Gulf News journalist bags IPR media award

Doha: News items that made a difference were awarded in the Pan Arab Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Media Awards during a ceremony in Doha on Sunday.

Naushad Cherrayil, staff reporter of Gulf News, won second prize for best investigative piece. Gulf News was the only English newspaper to receive an award.

"I am so happy to win this award, I am proud of this achievement, especially that I have won the same award three times in a row," Cherrayil said.

The awards are established by the Business Software Alliance to recognise the media's contributions to promoting a safe and legal digital society throughout the Arab world.

"The media plays a vital role in spreading IPR policies and generating greater awareness on the harm caused by piracy. In large countries they teach IPR early on, in education, so they grow up learning about it. That is why we need to emphasise the role of the media especially in the field of IPR," Abdullah Qayed, IP Centre Director, Ministry of Justice, told Gulf News.

Jawad Al Redha, BSA co-chairman for the Gulf Region  told Gulf News, "These awards were established to reward media for their support of the anti-piracy movement."

"We are happy to receive a great number of entries from the majority of the Arab countries, including UAE, Egypt, Doha, Jordan, Bahrain and Lebanon. And we are looking for more entries in the coming years," Al Redha added.

Prizes were awarded in five contest categories including Best Opinion Piece, Best Investigative Piece, Best News Article, Best Feature Article and Best Interview, with a winner and runner up named for each.

List of winners

Best News Article
First place: Mohammad Al Farah, Al Sharq, Qatar
Second place: Dana Halawi, Daily Star, Lebanon

Best Opinion Piece
First place: Fadi Al Halabi, Future TV (Tawasul programme), Lebanon
Sameer Mahmoud, Shabab, Maser, Egypt

Best Feature Article
Bashar Abu Leil, Al Watan, Qatar
Second place: Mohammad Gazal, The Jordan Times, Jordan

Best Investigative Piece
First place: Ayat Mohammad Said Al Fiki, ICT News, Egypt
Second place: Naushad K Cherrayil, Gulf News, UAE

Best Interview
First place: Enas Esmail, Al Aalam Al Youm, Egypt
Second place: Mahmoud Nasheet, Akhbar Al Khaleej, Bahrain