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Tag: journalists

  • Over 250 journalists in jails worldwide in 2018 – CPJ

    Over 250 journalists are imprisoned around the world for their professional activities, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said on Thursday, citing its annual global survey.

    “Fresh waves of repression in China, Egypt and Saudi Arabia sustained the global crackdown on press freedom in 2018.

    “For the third consecutive year, at least 251 journalists are in jail in relation to their works.

    “Turkey is still the world’s worst jailer of journalists,’’ the CPJ said.

    The committee said that 70 per cent of the jailed journalists were charged with anti-state activities, including being part of groups considered as terrorists by authorities,

    The report noted that 98 per cent of those journalists were detained in their home countries, while only five of them were jailed in states that they were non-citizens. (Sputnik/NAN)

  • Journalists urged to change the African migration narrative

    Journalists have been urged to change the African migration narrative.

    At a day Media and Migration training for journalists organised by Africa Positive in collaboration with Africa Media Initiative (AMI) Erich-Brost-Institut and Journalism in a Global Context (JiGC), AMI Senior Special Adviser Eric Chinje, described the migration story of Africa as a sad one.

    According to him, Africa is richly blessed and should not be running outside to find a better life.

    Chinje urged journalists to challenge the status quo and begin looking beyond just reporting how many Africans perish in the Mediterranean sea.

    Journalists, he said, should explore the reason people keep migrating.

    He noted that Nigeria occupies centre stage in Africa and as a result, journalists should take the lead in telling the African migration story in a way that truly represents the African plight.

    He said: “It is not just enough to say Africa is a rich continent, it is the responsibility of the media to find out what are we doing wrong? Why can’t we make our nations more attractive for people to stay?”

    A lecturer at the University of Cape Coast, Ghana, Michael Serwornoo, said African journalists should stop putting Africans in bad light like their European counterparts.

    “Don’t just focus on the fact that people are leaving the country, ask why they are leaving. If it is because of unemployment for instance, ask how people can create opportunities for themselves and talk about what factors limit an individual from creating opportunities for themselves,” Serwornoo said.

    Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Lagos State Council Chairman Dr Qasim Akinreti, enjoined journalists to display professionalism in discharging their duties. He noted that the union has always been interested in the welfare of journalists and that isn’t going to change.

  • 2019: IPC urges journalists to use election coverage’s code

    THE International Press Centre (IPC), Lagos-Nigeria has urged journalists covering the electoral process to professionally report the campaigns within the context of the provisions of the Nigerian Media Code of Election Coverage.

    The advice followed the official opening of campaigns for the 2019 general elections by political parties and candidates

    A statement by the IPC Director Mr. Lanre Arogundade IPC noted: “The Nigerian Media Code of Election Coverage, Revised Edition 2018, which was endorsed by over a hundred media professional groups and associations; broadcast, print and online media outlets; media support/development groups; and journalism training institutions, provides detailed guidelines for the professional coverage and reporting of the elections.”

    Arogundade said the guidelines stipulate that journalists should give equitable access to parties and candidates, reflect the views of underrepresented groups like women, people living with disabilities and youths, and refrain from publishing or airing, stories, headlines, images and adverts that constitute hate speech and could incite violence.

    The IPC Director also said reporters should strive to comply with other frameworks governing media coverage of elections such as the Electoral Act 2010 as amended and the Nigeria Broadcasting Code.

    Arogundade reminded the government, the political parties and INEC of their obligations under the Media Code of Election Coverage to facilitate the enabling environment for effective media coverage by proactively providing electoral information and ensuring the safety of journalists.

     

  • AMI flays attacks on journalists in Cameroon, Sudan, Egypt, others

    African Media Initiative (AMI) has expressed great concern over the growing curtailment of media freedom in many African countries, including Cameroon, Sudan, Egypt and Tanzania.

    It said governments in Africa have a duty to refrain from undue interference with the right to media freedom and must promote and protect citizens’ rights of access to information.

