04 October 2016•Update: 04 October 2016
LONDON
After her passport was confiscated by British authorities at Heathrow Airport late last month, anti-Syrian regime journalist Zaine Erhaim felt like she was behind enemy lines, she told Anadolu Agency in an interview.
“I really felt like I was in … a pro-regime territory, which was so upsetting,” said Erhaim, who flew to London on Sept. 22 to speak at an event before being detained by border officials when she arrived.
After an hour of questioning, Erhaim was told by the officials that her passport would have to be returned to the Syrian government, which had reported the passport as stolen.
“They are treating the Syrian regime as if it is a legitimate government," said Erhaim, the winner of the 2015 Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Peter Mackler Award for Courageous and Ethical Journalism.
"It is really sad that in a country that considers itself pro-democracy and human rights, when it comes to a dictator against a journalist, they would stand with him against me."
Previously based in Turkey, Erhaim was able to enter Britain using an old, still-valid passport, but since its pages are filled, further travel may be impossible.
After the incident, a statement issued by the Home office said: "Our first priority is the security of our borders and if a passport is reported as lost or stolen by a foreign government we have no choice but to confiscate it."
The Index on Censorship, Reporters without Borders, Institute for War and Peace Reporting, Frontline Club, and Council for Arab-British Understanding issued a joint statement condemning the action.
“We are appalled that the UK authorities have allowed our system to be manipulated in this way,” the statement said, calling on the Home Office and Foreign and Commonwealth Office to take “immediate steps.”
''I have no idea what I will do now. I don’t think I will travel anywhere," Erhaim told Anadolu Agency.
