Charly Ndi Chia
3 October 2008
press release
Meeting in ordinary session on the 27 and 28 September 2008 in Yaounde, the Executive Council of the CUJ examined among other things, various issues relating to press freedom in Cameroon; with particular regards to the questioning and of journalists and threats on certain media enterprises.
On The Arrest Of Journalists
The Case of Michel MOMBIO, Publisher of l'OUEST REPUBLICAIN
Following a complaint of defamation launched by Ms. Madeleine Tchuente, Minister of Scientific Research and Innovation, in the 50th issue of l'OUEST REPUBLICAIN, Michel MOMBIO was arrested by the forces of law and order in Bafoussam, later transferred to Yaounde and remanded in custody in the Kondengui Central prison. The Executive Council of the CUJ is pleased with the steps taken by Ms. TCHUENTE through a file which she readily made available to the Union.
The Case of Lewis MEDJO, Publisher of La DETENTE LIBRE
The police arrested the Publisher of La Détente Libre on the night of 21 September 2008 in Douala. He was immediately placed in custody in a cell at the Provincial Department of the Judicial Police in the Littoral. According to information gathered from various sources, Lewis MEDJO was detained, following the publication of an article in his paper under the caption " Paul Biya limoge Dipanda Mouelle ". (Paul Biya dismisses Dipanda Mouelle).
In a separate issue of the same journal, another article implicated the Delegate General of National Security, with the title " Mebe Ngo'o met le passeport de Yves Michel Fotso aux enchères " (Mebe Ngo'o auctions the passport of Yves Michel Fotso).
With regards to these events, the Executive Council of the CUJ has the following observations to make:
-In every democracy, any citizen who feels injured in his honour and dignity, has every right to complain to competent authorities of the law. But in view of the present legal procedure, detention of those called in for questioning seems to be premature in the sense that the Penal Code of procedure currently in use in Cameroon, specifies that freedom has to be the rule and detention the exception.
The articles which generated this strife unfortunately contain allusions which the authors are unable to back and which do not conform to the ethical requirements imposed on the journalism profession.
The CUJ reminds the public and particularly the complainants of the existence of an honorary tribunal within the profession, which comprises of a range of sanctions aimed at deterring any journalist who commits serious professional and ethical errors to continue in his mistakes.
This possibility of mediation should be the first point of recourse for offences by the press. The Executive Council of the CUJ consequently deplores the prolonged police detention of Lewis MEDJO and the temporal detention of Michel MOMBIO, given that both could still appear in court while free.
On the Threats Weighing on the Media Enterprise
Following broadcast of the interview of Yves Michel FOTSO, Former Director General of Cameroon Airlines (CAMAIR), simultaneously by three television channels (Canal2 International, Spectrum Television, Equinoxe Tv) on the night of 11 September 2008, and which happened at a time when he is the subject of various interrogations by the judicial police and the law, the Minister of Communication issued a "call to order" to these media establishments.
In it; the press was portrayed as "a manipulative instrument of public opinion on issues pending before the law". This stance by the Minister of Communication follows that of the State Counsel at the Yaounde Court of Appeal who had in a similar fashion, threatened journalists with prosecution for disclosure of confidential information.
The Executive Council of the CUJ expresses deep worries on this stance and considers that these media houses did nothing but their job of informing the public. Journalists, who do not take part in preliminary enquiries and other investigations, could not have gained access to these documents and other reports unless key persons concerned with these investigations made copies available to them.
The CUJ thus reaffirms the priority aspect of the principle of the universal right of the public to information, and calls on the entire media to be more vigilant and professional in handling legal issues, without necessarily giving in to maneuvers of intimidation and or manipulation, whatever their source.
In view of a constructive end, the Executive Counsel recalls that the first duty of the Cameroonian journalist as stipulated in the freely adopted ethical code of the profession is "to respect the truth whatever the consequences to self, for the rightful reason that the public has to know the truth. To this effect, his mission as communicator and his social responsibility should lead him to provide truthful, honest balanced, brief but complete information to the public; void of misinformation and intentional manipulation of facts; publishing only information of a verifiable source or accompanying such information when possible, with the necessary reserve"
On the Subject of the Collective Convention of Journalists
The Executive Council of the CUJ once more pre-occupied itself with the degree of advancement on the negotiations in view of the adoption of a national collective Convention of Journalists and professionals in related professions of social communication in Cameroon
Noting the existence of an almost definitive draft article of the said convention, the CUJ encourages Managers of media enterprises and syndicate organisations to obtain and familiarize themselves with the contents in the framework of a general proofreading session within the Joint Commission instituted by the Minister of Labour and Social Security.
The CUJ deems that rendering this collective convention operational, will constitute a major step in handling the social rights of workers in the media sector and will guarantee greater composure of professionals of the sector in their daily activities.
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