MEDIA-SIERRA LEONE: Death Threats against Journalists Cause Stir

By Lansana Fofana Reprint | | Print |

Lansana Fofana

FREETOWN, Oct 5 2001 (IPS) - There is still looming controversy over the issuance last week, of death threats against seven journalists from the independent press by unknown assailants who described themselves as the government’s “hit squad”.

The journalists named on the hit list include Pios Foray of “The Democrat”, Richie Gordon of “Peep”, Paul Kamara of “For Di People”, Jonathan Leigh of the “Independent Observer”, Philip Neville of “Standard Times” and David Tom-Baryoh of “C- Met”.

All seven journalists have been very critical of the government, with some of them having been detained several times for their outspokenness.

“When you are in this business for long and remain critical, you should be prepared for threats on your life and politically – motivated detentions,” remarked Kamara. Having being jailed several times before, by various governments, Kamara told IPS that he remains undaunted.

“No amount of threats on my life would change my position, which is reporting events as they unfold and critically analysing government policies,” he added.

Foray took a rather philosophical approach. “We are in a struggle and the incompetent ruling government is being simply jittery and desperate,” he said. “I am prepared to die for what I believe in and that is the struggle for liberation of our people.”

The threats were issued in separate letters to the editors of the newspapers, in which the assailants described the seven journalists as “enemies of the state”.

Leigh accused agents of the government of being behind the death threats. “We know of senior government officials publicly referring to journalists as rebels and subversives and some have even made direct threats against us,” he said.

With the political situation is becoming increasingly charged ahead of national elections in May next year, the government of President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah has distanced itself from the death threats. It even described them as a frame-up by some journalists “who want to obtain visas to travel to the United States or Western Europe”.

A press statement from the President’s office said the government was tolerant of the press and respects human rights.

But the journalists are not taking the threats lightly. They have called in the police to investigate the matter while vowing that they will continue with their critical stance on governmental policies.

The journalists argued that a hit list had once been issued against critical editors, in 1997 when the military seized power, and that some people named on that list were eventually murdered by the regime.

Sierra Leone topped the world list of dangerous places for journalists to work. At least ten journalists have been murdered in the line of duty during the course of the country’s decade-long civil conflict. Most of them died in the hands of the rebels of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) who sparked Sierra Leone’s conflict a decade ago.

However, there is the real threat to freedom of expression, as agents of the ruling Sierra Leone People Party (SLPP) of president Kabbah, are becoming even more intolerant of criticism.

The Sierra Leonean Association of Journalists has said it would continue defending the rights of its members even if that means bringing it on a collision course with the authorities.

The conflict in Sierra Leone, which broke out in 1991, has claimed more than 30,000 lives. Since then, about a quarter of the country’s 4.5 million people have been either forced to flee to neighbouring countries as refugees or become internally displaced.