Journalist gets 4 years jail term in absentia

Tunisian journalist Khaoula Boukrim has been sentenced to four years in prison in absentia, a ruling she announced Tuesday. Critics view this decision as a stark illustration of the escalating suppression of dissenting voices and free expression under President Kais Saied's administration. This sentence against Boukrim follows similar actions against other media figures earlier this year, including Zied Heni, Mourad Zghidi, and Borhen Bsaies.

Boukrim, the founder of the news website TUMEDIA, fled to Paris in December. She was informed of two separate judgments against her, issued under Decree-Law 54. This 2022 cybercrime law imposes severe penalties for online publication offenses. Rights organizations contend that the law is increasingly used to prosecute government critics and curtail free speech, while authorities maintain its necessity for combating misinformation and online abuse.

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I was forced to leave to Paris when I learned that legal cases were being prepared against me because of my critical positions toward the president and those around him.

"I was forced to leave to Paris when I learned that legal cases were being prepared against me because of my critical positions toward the president and those around him," Boukrim told Reuters. She added, "The ruling is a continuation of the targeting of free journalism and critical voices." Authorities were not immediately available for comment.

Rights groups express concern over persistent efforts to silence remaining independent voices since President Saied dissolved the elected parliament in 2021 and assumed ruling powers by decree. Initially, free speech saw a surge following the 2011 uprising that ousted autocrat Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and sparked the "Arab Spring." However, critics argue Saied's consolidation of power in 2021 and subsequent decrees have dismantled democratic safeguards, enabling authorities to pursue numerous journalists. Opposition leaders, along with dozens of politicians, activists, and businessmen, have been jailed in the past three years on charges including conspiracy against state security, money laundering, and corruption. Saied maintains he is not a dictator and that freedoms are guaranteed in Tunisia.

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The ruling is a continuation of the targeting of free journalism and critical voices.