Mohamed Fahmy to join UBC Graduate School of Journalism
Fahmy was released from prison in Egypt on Sept. 23.
By H.G. Watson, Associate Editor
Mohamed Fahmy, an Al Jazeera English journalist imprisoned along with two of his colleagues last year, is finally coming back to Canada—and soon after, he’s headed to journalism school.
Fahmy will be the W. Maurice Young Centre Visiting Fellow in Applied Ethics and a Global Reporting Journalist in Residence at the University of British Columbia for one semester. He had signed his contract with the school on July 22, just over a month before he was sentenced to three years in prison by an Egyptian judge. He was among 100 prisoners pardoned on Sept 23.
In a statement released Sept 23, Martha Piper, the interim president of UBC, said that they are thrilled by the news of Fahmy’s release. “We look forward to welcoming him to UBC’s Vancouver campus this fall. Mohamed’s resiliency during this ordeal is an inspiration to us all.”
Fahmy also told the Ubyssey before his imprisonment that he wanted to share his experience with students.
According to the Globe and Mail, Fahmy will also work at The Fahmy Foundation for a Free Press, a foundation he established in March.
The Globe also recounted 10 key twists in Fahmy’s 18-month long legal battle in Egypt.
H.G. Watson was J-Source's managing editor from 2015 to 2018. She is a journalist based in Toronto. You can learn more about her at hgwatson.com.