29/8/2022
International Zone Security forces denied UTV correspondent and cameraman from covering the incident of the protestors raiding into the governmental palace on Monday noon.
The Manager of the Channel told the Press Freedom Advocacy Association in Iraq that their correspondent, Haider alBadri and cameraman, Abdulmalek Faisal, were denied coverage by the security forces. They were also forced to leave the site at once or they would be arrested if they continue coverage. The staff left the site immediately to avoid any confrontation. Video footage of the channel’s staff showed lieutenant colonel Officer heading towards the cameraman and forcing him to stop filming, amid protesters’ objection to the officer, who tried to detain the cameraman and reporter.
The Association condemns the ban on the channel’s staff from covering the demonstrations, considers it a violation of the freedom of journalistic and media work in the constitutionally guaranteed country, and expresses its surprise that the officer banned filming amid the presence of hundreds of protesters in the place, who directly report all events through social media.
The association calls on all security agencies to stop preventing the media from reporting the reality of the events taking place on the scene, to inform the public opinion of the course of affairs, and to respect the principles of the Constitution that guarantee the freedom of journalistic work unconditionally.
