2. Project
Doha Centre suggested,
supported this analysis
Much is known about
restrictions to free
speech, press in GCC
Little known about legal
mechanisms that create
this environment GCC: Bahrain,
Kuwait, Oman,
Must know where we are,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia
to know how to move and United Arab
forward Emirates
3. Research
Primarysources: Media laws, penal
codes, regulations from six GCC countries
Some media laws (Saudi, Oman) were not
available anywhere in English.
Doha Centre translated them and will publish on
site as part of final project
Secondary sources: Accounts from books, press
reports and NGOs
Withparticular attention paid
to which laws, regulations
used to restrict speech, press
Result: 80-page report
4. Overview
Reporters Without Freedom House
Country Borders Ranking (2011) Press Freedom Category (2012)
(1 to 179) (Free, Partly Free, or Not Free)
Bahrain 173 Not Free
Kuwait 78 Partly Free
Oman 117 Not Free
Qatar 114 Not Free
Saudi Arabia 158 Not Free
UAE 112 Not Free
5. Findings
Most of countries featured similar laws
Can this be traced back to British rule?
Kuwait’s laws largely as restrictive as rest,
but active parliament, culture of public
debate helped its relative rankings
Saudi Arabia has no official penal code.
Observers say laws often quite fluid, with
authorities making arrests then later
deciding which specific laws were broken
6. Conclusions &
Recommendations
All Constitutions except Saudi contained
clause guaranteeing “freedom of expression”
All offered “within limits of law” caveat
Not necessarily surprising, nor different than
other countries
All countries do limit freedom of expression in
some way… but where the line is drawn is
what differs between GCC, countries with
developed press freedoms
7. Conclusions &
Recommendations
Criminal defamation laws
Aim to protect reputation
Can be used to squelch any criticism or
objective reporting
Truth not necessarily a defense
Lead to jail for journalists, which prompts huge
self-censorship
Recommendation: Civil defamation laws
Allow courts to fine journalists who defame
Specify truth is always a defense
Different thresholds for public vs. private figures
8. Conclusions &
Recommendations
AllGCC countries require
the licensing of journalists
Leads to self-censorship because journalists
can worry that their licenses will be revoked
Recommendation: No licenses
Allow journalists to self-regulate
Countries with strong protections for press
freedom tend to feature journalism groups
that stress high ethical standards (and no
licensing.)
9. Conclusions &
Recommendations
AllGCC countries list prohibitions
journalists must follow
Don’t report anything:
That will harm the national economy
Upset the public order
Critical of an Arab state, leader
Recommendation: No broad restrictions
Instead of “upset public order,” ban the
incitement of “imminent lawless action.”
Much less broad
10. Conclusions &
Recommendations
AllGCC countries feature
prohibitions against “insulting”
or “criticizing” the ruler
i.e., lese-majeste laws
Common in British colonial laws
Recommendations:
Eliminate these prohibitions
Insulting prohibitions, though, carry cultural
weight in Arab world…
11. Conclusions &
Recommendations
“Truth” mandated in reporting
Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia,
and Oman
Sounds like a good idea – why shouldn’t
reporting be truthful?
But, leads to self-censorship
Recommendations:
Eliminate calls for “truth” in reporting
Truth should be used in civil defamation
cases – so factual errors in reporting can
lead to financial damages.
12. Conclusions &
Recommendations
No media laws speak to
value of journalism as
a force for good in society
Journalism treated as industry
that must simply be regulated
In countries with developed press freedoms,
attempts to punish journalists balanced by
understood value of free, critical press
Recommendation: Add language to
media laws like from Abu Dhabi Media
Zone “content guidelines”…
13. Conclusions &
Recommendations
Abu Dhabi Media Zone
content guidelines:
Protects journalists who
engage in: “the exposure of
crime, corruption, antisocial behavior,
injustice or serious impropriety, protecting
public health or safety, exposing lies,
hypocrisy or materially misleading claims
made by individuals or organizations,
disclosing incompetence, and negligence or
dereliction of duty that affects the public.”
14. The End
Thanks for listening!
Full report slated for release on
Doha Centre for Media Freedom’s
website by end of year.
www.dc4mf.org
Will
submit shortened version to
Communication Law and Policy
www.mattjduffy.com My website
@mattjduffy Follow me on Twitter
