Yemen Monitor/Newsroom:
The Yemeni Journalists’ Syndicate reported on Tuesday that it had documented 101 violations against press freedom in Yemen.
In its annual report, the syndicate stated that it had recorded 101 violations targeting journalists, photographers, media outlets, media offices, and journalists’ property since the beginning of 2024 until December 31.
The violations varied, including 27 cases of arbitrary detention (26.7% of total violations), 23 cases of threats and incitement against journalists (22.8%), 19 cases of trials (18.8%), 11 cases of assaults on journalists and their property and media offices (10.9%), 7 cases of confiscation of photographers’ and journalists’ equipment (6.9%), 6 cases of poor detention conditions (5.9%), 4 cases of blocking and closing electronic media (4%), 3 cases of suspension of salaries and professional union activities (3%), not to mention one case of execution of the journalist who had been disappeared since 2015, Mohammed Qaed Al-Maqri (1% of total violations).
The Houthi group committed 45 violations (44.6% of total violations), while the internationally recognized government committed 31 violations (30.7%), and the STC committed 11 violations (10.8%). Unknown perpetrators committed 6 violations (5.9%), US aviation committed 2 violations (2%), and Egyptian authorities committed 2 violations (2%).
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, a German technology company, a media outlet, and a social entity each committed one violation (1%).
The 27 cases of arbitrary detention included 11 cases of kidnapping (41% of the total cases of detention), 9 cases of arrest (33%), 5 cases of pursuit (18%), one case of detention (4%), and one case of deportation (4%), with the Houthis committing 11 cases, the legitimate government 10 cases, the STC 4 cases, and the Egyptian authorities 2 cases.
The syndicate called on all authorities to release detained journalists and ease restrictions on journalistic work in Sana’a, Aden, Marib, Hadramaut, Taiz, and other governorates.
It renewed its call on the internationally recognized legitimate government to work to recover the syndicate’s headquarters in Aden, which is controlled by the STC, a partner in the government, and to end the restrictions imposed on journalistic and trade union work in Aden and recover the headquarters of the official media that has been seized by the STC.
The syndicate renewed its call on the legitimate government to pay the salaries of employees in the official media in areas it does not control as a moral and legal obligation and to end the complexities facing displaced journalists and media professionals.
It called on the legitimate government to investigate all violations committed by its affiliated bodies and to work to provide a safe working environment in areas under its control.
The syndicate called on the Houthi group and the STC to release all abducted journalists and end the state of hostility towards the press and journalists.
The syndicate said that it calls on all organizations concerned with freedom of opinion and expression, and the office of the UN Special Envoy for Yemen, to support journalists, adopt their causes, and pressure all parties to respect freedom of opinion and expression.
It affirmed that the syndicate recommends that countries and influential parties pressure the parties to the conflict in political negotiations to commit to providing a safe environment for journalistic work and respecting freedom of the press and freedom of opinion and expression.
The syndicate called on the International Committee of the Red Cross to work to provide a healthy and safe environment for detainees and investigate the violations that journalists are subjected to in detention.
The syndicate recommended that organizations and bodies concerned with freedom of opinion and expression intensify their efforts to support Yemeni journalists and strengthen their professional safety and legal support.
