There was an “alarming increase” in violence against journalists in April, according to a report published by the National Syndicate of Tunisian Journalists (SNJT) on Friday. The monitoring unit of SNJT, an independent non-governmental association, recorded 20 attack cases on journalists out of the 25 notifications received from its direct sources.
As per the report, the attacks affected 46 victims, including 33 males and 13 females. The plan of attack targeted 32 journalists, five photographer-journalists, and seven media workers. The report also claimed that the attacks were implemented in real space on 22 occasions, and on two occasions they were done in virtual spaces. The victims of the attacks comprised journalists and media workers from 22 different media channels, including workers of different websites, news agencies, and radio and television channels. Moreover, the report claims that the perpetrators of the attacks included judicial authorities, security officials, media activists, and public and government officials along with deputies and citizens.
The monitoring agency of SNJT also put down certain recommendations for different government wings and judicial bodies in its report. The agency asked the Tunisian government to remove any government impediment in the works of public institutions during the production and transmission of real-time and accurate information to the media. The agency also asked the Tunisian interior ministry to strengthen and mandate laws to protect journalists and their work. The judicial body of the country was advised to regulate free trials of journalists in prison as per Decree 115 of 2011, which grants freedom of the press and the right to information in the country. This decree was passed in the aftermath of the pro-democratic wave in Tunisia, famously called the Arab Spring, which overthrew the longtime ruling dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has consistently asked the Tunisian government to protect the rights and freedom of journalists. In the recent increase in attacks on the freedom of the press, an Al Jazeera journalist was arrested in January by government authorities on undisclosed charges.
Since President Kais Saied took power in 2021, Al Jazeera’s Tunis Bureau has been closed down without any explanation from the ruling government. The government has cracked down on the press’ independence in the country, with journalists being put behind bars on unexplained grounds.
The International Federation of Journalists in an open letter called on Saied’s government to stop the prosecution of journalists and uphold the country’s constitution.
