TV news agency threatened with closure after arbitrary fine and equipment seizure

Reporters Without Borders is outraged by yesterday's conviction of Nader Gohar, the head of the Cairo News Company, on a charge of broadcasting footage of rioting in the Nile Delta city of Mahalla without a licence. The TV news agency, which has already had much of its equipment seized, was fined 150,000 Egyptian pounds (21,000 euros). Gohar said he would appeal. “The court's decision is a death warrant for CNC, an agency that works with foreign news media,” Reporters Without Borders said. “The Egyptian authorities are not even trying to hide their desire to censor independent media and control the news. The footage of the Mahalla protests that went round the world was evidence of social unrest. Gohar and his agency are paying the price for this bad publicity although none of his crews filmed the controversial reports.” Yesterday's ruling was the resulted of a complaint brought against Gohar by the governmental broadcasting authority after several international TV stations broadcast footage of demonstrations against price hikes in the Nile Delta on 6 April in which protesters were seen venting their anger on a photo of President Hosni Mubarak. The CNC, which works closely with foreign TV broadcasters such as France 2, Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya, was accused of providing them with the offending film, and police raided its offices, seizing broadcast equipment. Gohar told Reporters Without Borders he requested the renewal of his broadcast licence last year, but the authorities suspended the issue of licences pending adoption of a new broadcasting law. Deprived of much of its equipment and hit by an unfair prosecution, the CNC has already cut its activities by around 70 per cent and has been forced to lay off half of its staff. Egypt was ranked 146th out of 173 countries in the 2008 press freedom index with Reporters Without Borders issued last week.