(WAN/IFEX) – In a 7 May 2004 letter to President Laurent Gbagbo, WAN and the World Editors Forum (WEF) expressed serious concern over the disappearance of journalist Guy André Keiffer and the death threats made against his colleague Baudelaire Mieux. According to reports, Keiffer, an investigative reporter of French-Canadian nationality and correspondent for the newspaper […]
(WAN/IFEX) – In a 7 May 2004 letter to President Laurent Gbagbo, WAN and the World Editors Forum (WEF) expressed serious concern over the disappearance of journalist Guy André Keiffer and the death threats made against his colleague Baudelaire Mieux.
According to reports, Keiffer, an investigative reporter of French-Canadian nationality and correspondent for the newspaper “La Lettre du Continent”, went missing on 16 April. Keiffer had worked in Abidjan for 10 years as a financial analyst/reporter specialising in the cocoa and coffee industries.
WAN and WEF are seriously concerned that Keiffer’s disappearance might be related to his journalistic activities. There have been recent reports of growing tension between “unscrupulous businessmen settling scores” in the cocoa and coffee industries.
On 21 April, Mieux, a photojournalist with AP News Dow Jones in Abidjan and a colleague of Keiffer, reportedly fled to Senegal, alleging persistent death threats. Some reports have linked the death threats against Mieux to Keiffer’s disappearance.
