Editorial photo #13051365 Social Issue
Tunisian Journalists Demonstrate In Solidarity With Jailed Colleague In Tunis
President of the National Union of Tunisian Journalists (SNJT), Zied Dabbar, gives an interview to the press as he participates in a 'silent' demonstration organized by the SNJT outside the Court of Appeal in Tunis, Tunisia, on December 2, 2025, in solidarity with the imprisoned journalist Chadha Hadj Mbarek. In a statement released yesterday, the SNJT calls for her release, for her trial to be conducted while she is at liberty, and for the dismissal of all charges against her. Chadha, sentenced to five years in prison in the first instance in the case known as 'Instalingo', appears on appeal before the judges. She faces charges of conspiracy against state security, disturbing public order, and insulting President Kais Saied. The case also involves other figures, including Ennahda Islamist party leader Rached Ghannouchi and former Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi. Instalingo, where Chadha is employed, is a company specializing in digital content creation, communication, and digital marketing. In recent years, the authorities under President Kais Saied accuse, charge, arrest, detain, or imprison journalists for doing their job. Tunisian journalists and civil society groups denounce what they describe as a crackdown on the freedom of the press aiming to silence them. International human rights groups and press freedom advocates, including Amnesty International and Reporters Without Borders (RWB; French: Reporters sans frontieres; RSF), condemn the imprisonment of Chadha Hadj Mbarek and call for her immediate release. (Photo by Chedly Ben Ibrahim/NurPhoto)
