Another Gulf newspaper suspended

Last month I mentioned that a newspaper in Bahrain, Akhbar Al Khaleej, had been suspended until further notice. It turns out the Iranians complained to Bahrain about an article that criticised their country. The article in question was an attributed opinion article that was stating just that - an opinion held by the author. Despite living in the region for some time, this still doesn't sit well with my home-grown sensibilities.

This week, Emarat Al Youm - an Arabic language newspaper based out of Abu Dhabi -has received a 20 day suspension following a story it published in 2006. The article in question suggested that a UAE stable had doped horses with steroids for a race in Dubai...a story that suggests there may have been a hint of - shock horror - investigative journalism going on. In 2006? Amazing!

Reporting on the story, Gulf News highlighted Mohammad Yousuf, Chairman of the UAE Journalists' Association, as saying that media circles were "disturbed by the suspension, especially when the UAE media is witnessing a qualitative leap and development."

I totally agree. Yes, laws against defamation are appropriate and should result in a fine if found guilty; but a 20-day ban on publishing three years after the event...??