Threats to a Free Press and Free Speech in Emerging Democracies

Jane Novak

OpEdNews.Com

As noted by Stamford University , since 1974 more than 60 countries in Eastern Europe , Southern Europe , Latin America , Asia and Africa have made transitions from authoritarian regimes to some form of democracy. (1) Many around the Arab world are calling for some reform or democratization in the Middle East .

While many governments in the Middle East are striving for economic and political growth, the development agenda is largely silent about censorship, journalistic immunity and free speech. According to international law, governments can limit speech that advocates national, racist, or religious hatred and constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence. A recent ruling by the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda convicted journalists of incitement. The case highlighted the danger of an unrestrained, politically motivated media that calls for violent action and can indeed produce a genocidal response from the public. A mature and responsible media does not promote or glorify violence.

As Butros Butros-Gali noted nearly a decade ago, “Democratic institutions and processes channel competing interests into arenas of discourse and provide means of compromise that can be respected by all people.”(4) The structure of democracy rests upon a platform of knowledgeable citizens. Freedom of the press is the fundamental prerequisite for a functional democracy. In a reforming state, the dynamic between state stability and popular empowerment is often played out as a conflict between the press and the state. Journalists in dozens of nations are currently imprisoned for incitement. In many of these cases, repression of the press and the targeting of journalists are mechanisms for inhibiting dissent, public discussion and political opposition.

Most Middle Eastern governments have enacted laws protecting journalists from the state and protecting the state from journalists. Numerous states in the region have laws explicitly prohibiting journalists from the publication of facts that report unflattering social issues or social discord, or that criticize leadership or government performance. These are the most important topics for journalists in a democracy. Censorship emasculates the citizenry and prohibits the population from serving its democratic function: informed discussion, debate, and decision making. Beyond explicit censorship, an entrenched political culture that values stability and protection of current regime structures is a heavy burden on free speech and thus democratic evolution in the Middle East .

It is a telling statement about the rigors of political evolution that this week’s Arab Intergovernmental Regional Democracy Conference in Sana’a, Yemen prohibited journalists and some NGOs from attendance. Delegates representing all the Arab states met to discuss ways of promoting democracy and strengthening the rule of law. Representatives from neighboring Asian and African countries, international organizations and some western states were also in attendance at the conference sponsored by the EU and Yemen . The attendees seemed to have omitted a discussion of ways to strengthen democracy by encouraging honest and informed debate among their constituencies in the Arab world.

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh called democracy “the rescue ship” for political regimes and the “choice of the modern age for all people….”(2) Arab League Secretary-General Amir Moussa pointed to many forces inhibiting the flourishing development of Arab States including economic and social problems and regional political crises. Yemeni journalists were prohibited from attending the inaugural ceremony and were not permitted to take photographs. The National Organization for the Defense of Rights and Freedoms was excluded altogether. The organization reports itself to be “astonished.”(3)

Yemen is an example of a country steadfastly working toward a fuller democracy while struggling with countervailing influences. In this case, the government apparatus is attempting to withdraw journalistic freedoms already in place. The proposed and pending Yemeni Journalist Syndicate Draft Law would inhibit free speech and violate sections of Yemen ’s constitution. Lawyers, journalists and trade unionists have criticized the law which they say will convert the syndicate into a punitive apparatus. The legislation would have a chilling effect on independent reporting and free speech nationally. Only a shadow of the democratic potential of the Yemeni people would exist.

The Committee to Protect Journalists has asked President Salah to withdraw the bill which it states “limits the ability of Yemen ’s citizens to freely disseminate and receive information.”(5) The Yemeni Journalists Syndicate itself has also requested the government withdraw and cancel the bill. More than declarations issued at the Sana’a Democratic Conference, the outcome of the conflict over the proposed journalists legislation will be an indication of the Yemeni government’s commitment to democratization.

Jane Novak, Freehold, NJ Gavsrule@aol.com is a contributor to the Yemen Times.

 

      Sources

      (1) http://democracy.stanford.edu  Stamford University

(2) http://www.arabnews.com  The Arab News

(3) yementimes.com 01/12/04

      (4) www.library.yale.edu/un/un3d3.htm

(5) http://www.cjp.org/protests/03ltrs/Yemen09dec03pl.html