Higher court upholds opposition leader's appeal

An appeal judge in Lome on Thursday overturned a decision by a lower court that had sentenced Togolese opposition leader Yaovi Agboyibo to six months in prison. Agboyibo had been sued for libel by Prime Minister Agbeyome Kodjo. The appeal court disallowed the conviction because Kodjo had not paid the sum of 20,000 CFA francs which, by law, a plaintiff is required to pay on filing a suit. Although Agboyibo's lawyers had invoked the same argument at the initial trial, the lower court had ruled against him on 3 August 2001. Kodjo had sued Agboyibo for alleging that, before becoming prime minister, he had formed a militia which beat and killed opposition supporters in Yoto, the region from which both men originate. Although acquitted, Agboyibo was not released immediately since, according to his defence team, a second case was pending against him.