    In a statement yesterday, the media group said in the last four weeks in Cameroon, eight journalists – Joseph Olinga, Michel BiemTong, Gustave Flaubert Kengne, Michel Kalabassou, Mimi Mefo, Josiane Kouagheu, Akumbom McCarthy, and Mathias Mouende – have been intimidated, arrested or tried before military courts across the country over allegations of ‘propagating false information’ or ‘undermining the safety of the state’ under the anti-terror law.

    Cameroon has seen, over the years, an accelerated shrinking of the democratic space where both journalists and citizens are having to adapt to a difficult environment.

    In Egypt, a law enacted last month has been widely criticised as tantamount to extortion of media houses as it requires hefty registration amounts for licences with websites being forced to pay more than $30,000 to register and up to five times that amount for non-compliance. The law is viewed as an attempt by the government to silence the remaining independent media.

    AMI added that on 29 October, the Press Court in Khartoum sentenced Zine El Abeen Al-A’jab, a former editor of Al Mustagila newspaper, to one and a half months in prison or a fine of 5,000 pounds ($104) over alleged “dissemination of false information” among other charges.

    Overall, according to Amnesty International, at least 15 journalists have been arrested and detained between January and October 2018 by the government’s National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISS).

    In addition, the entire print run of 10 newspapers was confiscated on at least 27 occasions. Al Jareeda, one of the last independent newspapers, has been confiscated at least 13 times this year.

    The statement said on 7 November in Tanzania, South African journalist Angela Quintal, Africa programme coordinator for press freedom group, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and her Kenyan colleague Muthoki Mumo were arrested from their hotel in Dar-es-Salaam and detained by authorities for 24 hours.

    Rights groups and media advocates have recently expressed concerns about the freedom of expression in the country since election three years ago of Tanzania’s President, John Magufuli, whose regime has cracked down on independent media and close down critical newspapers.

    Earlier in 2018, the government approved a new law regulating online content that gives them the right to revoke the permit if a website publishes content “that leads to public disorder” and “threatens national security”, according to media report.

    In view of the above, AMI reiterated that intimidation of journalists, harassment, arbitrary detentions, closures, internet cuts, media closure, censorship, and trials of journalists before military courts over crimes allegedly committed while discharging their duties contravene international treaties and covenants protecting the freedom of the press and the public’s right of access to information .

    It called on African governments to create a conducive environment for a free exercise of the media profession .

    The group demanded the immediate release of journalists arrested.

  • 2019 Campaigns : NPC urges media to avoid bias, elevate political discourse

    The Nigeria Press Council (NPC) on Monday urged media professionals to emphasise the objective of quality journalism by reporting issues that would elevate political discourse as 2019 campaigns began.

    Mr Nnamdi Njemanze, the Executive Secretary of NPC, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), advised the media against reportage that would derogate issue-based campaigns.

    Njemanze also enjoined the media to shun tendencies of trying to take side or project any political party or candidates at the expense of others.

    He said the media as professionals, should ensure that their self-inclination did not jeopardise the need for quality journalism, saying “ if that happens, then the moral tone of the profession would be weaken.

    “ At every time, the media should stress and emphasise the objective of good journalism by reporting issues that will elevate the political discourse rather than reporting issues that will derogate quality discourse.

    “As campaigns for the 2019 elections begin, we need to draw attention of the media to the code of ethics of journalism that guides elections campaigns.

    “ We do know that politicians are in the habit of accusing each other and use words that are inflammatory in order to score cheap points against their opponent.

    “ The media as a moderator of the process, should be mindful of reporting such or project some of the statements that are capable of stirring up mischief, “ Njemanze said.

    Read Also: Falana to speak at IPC’s tweet, media roundtable

    The NPC boss noted that the code of ethics for journalists was a pointer to the need for quality journalism that ensured the truth was projected.

    Njemanze advised media professionals to ensure that the essential element of good journalism like verification, balancing, fairness and truth were projected at all times.

    According to him, on reporting the political space, the media must be mindful of the electoral guideline and laws for elections and they should also be mindful of the code of ethics for election coverage as reviewed.

    “ Let the electoral laws and code of ethics of the profession, including the NBC media code, be the guide during the campaigns and election.

    “ We do know that some politicians will go over the board to say one or two things that might not promote national unity.

