(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter sent to the British attorney-general, John Morris, RSF expressed concern about threats of imprisonment made by a Belfast court against journalist Ed Malonay after he refused to give police his notes of an interview with a man charged with murder. While recognising the complexity of the case which involves several […]
(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter sent to the British attorney-general, John Morris,
RSF expressed concern about threats of imprisonment made by a Belfast court
against journalist Ed Malonay after he refused to give police his notes of
an interview with a man charged with murder. While recognising the
complexity of the case which involves several interests, including that of
the state, RSF pointed out that according to the European Court of Human
Rights, “the protection of journalists’ sources is one of the cornerstones
of press freedom.” RSF secretary-general Robert Ménard added that if this
protection was not assured, the press would be less capable of supplying
precise and reliable information on matters of general interest, and
journalists would risk reprisals.
On 2 September 1999, a court in Belfast, Northern Ireland, gave Malonay, a
Belfast-based journalist working for the “Sunday Tribune” in Dublin, a week
to hand over to the police his original notes of an interview with William
Stobie, a police informer charged with involvement in the 1989 murder of
Roman Catholic lawyer Pat Finucane. The journalist refused on the grounds
that revealing sources was contrary to journalistic ethics and could also
endanger him personally. When the week’s deadline is up, he faces a heavy
fine and a prison sentence of between six months and five years. Stobie’s
statements hinted that the Northern Ireland police had been informed that
Finucane’s murder was being planned. The Ulster Freedom Fighters, an armed
Protestant group, have claimed responsibility for the killing.
