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Pape Alé Niang case in Senegal: press freedom in danger?
Gathering of journalists in front of the Maison de la presse for the release of Pape Alé Niang, in Dakar, November 16, 2022. © Charlotte Idrac / RFI
Text by: Charlotte Idrac Follow
4 mins
In Senegal, journalist Pape Alé Niang is now on bail.
At the head of the
Dakar Matin
site , known for its critical positions towards power, he was arrested for the first time on November 6, and had started a hunger strike to protest against his detention.
The press associations that support him are still calling for the cancellation of the "
fanciful and political
" charges against the journalist.
Is press freedom in danger in the country?
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From our correspondent in Dakar,
This is a first "
victory
" for the Coordination of Press Associations (CAP), but "
it's not the end of the story
".
If
Pape Alé Niang
is free, he remains prosecuted, in particular for "
disclosure of military documents likely to harm national defense
" and "
dissemination of false news
".
Since the beginning of this case, his case has mobilized national and international press organizations, civil society leaders, political figures and even the United Nations special rapporteur on human rights, Mary Lawlor.
I am delighted to hear that 🇸🇳Senegalese human rights defender Pape Alé Niang has been released from detention.
@MaeseSenegal pic.twitter.com/sk7dmmENLs
— Mary Lawlor UN Special Rapporteur HRDs (@MaryLawlorhrds) January 10, 2023
"No to bullying"
Met during a support rally in Dakar, journalist Ouleymatou Diallo confided her concern: “
It is a fight of principle to support our colleague Pape Alé Niang, to say no to intimidation.
Because today it's him, but tomorrow it could be someone else.
Until now I felt free, on a certain level, but today if I follow Pape Alé Niang's path by choosing to do investigative journalism, then I think I will be threatened
.
“
Certainly, Pape Alé Niang disturbs the power in place,
estimates Amadou Sabar Ba of the Convention of the young reporters,
we want that the freedom of the press is a matter which is not negotiable in Senegal.
»
► To read also:
Journalist Pape Alé Niang released on bail
What is reproached to Pape Alé Niang?
The prosecutor justified the prosecution by "
repeated, unfounded and unacceptable attacks directed against the security forces
" or "
the disclosure of defense secrets
".
Among the publications targeted, according to the journalist's lawyers, radio messages from the police and firefighters on the security system before the hearing of
Ousmane Sonko
in court at the beginning of November (the opponent is accused of repeated rapes by a employee of a massage parlour. He denounced a "
conspiracy
").
Other problematic content: statements targeting the high commander of the national gendarmerie.
“
Freedom of the press will never be threatened in this country
”
For the authorities, this is in no way an obstacle to freedom of the press, which has "
always been guaranteed in Senegal
", assures Abdoul Aziz Diop, special adviser to President Macky Sall.
“
Freedom of the press will never be threatened in this country.
The profession is not targeted at all;
24 titles appear every morning in Dakar, 24 titles!
You can be an opinion journalist.
Never has a journalist been worried in this country for having related facts or even for having commented on them
”.
But for Abdoul Aziz Diop, “
freedom of the press does not mean slanderous denunciation, does not mean the dissemination of false news, fake news.
Freedom of the press does not mean attacking the defense and security forces.
It is on proven facts, just and true, that we can base a journalism of general interest.
»
Tense political climate before the 2024 presidential election
Nevertheless, this case has reignited the debate on press freedom in Senegal, which fell from
49th to 73rd place in the Reporters Without Borders ranking
in 2022. Especially since the political climate is tense in view of the presidential election scheduled for February 2024, underlines Sadibou Marong, Africa director of RSF.
"
In 2021, a media outlet was attacked by the followers of a religious leader.
We saw, in March, hordes of young people going directly to attack newsrooms, we also saw journalists taken to task during political meetings, whether from the opposition or the presidential movement.
This is very worrying, especially since 2023 is a pre-election year.
We hope that Pape Alé can find his family, devote himself to his health, and that he can later resume his work.
This is extremely important because it will help to reduce this tension, and this kind of dichotomy that we perceive when we talk about the media in Senegal, inside the country, in Africa or elsewhere in the world.
»
►
To read also
: The Amnesty report looks back on the riots of March 2021 in Senegal
The judicial information on the Pape Alé Niang case has been completed since January 5, according to his defense, which indicates that the judge will "
probably
" refer the case to the criminal court for trial.
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