Eritrea: Concern over continuing imprisonment of journalist
The World Association of Newspapers has written to the Eritrean authorities to express concern at the continuing imprisonment of journalist Dawit Isaac and the government's ongoing suppression of press freedom. "According to reports, Mr Isaac, a journalist, author and playwright, has been held in jail since his arrest in September 2001 for publishing a call for democratic reforms in Setit, the newspaper he founded on his return to Eritrea in 1996 after living in exile in Sweden for nine years," said the organisation.
To: IFEX Autolist (other news of interest)
From: World Association of Newspapers (WAN), [email protected]
His Excellency President Isaias Afworki
Asmara, Eritrea
C/o Permanent Representative to UN
Email: [email protected]
6 December 2004
Your Excellency,
We are writing on behalf of the World Association of Newspapers and the
World Editors Forum, which represent 18,000 publications in 100 countries,
to express our serious concern at the continuing imprisonment of journalist
Dawit Isaac and the government's ongoing suppression of press freedom.
According to reports, Mr Isaac, a journalist, author and playwright, has
been held in jail since his arrest in September 2001 for publishing a call
for democratic reforms in Setit, the newspaper he founded on his return to
Eritrea in 1996 after living in exile in Sweden for nine years. Setit, the
first independent newspaper in your country, was known for criticising the
government and reporting on abuses of power. At the same time as Mr Isaac
was arrested, your government closed all private and independent media and
jailed many critics.
Mr Isaac, who is a Swedish citizen, remains in prison without having been
given a fair trial. He was last seen at the beginning of 2002 when his wife
visited him in hospital where he was being treated for injuries which,
according to some sources, were the result of torture. All visitors to Mr
Isaac have since been banned and little is known of his condition, although
the government states that he is still alive.
We respectfully remind you that the jailing of Mr Isaac constitutes a clear
breach of his right to freedom of expression, which is guaranteed by
numerous international conventions, including Article 19 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights. Furthermore, the United Nations Commission on
Human Rights considers that "detention, as punishment for the peaceful
expression of an opinion, is one of the most reprehensible ways to enjoin
silence and, as a consequence, a grave violation of human rights".
We respectfully call on you to ensure that Mr Isaac is immediately released
from jail and that all charges against him are dropped. We urge you to take
all necessary steps to ensure that in future your country fully respects
international standards of freedom of expression.
We look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience.
Yours sincerely,
Seok Hyun Hong
President
World Association of Newspapers
George Brock
President
World Editors Forum
cc : Mr Kofi Annan, Secretary-General, United Nations
Mr Koichiro Matsuura, Director-General, UNESCO