Sierra Leone journalist Sylvia Olayinka Blyden detained, charged over social media posts
Abuja, June 18, 2020 — Authorities in Sierra Leone should release journalist Sylvia Olayinka Blyden immediately and drop the charges against her, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On May 1, police arrested Blyden, publisher of the Awareness Times newspaper, at her home in Freetown for alleged “cyber-related” offenses, according to Messeh Leone, a…
Sierra Leone security forces attack, charge journalist covering COVID-19
Abuja, April 28, 2020 — Authorities in Sierra Leone should immediately drop all charges against journalist Fayia Amara Fayia and ensure those responsible for the attacks against him are held accountable, the Committee to Protect Journalist said today.
Journalists threatened, assaulted while covering local politician in Sierra Leone
Abuja, January 10, 2020 — Authorities in Sierra Leone should investigate recent attacks against journalists covering local politics, and should ensure that reporters can do their jobs safely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Three journalists beaten by Sierra Leone presidential bodyguards in September
On September 8, 2019, bodyguards of Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio attacked three journalists who were covering a football match in Freetown, the capital, according to the journalists, who spoke to CPJ, and news reports.
Sierra Leone journalist Mahmud Tim Kargbo charged with criminal defamation
Mahmud Tim Kargbo, a freelance reporter in Sierra Leone, was arrested and detained twice in September 2019 after Miatta Samba, an appeals court judge, lodged a complaint with the police against him for a report published September 9, 2019, on his Facebook page and in a WhatsApp group that criticized Samba’s decision to grant bail…
Threats push Sierra Leonean community radio journalist into hiding
Sahr Amadu Komba, manager of the local radio station Eastern Radio 96.5 FM in the diamond mining town of Koidu, in Sierra Leone’s eastern Kono District, went into hiding from July 27-31, 2016, out of fear of arrest on allegations of inciting the public to protest the government’s response to floods that destroyed homes and…
CPJ calls on Sierra Leone to release newspaper editor
Abuja, Nigeria, December 18, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities in Sierra Leone to release Jonathan Leigh, managing editor of the Independent Observer. Leigh was arrested Thursday on accusations of publishing false information, according to news reports and local journalists with whom CPJ spoke.
Amid Ebola outbreak, West African governments try to isolate media
On the first Saturday of November 2014, when media owner and broadcaster David Tam Baryoh switched on the mic for his weekly “Monologue” show on independent Citizen FM in Freetown, Sierra Leone, he had no idea that criticizing the government’s handling of Ebola would mean 11 days in jail.
In Sierra Leone, journalist imprisoned after criticizing president
Abuja, Nigeria, November 4, 2014–A journalist in Sierra Leone has been imprisoned after criticizing President Ernest Bai Koroma’s handling of the Ebola outbreak, according to news reports and local journalists. David Tam Baryoh was arrested on Monday.
In Ebola-stricken countries, authorities and journalists should work together
The Ebola crisis in West Africa is unrelenting, and journalists on the frontline of reporting on the virus are caught between authorities wanting to control how the outbreak is reported, and falling victim to the disease themselves.