Press Union of Liberia Alarms at Justice Ministry’s Chicanery

-Freedom of Information and Other Media Laws Stymied in Parliament

(Monrovia - 20 August 2009) The Press Union of Liberia says it has been reliably informed that the Justice Ministry is requesting the withdrawal of the three bills currently before the Legislature for its input.

PUL in a reaction says it is utterly dismay that the Liberian Government would raise such arguments at this time after so much work and resources have been put into the drafting of the laws with the full participation of the Ministries of Information and Justice.

While charging the House Committee on Information for the unwarranted delay in reintroducing the bill in plenary, the Union says the latest development exposes the government’s deception to the partnership on the laws and seems to be a part of a larger conspiracy to lock the bills in committee room.

The Union reveals that it will not withdraw the laws, but if the Justice Ministry has any additional inputs to make to the laws, they have the option to do so through the legislature and forget about the bills been withdrawn.

The Union says it is aware of the counter lobby against the bills by people who want to protect their vested interest and was not altogether surprised by the distraction from the Justice Ministry.

The statement reminded the lawmakers of the challenge to them from US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton to ensure that the democratic process works and calls on the legislature to stop sleeping on very important bills that speak to the democratic governance of the country.

The Union argues that The Freedom of Information Act, The Independent Broadcast Regulator and the Bill to transform to a Public Service Broadcaster which were submitted to the legislature since last April, are not for the exclusive empowerment of the media and should be seen as a compliment to government’s efforts for greater openness and accountability.

In a separate development, the PUL has commended President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf for appointing one of its former officials – Cllr. Bedor Wla Freeman to serve as Chairman on the National Human Rights Commission.

Though it acknowledges the composition of the entire Commission, the Union says it is particularly honored that President Sirleaf would recognize the exemplary qualities of Cllr. Freeman to choose him from among other qualified Liberians for this very critical national assignment.

“We congratulate the former President for his preferment, but urges Cllr. Freeman to live up the confidence and refuse to be drawn into any act that will compromise the public trust,” the PUL statement added.

STATEMENT BY THE AFRICAN EDITORS FORUM ON MEDIA REPRESSION IN SUDAN

STATEMENT BY THE AFRICAN EDITORS FORUM ON MEDIA REPRESSION IN SUDAN

 

This week, the repression of media in Sudan reached its climax with the arrest of 63 journalists from thirteen newspaper who were protesting against lack of freedom for media under the government of President Omar Al Bashir.

As a result 11 newspaper suspended publication for one day in solidarity with the detained journalists.

The arrests followed two weeks of hunger strike by journalists and editors protesting against heightened repression of media, leaving many publications unable to appear in the streets of Kharthoum.

These incidents of repression include:

 

• The turning of what was supposed to be a defender of media freedom,  the National Press Council and Publication Commission, into an arm and agent of the security establishment in oppressing the media.
• Arrests, intimidation, confiscation of news gathering equipment and even confiscation and burning of publications destined for circulation over the past six months. At times we are not even allowed to take pictures of the President himself.
• Journalists are only allowed to take pictures of President al Bashir, while in general they are only allowed to take pictures during public holidays and not any other times. They are not allowed even to carry a camera or even a tape recorder in public, one cannot even take photos of accident scenes without permission from relevant authorities.
• Halting of publications by a number of newspapers as the Intelligence Service personnel raid them and also confiscate newspapers. These intelligence operatives have also demanded that all articles be scrutinized and approved by themselves before being published. Some editors have opted to instead not publish rather than submit to censorship.

 

This week, in the twin city of Kharthoum known as Omdurman , a group of journalists led by Sudanese Journalists Network (SJNet),were protesting outside Parliament when trucks of police and soldiers rounded them up and arrested them. Some, including women, were molested, others physically assaulted and they are up to now still nursing serious bruises. But even this relative freedom from police cells amounts to nothing as each one of them is tailed by intelligence operatives.

