Nine Yemeni Journalists Stand Trial [Archives:2001/44/Front Page]

Nine Yemeni journalists were tried on Wednesday by the Press and Publications Prosecution. The suit was brought by the Emirate writer, Khaled Mohammed al-Kasemi. The case was brought against editors-in-chief of some magazines and newspapers which al-Kasemi considers an insult to his personality. Some journalists earlier filed a case against al-Kasemi during his visit to Yemen in July. He was invited by the Deputy Minister of Yemeni Information, Ahmad Naser Al-Hamati. He burst into the Journalist Yemeni Syndicate (JYS) and accused journalists of being treacherous and hirelings at the expense of the national interest. Al-Kasemi’s relations with Yemen date back to two decades; he wrote many of the the first books about Yemeni unification. The Yemeni journalists said that those books were plagiarized from Yemeni students’ researches.
The JYS has spoken to Emirates’ Authors and Writers Union with regard to his burst into the Syndicate and defaming his colleagues. The Emirates’ Union has strongly condemned such disagreeable and unpleasant behavior. The Yemeni government had awarded al-Kasemi the First-rate Unity Medal because of his so-called interests in Yemeni Unity. Then, this off-the-record issue remained confidential and undisclosed. Consequently, the persons who have stood trial are the writer and the Editor-in-chief of Al-Hikma Magazine, issued from the Yemeni Authors and Writers Union, Abdulbari Taher and the Editor-in-chief of Al-Wahdawi Newspaper, the mouth-piece of the Nasserite Party, Abdulaziz Sultan, the Chairman of the Political Division in Al-Haq Party, Abduhlkareem Al-Khyawani, the journalist, Yahya Al-Haddi, Hamdi Al-bukari and Ahmad Saeed, editors at Al-Wahdawi Newspaper and the editor at Al-Methaq Newspaper, Mohammed Hasan, the mouthpiece of the Ruling Party.
The list of persons referred to the court have increased to nine persons after summoning the editor-in-chief of Annas Newspaper and the Bureau Chief of Al-Khaleej Newspaper in Yemen to attend the sessions of the coming trial.
In a statement to YT, the Defense Lawyer, Jamal Al-Goabi said that journalists questioning is a crucial problem threatening the profession of journalism and freedom of expression.

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