THOSE WHO LIVE IN GLASS HOUSES SHOULD NOT THROW STONES
Last week our friends in the Sierra Leone Bar Association triggered the most unnecessary war of words ever between two civil society or pressure groups in Sierra Leone. The Bar Association was angry with a few journalists but decided to attack the whole SLAJ of almost 600 people. But the Bar Association has always been a STRATEGIC PARTNER to SLAJ so many in the media were stunned that the new executive of the Bar decided that their first public duty besides paying a courtesy call on De Pa, (for God knows what), was to attack SLAJ.
We still believe that the Bar Association STRATEGIC PARTNERS to SLAJ. So because of that, we will hold back, at least for now, from launching retaliatory strikes to preserve the good name of SLAJ which is incontrovertibly the most relevant and powerful professional membership organisation in Sierra Leone, and which has absolutely no say in the editorial policies of individual media houses.
We will point out a few issues that members of the Sierra Leone Bar ought to have considered before attacking SLAJ so viciously. Let's start with one comment by their spokesman on radio last week. He told the nation that they had recently held high level meetings with state institutions in line with their mandate to uphold human rights and democracy - those include the Sierra Leone Police.
So let's say SLAJ was the demon the Bar Association makes it out to be, wouldn't it have been a good idea or made sense for the Bar to have held a high level meeting with the Demon too? By the way, we didn't see any statement from the Bar as an outcome of their meeting with the police, if at all it took place. Considering what is happening to the Police in relation to the civil liberties of our people, isn't it a good idea for the Bar to follow the footsteps of the Law Societies of Kenya and Malawi to hold them accountable and challenge them PUBLICLY? We have many reports from both bodies that we can share with our friends at the Bar here. We will charge no fees.
The Bar Association spokesman said a lot, including defending the recent arrest and detention for six days of two journalists or any citizen for that matter on the figment of the imagination of the police under the pretext "WE WERE INVESTIGATING THEM FOR TREASON". But we will ignore all of that for now and concentrate on their press release for now.
BAR ASSOCIATION - "AND WHEREAS the attention of the Sierra Leone Bar Association has been drawn to the recent trend in the practice of journalism in Sierra Leone, in particular the Bar Association is cognizant of the following:
a. Open warfare amongst Media Practitioners;
b. Vitriolic comments made by and against Media Practitioners;
c. Unprintable words published against other journalists, politicians and members of the public;
d. Indecorous conduct in the practice of journalism..."
POLITICO - This is really breath-taking stuff. Our information is that, the Bar Association discussed this statement for three days. So there's no question that they have launched a calculated attack on SLAJ. What does "open warfare amongst Media Practitioners" mean in practice? If the Bar Association is actually talking about strident disagreements expressed in newspaper articles, how are they insulated from such inside their courtrooms in the full view of members of the public? Is the Bar Association really telling SLAJ about "indecorous conduct..." in the practice of journalism? Here are a group of physicians who can't heal themselves first. The real point that the Bar Association wants to make is this: "unprintable words published against other journalists, politicians and members of the public". We are absolutely sure their real concern is where "POLITICIANS" are involved. There's no point in them hiding behind some phoney charade.
We seems to have been calculated to intimidate the media against holding government to account. Why is this statement so timid? They have refused to specifically name and shame that section of the media that has been misbehaving which every high school student knows, and have instead turned on the whole body of journalists including those who, like some lawyers, are serving humanity with utmost honesty and dedication.
We wonder if the Bar Association has not technically made it impossible for our colleagues in the ongoing case of De Pa and Independent Observer to get a fair trial by making statements like: "The Bar Association sadly notes that some of the conduct of the members of the media profession hinge on breaches of professional and ethical standards of media practice and fall foul of existing laws of general application in Sierra Leone and derogate from international standards of journalism." (sic).
The Bar Association is fighting hard to shift the focus from the government which despite its international obligations is deploying the powerful state machinery to prosecute journalists using anachronistic pieces of legislation that run counter to accepted civilised standards of good governance. Why does the Bar Association think all international bodies condemned the arrests and called for the case to be dropped? This Bar Association executive only NOTED the libel trials. We were hoping that for continuity sake, at least they would restate their predecessors' outright call for the repeal of those obnoxious clauses in the Public Order Act that make it possible for criminal libel trials to take place.
What does the Bar Association think about putting the state prosecuting machinery at the disposal of ordinary Sierra Leoneans when they feel aggrieved, and not just for De Pa? The Preliminary Investigation into the alleged minister rape matter was handled entirely by police officers (with due respect to them). But all those who matter in the national prosecution service apart from the Attorney General were in that tight courtroom for the Independent Observer case. We noted that.
BAR ASSOCIATION - "That the Independent Media Commission follows the Independent Media Commission Act 2000 as amended and the Independent Media Commission Code of Practice to the letter, particularly in respect of the manner in which Media Practitioners carry out their trade, so as to ensure that they conduct their trade in a more professional, ethical and imitable manner."
POLITICO - So the Bar Association knows something about the IMC? Where were they, when Kan Kan Kan was squeezing independence out of the IMC over the AFRI -RADIO affair? Where were they when the IMC stood up for its independence only for some to cast that as a direct challenge to the authority of De Pa? Why didn't they stand up when after a coffee meeting at State House, the IMC collapsed under political pressure and banned AFRI-RADIO? Where was the Bar when the IMC suspended newspapers and the suspension was flouted with the matter still lying fallow in court!
Why didn't they bring the considerable weight of that organisation to bear on all those situations to help stop political interference into the workings of the IMC? Now they run to an IMC that is badly battered by politicians. Funny old world eh?
BAR ASSOCIATION - "That the Independent Media Commission and the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists be implored to run training courses for Journalists, in a bid to ensure that their conduct accords with generally acceptable standards of media ethics."
POLITICO - No organisation continuously trains its members more than SLAJ does. If the Bar Association believes that training was the only disinfectant against professional aberrations, they have committed a blunder of incalculable magnitude. We can point to many professional flaws in the conduct of their own members, to the extent that the Chief Justice had to warn them recently by putting up a notice at the Pademba Law Courts premises. We have a copy of that. And we hope they don't tickle us beyond this point.
BAR ASSOCIATION - "The Bar Association condemns in unequivocal terms all illegal personal attacks by Media Practitioners of all persons in Sierra Leone and more especially so, family members of persons in position of authority. That the Judiciary and the Sierra Leone Police ensure that all persons either under investigations or facing criminal trials in Sierra Leone are accorded their due process rights and be assured of their fair hearing rights".
POLITICO - We also absolutely condemn "illegal personal attacks" on anybody by our colleague journalists. But we will not single out "especially so, family members of persons in position of authority". In authority or not, we all deserve to live in dignity and respect. We should all be protected by the law and by behaviour.
This is the fundamental difference between our friends and us in our interaction with the rest of society. While they concentrate on their clients, and we have no problem with that, we deal with and stand up for everybody. We do not have to be consulted or paid. That was why we stood up in broad daylight in a packed national stadium and told the criminal AFRC, they had no right to overthrow a democratically-elected government. We resisted tyranny for nearly a year with severe national and personal consequences. Jonathan Leigh who is today being vilified fought for people and country, from inside a shipping container where he was jailed by some people who are still in high office today. Where was the Bar Association in that time? They did not even condemn the coup - the worst violation of the country's constitution for reasons including the fact that it suspended that very instrument.
Yes, that is the prize SLAJ and the media generally paid for this nation! Someone should warn the Bar Association to look under their feet first. Or else...
(C) Politico 26/11/13
