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IFEX-TMG Outraged at Imprisonment of Tunisian Comedian Hédi Ouled Baballah 15 February 2008 - The Tunisia Monitoring Group (TMG) is calling for the release of a
Tunisian comedian charged and jailed last week on the basis of suspect
evidence, which in reality, it believes, is a punishment for mimicking
the country's president. The trigger seems to have been a private recording of comedian Hédi
Ouled Baballah's satirical imitation of Tunisian president Zine
el-Abidine Ben Ali, which has been spread across the country by mobile
phone. The TMG believes that Ouled Baballah was targeted by police and
framed for drugs and currency charges as punishment for making the
popular satire. (Photo: Kalima)  
TMG Condemns Jail Sentence of Journalist Slim Boukhdir 18 January 2008 - The TMG condemns the unfair ruling issued on Friday by a Tunisian court of appeal confirming a
one-year prison sentence against journalist Slim Boukhdhir. They also called for his immediate release after explaining that
Boukhdhir's main crime was independent journalism. It's obvious that the court has been instructed to
issue such a vindictive and politically motivated verdict," said Mohamed
Abbou, a prominent human rights lawyer and former prisoner of opinion, who
observed the trial on behalf of TMG. CPJ and RSF also condemned the verdict.
Journalist and Rights Defender Kamel Labidi Finally Receives Passport 17 January 2008 - After
more than six months, independent
journalist and rights defender Kamel Labidi has finally received a
new passport from the Tunisian Embassy in Washington DC. He had
not been given his passport since he applied for a new one in
July. His case has elicited condemnation from CPJ, HRInfo
and dozens of other rights groups, as well as attracting attention in the media in Egypt.
To read the HRInfo-led joint statement, click
here.
Human Wrongs: Documentary on Tunisia's Civil Rights Underground 20 December 2007 - Check out this video on the Tunisian human rights movement, shown on Al Jazeera in June 2007, and posted on You Tube.
TMG members appeal to UN; WPFC writes to Tunisian Ambassador 3 December 2007 - TMG members have been busy writing letters to promote free expression in Tunisia.
The TMG has written to UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, who was recently in Tunisia celebrating Ben Ali's 20th anniversary in power.
WPFC, International PEN and the IPA submitted the TMG's April mission report to the UN Universal Periodic Review. To read the letter, click
here.
RIGHTS ACTIVISTS SPEAK OUT AT WASHINGTON CONFERENCE 21 November 2007 -
Six Tunisian human rights activists descended on Washington, D.C. on 13
November to highlight violations in Tunisia under President Ben Ali, who marks his 20th anniversary in power this month.
Recently freed dissident Mohamed Abbou was invited to the conference, but he was not permitted to travel, nor was
Judge Ahmed Rahmouni. (Photo: Hassiba Hadj Sahraou, Amnesty International and Naziha Rejiba, OLPEC) To see video of the event, click: here. 15 November 2007 -
IFEX's Tunisia Monitoring Group, with Human Rights Watch, Human Rights
First, Amnesty International-USA and the International Federation for
Human Rights, invited Tunisian rights activists to an event on 13 November in Washington, D.C.
to examine Tunisia's human rights record and make
recommendations for improvement. To see video of the event, click:
here.
HRINFO RELEASES REPORT ON TUNISIAN ADS POSING AS NEWS 15 November 2007 - On the 20th anniversary of President Ben Ali's
rule, the Arabic Network for Human Rights (HRInfo) revealed the names of 8 Egyptian publications that have continued to print
paid ads as news articles that show Tunisia and Ben Ali as models of democracy. (See the full
English report here.)
4 September 2007 - The day after the defamation case against Tunisian editor Omar Mestiri
was suspended, one of his lawyer's offices was torched, report the
Observatory for Freedom of the Press, Publishing and Creation
(Observatoire pour la liberté de presse, d'édition et de creation,
OLPEC) and the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (HRInfo). (Photo: Front Line) 25 July 2007 - On 24 July, Tunisian dissident, writer and lawyer Mohamed Abbou was released from prison
where he had been held since his arrest in March 2005. Abbou was sentenced to prison for three and half years for exposing torture in Tunisian prisons on the Internet. Members of the IFEX-TMG joined the Observatoire pour la liberté de presse, d'édition et de
creation (OLPEC) and other rights groups in Tunisia in welcoming his release. Click here to read the first article by Mohamed Abbou since his release, published worldwide. (Photo: PDP) 11 April 2007 - Following a mission to Tunisia in February and March, the IFEX-TMG launched its fourth report - Freedom of Expression in Tunisia: The
Siege Holds - in Cairo, Washington, Paris and Geneva. The report, available in English, French and Arabic , states: "a lack of positive change has led us to conclude
that the Tunisian government has sought to further stifle dissidents since the previous TMG report of May 2006." Download the English version of the report here.
NEW U.N. CHIEF URGED TO CALL ATTENTION TO CENSORSHIP IN TUNISIA 23 January 2007 - An international coalition of free expression groups has urged new U.N.
Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to remind Tunisia of its obligations under international law to respect freedom of expression and other
human rights.
TUNISIA: JOURNALISTS, HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS HARASSED 6 December 2006 - The IFEX Tunisia Monitoring Group, a coalition of 16 free expression
organisations, is calling attention to human rights violations in Tunisia, where journalists and rights activists known for criticising
the government are being harassed by authorities.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION STILL UNDER SIEGE AFTER UN INTERNET SUMMIT 25 May 2006 - Free expression violations in Tunisia continue to run rampant, six months after the
government attracted controversy for muzzling civil society activists during the World Summit on the Information Society last November,
according to a new report by the IFEX Tunisia Monitoring Group.
