To: IFEX Autolist (other news of interest)
From: Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), [email protected]

Mali Alert

November 11, 2003

Radio station staff detained

* The Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) and the Media Foundation of West
Africa (MFWA), as a joint activity, will henceforth issue alerts, statements and
appeals to highlight media freedom and wider human rights violations in West
Africa. See www.misa.org and www.mediafoundationwa.org for more information.

Three staff of the privately-owed Radio SIDO FM station are being detained at
the Ségou prison, 200 km south-west of Bamako, capital of Mali. The Ségou court
charged Mamoutou Traoré, senior administrator of Radio SIDO, his deputy Gatta
Bah and Amadou Chérif Haïdara, a presenter, with the offence of "slander and
incitement to violence."

The three were arrested and detained following a suit filed on October 20 2003,
by Souleymane Doumbia, lawyer and bailiff, on behalf of the National
Agricultural Development Bank (BNDA). Also detained was Mahamadou Kounta Dicko,
Secretary General of the opposition African Solidarity for Development and
Integration (SADI) party.

On November 5, the court released Dicko due to poor health; but declined an
application to release Haïdara on the same grounds of ill health.

According to the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)-Mali, lawyer Souleymane
Doumbia brought a writ against the management of Radio SIDO and the opposition
leader after a talk programme during which listeners were invited to express
their grievances in a phone-in session.

BACKGROUND
Between 1991 and 1993, some inhabitants of Soroba, a small village in the
Konodimini district located 23 km from Ségou formed an association and
contracted a loan of FCFA4,312,000 from the BNDA to finance individual projects.
Some of the villagers were, however, unable to liquidate their loans within the
stipulated time frame. Consequently, the bank hired Doumbia to recover the
outstanding balances on the loan.

Doumbia, relying on the Ségou court verdict No.94 of April 25, 2002, seized 83
cattle belonging to the villagers. The April 25, 2002 verdict ordered the
villagers to settle CFA1,786,553 (approximately US$3,130) owing on the loan and
in addition pay CFA150,000 (approximately US$263) as damages.

On June 18, 2002, 52 of the cattle were auctioned for CFA2,250,000
(approximately US$3,942) and the rest returned.

During the radio call-in session, some of the villagers complained about the
indiscriminate mortgaging of their cattle, even though they claimed that they
had redeemed their part of the loan.

Judgement on the substantive case is scheduled for November 18, 2003.

The MFWA appeals to the authorities in Mali to effect the immediate release of
the three detainees from custody until their "criminal" guilt is determined in a
fair trial.

Enquiries:

Media Foundation for West Africa
Prof Kwame Karikari
Executive Director (MFWA)
P. O. Box LG 730
Legon, Ghana
E-mail: [email protected]
Tel: 233-21-24 24 70
Fax: 233-21-22 10 84
Web: http://www.mediafoundationwa.org

Enquiries:

Media Institute of Southern Africa
Zoé Titus
Program Coordinator: Media Freedom Monitoring
21 Johann Albrecht Street
Private Bag 13386
Windhoek, Namibia
Tel: +264 61 232 975
Fax: +264 61 248 016
Web: http://www.misa.org

Ends