UAE editors' views on press freedom

'Media is controlled by government'

Abdul Hamid Ahmad, Editor-in-Chief of Gulf News, said the UAE does not enjoy full freedom of the press. "We look forward to a new law that eliminates the long list of bans in the media law that was issued in 1980, and allows freedom to publish newspapers and other publications. The fact that one needs a licence to publish a newspaper means there is no freedom and media is being controlled by the government."

He added that journalists should be given access to information and that they should not be taken to penal courts. "Last year eight cases were filed against Gulf News and most of them were about misunderstandings and some should not have gone to court from the beginning."

"The media are trying to boost freedom but we are still lagging behind expectations. The UAE may be better than some other Arab countries but in this case we are comparing ourselves with lagging figures; when comparing with ideal figures then it shows how bad the situation is.

Self censorship was created because of an unclear policy and the multi-faceted censorship is not imposed by the government only but by individuals and institutes with religious beliefs or social extreme.

Its not true that English-language papers enjoy more freedom. Laws and orders are the same, it's only about choosing a different angle of news which suits foreign readers. This different angle may give the impression that the English-language press has more freedom.

'Self-censorship is increasing'

Sami Al Riyami, Editor-in-Chief of Al Emarat Al Youm, said: "Unfortunately, self-censorship is increasing in the press and is affecting press freedom to a certain extent.

"One of the main factors affecting press freedom is advertising domination. Eventually press freedom is affected when advertisers monitor the flow of their news in media outlets, especially in the press. Another factor is when newspapers' reporters practise self-censorship on their own work more than when government officials monitor the news."

Al Riyami said officials in the public and private sector should be informed that "the media's role isn't limited to reporting good news, but it goes beyond that to publish bad or sad news in a constructive and useful manner to the public".

He stressed that the UAE's press freedom has had the best achievements in the year 2007. "Honestly, the local press had a major leap towards more freedom and transparency as it reached the highest levels of no-restrictions and development in the same regard this year. In its annual meeting, the Arab Journalists' Union in Egypt praised Shaikh Mohammad's decision to stop imprisoning journalists. Shaikh Mohammad's decision was a positive move and a step forward for press freedom," said Al Riyami, who is also the Vice-Chairman of the UAE's Journalists' Association.

He said: "No doubt, the local media is developing… we haven't reached excellence and there are some challenges which we have to face and overcome. Ultimately, when the authorities approve the new publication law, freedom of the press will definitely develop."

'The price of freedom is responsibility'

Dhae'en Shaheen, Editor-in-Chief of Al Bayan, said: "No doubt, freedom of the press in our country has developed. Officials are enjoying better openness and transparency and the boundaries have been raised in a rational manner.

"Reporters have become bolder and more responsible in covering events and reporting what we didn't see in the media before, such as labour disputes, demographic structure and many others."

Shaheen praised the fact that the UAE press freedom has improved and "this is a positive thing".

"The UAE in general and Dubai in particular, now, are different than they were five years ago. It is true that the press freedom has increased, but I strongly believe that the price of freedom should be responsibility. Reporters can enjoy freedom of the press but in a mature and sensible manner. Shaikh Mohammad and Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Foreign Minister, said reporters can report, however, they should be able to corroborate their news," he noted.

Shaheen singled out the officials who still believe that reporting is "libelling or defaming others in public". "To those officials I say that reporting is an outstanding and noble job. A reporter's duty is to highlight the truth and report what's informative and fruitful to the public. This is the best means, which leads us to raising the level of freedom of the press," concluded Shaheen.