TUNIS, Tunisia, May 23, (AP): A Tunisian court on Wednesday sentenced two TV and radio journalists to one year in prison for criticizing the government on their programs and on social networks.
Borhane Bsaïs and Mourad Zeghidi were each given six months' imprisonment for disseminating "fake news” and an additional six months for "making false statements with the aim of defaming others," in reference to Tunisian President Kaïs Saied, court spokesperson Mohamed Zitouna said.
The sentences come less than two weeks after both were arrested. They are among a broader group of journalists, activists and lawyers charged under Decree 54, a law criminalizing the dissemination of "fake news” aimed at harming public safety or national defense.
The law, passed in 2022 to fight cybercrime, has been widely criticized by rights advocates who say the offenses are vaguely defined and are being used to crack down on the president's critics.
Both Bsaïs and Zeghidi denied the allegations. In court, they referred to laws protecting freedom of expression that Tunisia enshrined after its 2011 revolution, when it became the first country in the Middle East and North Africa to topple a longtime dictator. Both said they were simply doing their jobs, analyzing and commenting on political and economic developments in Tunisia.
"I am neither for nor against the president. Sometimes I support his choices, sometimes I criticize them. It’s part of my job," Zeghidi said.