Media Brutalities: A Hindrance To Media Development (1)

THE ABILITY of the media to function effectively as the fourth estate of the realm is dependent on the amount of cooperation it receives from different entities within society.

Concerns have been raised about the spate of assaults and intimidations against media practitioners, and this action appears to hinder the independence, growth, and development of the media.

According to the National Media Commission, there are about 40 active newspapers on the newsstands, 575 radio stations of which 428 are active and also 140 television stations.

Although the country is considered a regional leader in democratic stability, journalists have experienced growing pressures in recent years through violations such as arrests, attacks and threats, fines, and imprisonment.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) have recorded 14 cases of journalist abuses including five arrests since the beginning of 2022 alone.

List Of Journalists Abused This Year

It would be recalled that on January 13, 2022, a group of thugs numbering about 12 stormed the premises of Radio Ada (93.3 FM), a community radio station in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana, assaulted two presenters and vandalised equipment.

On February 3, 2022, a group of Police officers brutally assaulted Eric Nana Gyetuah, a radio presenter with Connect FM based in Takoradi, the capital of the Western Region of Ghana, leaving him with a damaged eardrum. The presenter had gone for lunch at a local restaurant at Pipe Ano, a suburb of Takoradi, when a group of armed men in plain clothes stormed the eatery with some suspects in handcuffs. Nana Gyetuah started filming the suspects from a discreet distance and location at the car park when one of the security officers accosted him and asked him to surrender his phone. Gyetuah was then assaulted by the officers to surrender his phone after initially refusing an order to do so.

On February 8, 2022, a High Court in Accra sentenced a broadcast journalist with Accra-based Power FM, Oheneba Boamah Bennie, to 14 days in prison and a fine of GH¢3,000 (about US$450) after he was found guilty of contempt of court. Mr. Boamah was dragged to the High Court by Ghana's Attorney General after he alleged in a Facebook video that President Nana Akufo-Addo had met eight Supreme Court judges to influence their decision in the electoral petition they were hearing.

On February 10, 2022, the Police detained Kwabena Bobbie Ansah, a presenter at Accra FM, on a charge of “publication of false news and offensive conduct.” The charges relate to a video the journalist posted on social media claiming that President Nana Akufo Addo's wife had illegally obtained a parcel of state land.

On February 25, 2022, operatives of National Security arrested Sacut Amenga-Etego on accusation of illegally filming them and suspects in their custody on the premises of the High Court. The freelance journalist's phone was seized and he was detained for two weeks on the orders of the High Court (Criminal Court 5 Division).

Also, on March 30, 2022, two soldiers of the Afari Military Hospital assaulted and tortured Michael Aidoo, an investigative journalist who had gone to the Ashanti Region, specifically the Atwima-Nwabiagya District to conduct an investigation.

These and many other reasons have pushed Ghana's ranking on the World Press Freedom Index to 30^th out of the 180 countries, in RSFs 2021.

Journalists Safety

The General Secretary of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Kofi Yeboah, says GJA is enhancing the safety of journalists as part of its cardinal mandate to promote and defend press freedom.

He says the association is prioritising the safety and welfare of journalists to ensure that they work in a safer environment.

“In view of that, it has put in place measures to prevent media brutality and ensure that journalists go about their work in a peaceful manner,” he said.

He mentioned that GJA has also organised training programmes for journalists on media safety across the regions.

“It has also collaborated with various security agencies (military and the police) where the two institutions have shared ideas on how they operate and what they could do to improve the safety of journalists. We shall continue to sensitise and counsel journalists to keep safe from assaults and attacks while doing their job,” he said.

He, however, appealed to media owners to equally play their part to ensure the safety of their employees while at work.

He also touched on continuous training of personnel and the provision of protective gears for reporters during demonstrations.

“During demonstrations and other higher risk event, you see the security agencies providing protection in their protective apparels, including body vest, helmets and guns.

On the other hand, you will see the journalists without any vest or protective gears except their pens and note books. “How can the pen in this instance protect the journalist?” he asked.

BY Linda Tenyah-Ayettey