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Egyptian media reflects xenophobic sentiment of military

14 Aug 2013 | Egypt, News and features, Politics and Society, Religion and Culture

An Egyptian protestor holds a sign showing the anger of some Egyptian people towards the American government. (Photo: Amr Abdel-Hadi / Demotix)

Index on Censorship condemns today’s attacks on protest camps in Cairo and other cities and calls on Egyptian authorities to respect the right to peaceful protest. Live coverage Al Jazeera | BBC | The Guardian

Xenophobia in general and anti-US sentiment, in particular, have peaked in Egypt since the June 30 rebellion that toppled Islamist President Mohamed Morsi and the Egyptian media has, in recent weeks, been fuelling both.

Some Egyptian newspapers and television news has been awash with harsh criticism of the US administration perceived by the pro-military, anti-Morsi camp as aligning itself with the Muslim Brotherhood. The media has also contributed to the increased suspicion and distrust of foreigners, intermittently accusing them of “meddling in Egypt’s internal affairs” and “sowing seeds of dissent to cause further unrest”.

A front page headline in bold red print in the semi-official Al Akhbar newspaper on Friday 8 Aug proclaimed that “Egypt rejects the advice of the American Satan.” The paper quoted “judicial sources” as saying there was evidence that the US embassy had committed “crimes” during the January 2011 uprising, including positioning snipers on rooftops to kill opposition protesters in Tahrir Square.

The stream of anti-US rhetoric in both the Egyptian state and privately-owned media has come in parallel with criticism of US policies toward Egypt by the country’s de facto ruler, Defense Minister Abdel Fattah el Sissi, who in a rare interview last week, told the Washington Post that the “US administration had turned its back on Egyptians, ignoring the will of the people of Egypt.” He added that “Egyptians would not forget this.”

Demonizing the US is not a new trend in Egypt. In fact, anti-Americanism is common in the country where the government has often diverted attention away from its own failures by pointing the finger of blame at the United States. The public has meanwhile, been eager to play along, frustrated by what is often perceived as “a clear US bias towards Israel”.

In Cairo’s Tahrir Square, anti-American banners reflect the increased hostility toward the US harboured by opponents of the ousted president and pro-Morsi protesters alike, with each camp accusing the US of supporting their rivals. One banner depicts a bearded Obama and suggests that “the US President supports terrorism” while another depicts US ambassador to Egypt Anne Patterson with a blood red X mark across her face.

The expected nomination of US Ambassador Robert Ford — a former ambassador to Syria who publicly backed the Syrian opposition that is waging war to bring down the regime of Bashar El Assad — to replace Patterson, has infuriated Egyptian revolutionaries, many of whom have vented their anger on social media networks Facebook and Twitter. In a fierce online campaign against him by the activists, Ford has been criticized as the “new sponsor of terror” with critics warning he may be “targeted” if he took up the post. Ambassador Ford who has been shunned by the embattled Syrian regime, has also been targeted by mainstream Egyptian media with state-owned Al Ahram describing him as “a man of blood” for allegedly “running death squads in Iraq” and “an engineer of destruction in Syria, Iraq and Morocco.” The independent El Watan newspaper has also warned that Ambassador Ford would “finally execute in Egypt what all the invasions had failed to do throughout history.”

The vicious media campaign against Ford followed critical remarks by a military spokesman opposing his possible nomination. “You cannot bring someone who has a history in a troubled region and make him ambassador, expecting people to be happy with it”, the spokesman had earlier said.
Rights activist and publisher Hisham Qassem told the Wall Street Journal last week that “Egyptian media often adopts the state line to avoid falling out of favour with the regime.”

Statements by US Senator John McCain who visited Egypt last week to help iron out differences between the ousted Muslim Brotherhood and the military, have further fuelled the rising tensions between Egypt and the US. McCain suggested that the June 30 uprising was a “military coup”, sparking a fresh wave of condemnation of US policy in the Egyptian press.

