The downward spiral of media freedoms in Egypt in those eight years is well documented. With one hand, the state has corroded access to information, removing websites that may be a “threat to national security”. With the other, it regularly attacks those that would provide the public with such reliable information. In 2018, Egypt jailed more journalists for “publishing false news” than any other country. Many others simply disappeared.

For those that remain, censorship reigns; censorship that shakes the bedrock of independent journalism in Egypt. For media workers in the region, internalising those red lines presents some of the most challenging ethical decisions they will face in their careers and lives. Join us to hear from those who’ve experienced first hand how censorship affects journalists – and journalism – across the Middle East. 

The event will begin with a film screening of “The People’s Property” (16 mins), which discusses self-censorship and press freedom in Egypt. The film was produced by WAN-IFRA (World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers) as part of their Strengthening Media and Society in Developing Countries and Fragile States programme. 

Chair

Zahera Harb

Dr Zahera Harb is a senior lecturer in International Journalism at City, University of London. Dr Harb has more than 11 years of experience as a journalist in Lebanon working for Lebanese and international media organisations. She started as a news reporter and distinguished herself in particular in the coverage of war operations in the battlefield of South Lebanon. Dr Harb was trained in Holland and the UK and has a BA in Journalism from the Lebanese University, a Diploma in Broadcasting News and an MA and PhD in Journalism Studies and Political Communications from Cardiff University. Dr Harb was a member of the Ofcom content board from December 2015 to December 2018. She is a board member and trustee of the Ethical Journalism Network.

Speakers:

Lobna Monieb

Lobna Monieb is an Egyptian journalist who has reported from and about the Middle East for the Financial Times, Le Figaro, DPA, Mada Masr and al-Shorouk since 2012. She holds a Masters Degree in International Journalism from City, University of London

Omar el-Ghazzi

Omar Al-Ghazzi is Assistant Professor in the Department of Media and Communications at the London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE). Dr Al-Ghazzi’s expertise is in conflict reporting and representation, with a focus on digital media and collective memory in the Middle East and North Africa. Before joining LSE, he was a lecturer (assistant professor) at the Department of Journalism, the University of Sheffield. Dr Al-Ghazzi completed his PhD at the Annenberg School for Communication, the University of Pennsylvania. He comes from a journalism professional background and has previously worked at BBC Monitoring and Al-Hayat daily.

Ghias al-Jundi

Ghias is a human rights advocate currently based in London. He has more than twenty years of experience of working on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) for national and international organisations specialising in human rights, freedom of expression and media development. Ghias ran WAN-IFRA’s MENA Project Strengthening Media and Society programme between January 2016 and June 2018. The project covered Egypt, Jordan and Palestine. Ghias also worked for PEN International, Article 19, Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR), International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX) and Amnesty International. 

The Ethical Journalism Network is an alliance of reporters, editors and publishers aiming to strengthen journalism around the world, working to build trust in news media through training, education and research.

To find out how to support the EJN visit: https://ethicaljournalismnetwork.org/support

The Frontline Club will be hosting a series of screenings for the launch of a new virtual reality news documentary from the BBC. With headsets provided, we will be screening the immersive documentary followed by a Q&A with BBC Africa’s correspondent Alastair Leithead, executive producer and head of BBC’s VR Hub Zillah Watson and digital development director for BBC News James Montgomery on the potential this new technology holds for the future of news reporting.

DAMMING THE NILE

The Nile is the world’s longest river, and it’s where the world’s first war over water could be fought. For millennia Egypt has been the river’s great superpower, but now an ambitious and emerging Ethiopia has dammed the Blue Nile – where most of its water comes from. “Damming the Nile” is a virtual reality documentary series from BBC News, taking viewers on a deeply immersive journey down the Nile from its source to the sea through Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt. On assignment with the BBC’s Africa correspondent and his team, you’ll explore the geopolitical struggles for regional power and influence along the Nile and investigate how these nations are navigating these choppy waters. Enjoy the ride.

Time Slots:

9:30 AM – 10:30 AM

11 AM – 12 PM 

16:30 – 5:30 PM

Please email events@www.beta.frontlineclub.com to reserve your place specifying what time you will be attending.

Whether covering the dashed hopes of the Egyptian revolution, the upheavals in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from Ramallah or Gaza, the reality of refugee camps in Turkey, or the faultiness of Iraq’s bloody divisions, the man is on a mission to share the issues on the ground with his readers. But to cope with the new communications jungle, choose the subjects he wants and make the front page, he must set himself apart from traditional mass media.

