Africa

Mfomfo Nkambule, a weekly columnist with the privately-owned Times of Swaziland newspaper, was fined on february 28 an undisclosed number of cattle by his chief for criticising King Mswati III in his articles as the authorities continue to harass the writer for his views, the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) has reported. Once Nkambule pays the imposed fine, the cattle would be given to...

An Algerian court has fined Abdelouahab Souag, a journalist for the daily El Watan, 50,000 DA (approx 500 euros) for publishing articles on a Muslim cleric, according to the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ). According to press reports, Souag was fined 20000 DA (Eur 200) by a court in Mascara which also ordered him to pay 30000 DA (Eur 300) compensation to an Imam at Aïn Kahla Mosque...

On February 27, an Accra High Court exonerated Western Publications Limited, publishers of the Accra-based privately-owned Daily Guide newspaper, on libel charges brought against it by Ghana's Foreign Minister, Alhaji Mohammed Mumuni. The court, presided over by Justice KA Acquaye, awarded 1,000 GH Cedis (approx US$800) each in favour of the defendants, the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)...

Several copies of the weekly Le Nouveau Réveil newspaper were seized on March 4 from the newsstands and destroyed by two unidentified persons in Cocody and Yopougon, two suburbs of Abidjan, capital of Côte d'Ivoire, according to the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA). MFWA's correspondent reported that the publishers of Le Nouveau Réveil have since lodged a formal complaint to the Ivorian...

Guinea-Bissau’s broadcast media were allowed to resume operating shortly after midday on Monday after being ordered off the air Sunday night following the murder of the armed forces chief of staff, which was followed in turn early Monday by the murder of President Joao Bernardo “Nino” Vieira. “Amid the current instability, we urge all of Guinea-Bissau’s actors, especially the armed forces, to...

Sudan has deported Tunisian journalist Zouhir Latif. Latif, who has political refugee status in Britain, was put on a flight bound for London on Sunday, according to Reporters sans Frontières (RSF). A freelance journalist who works for France 24’s Arabic-language service and the pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat, Latif was arrested at his home by intelligence agents on February 27 and was held for 48 hours...

Former journalist Jestina Mukoko, who was abducted by Zimbabwean security agents three months ago, has been released from prison. Mukoko was recently taken to a clinic in Harare, where she was treated for high blood pressure and injuries that doctors said were consistent with torture. “Mukoko was unjustly held for three months in very disturbing conditions,” Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) said....

The preliminary results of an Afro Barometer Survey indicate that a majority of people in Botswana support press freedom and critical speech, according to the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA). The survey, conducted by the Department of Political and Administration Studies, Sociology and Statistics at the University of Botswana reveals that "Batswana overwhelmingly showed their support for...

The Sudanese embassy in Cairo is said to have launched an extensive media campaign in Egyptian and Arab mass media in the wake of the release and distribution of the documentary Darfur Destroyed. The documentary, which was created by Aegis Trust and released on February 10, featured credible and documented testimonies and confessions of perpetrators of war crimes committed in Darfur, particularly

The Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) has temporarily closed Mzimba Community Radio Station, based in the northern part of the country, on grounds that the station did not comply with the regulatory body's rules and regulations as stipulated in the Communications Act, the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) has reported. Details behind the community radio station's closure...