Abstract
The Freedom of the press faces significant problems in today's world. Journalists are often threatened, imprisoned, kidnapped, and sometimes even assassinated. This kind of situation can appear in different countries: countries at war, authoritarian states, etc. Today Egypt is in an intermediary situation: opposition press exists, as does a kind of pluralism. Some journalists are very incisive, and satirical towards the government and the president. Trials take place, in order to silence those journalists. 2007 was an intensive year at the social level. The HCRInfo (Arabic Network for Human Rights Information) showed in a report about the freedom of the press in Egypt, that last year was the worst since the independence of the country, despite the multiplication of bloggers and independent media. The government frequently institutes lawsuits, for defamation to silence journalists or writers. In 2007, a new constitutional reform has been voted, as desired by the president. The parliament approved the modification of thirty-four articles in the constitution. These strengthen the police power, especially for the arrests. The president and his party (National Democratic Party) want to protect themselves from independent parties, and also from the Muslims Brothers, who are the most important opposition group.
