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Gaddafi is suing three newspapers for reporting that Maghreb countries are non-democratic
Egyptian human rights organizations: We stand in solidarity with you and we add Egypt to these countries
Cairo, May 17, 2009.
Egyptian human rights organizations signatories to this statement said today that they stand in solidarity with the three Moroccan newspapers, as their first trial session will start tomorrow Monday, May 18, as a result of the lawsuits filed by the Libyan Embassy in Morocco on behalf of the Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi, which threatens them with penalties of up to two years imprisonment.
The Libyan Embassy submitted three complaints against three newspapers, namely; "al-Ahdath al-Maghrebeya, al-Jarida al-Oula, al-Massaa", accusing them of harming the dignity of the Libyan President since these newspapers criticized the way of governing in the Maghreb countries and Libya, describing it as nondemocratic, and that Gaddafi came to rule through a coup d'état, and that he has childish positions.
The Egyptian human rights organizations said that "It seems that President Gaddafi wants to silence voices which criticize his way of governing or refuse to dissemble him, especially as he approaches his fortieth anniversary of seizing power in Libya, and we stand in solidarity with the three Moroccan newspapers, and we add Egypt to these countries which they described as nondemocratic, thus, criticism shall now include all countries in North Africa."
"Colonel Gaddafi, who has repeatedly made public rhetorical statements about the alleged reforms in recent years, forgot or pretended to have forgotten that there shall be no democracy without freedom of expression, and that suppression of freedom of expression is a feature of all the Governments of North Africa, especially Libya and Tunisia," added the Egyptian NGO's.
The Egyptian human rights organizations, which stressed their condemnation of any violation of the right of criticism exercised by some newspapers, demand Gaddafi to backtrack on the judicial prosecution of the three Moroccan newspapers, pursuant to the statements he often makes on political reform, or else such statements would turn into mere empty babble and hollow promises.
Other information:
http://www.anhri.net/en/reports/2009/pr0422.shtml
Signatory NGOs:
- The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information.
- Association for Human Rights and Legal Aid.
- Egyptian Center for the Rights of the Child
- The Civil Observatory Society for Human Rights
- The association of freedom of thought and expression
- The Awn Society for Human Rights
- The Egyptian Center for Development and Human Rights
- Group for human rights legal aid
- Hemaia Center for Protecting Human Rights Defenders
- Journalists Without Rights
- Ibn Khaldon Centre for Development Studies
- The Arab Organization for Supporting the Civil Society and Human Rights
- Forum for Development and Human Rights Dialogue
- Hoqouqi Association for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
- The National Center for Human Rights
- Women's group for Human Rights
- Carmel Association for Digital Media
- Unity Center for Development and Human Rights
- Alnadeem Centre for Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence
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