Abdullah Benaoum
Abdullah Benaoum is a human rights defender and social media activist who has written on labor rights, prisoners’ rights, and rights of persons with disabilities in Algeria.
The lifting of Algeria’s 19-year state of emergency in early 2011 did not have a positive effect on the situation of human rights defenders (HRDs). Human rights defenders have continued to be subjected to harassment, threats, physical attacks, arbitrary detention and legal proceedings.
Criminal defamation is used to exert pressure on journalists and independent newspapers. A new Press law adopted in late 2011 grants the authorities the right to sanction journalists whose work may undermine the country's economic or security interests. The 2009 Cybercrime Law grants the government the right to censor or close down any online sites deemed to be a threat to public order or decency.
