INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE: It has been one year since three Al Jazeera journalists were arrested in Egypt in a case that sparked international outrage. Baher Mohamed, Mohamed Fahmy and Peter Greste were arrested in Cairo on December 29, 2013 under false charges of aiding the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood and spreading false news. In June, Greste, an Australian, and Fahmy, an Egyptian-Canadian, received seven-year jail terms, while Mohamed, an Egyptian, was sentenced to 10 years. On Thursday, an appeal for the three jailed journalists will be heard at Egyptâs Court of Cassation. The court will look at the process behind the original trial, a process that Al Jazeera has always maintained was flawed. The court can dismiss the entire case, uphold the verdict and the sentence, or order a new trial. President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is able to issue a presidential pardon, but he maintains that he will not interfere in the judicial process. The Egyptian government has defended the jailing of the journalists, arguing that it was not a political decision and that it is now up to the appeals process to determine what should happen next. On this context, what our own journalists and politicians must learn from this ugly development?
Posted on: Mon, 29 Dec 2014 14:12:00 +0000
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