Special Reports

Togo


In Togo, journalists are skeptical but see opportunity in the regime's bid to
shed sanctions.

By Adam Posluns with reporting by Alexis Arieff

With 37 years in power, Togolese President Gnassingbé Eyadéma is Africa's longest-serving head of state. Even after the country introduced multiparty elections more than a decade ago, Eyadéma and his ruling party, Rassemblement du Peuple Togolais (RPT), managed to dominate politics and muzzle opposition voices in this West African nation. The RPT's ironfisted tactics and numerous human rights abuses led the European Union (EU) to suspend cooperation with Togo in 1993.

CPJ Briefing: Gueï 's Way

Cote d'Ivoire's new dictator pledges to respect press freedom -- up to a point

For some delegates, just getting to the West African Journalists Association (WAJA) regional conference in Dakar, Senegal, was an impressive achievement. While his colleagues used more conventional modes of transportation, Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ) president Frank Kposowa navigated his way out of the country by night in a hired motorized dugout canoe. The state of anarchy in Sierra Leone since the May 25, 1997, coup d'?état had rendered travel virtually impossible, and Kposowa's risky passage was just another example of the challenges facing courageous journalists who chose to remain in the country and risked losing their lives by practicing their profession.


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Attacks on the Press 2012

3 Journalists assaulted by police during coverage of anti-government protests.

Country data, analysis »

Contact

Africa

Program Coordinator:
Sue Valentine

Advocacy Coordinator:
Mohamed Keita

East Africa Consultant:
Tom Rhodes

West Africa Consultant:
Peter Nkanga

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Blog: Sue Valentine
Blog: Mohamed Keita
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