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

6 September 2004

State security officers seal up magazine's offices, arrest production
manager

SOURCE: Media Rights Agenda (MRA), Lagos

(MRA/IFEX) - On 4 September 2004, State Security Service (SSS) officers
raided the editorial offices of "The Insider Weekly" news magazine, based in
Lagos, and arrested its production manager, Raphael Olatoye, after sealing
up the offices. The security agency later accused the magazine of treason,
sedition and subversion over a string of articles critical of President
Olusegun Obasanjo and his government.

The magazine's editor-in-chief, Osa Director, said the security agents
arrived at the media organisation's premises at approximately 7:00 a.m.
(local time) and smashed the doors in the premises to gain entrance to the
offices. The men then ransacked the offices and seized some documents, which
they took with them when they left at approximately 7:00 p.m. the same day.

Upon leaving the premises, the security officers locked up the magazine's
offices with locks they had brought with them for this purpose. They then
took Olatoye to the premises of the commercial printers where the magazine
is printed and seized all copies of the magazine's current edition, which
were to go on sale on 5 September. Olatoye was then taken to the SSS office
in Lagos.

In justifying its action, the SSS issued a statement on the evening of 4
September saying that, "For quite sometime now, 'The Insider Weekly'
magazine has consistently being (sic) attacking, disparaging and humiliating
the person and office of the President and Commander-in-Chief as well as
some notable people in government."

Citing some past editions of the magazine to substantiate its claim, the SSS
said in the statement, titled "The storming of the premises of 'The Insider
Weekly'", that "The attempt by the publisher of 'The Insider Weekly'
magazine to continually distort facts and misrepresent noble ideals of the
present administration to the innocent public is not only libelous,
seditious and subversive but also treasonable." The SSS did not say,
however, if it intended to file formal charges against the magazine or its
publishers.

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Send appeals to authorities:
- calling for Olatoye's immediate release and the re-opening of the
magazine's offices
- urging them to respect the right of journalists to practice their
profession freely
- stating that the intimidation and harassment of journalists violates the
right to freedom of expression guaranteed by Section 39 of the 1999 Nigerian
Constitution, as well as international human rights instruments to which
Nigeria is a signatory, and undermines the spirit of Nigeria's new
democratic process
- drawing their attention to the fact that no law in Nigeria empowers
security agents to seal up a media organisation's premises

APPEALS TO:

Chief Olusegun Obasanjo
President, Federal Republic of Nigeria
Aso Rock Villa, Abuja
E-mail: [email protected] [2]

Chief Chukwuemeka Chikelu
Hon. Minister for Information and National Orientation
Federal Ministry of Information
Radio House, Abuja
Tel: +234 9 234 6350
Mobile: +234 80 3303 0302

Chief Akinlolu Olujimi, SAN
Hon. Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice
Federal Secretariat Complex, Abuja
Tel: +234 9 523 5194
Fax: +234 9 523 5208

Please copy appeals to the source if possible.

For further information, contact Ayode Longe, Media Rights Agenda, 10
Agboola Aina Street, off Amore Street, Ikeja, P.O. Box 52113, Ikoyi, Lagos,
Nigeria, tel: +234 1 493 6033, fax: +234 1 493 0831, e-mail:
[email protected] [3], Internet: http://www.internews.org/mra [4]

The information contained in this action alert is the sole responsibility of
MRA. In citing this material for broadcast or publication, please credit
MRA.
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