“If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, then it’s a duck,” Senator John McCain had said at a press briefing in Cairo. He further warned that Egypt was “on the brink of all-out bloodshed.” The remarks earned him the wrath of opponents of the toppled president who protested that his statements were “out of line” and “unacceptable.” The Egyptian press meanwhile has accused him of siding with the Muslim Brotherhood and of allegedly employing members of the Islamist group in his office.

The anti-Americanism in Egypt is part of wider anti-foreign sentiment that has increased since the January 2011 uprising and for which the media is largely responsible. Much like in the days of the 2011 uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak, the country’s new military rulers are accusing “foreign hands” of meddling in the country’s internal affairs, blaming them for the country’s economic crisis and sectarian unrest. The US has also been lambasted for funding pro-reform activists and civil society organizations working in the field of human rights and democracy.

Ahead of a recent protest rally called for by Defense Minister Abdel Fattah El Sissi to give him “a mandate to counter terrorism”, the government warned it would deal with foreign reporters covering the protests as spies. As a result of the increased anti-foreign rhetoric in the media, a number of tourists and foreign journalists covering the protests have come under attack in recent weeks. There have also been several incidents where tourists and foreign reporters were seized by vigilante mobs looking out for “spies” and who were subsequently taken to police stations or military checkpoints for investigation. While most of them were quickly freed, Ian Grapel — an Israeli-American law student remains in custody after being arrested in June on suspicion of being a Mossad agent sent by Israel to sow “unrest.”

Attacks on journalists covering the protests and the closure of several Islamist TV channels and a newspaper linked to the Muslim Brotherhood do not auger well for democracy and freedoms in the new Egypt. The current atmosphere is a far cry from the change aspired for by the opposition activists who had taken to Tahrir Square just weeks ago demanding the downfall of an Islamist regime they had complained was restricting civil liberties and freedom of speech.

The increased level of xenophobia and anti-US sentiment could damage relations with America and the EU at a time when the country is in need of support as it undergoes what the new interim government has promised would be a “successful democratic transition.”

This article was originally published on 14 Aug, 2013 at indexoncensorship.org. Index on Censorship: The voice of free expression

Preserving Timbuktu’s exiled manuscripts

16 Jul 2013 | Africa

A public campaign has been launched to protect fragile manuscripts rescued from Timbuktu during the Mali crisis earlier this year. Sara Yasin reports

The campaign, called “Libraries in Exile”, is raising money for protection and storage for the documents. They are now threatened by moisture damage, thanks to inadequate storage and a change in humidity. The campaign will use donations to reverse existing damage, and to purchase moisture traps and archival boxes. Many of the texts were transferred to Bamako, the country’s southern capital.

The ancient religious texts, some dating back 700 years, were initially thought to have been destroyed by rebels belonging to radical Islamist group Ansar Dine. At least 4,200 documents were damaged by either looting or arson during the crisis, but approximately 300,000 documents were saved.

A UN mission was sent to Mali to assess the damage, from 28 May to 3 June 2013. A programme specialist in UNESCO’s cultural section, David Stehl, told the Associated Press that “4,203 manuscripts were either burned by the Islamists or stolen.”

Most of the manuscripts were housed at the Ahmed Baba Institute, a state-owned library that became Ansar Dine’s headquarters when they captured Timbuktu in March 2012. While they initially did not know the value of the manuscripts, they eventually went looking for them. One of the institute’s employees, Alkamiss Cisse told the Washington Post that once the jihadists “heard of the manuscripts’ importance to the world, they would destroy them.”

In June 2012, fighters from Ansar Dine began destroying Timbuktu’s historic shrines and tombs for being “idolatrous.”

Timbuktu is a UNESCO world heritage site. The organisation listed it as “endangered” following Ansar Dine’s takeover of Mali’s government in March. Shortly before the fighters began destroying the shrines, UNESCO warned that the Ansar Dine’s presence might endanger the city’s “outstanding architectural wonders”.

Timbuktu Deputy Mayor Sandy Haidara told Reuters at the time that the attack was “a direct reaction to the UNESCO decision.”

