By Politico Staff Writer
The Media Reform Coordinating Group (MRCG) has published its monthly “Media Reform Review” on journalists who had either been invited or detained by the Police because of their reportage.
In its February 2024 publication, MRCG monitored the invitation and detention of two journalists in Freetown. It also followed up on various issues, including the attack on the office and staff of a radio station in Makeni, Northern Sierra Leone, the online ‘death threat’ against a journalist, assault on a journalist and the alleged destruction of property of a journalist in Freetown while on duty.
It further followed the alleged assault on a journalist in Moyamba district, alleged verbal threat against a journalist by a police officer, alleged physical assault of two journalists and the alleged ‘assassination attempt’ on a journalist in Kambia district. It also monitored the matter of former Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) boss, Lawyer Ady Macauley, the alleged physical assault of a journalist in Waterloo, the matter between a journalist and a magistrate in Pujehun and other media engagements.
The Group also followed on the invitation by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of journalist Alie Bai Kamara, the Station Manager of Citizen Radio 103.7 FM on the 8th February, 2024 for questioning and later detained. The Deputy Station Manager of the Radio, Ibrahim Kalokoh (DJ Kalux), told MRCG that the invitation and detention of Kamara was related to a broadcast the radio did on incident of the November 26, 2023 attempted coup.
According to what Kalux told MRCG, a group of soldiers stormed the radio on the 26th November, 2024 and ordered its security guard to switch on the transmitter, so they could make some announcements, which the security guard failed to do. He explained that the Independent Media Commission (IMC) had invited them, investigated the matter and cautioned them, noting that they were surprised by the invitation of the CID, almost 70 days after IMC had investigated them.
The monthly “Media Freedom Review is a publication by MRCG produced from the monitoring and reporting on freedom of expression and of the press, internet freedom, digital and online rights, and safety of journalists in Sierra Leone.
Copyright © 2024 Politico (18/03/24)
