Al-Wasat comes back by court sentence against minister’s decree

The Sana'a West court recently issued its verdict against the Minister of Information's decision for revoking the al-Wasat newspaper license in its meeting on May 3, 2008.

The court obligates the Ministry of Information to pay YR 50,000 to al-Wasat newspaper as legal fees.

The Minister issued a decree revoking the license of the al-Wasat weekly newspaper on April 5, citing violations against "national unity."

The court decision said that the Ministry of Information's decision violated the press law.

The editor-in-chief of the al-Wasat newspaper, Gamal Aamer, said that the decision is “a victory for the Yemeni journalism in the International Press Day and it is a message for all, saying that we are in a democracy and there is no way to come back to the past and we all must obey and respect the law.”

“We have rights now to celebrate the International Press Day because this is the first time the court victor for the press freedom,” he added. “Yemen now is under world observation. The Ministry of Information's decision caused a bad view for Yemen, but the court resolve gave message to the word said we have democracy and freedom.”.

The deputy of Yemeni Journalists Syndicate, Sa’aid Thabet said that this is first victory for the press freedom and it is a happy occasion to have this decision come on international Press Day.

“We would like to thank Chief judge of the West Sana'a Court, Muhammad al-Qadhi, who made this a win for the press freedom in our country,” Thabet said.

Yemeni Journalists syndicate welcomed the sentence and concord it as history decision for the pres freedom in Yemen.

The Minister's decree accused the paper of "undermining the country's highest interests through harming the warm relations with brotherly countries."

It did not name any country, but the harming of many of Yemen’s ties with its neighbors has frequently been accused of from al-Wasat

It was the first time a license of a newspaper had been suspended since 1990.

Yemeni press and publications law prohibits the dissemination of any material seen as harming the national unity or ties with Arab countries.

 The Minister’s decree accused the paper of “undermining the country’s highest interests through harming the warm relations with brotherly countries.” It did not name any country, but the harming of many of Yemen’s ties with its neighbors has frequently been accused of from al-Wasat  It was the first time a license of a newspaper had been suspended since 1990. Yemeni press and publications law prohibits the dissemination of any material seen as harming the national unity or ties with Arab countries.

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