IFEX - News from the international freedom of expression community
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ACTION ALERT - AFRICA

13 August 2002

CPJ urges African Union to guarantee press freedom

SOURCE: Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), New York

(CPJ/IFEX) - The following is a 12 August 2002 CPJ letter to African Union
Secretary General Amara Essy:

August 12, 2002

His Excellency Amara Essy
Secretary General
African Union
African Union Headquarters
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Via facsimile: 251-1-51-2622/3036

Your Excellency:

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is concerned that the
constitution of the new African Union (AU) does not protect the right to
press freedom. In fact, the language of this new constitution marks a
significant setback for press freedom and freedom of expression in Africa,
both of which were enshrined in the constitution of the Organization of
African Unity, the precursor to the AU.

Such language is essential because journalists in Africa work under
particularly hostile circumstances and, because of their important role in
building and maintaining democracy, require recognition and protection. In
several AU member states, journalists are arrested, harassed, and
intimidated solely for their reporting, and many countries resort to harsh,
outdated laws to prosecute journalists for their work. CPJ research shows an
alarming pattern of governments interfering with the free flow of
information and zealously prosecuting journalists for their work-in some
cases even drafting legislation deliberately aimed at suppressing the
dissemination of dissenting views.

* The government of Eritrea, for instance, has shut down the entire
independent media and has so far detained 14 journalists. Several others
have fled the country. The government has accused the private press of
purchasing publication licenses with funds from foreign governments hostile
to Eritrea, and a special commission is drafting a new media policy to curb
foreign funding of the press. A government spokesperson acknowledged to CPJ
that independent journalists are currently imprisoned and held incommunicado
but would not guarantee that all of the detained journalists were alive.

* Neighboring Ethiopia also has a dismal press freedom record, and its
government is planning alarming changes to the country's 10-year-old press
laws that would severely restrict the rights of Ethiopia's already
beleaguered private press corps. Although Information Minister Simon Bereket
told a CPJ delegation that the new law would promote "constructive and
responsible journalism," journalists said the statutes would lead to a
crackdown, driving many of them out of business or putting them behind bars.
Currently, three journalists are imprisoned in Ethiopia.

* The parliament in The Gambia recently passed the National Media Commission
Bill 2002, which would restrict the press's ability to cover the news. The
bill would give a state-appointed committee the right to license and
register journalists (and would impose heavy fines and suspension for
failing to do so), force reporters to reveal confidential sources, issue
arrest warrants to journalists, and formulate a journalistic code of ethics.
By making registration mandatory, for example, this bill would give
government authorities the power to decide who is and is not a journalist.
And by denying the right to confidentiality of sources, the bill would
deprive journalists of one of their most essential tools for gathering
information.

* CPJ recently named Zimbabwe, once known for its vigorous and largely
uncensored independent press, as one of the world's worst places to be a
journalist. Journalists in the country suffer under an arsenal of
restrictive and punitive legislation, ranging from the Access to Information
and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) to the Public Order and Security Act.
Both of these outlaw all criticism of President Robert Mugabe, and the AIPPA
criminalizes the publication of "falsehoods" and grants the government the
right to decide who may or may not work as a journalist in Zimbabwe.
Fourteen journalists have been arrested and charged since March of this
year, and police and pro-government vigilantes have attacked several
journalists.

While these countries are the most egregious press freedom violators in the
AU, CPJ has documented state harassment of independent reporters and news
outlets all over the continent.

We respectfully remind Your Excellency that most AU member states have
signed Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 19
of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and Article 9
of the African Charter on Human and People's Rights, all of which recognize
an individual's right to seek, receive, and impart information without fear
of reprisal.

As an organization of journalists dedicated to defending press freedom
worldwide, CPJ strongly believes that media outlets and journalists should
be able to work freely, and that a public's ability to gather and receive
information should be enshrined and recognized as a fundamental human right.
We also believe that journalists should not face arrest, detention, or
harassment for their work.

We call on you to ensure that the media in the AU member states can function
freely, without intimidation, harassment, or restrictions. To do so, we urge
you to work toward amending the African Union's constitution in order to
provide guarantees of press freedom and freedom of expression.

Thank you for your attention to these important matters. We look forward to
your reply.

Sincerely,

Ann K. Cooper
Executive Director

CC:
African Embassies, Washington DC, United Nations
Permanent Observer for the African Union to the United Nations
Koffi Annan, Secretary General, United Nations
Walter Kansteiner, Assistant Secretary, African Affairs, US. Department of
State
American Society of Newspaper Editors
Amnesty International
Article 19 (United Kingdom)
Artikel 19 (The Netherlands)
Canadian Journalists for Free Expression
Freedom Forum
Freedom House
Human Rights Watch
Index on Censorship
International Center for Journalists
International Federation of Journalists
International PEN
International Press Institute
Lorne W. Craner, United States Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human
Rights, and Labor
The Newspaper Guild
The North American Broadcasters Association
Overseas Press Club
Reporters sans frontières
Mary Robinson, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
The Society of Professional Journalists
World Association of Newspapers
World Press Freedom Committee

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Similar appeals can be sent to:

His Excellency Amara Essy
Secretary General
African Union
African Union Headquarters
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Fax: +251 1 51 2622 / 3036

Please copy appeals to the source if possible.

For further information, contact Yves Sorokobi (ext. 112), Wacuka Mungai
(ext. 106) or Adam Posluns (ext. 107) at CPJ, 330 Seventh Ave., New York, NY
10001, U.S.A., tel: +1 212 465 1004, fax: +1 212 465 9568, e-mail:
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], Internet:
http://www.cpj.org/

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