Reporters behind bars

At least 125 journalists are being held worldwide in blatant government attempts to restrict freedom of speech, according to human rights groups, employing a form of hostage-taking in the service of censorship. Most of these are journalists arrested in their own countries by authorities who want to silence them and intimidate others. Of particular concern at this moment are the recent detentions of American reporters in Iran and North Korea who, in addition to being silenced, may be held for use as pawns in negotiations with the West.

Iranian American journalist Roxana Saberi, who has worked for National Public Radio, the BBC and other media outlets, was detained in Tehran in January, allegedly for buying wine. The charge was later changed to reporting without valid press credentials, and then to spying. In an hourlong trial last week without her lawyer present, she was convicted and sentenced to eight years in prison. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who is running for reelection June 12, has called on the chief prosecutor to make sure Saberi gets a fair hearing on appeal -- which of course she should have gotten in the first place.

The North Korean government, meanwhile, is holding Asian American journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee, who were captured March 17 on the border with China as they reported for San Francisco-based Current TV on North Koreans fleeing their country. The government has said they would be tried for entering the country illegally and “hostile” activities, although Reporters Without Borders says the women may have been grabbed on the Chinese side of the border.

The timing of these cases at the start of the Obama administration makes them especially worrisome. President Obama has stressed the need to negotiate with U.S. adversaries, from Iran to Cuba, and there is much speculation that these governments may be collecting bargaining chips. Cuban President Raul Castro’s recent declaration that he was willing to discuss human rights, political prisoners and other issues in pursuit of normal diplomatic relations with the United States also raises alarm, as he is holding at least 21 Cuban journalists considered prisoners of conscience by Amnesty International.

Besides Saberi, Iran has jailed at least six other journalists. All of these -- and all political dissidents -- are entitled to due process of law. It is that principle that the Obama administration must uphold, insisting on respect for free speech and dissent from any nation that covets American goodwill. Journalists should not be detained for doing their jobs, and they should not be used for political leverage or barter.