Copy of a letter to President Gbagbo by the cpj

Committee to Protect Journalists
330 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001 USA Phone: (212) 465-1004
Fax: (212) 465-9568 Web: www.cpj.org E-Mail: info@cpj.org


March 30, 2004

President Laurent Gbagbo
La Presidence
Abidjan, Ivory Coast

Via facsimile: (225) 20 32 90 77

Your Excellency:

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is disturbed by a series of
recent attacks against journalists by security forces during recent mass
opposition demonstrations in the Ivory Coast. While more than half a dozen
Ivoirian journalists have reported being physically attacked by officials,
many more were arrested, intimidated, and harassed while covering the
protests.

On March 25, thousands of people marched in the streets of Abidjan in a
demonstration organized by the political opposition to protest your alleged
failure to fully implement the January 2003 Marcoussis peace agreement
between the rebels and the government, by, among other things, devolving
some presidential powers to other officials. The protests, which left at
least 25 dead, were described by Your Excellency as an insurrection designed
to "undermine the foundations of the state," Agence France-Presse reported.

During the protests, the following journalists and media workers were
harassed by security forces:

* Dembélé Al Séni, Agbola Mesmer, Le Patriote. Al Séni and
Mesmer, reporter and photographer, respectively, for the private
pro-opposition daily Le Patriote, were attacked while covering the marches.
Al Séni and Mesmer were arrested by police while they were observing the
protests from a gas station shop, Al Séni said. After the two identified
themselves as journalists, they were taken to the local police station where
they were detained and severely beaten before being released. They were
treated at a hospital, but neither has been able to return to work.

* Kady Sidibé, Le Patriote. Sidibé, photographer for Le
Patriote, was arrested by members of the Republican Guard while covering the
demonstration in Treichville, in southern Abidjan. She was beaten after
identifying herself as a journalist and taken to a police station where, she
said, she was accused of being a rebel and threatened with rape and death.
She was detained for several hours before being released. According to Le
Patriote's editor-in-chief, Sidibé's camera, which was confiscated by
police, was not returned until this morning.

* Guira Safi, Soumahoro Vamara, Kone Malick, Le Libéral
Nouveau. Safi, Vamara, and Malick, copy editor, driver, and webmaster,
respectively for the private pro-opposition daily Le Libéral Nouveau were
brutally attacked by gendarmes. The three were returning home from work when
they were stopped at a roadblock and interrogated. When they said that they
worked for Le Libéral Nouveau, the officers proceeded to beat them. Safi and
Vamara were later taken to the hospital for treatment. They were released
from the hospital on March 28, but none of them have been able to return to
work.

* Habiba Dembélé, Dramé Lancine, TV2. Presidential guards at a
roadblock stopped a car carrying Dembélé, a reporter for the state-owned
television station TV2, and Lancine, a TV2 cameraman. According to local
sources, the guards had arrested several protesters and told the journalists
to stop filming them. After the crew showed the guards their press cards,
the guards threatened them with physical violence, saying that they knew
where the journalists lived and would kill them. The guards confiscated
Dembélé's notes, as well as the journalists' video camera and the keys to
their car. Lancine was told to erase the footage from his videocassette.
According to sources, an army officer who arrived on the scene told the
guards to give back the journalists' notes, camera, and keys. The
journalists were then released.

* Laurent Banga, Joseph Konan, TV2. Another TV2 team,
consisting of journalist Banga and his cameraman, Konan, was arrested and
brought to a police station, where they were detained for several hours
before being released without charge.

These are only a few of the many journalists who have reported being
physically attacked, threatened, intimidated, or otherwise harassed by
Ivoirian security forces during last week's protests. In almost all of the
cases, journalists have said that they were specifically targeted for their
work.

In addition to attacks on individual journalists, several news outlets were
censored during and after the demonstrations. Three foreign radio
stations-Radio France Internationale (RFI), BBC and Africa No. 1-went off
air in Abidjan around midday local time on March 25. Agence France-Presse
quoted an RFI spokesperson as having said on March 25 that the transmitter
cutoff was not due to technical reasons but was "probably deliberate," given
the "tension" in the city.

Transmitters for these three radio stations are managed by one local
company, SITEL, and are situated in the same building in the heart of the
"Red Zone" surrounding the presidential palace, which government forces had
declared off-limits on March 25. CPJ sources said that unidentified
individuals forcefully disconnected the transmitters but had not stolen any
equipment. Technicians were unable to access the area until yesterday, as it
was still sealed off. Broadcasts resumed at around 1 p.m. local time today.
No official explanation has been given, in spite of journalists' inquiries.

CPJ is deeply concerned about these attacks on journalists and the apparent
censorship in Ivory Coast. Recent tensions between your Ivoirian Popular
Front party and the political opposition, as well as violent clashes between
supporters of the two sides, have created a dangerous working environment
for the media. As an organization of journalists dedicated to defending our
colleagues worldwide, we believe that governments ought to take measures to
ensure that journalists can safely report on issues of public concern. It is
especially disconcerting that security forces are now harassing and abusing
journalists with impunity.

We call on you to instruct all security forces to cease attacking
journalists immediately, to see that those who perpetrated the attacks
during the demonstrations are brought to justice, and to ensure that
journalists will be able to cover the news freely, without fear of
reprisals. We also urge you to investigate why RFI, BBC, and Africa No.1
were taken off the air during and after the March 25 demonstrations.

We thank you for your attention in this urgent matter. We await your reply.

Sincerely,

Ann K. Cooper
Executive Director

CC:
American Society of Newspaper Editors
Amnesty International
Article 19 (United Kingdom)
Artikel 19 (The Netherlands)
Canadian Journalists for Free Expression
Freedom Forum
Freedom House
Human Rights Watch
Index on Censorship
International Center for Journalists
International Federation of Journalists
International PEN
International Press Institute
Lorne W. Craner, U.S. Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and
Labor
The Newspaper Guild
The North American Broadcasters Association
Overseas Press Club
Reporters Sans Frontières
The Society of Professional Journalists
Louise Arbour, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights
World Association of Newspapers
World Press Freedom Committee