(RSF/IFEX) – The following is an RSF report on the press freedom situation in Sierra Leone: Sierra Leone Black January for the press: Nine journalists killed in Freetown Reporters sans frontières April 1999 With the support of the European Commission Introduction On 6 January 1999, rebels of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) entered Freetown. For […]
(RSF/IFEX) – The following is an RSF report on the press freedom situation
in Sierra Leone:
Sierra Leone
Black January for the press: Nine journalists killed in Freetown
Reporters sans frontières
April 1999
With the support of the European Commission
Introduction
On 6 January 1999, rebels of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) entered
Freetown. For more than ten days, they engaged in massacres, practising a
scorched earth policy that left an appalling aftermath, among the population
and facilities of the capital. The rebels, who oppose the elected president,
Ahmed Tejan Kabbah, were finally driven out by Ecomog, the West African
peacekeeping force of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)
on 12 January. The RUF leader, Corporal Foday Sankoh, was sentenced to death
by the Freetown authorities and is being held prisoner on a Nigerian ship
anchored off Sierra Leone, while his men have fled into the hinterland.
Talks are due to start soon between President Kabbah and RUF leaders.
About 5,000 bodies were counted in the streets after the clashes. Over 1,500
children were reported missing and tens of thousands of Sierra Leoneans fled
the fighting to seek refuge in neighbouring countries, particularly Guinea.
The independent press in Freetown has always worked in a climate of
repression, whatever military or civilian government has been in charge.
Several dozen journalists have been imprisoned in recent years, and two were
killed in 1997 and 1998. Many others have fled abroad to escape government
crackdowns on the press.
Yet never have journalists in Sierra Leone known such dark days as during
January 1999. At least seven journalists were killed and many more went into
hiding or left the country. Almost all newspaper offices were burned down.
All the evidence available shows that journalists and the media were
specific targets for the rebels, who deliberately attacked those they found
over-critical of their actions, or excessively favourable to the government.
Gradually those media that were least affected went back to work. The first
newspaper to resume publication, on 31 January, was the pro-government daily
The Democrat. Several titles are now on sale again, weaker than ever,
desperately trying to appeal to a readership left destitute by the war,
eager to find out what is going on but with no money to buy newspapers.
Moreover, with the national economy practically at a standstill, newspapers
are no longer receiving any income from advertising.
1. Journalists murdered by the rebels
James Ogogo: On 6 January 1999 the rebels captured James Ogogo, deputy
editor of Concord Times. They went straight towards him in the middle of a
crowd of people who had sought refuge in the Ascension cemetery. Ogogo, a
Nigerian national, had been denounced by neighbours. The rebels also
threatened many of the civilians hiding in the cemetery. They stole the 200
dollars Ogogo had on him, undressed him and beat him. They then tied him to
the back of a white Mazda pick-up with no number plates and drove off. No
witnesses have come forward to give an account of the murder. The
journalist’s body was found a few days later.
Jenner Cole: Aged 34 and a reporter for the radio station Sky FM, he was
murdered by the rebels on 9 January 1999. A group went to his home and
accused him of working for the ruling SLPP. He was shot in the head in front
of his fiancée.
Mohamed Kamara: This journalist with the radio station Kiss 104 FM was
killed on 9 January 1999 in Freetown. RUF rebels burst into his home and
questioned him about his work, then shot him dead in a Freetown street.
Kamara had recently covered the trial that ended in several members of the
RUF being condemned to death.
Myles Tierney: An American cameraman working for Associated Press Television
News, he was shot dead on 10 January 1999 in the streets of the capital. He
was travelling with a convoy of several vehicles accompanied by Ecomog
troops when they found themselves face to face with rebels disguised as
White Helmets (soldiers from the peacekeeping force). The imposters opened
fire, killing Myles Tierney instantly and wounding Ian Stewart, the US
agency’s Abidjan bureau chief, who suffered serious head injuries.
Paul Abu Mansaray: On 19 January 1999 the deputy editor of the independent
daily Standard Times, Paul Abu Mansaray, aged 41, his wife and three
children, were murdered by a group of rebels. They were praying in a church
when the rebels came to fetch them.
Alpha Amadu Bah Bah: During the first few days of the invasion of Freetown
by the rebels, this freelance journalist was murdered at his home by former
members of the Sierra Leonean army. He was stabbed and then shot, in front
of his family.
Two other freelance journalists, Muniru Turay and Mabay Kamara, were killed
between the 6 and 12 January 1999. Firstly they were abducted by the rebels
who accused them to be pro-government journalists. Then, they were executed
near Freetown. Muniru Turay, also known as Azzo, was a cartoonist and had
some stints with The Unity Now.
