A crackdown by Tunisian authorities on journalists and media figures is "methodically annihilating" what little remains of the country's hard-won freedoms, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said on Thursday. The rights groups said in a joint statement that authorities have "ramped up" their "repression of free speech" under Decree 54, a law against "false news", as the country readies for presidential elections set to take place this autumn.
The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Tunisian authorities to immediately and unconditionally release radio journalists Borhen Bssais and Mourad Zghidi after a Tunis court convicted them on May 22 of defamation and spreading false news, and sentenced them to one year in prison.
Journalists Jailed in Tunisia Amid Free Speech Crackdown occrp.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from occrp.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Tunisian pundits handed one-year prison sentences france24.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from france24.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The journalists were jailed for a year after falling foul of Decree 54. The law passed in 2022 punishes the use of communications to "produce or spread false news."