New York, November 2, 2005—Ethiopian authorities have threatened to arrest journalists and made statements that could endanger independent reporters in the capital Addis Ababa, where opposition protesters and police have clashed for the past two days. The government also appears to be using state media to smear foreign and independent media. The government threatened to…
New York, October 31, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply troubled by a report that editor Jean-Marie Kanku has been abducted and held for three days by the national intelligence agency (ANR) in Kinshasa. Kanku’s disappearance follows articles in his newspaper L’Alerte that accused ANR boss Lando Lurhakumbirwa of corruption, Journaliste en Danger (JED),…
New York, October 27, 2005—The editor of The Independent newspaper was detained today and interrogated for several hours by Gambian state intelligence agents, who instructed him to return for more questioning on Friday. Local journalists said they believe Musa Saidykhan is being harassed in connection with a recent article on the unsolved December 2004 murder…
OCTOBER 24, 2005 Posted: December 8, 2005 African Independent Television RayPower FM CENSORED Nigerian authorities ordered the country’s leading independent broadcast network off the air, in part because the network’s reports on the October 22 Bellview Airlines crash included details that had not been officially released. Daar Communications group’s African Independent Television (AIT) and its…
New York, October 24, 2005—Police shut down the Gambian branch of Senegalese private radio station Sud FM on Saturday, according to international news reports and local sources. In an interview on Sunday with the BBC, acting Gambian Information Minister Neneh Mcdoll-Gaye accused Sud FM of “inciting trouble” between Gambia and Senegal, but gave no further…
New York, October 24, 2005—Nigerian authorities ordered the country’s leading independent broadcast network off the air today, in part because the network’s reports on Saturday’s deadly Bellview Airlines crash included details that had not been officially released. Daar Communications group’s African Independent Television (AIT) and its radio network, RayPower FM, complied with the order but…
OCTOBER 17, 2005 Posted October 18, 2005 Sud FM Sud-Quotidien Censored Authorities closed private radio station Sud FM and detained staff following the broadcast of an interview with a rebel leader. Police halted broadcasting at the station’s studios in the capital Dakar and around the country. They also took away staff for questioning shortly after…
New York, October 17, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the closure today of private radio station Sud FM and the detention of staff following the broadcast of an interview with a rebel leader. Police halted broadcasting at the station’s studios in the capital Dakar and around the country. They also took away staff for…
JULY 18, 2005 Updated: October 17, 2005 Garondé Djarma, freelance IMPRISONED, LEGAL ACTION Djarma, a freelance journalist and commentator who contributes frequently to local publications, was sentenced to three years in prison and one million CFA francs (about U.S. $1,764) in fines for defaming the president and “inciting hatred.”