Twenty years after the Windhoek Declaration on press freedom
Twenty years after the Windhoek Declaration on press freedom
Twenty years after the Windhoek Declaration on press freedom
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
majority of <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> cases brought by<br />
public officials. The <str<strong>on</strong>g>Declarati<strong>on</strong></str<strong>on</strong>g> of<br />
Principles <strong>on</strong> Freedom of Ex<strong>press</strong>i<strong>on</strong><br />
in Africa has called <strong>on</strong> states to<br />
revise <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>ir laws <strong>on</strong> defamati<strong>on</strong><br />
(principle XII).<br />
Even countries with traditi<strong>on</strong>s of<br />
<strong>freedom</strong> of ex<strong>press</strong>i<strong>on</strong> have witnessed<br />
a rise in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> use of defamati<strong>on</strong> laws<br />
to <strong>press</strong>ure journalists to disclose<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>ir sources and/or to silence <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
<strong>press</strong>. Senegal and Benin are cases<br />
in point. In Senegal, since 2000,<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>re have been an unprecedented<br />
number of cases of defamati<strong>on</strong><br />
filed by influential public officials.<br />
Recently in Senegal and Ivory Coast,<br />
journalists have been sued for<br />
stealing administrative documents.<br />
Countries in c<strong>on</strong>flicts or post c<strong>on</strong>flicts<br />
also abuse nati<strong>on</strong>al security<br />
laws as an alibi to keep <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> <strong>press</strong><br />
away from reporting <strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> situati<strong>on</strong><br />
in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> ground and enlightening<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> public.<br />
Around Africa, significant numbers<br />
of journalists have been jailed under<br />
such criminalising legislati<strong>on</strong>, and<br />
<strong>on</strong>ly very few of <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>m have had fair<br />
trials.<br />
Countries such as DRC, Eritrea,<br />
Ethiopia, Gambia, Libya, Equatorial<br />
Guinea, Rwanda, Sudan, Zimbabwe<br />
and Swaziland have been <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> most<br />
prominent in abusing harsh laws<br />
to stifle <strong>freedom</strong> of ex<strong>press</strong>i<strong>on</strong>.<br />
The case of Eritrea is extremely<br />
alarming: since 2001, more than a<br />
dozen journalists have been held<br />
incommunicado and without any<br />
form of trial, accused of treas<strong>on</strong><br />
and c<strong>on</strong>niving with <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> enemy —<br />
‘Ethiopia’ am<strong>on</strong>g o<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>rs. All private<br />
media houses are banned in Eritrea.<br />
Despite internati<strong>on</strong>al outcry and<br />
numerous c<strong>on</strong>demnati<strong>on</strong>s, including<br />
a decisi<strong>on</strong> of <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> African Commissi<strong>on</strong><br />
<strong>on</strong> Human and People’s Rights in<br />
2007, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>se Eritrean journalists are<br />
still languishing in pris<strong>on</strong> under<br />
inhuman and degrading c<strong>on</strong>diti<strong>on</strong>s.<br />
Some have died.<br />
In The Gambia, journalists c<strong>on</strong>tinue<br />
to work in an envir<strong>on</strong>ment of<br />
fear and <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>ir security remains<br />
fragile. Court acti<strong>on</strong>s and arbitrary<br />
detenti<strong>on</strong>s using harsh media laws<br />
have made The Gambia <strong>on</strong>e of <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
most unsafe places for journalists in<br />
West Africa.<br />
In Rwanda, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> “genocide ideology<br />
and sectarianism law” is particularly<br />
over-broad. It includes a number of<br />
undue and unreas<strong>on</strong>able restricti<strong>on</strong>s<br />
that violates internati<strong>on</strong>al standards.<br />
Over <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> past <str<strong>on</strong>g>years</str<strong>on</strong>g>, numerous<br />
law suits have been filed under this<br />
drac<strong>on</strong>ian law and in most instances<br />
political opp<strong>on</strong>ents have been targeted.<br />
“Around Africa,<br />
significant numbers<br />
of journalists have<br />
been jailed under<br />
such criminalising<br />
legislati<strong>on</strong>, and <strong>on</strong>ly<br />
very few of <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>m have<br />
had fair trials.”<br />
Writers and musicians have also<br />
had <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>ir share of experiencing<br />
re<strong>press</strong>ive laws. In 2010, a book by<br />
Bertrand Teyou <strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> First Lady of<br />
Camero<strong>on</strong> was banned and its author<br />
jailed for defamati<strong>on</strong>. Camero<strong>on</strong>ian<br />
musician Lapiro de Mbanga was<br />
accused in 2009 of c<strong>on</strong>stituti<strong>on</strong>al<br />
c<strong>on</strong>spiracy and inciting employees<br />
of a banana farm in his hometown<br />
to destroy <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> plantati<strong>on</strong>s. He was<br />
recently released <str<strong>on</strong>g>after</str<strong>on</strong>g> internati<strong>on</strong>al<br />
<strong>press</strong>ure.<br />
In 2008, Algeria’s book writer and<br />
journalist Mohamed Ben Chicou<br />
found his work “Diary of a free<br />
man” banned. That same year, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
Director of <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Algerian Nati<strong>on</strong>al<br />
Library was fired from his job for<br />
inviting a maverick author to speak.<br />
In this country, and many o<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>r<br />
north African nati<strong>on</strong>s, opini<strong>on</strong><br />
Secti<strong>on</strong> 1: Freedom<br />
leaders and journalists have been<br />
under <strong>press</strong>ure from governments.<br />
This has changed slightly since <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
recent Arab spring.<br />
In Senegal, despite <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> relative<br />
<strong>freedom</strong>s enjoyed by writers, unc<strong>on</strong>venti<strong>on</strong>al<br />
writers like journalist<br />
Abdoulatif Coulibaly have faced numerous<br />
counts of indirect censorship.<br />
He himself has received death<br />
threats.<br />
In Africa, Ghana has been a pi<strong>on</strong>eer in<br />
decriminalising defamati<strong>on</strong>, followed<br />
by Togo and Central Africa Republic.<br />
Since <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>n, several countries have<br />
followed: Cote D’Ivoire, Chad and<br />
Niger, and Mauritania is in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
process. Senegal has promised to<br />
decriminalise defamati<strong>on</strong> since 2005.<br />
Currently, a law has been adopted<br />
by cabinet and submitted to <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
Parliament, but is blocked <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>re due<br />
to <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> reticence of parliamentarians.<br />
The criminalisati<strong>on</strong> of speech in<br />
Africa not <strong>on</strong>ly violates <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> rights of<br />
those speaking, it has <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> effect of<br />
limiting <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> free flow of informati<strong>on</strong>.<br />
Media in Africa - 2011 | 69