CAIRO: Egypt came in at the bottom of the rankings in this year's World Press Freedom Index, an annual rating published by Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF) measuring the level of press freedom around the world. Coming in at number 146 out of 169 countries evaluated, Egypt dropped 13 spots from number 133 last year. Eritrea features last on the index, replacing North Korea who took bottom spot last year. "There is nothing surprising about this. Eritrea deserves to be at the bottom. The privately-owned press has been banished by the authoritarian President Issaias Afeworki and the few journalists who dare to criticize the regime are thrown in prison. We know that four of them have died in detention and we have every reason to fear that others will suffer the same fate, RSF stated. Other countries that allegedly have little press freedom according to RSF's indicator are Burma, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, China, Syria, Iraq, Cuba, and the Palestinian territories. Tarek Mounir, spokesman for RSF in Egypt explains the country's low rankings as a result of "recent governmental crackdown on the independent press and referral of internet blogger Kareem Amer to a prison term. The Egyptian authorities have recently been subject to strong criticism from international rights groups and even representatives of foreign governments for allegedly restricting press freedom. Most recently, the editors of four of Egypt's leading independant newspapers were sentenced to one year in prison and fined LE 20,000 for "publishing false information [about the president's health] likely to disturb public order. The sentenced include Ibrahim Eissa, editor of Al-Dostour, Adel Hammouda editor of Al-Fajr, Wael Al-Ibrashy, editor of Sout Al-Omah, and Abdel Halim Kandil, former editor of Al-Karama. The chief editor of Al-Wafd newspaper, Anwar Al-Hawari, along with Mahmoud Galeb, and Amir Salem - two journalists at the same newspaper - received a two-year jail sentence for misquoting the Minister of Justice. Al-Badil editor Mohammed Sayyed Said is also facing prosecution for writing about President Hosni Mubarak's health. In February this year, student blogger Kareem Amer was sentenced to four years in prison for defaming Islam and President Mubarak on his internet blog. Shortly thereafter, Brotherhood blogger and journalist Abdel Moneim Mahmoud was arrested and detained for several months on unclear grounds. Rights groups claim that Mahmoud's detainment was a result of his outspoken online writings. In Hammouda's opinion, RSF "has all the right in the world to list Egypt as one of the worst countries with regard to press freedom. What is going on in Egypt is horrible. We used to enjoy some sort of press freedom in the country, but it is all gone at this point. Me and three other editors along with six journalists have received jail sentences for our work, Hammouda told Daily News Egypt. RSF's Mounir emphasized to Daily News Egypt that "there is an ongoing crackdown on Egypt s independent press and he "doesn t see the situation getting any better. Journalists are no longer protected here, he added. Furthermore, New York-based press group Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) issued Wednesday a special report on Reda Helal, an editor at Al-Ahram newspaper who mysteriously disappeared four years ago on his way home from work. The report entitled "The Forgotten Man is released in conjunction with what CPJ calls "a government crackdown on the Egyptian press and aims to raise awareness of the case as well as spur the Egyptian authorities to 'provide answers'. "It is inconceivable that a journalist can simply vanish in the center of Cairo in broad daylight and for the authorities to say they have no clues. The Egyptian government's failure to shed light on this alarming disappearance, or even to release its findings after four years, is deplorable. We call on Egyptian officials, including President Mubarak, to provide answers, CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon said. The same organization crowned Egypt as one of the world's "worst backsliders on press freedom in 2006, citing an increase in the number of attacks on the press over the past five years. To access the World Press Freedom Index, please visit: http://www.rsf.org/
