Arab Media Regulations (Essay Sample)

Arab Media Regulations (Student’s Name) (Class) (Name of Professor) (Name of Institution) (Date) Introduction The subject of Arab media regulations is best understood from the events that erupted in the Arab world following the self-immolation of a Tunisian vendor named Mohamed Bouazizi. It was on 10 December 2010 that Mohamed Bouazizi poured gasoline over his own body and set himself on fire. He was protesting against the rampant and unending corruption that was consistently being patronized and supported by the ruling regime, without taking any concrete measures to lessen the severe hardships of Tunisian citizens. Bouazizi death spurred a vast majority of Tunisians to unite and stage the rarely witnessed mass protests in the repressive nation ruled by autocrat Zine el Abidine Ben Ali. In a rare an unseen demonstration of solidarity, Tunisian citizens began staging mass peaceful protests, the videos of which rapidly became viral on social media, despite the tightly controlled media in the country. Very soon, the protests spread across the country, and Zine el Abidine Ben Ali had to flee to Saudi Arabia. It was because of the regional news systems and social media platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter that the mass protests in Tunisia quickly spread to the entire Arab world. These platforms provided the protesters with an effective means to spread and share information, and coordinate the movements. Known as the Arab Spring, the movement spread quickly in the Arab world and created major challenges for the authoritarian regimes in the region. In effect, the unexpected realities were an outcome of the lack of protection that is available to journalists, and of regulatory hurdles like absence of transparency and the unwillingness of the leadership to assume accountability. It is in this context that this paper makes a detailed analysis of media regulations in the Arab world and the ways in which they impact journalism in the region. Present Status of Media Freedom in the Arab World It becomes important to examine the media regulations in the Arab world because except for the brief mention that is made of such laws in law books relative to international media, exhaustive research has not yet been done on the implications they have on journalism in these countries. Duffy (2014) has contended that researchers have been avoiding research on media laws in the Arab world because of varied reasons. Firstly, the region does not permit academic freedom to researchers in carrying out exhaustive studies relative to media policies. A self-censorship culture characterizes universities in the region as researchers are not prone to make detailed investigations in sensitive areas like the policies that are implemented for press censorship. They fear that they may be asked to leave the host nations for daring to delve into sensitive issues that have a bearing on the power sustainability of ruling regimes. Secondly, a major hurdle for researchers is language, because they are mostly from other countries. In most Arab nations, the laws are available only in Arabic, which means that non-Arabic academics who are mostly adept in international laws, have no means to analyze the source materials in English. Such circumstances combine in depriving the Arab world of adequate scholarship on international media laws. Even though specific situations differ amongst Arab nations, scholars have in general categorized them as fitting within the ‘authoritarian media system model’.[Duffy, M. J. (2014). Arab Media Regulations: Identifying Restraints on Freedom of the Press in the Laws of Six Arabian Peninsula Countries. Berkeley J. of Middle Eastern & Islamic Law] [Ibid, 2.] In attempting to fill the gap in the literature relative to lack of clarity about the effects that Arab laws have on journalism in these countries, Duffy (2014) analyzed the situation that prevails in GCC member nations like the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, and Bahrain. Except for disturbances in Bahrain, these nations did not witness the mass protests that occurred in most other nations in the Muslim world. A noteworthy characteristic of the GCC nations is that they have all been under subjugation of the British in the past, as protectorates or colonies, and have thus been influenced by British laws. This is one reason why their laws are so restrictive in the context of the media. In fact, it is known that the British had the tendency of imposing tough censorship in all the states that were its colonies, primarily to dominate over the local people. In addition, upon achieving independence from the British, most of the Arab nations sought the help of British advisors to frame their respective laws. It is apparent that the local rulers would have been happy to be supported with laws that restricted media activities.[Duffy, M. J. (2014). Arab Media Regulations: Identifying Restraints on Freedom of the Press in the Laws of Six Arabian Peninsula Countries. Berkeley J. of Middle Eastern & Islamic Law] Even though all members nations of the GCC have court systems and Supreme courts with provisions of appeals, the judicial systems are not entirely autonomous. Appeals courts are known to have reversed their judgments in keeping with the opinions of rulers. A major reason for the lack of autonomy in the judiciary in the region is that many judges are not nationals of respective states, and may have to leave abruptly as their appointments are not for entire life. Consequently, it is logical to assume that an expatriate judge will not be inclined to move against the prevailing status quo in respect of legal matters in a country that employs him. From the perspective of freedom of speech, Saudi Arabia is the only GCC member that does not provide for media regulations in its laws. Rather Saudi Arabia has stipulations in its laws that actually restrain freedom of speech. In addition, judges in Arab nations do not take any initiative in protecting journalists, but are more focused on conservatism on account of the emphasis on Islamic tenets. Arab nations are considered to place much reliance on Sharia law, which are viewed as being sources of laws that have been divinely inspired. This is in stark contrast with the British civil and common laws as applicable in the colonies. As per Sharia laws, the basis of legal rulings is found in the Quran. Actually, most Islamic nations have been expanding the scope of their laws further than Sharia by focusing on indigenous practices and the erstwhile colonial principles, mainly because they realize the significance of having legal systems that are compliant with international investment systems. In view of the restrictions that are imposed in respect of journalism, Arab nations do not enjoy credibility and good ranking in the context of the freedom that is available to the press internationally. Figure 1 aptly depicts that GCC nations fare poorly in the press freedom rankings of Freedom House and Reporters Without Borders. Figure 1: Freedom of Press Rankings of GCC nations Source: Duffy, M. J. (2014). Arab Media Regulations: Identifying Restraints on Freedom of the Press in the Laws of Six Arabian Peninsula Countries. Berkeley J. of Middle Eastern & Islamic Law Causes for Restrictive Media Communications In the GCC countries, communication is restricted by relying on the three core legal areas, which are media laws, penal codes, and laws on cybercrime. Penal codes are applicable in the context of varied kinds of crimes. They mostly have two crucial clauses that have a major bearing on journalism. These are laws relative to criminal defamation, and injunctions against disapproval or offensive comments against members of the ruling regime. Allegations of slander or libel (defamation), and disapproval or offensive comments against the regime can result in filing of police complaints, and are treated as criminal acts that can result in arrest as well as prison sentences and fines. In addition, citizens engaged in offending or criticizing the ruler can also be imposed with similar charges. Such practices are clearly indicative of suppressing critical speech. Media laws in the region provide for the licensing of journalists and news outlets, and require journalists to comply with a large number of restrictions. Arab nations also have laws relative to cyber crimes through which the internet and other kinds of digital communications are regulated. In particular, it was after onset of the Arab Spring that Oman and the UAE modified their respective cybercrime regulations. They enhanced the punishments for offenses like spreading of false news, defamation, and use of digital communications to disapprove the government and its practices. Clearly, these were initiatives focused on restricting people’s ability to criticize on social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter, which were the only available means for people to express their sentiments in the face of the inescapable self-censorship of the mainstream media. Saudi Arabia is unique as it is more conservative in comparison to other GCC nations. It has no legal provisions that provide for protecting freedom of speech and expression; nor does it have an official penal code, which is why the judicial system depends on elastic and vague notions relative to criminal legislation. This in turn creates an unclear and ill-defined environment in which media functionaries operate. Areas of Legitimacy in Arab Media regulations The legal approach in respect of defamation in most of the Arab world is more focused on making such violations criminal, which is in contrast with most other nations that deal with it under provisions of civil law. In this regard, defamation laws are inherent in the media laws and penal codes of Arab nations. Media laws in these states emphasize on safeguarding public order, national security and the maintenance of civ...