(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of Finance Nathinal Barnes, RSF called for the release of Wilson Tarpeh, chairman of the board of directors of the daily “The News”, and the reopening of the newspaper as well as the “Monrovia Guardian”. “These newspapers are struggling to survive and are not in a position to […]
(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of Finance Nathinal Barnes, RSF called for the release of Wilson Tarpeh, chairman of the board of directors of the daily “The News”, and the reopening of the newspaper as well as the “Monrovia Guardian”. “These newspapers are struggling to survive and are not in a position to pay back taxes to the government. The authorities know this and we fear that they are using the issue as a pretext to shut down two independent newspapers that are particularly critical of the Liberian government,” explained RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard. The organisation noted that Liberia is one of the few countries that have not ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Article 19 of which guarantees freedom of expression.
According to information gathered by RSF, on 20 November 2001, policemen visited the offices of the private daily “The News”. They did not have a warrant but ordered the newspaper’s personnel to leave the premises. A police officer explained to one of “The News”‘s editors that the measure was linked to the newspaper’s unpaid taxes. That same day, policemen arrested Tarpeh, chairman of “The News”‘s board of directors. The “Monrovia Guardian” was also closed for the same reason. The Ministry of Finance said the two publications had not settled their taxes with the government.
RSF recalled that four journalists from “The News” were arrested and held for several hours in February after criticising the government for mismanaging public funds.
