Journalists demand improvments in freedom and professional standards in Yemen media

Nullifying imprisonment of journalists, freedom of information and its disseminatios, issuing newspaper rights, qualifying journalists through training in and outside Yemen, improving living standards of journalists all were among top recommendations participants agreed on in the two-day symposium titled Press Freedom in Yemen between Responsibility and Commitment on May 3-4 organized by Eradt Shaab Organization.

Participants also recommend on working towards the establishment of code of honor for journalist based on scientific, professional, moral and objective criteria to raise and improve the profession of journalism and enhance its role and status.
 
Leading figures in the press from all the different media outlets, official, partisan, opposition, and independent media all were in attendance at the symposium and described the press in Yemen as poor and lacking in lacking in wider margins of freedom. They all called for screening the profession, get rid of intruders to it, train journalists, and strengthen sense of responsibility among its practitioners.

The symposium criticized the draft charter to regulate all sorts of media outlets proposed by ministers of media in the Arab World in their last conference and considered it a constraint for freedom and a confiscation of rights and democracy in the era of open orbits.

Nasr Taha Mustafa, chairman of Yemeni Journalists Syndicate, said that the syndicate is to adopt an code of honor during the next week after presenting and passing it to the journalists syndicate branches in the governorates.

The first meeting of the conference criticized the lack of participants’ diagnosis of the situation experienced by the Yemeni press in different backgrounds, the cultural authority in the in government, and the opposition that governing the fourth authority that is the press and forced journalist to write what line with its policy.

Nabil al-Sofi, manager of the Yemeni Media Group and chief-editor of News Yemen website confirmed in a paper presented during the meeting titled “How can the press be a fourth power in our country?” It expressed the need to search for the press needs to have power. He suggested a number of actions that can contribute to the composition of the press that are put laws protect the ability of the press to cover government activities, parties, and personalities and to avoid libel and redress, and dealing with everyone at minimum standards of equality.

Al-Sofi concluded in his talk that the press needs to be a fourth authority if there is regulated and compulsory law.

Sami Ghaleb, chief-editor of al-Neda newspaper called for the reform of media system, saying “the reform of public media institutions must begin”, stressing that the continuation of the current way makes the press sharply. He suggested the formation of an independent board to manage the public media institutions.

Minister of Information, Hassan al-Lawzi defended in the first day of the symposium the existence of his ministry and its importance replaying the repeated calls to nullify it indicating to more dangerous sides that regulates and control the media in countries that don't have ministries of information.

Al-Lawzi made points on some of the working papers presented in the function saying that the Ministry is working on amending Press Law to be able to respond to the need of journalists and some articles concerning the journalist syndicate and rejected the claims that press freedom in Yemen has a limited margin of freedom as evidenced by 30 licenses issued in 2007.
 
In responding to the accusations of revoking the al-wasat newspaper license, al-Luzi said that al-wasat lacks objective and legal conditions that the paper didn't renew its license and pay the simple fees. He said that it was not stopped due to any publication crimes.

In a court hearing, the al-wasat was awarded its licsense back, as well as a YR 50,000 from the Ministry of Information.

Al-Lawzi also criticized the talk of Ryan Gliha, Public Affairs Officer of the United States Embassy in Sana'a on independence of media in the U.S. and said that there are official media organizations in Europe and the U.S., naming BBC and Sawa Radio and France.

Former Dean of the College of Media, Dr.Ahmed ba-Sordah expressed his rejection of any administrative decisions the Information Ministry takes against newspapers and journalists and that all legal actions have to come from Justice Authority.

The American cultural attaché in Sana'a praised press liberty in Yemen in comparison with the Gulf countries, mentioning the three media stations in Yemen as realized in the independent, partisan and official media, which is not found in Saudi Arabia, where he used to work, ensuring that they care for such issues at the American embassy.

The American attaché pointed out to their last year's observation over the official and unofficial press violations, considering it a challenge to press freedom, quoting papers which faced threats during the few past months, including al-Shari', al-Masdar, al-Sabah and al-Wasat.

The attaché considered the press freedom as an integrated part of the democratic community, ensuring the existence of a Yemeni democratic community and regretting the press abuses. He showed their willingness at the embassy to help Yemen in the challenges which face the Yemeni press, hoping for improvements within the near future.

The attaché also criticized the lack of comprehensive international professional journalistic measures in Yemen, confirming that the existence of such measures are the duty of the journalists' syndicate, turning the attention to the nonexistence of a Ministry of Information in America.

Eradt Shaab considered the symposium as a commencement of the launch of press freedom, calling that the press should be the source of awareness, and calling the influential to create a freedom environment through dialogue.

The Eradt Shaab organization continues their debates, discussing several papers including Nabil al-Sufi's on how to form a fourth power facility.

 

In a special statement to Yemen observer, Dr. Bilqis al-Hadharani, editor of al-Ahia' al-Arabi newspaper, said the debate shows the united Yemen's interest over the press' cultural and political role in promotion and building of democratic institutions.

Dr. al- Hadharani confirmed the importance of progress in press addressing in order to meet the national social, political and cultural challenges which are now facing the country and called for giving the press more freedom to encourage more journals and journalists proficiency.

She also highlighted the necessity of personal accountability for shouldering the country's stability and security.

She also spoke of the constructive role that the press can play in building the country, whereas it could also be destructive by creating skeptic situations over the countries stance, calling for the constrictive incorporation of credible information which promotes national unity.

Dr. al- Hadrami reiterated that criticism is a double-edged sword of construction and destruction, calling for the choice of the constructive one which preserves our 1990 national unity, that adopted democracy and multiparty system.

Abdlbari Taher, former journalist syndicate head, said that as the journalists are the sector that is most subjected to persecution, oppression and death, besides they are the people with least life span and highly honorable, we greet them on their anniversary.

He hoped for more journal freedom safety, because freedom is meaningless, without free press, calling for integration for the sake freedom of speech that contributes to fighting corruption, because a journalist endeavor is for the community and not for a personal benefit.

Journalist Nabil al-Sufi, hoped for the Yemenization of the event, at the wake of the celebration of a ruling in the advantage of a journalist, hoping that next year will witness more such celebrations. He said that the detention and release's corner into which the press is pushed, belittles the press' role which is still new in the country and did not receive any recognition neither from the community nor did the authority, adding that it belongs to a 20 million populace and not just the disputing hundred thousands.

Jamal Amir, al-Wasat editor, said that the judicial ruling regarding the annulment of the Minister's decision made him feel that there is a real International Press Freedom day, considering the ruling to be a reward for all journalists, because it deprived the ministry of the authority of the free hand in canceling the press licenses.

He said that the tension between the authority and the journalists is attributed to the authority's belief that the journalist reflect unfair image of the country's situation, while it is the journalists' duty to reflect the community's real image, and it is the authority's duty to remove this wrong image, and take seriously what is published in the press in order to set it right.

Journalist Ahmed al-Shra'bi, said that the Press Freedom Day means to him the freedom of speech and the prevalence of justice fairness, peace and freedom. He called for the journalists to unite for accomplishing change, the public interest and to stand beside the just principles. He said that press freedom is a corner stone for the Yemen civilized development project for building a modern state.

Saeed Thabit, the first deputy journalist syndicate, said that the Arab journalists still suffer detention, harassment and suppression, hoping for future situations' improvement.

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