 

The government of President Al Bashir, faced with an election next year, is seemingly feeling that the media is exposing too much corruption in government to the public, a situation that they apparently believe could impact negatively on them come next year's elections and referendum.

 

President al Bashir is already being sought for crimes against humanity and the country is already a pariah amongst nations for its alleged support for the janjaweed militia in Darfur whose attacks on civilians has seen thousands killed and many more uprooted.

 

But it is a member of the African Union and a signatory to its charter and protocols that guarantee the people of Sudan a free media to inform and educate them. The oppression of media in Sudan is in violation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) and interim constitution, which included the Bill of Rights.

The AU provisions include:

• To promote democratic principles and institutions, popular participation and good governance;
• To promote and protect human and peoples' rights in accordance with the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and other relevant human rights instruments; 
• In addition to the AU provisions, Sudan should establish the Human Rights Commission in compliance with the Paris principles agreed to by the government and as it is articulated in the Sudanese Constitution and CPA.

What the government of Sudan is doing is flouting these protocols that it has committed itself to and we call on the government to desist from further actions against the media, and to engage with the media in ensuring good relations and a free flow of information to the Sudanese people.

TAEF also calls on the AU Commission on Human and People's Rights presently meeting in Nigeria, and in particular the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, Advocate Pansy Tlakula, to immediately condemn the barbaric actions of the Sudanese government and take appropriate steps to end the harassment of the media.

TAEF will be approaching the Sudanese government for an urgent meeting to discuss this issue

Mathatha Tsedu

Président TAEF

 +27824540527…

mtsedu@media24.com

 --

Cheriff Moumina SY

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 13, 2008

  CONTACT: Dawn Arteaga, Communications Director

Telephone 202.349.7624, E-mail darteaga@icfj.org

International Center for Journalists Receives Funding to Improve News Coverage of Poverty and Development Issues in Africa

 

Three-year program, supported by a $2 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is aimed at spurring better public policy
 by increasing media attention on the needs of Africa's poorest people

 

Washington, DC -- The International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) has announced an innovative three-year program, the African Development Journalism Fellowships, to improve news coverage of critical development issues such as agriculture, microfinance, sanitation and employment in sub-Saharan Africa. This journalism fellowship program is funded by a $2 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

 

The program addresses the need for increased information about rural regions, which are affected by policy decisions made in capital cities. Many news organizations in sub-Saharan Africa lack the resources and training to adequately cover rural issues that can determine whether their countries' poorest citizens begin to prosper or remain trapped in poverty.

 

ICFJ will place media development professionals from its Knight International Journalism Fellowships program into key African countries to help influential media increase coverage of development issues, especially beyond the capitals. The program will create networks of professional and citizen journalists in rural areas, using mobile technology to connect them to media in large cities.

 

The program builds on the success of ICFJ's Knight Health Journalism Fellowships, also funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Health Fellows work in Africa for a year to improve coverage of complicated health and research issues.

 

In this new initiative, media organizations will work with fellows to mentor reporters as they work on in-depth development stories in rural areas. The fellows will also develop a corps of African journalists with the skills to train colleagues to cover poverty and development issues. Additionally, fellows will help establish development reporting training programs at local journalism associations that will continue long after the program is over.

 

"Our Knight Health Fellows are mentoring African journalists to produce hard-hitting stories that are forcing governments to invest more in health care," said ICFJ President Joyce Barnathan. "We believe these new fellows, using the latest mobile technology, will have similar impact in reducing poverty."

 

Alberto Ibargüen, president and CEO of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, announced the new grant at the ICFJ Awards Dinner Nov. 12.

 

Since 1994, the Knight Foundation has supported ICFJ's flagship program, the Knight International Journalism Fellowships. This program makes tangible changes that improve the quality and free flow of news around the world in the public interest. The program sends international media professionals for at least a year to countries where there are opportunities to promote reliable, insightful journalism that holds officials accountable.

 

For more information about the African Development Journalism Fellowships, please visit icfj.org/development.

