3/4/2020
The Media and Communications Commissionimposed a three- month suspension period against Reuters Agency with a fine, afterrevealing figures contradicting those announced by GOI concerning positive Covid-19 victims inIraq.
After midnight, MCC issued a letter that included the suspension of the agency’s work and a fine of 25 million, under the pretext of publishing a report on the numbers of people affected by the Corona pandemic, which is more than what is announced by the Ministry of Health in Iraq.
Press Freedom Advocacy Association in Iraqcondemns the suspension of the work of Reuters, which is a constitutional and legal violation, and reminds that MCC is a regulatory body not a watchdog, and does not have the right to suspend the work of any media organization without order issuance by court.
The association also calls on the Iraqi government to reconsider the decisions issued by MCC particularly in recent times, against the country’s press and media bodies, which have taken on an unprofessional and political character.