Watch the trailer here: https://vimeo.com/185352249

Jesse will be joined on the stage for the Q&A by Rossalyn Warren

Rossalyn is an award-winning foreign affairs journalist. Her reporting has been published in The New York Times, Washington Post, Guardian, BuzzFeed News, VICE, CNN, BBC, ELLE, Newsweek, and Teen Vogue, among other places. She’s reported from 15 countries across Latin America, Europe, and Africa, and her reporting has been nominated for an Orwell Prize and a British Journalism Award. Rossalyn was named news reporter of the year at the 2016 Words By Women Awards, and she was shortlisted for new journalist of the year at the 2015 British Journalism Awards. Forbes named Rossalyn ’30 Under 30′ in media in Europe.

It is half a decade since Egypt’s revolution first erupted, promising something more than a binary choice between Islamism and military authoritarianism. Yet since the unrest began we have seen the Muslim Brotherhood rise to power, only to be overthrown by an army strongman – but is this just the start?

What has become of the big ideas at the root of the uprising – about democracy, sovereignty, social justice and resistance? How can a country so divided between two irreconcilable political orders continue its revolution? Join us to discuss where the Arab World’s most populous nation stands today, as well as its possibilities for the future.

Chaired by Rasha Qandeel, BBC Arabic journalist and presenter on NewsNight and HARDtalk. She joined the BBC in 2003 and since 2011 has covered the Arab uprisings, with a focus on events in Egypt.

The panel:

Jack Shenker is a journalist based in London and Cairo, whose reporting has spanned the globe. He is the former Egypt correspondent for the Guardian and author of The Egyptians – A Radical Story.

Dr Omar Ashour is a senior lecturer in Security Studies in the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter. He is an associate fellow at Chatham House and was involved in the process of security sector reform in Egypt and Libya between 2011 and 2013.

Sherif Azer is an Egyptian human rights defender and an expert in online activism in Egypt. He has worked in the field of human rights for eleven years – for organisations including Front Line Defenders and the International Network for Freedom of Expression (IFEX) – and is currently the assistant secretary general for the Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights.

Hossam Abdalla is a leading fertility specialist, heading Britain’s largest fertility clinic. He is also a political activist and was one of leaders of the student movements in the seventies. He is a supporter of the 25th January revolution in Egypt and has been a contributor to many programs debating the revolution.

On Monday 16 November, the Frontline Club hosted a screening of the documentary Yallah! Underground, a vibrant look at a diverse groups of Arab artists and musicians using culture to challenge the status quo. The film is set in the years prior to and during the Arab spring, and focuses on artists from Palestine, Israel, Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon. The film was followed by a Q&A with director Farid Eslam, via Skype.

The film puts its soundtrack at the forefront, and uses music to weave its way through different Arab cities, swiftly moving its focus between the individual artists’ discussions over the struggle between individuality and tradition. Freedom of expression and thought are common themes that are mentioned regularly, particularly in relation to the events of Tahrir Square in Egypt.

Eslam had spent a lot of time in the Middle East, mostly filming on commercial projects, and explained that his motivation for this project came from the desire to provide a different presentation of Arabs. He commented that Western perspective often sees Arabs being “closely connected to violence, frustration, aggression, which is only a fraction of the reality.”

“Most people want the same thing all over the world: to live in peace, freedom and to raise their families. It’s important to remind people and ourselves from time to time that we’re talking about just normal people, and it’s sad that we live in a time where we actually have to be reminded of this simple fact and simple truth.”

One audience member was curious about the absence of Syria from the film, considering its presence of underground artists. Eslam explained that he was keen to include Syria, and had tried to feature artists in Damascus and Jeddah. However, due to the escalation of the situation, “it became impossible.” Eslam did manage to film some Syrian artists in the Golan Heights, but this was not included in the film.

Eslam explained that he was able to film such a diverse group of people partly due to limited and sporadic funding, but also due to a large network of artists to draw from. Most of the artists filmed did not make it into the film; the total footage for the project was extensive, and probably enough to “make five more films.”

Will be discovering Egyptian hip hop today after watching Farid Eslam's 'Yallah! Underground' @frontlineclub last night. What a great film!

