Tunisian journalists strike over govt. stance against media
Date 2013/9/18 16:10:56 | Topic: Afran
|  Tunisian journalists have gone on strike to show their protest against what they call “attacks on media and freedom of expression,” by the Ennahda ruling government
Tuesday strike was urged by the National Union of Tunisian Journalists, following the arrest of a journalist named Zeid el-Heni on September 13, on charges of accusing a public prosecutor of fabricating evidence against a cameraman who was detained over his alleged involvement in an egg-throwing attack on Tunisian Minister of Culture Mehdi Mabrouk in August.
“We insist on the importance of the freedom of expression but the government insists on putting its hand on the media,” President of the National Union of Journalists Najib Hamrouni told Press TV, adding, “We are organizing successive union protests, because authorities want to turn out media outlet into a propaganda mouthpiece it wants to cover up for their failed policies.”
Hamrouni went on to say that, “Tunisian media uncovered truth about the failure of the government, which is now fighting the freedom of expression and jailing journalists.”
The arrest of Heni and the cameraman who are both out on bail now, sparked an outcry across the North African country.
According to the reports, the Tunisian public and private TV channels, radio stations, newspapers and websites have failed to cover government activities en masse, as a move of boycotting the government.
The latest general strike of journalists is the third this year, amid worsening political turmoil in Tunisia.
On September 7, tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets of Bardo, near the capital Tunis, calling for the resignation of the Ennahda ruling party.
The protests were organized by the National Salvation Front opposition party to mark the 40th day after the assassination of opposition lawmaker and leader of the left-wing Popular Movement Party Mohammed Brahmi.
Tunisia has been the scene of ongoing massive protests since the death of Brahmi on July 25.
The opposition party has again railed against the government’s failure to take action over Brahmi’s assassination.
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