    “ It is incumbent on the media to filter those extraneous elements that will derogate the quality of the news reportage,“she added.

    Commenting on editorial independence, Njemanze said decision concerning content of news should be the responsibility of professional journalists and not the responsibility of any other interest group to avoid undue influence.

  • ‘How journalists can investigate corruption’

    Human Rights activist and Executive Director, Centre for Free Speech, Mr Richard Akinnola, has said journalists investigating corruption cases must  learn how to work incognito if they aspire to be thorough investigative journalists and make a success of their undercover works.

    Akinnola said investigative journalists, particularly those digging into corruption stories, are susceptible to life-threatening situations.

    He said this is why they must work incognito in order to be able to carry out effective investigation and gather useful information about the person or organisation being investigated.

    Akinnola spoke at the presentation of “Uncovering Corruption in Nigeria: A Manual for Investigative Journalists” by Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) in Lagos.

    The manual was published with the support of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED).

    Akinnola said: “A good investigative journalist, particularly working on corruption-related stories, should learn how to work incognito. For instance, if there is an unemployment scam and people are asked to pay certain amounts of money as part of application process, an investigative journalist could put in his application and payment and pretend to be an applicant.

    “With this, he/she would be able to get first-hand information in respect of the company. But it must be noted that he/she must not go to the scene of investigation with his work ID card or complimentary card. He also needs some working tools like spy cameras that could be in the form of pens, ATM card, ties, eye glasses, key holders.

    “The secret recordings are later downloaded into a computer. Examples are the sting operations by some British journalists to expose corruption in FIFA by way of match fixings. Another example is the popular Ghanaian undercover journalist, Anas Aremeyaw Anas, who exposed corruption in the Ghanaian judiciary, leading to the sack of over 22 judges, who were caught in the web of the corruption scandal.”

    According to him, the signing of the Freedom of Information (FoI) Bill into law by President Goodluck Jonathan on May 28, 2011,  opened a new vista in the nation’s  quest for openness and accountability in governance. He added that the FOI Act affords any person the right to access or request for information from public officials, agencies and institutions.

    Akinola contended that the public has a right to access information, which is of public concern and of which the public ought to know.

    He said newspapers, TV and radio stations are agents of the public to collect the information and tell the public about it.

    The activist argued that it is wrong for anybody to want to compel journalists to disclose their source of information “neither by means of discovery by trial nor by questions or cross-examination at the trial nor by subpoena.

    “The honey pot of any investigative journalist is his/her sources. A journalist has to develop and cultivate sources and this takes time because confidence-building is very crucial. A source must be able to trust you, hence the issue of confidentiality of what your source gives or tells you. The Code of Ethics for Nigerian journalists, known as the 1998 Ilorin Declaration states inter alia:  ‘A journalist should observe the universally accepted principle of confidentiality and should not disclose the source of information obtained in confidence’.

    “A strong cardinal principle of journalism, which a trainee reporter first learns in school, is the protection of the source of his information. Like medical and legal practitioners owe it a duty to protect the confidentiality of their patients and clients respectively, the journalists too owe it a duty not to disclose his source of information under any circumstance.

    “However, more often than not, there are clashes between ethical and legal concepts as regards disclosure of sources of information, a situation that has led to litigations by aggrieved newspapers who feel duty bound to keep their sources of information.”

    Akinnola argued that the implication of Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution, vis-à-vis Section 22 of the 1999 Constitution, which was the Section 21 of the 1979 Constitution, is that despite the fact that Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution gives every Nigerian, right to freedom of expression, the Nigerian media still substantially have its freedom protected, particularly under Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, which is now part of our laws. Nigeria ratified the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, Chapter 12, Laws of the Federation, 1990).

    He contended:  “A free world demands that the media act to strengthen democracy and institutional bodies. Good governance and accountability thrive on access to information, not just by journalists alone, but by the average Nigerian. Indeed, the right of a people to have access to officially-held information and comment on the affairs of state and conduct of government is an intrinsic part of democracy, which demands accountability of rulers and public officials to the citizenry.”

    He supported the calls for the FOI Act to be domesticated by the various states for it to have effect in the states and as already done in some states like Ekiti, which have even gone ahead to domesticate it.

