‘Even if I were to go to jail, I will come back as a journalist’: Journalists at risk in their own words
Three Raajje TV journalists, on trial for obstructing police officers, share their thoughts on journalism and describe why they continue to report despite the risk of jail.
16 Jan 2017, 9:00 AM
For the first time in more than a decade, Maldivian journalists risk jail for critical reporting.
In December, the criminal court found Raajje TV journalists, Mohamed Wisam, 21, and Leevan Ali Nasir, 20, guilty of obstructing police officers. They were arrested while reporting on a bomb scare in Malé in November 2015. Prosecutors have asked for a prison sentence of four months and 24 days, but the judge, for unspecified reasons, has postponed their sentencing to January 24.
Wisam is also standing trial on a second charge of obstructing police officers. He was arrested along with 29-year-old cameraman, Adam Zareer, while covering an anti-government protest in March 2015.
Wisam’s second trial is on going, while a verdict is expected in Zareer’s case on Monday.
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