TUNISIA SHOULD NOT BE ON UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL, SAYS TMG 9 May 2006 - Members of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange's (IFEX)
Tunisia Monitoring Group (TMG) are deeply concerned that, despite its unrelenting attacks on press freedom, free expression and freedom of
association, the Tunisian government today became a member of the newly established UN Human Rights Council.
IFEX TMG MEMBERS, CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS PULL OUT OF WSIS SIDE EVENTS TO PROTEST FREE EXPRESSION ATTACKS 16 November 2005 - The IFEX TMG has launched a
protest against Tunisia's hosting of the WSIS in the wake of attacks on journalists and human
rights activists in Tunis in the past few days. The coalition has cancelled plans to hold a WSIS side event today, saying
a series of incidents, including the stabbing of a French reporter, show how unfit Tunisia is to host a conference on freedom of expression and the Internet.
Other civil society groups participating in the Citizens Summit on the Information Society cancelled side events
in solidarity. (Click here for the CSIS statement.)
CIVIL SOCIETY CALLS FOR SUPPORT IN FACE OF POLITICAL PRESSURE IN TUNISIA 11 November 2005 - The Citizens' Summit on the Information Society (CSIS), to be held in
Tunis, on November 16-18, 2005, launched its website today with a call for solidarity and support. The CSIS is planned as a civil society side
event of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) but it is facing repeated obstructions in its efforts to secure a suitable venue
in Tunisia.
27 October 2005 - The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) offers a good opportunity
for the host country, Tunisia, to address freedom of expression concerns, says UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. In a letter responding to the concerns of more than
100 civil society organisations, the secretary general said free expression rights "are crucial to any country hoping to use information and communication
technologies to advance their economic and social development."
UN HUMAN RIGHTS EXPERT URGES RELEASE OF TUNISIAN POLITICAL PRISONERS 17 October 2005 - The UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, Ambeyi Ligabo, has called on
the Tunisian government to free all individuals who have been jailed for expressing their views or publishing articles critical of those in power.
"I have been alarmed by the polarization of opinions and the lack of dialogue with the Press, two elements which could seriously jeopardize the progress
of media freedom in the country," said the expert.
100 NGOS URGE UN TO PROBE HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN TUNISIA
6 October 2005 - More than 100 civil society organisations have signed a letter to UN
Secretary General Kofi Annan calling for an independent UN mission to Tunisia to probe human rights violations. The groups have expressed
grave concerns about a serious deterioration in human rights one month prior to the World Summit on the Information Society, which
takes place in Tunis.
NGOs PROTEST DETERIORATION OF RIGHTS IN TUNISIA TWO MONTHS AHEAD OF UN SUMMIT
9 September 2005 - International and Tunisian non-governmental organisations have expressed outrage
at the rapid deterioration of the human rights situation in Tunisia Just two months prior to the
World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), to be held in Tunis on November 15-18, 2005.
TUNISIA: IFEX-TMG URGES KOFI ANNAN TO ENCOURAGE TUNISIAN AUTHORITIES TO END ATTACKS ON FREE EXPRESSION
2 September 2005 - IFEX-TMG members have written to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to encourage
Tunisian authorities to end attacks on free expression. A version of this letter was also sent to representatives of the
European Union, Ministers of Foreign Affairs and representatives to the UN, including that of the USA.
CANADIAN CIVIL SOCIETY AFFIRMS IMPORTANCE OF FREE EXPRESSION AT WSIS
22 June 2005 - Canadian civil society organisations have
called on participants at the upcoming World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in Tunisia to respect the right to freedom of expression
and apply that principle to the summit itself.
TUNISIA: SERIOUS HUMAN RIGHTS CONCERNS REMAIN, SAY WATCHDOGS
10 May 2005 - The Tunisian government is failing to take
effective action to stop human rights abuses in the country, putting
its status as host of the November 2005 World Summit on the Information
Society (WSIS) in question, says the Tunisia Monitoring Group
(TMG), a coalition of 14 IFEX members that monitors free expression
violations in the North African country.
IFEX MEMBERS SPOTLIGHT TUNISIA AT UN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION
29 March 2005 - On 31 March 2005, members of the IFEX Tunisia
Monitoring Group (TMG) will highlight the worrying state of freedom of expression in Tunisia
at a panel discussion in Geneva during the annual session of the UN Commission on Human Rights.
TUNISIA: IFEX MEMBERS MOURN DEATH OF FREE EXPRESSION DEFENDER
16 March 2005 - IFEX members are paying tribute to Tunisian
cyber-dissident Zouhair Yahyaoui, who died suddenly of a heart attack on 13 March 2005 in Tunis. He was 36 years old.
FREE EXPRESSION UNDER SIEGE, SAYS IFEX MONITORING GROUP
22 February 2005 - The Tunisian government must take serious
steps to respect international standards on freedom of expression and other human rights if it is to earn its standing as the host
of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in November 2005, says the IFEX Tunisia Monitoring Group (TMG).
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JOURNALIST'S LIBEL CASE SUSPENDED; LAWYER'S OFFICE UP IN FLAMES
KOFI ANNAN RESPONDS TO CIVIL SOCIETY CONCERNS OVER TUNISIA'S HUMAN RIGHTS RECORD |