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The World Association of Newspapers and the World Editors Forum have made a
final appeal to President Islam Karimov of Uzbekistan to release journalist
Ruslan Sharipov and allow him to travel to Istanbul, Turkey, to receive the
Golden Pen of Freedom award at the World Newspaper Congress next week.
WAN has been working for months for the release of Mr Sharipov, who was
sentenced to four years in prison in August 2003 for "engaging in homosexual
acts" -- a pretext to silence him and stop his human rights work.
Mr Sharipov was recently released from prison but is being held under house
arrest. The Uzbek authorities have refused requests to free him to travel to
Istanbul to receive the Golden Pen during the opening ceremonies of the
World Newspaper Congress and World Editors Forum on 31 May.
"If the Uzbek government thinks that preventing him from travelling to
Istanbul to receive his prize will lessen the publicity around his case,
that is a very bad calculation and will backfire," said Timothy Balding,
Director General of the Paris-based WAN. "Quite the contrary, his absence
from the ceremony will be direct evidence of the repressive nature of the
Uzbek regime. The awards ceremony will take place even in his absence,
attended by the Prime Minister of Turkey, representatives of the diplomatic
community, and more than 1,000 publishers and editors from newspapers from
around the world.
"If, on the other hand, he is allowed to attend, his presence in Istanbul
would demonstrate that the Uzbek government has the confidence and
compassion to admit its mistakes and is making progress toward promised
human rights reforms," he said.
The Golden Pen of Freedom, the annual press freedom prize of the World
Association of Newspapers, is given to a journalist for the accomplishment
of outstanding service to the cause of press freedom. Mr Sharipov is being
honoured for his courageous human rights and freedom of expression
initiatives in the face of attacks, torture and constant harassment.
Mr Sharipov, 25, was held in a high security prison from his arrest in May
2003 until March, when he was transferred to house arrest. Though he is
scheduled for early release on 11 June, there are fears that he could be
transferred back to high security prison to complete his four-year term if
he violates the conditions of his house arrest, which include engaging in
journalistic or human rights activities.
He is the founder of the Union of Independent Journalists of Uzbekistan and
a correspondent for the Moscow Human Rights Agency. Before his imprisonment,
he reported regularly on the state of the media and press freedom in
Uzbekistan, and about human rights violations in the country.
WAN has presented the Golden Pen of Freedom annually since 1961. Past
winners include Argentina's Jacobo Timerman (1980), Russia's Sergei
Grigoryants (1989), China's Gao Yu (1995), and Vietnam's Doan Viet Hoat
(1998). The 2003 award went to the Belarusian Association of Journalists.
The 57th World Newspaper Congress, the 11th World Editors Forum and Info
Services Expo, the global meetings of the world's press, will be held in
Istanbul from 30 May to 2 June. More information on events at
http://www.wan-press.org/istanbnl2004/.
WAN, the global organisation for the newspaper industry, defends and
promotes press freedom world-wide. It represents 18,000 newspapers; its
membership includes 72 national newspaper associations, individual newspaper
executives in 102 countries, 13 news agencies and ten regional and
world-wide press groups.
Inquiries to: Larry Kilman, Director of Communications, WAN, 7 rue Geoffroy
St Hilaire, 75005 Paris France. Tel: +33 1 47 42 85 00. Fax: +33 1 47 42 49
48. Mobile: +33 6 10 28 97 36. E-mail: lkilman@wan.asso.fr
---
Larry Kilman
Director of Communications
World Association of Newspapers
7 Rue Geoffroy St. Hilaire (note new address)
75005 Paris France
Tel: +33 1 47 42 85 00
Fax: +33 1 47 42 49 48
E-mail: lkilman@wan.asso.fr
Visit our web site at http://www.wan-press.org