Front Line is concerned at the smear campaign against Ms Sihem Bensedrine, spokesperson of the Conseil national pour les libertés en Tunisie - CNLT (National Council for Liberties in Tunisia) and chief editor of the online newspaper and radio Kalima. Several newspapers have reported on accusations of opportunism and misuse of funds brought against Sihem Bensedrine by a former employee at Kalima, and depicted her and other eminent human rights defenders as 'radical activists' in apparently orchestrated smear campaign.

On 11 December 2008, the news agency United Press International (UPI) reported on the accusations from a journalist formerly employed at Kalima, Mr Sahbi Smara, against Sihem Bensedrine. Sahbi Smara accused Sihem Bensedrine of opportunism, of using “complaints of harassment as ploys to extract foreign funds”, of collecting more than half a million euro per year from various foreign sources “under the pretext of promoting human rights and alternative media”. Following the dispath from the United Press International, the accusations were relayed by several Tunisian, Arab and European newspapers and media outlets. It is reported that this media campaign, labelling Sihem Bensedrine and other human rights defenders as 'radical activists', would be organised by the government body Agence tunisienne pour la communication extérieure - ATCE (Tunisian Agency for External Communication). The ATCE would have put pressure on Mr Sahbi Smara to make those allegations.

Front Line believes that this campaign has been organised in retaliation to Sihem Bensedrine's participation as a witness in the trial of Khaled Ben Said, former Tunisian deputy consul in Strasbourg. He was sentenced on 15 December 2008 to eight years of detention by a court in Strasbourg on charges of torture. Front Line is concerned that the smear campaign against Sihem Bensedrine is part of the ongoing pattern of harassment and attacks against Kalima and CNLT, in order to discredit them and dissuade them from continuing with their legitimate work in the defence of human rights.