2. The case of a journalist killed by Ecomog
On 2 February, the news manager of the newspaper African Champion, Abdul
Juma Jalloh, was murdered by Nigerian soldiers seconded to the Ecomog
peacekeeping force. He was arrested, along with his editor, Mohammed Koroma,
in the streets of Freetown by a member of the Civil Defence Forces (CDF) – a
movement that supports President Kabbah – as they were on their way to the
printing works. They were taken to a group of Ecomog soldiers, who accused
Abdul Jumah Jalloh of being an RUF rebel and setting fire to houses. The
journalist denied the allegations and showed the soldiers his press card,
but despite his protests he was taken to State House, an official building,
undressed and violently beaten. He was then taken away to an unknown spot
and murdered. On 4 February the journalist was buried at the Ascension
cemetery.
3. Journalists missing
There is still no news of five journalists who went missing between December
1998 and February 1999. Conrad Roy, a journalist with Expo Times, escaped
from Pademba Road central prison after the rebels entered Freetown. He had
been there since February 1998. Christopher Coker, publishing manager of the
newspaper Advocate, disappeared from his Freetown home on 20 January 1999.
He is thought to have been kidnapped by rebels. Ishmeal Jalloh, a journalist
with Reporter Press, went missing near the village of Waterloo on 26
December 1998. A villager is said to have found his identity card near
Calaba, on the outskirts of Freetown. Abu S. Tarawally, a correspondent in
Makeni, northern Sierra Leone, for the newspaper The Independent Observer,
has been missing since the end of December 1999. Nomodu Adams Sesay, editor
of the newspaper Rural Times, who lived in the Portee neighbourhood of
Wellington, south-east of Freetown, went missing on 6 January 1999.
4. Journalist attacked and stabbed
On Friday 22 January 1999, Mustapha Sesay, a journalist with the Standard
Times, was picked out of a crowd of over 5,000 people near Freetown by two
armed men. He was taken to a camp where a group of ten or more soldiers were
waiting for him. He was forced to lie down, and they took his watch and
shoes. Mustapha Sesay said: “Within a split of a second, I was accused of
being a journalist spying for the government”. The journalist denied the
allegations but quickly realised that the situation was serious: “At this
stage, I got to know that they are rebels. So, I wriggled myself from their
vicious circle and forcefully released their grip fom me, and ran. After
distancing them for about five meters, they started shouting “Rebel ! Rebel
!” and I was swept by one of the rebels. I was dragged for some distance on
the ground that resulted to bruises all over my body. I was again taken to
where the other rebels were waiting for me”. Some of the soldiers searched
his pockets, while others gave him “jaw breaking slaps”. When they found his
national identity card giving his profession as “journalist”, the rebels
“sentenced” him to death: “With no wasting of time, two rebels emerged from
his back and came right in front of me and brought swords out. Within a
split of a second I felt a sharp knife right inside my right eye. This was
followed by series of stabs from other rebels to other parts of my body. God
help me to sneaked from their hands and ran. Then they laughed at me. After
a few minutes run, I came across a water well and went inside it to wash the
blood that was oozing from all other parts of my body. I finally found my
way to the nearest Ecomog position”. Mustapha Sesay received treatment for
his injuries at Connaught Hospital, central Freetown.
5. Kidnapping and detention
On 6 January 1999 Max Corneh, editor of the newspaper Justice, was captured
by a group of rebels in the town of Wellington (four miles south-east of
Freetown). After setting fire to his house, the rebels kept him locked up
for two weeks in a makeshift prison. On 20 January he managed to escape
across the mountains to the west of the city.
The publishing manager of the biweekly Pioneer, Khalilu Fofanah, was taken
prisoner by a group of rebel soldiers on 6 January 1999. He was beaten by
his captors, then held in solitary confinement in the east of the city. As
they knew his name and profession from his passsport, they took him to one
of their leaders who told him to choose between working for the rebels and
being killed. The journalist agreed to work for them and was taken back to
his cell. Later he said he had been unable to fulfil his promise because all
the telephone lines were cut so it was impossible to obtain or put out any
news. On 21 January 1999, he managed to escape and spent two days in the
forest before finding his way back to the capital. On returning home, he
found his house had been looted and set on fire.
Jia Kangbai, a stringer for the Voice of America radio station, the Kenyan
newspaper Africa News and the British New Africa Magazine, was kidnapped in
central Freetown on 9 January 1999. He was detained by a group of young
rebels, most of them aged between 15 and 25, in Dwarzak, central Freetown,
for ten days.He was accused of being close to the CDF. He was violently
beaten by the rebels before managing to escape on 19 January when Ecomog
troops launched an attack in the neighbourhood.
On 25 January, two special corrrespondents – Javier Espinosa of the Spanish
daily El Mundo and Patrick Saint-Paul of the French daily Le Figaro – were
kidnapped by rebels as they were trying to obtain an interview with the RUF
commander in the town of Calaba. They were both released after being held
for about 48 hours.