— Josephine Casserly (@JoCasserly) November 17, 2015

He found it very easy to meet artists: “Basically, you meet one artist and he points you to ten new ones.”

While a lot of his research was carried out on social media, he was also able to spend a lot of time talking directly to artists and people connected with the alternative scene.

Information about Yallah! Underground can be found on the film’s website and Facebook page. Yallah! Underground will have its first screening in an Arab country next month in Dubai.

On Monday 26 October, renowned Egyptian writer, feminist and activist Nawal El Saadawi joined journalist Wendell Steavenson and a packed audience at the Frontline Club for a discussion that spanned the topics of linguistic philosophy, feminism and globalisation – all of which were explored in the context of El Saadawi‘s own life experiences and recent developments in Egyptian politics.

Sitting in same room as legend #NawalElSaadaei @frontlineclub pic.twitter.com/93hzphE6My

— Nahla Al-Ageli (@NahlaInk) October 26, 2015

The discussion began with a focus on the United States’ continued military aid to Egypt. This was something El Saadawi felt passionately against, not just in Egypt’s case but on a global level. “Fair trade, not aid,” she said.

“The 2011 revolution was hijacked by the United States working with Egyptian politicians. Hilary Clinton came to Tahrir Square as soon as the revolution began. Why?”


The conversation then moved onto the subject of globalisation, and how colonising powers have always played the game of “divide and rule.”

El Saadawi expanded: “When Sadat and Reagan came, they brought the Muslim Brothers. Why? They wanted to fragment the country by religion. They wanted to fragment the country by class. They wanted to fragment the army. What is the difference between Syria and Egypt now? Syria is completely fragmented, because the army is fragmented. And this is why we are unified in comparison. This is why the Americans are against Sisi.”

When Steavenson questioned her about the way the Egyptian government has been punishing members of the Muslim Brotherhood with imprisonment and death sentencing, El Saadawi said: “I am against the death penalty. I am against putting anybody in prison. I am against all that. But I am also against a religious state. Whether Islamic, Jewish, or Christian. We cannot have true equality in any religious state, because all religions oppress women.”


She continued by explaining the extent to which gender inequality has been rooted in religion: “In the three major monotheistic religions, Adam was set free as an innocent, while Eve was a sinner because she ate from the tree of knowledge. Women are not expected to be equal. Why do you think I’ve had three husbands? Because they hated my intelligence. They wanted a stupid woman.”


Even though El Saadawi‘s main work and research focus revolves around injustice, she revealed her enduring optimism in the face of adversity. “I am always optimistic. I learned very much about this in the experience of prison. The women I was with were very pessimistic, because Sadat told us he will kill us. So every day they woke up crying, and I started dancing. I told them we will live and be free; just to have that idea gave me hope. When you have hope, you inspire people with hope, and hope is power. In the worst situations, I am hopeful.”


Steavenson asked about the moment when her sense of justice came into being, and why she initially became motivated to challenge injustice.

El Saadawi explained that when she was 7 and 8 years old, she felt something was not right in the way that she was treated in comparison with her brother. Her older brother was lazy and spoilt, whereas she was hardworking and neglected.

“During Eid, I received half the money that my brother received in gifts. I asked my parents why. They said because God said so. They thought they would shut me up by saying ‘God’. So my first letter ever when I was 8 years old was to God, but I still haven’t got an answer!”

On Wednesday 7 October, former Al Jazeera English bureau chief Mohamed Fahmy joined a packed audience at the Frontline Club in his first public appearance since his release from a Cairo prison on 23 September. Fahmy was joined in conversation by his lawyer Amal Clooney and BBC chief international correspondent Lyse Doucet.

Fahmy, an Egyptian-Canadian dual citizen, was arrested in December 2013 along with colleagues Peter Greste and Baher Mohamed, and sentenced to seven years in a maximum security prison on terrorism-related charges. He was finally pardoned by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on 23 September.

“I am a changed man and I am inspired by what’s happened to me – that’s why I’m fighting for other journalists,” Fahmy said of his newly-established Fahmy Foundation, which will support journalists across the world who have been unjustly imprisoned.

Critical in the past of the Canadian government’s failure to intervene strongly enough on his behalf, Fahmy repeated: “I do believe the Canadian government could have done more.”

