CPJ calls on military in Gabon to ensure press freedom and journalists’ safety following coup
Dakar, August 30, 2023—Following the military coup in Gabon that removed President Ali Bongo from power on Wednesday, August 30, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “The new military authorities in Gabon must prioritize journalists’ ability to report on matters of public interest and avoid replicating the constraints and intimidation faced by…
Gabon authorities suspend 3 French broadcasters, block internet during elections
Dakar, August 28, 2023—Gabonese authorities must reverse their suspension of French broadcasters France 24, Radio France Internationale, and TV5 Monde and refrain from further disrupting public access to the internet, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. Amid elections on Saturday, August 26, Gabonese authorities implemented a curfew and blocked internet access to prevent the…
Cameroonian journalist Sainclair Mezing expelled from Gabon ahead of elections
Dakar, August 25, 2023—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the expulsion of Cameroonian reporter Sainclair Mezing from Gabon and urges authorities to allow journalists to freely report on the country’s elections scheduled for Saturday, August 26. “Gabonese authorities must allow all journalists who wish to cover this weekend’s elections to do so without obstruction or…
Gabon media regulator suspends two newspapers over defamation claims
Goma, Congo, May 17, 2019 — Gabon’s media regulator should immediately lift its suspensions of the tri-weekly newspaper L’Aube and the weekly Echos du Nord, and give journalists the freedom to cover issues of public interest, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Gabon shuts down the internet and broadcasting services following coup attempt
Abidjan, January 7, 2019–Gabon’s government on Monday morning shut down the internet and broadcasting services following an attempted coup against President Ali Bongo, according to digital rights groups Netblocks, and Internet Without Borders, news reports, and local journalists and civil society organizations with whom the Committee to Protect Journalists spoke.
Gabonese radio journalist, union leader convicted of defamation
An appeals court in Gabon on July 26, 2017, upheld a lower court’s conviction of Gildas Biviga, a journalist for Radio Gabon, on defamation charges, but reduced his sentence to time served and ordered his release, according to media reports.
Gabon newspaper raided, deputy editor alleges torture
On November 3, 2016, officers from Gabon’s domestic intelligence agency, the Directorate of Documentation and Immigration (DGDI, by its French acronym), armed with semi-automatic weapons, raided the office of the weekly newspaper Echos du Nord in the capital, Libreville, and arrested nine journalists and four other staff members, according to press reports.
Gabon opposition TV station reports attack
On September 5, 2012, the studios of TV+, a private television station in the capital, Libreville, owned by André Mba Obame, the country’s main opposition leader, were attacked by six unknown assailants, Agence France-Presse quoted Editor-in-Chief Ismaël Obiang Nze as saying. In the attack around 3 a.m. local time, a security guard was hit on the…
In Gabon, gunmen burn opposition TV station’s transmitter
Lagos, Nigeria, August 16, 2012–Unidentified gunmen today stormed a private television station owned by Gabon’s main opposition leader and burned down its transmitters, according to local journalists and news reports. It was the second armed attack on the broadcaster since 2009.