Tunisia: journalist, rapper get suspended sentence
French Tunisian journalist and rapper Aymen Fekih suspension reduced from 18 to 4 months for insulting and offending public morals
The lawyer for a Tunisian journalist and a rapper convicted of insulting the justice system said their suspended jail sentences represented a sign of progress in a country trying to come to grips with freedom of expression.
Ghazi Mrabet said Hind Meddeb, a French-Tunisian journalist, and Aymen Fekih, known by his rapper name Men-Ay, were given four month suspended sentences Monday instead of the 18-months imprisonment they may have expected for insulting public servants and offending public morals.
In light of heavier penalties given in the recent past, Mrabet described the suspended sentences handed down by a court in the Tunis suburb of Ben Arous as "a first victory." However, he vowed to still appeal it.
The trial was the latest in a string of suits against musicians on similar charges in a country that overthrew its dictator in 2011 and is trying to set down democratic norms.
The music scene, especially rap, has flourished since the overthrow of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali but they have run into resistance from authorities who have prosecuted a number of musicians for the content of their music.
It was at the trial of artist Alaa Yacoub, known as Weld 15, that the journalist and the rapper got into trouble.
Yacoub was imprisoned for two years in June for writing a song called "Police are Dogs." It was during protests at that trial that the pair were arrested for describing the justice system as similar to excrement.
A judge later suspended Yacoub's sentence amid heavy criticism but he was re-arrested after performing the song at a concert in August with a fellow rapper and they were both again convicted in absentia of insulting public servants and received 21 months in prison. Yacoub remains in hiding.
-
Two Swedish journalists abducted in Syria
Reporter and photographer taken as they were on their way out of Syria, Swedish ministry says Print -
Al Arabiya journalist among ‘most influential’ in covering violent conflict
Al Arabiya anchor Rima Maktabi has been named among the world’s 100 most influential journalists covering armed violence in a ranking by a ... Inside the Newsroom -
Journalist in India magazine sex scandal alleges harassment
Police began investigating the editor of Tehelka magazine after his female colleague claimed to have been sexually assaulted twice Print