About the International Center for Journalists
ICFJ is a non-profit, professional organization dedicated to promoting quality journalism worldwide in the belief that independent, vigorous media are crucial in improving the human condition. Aiming to raise the standards of journalism, ICFJ offers hands-on training workshops, seminars, fellowships and international exchanges to journalists and media managers around the globe.

About the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people's health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people--especially those with the fewest resources--have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, the foundation is led by CEO Jeff Raikes and co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett.

1616 H Street, NW 3rd Floor | Washington, DC 20006 US

Liberia Transitional Justice Forum
Thoughts from Cape Town Immersion Fellowship Program

By: Lawrence T. Randall

Week 1 Continues…

Paige Arthur will return the next morning keen to meet her deliverables. She promptly reckons that the deliverables for Day 1 were unmet. Don’t forget we are discussing TJ History, Theory, Practice/Principal and Mechanism. She has just one hour and thirty minutes on hand to weave through this rather complex subject. As mentioned before, she has written a long and pretty engrossing essay on TJ History but to have effectively delivered on this, required more time than budgeted.

Nonetheless, she will attempt to make the most out of her genius. The time is fast flowing and Patricia Karim, our moderator and ruthless time keeper will keep it strict. We recap basically, the tune of the previous day proceeding-the various kinds of justice and the various kinds of transitions. Quite the same dissection we had when Dr. Boraine was on display. She brings in a more structured PowerPoint Presentation but we will have to rush this to finality, as she has another session within the session.

She will now revert to break up sessions assigning countries to four groups for the purpose of determining the right kind of transitional justice mechanism to deploy looking at the various countries contexts. This was a brilliant idea and fairly practical assignment, except that she failed to consider the factor of timing, which made it difficult to fall back on the various presentations to examine how they fitted with the appropriate justice claims and the definitions we had previously carved the day before.

As the last group ended, we were in to time. I thought we didn’t meet the deliverables and for couple for good reasons too. The subject was quite complicated and the idea to change gear without considering that there was no or limited latitude of time, further compounded the situation.

But I expect that Paige would gracefully accept responsibility for this, as combined she had four hours thirty minutes.

Helen Scanlon is a seasoned gender expert that has worked for ICTJ for a while. Her task is to lecture on Gender and Transitional Justice. She will begin by freshening up my rather obscure understanding of the gender concept, a term that has been so widely and often used in the last few years. Helen knew, from experience, that our time keeper carried out her work with ruthless determination and as such she was made to adapt a haste approach.

Sometimes limited in depth and content, she will run the lecture faster, keeping to the limits of time. I thought this was rather troublesome, as some key issues and information are left unabsorbed when lectures are fast tracked this way. Worthy of praise, was Helen choice of a semi-animated style, using audio-visual slides in her PowerPoint presentation on Gender and Transitional Justice. This was excellent. My verdict notwithstanding is reserved until Helen completes some remaining sessions on gender in prosecution, reparation etc. However, it should be said without hesitation that Helen kept the pace and fare pretty well. Let’s see what unfolds in the coming days.

Andre du Toit comes across as a very educated and highly knowledgeable man. One of the earliest scholar’s in the field, du Toit is amongst South Africa’s top intellectual elites, reading from his bio and judging by his visage. Andre as he’s called, will be given a subject (Transitional Justice in Africa) that he will eventually abandon and invite participants to map up areas of interest, which will be left largely unattended. He walks us through a replay of the fundamentals of transitional justice, quite good for starters but unwelcomed by practitioners hungry to amass multiple perspectives on the TJ subject in a relatively short period. The crew will be disappointed but in some respect, the dimensions Andre will eventually navigate were looking more visual, though obviously very theoretical. By measure of the subject matter, discussions were off tangent.

We end the day with a very inspiring documentary on Truth Commissions. See you tomorrow, when South African ‘Ambassador’ on TRC best practices, Yasmin Sooka takes to the stage.

