</a>
<h1 class="reader-title">World Press Freedom Day 2018: A Bleak
Picture</h1>
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<p>Today, 3 May 2018, on the
occasion of International
World Press Freedom Day,
freedom of thought and
expression remain a
constrained phenomena in the
occupied Palestinian
territory.</p>
<p>While events are taking place
around the world to
commemorate the day, 26
journalists currently sit in
occupation jails, a poet has
been convicted of incitement
in an Israeli court, and the
Palestinian Authority’s (PA)
‘Electronic Crimes Law’
remains a utilized piece of
legislation.</p>
<p>Bushra Taweel, journalist and
spokesperson for Aneen al-Qaid
Network, remains under
administrative detention after
she was arrested in November
2017; as does Nidal Abu Aker,
who hosted a radio show about
the prisoner issue on the Sawt
al Waheda station. Having been
held under administrative
detention on multiple
occasions, Nidal’s current
detainment has been ongoing
since August 2016.</p>
<p>The situation is not much
better for those Palestinians
who hold citizenship from the
occupying state. Palestinian
poet Dareen Tatour was today
convicted of ‘incitement to
terrorism’ and ‘support for
terror organizations’ after
she published a number of
poems on social media.</p>
<p>As for the <a
href="http://www.addameer.org/publications/behind-firewall-repercussions-pa-%E2%80%98electronic-crimes-law%E2%80%99">‘Electronic
Crimes Law’</a>, the
majority of charges brought
against journalists by the PA
last year remain on the books
without any progress in their
cases. Additionally, Ahmad
Awartani has remained in
Jericho prison since his
arrest on the 22 April for a
Facebook post.</p>
<p>Finally, the continued
instances of occupation forces
firing on individuals clearly
marked as journalists in Gaza
constitutes a severe violation
of the special status afforded
to the press.</p>
<p>For the whole of historical
Palestine, the cause of press
freedom looks bleak. For those
who wield power, the one thing
more dangerous that a material
challenger is those who can
propagate a resistance of
consciousness. This is the
exact role that a free press
plays. It allows people to
understand their political
situation and, therefore, to
chart a path forward. By
inhibiting the freedom of
press, not only is the freedom
of expression stifled but so
is freedom of thought. For
without having a clear grasp
on the reality, how can one
begin to change it.</p>
<p>Addameer calls on both the
occupying state and the
Palestinian Authority to abide
by their obligations under
Article 19 of the
International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights to
allow for freedom of
expression and thought.</p>
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<div class="moz-signature">-- <br>
Freedom Archives
522 Valencia Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
415 863.9977
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://freedomarchives.org/">https://freedomarchives.org/</a>
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