Liberia has cracked down on critical media over the past year. At the same time, the government has repealed harsh media laws that saw journalists suffer excessive jail sentences and fines.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. Jallanzo
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Listeners of the wildly popular Liberian radio program, The Costa Morning Show, were startled last week to hear muffled banging during a live broadcast. It was the sound of dozens of heavily armed police breaking down the station compound's iron gates early in the morning.
The morning show host, Henry Costa, who is also the station owner, is a tough-talking critic of President George Weah and his administration. His listeners see the closure of Roots FM as another example of the government's lack of tolerance for opposition voices.
The government, however, said it shut the station down because Roots FM was broadcasting on frequencies that it didn't have a license for. It also accused the station of inciting violence.
"FM 102.7 was engaged in broadcasting specifically hate messages at peaceful Liberian citizens and other forms of extortion and blackmail," Solicitor General Sayma Syrenius Cephus was quoted by the Liberian paper, The New Dawn, as saying at a press briefing.
Human rights lawyer Tiawon Gongoloe, though, views the Roots FM closure as clearly "unlawful" because it violates people's rights to free speech, which are protected in Liberian constitution.
"It's not good for our democracy," Gongoloe told DW.
Liberia ranks 93 out of 180 in the 2019 World Press Freedom Index, down from 89 the year beforeImage: DW/S. Duckstein
Gongoloe also believes that the seizure of the station's equipment such as microphones, mixers, headphones and computers is illegal.
"If anybody uses weapons, or uses instruments that harm other people, the government has the right [to seize them], but communication gadgets are not [weapons] and so there's no legal basis for seizing communication equipment," Gongoloe said.
Ten days before the incident, the Press Union of Liberia had recommended closing down Roots FM for ethical breaches. But it also asked for Freedom FM, a pro-government station, to be shut down for the same reason – Freedom FM is still on air, however.
Spate of attacks on radio stations
It's not the first time Roots FM has been forced off air. In January 2019, masked gunmen burst into the building and smashed much of the station's equipment. Les than weeks later, gunmen again attacked the station, stealing equipment and briefly forcing it off air.
Other stations have also been attacked. In March, the Monrovia-based Joy FM was off air after someone severed the transmitter cables in the middle of the night.
Joy FM manager Emmanuel Dahn said he assumed the vandalism was a deliberate attempt to take the station off air.
"It was not a criminal who came to look for cables, because they didn't take the cable away after cutting it. The intention was to damage the institution," Dahn told online news site FrontPage Africa.
"Joy FM is one independent radio station and sometimes … we are vocal and critical on national issues… those who are involved, apparently they don't want us to be here and they are looking for a way to silence the institution," he is quoted as saying.
Official intolerance for independent journalism
In 2018, the Press Union of Liberia was so alarmed by the hostile anti-press sentiment that sent an open letter to the United Nations warning of the "pace at which official intolerance for independent journalism and dissent is escalating in Liberia."
At his inauguration, George Weah promised to support free speechImage: picture-alliance/A.Dulleh
However, at the same time, President Weah has repeatedly talked of his support for free speech and free press.
When he was sworn in as Liberia's new president in January 2018, he affirmed his commitment to freedom of expression, saying: "We could not have arrived at this day without our voices been heard loudly, and all our views, no matter how critical, being freely expressed in an atmosphere void of intimidation and arrest."
Weah has also made good on his promise to pass a new freedom of press act which came into law in March 2019. The new act decriminalizes defamation and insult, voiding a law that had previously resulted in the rampant arrest of journalists and excessive prison sentences and fines for media houses.
Press freedom in Africa under threat
Censorship, repression and sanctions: Many African countries continue to struggle with press freedom in 2019. The Press Freedom Index has classified the situation in 26 states as either "bad" or "very bad."
