(MFWA/IFEX) – On 1 March 2005, Salamatu Turay, a senior reporter for the “Salone Times”, was assaulted while reporting on a clash between police and striking Fourah Bay College students. The incident took place in Freetown at the Eastend police roundabout. The journalist had gone there to cover the students’ strike and the ensuing clash […]
(MFWA/IFEX) – On 1 March 2005, Salamatu Turay, a senior reporter for the “Salone Times”, was assaulted while reporting on a clash between police and striking Fourah Bay College students.
The incident took place in Freetown at the Eastend police roundabout. The journalist had gone there to cover the students’ strike and the ensuing clash with police.
After Turay identified herself as a journalist, the police began to beat her. “[They] told me to go to hell with my identity card”, she explained, in tears.
The journalist was treated for her injuries at Saterlite Clinic, a private medical centre.
The MFWA condemns this arbitrary use of force by members of the Sierra Leone police, who should be protecting citizens in the exercise of their rights. The assault on Turay amounts to an abuse of power and a violation of media freedom. The MFWA calls on President Tejan Kabbah’s government to ensure that the police refrain from assaulting journalists performing their duties.
