NUJ Ireland – message to all members
Wednesday 25 June 2014
Solidarity with journalists jailed in Egypt
NUJ members are encouraged to show support and solidarity with the journalists jailed in Egypt.
Michelle Stanistreet, NUJ general secretary, said: “The outcry and protests show the strength of support for journalists in Egypt and we denounce the sentences. We will do all that we can to get our colleagues released.
“We call on all those with influence in Egypt to demand the sentences are quashed and the journalists released immediately.
“Peter Greste, Mohamed Fahmy, Baher Mohamed, Alaa Bayoumi, Anas Abdel-Wahab Khalawi Hasan, Khaleel Aly Khaleel Bahnasy, Mohamed Fawzi, Dominic Kane, Rena Netjes and Sue Turton are journalists. They are not terrorists. They are not criminals. They are journalists who have been jailed simply for doing their jobs.”
Take action: As part of the NUJ campaign against the jailing of Al Jazeera journalists a delegation from the National Union of Journalists will hand in a letter of protest to Ambassador Sherif Elkholi at the Embassy of Egypt, 12 Clyde Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4, at 15.45 on Thursday 26 June 2014.
Séamus Dooley, NUJ Ireland secretary, said: “We realise that only a small number of members will be able to join us – the time is designed to facilitate Embassy staff, but members can support the protest by observing a symbolic one minute’s silence in their own workplace at 16.00 on the day and by writing to Ambassador Sherif Elkholi at info@embegyptireland.ie on Thursday afternoon.”
There has already been support for the campaign in Seanad Éireann. The order of business in the Oireachtas debates contain several references to representations made by NUJ.