(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of Justice Siene Oulaï, RSF expressed its concern following the deadly attack that took place at the home of Laurent Tapé Koulou, publication director of the private daily “Le National”. RSF asked the minister to do everything possible so that those responsible for the attack are identified and […]
(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of Justice Siene Oulaï, RSF expressed its concern following the deadly attack that took place at the home of Laurent Tapé Koulou, publication director of the private daily “Le National”. RSF asked the minister to do everything possible so that those responsible for the attack are identified and punished. “The Ivoirian justice system is duty-bound to lead an impartial and serious inquiry into this case, which could be linked to Tapé Koulou’s professional activities,” noted RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard.
According to information collected by RSF, on 20 June 2001, at approximately 8:00 p.m. (local time), two unidentified individuals entered the “Le National” editor’s home and asked where Tapé Koulou was. Just when the editor’s younger brother responded that he was out of the country, one of the two men opened fire with an automatic weapon on the family members who were present. The journalist’s older sister, Tapé Ziadou Madeleine, and a friend, Takoré Clovis Désiré, were mortally wounded. A third person, Tapé Serge Médard, is in a coma and was transferred to the University Hospital Centre (Centre hospitalier universitaire) in Yopougon. At the time of the attack, Tapé Koulou was in France to cover a visit by Ivoirian President Laurent Gbagbo.
The police have launched an inquiry and have not ruled out any leads. The staff of “Le National” is questioning the motives behind the attack. “Was this macabre action directed against the journalist ⦠or the politician?” asked the newspaper on the day after the attack. Tapé Koulou was also a candidate in municipal elections held last March.