    Describing this as laudable and that which  would further strengthen the law, he pointed out that domestication of the law is not necessary for it to have effect in the states.

    He said there have been a couple of court decisions in this regard lending credence to the fact that domestication of the law is not necessary for it to have effect in the states, adding that an investigative journalist should not be hamstrung if certain state government officials try to frustrate them by claiming that the law has not been domesticated in their respective states.

    To buttress his argument, Akinnola cited a decision of March 27, this year in the case of Martins Alo v. Speaker, Ondo State House of Assembly and Auditor-General of Ondo State in which the Court of Appeal, sitting in Akure, held that all states are bound to accede to requests for information on public expenditure under the FOIA.

    “This was a case in which the applicant/appellant, a journalist sought for information on the audited accounts of the House of Assembly between 2012 and 2014. He was denied. He filed an action at the State High Court which ruled that the applicant had no right to demand how the House spent its money, under the premise that the FOIA did not cover all states, except the states that domesticated it. But the Court of Appeal laid this to rest. Having said that, it is obvious that notwithstanding its non-domestication, all states are under a legal obligation to subject themselves to the law.

    “Corruption is not just when someone in public office in engaged in financial malfeasance. It encompasses abuse of office and public morality,” he stated

    SERAP in the  manual published with the support of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) also stated: “Painstaking research and patience are the dual hallmarks of an investigative journalist. Fortunately, google is everybody’s friend. You need to check and double check whatever your sources are giving you.

    “Anyone, who walks to you to give you documents incriminating someone has a purpose or agenda, and it may not be altruistic. He may want to even scores with someone and in that process, may procure fake and questionable documents that might appear real and if you don’t double check and be meticulous, you may be in court for a libel action after publication.”

  • A tale of two journalists

    In 1934, the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo became a journalist as a reporter-in -training in the then Nigerian Daily Times.  According to him, at this time journalism was ‘an unprofitable, frustrating and soul depressing career’. He further went to describe a journalist in his autobiography titled ‘Awo’ as follows: ‘There was a general but inarticulate contempt for a newspaperman particularly the reporters. They were regarded as the flotsam and jetsam of the growing community of Nigerian intelligentsia: people who took to journalism because they were no good in anything else. Journalism was not a well-paid then as a good job in the civil service or in mercantile house’. This was an unflattering image of journalism profession more than 80 years ago. Over the years, journalism has grown to an enviable profession desired by young people not only in Nigeria but all over the world. Journalism with all its branches in print and electronic media is a prime course in our universities, and at present, our universities cannot admit all the people who apply for degree and diploma courses in journalism. This is a pointer to the importance of the profession in our present socio-political development.

    The importance of journalists lies in the fact that they are in charge of the press which in a democratic setting is referred to as the ‘fourth estate of the realm’. Journalists are opinion moulders and keen watch-dogs of the people’s freedom. Whether in the print or electronic media, journalists inform the people about the activities of the governments and they are in the vanguard in the defence of the people’s fundamental human rights. This is not an easy task, asmany journalists have lost their lives in the course of performing their duties and some have been subjected to untold torture and imprisonment. However, in established democracy where press freedom is guaranteed, politicians ignore journalists at their own peril. Owners of newspapers like Cecil King, Rupert Murdoch and William Randolph Hearst were treated like royalties by politicians who wanted their favours. Many journalists had made their marks in the profession despite its vagaries and some of these journalists were as popular as celebrities in their times. In Britain, we had Malcom Muggeridge, the popular Second World War correspondent for the Times of London, Robin Day and David Frost both of BBC. In the United States of America, the names of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, the two investigative reporters of the Washington Post who exposed the Watergate scandal in 1972 would forever remain golden in the history of journalism in that country.  The Watergate scandal exposed by these men was the biggest story in American politics and led to the disgraceful resignation of Richard Nixon as the President of USA.