A team of librarians and archivists risked their lives to smuggle the documents out of Timbuktu. The manuscripts, hailing from centres of medieval learning in Timbuktu, Arabia, Egypt, Morocco, Andalusia and Southern Europe, and the Arab trading ports on the Indian Ocean. Timbuktu was once a lively trading hub, and was key to Islam’s spread in West Africa.

Sara Yasin is an Editorial Assistant at Index. She tweets from @missyasin

Free expression in the news

10 Jul 2013 | In the News

INDEX EVENTS
18 July New World (Dis)Order: What do Turkey, Russia and Brazil tell us about freedom and rights?
Index, in partnership with the European Council on Foreign Relations, is holding a timely debate on the shifting world order and its impact on rights and freedoms. The event will also launch the latest issue of Index on Censorship magazine, including a special report on the multipolar world.
(More information)

BAHRAIN
Allowing freedom of expression and peaceful assembly is the only way to stop violence
Bahrain opposition parties are following with great concern the deteriorating security situation in Bahrain, by which the authorities are dragging the country into the unknown.
(ABNA.co)

BURMA
Burma’s lower house passes restrictive press law
Going against its own Press Council, parliamentarians in Burma have passed a restrictive new press law that will restrict freedom of the press, Mike Harris reports.
(Index on Censorship)

CHINA
Sina Weibo Credit System Has Docked 200k Users, Dealt with 15 Million Complaints
A little over a year ago, in response to mounting concerns about the spread of harmful rumors on its platform, Sina Weibo implemented a “credit” system.
(Tech in Asia)

FRANCE
French First lady forced to pay legal costs after dropping libel action against journalist who claimed two politicians ‘shared’ her as a mistress
French first lady Valerie Trierweiler was today forced to pay legal costs to a writer who accused her of being the ‘shared’ mistress of two married politicians.
(Daily Mail)

MOROCCO
Free speech sidelined in Morocco
Despite promising reform and introducing a new constitution in 2011, Morocco’s treatment of dissidents indicates the changes were just window dressing, Samia Errazzouki writes
(Index on Censorship)

RUSSIA
Journalist Akhmednabi Akhmednabiev killed in Russia
Akhmednabi Akhmednabiev, a well-known Russian journalist who reported on human rights violations in the Caucasus, was shot dead near his house around 7am local time today. Andrei Aliaksandrau reports
(Index on Censorship)

Russian Lawmaker to Create Defense From Gays Group
A Siberian regional lawmaker who has advocated the flogging of gay people in public said Tuesday that he intends to set up a group to protect Russians from homosexuals.
(RiaNovosti)

Russia drops curtain on Bolshoi director
The Bolshoi Theater, racked by feuds, scandals, criminal charges and tantrums as over-the-top as its recent extravagant renovation, lost its general director Tuesday when he was fired by Russia’s culture minister.
(Washington Post)

TUNISIA
Bare-chested street actors accused of indecency in Tunisia
Some Tunisian street performers, whose bare chests prompted an attack by audience members, have been released after being charged with public indecency.
(UPI)

TURKEY
European Commission ‘concerned’ by detentions targeting Gezi protests’ pioneers
The European Union’s commissioner for enlargement, Stefan Füle, has expressed concern over the detention of Taksim Solidarity Platform members who were involved from the start of the Gezi Park protests.
(HUrriyet Daily News)

UNITED KINGDOM
IPSO proposal an opportunity to break Leveson deadlock
The industry’s proposal for a new press regulator is not perfect. But it’s a starting point for proper discussion on the future of Britain’s free press, says Padraig Reidy
(Index on Censorship)

Rizzle Kicks ‘called libel lawyers’ over John Terry, Jeremy Kyle lyrics
Rizzle Kicks have mocked John Terry and Jeremy Kyle in their latest song.
The rap duo unveiled their new track ‘Lost Generation’ yesterday (July 8), which makes reference to Chelsea footballer Terry’s race trial.
(Digital Spy)

UNITED STATES
Ex-Bengals cheerleader to continue testimony in libel lawsuit over posts on gossip website
A former Cincinnati Bengals cheerleader suing a gossip website for alleged defamation was expected to continue testimony for a second day in her lawsuit’s retrial.
(Washington Post)

