{"id":9840,"date":"2020-05-30T20:10:59","date_gmt":"2020-05-30T18:10:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ayamm.org\/?p=9840"},"modified":"2020-05-30T20:11:05","modified_gmt":"2020-05-30T18:11:05","slug":"jordan-free-speech-threats-under-covid-19-response","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ayamm.org\/en\/jordan-free-speech-threats-under-covid-19-response\/","title":{"rendered":"Jordan: Free Speech Threats Under Covid-19 Response"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

(Amman) \u2013 Jordanian<\/a> authorities have arrested media workers and others and issued a vaguely worded emergency decree that could chill online discussion about Jordan\u2019s Covid-19<\/a> response, Human Rights Watch said today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under the April 15, 2020 decree, sharing news that would \u201ccause panic\u201d about the pandemic<\/a> in media or online can carry a penalty of up to three years in prison. Since the declaration of an emergency on March 17, Jordanian authorities have detained two prominent media executives, a foreign journalist, and a former member of parliament, apparently in response to public criticism, as well as three people for allegedly spreading \u201cfake news.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Jordanian government has acted decisively to protect its citizens and residents from Covid-19, but recent measures have created the impression that it won\u2019t tolerate criticizing the government\u2019s response to the pandemic,\u201d said Michael Page<\/a>, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. \u201cThe authorities should protect Jordanians\u2019 ability to discuss Covid-19 online and share news and concerns without fear of arrest.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The state of emergency, initiated when King Abdullah II issued a royal decree activating Defense Law No. 13 of 1992, grants the prime minister sweeping powers to curtail basic rights, but Prime Minister Omar Razzaz pledged to carry it out to the \u201cnarrowest extent\u201d<\/a> and stated that it would not impinge political rights, freedom of expression, or private property. Any steps to curtail free expression on the grounds of protecting public health must be necessary and proportionate to the threat posed by the speech, Human Rights Watch said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paragraph 2.2 of Defense Order No. 8, issued on April 15 under Jordan\u2019s state of emergency, prohibits<\/a> \u201cpublishing, re-publishing, or circulating any news about the epidemic in order to terrify people or cause panic among them via media, telephone, or social media.\u201d The order specifies penalties of up to 3 years in prison, a fine of 3,000 Jordanian Dinars (US$4,230), or both.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prior to the new order, Jordanian media outlets had reported several arrests, one for \u201cspreading rumors\u201d about Covid-19<\/a> in the Sweileh area of Amman, another for \u201cspreading rumors about the government\u2019s intention of declaring a full lockdown<\/a>,\u201d and another for claiming there was a Covid-19 death in the city of Zarqa<\/a>. The police announced<\/a> on April 15 that they were pursuing someone who alleged that there was \u201cdisobedience\u201d by prisoners in Amman\u2019s Marka Prison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On April 10, Roya TV, a popular local media outlet, confirmed the arrests of its general manager, Fares Sayegh<\/a>, and news director, Mohammad al-Khalidi. Roya TV\u2019s statement said that the arrests were due to a \u201cnews report that was aired on Roya News social media pages.\u201d Roya TV confirmed on April 12 that Sayegh and al-Khalidi were released on bail<\/a>. It is unclear whether they will face charges. Local activists and commentators suggested that the arrests could be related to a widely circulated April 8 video clip in which Jordanian day laborers expressed their Covid-19 concerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On April 14, the authorities detained Salim Akash, 40, a Jordan-based Bangladeshi journalist. A family member told Human Rights Watch that three men in civilian clothes arrested Akash in front of his house but refused to identify themselves. The family member said on April 17, Akash called from al-Salt Prison saying that he was going to court for \u201cviolating a serious law,\u201d which he did not identify. In early April, Akash shared a TV report on his Facebook<\/a> profile that featured his reporting on the hardships many Bangladeshi workers are facing in Jordan during the Covid-19 lockdown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jordanian authorities also arrested Salim al-Batayneh, 63, a former parliament member, on April 7, and his relative Mo\u2019tasem al-Batayneh. Two family members told Human Rights Watch that the family did not learn their whereabouts until April 12, when a member of the governmental National Center for Human Rights (NCHR) informed them the men were in al-Salt Prison on suspicion of \u201cundermining the political regime,\u201d a terrorism offense under the jurisdiction of the quasi-military State Security Court. Human Rights Watch has documented Jordanian authorities\u2019 abuse of this charge to limit peaceful political activity and criticism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The family members said they did not know the specific reasons for the arrest. One said \u201cwe contacted different security bodies including the Public Security Directorate, General Intelligence Department, and the local governorate \u2026 all denied holding him.\u201d The family member said that al-Batayneh is a writer who has criticized the Jordanian government in public for many years but did not know if his arrest was related to any specific criticism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following the NCHR call on April 12, family members said, Salim al-Batayneh made a brief call, saying only that he was taking his medication and drinking fluids. He said that he was \u201cwith people\u201d but provided no further details. On April 12, al-Batayneh called another family member from al-Salt Prison asking them to hire a lawyer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A family member of Mo\u2019tasem al-Batayneh, 48, a retired high-ranking police officer, described his arrest. The family member said he was traveling with Mo\u2019tasem at 1:20 p.m. when 4 unmarked vehicles surrounded their car and 10 men in civilian clothes emerged, pointed guns at them, and arrested al-Batayneh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe called 911 on the same day but they told us we have to wait for 24 hours,\u201d the family member said. \u201cWhen we called the next day, they did not tell us where he is, and they shut the line.\u201d Family members said he called on April 12 and confirmed that he is in al-Salt Prison, saying that his case is related to Salim\u2019s. Both were transferred to Qafqafa Prison on April 26.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) allows countries to adopt exceptional and temporary restrictions on certain rights that would not otherwise be permitted \u201cin times of public emergency which threatens the life of the nation.\u201d But the measures must be only those \u201cstrictly required by the exigencies of the situation.\u201d The Human Rights Committee, which interprets the covenant, has said that the situation would require state parties to \u201cprovide careful justification not only for their decision to proclaim a state of emergency but also for any specific measures based on such a proclamation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under international human rights law, governments have an obligation to protect the right to freedom of expression, including the right to seek, receive, and impart information of all kinds. Permissible restrictions on freedom of expression for reasons of public health must be lawful, necessary, and proportionate, and may not put in jeopardy the right itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On March 20, the prime minister imposed a mandatory curfew from 6 p.m. until 10 a.m., with exceptions for those holding valid permits. Between March 17 and April 14, the\u00a0authorities said they apprehended 10,874 people who violated the curfew<\/a>\u00a0and seized 6,814 vehicles. Under Defense Order No. 3, people who violate the curfew are subject to a fine between 100 Jordanian Dinars ($141) and 500 Dinars ($705), while seized vehicles are confiscated for 30 days in addition <\/p>\n\n\n\n