The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Togolese authorities to rescind a three-month broadcasting ban on France 24 television network and Radio France Internationale (RFI) for allegedly undermining stability with biased reporting.
On June 16, Togo’s regulatory High Authority for Audiovisual and Communication (HAAC) suspended the two outlets, which are subsidiaries of the French government-owned France Médias Monde citing “repeated failures” in “impartiality, rigor and fact-checking.” It said the outlets had aired statements that were “inaccurate, biased, or even contrary to established facts, undermining the stability of republican institutions and the image of the country,” without providing further details.
“It is unfortunate that Togo is following a worrying trend across West Africa of censoring RFI and France 24 for their local reporting, depriving citizens of important sources of information,” said CPJ Francophone Africa Representative Moussa Ngom. “Togolese regulatory authorities must allow RFI and France 24 to resume broadcasting.”
In a statement, RFI and France 24 said they were “surprised” to learn of their suspension “without notice” and that their teams delivered “verified, impartial, and balanced information” in compliance with a licensing agreement between the HAAC and France Médias Monde, which is in charge of French international broadcasting.
In early June, protests erupted calling for President Faure Gnassingbé to resign, following the arrest of local musician Aamron, who had called for demonstrations. Gnassingbé has been in power since his father died in 2005 and could rule for life due to recent constitutional changes.
On June 6, Flore Monteau, a correspondent with the French public broadcaster TV5 Monde, was briefly detained and forced to delete videos of the protests.
Over the last three years, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have also suspended France 24 and RFI indefinitely.
CPJ’s calls and email to request comment from the HAAC went unanswered.
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