(WiPC/IFEX) – The WiPC of International PEN condemns in the strongest terms the prison sentence handed down to Internet journalist Zouhair Yahyaoui. According to information received by PEN, Yahyaoui, who uses the pseudonym Ettounsi (the Tunisian), was sentenced to two years and four months’ imprisonment on 20 June 2002 by the Tribunal de Première Instance […]
(WiPC/IFEX) – The WiPC of International PEN condemns in the strongest terms the prison sentence handed down to Internet journalist Zouhair Yahyaoui. According to information received by PEN, Yahyaoui, who uses the pseudonym Ettounsi (the Tunisian), was sentenced to two years and four months’ imprisonment on 20 June 2002 by the Tribunal de Première Instance in Tunis. The founder of the Internet site TUNeZINE.com received one year for “propagation of false news”. He also received one year and four months for “non-authorised usage of an Internet connection” and “theft from an employer”. Yahyaoui did not attend the hearing, declaring that he “did not trust a justice that followed orders [from above].”
Yahyaoui was arrested on 4 June. He reported being assaulted and tortured during his interrogation. Under said torture, he revealed his website’s access code, allowing the Tunisian authorities to remove TUNeZINE.com from the Internet.
The website was set up in July 2001 in order to publish opposition material and disseminate information on the struggle for democracy in Tunisia. The authorities have tried to censor it since its inception.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to authorities:
– noting that Yahyaoui has been persecuted by the Tunisian authorities solely for peacefully exercising his right to freedom of expression as guaranteed by Article 19 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights
– calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Yahyaoui and the reinstatement of TUNeZINE.com
– urging the Tunisian authorities to investigate the alleged torture to which Yahyaoui was subjected and to bring those responsible to justice
Appeals To
Président Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
Président de la République
Palais Présidentiel
Tunis, Tunisie
Fax: +216 1 744 721
Hedi M’Henni
Ministre de l’Intérieur
Avenue Habib Bourguiba
1001 Tunis, Tunisie
Fax: +216 1 340 888
E-mail: mint@ministeres.tn
M. Bechir Takkari
Ministre de la Justice
Ministère de la Justice
31, Av. Bab Benat,
1006 Tunis – La Kasbah
Tunisie
Fax: + 216 1 568 106
E-mail: mju@ministeres.tn
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
