July marks the start
of seal hunting season in
Committee to Protect Journalists
Namibia
Attacks on the Press
| Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, France, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Liberia, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Togo, Uganda, Zimbabwe
Overview
by Julia Crawford
With the rule of law weak in many African countries, journalists regularly battle threats and harassment, not only from governments but also from rogue elements, such as militias. Repressive legislation is used in many countries to silence journalists who write about sensitive topics such as corruption, mismanagement, and human rights abuses. If fewer journalists were killed or imprisoned in Africa than in some other regions in 2004--two were killed and 19 were behind bars for their work at year's end--the problems they face are insidious and ongoing.
by Julia Crawford
With the rule of law weak in many African countries, journalists regularly battle threats and harassment, not only from governments but also from rogue elements, such as militias. Repressive legislation is used in many countries to silence journalists who write about sensitive topics such as corruption, mismanagement, and human rights abuses. If fewer journalists were killed or imprisoned in Africa than in some other regions in 2004--two were killed and 19 were behind bars for their work at year's end--the problems they face are insidious and ongoing.
Attacks on the Press
| Algeria, Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Although the Kenya-based East African Standard, one of
Africa's oldest continuously published newspapers, marked its 100th
anniversary in November, journalism remains a difficult profession on
the continent, with adverse government policies and multifaceted
economic woes still undermining the full development of African media.
Attacks on the Press
| Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, France, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Hopes
were high in July that Ivory Coast's political crisis would end after a
judge in the capital, Abidjan, confirmed that former prime minister
Alassane Dramane Ouattara, the leader of the opposition Rally for
Republicans (RDR), is an Ivory Coast citizen.
In a surprise Cabinet shuffle in late August,
President Sam Nujoma appointed himself information and broadcasting
minister in an effort, he said, to "tackle problems" at the state-owned
Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), the country's largest news
outlet.
Namibian journalists worry that President Nujoma is tightening his grip on the media.
Attacks on the Press
| Botswana, Burundi, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Silence reigned supreme in Eritrea, where the entire independent press was under a government ban and 11 journalists languished in jail at year's end. Clamorous, deadly power struggles raged in Zimbabwe over land and access to information, and in Burundi over ethnicity and control of state resources. South Africa, Senegal, and Benin remained relatively liberal from a press freedom perspective, while corruption and fear pervaded newsrooms in Mozambique and Togo.
Journalists and press freedom advocates from around the world attended a UNESCO conference on press freedom held in the Namibian capital, Windhoek, on May 3, World Press Freedom Day. The conference celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Windhoek Declaration, which affirmed that a free and pluralistic press is essential for democratic government.
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is disturbed by your recent order banning government agencies from spending public funds to purchase the Windhoek independent daily The Namibian. This decision follows a government advertising ban imposed on the newspaper in December.
NAMIBIA, REGARDED AS A MODEL OF DEMOCRACY, peace, and stability in southern Africa over the past decade, celebrated its 10th anniversary of independence last year, along with the inauguration of President Sam Nujoma to an unprecedented third term in office. The celebrations were marred, however, by the country's involvement in...
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