Kinsley Kobo, AfricaNews reporter Abidjan, Ivory Coast
A Tunisian journalist has been sentenced to six months imprisonment on Thursday for slander and assault after a trial criticised by rights groups. Accused of assaulting a woman in public, Taoufik Ben Brik, 49, was arrested on October 29, four days after Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was re-elected with nearly 90 per cent of the vote.
But he claimed it was a set up and Amnesty International earlier described him as a "prisoner of conscience" and urged the authorities to free him, Reuters said
France-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and other human rights group charge that Ben Brik was set up in an incident orchestrated by Tunisian security agent because he was a prominent critic of the country’s president.
During the last electoral campaigns, Ben Brik wrote several articles critical of the president.
“With this verdict, Tunisia again joins the distasteful club of countries that imprison journalists for their opinions,” RSF secretary-general, Jean-Francois Julliard, said in a statement.
“He is paying the price for his commitment and for the freedom of his voice,” Julliard added. “The Tunisian legal system has just sent a troubling message to Tunisian journalists. All those who criticize President Ben Ali could wind up in prison, beside Taoufik Ben Brik.”
A Tunisian journalist has been sentenced to six months imprisonment on Thursday for slander and assault after a trial criticised by rights groups. Accused of assaulting a woman in public, Taoufik Ben Brik, 49, was arrested on October 29, four days after Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was re-elected with nearly 90 per cent of the vote.
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