6. Threats and pressure
The head of programmes for “Voice of the Handicapped” on the radio station
96.2 FM, James Taiwo Cullen, was one of the first victims of intimidation by
the RUF after they entered Freetown. On 6 January 1999 he and his colleagues
were threatened by rebels who burst into the studios. “Colonel 555”, the
group’s leader, announced live on the air that the junta and the RUF had
seized power. The rebels threatened to kill the journalist, who is blind,
and his colleagues. James Taiwo Cullen said a few days later: “Life was like
a dreaded decease to me”.
On 6 January 1999 Ibrahim Karim-Sei, publisher of the biweekly Standard
Times, left his home with his family to take refuge in a house he owns at
Peacock Farm, Wellington. He had heard on 96.2 FM that the rebels had seized
power. He said: “On 20 January, I had to move to a nearby bush, where we
spent some days. (Å ) There we became sandwiched between the deep blue sea
and the devil. (Å ) Around mid-day of the 23, we were again pursued in the
bush. After running about three kilometers distance, I got to realise that
my eldest 17 years old daughter was missing. I later learnt she was
abducted. Up to today I have not seen her. Later in the same 23 January, I
saw my house in flames”.
On the same day Sheik M. Bawoh, a journalist with Justice Publication, was
recognised by a former soldier of the regular army. The soldier asked him to
come and see him later. The journalist stayed in hiding for four days. He
emerged on 11 January, explaining : “Soon after I surfaces from hiding, they
entered the house, and grabbed me. After having harassed, we went to my
bedroom and took everything of their choice and threatened to burn down the
house. They only punished and maltreated me before I was eventually
pardoned”.
On 9 January 1999 a group of rebels went to the home of Leslie Bickersteth,
a journalist with the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Service (SLBS). He managed
to get away and hide, but the rebels murdered his elder daughter and
tortured his wife, finally plucking out her eyes. Before leaving, the rebels
set fire to the house. On 17 January the journalist escaped a second time
when the rebels came to fetch him. He suffered an open fracture of the hand.
On 19 January 1999 rebels broken into the home of Sam Mbayo, a journalist
with the Sierra Leone News Agency. Having received a warning, the journalist
hid at a neighbour’s house but the rebels organised a search of all the
houses nearby and gathered together the occupants. One rebel pointed to the
journalist and ordered him to lie down. Sam Mbayo said : “A pistol was
placed on my forehead and then I heard a voice saying : “With any
resistance, you are dead”. While lying on the ground, one of the rebels who
was carrying a blood stained knife came over and sat on my stomach, followed
by an order from one of the rebel commandos to wait for instruction before
cutting my throat”. Then the journalist heard gunshots, apparently coming
from Ecomog troops, and the rebels fled.
7. Damage to property
On 11 January the offices of Concord Times, in Barthurst Street, Freetown,
were set on fire by RUF rebels and former members of the Sierra Leonean
army. At least four computers and other electrical equipment were smashed
and the newspaper’s archives were burned. The rebels first came to fetch the
editorial staff and fired a few shots inside the empty building before
setting it alight. On 6 January the premises of the newspaper For di People
had suffered the same fate.
Conclusions
National radio and television, SLBS, has been a specific target for the RUF
rebels, as shown by the murder of Winifred Attiba Davies, a member of the
clerical staff of the state radio station. Rebel soldiers went to her home
and shot her dead, even though she was in no way involved with the editorial
content of radio or television broadcasts. Moreover, about ten journalists
from SLBS were threatened or harassed during January. The offices were set
on fire, destroying the sound recordings which had provided a full account
of events in Sierra Leone since the station was launched.
At least 15 Sierra Leonean journalists fled the country during the month of
January 1999 alone. All of them had been attacked or threatened by the
rebels. All had their homes looted and set on fire. Many are without news of
their families. They have sought refuge in Guinea, Liberia, Gambia or
Senegal.
Reporters Sans Frontières recommends that:
– The authorities should open an investigation into all the cases of
journalists murdered. Each time the rebels were operating without disguise
and in front of numerous witnesses, which should make it possible to collect
enough evidence to identify and charge those responsible for the killings.
– The authorities should release special funds to help the independent press
so that newspapers that have lost all their equipment are able to resume
regular publication as soon as possible.
– Ecomog should conduct an investigation into the summary execution of
journalist Abdul Juma Jalloh in order to identify and punish those
responsible.
– The United Nations High Commission for Refugees should help journalists
forced to flee to Guinea, Liberia, Gambia and Senegal to return to Sierra Le
one.
NB : We have three pictures of Jenner Cole, Mustapha Sesay and the burnt
office of the Concord Times. If you need it just ask. We can send it by
regular mail or e-mail.
