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Harassed
February 9
Nana Kofi Coomson, The Ghanaian Chronicle, IMPRISONNED, HARASSED
Eben Quarcoo, The Free Press, IMPRISONED, HARASSED
Tommy Thompson, Tommy Thompson Books, Ltd., IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, HARASSED
On Feb. 9, police arrested and questioned Coomson, the editor in chief of the independent daily Ghanaian Chronicle, and later released him on bail of 10 million cedis (US$6,700). Quarcoo, the editor of The Free Press, and Thompson, its publisher, had been away from their offices when police delivered a summons ordering them to report to police headquarters for questioning the same day. Instead, they reported to police headquarters Feb. 12 and each was released on bail of 10 million cedis after interrogation. On Feb. 14, Circuit Court Judge Nuhu Bila revoked the bail without explanation, and the three were immediately remanded into custody. Counsel for the journalists filed an appeal with the High Court. Coomson, Quarcoo, and Thompson were charged with "publishing false news with the intent of injuring the reputation of the State," a violation of Section 185 of the Criminal Code of 1960, an ordinance from the colonial era. If convicted, they could face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. The Free Press and the Ghanaian Chronicle reprinted in their January 31 and February 1 editions, respectively, a story published in the New York-based biweekly The African Observer, which reported that the Ghanaian diplomat Frank Benneh, of the Ghanaian Permanent Mission to the United Nations in Geneva, had been arrested in Switzerland for selling drugs. The article also alleged that President Jerry Rawlings of Ghana had used proceeds from illegal drug sales to buy arms. On Feb. 15, CPJ sent a letter of protest to President Rawlings, calling for the immediate release of the three journalists and the repeal of Section 185 of the antiquated Criminal Code. On Feb. 23, Judge Bila granted bail in the amount of 6 million cedis (US$4,000) for the journalists, who were then released. Judge Bila also referred the constitutional issues of the case to the Supreme Court. The criminal case has been adjourned until the Supreme Court renders a decision.
April 17
Eben Quarcoo, The Free Press, HARASSED, LEGAL ACTION
Tommy Thompson, Tommy Thompson Books, Ltd., HARASSED, LEGAL ACTION
Quarcoo, editor of the weekly The Free Press, and Thompson, owner of Tommy Thompson Books, the newspaper's publisher, were summoned by the police to answer accusations that they violated Section 185 of the 1960 Criminal Code, which forbids "publishing falsehoods with the intent of injuring the reputation of the state." They were detained for five hours, interrogated, then released without charge on bail of 10 million cedis (US$6,700) each. The detention was in connection with an April 10 article in The Free Press. The story, based on an article originally published in the March 14-27 issue of the New York biweekly The African Observer, alleged that Ghanaian President Jerry Rawlings had impregnated the daughter of former Togolese head of state Nicholas Yao Grunitzky. CPJ condemned the detention of Quarcoo and Thompson in a letter to President Rawlings.
November 25
Opiesie Nkansa-Daaduam, The Free Press, HARASSED
Nkansa-Daaduam, a columnist with the independent weekly The Free Press, was arrested in his office by agents of the military police, who then drove him to the Bureau of National Investigation. Nkansa-Daaduam was accused of publishing "subversive and treasonable" material in a Nov. 20 article about the televised speech of a military officer. In a letter to President Jerry Rawlings, CPJ denounced Nkansa-Daaduam's arrest and requested his immediate and unconditional release. Nkansa-Daaduam was released approximately 24 hours after his arrest.
For more information contact africaweb@cpj.org