Liberia Transitional Justice Forum
Thoughts from Cape Town Immersion Fellowship Program

By: Lawrence T. Randall

This forum is long overdue. Let me, as a matter of principle, insist that the creation of this forum is not an original idea. In fact, Aaron Weah of the International Center for Transitional Justice, ICTJ Monrovia Office and I have been tolling with the idea of bringing young practitioners working in the field of transitional justice in Liberia together in some form of informal discourse. The manner, form and shape that discourse would eventually take were left hanging in the air. Unusually swarmed with routine busy schedules, those thoughts slipped into oblivion.

An invitation from the ICTJ to attend its Cape Town Fellowship on Transitional Justice can be fairly termed the defining moment for reclaiming the imagery that buzzed through our heads when Aaron and I pondered the absence of any contemporary journal on this vast field that was unfolding in Liberia. Come to think of it, we have over a dozen young Liberians that have graduated from some form of orientation in various subjects and thematic areas under this arena, yet, there’s no dedicated intellectual space for these practitioners to review and analyze regional and global trends, new concepts and controversies, and emerging challenges and opportunities facing the sector. In this edition, we will focus large measure on the overall transitional justice debate and how our South African study has affected our perception about the subject. The journey begins.

We start by stressing that even before Immersion, we had some functional definition of transitional justice but the first day of the course has provided an array of contexts by which we are now able to mirror, analyze and appreciate the various underlying issues and debates underpinning the field’s development in the last decade.

For starters, arriving in Cape Town should be quite amazing especially with no prior visits to the developed world. And even with such experience, you are left baffled by the extent to which South Africans have made their tax dollars work. Ask those that have been here and they tell you first hand. The progress notwithstanding, it is instructive to note that sometimes the beauty of this vast and diverse country can prove deceptive. For instance, you might be inclined to believe that hunger and poverty are a media creation, judging by the chain of food stores few blocks away from you. It will be a fatal judgment to conclude that the country is so peaceful reading from your upscale apartment in downtown Cape Town. The many opposite complexions you find elsewhere are the heart of South Africa’s diversity.

It should be noted however, that South Africa minus crime and the glaring disparity in inequality, and standard of living between communities is a place worth living. Cape Town especially has a striking distinction. Cape Town is a peninsula city covered by nature’s bare beauty which descends from the overlooking mountains and provides the scenery you just can’t find in a metropolitan area. The physical, human, structural and material scar left by apartheid is all but visible. Few meters from the Airport, we are greeted by the paradox of prosperity. Two communities divided by a stretch of two lane roads heading to the city center. One very developed and the other, a shanty town typical of Monrovia’s West Point ghetto. These communities lie opposite to each other just about a kilometer from Cape Town Airport. You find this kind of disparity widespread across the country and of course in all fairness to South Africans, it will require some additional time to address these issues of structural inequalities that even very developed countries like the US are still haunted by. Katrina might have just been a tip of the iceberg.

We will probably need a more detailed essay to capture our impression of life in South Africa in general, the case of crime, silent and unspoken discrimination and the relics of the apartheid period. To begin delving in more detail would mean reinventing a discussion so widely articulated by reputed scholars and full time investigative journalists. We move on and focus the forum on the matter most pressing – transitional justice.

Day 1 should have been a basis. Was it really? In some respect, I say yes. Dr. Alex Boraine, you might not be very conversant with this soft speaking walking encyclopedia if you are far removed from the transitional justice community, but simply put, he is a TJ egghead. Dr. Boraine is founder of ICTJ and he brings enormous reputation to this fast growing organization simply based on work and merits. An astute intellectual and calmly intelligently teacher, Dr. Boraine waves through the etymology of Transitional Justice in ways no ordinary scholar would do. He brings the context closer and involves students in carving the basic fundamentals to this sometime controversial cliche “Transitional Justice” that has resonated so well since its introduction as a field of concentration. We got to understand that Transitional Justice is in fact a evolving concept which has rightly sought to claim legitimacy in the last few decades not merely for its relevance as a field but its immense ability to restore fractured societies, re-institutionalize the culture of accountability and promote as in the case of nascent democracies, tenets of good governance the absence of which has become somewhat rational pretext for perpetrators of violence to wage war and instigate social unrest. We were able to establish some historical context of the field’s emergence and how a host of issues affected its development. From Dr. Boraine‘s perspective, I would say we got a deal.

