Journalists killed in Benin since 1992
Benin documents by Year:
Court fines Benin media regulator for wrongfully closing broadcaster
June 2, 2017 4:07 PM ET
A court in Benin on May 22, 2017, ordered the reopening of Sikka TV, which the High Authority for Broadcasting and Communication (HAAC by its French acronym), the state's broadcast regulator, had ordered closed in November 2016, according to media reports. The court also ordered HAAC to pay 50 million...
Benin's parliament should expunge criminal defamation from the media bill
December 23, 2014 4:46 PM ET
Abuja, Nigeria, December 23, 2014--Benin Republic's parliament is set to vote on a media bill that threatens to jail journalists for insulting the president or other government officials, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on parliament to scrap any measures in the bill that could send...
Benin TV director pardoned for offending president
February 8, 2013 10:34 AM ET
Berthe Cakpossa, director of the private Canal 3 TV, was pardoned by President Boni Yayi on January 31, 2013, two weeks after a court sentenced her to jail and fined her for "offending the head of state," according to news reports....
Benin TV director convicted for offending president
January 24, 2013 5:40 PM ET
Abuja, Nigeria, January 24, 2013--An appellate court in Benin should overturn the conviction and toss out a prison sentence handed to the director of a private television station last week in connection with a broadcast of a press conference in September in which a former presidential adviser criticized President Boni...
Benin TV station censored amid presidential pressure
December 7, 2012 5:03 PM ET
Abuja, December 7, 2012--The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns censorship of Beninese private television station Canal 3 and defamation charges against its director for coverage of a corruption scandal involving aides of President Boni Yayi, who appears to have pressured the media regulator into taking action against the station....
In Benin, newspapers sanctioned for coverage of officials
June 19, 2012 2:46 PM ET
Throughout December 2011, HAAC, Benin's state-run media regulatory agency, summoned more than a dozen newspapers to public hearings and handed them sanctions ranging from a public apology to indefinite suspension, according to news reports. HAAC's president is appointed by Benin's head of state, and two-thirds of the agency's members are...
Obama should raise press freedom in Africa food talks
May 16, 2012 2:24 PM ET
New York, May 16, 2012--President Obama should acknowledge the role that independent news reporting plays in assessing agricultural challenges and facilitating the response to famine, the Committee to Protect Journalists stated in a letter to the White House. Ethiopia in particular downplays the extent of food crises and undermines the ability of donor nations and aid groups to help by denying journalists access to sensitive areas and censoring independent coverage.
Gabon journalists summoned over critical articles
March 20, 2012 6:11 PM ET
New York, March 20, 2012--The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Gabon's authorities to drop legal proceedings against six journalists in connection with articles raising questions about use of a presidential plane. Two of the journalists have fled the country fearing arrest after being summoned by police for interrogation....
Togo bans paper over story on president's half-brother
August 26, 2010 5:13 PM ET
New York, August 26, 2010--The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns Wednesday's ruling by a criminal court judge in Togo to indefinitely ban the distribution of a Benin newspaper that had raised questions about the alleged involvement of a half-brother of President Faure Gnassingbé in drug trafficking....