Kenya

2013

  
Journalists protest outside a government building in Kenya. (CPJ)

Kenya parliament passes draconian media laws

Nairobi, December 5, 2013–Kenya’s National Assembly today passed contentious anti-press legislation, the Kenya Information and Communication (Amendment) Act and the Media Council Act, which will effectively silence critical reporting through a new government-controlled regulator and the threat of hefty fines.

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A banner tied to the gates of Parliament protests a media bill under review. (CPJ/Tom Rhodes)

Kenya’s press takes to the streets against bill

“Mr. President, you gagged us!” said a banner tied to the gates of Parliament today. Kenya’s Editors Guild and the Kenya Correspondents’ Association organized peaceful demonstrations across the country to protest a media bill currently under parliamentary review. Protests were held in every county in the country, according to William Janak, chairman of the correspondents’…

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Kenyan journalists' protests in 2007 warded off a new media law. (AP)

Just the fear of draconian press laws is enough

Few in Kenya’s media could comprehend how a media bill, considered the most repressive in Kenya’s 50-year history, could sail so easily through Parliament last week. Fittingly, Parliament passed the Kenya Information and Communications Amendment Bill on Halloween. It is awaiting President Uhuru Kenyatta’s signature following a 14- day deliberation period.

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CPJ alarmed by parliamentary passage of Kenya media bill

Nairobi, November 1, 2013–The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the parliamentary passage of the Kenya Information and Communication Amendment Bill on October 31 that will severely curtail press freedom in Kenya.

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In this screenshot, Kenyan Police Chief David Kimaiyo holds a press conference on October 23 in which he harshly criticizes the press. (K24TV)

Kenyan police threaten press — Press fights back!

On Wednesday, David Kimaiyo, Kenya’s inspector general of police, launched a tirade at the Kenyan press, threatening to arrest and prosecute two journalists for their coverage of the Westgate Mall rescue operation.

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Kenyan journalists film outside the Westgate mall in September. (AFP/Carl de Souza)

Westgate siege shows press’ lack of security training

Rumor had it that thieves and police had exchanged gunfire during the robbery of a bank at the Westgate Mall. That was the word that first reached some Nairobi newsrooms that Saturday about the gunshots many Kenyans heard coming from the luxurious shopping mall.

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Two photographers take cover outside the Westgate Mall. (AP/Sayyid Azim)

Covering Westgate

The jumpy, cell phone clips of journalists and security officers crouching outside the upscale Westgate Shopping Mall in the capital, Nairobi, permeated the TV screens across Kenya for four days. Edgy local and foreign reporters hid behind vehicles as gunfire shots, repeated explosions and smoke emanated from a supermarket inside.

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A screenshot of KTN's broadcast shows a room in the Bungoma District Hospital. The scandal is being referred to as 'The Sick Hospital.' (YouTube/KTN)

KTN reporter threatened for exposing hospital scandal

Nairobi, September 5, 2013–A TV journalist has received death threats twice this week following his coverage of wrongdoing at a hospital in the western Kenyan town of Bungoma, according to the journalist and news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities to immediately investigate the threats and ensure the reporter’s safety.

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Journalists in exile 2013

Somalis, Syrians flee violence; Iran crackdown deepens Fifty-five journalists fled their homes in the past year with help from the Committee to Protect Journalists. The most common reason to go into exile was the threat of violence, such as in Somalia and Syria, two of the most deadly countries in the world for the profession.…

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The dangerous neighborhood of Eastleigh is home to some exiled journalists. (AP)

Exiled journalists in risky places need helping hand

It was well past mid-day in Eastleigh, a shanty district on the east side of Nairobi, Kenya. The billows of dust rising from the rock-scarred road showed a government that had long lost interest in the neighborhood. A young man, struggling with horribly dry conditions, was fighting with his patrons. “Welahi, today’s khat is so…

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2013