On the international Anti-Corruption Day, the Journalist Support Committee renews its call on the Bahraini Authorities to allow local journalists and all media platforms to play their professional role without any constraints.

According to the facts monitored by the committee, Bahrain’s restrictions on media freedoms is so stiff that it does not serve to combat corruption rather it turns the journalist into the accuser, while the corrupt is set free unpunished.

Earlier this year, the Ministry of Information decided to suspend the license of Al-Wasat newspaper after publishing an article on Morocco’s demonstrations and rallies in Al-Rif, a demonstration recognized by the Moroccan Authorities. The newspaper is still banned from publishing after it was an active partner in taking action against corruption.

The Journalist Support Committee confirms that a number of complaints filed by Bahraini journalists states that they’ve been denied license to practice their profession, many of them have also been banned from traveling and charged with issues related to journalism. In addition, four journalists were stripped from their nationality by a political decision, while a number of photographers and bloggers are imprisoned in cases related to practicing journalism or exercising their right to freedom of opinion and expression through traditional and electronic media.

As we call on local authorities to lift restrictions exerted on journalists in Bahrain, we also call on media professionals, writers, journalists and bloggers to actively participate in Journalist Support Committee’s campaign in raising awareness about the dangers of corruption and the importance of the press in particular investigative journalism in its fight against corruption in partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.

#UnitedAgainstCorruption
Journalist Support Committee
9 December 2017