Ethiopia ends emergency, but pursues new cases against 3 detained journalists
Nairobi, February 18, 2022— Ethiopian authorities should drop any plans to charge two journalists, Amir Aman Kiyaro and Thomas Engida, with terrorism, stop a fresh investigation they are pursuing against editor Temerat Negara, and end the practice of punitively detaining journalists, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. Amir, a freelancer who contributes to The…
Chadian journalist Evariste Djailoramdji killed while covering community violence
New York, February 18, 2022 — Chadian authorities should thoroughly and transparently investigate the killing of journalist Evariste Djailoramdji and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On February 9, unidentified people in the southern village of Sandana shot and killed Djailoramdji, a reporter working for the local broadcaster Lotiko…
Authorities investigate 3 Cape Verde journalists after reporting on police killing
Authorities in Cape Verde in January and February 2022 opened investigations into three journalists for “qualified disobedience,” in connection with their reporting on a classified investigation into a police killing, which allegedly involves a minister and, after seven years, produced no suspects, according to the journalists and news reports. On January 26, 2022, Hermínio Silves,…
Eswatini prison officers assault, threaten to shoot reporter covering pro-democracy protest
Lusaka, February 16, 2022 — Authorities in Eswatini must immediately investigate the brutal assault by correctional officers on Nomthandazo Maseko, a reporter for the privately owned news website Swati Newsweek, and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. At noon on February 8, about 20 correctional services staff in Matsapha, a…
Ghanaian journalist Eric Nana Gyetuah assaulted after photographing police
Abuja, February 16, 2022 — Ghanaian authorities should swiftly identify and hold to account the police officers who attacked journalist Eric Nana Gyetuah, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. At about 1:30 p.m. on February 3, in the western city of Takoradi, a group of at least five police officers in plain clothes attacked…
Somali police raid Sooyal TV and Radio, assault Radio Hiraan Weyne reporter
Nairobi, February 14, 2022 – Authorities in the Somali states of Galmudug and Hirshabelle should investigate and hold to account police officers who assaulted and arrested journalists and ensure that security personnel do not pose a threat to media freedom, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. On the evening of January 24, a group…
Mali expels French reporter Benjamin Roger, suspends media accreditation process
New York, February 11, 2022 — Malian authorities should ensure that bureaucratic obstacles do not prevent international journalists from entering the country and covering it freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Monday, February 7, police officers in the capital, Bamako, arrested French national Benjamin Roger, a reporter at the privately owned news…
Ghana court jails journalist Oheneba Boamah Bennie for contempt of court
Abuja, February 9, 2022 — In response to news reports that a Ghana court on Tuesday convicted and sentenced Oheneba Boamah Bennie, a host and commentator with privately owned Power FM, to two weeks in prison and fined him 3,000 Ghana cedis (US$468) for contempt of court, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following…
Armed men again raid Guinea-Bissau broadcaster Radio Capital FM, destroy equipment
New York, February 8, 2022 — Authorities in Guinea Bissau must thoroughly investigate the latest attack on broadcaster Radio Capital FM, ensure the safety of its staff, and bring those responsible to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. At around 10 a.m. on Monday, a group of about four unidentified men fired guns…
CPJ welcomes Nigerian journalist Luka Binniyat’s release on bail, calls for end to prosecution
Abuja, February 4, 2022 — In response to the release on bail Thursday of Luka Binniyat, a Nigerian freelance reporter for the U.S.-based news outlet The Epoch Times, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement calling for the charges against him to be dropped: “While Nigerian journalist Luka Binniyat’s release on bail is…