A/HRC/6/19 page 75 Under Article 29 for example, which outlines the duties of journalists, the law places restrictions on publishing information related to national security or the armed forces and indicates that journalist at all times “must intend truthfulness and chastity.” This provision has been used by the Press Council to issue bans preventing journalists from reporting on certain topics (see example below). Articles 36 and 37 of the Press Act render any person who violates any provision of the act liable to sanctions by the Press Council or to criminal prosecution. The application of the Press Law is supervised by the Press Council, a body that has broad powers and that has generally perceived to lack independence, because the majority of its members are directly or indirectly appointed by government-controlled bodies. The Press Council has the power to allocate licenses to individual journalists and may impose penalties, such as the suspension of a newspaper’s publication license. Article 115 of the 1991 Criminal Code (“Influencing the course of justice”) places sanctions on “whomever intentionally does any act to influence the fairness of judicial or legal proceedings”. This article has been repeatedly used by the authorities to prevent media from reporting on judicial investigations by placing bans on publishing information. Editors and journalists who do not comply with such bans are liable under this article to be punished with fines or with up to three months’ imprisonment. Since 20 March 2007, a general ban has been placed on news related to criminal cases connected with the Darfur conflict. There has apparently been no explicit mention of the International Criminal Court (ICC), but journalists fear that the ban may extend to reporting on the work of the ICC on Sudan. The ban was reportedly ordered by the Minister of Justice, Ali Mohamed al-Mardi. Under Articles 66, 159 and 160 of the 1991 Criminal Act (“Publication of false news”, “Defamation” and “Insult and Abuse”) and Article 29 of the 2004 Press Act (“Duties of the journalist”) the journalists may be sentenced to fines, lashes or imprisonment for up to several months. Additionally, the Press Council has used the provisions on “duties of the journalist” to place restrictions on the content of information published by the media. For instance, on 22 May 2007, the Press Council imposed a ban on reporting statements of representatives of Darfurian rebel groups. It requested daily newspapers not to publish reports on activities of the rebel movements and not to interview its political leaders or field commanders. The council urged newspapers not to “give publicity to the rebel movements and not to report on their threats and statements that undermine the country’s security, instigate fear, and create instability”. This ban came after a statement by one of the Darfurian rebels to the newspaper Al-Sahafa accused Government forces and armed militias of killing five civilians in North Darfur on 20 May 2007. This statement by the Press Council imposes an open-ended restriction on independent reporting on Darfur and exposes journalists and editors to a risk of sanctions, such as the withdrawal of their licenses. In mid-May 2007, a court ruled that Article 130 the 1991 Criminal Act (“Prevention of public nuisance”) may not be used to impose restrictions on the press. This was seen as a landmark ruling which is likely to prevent future sanctions against the newspapers under the said legal provision. Article 130 grants wide-ranging powers to the prosecutor to act on offences “relating to peace and public health” by confiscating items belonging to a person who has been charged with an offence, or to order that person to cease any activities. The law provides no detail on what would constitute a danger to peace and public health. Based on Article 130 newspaper editors have been ordered by prosecutors not to report on certain topics. Newspapers that failed to comply with such orders have been temporarily suspended.