Benin Archives - Page 2 of 6 - Committee to Protect Journalists

CPJ, 80 media and rights groups urge African heads of state to release jailed journalists

April 6, 2020 2:14 PM EDT

CPJ and 80 media, press freedom, and human rights organizations write to African heads of state to call on their respective governments to release all jailed journalists amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Patrice Talon, the president of Benin, during a conference co-organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on sustainable development and debt in Diamniadio, Senegal, on December 2, 2019. Authorities in Benin on December 20 arrested journalist Ignace Sossou on a defamation complaint filed by a government minister. (AFP/Seyllou)

Benin authorities arrest journalist Ignace Sossou, question him about Facebook posts

December 23, 2019 5:47 PM EST

Vancouver, Canada, December 23, 2019 — Authorities in Benin should immediately release and halt efforts to intimidate journalist Ignace Sossou and drop any charges against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

Protesters from two of Benin's unions take part in a demonstration after the parliament approved a law restricting to 10 days public sector employees’ right to strike, on September 13, 2018, in Cotonou. Journalist Ignace Sossou convicted of false news in Benin on August 12, 2019. (AFP/Yanick Folly)

Journalist Ignace Sossou convicted of false news in Benin

August 23, 2019 4:32 PM EDT

New York, August 23, 2019–The government of Benin should act to decriminalize press offenses, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today, after journalist Ignace Sossou was convicted of false news for reporting on corporate finances.

Police officers are seen in Cotonou, Benin, on March 9, 2018. Beninese authorities recently launched a fake news investigation into Casimir Kpedjo, editor of the privately owned daily Nouvelle Economie. (AFP/Yanick Folly)

Journalist Casimir Kpedjo detained, facing false news accusations in Benin

April 30, 2019 3:55 PM EDT

Goma, Congo, April 30, 2019 — Beninese authorities should drop their investigation into Casimir Kpedjo, editor of the privately owned daily Nouvelle Economie, and allow him to report and publish news without fear of harassment or being jailed, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

Benin's President Patrice Talon, pictured in Paris in April 2016. Benin's media regulator has suspended a newspaper over a series of articles it printed that were critical of the president. (Reuters/Philippe Wojazer)

Benin newspaper suspended over its critical reporting of the president

September 5, 2018 10:35 AM EDT

Goma, September 5, 2018–Authorities in Benin should immediately reverse an order to suspend indefinitely the privately owned daily, La Nouvelle Tribune, and allow it to continue operating without interference, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

Benin suspends local paper for insulting president

February 20, 2018 5:29 PM EST

Benin’s media regulator, the High Authority for Broadcasting and Communication (HAAC), ordered the privately owned daily L’Audace Info on February 8, 2018 to suspend indefinitely its print and online editions after it allegedly insulted the president, the paper’s editor, Romuald Alingo, told CPJ.

A demonstrator carries Benin's flag outside the National Assembly in Porto Novo in April 2017. Benin's media regulator threatened to shut down online publications that were distributing content without a license, according to news reports. (Yanick Folly/AFP)

Benin media regulator threatens to prosecute online outlets over registration

January 24, 2018 2:58 PM EST

Benin’s media regulator, the High Authority for Broadcasting and Communication (HAAC), on December 21, 2017, threatened to shut down online publications that did not have authorization to distribute content, according to an HAAC press statement and the news website Beninwebtv.

Court fines Benin media regulator for wrongfully closing broadcaster

June 2, 2017 4:07 PM EDT

A court in Benin on May 22, 2017, ordered the reopening of Sikka TV, which the High Authority for Broadcasting and Communication (HAAC by its French acronym), the state’s broadcast regulator, had ordered closed in November 2016, according to media reports. The court also ordered HAAC to pay 50 million West African francs (U.S.$86,000) in…

Benin’s parliament should expunge criminal defamation from the media bill

December 23, 2014 4:46 PM EST

Abuja, Nigeria, December 23, 2014–Benin Republic’s parliament is set to vote on a media bill that threatens to jail journalists for insulting the president or other government officials, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on parliament to scrap any measures in the bill that could send journalists to prison for doing…

Benin TV director pardoned for offending president

February 8, 2013 10:34 AM EST

Berthe Cakpossa, director of the private Canal 3 TV, was pardoned by President Boni Yayi on January 31, 2013, two weeks after a court sentenced her to jail and fined her for “offending the head of state,” according to news reports.