FROM INDEX ON CENSORSHIP MAGAZINE
Global view: Who has freedom of expression?
Freedom of expression is a universal, fundamental human right. But who actually has access to free expression? Index CEO Kirsty Hughes looks at the evidence.
(Index on Censorship)

Global view: Who has freedom of expression?
Freedom of expression is a universal, fundamental human right. But who actually has access to free expression? Index CEO Kirsty Hughes looks at the evidence.
(Index on Censorship)

The multipolar challenge to free expression
As emerging markets command influence on the international stage, Saul Estrin and Kirsty Hughes look at the impact on economics, politics and human rights.
(Index on Censorship)

News in monochrome: Journalism in India
The media’s infatuation with a single narrative is drowning out the country’s diversity, giving way to sensationalist reporting and “paid for” news. But, says Bharat Bhushan, moves towards regulation could have a chilling effect too
(Index on Censorship)

Censorship: The problem child of Burma’s dictatorship
Writer and artist Htoo Lyin Myo gives his personal account of working under government censorship in Burma
(Index on Censorship)

Free expression in the news

9 Jul 2013 | In the News

Censorship: The problem child of Burma’s dictatorship
Writer and artist Htoo Lyin Myo gives his personal account of working under government censorship in Burma
(Index on Censorship)

BURMA
Burma’s Press Council Threatens Resignation Over Media Rules
Members of Burma’s interim Press Council say they will resign if the newly minted Printing and Publishing Enterprise Bill is passed into law in its current guise.
(The Irrawaddy)

CHINA
State of the artist in China
“What can they do to me?” asks Ai Weiwei. “Who is afraid of Ai Weiwei?” sprays a young woman on city buildings in Hong Kong. You can hate him or love him but you can’t ignore Ai Weiwei.
(The Hindu)

GLOBAL
All the ways Google is asked to censor the web, in one handy chart
Google recently released statistics on all the legal requests it gets to censor the Web via its many services, from Search to YouTube. Now Sebastian Sadowski has created some handy visualizations of all the ways information is being censored — perhaps without you even realizing it.
(io9)

INDIA
To free the press or not to: the Indira govt debate?
The Indira Gandhi government feared Emergency and its various aspects, including the controversial family planning programme, would see the government “severely criticised” if press censorship was lifted in the run-up to the March 1977 Lok Sabha elections.
(Indian Express)

‘India has a strong culture for cinema’
Cinema is a movement that lets you enter the personal space of subjects without disturbing them and the art lies in then knitting a story around them, acclaimed French filmmaker Claire Denis said on Monday while addressing a news conference at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII).
(Times of India)

IRAN
Iran’s Rouhani Set to Revamp Censorship?
Iranian President-elect Hassan Rouhani may be set to revamp the country’s censorship, according to a speech he delivered in Tehran.
(Israel National News)

NEW ZEALAND
Critic claims censorship on Collins Wiki
Justice Minister Judith Collins’ office has become embroiled in a Wikipedia war with ministry critic Roger Brooking. Brooking is an outspoken critic of Collins and the Justice Ministry and was a prolific Wikipedia editor – now banned – under the username Offender9000.
(Southland Times)

RUSSIA
Guest Post: International solidarity with Russian civil society is crucial
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(Index on Censorship)

Russia to Develop ‘Code of Ethics’ for Film Industry
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(The Hollywood Reporter)

SINGAPORE
US ‘deeply concerned’ by Singapore Internet rules
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(Inquirer)

TUNISIA
Hollande’s Tunisia Visit Upsets
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(Al Monitor)

UNITED STATES
Top Attorney Floyd Abrams Has Defended Free Speech For Over 40 Years
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(NY1)

Coalition calls for veto of NJ media violence ‘disinformation bill’
The National Coalition Against Censorship, American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression and the Center for Democracy and Technology sent a letter to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie today asking him to veto Senate Bill 2715, which would require the state’s Department of Education “to prepare and distribute informational pamphlets on how parents can limit a child’s exposure to media violence,” which includes video games, according to the text of the bill.
(Polygon)

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