By mid-day, the base was being energized and reading from my Liberian colleague Caroline Bowah, expectations were being met. She was electrified and as a typical TJ practitioner, she was active to the roof and could be seen expressly satisfied with the deal. The base was further consolidated with the introduction of an almost informal lecture from reputed historian and writer, Dr. Paige Arthur who discussed the history, theory, principles and practice of transitional justice from the skin surface. I had actually been one of few fellows that thought to read Arthur’s electrifying thirty-five page essay on TJ history and was of course very impressed with her mastery of the subject and the energy she deployed in collating a vast array of documentations and interviews. I was in anticipation, like a thirsty student waiting to be filled from the master’s flowing fountain of knowledge. My eagerness could be detected and in fact, prior to her presentation I hitched a chat outside the main conference venue and began explaining my reading of her article and expressly indicated my expectations. She was clear and straight. She could not deliver the issues the way and depth I would have loved considering time constraints, the mix of participants and of course the course objectives were all limitations to such narrative’s eloquent delivery.

So, all said and done this was not to be. And to cause further upset to her strategy, Dr. Borain had ventured into grounds reserved for her, looking at the subjects and issues that were outlined in the course itinerary. She had to invent a delivery mode of her own. And true to her credit, she thought to make her presentation more participatory and user friendly. The lectures that I hoped for was all in summary and the bulk was shifted to the participants to carve their path. Think, think and rationalize. I was disappointed but in some measure she resonates as an intelligent instructor knowing the mood and knowing how to deploy her methodology. Half of the session was group work, laying the basis for the definition of key terms and providing the construct for the discourse, which to be honest, was already dissected by her predecessor. We were low on time, as the various exercises were involving more time than expected and then came our shuttle. Time is up. You got to go.

Was the deal complete? I asked my colleague, sensing some uneasiness and lack of gusto. “Well, lets wait for part II tomorrow” she said calmly. After all and true to Paige Arthur’s credit, we need to wait and see.

Have to check the clinic for some ear scan and see you on Day 2, when the forum returns. Good bye from sweet Cape Town.


___________________
Mr. Lawrence T. Randall is a Liberian journalist who lives and works in Monrovia, the country's capital. Mr. Randall is also Executive Director of the Liberia Media Center (LMC), Liberia's biggest local non-governmental organization that works to build the capacities of local journalists and media institutions.

Recommend Prosecution For Heinous Crimes

…US Professor Holloway Tells TRC

…Says Reconciliation in Good, But Justice Is Better

Monrovia, September 4, 2008 (TRC): The TRC must recommend prosecution for past government officials that committed the most heinous economic and political crimes against the Liberian people at a special tribunal set up to address wrongs against humanity, Professor Joseph Holloway has suggested.

Professor Holloway said reconciliation is good and necessary, but justice is always better. By justice, he said the idea of political, economic and social justice should also be considered on the road to reconciliation.

Dr. Holloway said that people who have been violated must be guaranteed their safety from state terrorism, provide them with food security. He said individuals who have committed crimes against humanity should receive justice.

He was testifying Thursday at Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) ongoing Thematic and Institutional Hearing on Historical Review at the Centennial Memorial Pavilion in Monrovia.

Holloway, professor of Pan African Studies at California State University and a prolific writer on Liberia cautioned the Supreme Court, the court systems, government officials, including the office of the president to not use their positions to protect groups that have violated the human rights of Liberian citizens.

