Attacks on the Press - Committee to Protect Journalists

attacks on the press in 2009africa: nigeriaOn August 1, Tiémogo was detained yet again in connection with stories allegingcorruption. In a surprising twist, though, a judge convicted the journalist onan unrelated charge of “casting discredit on a judicial ruling” in connection with atelevised interview that discussed the government’s effort to arrest and extraditethe exiled politician Amadou, according to defense lawyer Marc Le Bihan. Tiémogo’shealth deteriorated in prison; he was hospitalized in August after contractingmalaria and collapsing once in his cell, according to local journalists. Whilerecovering at a hospital in the capital, Niamey, he was suddenly transferred to aremote prison in Ouallam, 55 miles (90 kilometers) north of Niamey, his wife,Zeïnabou Tiémogo, told CPJ. Abdourahamane Ousmane, president of the localNetwork of Journalists for Human Rights, told CPJ that the prison choice reflectedthe government’s desire to isolate Tiémogo from his family and deter adequatemedical attention. CPJ advocated on behalf of Tiémogo, urging the government toprovide more humane treatment. On October 26, an appeals court judge reducedTiémogo’s sentence and set him free, according to local journalists.NIGERIAWith 21 national dailies, 12 television stations, and severalemerging online news sources, Nigeria continued to boast one of the most vibrantnews media cultures on the continent. But a series of attacks fanned fears in thepress corps and prompted self-censorship.An editor who covered sensitive political news was murdered at his homeoutside Lagos, while local operatives with the ruling People’s Democratic Party(PDP) assaulted journalists with impunity in a series of episodes, some of whichoccurred in government buildings. The attacks had Nigerian journalists talkingalready about the potential pressures they could face in the 2011 presidentialand parliamentary elections. The PDP has held power with little difficulty sincethe country returned to civilian rule in 1999, but opposition parties have talkedabout uniting in 2011, a step that would make the contests more competitive—and more challenging to cover.Nigeria has been relatively free of deadly violence against the press duringthis decade, but journalists were startled by a killing on a Sunday morning inSeptember. Six assailants arrived at the doorstep of Bayo Ohu, an assistant editorand political reporter for the private daily The Guardian, and shot him severaltimes, according to news reports and relatives. The attackers took his cell phoneand one of his two laptops. The Nigerian Union of Journalists said it believedOhu had been slain for his reporting. He had recently examined allegations offraud in the Customs Department and had covered a contentious gubernatorialt o p developments»»Local operatives of the ruling PDPassault journalists with impunity.»»Editor slain at his home outside Lagos.Wife pledges to continue his work.key statistic2 1National dailies, a numberreflecting Nigeria’s robust mediaclimate.election in southwest Ekitistate. His widow, Blessing, toldCPJ that she would carry onOhu’s work. “This is my reasonto go into journalism—tofind out why he was killed andto continue reporting thosethings that his killers did notwant reported,” she said. Twosuspects were detained in lateOctober, but no motive wasimmediately disclosed.Spring elections in Ekitiwere marked by several reports of violence and obstruction. In April, PDP operativesroughed up three photographers and damaged their equipment at a policeroadblock near the home of Sen. Ayo Arise in Oyo-Ekiti, said one of the journalists,Segun Bakare of The Punch. The same month, Nigeria’s broadcast regulator, theNational Broadcasting Commission, fined the private radio Adaba FM 500,000naira (US$3,350) for transmitting content that it said incited public violence.The most egregious attack occurred in the Government House in the statecapital, Ado-Ekiti, where supporters of PDP Gov. Segun Oni assaulted three reporterswho arrived to interview a campaign manager. One of the reporters, OzimGospel of the National Guide, said the April attack occurred after the journalistshad come upon Oni supporters filling out what seemed to be fraudulent ballots.The reporters, who filed a complaint with authorities, required hospital treatmentfor their injuries, and much of their equipment was destroyed. A witness recordedthe attack and posted it on YouTube. Oni won re-election in the Ekiti balloting. Noarrests had been made in the Government House attack by late year.A similar assault was reported at the Government House in southeast Imostate in September. A security agent used his shoe to beat Radio Nigeria correspondentWale Olukun in the presence of the state government’s press secretary, accordingto news reports and local journalists. Three other agents joined in the assault,Olukun told CPJ. The journalist said he had recently aired a report about a visuallyimpaired youth who protested perceived shortcomings in public services.Reporting in the volatile, oil-rich Niger Delta was exceptionally difficult inthe first half of 2009 amid fighting between government forces and militants demandinga greater local share in oil revenue, the editor of the private weekly NationalPoint, Ibiba Don Pedro, told CPJ. Sowore Omoyele, publisher of the newsWeb site Sahara Reporters, said few reporters risked firsthand coverage duringthat period. “The government told the local press they could not guarantee their3 63 7