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MADA hosts two free expression workshops in Gaza

(MADA/IFEX) - 14 March 2011 - Ramallah - The Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms (MADA) held two workshops in Gaza on 12 March 2011.

The first workshop, "Freedom of Expression in Local and International Legislation", was held in the South Female Journalists Forum headquarters in Rafah and was funded by the prominent NGO and MADA partner, Foundation for the Future. The workshop was attended by 26 journalists and led by MADA's legal unit consultant Karim Nashwan.

Nashwan outlined the role of local and international laws in enhancing freedom of expression, and existing international legislation regulating the relationship between the authorities and journalists.

Participants emphasized the need for a halt to all violations against journalists and media outlets, demanded that ruling authorities respect political and media freedoms, and called for an end to internal Palestinian divisions. Participants also thanked MADA for its role in defending journalists and protecting freedom of opinion and expression in oPt.

This event ran as part of a series of workshops held by MADA in a number of governorates in the West Bank and Gaza aimed at raising journalists' awareness of the local and international laws relating to their work and guaranteeing them the right to freedom of expression.

The second workshop, "Strengthening the Capacity of Lawyers to Handle Cases Related to Freedom of Opinion and Expression", was held in the Islamic University headquarters in Gaza city and conducted in cooperation with Birzeit University's Institute of Law, with the support of the UNESCO office in Ramallah.

The workshop was attended by a number of law students from the Islamic University. It examined the laws impacting the work of Palestinian journalists, such as the Press and Publications law and the Penal Code law, in addition to discussing the realities faced by journalists working in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.