National Press Club Condemns Egyptian Crackdown on Information

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Jan 28, 2011, 06:10 ET

WASHINGTON, Jan. 28, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Press Club condemns the Egyptian government for cracking down on the rights of reporters and Egyptian citizens to freely share information about events in their country.

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Amid violent street protests in Cairo, numerous reliable reports indicate that reporters have been detained, beaten or had their equipment confiscated. On top of those outrages comes news that Internet and mobile phone services have also been disrupted. This directly impedes the ability of journalists to cover the protests and the capacity of the people of Egypt and the world to stay informed through the press and their own communications.

"The members of the National Press Club call upon Egyptian authorities to halt their efforts to block, harass and intimidate the press and their actions to impose an information blackout," said NPC President Mark Hamrick. "Advocates of press freedom around the world are watching events in Egypt carefully. The National Press Club, for one, intends to hold Egypt's leaders to account."

The National Press Club comprises nearly 3,500 reporters, editors, public information officers and others associated with the profession of journalism.

SOURCE National Press Club