(RSF/IFEX) – On 5 September 2002, RSF denounced the confirmation of an eight-month prison sentence for Abdallah Zouari, a journalist for the banned weekly “Al Fajr” who was recently freed after 11 years in jail. “This disgraceful sentence, which completely violates the rules for a fair and balanced trial, exemplifies the way in which the […]
(RSF/IFEX) – On 5 September 2002, RSF denounced the confirmation of an eight-month prison sentence for Abdallah Zouari, a journalist for the banned weekly “Al Fajr” who was recently freed after 11 years in jail.
“This disgraceful sentence, which completely violates the rules for a fair and balanced trial, exemplifies the way in which the justice system works in Tunisia,” said RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard. “We are still waiting for proof regarding accusations that he ‘fabricated, possessed and transported ammunition, weapons and explosives.’ This man is a journalist, not a terrorist. The anti-terrorism campaign since the September 11 attacks is once again being used as an excuse to clamp down on opponents of the Carthage regime, especially if they are Islamic fundamentalists,” he said.
“To give another jail sentence to someone whose life has already been destroyed by 11 years in prison is quite inhumane. We demand that he be freed immediately and unconditionally,” said Ménard.
On 4 September, Zouari’s appeal of his eight-month prison sentence was rejected. His friends and family were barred from the trial and his lawyers withdrew from the case citing “the absence of conditions for a fair and independent trial.”
On 23 August, an eight-month jail sentence was imposed on Zouari by the Zarzis District Court for his “refusal to comply with an administrative decision”. This refers to a 15 July Interior Ministry letter notifying Zouari that he was required to live in Zarzis, in the southern governorate of Mednin, though he had been residing in Tunis since his release on 6 June. Zouari did not comply with the order, calling it “arbitrary.” He filed an appeal against the order with an administrative court, which has not yet issued a ruling. After arresting Zouari on 19 August in Tunis, the police took him to Harboub Prison in the Mednin governorate.
Zouari, a contributor to “Al Fajr”, the unofficial mouthpiece of the Islamic movement Ennahda, was arrested on 12 April 1991 and sentenced to 11 years’ imprisonment for “belonging to an illegal organisation”. He was also sentenced to a further five years of administrative control upon completion of his jail sentence, which means he must present himself regularly to the police station nearest his home.
The editor of “Al Fajr”, Hamadi Jebali, has been imprisoned since 1991. After completing a one-year sentence for an article criticising the system of military courts, the Tunis Military Court sentenced him to 16 years’ imprisonment for “aggressive intention to change the nature of the state” and “belonging to an illegal organisation”.
