Bahrain: Blogging Danger

Controversial discussion is going on between some bloggers and ‘Anonymous Blogging’ which lists Bahrain, Saudi and Syria in Top Five most dangerous countries for bloggers. The director of ‘Committee to Protect Bloggers’ has been criticized and accused of being an Arab-hating secret agent in Jewish pay, as he says. The unhappy bloggers are asking why Iraq and Israel are not in the list, although some bloggers in Iraq where killed and two where detained in Israel.

4 comments

  • Thanks for covering this debate, Haitham. The Iraqi blogger Khalid Jarrar was detained also.

  • MD

    No one has implied the Committee to Protect Bloggers Director Curt Hopkins of being an “Arab hating secret agent in Jewish pay” as he claims. Why he should accuse Bahrain’s bloggers of anti-Semitism like this is wrong when all people have done is question Bahrain’s inclusion on his list. Looks like a desperate attempt to silence criticism.

    Concern though was raised about former links on the CPB’s site to various Israeli websites, such as Debka which boasts that it was founded by ‘former Israeli intelligence officers’. This doesn’t equal anti-semitism but is a legitimate question about why a supposed human rights organisation should be linked to a site run by former intelligence officers. It is a question that Curt Hopkins hasn’t answered.

  • Just an FYI here:

    The CPB/SpiritofAmerica Director Curt Hopkins have replied the comments left on our blog posting over at their blog – ‘Anonymous Blogging’.

    We have reblogged his reply on News Blog re-Blog (http://nbrb.blogspot.com/2005/08/inclusion-of-bahrain-curt-hopkins.html)

    Hope that helps all interested in participating in this discussion :-)

  • Repeated statements that I am purposely omitting Israel, that I am a supporter of US military policy, etc. can hardly be understood to be anything but an indictment — and a personal one at that. So when I say what it seems, why get bent out of shape when something is stated directly that has been whispered around? “MD” neglects to mention that the instant I realized that Debka was more slanted than I wanted (due to a comment on the site) I immediately took it down. I would also encourage everyone to read my post on why Bahrain was included. There are literally dozens of counntries that have been bad to bloggers but I have to choose five that I’m focusing on for this particular project.

    I realize this is a subject and an area of the world around which it is difficult to speak without opening up yourself to accusations. I only hope that people, even those who are critical, take a look at the goal of the project and the end product and judge it all in the light of those two things.

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