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Three media organizations in Niger have described 2000 as a year in which public authorities undermined press freedom by intimidating journalists.
The Association nigerienne de la presse independante (ANEPI), Reseau des journalistes pour les droits de l’homme (RJDH) and Union des journalistes prives nigeriens (UJPN) accused the government of violating the right of the media to participate in the democratic life of Niger.
Journalists who criticised the government were subjected to threats, unlawful arrest and rigged court cases, they said in a joint statement on 11 January. Preventive detention was the most common form of censorship, the group said, citing the 21-day detention of three journalists of the newspaper ‘L’Enqueteur’.
The associations accused the government of “suffocating the press” and called on all journalists to fight against such acts. They asked the government to respect the principles of democracy and obey Niger’s constitution and laws.
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions