The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today criticised the six month jail term handed down to Tunisian journalist Taoufik Ben Brik, on 26 November, and the three month jail sentence and fine given today to Zoheir Makhlouf.

Ben Brik, 49, a prominent journalist and correspondent for a number of European media, was arrested on 29 October, allegedly for assaulting a woman driver following a road traffic accident. He was convicted for assault, criminal damage and breach of public decency. It is widely believed that Brik was framed to silence a long time critic of President Ben Ali's rule.

"We strongly condemn the victimisation of an honest journalist who is guilty of nothing more than a commitment to professional integrity," said Aidan White, IFJ General Secretary. "This case exposes, once again, the regime's intolerance of independent journalism."

Zoheir Makhlouf, a political activist and contributor to "Assabil Online", a Tunisian news site, was sentenced to three months jail and fined 6,000 Tunisian Dinar fine (3,000 Euros). Makhlouf was arrested on 20 October after posting a video report on the Internet about environmental, economic and social problems in an industrial area of Nabeul.

The IFJ has accused the Tunisian authorities of media harassment and waging a violent campaign against independent journalists. On 28 October Tunisian journalist, Slim Boukdhir, a freelance journalist and correspondent of Al Arabya newspaper in Tunisia, was assaulted and abducted by unidentified men who dumped him near a park stripped of his clothes, having sustained serious injuries. A few days later his house was surrounded by security forces who denied access to all visitors for four days. His colleague Omar Mestiri, director of Radio Kalima, a private radio station based in Tunis was attacked by unidentified assailants in Tunis on Monday 16 November who held him for many hours before releasing him.

The leadership of the Syndicat National des Journalistes Tunisiens (SNJT), an IFJ affiliate, split during the summer following the election of a new board amidst accusations of political interference. The legality of the extraordinary congress that organised the election is being challenged under the SNJT constitution, and a court decision is expected on 7 December. The original board, which continues to operate, has condemned the attacks against the journalists.

"We will continue to work for the release of Ben Brik and other jailed journalists, and all initiatives to heal the divisions among journalists," added White. "Journalists must unite to defend their profession and save rights to exercise it." 

For more information contact the IFJ at   +32 2 235 2207       

The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 125 countries worldwide