Editor in Chief of RAGMAG, Fida Chaaban reacted to my position towards the censorship Abir Ghattas went through. [Full post]

Legally, was it a case of defamation? Was she committing slander? Or was it cronies calling cronies to force her to take down the inflammatory post

They can and they did, and Abir’s post is deleted. In its place is the following statement: “Due to censorship and limitation of freedom of speech, the content of the blog post written on Jan 10, 2013 titled: “Michael Wright, Spinneys CEO No More”, was forcibly removed.” I am not quoting her for this piece because I don’t know what sort of legal ramifications she might face, especially since the whole situation is shady. How the Lebanese police (who aren’t familiar with blogs, and weren’t able to read enough English to understand said post) were made aware of Abir is more important. Who asked the police to question Abir? Why were the police willing to do so?

Legally, was it a case of defamation? Was she committing slander? Or was it cronies calling cronies to force her to take down the inflammatory post? Was it an intimidation tactic?

I don’t know Michael Wright. I don’t claim to support the allegations made against him nor do I think I am in a position to comment on what he may or may have not done. But I do know that I cannot turn a blind eye to censorship in any way, shape or form. Formulate your own opinions and let’s all hope that no one tries to shut you up on the internet or in print.

I don’t have a blog, but I have an op ed. I am following Rita Kamel’s lead: “As a sign of support, I am re-posting the article regardless of my own opinion about the whole Spinneys case; Abir Ghattas has the right to disagree with a person’s actions.”

This goes beyond any comment.