    In Nigeria, journalists are no longer the ‘flotsam and jetsam’ of Nigerian community. Since independence, journalists had always been very influential and some of them like the late AdamuCiroma(Candido), Abiodun Aloba (Ebenezer Williams), Lateef Jakande (John West), Sam Amuka (Sad Sam), Peter Enahoro (Peter Pan), Bisi  Onabanjo (Aiyekoto) and Segun Osoba made their marks not only in journalism but in the politics of the country and they could be compared with the best in the world.

    As written earlier,journalism is a profession full of danger especially in countries with repressive and autocratic regimes. The justifiable furore generated by the disappearance and subsequent gruesome killing of the Saudi Arabia journalist, Jamal Khashoggiat Saudi Arabia consulate in Istanbul Turkey, brings to mind the equally gruesome killing in Nigeria of Dele Giwa, the famous investigative journalist in 1986. The flamboyant Dele Giwa who brought class to Nigerian journalism founded in 1984, the Newswatch magazine with Ray Ekpu, Dan Agbese, and Yakubu Mohammed. This weekly newsmagazine blazed the trail in investigative journalism in the country and the magazine enlivened journalism in the country through its many scoops  which made the military government of Ibrahim Babaginda very uncomfortable.

    Both DeleGiwa, an American-trained journalist and Jamal Khashoggi, a columnist with the prestigious Washington Post in USA were killed by agents of intolerant and repressive governments of their respective countries. Death came to Dele Giwa in his home when a parcel was delivered to him. On opening the parcel, the bomb contained in the deadly parcel exploded and blew him mercilessly into his untimely death. Jamal Khashoggi on the other hand went to meet death in the Saudi Arabia consulate in Istanbul Turkey where he had gone to collect his divorce papers so that he could be free to marry his Turkish fiancé who accompanied him to the consulate, and who for an undisclosed reason, did not enter the consulate with him. She stayed outside the consulate waiting for him with an instruction that that she should alert the Turkish authority if he did not come out the consulate in time. Leaks from the Turkish authority show that Jamal Khashoggi was killed few minutes after entering the consulate after which his body was dismembered in a barbaric manner. This narrative has now been confirmed by the Saudi Arabia authority which in the past weeks had been dishing out puerile lies about what happened to Khashoggi in the consulate.

    There is no doubt that both Dele Giwa and Jamal Khassoggi were killed by agents of their respective governments, with fingers pointing to their highest authorities in their respective countries. Dele Giwa and his newsmagazine were known to be critical of the military government of Ibrahim Babangida while Khashoggi was considered to be critical of the action of Mohammed bin Salman (MbS), the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia. Dele Giwa’s body was found and buried by his family but up till now when this piece is being written,the Saudi authority could not tell the world what really happened to Khashoggi’s body. The whole world is sceptical about the statement from the Saudi authority that Khashoggi’s body was given to a Turkish collaborator for burial. Even President Trump who initially believed the narratives of the government of Saudi Arabia on the issue now says that the narratives dished out from Saudi Arabia Kingdom are the worst cover up ever.

    A major difference in the narratives on the death of these journalists is that up till now, 32 years after Dele Giwa was killed, nobody knows who was responsible for his untimely and gruesome murder. No inquiry was instituted by the government to fish out the killers of Dele Giwa and all the efforts of the late Chief GaniFawehinmi, the lawyer to Dele Giwa to use legal means to unravel the perpetrators of the dastardly act were abortive. The inability of our intelligence agencies to solve the mystery behind Dele Giwa’s death no doubt gave them a horrible badge of dishonour.  It is still very shameful that such a dastardly act could be perpetrated in our country without anybody being held responsible.  In fact, the descent of Babangida’s military government to infamy gathered momentum after this killing.  Whereas in the case of Khashoggi, the Saudi Arabia’s authority under the relentless pressure from international community at least admitted belatedly that its agents carried out the ignoble role of killing the amiable and internationally renowned Khashoggi.

    There is an alarming concern nowadays that many governments even in the well-established countries are becoming more and more impatient with journalists. In the USA which is supposed to a bastion of free press, President Trump has shown through his utterances that he has no stomach for journalists who he accused as spreading fake news. In Europe, the right wing government of Viktor Orban in Hungary has closed down many newspapers. In Myanmar in Asia, two Reuter journalists were jailed for seven years for reporting on the massacre of RohingyaMuslims. The plights of journalists in Latin America and Africa are equally perilous. The world needs a free and unfettered press and as Washington Post says in its motto:  “Democracy Dies in Darkness”. The same goes for the free press which is an essential part of democracy. One can only wish both Dele Giwa and Jamal Khashoggi a peaceful rest with their makers as they fought a good fight against draconian regimes in their countries when they were alive.

