Algeria (AP) – A French journalist was sentenced to Algeria for seven years in prison in an interview with a football official who had links to a banned separatist movement.
Christophe, a 36-year-old free movement writer, was arrested and subjected to judicial oversight more than a year ago because they did not have proper visas, “glory terrorism” and “having propaganda publications that are harmful to the national interests”, and said in a statement on Sunday.
Although prosecutors have not publicly announced the charges, Algerian officials have not commented on the case yet, but he has been tried and convicted.
But authorities have faced criticism from rights advocates in the past, saying Algeria uses counter-terrorism laws to target political speech.
Thibaut Bruttin, a journalist with no borders, called the authorities’ decision to pronounce examples of “absurd judicial control” and put seven years in prison as “absurd.” The Press Freedom Panel said it plans to appeal the verdicts on Monday.
The group said the allegations against Glaze stemmed from his contact with the head of a football club, who was also a member of the political movement that Algeria was designated as a terrorist group four years ago.
Gleizes, who contributed to the magazine of Foot and Society, went to Algeria last year to cover JS Kabylie, the most dominant football team in Algerian history.
JS Kabylie and his success are deeply trapped in the movement to win cultural recognition of the Amazigh minority in the mountains of Algeria. The region has been the center of Algerian rebellion for decades. In recent years, authorities have knocked down Kabylia, a separatist group whose leaders have been sentenced to death for “attacking national unity.”
French journalists’ verdicts have reached a new level of hostility as the relations between France and Algeria reach a new level of hostility. The two countries are arguing about immigration, extradition, trade and changes in France’s position in the disputed Western Sahara region.
France’s foreign affairs ministry said Gleizes’ verdict was harsh, saying it planned to provide consular support and applied to visit him in prison.
Despite the shock of French media receiving the case, few people in Algeria were aware of Gleizes’ detention before the verdict was announced.
“It’s a vague thing,” said Karim Adli, a sports news reporter based in Tizi Ouzou.