He went on to emphasise that “governments should be much faster in intervening” when their citizens are held abroad. “Intervention needs to come immediately, from the highest levels of government.” Fahmy expressed his concern that this had not yet happened in the case of Iraqi VICE News journalist Mohamed Rasool, currently detained in Turkey on charges related to terrorism.

Denouncing Canada’s new Bill C-24, which allows the government to revoke a dual national’s Canadian citizenship if the citizen is convicted of terrorism, Fahmy said, “it’s a very dangerous law. It overrides the judiciary… it should be revisited.”

The discussion then moved onto the role of Al Jazeera, with reports of Fahmy suing his former employer for $100m on the basis of negligence in May 2015. “Al-Jazeera’s shortcomings and mistakes contributed to our situation,” he said. “I had specifically asked many times, are we legal in the Marriott [the Cairo hotel where Fahmy’s broadcast team was based]? They said, ‘Yes, stick to the editorial side, don’t worry about it’… but the answer – I found out in court.”

Fahmy continued, “I asked Al-Jazeera to take responsibility, to present a letter to the judge saying ‘[Greste, Fahmy and Mohamed] have nothing to do with this, this is our fault’, but they did not… it really angered me.”

“It was important to make it clear that there is a distinction between the network and the journalists who work in the network,” said Fahmy, describing the re-trial defence strategy.

Clooney took on Fahmy’s case, she said, when she “realised what was at stake, because Egypt is a leader in the region… It sets a precedent.”

Doucet praised her dedication to the cause: “We want to recognise all lawyers who fight for journalists, and we need more.”

Clooney continued: “Elements of the [Egyptian] government… sought to bring about justice. Belatedly, but they finally did do. The work that lawyers and journalists and human rights activists have to do is to make sure they’re pushing those elements of the government that are a force for good.”

Both Fahmy and Clooney praised the media’s essential role in the campaign for his freedom. “Social media was so important in this case,” Fahmy said, mentioning the #FreeAJStaff Twitter hashtag. “It does make a huge difference… This collective effort is why I’m here today.”

Optimism remains key to both Fahmy and his lawyer’s ongoing fight for press freedom. “There are signs of positive development in Egypt… but there’s a long way to go,” Fahmy said.

A new press charter to which he contributed will shortly be presented to President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, in the hope that journalists will consequently be able to work more freely in Egypt.

Clooney echoed this positive sentiment: “Hopefully this pardon means at the highest level there may be some change in approach.”

Clooney concluded the discussion with a few words on Fahmy‘s long-awaited freedom: “Today, we can take a moment to celebrate what’s happened to this journalist.”

“I’m here,” Fahmy replied, “because I have two very powerful women who are behind me,” thanking Clooney and his wife Marwa Omara.

Fahmy and his wife will shortly return to Canada, where he will take up a visiting post at the University of British Columbia and “continue to fight and use the spotlight” on behalf of the “many more behind bars” across the globe.

More information on the Fahmy Foundation – and their work in campaigning for the release of unlawfully imprisoned journalists, including Egyptian photojournalist Shawkan and Saudi blogger Raif Badawi – can be found here.

 
On his first trip to London since being released from prison in Egypt we are delighted to welcome former Al Jazeera bureau chief Mohamed Fahmy to the Frontline Club.

After spending more than 400 days in prison and facing the prospect of a three-year sentence for doing their jobs as journalists, Fahmy and his colleague Baher Mohamed were among 100 prisoners released on 23 September following a presidential pardon.

He will be joining us in conversation with his lawyer Amal Clooney to reflect on his ordeal, their fight for press freedom in Egypt and his hopes for the future. Chaired by BBC presenter and chief international correspondent, Lyse Doucet.

For media inquiries please email millicent.teasdale@www.beta.frontlineclub.com.

From the early days of the Arab Spring that sparked hopes for change to the years of instability and political tension that followed, this enthralling documentary follows the stories of young prominent underground artists from across the Middle East during the period of 2009 to 2013.

In a region fraught with political tension, these progressive musicians and artists have struggled for years to express themselves freely and to promote more liberal attitudes within their societies.

From young female artists in Egypt overturning the norms by living alone, to the persecution of a famous Lebanese musician for singing against the political leader, director Farid Eslam paints a picture of a new generation challenging both old and new realities with passion and admirable perseverance.

Directed by: Farid Eslam
Runtime: 84′
Year: 2015
Country: Czech Republic, Germany, UK, Egypt, Canada, US
Languages: English, Arabic