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Jerusalem:
08 September , 1997
Palestinian Human Rights Group
Denounces the Closure of Newspaper
Al-Risala
is published by the Al-Khalas party, and its closure is a
violation of the Palestinian press law
Al-Risala
newspaper was closed by members of the police and the
Preventative Security Service, who broke into the newspaper
offices on Thursday, 4/9/97 and confiscated equipment. No
reason was given. The publishers discovered that the
newspaper was shut down through the media. It remains
unclear who is responsible for the suppression of Al-Risala.
The Palestinian
Press Law, passed in 1995 by President Arafat regulates the
press. According to article 42, the closure of a newspaper
is a drastic step that can only be ordered by a court or a
public prosecutor. On Saturday, 6/9/97, the editor of Al-Risala
was told by the Attorney General Fayez Abu-Rahme that he has
no idea who ordered the closure of the newspaper. The
closure is a violation of the Palestinian Press Law, and
represents an abuse of authority by the security services
and the executive authority.
Al-Risala has
been published since the beginning of the year. No
complaints against it have been submitted. It is published
each Thursday in accordance with a license issued by the PA
Ministry of Information.
The PHRMG agrees
with Al-Risala that the closure of the newspaper is an
unjustified, illegal, and undemocratic act. The newspaper
should be permitted to function, unless it is suspected of
violating the law as specified in article 37 of the Press
Law. Bassem Eid said that “protecting freedom of the press
is important, even in the face of pressure from outside
Palestine.”
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