Africa

Lusaka, April 22, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists on Monday called on Zambian authorities to thoroughly investigate a police assault on journalist Rodgers Mwiimba and his two-hour detention, alongside a second journalist, Innocent Phiri. On April 13, police officers arrested the two television journalists at Matanda Grounds, a public space in the town of Kafue,…

Kampala Uganda, April 19, 2024—Somali authorities should drop all criminal investigations against the Somali Journalists Syndicate and desist from weaponizing the judicial system to obstruct the work of the media rights organization, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Friday. Two commercial banks, Premier Bank and Dahabshil Bank International told the Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS)…

Dakar, April 17, 2024—Togolese authorities must identify and hold accountable the law enforcement agents responsible for arresting and assaulting French journalist Thomas Dietrich and ensure both foreign and local journalists are able to freely report on political news, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Wednesday. On Tuesday, a court in Togo’s capital Lomé sentenced…

Lusaka, April 17, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists on Wednesday called on Malawian authorities to credibly investigate the assault on TV reporter Yasin Limu by Mighty Mukuru Wanderers Football Club supporters and urged the sport’s governing bodies to take concrete steps to deter future attacks against journalists. On April 7, three supporters of the club,…

Abuja, April 16, 2024—Nigerian authorities should immediately drop their investigation into the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ) and its founder, the award-winning undercover reporter, Fisayo Soyombo, and stop intimidating the chairperson of FIJ’s board of trustees, Bukky Shonibare, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On February 21, Soyombo published an investigation detailing how he…

Lusaka, April 15, 2024 – Malawian authorities should drop all legal proceedings against Nation Publications Limited journalist Macmillan Mhone, who is accused of cyber spamming, publishing false news, and extortion, and ensure that journalists can work without the fear of arrest, said the Committee to Protect Journalists on Monday. On April 7, Chester Chikumbutso Doba, a…

Dakar, April 11, 2024 – The Committee to Protect Journalists urges Mali’s media regulator to lift its ban on political reporting in the country and allow journalists to cover the news without restrictions.  On Thursday, the country’s High Authority for Communication (HAC) issued a directive that “invited all media” to “stop all broadcasting and publication” of coverage on…

Dakar, April 10, 2024 — The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the release of journalist and La Dépêche publishing director Apollinaire Mewenemesse and calls for Togolese authorities to lift the conditions placed on his freedom, drop all charges against him, and cease criminalizing journalism. On April 9, a court in Lomé, Togo’s capital city, released…

Lusaka, April 10, 2024 – The Committee to Protect Journalists on Wednesday welcomed South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s signing into law a bill that abolishes criminal defamation, and urged authorities to reform other problematic laws that threaten press freedom in the country. On April 3, Ramaphosa signed the Judicial Matters Amendment Act (2023), which includes…

Two privately owned newspapers in Lesotho—the Lesotho Tribune and Lesotho Times—faced separate lawsuits in February and March 2024, seeking to shut them down, according to the publications’ owners who spoke to CPJ. In late March, the courts dismissed both lawsuits, but the newspapers still face defamation cases in connection with their corruption coverage. Mergence Investment…