On the occasion of the observance of the International Human Rights Day on December 10, the Federation of African Journalists, the pan-African regional organisation of the International Federation of Journalists, demanded immediate and decisive action to confront the escalating and relentless violations of the fundamental rights of journalists across Africa.
As the continent marks the global observance of International Human Rights Day under the theme, “Our Rights, Our Future, Right Now,” the journalists’ federation emphasised the devastating impact these abuses have on democracy, development, and the human rights of all Africans.
Journalists across the continent are subjected to grave abuses, including physical violence, arbitrary arrests, judicial harassment, enforced disappearances and even assassinations. These violations are carried out with shocking impunity, creating a climate of fear and repression that stifles the free flow of information. Such attacks not only target journalists but also undermine the public’s right to know, weaken democratic governance and derail Africa’s aspirations for progress and justice.
Every attack on a journalist is an attack on the public’s right to know and a direct assault on the aspirations of Africans to live in a democracy where the rule of law prevails. The time to act is now. We must go beyond hollow words of condemnation and demand accountability to ensure that those who commit these heinous crimes are brought to justice. The impunity they enjoy must end – Africa cannot be a haven for those who attack journalists.
The threats facing journalists in Africa are pervasive and insidious. Designed to silence, intimidate, or exile, these abuses force many journalists into self-censorship or drive them out of the profession entirely. This alarming reality emboldens perpetrators, making it clear that media freedom is under siege across the continent.
The federation calls on African governments, the African Union, regional economic communities, media owners, journalist unions and associations, civil society organisations and international partners to take decisive action, in the promotion and protection of human rights. These steps must include enforcing laws that adequately protect media freedom, instituting uncompromising safeguards for journalists’ safety and security, holding perpetrators accountable for crimes against journalists and promoting fair and equitable working conditions within the media industry.
Journalists’ rights are human rights. Without guaranteeing their freedom, safety and dignity, Africa will never achieve its aspirations for democratic governance, sustainable development and social justice. Protecting journalists is not a choice; it is a fundamental necessity for the progress of our continent.
The past year has been a challenging one for the Gambian media, notably the print media. Thankfully, some sane heads in the executive and the media hierarchy were able to meet, jaw-jaw and come to a resolution and in the process defused a potentially embarrassing situation.
The Gambian media has come a long way from the very dark ages of the Jammeh days and kudos are in order to the Barrow government for opening up the media space and allowing an appreciable degree of free expression in the country. However, a lot more needs to be done. The bad media laws are still in our law books. And despite the enactment of the access to information law, access to vital public information is still a daily uphill struggle for our quotidian reporters.
And the economic space is shrinking. Unlike our neighbouring Senegal where the state, realising the social entrepreneurial nature of the media business gives out subventions amounting to hundreds of millions of dalasis (in 2025 it will be 4 billion CFA franc equivalent to over D400 million), here we are overtaxed and the state, one of our main revenue streams through advertisement and subscription, take inordinate period of time running into months and years, to settle bills. Even when the state sees fit to contract media companies for amplification of official messages, instead of looking for best value and using those with the voice and the reach, it chooses to give tens of millions of our tax dalasis to sometimes unheard of “media” entities!
The consequences of these dastardly acts is that the media remains underdeveloped, reporters and others workers remain under emunerated, quality journalism remains unachievable as the attendant attrition leads to flight of talent outside and to other fields and the citizens of the country remain less informed and therefore not empowered enough to make informed choices when their choices matter the most.
We say to the President and his hard working Information Minister, you have done a lot of good but you can do a more and you have to do a lot more!