Image: Getty Images/AFP/M. Sibiloni
Uganda: Press freedom stalls
In Uganda, journalists who criticize the government are attacked or kidnapped, while President Yoweri Museveni even described journalists as "parasites" in 2018. Authorities have repeatedly prevented the broadcast of television reports, and threaten to shut down TV stations. A social media tax — the first of its kind in Africa — was introduced in 2018.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/M. Sibiloni
Ethiopia: 250 websites unblocked
Ethiopia, on the other hand, is making progress. Since April 2018, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has facilitated the release of imprisoned journalists and restored access to 250 news websites. Ethiopian TV stations based outside of the country can now also work freely. A commission is currently underway to revise strict media laws, but changes are still pending.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/S. Kolli
Eritrea: Under firm censorship
The media in Eritrea is under the complete control of President Issayas Afeworki. The government shut down all independent outlets in 2001. The only independent radio station currently is Radia Erena, which is run by exiled Eritrean journalists. But its signal is often blocked. Eritrea is ranked third-to-last on the Press Freedom Index, ahead of only North Korea and Turkmenistan.
Image: picture alliance/ZUMAPRESS.com/P. Marshall
Sudan: Journalists up against a 'red line'
Media in Sudan suffered particularly in 2018 under former president Omar al-Bashir. In December approximately 100 journalists were arrested. The National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) shut down opposition newspapers. Journalists are forbidden to publish stories which cover any of the 15 so-called 'red line' topics, including the NISS and the army.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/A. Shazly
Burundi: Resignation and self-censorship
Following an attempted coup in 2015, most independent radio stations remain closed. Journalists either live in exile or find it difficult to work freely. By 2018, the media landscape was characterized by fear and self-censorship. In May 2018, Karenga Ramadhan, the president of the National Communications Bureau, announced the suspension of the broadcast of the BBC and Voice of America (VOA).
Image: Getty Images/AFP
Angola: Tentative steps forward
Despite a change of government in 2017, all media outlets are still monitored by authorities. Only Radio Ecclesia and a few websites currently broadcast critical reports. It is difficult to obtain new radio and TV licenses, while all stations are legally required to broadcast presidential speeches. But the 2018 publication of opposition reports in state newspapers is encouraging.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/S. de Sakutin
Gabon: National media sanctioned
Most publications under the government of President Ali Bongo are partisan in nature. There is also self-censorship. In 2018, both the national media and a foreign broadcaster were sanctioned for criticizing the president and his staff. In January, the government cut off access to the internet and other broadcasters following an attempted coup.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/S. Jordan
DRC: Hope for greater press freedom?
Most press freedom violations in sub-Saharan Africa in 2018 took place in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Violence, media shut-downs and internet cuts are limiting press freedom. Broadcasters were pulled off the air after being accused of criticizing the government — then under Joseph Kabila. But new president Felix Tshisekedi says he wants to improve the media situation in the country.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/S. Maina
Chad: A year without social media
Any criticism of President Idriss Deby is not tolerated and may even lead to the expulsion of foreign journalists or the kidnapping and detention of Chadian journalists and broadcasters being shut down. In February 2018, media outlets in Chad organized a "Day without Press" protest and stopped reporting entirely. The government retaliated by shutting down social media for a year.
Image: AFP/Getty Images/I. Kasamani
Tanzania: Critics suppressed
President John Magufuli has been suppressing critics since taking office in 2015. More than a dozen media outlets have been shut down and websites and new blogs must pay high fees if they want to stay online. In February 2019, the newspaper The Citizen was forced to close for a week after being accused of deliberately publishing false information.
Image: DW/E. Boniphace
Rwanda: Under strict government control
Under President Paul Kagame, the press is still tightly controlled. Foreign journalists are often not given accreditation. The 1994 genocide is referenced when the government calls critical journalists "divisionists." Many Rwandan journalists have fled the country and work in exile, leading the government to increasingly block access to foreign broadcasters such as the BBC.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/Gianluigi Guercia
Zambia: Silencing uncomfortable truths
Since 2016, political tensions have been used as an excuse to undermine freedom of information and the independent press in Zambia. The authorities have shut down the country's main independent newspaper, The Post, and several radio and TV stations had their licenses taken away. In March, a private TV station was forced to close because its reporting was considered biased.
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Evelyn Kpadeh Seagbeh in Monrovia contributed to this article.