A Bahraini minister who sued the country’s most prominent blogger over ‘offensive’ remarks has agreed to drop the case, two days before the court was due to review it.
The reconciliation was immediately hailed by the Bahrain Journalists Association (BJA) as a positive step in which several political and rights activists in Bahrain and abroad played a critical role.
“The minister has agreed to drop the libel case against me after I met him at his office on Sunday afternoon and offered my apology for hurting his feelings by using what could be interpreted as harsh words in my criticism in the original article,” Mahmoud Al Yousuf said yesterday in a statement.
“I explained to the minister that the words I used in my article were probably fuelled by my over-reaction to his statement that was carried in a media report. I offered to change them to something more polite.”
‘Offensive’ remarks
Al Yousuf last December poured scorn on a statement by Mansoor Bin Rajab, the newly-appointed minister of agriculture and municipalities, in which he claimed that his ministry was confident in tackling the dramatic situation caused by the unusually high levels of rain.
Disputing the veracity of claim made by the minister while several areas in the country were under water, Al Yousuf wrote: “Well, if this is the first thing he comes out with, we can be rest assured that the state of his ministry by the time he leaves will be as good as those non-present bodies of water we are not suffering from!”
The blogger also charged that Bin Rajab, a former appointed Member of Parliament, was “an insignificant member of the previous Shura council with nary a proposition to his name.”
Offended by the remarks, the minister sued Al Yousuf and after an attempt by the BJA to reconcile the two parties failed, the court had scheduled the hearing for May 8.
However, the case will be likely dropped tomorrow after the minister’s lawyer submits the reconciliation agreement and officially withdraws it.
“I wish to extend my sincere thanks to everyone who stood by me in this and to the many, many friends who lent their unwavering support,” said Al Yousuf.
In its statement, the BJA also thanked those who extended their support, but stressed that the “freedom of the Bahraini bloggers to address political, rights, social and cultural issues was an integral part of freedom of expression.”
“Freedom of expression and open spaces for various opinions are central to the progress of the political and development process. We journalists are all responsible for protecting this freedom against any attempts to limit or erode it,” the BJA said.
Habib Toumi :: Gulf News