Posts Tagged ‘radio’
September 22nd, 2010
Angry police officers stormed into two radio station offices and
attacked two staff members in Ghana’s second largest city on 16 September. Reports suggest the officers intended to attack a panelist, Francis Dodovi, who is a sympathiser of the ruling National Democratic Congress. The policemen claim Dodovi had been discrediting a demonstration staged by these police officers on discrimination charges on 15 September.
September 21st, 2010
Two independent radio stations were
attacked by Islamist militia in Mogadishu on 19 September. Radio Horn Afrik was vandalised and looted by
Al-Shabaab, while Global Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) was taken over by
Hizbul Islam, who are now using the station to broadcast their own propaganda. Journalists at Horn Afrik were driven from the building by armed men. Cassettes and CDs were then destroyed.
According to the transitional government in Mogadishu, five radio stations in the city have now been attacked or forcibly taken over by Islamist rebels.
September 17th, 2010
On 14 September Luis Galdámez, a radio journalist working for Radio Globo in Honduras, was
targeted by unidentified assassins. He was ambushed as he returned home from work with his children in the car. However he and his son were able to
repel the gunmen using the firearms they had bought after a similar attempt on his life was made in 2005. He is widely known for his
criticism of the new government of President Porfirio Lobo, and regularly reports on government corruption and human rights abuses allegedly committed by law enforcement.
Eight journalists have been killed since March in Honduras.
September 14th, 2010
A correspondent for Uganda’s Tower of Praise Radio was
beaten to death by motorcycle taxi drivers on the night of 11 September. Paul Kiggundu was ambushed by the bikers, known locally as
boda-boda, while he was filming some of them demolishing a house. The drivers accused Kiggundu of working for the police, despite his attempts to identify himself as a journalist. The building was reportedly the home of another driver, Frank Kagayi, who the attackers accuse of committing
murder and robbery. The journalist died of internal bleeding at Kalisizo Government Hospital. No arrests have been made.
September 13th, 2010
The government has decided to
suspend the broadcasts of radio station, Radio Mahafaly
. The staff at the station, based in the central city of Antsirabé, were not given a reason for its suspension. The order came at the same time as the release of ten Radio Fahazavana employees who have been in pre-trial detention since 27 May on charges for inciting a revolt and rebellion.
August 24th, 2010
Carlos Flores, winner of the Index on Censorship and Guardian award for Journalism has
won his fight to have his radio licence returned. Flores’ radio station, Radio La Voz, was
closed by the Peruvian government for allegedly inciting violence in Bagua Grande in June 2009, when indigenous groups and villagers
clashed with security forces. No official charges were ever brought against Flores. Just a few weeks ago Flores had travelled over 400km to attend a
scheduled meeting regarding the reopening of the station, only to be met by a junior minister and told Radio La Voz would remain closed.
August 10th, 2010
Reports from Khartoum state that the Sudanese government has
suspended BBC radio stations over alleged smuggling offences which included bringing satellite equipment into the country. The stations broadcast in Arabic to around four million people in the north of the country.
Recently the government demanded that journalists in the country
provide private information regarding political views, friends, addresses, bank details and floor plans of their houses. The deadline for the return of this information was August 5. Since then the government has announced that it’s official censorship of newspapers has
ended, but despite this, some newspapers remain closed and intimidation continues.
July 16th, 2010
The SPP (Paraguayan Union of Journalists) has condemned
the recent actions of politicians in the city of Cuidad del Este. Last week Juan Pío Balbuena had his programme cancelled on Radio Corpus after the owner of the station made a ‘business deal’ with local politician Javier Zacarías Irún, in which he agreed not to criticise Zacarías’s political group. Zacarías’ wife, Sandra Mcleod, is mayor of Ciudad del Este and was recently accused of attempting to bribe another Radio Corpus journalist to favour her party on air. He refused and was later forced to resign.
