BM News: Daily News Egypt steps up
Posted by bikyamasr on 02/07/2009
Daily News Egypt steps up
Bikya Masr
2 July 2009
I just want to give a congratulatory and thank you message to The Daily News Egypt, where I worked three years ago. For its part in the ordeal that happened to me in Tanta, they were on top of the situation. Sarah Carr, one of their reporters, called to check in on the situation after seeing the tweets about what was occurring. I was pleased to receive a phone call from Sasha Williams the following day for an interview about what happened (although disappointed nothing was quoted). It was nice to see a local newspaper take the lead in covering this situation, because it is not only my own safety that is an issue, but the other journalists who are not allowed to do their jobs.
What happened to me in Tanta is not the first time a foreign or local journalist has been harassed, punched, or beaten by state security and without a concerted effort to publicize these actions it won’t be the last. We must, as a profession, stand firm. Thank you Daily News Egypt for taking the time. Good luck and I hope that other journalists will also report harassment by the state. This cannot be accepted at any level and must be fought against by all necessary means.
BM
