While we’re reporting about Web 2.0, another writer is facing death

Written on January 30, 2008 – 6:00 pm
Ernst-Jan Pfauth, editor in chief

Death row Before I started working at The Next Web Blog, I covered news at the United Nations headquarters, New York. On a daily basis, spokespersons and diplomats confronted me with colleagues all over the world being threatened to death for their articles. Think of BBC correspondent Alan Johnston and Egyptian blogger Abdel Kareem Soliman. While what we Web 2.0 bloggers do is also important - after all, Web 2.0 is changing our societies - it doesn’t hurt anybody to realize what some of our fellow writers go through every day.

Think of Pervez Kambaksh, the 23-year old Afghan journalist whose sentenced to death for blasphemy. BBC reports today that the upper house of the Afghan parliament has supported this sentence. Kambaksh allegedly downloaded and distributed an article insulting Islam. He has denied the charge.

pervez Kambaksh, who studies at Balkh University and writes for small newspaper Jahan-e Naw (New World), is a colleague of all writers, including bloggers. To support this man, sign the petition we started on iPetitions.com

Spread the word by pasting the URL of the petition - http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/Pervez_Kambaksh - in your Twitter feed, blog, Facebook profile or any other online publishing tool.

I hope you like that post!

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afghanistan, freedom of speech, Pervez Kambaksh, petition, prison

About the author: Ernst-Jan is a blogger and journalist, who previously worked in New York to cover news at the United Nations. Next to writing, he's also a singer in the band Christina Five.

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3 comments to “While we’re reporting about Web 2.0, another writer is facing death”

By genki sudo on Jan 30, 2008

dead man walking

Reply
By Patrick de Laive on Jan 30, 2008

I signed the petition, then they ask for a donation.. Not for Pervez Kambaksh, but to keep iPetition running..

I clicked away. A fairly sneaky way to get funds…

Reply
By Boris Veldhuijzen van Zanten on Jan 30, 2008

Dugg the petition too:
http://digg.com/tech_news/Supp.....z_Kambaksh

Reply

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