Benin: Three journalists banned from presenting news

 

Three journalists at Benin’s state broadcaster, Office de Radiodiffusion et Television du Benin (ORTB), have been banned from presenting on the television station’s 8pm broadcast.

 

Ozias Sounouvou, Prévert Noutèhou and Renaud Acakpo told MFWA’s correspondent in Benin that there was an “order from above that their names should be removed from the list of news presenters for the 20 hours news broadcast”. The order was posted in the editorial room February 1, 2015.

 

The ban of the three journalists follows a statement made by another presenter, Ozias Sounouvou, during the 11:30pm edition on January 12.

 

While presenting the news, Sounouvou called out the President of Benin, Yayi Boni, for participating in a press freedom march in Paris following the Charlie Hebdo attacks while in his own country, people cannot exercise the right to freedom of expression.

President Jammeh unbans Standard Newspaper and Teranga FM

 

Proprietor, Taranga Fm

After one year when Gambian security services arbitrarily shut down the Gambian community radio station, Taranga FM and The Standard Newspaper, president jammeh has announced the lifting of ban with immediate effects.

 Aired on the state broadcaster, GRTS, on New Year’s Eve, president Jammeh lifted the ban ‘for his good will gesture for the new year’ 2014.

Both Taranga FM and the Standard have were shut at a time when the Gambia is seeing increasing violations of the right to freedom of expression.
The arbitrary closure according to journalist is an undue interference in freedom of expression by the state and will deprive the Gambian public of their right to access information, especially in local languages.

Taranga FM was shutdown on the night of 14-15 August and The Standard, together with The Daily News received orders on Friday to immediately cease operations in September 2012.