UNITED NATIONS, Jun 28 (APP):A U.N. spokesman, asked about the arrest of prominent Indian journalist Mohammad Zubair, said Tuesday, “Journalists should not be jailed for what they write, what they tweet and what they say.”
“And that goes for anywhere in the world,” Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in response to a question from APP correspondent at the regular noon briefing at UN headquarters in New York.
He added, “first of all, in any place around the world, it is very important that people be allowed to express themselves freely, journalists be allowed to express themselves freely and without the threat of any harassment.”
Earlier, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent watchdog body, has called on Indian authorities to “immediately and unconditionally” release journalist Mohammad Zubair, and to cease harassing him in retaliation for his work,
“The arrest of journalist Mohammad Zubair marks another low for press freedom in India, where the government has created a hostile and unsafe environment for members of the press reporting on sectarian issues,” Steven Butler, CPJ’s Asia programme coordinator, in Washington, D.C., said in a statement.
“Authorities must immediately and unconditionally release Zubair, and allow him to pursue his journalistic work without further interference,” Butler added.
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