     

    • ProfessorLucas writes from Old Bodija, Ibadan.

  • Freidrich Ebert Stiftung trains journalists on social protection 

    The Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, a non government organisation, in conjunction with The Nigerian Union of Journalists, Lagos State Chapter, on Friday, trained journalists around Lagos on social protection.

    The training which was put in place to educate journalists in Lagos and expose them to exactly what social protection is and as well as let them know how they can play their roles was held at the Golden Tulip Hotel, Airport Road.

    At the training, Prof Ifeanyi Onyeonoru, who gave an overview of a publication on social protection in Nigeria, said that social protection is about policies and programmes that are designed to reduce poverty and vulnerability.

    He said that any policy on social protection should be able to raise the capacity of the ordinary man to manage economic and social risk including unemployment, social exclusion, sickness, disability and old age, he said people lacking all these becomes aggressive as nobody is attending to their interest.

    Other facilitators at the training were Lanre Arogundade who spoke on ; Approaches to media promotion and reporting of social protection issues in Nigeria, among others.

     

  • ‘Attackers of journalists won’t go unpunished’

    National President of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Abdulwaheed Odusile has condemned the attack on journalists during a clash between policemen and youths in Awkuzu, Anambra State.

    He promised that the national body will join the state council to ensure the culprits are brought to book to deter others.

    Odusile, who visited the state council in Awka, canvassed stronger laws to protect journalists’ rights.

    He said: “The need for government to protect journalists and security agents has become more imperative in view of the critical role they play in the country.”

    The NUJ chair lauded the quality and effective leadership of the state council and encouraged it to sustain the tempo.

    State Chairman Emma Ifesinachi promsied that the state council will work to get justice for the attacked journalists, saying an injury to one remained an injury to all.

  • ActionAid trains journalists on reporting corruption

    Not fewer than forty journalists are currently undergoing three day training on corruption and investigative data reporting in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

    The training is being organized by ActionAid Nigeria with support from UKAid has journalists drawn from Borno State which is one of the implementing states including other states in the northeast like Bauchi, Gombe and Yobe States.

    Making his presentation, one of the lead facilitators of the training, Mr. Lekan Otufodunrin, a Media Career Trainer in his paper title, Research as a Basis for Good Reporting tasked journalists to, “overcome the challenges that are associated with the weak institutions in the system by beginning to report the weakness itself”.

    Mr. Lekan emphasized that “journalists must be armed with the right information and data by using the Freedom of Information Act (FoI) to produce a good investigative report”.

    He added, “You must have the relevant information to be able to come out with a good investigative story by engaging in a very thorough research of what you want to investigate and write about. Those facts must be undisputed and factual. That suggest that such facts must be verified and cross check because you must ask relevant questions concerning the objective of the person giving you an information.

    Read Also: NUJ presidential aspirant vows to pay journalists’ salaries

    Drawing from experience, Mr. Lekan challenged journalists to avoid self-censorship and engage in strong networking by sharing their stories that could amount to their organizational conflict of interests.

    “You can share a story with your colleague that you feel you newspaper cannot use or publish,” Mr. Lekan advised.

    Welcoming participants at the training, the Project Manager of Strengthening Citizens Resistance Against Prevalence of Corruption (SCRAP-C), Mr. Newton Otsemaye  emphasized on  the UN Convention Against Corruption which espouses the ills of corruption especially how it affect the poor and the vulnerable people in the society.

    Quoting from the former UN Secretary General, Late Kofi Annan, “Corruption”, he says, “affects the poor disproportionately”.

    Mr. Otsemaye regretted how our society celebrate and glorify people who have looted public funds, adding that, “the people need to be sensitized on the dangers of corruption and the journalists must be in the driver’s seat for the people to understand.