New York, September 7, 2004—Jailed Ethiopian journalist Tewodros Kassa was freed yesterday after serving out a sentence of more than two years in prison for “press offenses,” according to CPJ sources. With Kassa’s release, no journalists are jailed in Ethiopia, but many have criminal charges pending against them, the sources said. Kassa, the former editor…
New York, September 2, 2004–Police arrested the editor-in-chief of the independent Somali-language daily Jamhuuriya and its weekly English-language edition, The Republican, in the self-declared republic of Somaliland this week. Hassan Said Yusuf was still in police custody today, and local journalists have not been allowed to visit him, according to local sources. Yusuf was arrested…
New York, August 19, 2004—At least four Beninese reporters face criminal defamation charges and two of them have already spent time in prison this year—the first journalists to be imprisoned for their work since 1996 in the West African nation. The defendants include Patrick Adjamonsi, publication director of the private daily L’Aurore, who was released…
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply concerned about an August 15 arson attack on the home of Gambian journalist and BBC correspondent Ebrima Sillah, and recent threats against local independent journalists. About 3 a.m., attackers broke through the windows of Sillah’s house, poured gasoline, and set fire to the building, causing extensive damage. The house is located outside the capital, Banjul.
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply concerned that Tewodros Kassa, the imprisoned former editor-in-chief of the Amharic language weekly Ethiop, has been newly convicted on a four-year-old defamation charge, delaying his scheduled release from prison.
New York, August 9, 2004—A court in the Central African Republic’s capital, Bangui, today sentenced Maka Gbossokotto, publication director of the private French language daily Le Citoyen, to a 12-month suspended jail term and a 500,000 CFA franc (US$960) fine for printing “public insults” against businessman Jean-Serge Wafio. Gbossokotto was also charged with defamation, but…
New York, August 9, 2004—Seven employees of an evangelical radio station that was shuttered last week were freed on Saturday, August 7, without charge. The station, Radio Hosanna, in the southern Democratic Republic of Congo city of Lubumbashi, remains closed. The station has been shut down since August 4, when national intelligence agents and police…
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) protests the continued imprisonment of Maka Gbossokotto, publication director of the private French language daily Le Citoyen, who faces a verdict on Monday, August 9, in a trial on criminal defamation charges. We are also concerned by recent government threats against the independent press, which appear to be an attempt to stem criticism of authorities.
New York, August 6, 2004—National intelligence agents stormed an evangelical radio station in the southern city of Lubumbashi, shutting it down and arresting seven employees this week after the station broadcast a sermon critical of the government. The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply troubled by the closing of Radio Hosanna, which broadcasts religious and…
New York, August 3, 2004—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has learned that imprisoned Ivoirian journalist Gaston Bony, publication director of the weekly newspaper Le Venin and a host at the radio station La Voix de l’Agnéby, was provisionally released on July 28. Bony had served more than four months of a six-month sentence for…