Mada center is expressing regret over the legislation Council member (Fatah deputy) Najat Abu Baker organizing campaign to boycott Al-Jazeera, on the grounds that it continues to play a distinct role in fuelling the internal Palestinian conflict.

Mada considers such campaigns in the complex conditions of the Palestinian people due to internal divisions, will increase the level of incitement against local and Arab media, which sometimes leads to attacks under this argument, we noticed that some of the attacks on journalists and media outlets, occurred as a result of the incitement, as Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabeya were exposed last year to two attacks, on grounds of incitement against the first as biased with Hamas and the second with Fatah.

Mrs. Abu Baker as precedent media women and current member of the Legislative Council supposed to play a role in contributing to freedom of opinion and expression enhance, and not to take steps that could be understood by some, as a green light to attacks against Al-Jazeera offices or correspondents.
We hope Mrs. Abu baker to stop her campaign, and call on all public figures, to be cautious when release statements regarding media outlets.

Mada condemns the Prevention of Palestinian Public television correspondents from media coverage in Gaza Strip, which contradicts to the Palestinian Basic Law and Publications and Printing Law, which guarantee freedom of opinion and expression in the Palestinian territories.

Ministry of Interior in the dismissed government spokesman Ihab Al-Ghussein had telephoned on the fourth of this month the television correspondents Adel Zaanoun and Samir Khalifa and informed them of the decision to prevent any newsletters sending and any contacts with Palestinian Public TV in Ramallah
The procedures of preventing the media outlets from work or distribution exercised by the concerned authorities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, constitute a threat to the Palestinian media, and contribute to friction in the Palestinian arena, so we demand the abolition of all actions taken against the media and to enable it to work and distribute freely.

Ramallah
March 7.2008