“The mandates of most Truth and Reconciliation Commissions have been to discover and reveal past wrongdoing by the governments. In the case of Liberia, one can argued that issues of class, culture, ethnicity and land are at the roots of the historical crisis. More importantly, the people and victims of internal unrest, civil war, state terrorism have been left in a state of confusion because the new governments have established Truth and Reconciliation Commissions based on the South African model, which has been controversial because many of the individuals accused for crimes against humanity are now part of those governments, and go unpunished with impunity,” Professor Holloway said.

Holloway insisted that the government should make a public apology for past crimes against the people and should pay reparation in the form of building schools, roads, and medical centers in rural areas.

He said past economic and political crimes against indigenous peoples by the True Whig Party government should be heard by the TRC, saying that many of these issues involve land ownership.

Dr. Holloway proposed that the TRC should recommend to the government the removal of honors of individuals who abused government offices at the expense of its poor citizens.

Under the theme: “Examining Liberia’s Past: Reality, Myth, Falsehood and the Conflict”, the hearing will provide a critical review and expert perspectives into Liberia’s past not only for the purpose of understanding the historical antecedents to the conflict, but to ensure the country’s history or national narrative reflected the experiences, beliefs and aspirations of Liberians of all backgrounds.

The hearing featuring the testimonies and presentations of historians, anthropologists, journalists, lawyers, politicians, diplomats and clergymen is intended to help Liberians rewrite their history by seeking to identify the issues that underpinned our history, divided us as a people and nearly eviscerated the state.

__________________

Press Release from the TRC's media unit.

1980 Coup Created Opportunity For Disputes

…Professor Holsoe Diagnoses Liberia’s Problems

The April 12, 1980 military coup created an opportunity for disputes to flare up in Liberia, which the True Whig Party (TWP) government had difficulty quashing, Professor Svend E. Holsoe said.

Dr. Holsoe, Professor Emeritus of Anthropology, University of Delaware said the overthrow of the TWP leadership in 1980, and with the new leadership favoring people of certain regions resulted into the weakening of the overarching control by force of the central government.

As a consequence, he said, there was an opportunity for disputes to flare up, which the authorities had difficulties quashing.

Professor Holsoe, author of several publications including books, book reviews monographs, edited works, bibliographic documentation and articles on Liberia, was testifying Tuesday at Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) ongoing Thematic Hearings on Historical Review at the Centennial Memorial Pavilion on Ashmun Street, Monrovia.

“The top was off the box, and disputes spilled out, thereby allowing local warlords to arise. As a consequence, some of the patterns of violent disruption, known from the past, began to re-emerge,” Dr. Holsoe founding editor of the Liberian Studies Journal, Liberian Working Papers and Liberian Monograph Series, member of the African Studies Association and a founding member of the Liberian Studies Association said.

He said regional variations in Liberia are real and continue to exist, but recommended the need to re-impose central authority all over the country in order to return to tranquility.

He said it is necessary to acknowledge in any new political structure, that there are regional political and social differences, which any new structure of local governance will need to pay attention.

In the matter of dispute settlement, Dr. Holsoe said mechanisms need to be put in places that are appropriate. At the same time, he said a standardized legal system needs to be made operative across the country.

He said local people must be left to design within a general structure and political system that works best for themselves and not have the specifics of it imposed.

Dr. Holsoe said that Liberia has had dual legal system (the traditional and statutory) which he said had been a troubled boundary and proposed a unified legal system that would alleviate competitiveness between the two systems.

Under the theme: “Examining Liberia’s Past: Reality, Myth, Falsehood and the Conflict”, the hearings will provide a critical review and expert perspectives into Liberia’s past not only for the purpose of understanding the historical antecedents to the conflict, but to ensure the country’s history or national narrative reflected the experiences, beliefs and aspirations of Liberians of all backgrounds.

The hearing featuring the testimonies and presentations of historians, anthropologists, journalists, lawyers, politicians, diplomats and clergymen is intended to help Liberians rewrite their history by seeking to identify the issues that underpinned our history, divided us as a people and nearly eviscerated the state.


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Press release from the TRC's media unit.