Syria Today | No Change in Practice

New legislation in response to unrest in Syria has not produced the desired effects.

By Abdulhamid Qabbani
Photo Adel Samara

The media have been a crucial battleground for regime supporters and the opposition. Freedom of the media has also been a fundamental demand of protestors.

A new law, which has been in effect since August 28, is supposed to organise all types of media and allow greater freedom. Minister of Information Adnan Mahmoud said enthusiastically, "the new law is a model, unprecedented in the region…and protects the rights of journalists," according to Syria's state news agency SANA.

However, there has been little sign of change in Syria's media, which have operated under strict state censorship for decades.

"[Publishing] the new media law is like lifting the emergency state," said Eiad Shurbaji, editor-in-chief and publisher of Shabablek magazine, referring to the unceasing arbitrary arrests of protestors and activists, including journalists, even after the state of emergency was officially repealed.

Ink on paper
The new media law differs from the one issued in 2001. According to the former, journalists can be subject to sanctions ranging from fines to lengthy imprisonment, while the current law does not mention imprisonment at all. However, it holds editors-in-chief and journalists accountable for actions that constitute violations of the law and can fine them up to SYP 1m (USD 20, 000).

Despite the fact that the new law upholds freedom and grants journalists the right to access information "which is concerned with public affairs", it goes on to say that the media must "respect this freedom of expression" by "practising it with awareness and responsibility."

Moreover, the law dedicates 28 out of 106 articles to punishable acts, including publishing any information that encourages sectarianism, harms national unity or national security, encourages acts of crime, hatred or terrorism, or offends state symbols or religions and religious beliefs.

Under the new law, all public and private media will no longer have to get censored before they broadcast or publish news, which was mandatory according to the old law. As part of the reform, on November 20, President Bashar al-Assad issued a decree to establish the National Media Council (NMC) chaired by Taleb Qadi Amin, former deputy information minister and head of the committee which prepared the new media law. The council will be financially and administratively independent from the state, Mahmoud told SANA on November 21.

"The role of the council will be to oversee everything related to the media and follow up on implementing the law. It will act as the monitor of media processes," Amin told Syria Today. Therefore, any person harmed by media coverage will be able to raise the issue in court through the council.

In addition to planning media policies and being responsible for issuing licenses for media outlets, the NMC will also submit an annual report on media progress in general.

Uncertain terms
Some journalists' main take on the law is that the language is "too vague". "The words are very ambiguous: what does 'harming national security' mean?" a journalist who spoke on condition of anonymity said.

However, Amin explained that "the terms have definitions in the laws that are already in effect. For example, state symbols are the flag, the national anthem and the president." He further observed that offending religions is "obvious" and means "to curse or insult any religion". The NMC will be tasked with further explaining the nomenclature, Amin promised.

While some are frustrated by the lack of clarity in the language, others believe that the new law is positive. "The media law is excellent, it gives you freedom and the right to access information; it also clarifies the rights and responsibilities of a journalist," said Hussam Balah, editor of a private news website.

No change in sight
On the ground, the new law has made hardly any difference.

Until now, fresh reports of journalists who have gone missing or have been arrested continue to emerge. On November 18, activists and news agencies reported the arrest of SANA Deir ez-Zor office director Alaa al-Khudr following his resignation in protest over "the regime's practices towards civilians". SANA dismissed the news as false and added that "al-Khudr quit his job for the agency five months ago."

Furthermore, the New York-based press freedom watchdog, the Committee for Protection of Journalists (CPJ), has reported more cases of missing journalists in Syria. Lina Saleh Ibrahim, 31, a business reporter for the state-owned daily Tishreen went missing on October 25. Her status was unclear until her release was reported on November 17.

However, Wael Yousef Abaza, a freelance journalist who also disappeared on the same day in Damascus, is still missing.

The CPJ believes Abaza and Ghrer were taken into custody, although it has not been able to independently confirm their detention, according to the organisation's website.

Between theory and practice
Even though Balah is positive about the new law, he is sceptical about whether it can be put into effect. "There is a difference between the text and the application. For example, when I ask an official to provide information and he refuses, here lies the problem," Balah said.

Indeed, some observers' suspicions that the law would remain 'ink on paper' gained traction on November 23 when the Ministry of Information recalled an issue of Syrian private daily Baladna from circulation. This was because it published an article which criticised the ruling Ba'ath party and the government's way of handling the unrest.

In response, Amin was quoted by Baladna's website as saying, "I respect the freedom of expression for all Syrians... but the article contains an explicit call for sectarianism and an aim at incitement and sabotage of the country, and this is contrary to the section of prohibitions in the media law."

Over three months after the law's passage, Syrian media have remained very cautious in the way they report unrest. On Fridays – the main days of protests after prayers – state media generally report "gatherings" in several cities in Syria that dispersed by themselves. They then mention many casualities among security forces and policemen, blamed on "armed groups", and hardly any civilian deaths. At the same time, international media mention large death tolls of civilians.

"A Syrian journalist is a tool. It's like working in a shoe factory: you must produce the same shoe [every time]," a young journalist who works for state media and requested anonymity said.

In 2010, Reporters without Borders ranked Syria 173 out of 178 in its World Press Freedom Index, placing it among the world's most repressive countries towards journalists, ahead of Burma at 174 and Iran at 175.

With so many discrepancies between theory and practice, many media workers remain pessimistic about their profession. "I don't consider myself a journalist until there is a proper environment for journalistic work," the anonymous young journalist declared.