Index on Censorship » Liberia

Liberia: Journalist who reported on female genital mutilation forced into hiding

Marta Cooper — Tue, 01 May 2012 13:22:54 +0000

Threats have forced Liberian journalist Mae Azango into hiding after she reported on female genital mutilation (FGM). Azango, who is currently in the United States, faced a backlash after she wrote an article for leading independent daily newspaper FrontPage Africa titled Growing pains: Sande tradition of genital cutting threatens health of Liberian women. The piece forced Liberian officials to declare that the ritual should be stopped, people affiliated with the Sande secret women’s society — which performs FGM — have reportedly threatened the journalist with violence.

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Liberia: Reporting on genital mutilation draws threats

Alice Purkiss — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 13:36:47 +0000

A female journalist has been threatened with genital mutilation after exposing the practice in Liberia. Mae Azango, a reporter for the daily newspaper FrontPage Africa and news website New Narratives was forced into hiding after receiving threatening phone-calls, saying “they will catch me and cut me so that will make me shut up”. Azango published an article on Thursday about Liberian tribes practicing female genital mutilation on as many as two out of every three girls in the country. Several people confronted the journalist about the article, and it was widely discussed on radio programmes.

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Liberia: Journalist beaten by police

Index on Censorship — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 13:52:17 +0000

Journalist, Fumbah Kanneh, was attacked and beaten by police while covering an international women’s football match between Liberia and Ghana on 13 February. The police spotted him as he videotaped them manhandling spectators who had invaded the pitch at the end of the match. He was flogged and hit in the mouth with a police baton, and his video camera was damaged.

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Liberia: Freedom of Information Act becomes law

Index on Censorship — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 11:02:56 +0000

Liberia has become the first West African nation to introduce a Freedom of Information Act. In a move welcomed by free expression groups across the country, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf signed the new legislation on the 4 October. The law comes after two years of intense lobbying by the Centre of Media Studies and Peace Building (CEMESP) and other members of the Liberia Freedom of Expression Coalition. According to presidential press secretary Cyrus Wleh Badio, the president is to be honoured with an award from the African Editors’ Forum.

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Libel ‘silencing media in Liberia’

Intern — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 09:24:13 +0000

Libel lawsuits against Liberia’s independent media are being used to silence dissenting voices in the West African country, according to Tom Kamara, editor-in-chief of the New Democrat. In an interview with Liberia Webs, Kamara expressed concern that President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s government may be using state resources to influence libel cases against the media. He cited the fine his newspaper received for libelling the Consolidated Group, after it published a story focusing on the company’s purchase of “useless” road building equipment for the government. Last week, the Centre for Media Studies & Peace Building accused Liberia’s government of resorting to intimidation to censor the media.

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Liberian government “intimidates press”

Intern — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:21:34 +0000

The Liberian government has been accused of resorting to intimidation to censor the nation’s media. The Center for Media Studies & Peace Building (CEMESP) has published its 2009 review of threats to freedom of expression, which urges the government to recognise the rights of others to dissent. Malcolm Joseph, Executive Director of the CEMESP, said that the use of intimidation as a means of enforcing conformance “is a treachery”. Highlighting the validity of the report, Liberian journalists were this week denied access to a meeting between former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Vice President Joseph Boakai. The CEMESP said that these tactics were more reminiscent of the regimes of Charles Taylor and Samuel Doe, the International Freedom of Expression Exchange reported.

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Liberian newspaper accuses government of censorship

Intern — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 11:40:09 +0000

The independent newspaper Heritage has accused the Liberian government of carrying out political censorship after it was unable to publish its February edition because of state interference. The publication’s management revealed that the commercial printers Dremags refused to publish the newspaper on 7 February after receiving a warning from the National Security Agency against including a story related to the audit of a senior Grand Bassa County official. The Press Union of Liberia has previously strongly condemned the government’s policy of harassing printing houses whenever there an unfavorable story is circulated. Liberia’s president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf – the only female elected head of state in Africa – had vowed in 2006 to uphold the principles of freedom of expression during her premiership.

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