Concord Times (Freetown)
Bohyy Jalloh
7 October 2009
Freetown — Stakeholders in the West Africa media on Wednesday, 30th September 2009 in Abuja proposed a draft regional framework document that would help liberalize the environment for freedom of expression in West Africa and contribute to the consolidation of democracy and good governance.
The document seeks the adoption of a regional instrument that will enable ECOWAS citizens avail themselves of the fundamental human rights enshrined in various international instruments, which Member States have signed, that guarantee the right to freedom of expression and information.
The Act on a harmonized legal framework on freedom of expression and right of information proposed by the participants at the workshop would guarantee the right to information and independence of the media, define the parameters for civil defamation and press offences, institute a mechanism for the regulation of print and broadcast media as well as the classification of broadcast services.
It will also help define the composition and mode of operations of the regulatory bodies for broadcast and telecommunication services to protect public interest and the economic and other measures that are needed to support the media to ensure it caters for the needs of the public.
In addition, it will help guarantee the right to information, the independence of the media and define the sanctions to be meted to journalists and media institutions for violations of the Act and appropriate laws.
Apart from the Act, the three-day workshop which was jointly organized by the ECOWAS Commission and the Accra-based Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), discussed other issues including the ECOWAS instruments for promoting free expression in West Africa.
There were also presentations that touched on the existing restrictive media legislation in West Africa, the fundamental principles of legislation enhancing media freedom and the enforcement challenges of international, African and sub-regional instruments relating to the right to free expression and access to information.
Participants were drawn from the ECOWAS Commission, the MFWA, the West African Journalists Association (WAJA), the Network of Lawyers for the Defence of Journalists, the International Federation of Journalists and the Media Rights Agenda (MRA).
While declaring workshop open, the ECOWAS Director of Communication, Dr Adrienne Diop, said the programme helps to demonstrate the determination of the Commission to operationalize the extant provisions of various regional instruments that promote free expression and create a conducive environment for media practitioners.
These include the Revised Treaty of 1993, the Declaration on the Practice of Journalism of 2000 and the ECOWAS Conflict Prevention Framework, all of which are collectively meant to help secure a conducive environment for the media to contribute to deepening democracy and good governance in the region as well as promote professionalism in the media.
In her remarks, the representative of the MFWA, Jeannette Quarcoopome, expressed concern at the repressive environment in some Member States that hamper the ability of citizens to exercise their right to freedom of expression, adding that this was a continuation of the work of MFWA to remove these constraints and enable citizens enjoy the fundamental human rights guaranteed by international legal instruments.
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