Government shuts 12 independent radio and TV stations

Cameroon's government has shut down twelve independent radio and television stations in the southwest of the country in a fresh crackdown on the media during the run-up to presidential elections due in October, according to international media watchdog Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF). Most of the stations received orders last week to close down by midnight 31 December on the grounds that they had not been issued with a licence, Paris-based RSF said in a statement. "Cameroon is on its way to becoming one of the most repressive countries in central Africa as far as freedom of expression is concerned," Robert Menard, secretary general of RSF said. "And we fear that the situation could deteriorate still further at the approach of presidential elections," he warned. According to the French news agency, AFP, the communications ministry said the broadcast media sector was "too sensitive not to be controlled." This was an apparent reference to the notorious Radio Milles Collines which incited genocide in Rwanda in 1994. RSF said five radio stations and two television stations were ordered closed in Bamenda, a city in the Anglophone southwest of Cameroon, close to the Nigerian frontier. Privately owned Radio Abakwa, Redemption Radio, Che Radio, Republican Television Network and the local FM relay service of the BBC were shut down. RSF said that in Bafoussam, another city in the southwest, Batcham FM and Radio Star were told to cease operations while the university-based Tankou Radio was ordered not to "attempt to open". Radio Yemba in the town of Dschang and Radio Site Art in Bafang were also ordered to shut down. Many independent newspapers have condemned the crackdown, arguing it will damage the pluralism of news and information in this country of 15 million people. "This is returning us step by step to near monopoly for Cameroon Radio Television (CRTV)," the independent daily Mutations said. RSF recalled that Freedom FM, a new radio station established by Pius Njawe, the owner of Le Messager press group, was prevented from going on air in May last 2003. Radio Veritas, A Roman Catholic radio station in the port city of Douala was also taken off the air for in November, but was allowed to resume broadcasting on 12 December after talks between Cardinal Christian Tumi, the powerful head of the Catholic church in Cameroon, and the government. The closure of Radio Veritas was seen as a political move, since Cardinal Tumi is an outspoken critic of Biya. The shutdown of his radio station followed press speculation that 73-year-old Tumi would resign from the church in order to challenge Biya for the presidency in this year's election.