(JSS/IFEX) – According to JSS, Teun Voeten, a Dutch freelance journalist and photographer working for the Dutch magazine “Vrij Nederland” and the Belgian newspaper “De Morgen”, arrived safely in Belgium on 8 March 1998. Voeten had been missing in Sierra Leone since 13 February 1998. Voeten went into hiding after a run-in with soldiers from […]
(JSS/IFEX) – According to JSS, Teun Voeten, a Dutch freelance journalist and
photographer working for the Dutch magazine “Vrij Nederland” and the Belgian
newspaper “De Morgen”, arrived safely in Belgium on 8 March 1998. Voeten had
been missing in Sierra Leone since 13 February 1998. Voeten went into hiding
after a run-in with soldiers from the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) in
which his money and camera were taken. With information that RUF soldiers
were still looking for him, Voeten spent more than two weeks hiding in the
bush near the town of Makeni. Most of this time he was incommunicado.
According to JSS, Voeten was able to avoid kidnapping and execution with the
help of a soldier from the Armed Forces Ruling Council (AFRC).
**Updates IFEX alert of 23 February 1998**
On 4 March 1998 Voeten was able to speak with his wife for the first time
since 13 February. He then had to wait in Makeni for three days before he
could travel to Conakry, Guinea, which has an international airport. Voeten
was met there by journalist Robert Dulmers who had traveled to Conakry on
behalf of the Dutch Association of Journalists (NVJ).
Background Information
Voeten, who is 36, arrived in Conakry on 9 February 1998. He was planning to
travel to Freetown, Sierra Leone. Voeten had been contacting his home base
almost every day until one day he failed to do so. “De Morgen” had been
unable to contact him since 18 February 1998. Voeten is a member of the NVJ
and holds an international press card.
