(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of Communications and Culture Mamady Conde, RSF protested the arrest of Tibou Camara, publication director of the private weekly “L’Observateur”. RSF asked the minister to ask the relevant authorities to release the journalist. “He did nothing more than exercise his right to inform, guaranteed by several international treaties […]
(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of Communications and Culture Mamady Conde, RSF protested the arrest of Tibou Camara, publication director of the private weekly “L’Observateur”. RSF asked the minister to ask the relevant authorities to release the journalist. “He did nothing more than exercise his right to inform, guaranteed by several international treaties and ratified by the Republic of Guinea,” specified RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard. “This is the second time this year that a journalist is sentenced to a prison term with no parole,” he added.
According to information collected by RSF, Camara was arrested on 8 May 2001 by Conakry’s anti-gang police, in front of his newspaper’s offices. Several witnesses, including some of the journalist’s colleagues, confirmed that he was beaten by police officers at the time of his arrest. Camara is being held at Conakry’s central prison. On 24 April he was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment and ordered to pay a fine of one million Guinean francs (approx. US$523; 590 euros) for “defamation.” Conakry’s High Court sentenced the publication director and five other “L’Observateur” journalists following the filing of a complaint by Malick Sankhon, secretary-general of the Ministry of Tourism. Sankhon had instituted proceedings against the weekly after the publication of an article in which he was accused of seeking to arrange Camara’s abduction. Five “L’Observateur” journalists are currently being sought by police in connection with the case.
RSF recalled that another media professional was sentenced to a prison term earlier this year. On 14 February, Aboubacar Sakho of the “Nouvel Observateur” was incarcerated at Conakry’s central prison following the publication of an article criticising a government decision to relieve certain magistrates of their duties (see IFEX alert of 15 February 2001). The journalist was released one month after his arrest.
