Monday, 18 April 2011
The duo was filming a report on football in Qatar. (File photo)
Swiss television channel RTS has claimed that two sports reporters representing their network were held against their will for 13 days in Qatar, the host country for the 2022 football World Cup.
The duo was filming a report on football in Qatar. RTS said that they “were grounded on Qatari soil for two weeks without receiving a clear explanation of what they were accused of.”
The journalist and the cameraman were able to return to Switzerland on Friday morning, after an “intense” effort from the Swiss embassy in Kuwait since Switzerland does not have diplomatic representation in Qatar.
The journalists were filming “landscape shots,” according to RTS, when they were stopped by a police patrol at Mesaieed. From there they were taken to a local police station, where they were handcuffed and interrogated for several hours.
The duo was filming a report on football in Qatar. RTS said that they “were grounded on Qatari soil for two weeks without receiving a clear explanation of what they were accused of.”
The journalist and the cameraman were able to return to Switzerland on Friday morning, after an “intense” effort from the Swiss embassy in Kuwait since Switzerland does not have diplomatic representation in Qatar.
The journalists were filming “landscape shots,” according to RTS, when they were stopped by a police patrol at Mesaieed. From there they were taken to a local police station, where they were handcuffed and interrogated for several hours.
After being transferred to a station in Wakra for further interrogations, they were presented to a judge in Doha, where “they had to pay a fine, without receiving either a report about their offence or a receipt.” RTS did not specify the amount of the fine.
The cameraman had his camera confiscated, according to RTS. He and the reporter were then freed, but without official authorization to leave Qatar.
Returning to the place where they had been arrested, they “were able to confirm that there was no indication that filming was forbidden,” said RTS.
“Moreover, before leaving for the country, the Qatar embassy in Geneva had told them that they could film ‘freely’ added the channel.
Qatar has had some problems regarding media rights. On the 24 June 2009, most of the original members of the Doha Center for Media Freedom (DCMF) resigned. Robert Ménard, Director-General of the DCMF and his team left the Center. “We no longer have either the freedom or the resources to do our work,” Mr. Ménard said in a statement issued after his resignation.
The Center was set up on the initiative of Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned and Reporters Without Borders in December 2007.
Mr. Ménard, was the founder of Reporters Without Borders, which he headed for 23 years.
The new statement issued by RTS has elicited considerable—although expected—response from staff members at the Geneva-based network.
“The arbitrary conduct of the Qatari police constitutes a serious violation of press liberty,” said Massimo Lorenzi, head of sports at RTS, in the statement.
He also said that the “very regrettable incident” would be reported to “all the responsible authorities concerned, as well as [world football’s governing body] FIFA.”
(Umita Raghu Venkataraman of Al Arabiya can be reached at: Umita.venkataraman@mbc.net)
The cameraman had his camera confiscated, according to RTS. He and the reporter were then freed, but without official authorization to leave Qatar.
Returning to the place where they had been arrested, they “were able to confirm that there was no indication that filming was forbidden,” said RTS.
“Moreover, before leaving for the country, the Qatar embassy in Geneva had told them that they could film ‘freely’ added the channel.
Qatar has had some problems regarding media rights. On the 24 June 2009, most of the original members of the Doha Center for Media Freedom (DCMF) resigned. Robert Ménard, Director-General of the DCMF and his team left the Center. “We no longer have either the freedom or the resources to do our work,” Mr. Ménard said in a statement issued after his resignation.
The Center was set up on the initiative of Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned and Reporters Without Borders in December 2007.
Mr. Ménard, was the founder of Reporters Without Borders, which he headed for 23 years.
The new statement issued by RTS has elicited considerable—although expected—response from staff members at the Geneva-based network.
“The arbitrary conduct of the Qatari police constitutes a serious violation of press liberty,” said Massimo Lorenzi, head of sports at RTS, in the statement.
He also said that the “very regrettable incident” would be reported to “all the responsible authorities concerned, as well as [world football’s governing body] FIFA.”
(Umita Raghu Venkataraman of Al Arabiya can be reached at: Umita.venkataraman@mbc.net)
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