President of the National Union of Tunisian Journalists (SNJT), Zied Dabbar, has described the prosecution procedures of of journalist Zied El Heni as a “legal scandal”. He added: “The unjust imprisonment of three journalists for doing their job is unprecedented in the history of journalism in Tunisia.’
Dabbar was speaking at a meeting organised by the SNJT on Wednesday on the forms of escalation to be decided to defend rights and freedoms and demand the release of journalists Zied El Heni, Khelifa El Guesmi and Chadha Haj Mbarek.
He stated that “far from seeking immunity, journalists are demanding working conditions that guarantee freedom of expression and the exercise of their profession without threat.”
The SNJT president recalled that since 2011, Tunisian journalists have been campaigning against prosecutions on the basis of the Telecommunications Code. However, he pointed out that 31 journalists were prosecuted in 2023, including 8 under Decree Law No. 2022-54 of September 13, 2022 on combating offen
ces related to information and communication systems.
Zied Dabbar called for a trial date to be set as soon as possible for journalist Khalifa Guesmi, who he said was ‘unjustly detained.’
The head of te SNJT said the ‘President of the Republic has adopted a double discourse, embracing the principles of the revolution on the one hand and acting against freedom of expression on the other. Today, the judiciary is targeting freedom of expression and voices defending freedom of expression,” he added.
For his part, the former president of the SNJT, Yassine Jelassi, pointed out that a policy hostile to freedom of expression had been confirmed by Decree-Law 54, which “obstructs the work of journalists and subjugates the press”.
According to him, the Zied El Heni affair has shown that free voices critical of the general policy of the state are a source of concern for those in power.
The SNJT is planning a series of protests in the coming days to defend freedom of expression and demand the release of Zied El Heni,
Chadha Haj Mbarek and Khalifa Guesmi.
On Monday, the Public Prosecutor’s Office issued a warrant of committal against Zied El Heni for offences against third parties on public networks, as defined in Article 86 of the Telecommunications Code, and set a court hearing for January 10.
Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse
The Embu law courts have set aside special rooms where all matters touching on children will be heard in a child-friendly environment.
Besides the children’s courtroom being decorated with bright colours and cartoon characters, a happy place has also been established where children can spend quality time amusing themselves with toys, reading books, or drawing.
The premises will also have quality sanitary facilities and other amenities for the comfort of the children, as well as a separate interview room.
Embu Chief Magistrate Francis Kyambia said children are normally vulnerable when they come to court, either as children in conflict with the law or as victims of crime, and added that the space was necessary to help them cope with the trauma of being in court.
He said because children sometimes fear to testify in the presence of their violators, special care has been taken to ensure a witness box that allows a one-way visual interface will be deployed to ensure the children do not directly face those who
may torment them in court.
A representative of children’s charity Lumos, Ms Grace Mwangi said the place was conceived with the idea of giving children a relaxed environment.
She expressed hope that the Judiciary will replicate similar projects in all the courts in the country.
The Embu County Co-coordinator of Children’s Services Daveline Mundi said the project will ensure children’s matters are dealt with in a friendly space and described the project as the best New Year gift for Embu children.
Source: Kenya News Agency