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KENYA: Brutal Press Raid

KENYA: Brutal Press Raid Is the era of relative media freedom at an end? Masked gunmen subsequently confirmed to be working for police, stormed the offices of Kenya's oldest newspaper and set fire to first editions as they rolled off the press on March 2nd in one of the most brutal acts of media censorship the country has seen since independence. More than 30 men with Kalashnikov assault rifles stormed the headquarters of The Standard , and ordered its affiliate television station, KTN , off the air. Another squad headed to the printing presses and burnt the newspapers. Computers and transmission equipment were taken. Two days earlier, three Standard journalists were detained and charged with publishing alarmist statements. The previous weekend's Saturday issue had carried stories revealing meetings between President Mwai Kibaki and a senior member of the opposition, Kalonzo Musyoka . Mr Musyoka denied any such meetings, but condemned the attacks on the newspaper. The Kenyan media still works under tough laws drafted under the regime of former president Daniel Arap Moi, but has enjoyed much greater freedom in recent years. Ezekiel Mutua, secretary general of the Kenya Union of Journalists said the raid was “the most outrageous and sinister act against the media we have seen. This is designed to create fear among journalists and punish the Standard group which is seen as supporting the opposition”. The Minister for Information, Mutahi Kagwe , insisted he knew nothing about the attack. Police confirmed the office had been raided, but denied setting fire to newspapers. In a statement, they said the raid followed evidence of a plot to incite ethnic hatred that would have threatened national security, and claimed Standard reporters had been paid to fabricate articles. The Internal Security Minister, John Michuki , said police must be allowed to do their job. He added, “When you rattle a snake you must prepare yourself to be bitten.” The US embassy said, “These acts of thuggery have no place in an open democratic society… We call upon the government of Kenya to disavow today's actions, identify and discipline those responsible and efforts to intimidate the media.” Stories in The Standard about corruption have annoyed President Kibaki's office. Thousands of protesters, on March 6th, called for the immediate resignation of Internal Security Minister, John Michuki, over the raid. Processions were held in Nairobi and other major towns in support of press freedom. The Standard Group has sued the government for damages over the attacks on its offices and printing press by hooded police officers. ( Independent, London 3/3, Africa Analysis 10/3 ) Corruption fallout pp. 16533, 16516 http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Africa Research Bulletin: Political, Social and Cultural Series Wiley

KENYA: Brutal Press Raid

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Publisher
Wiley
Copyright
Copyright © 2006 Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company
ISSN
0001-9844
eISSN
1467-825X
DOI
10.1111/j.1467-825X.2006.00298.x
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Is the era of relative media freedom at an end? Masked gunmen subsequently confirmed to be working for police, stormed the offices of Kenya's oldest newspaper and set fire to first editions as they rolled off the press on March 2nd in one of the most brutal acts of media censorship the country has seen since independence. More than 30 men with Kalashnikov assault rifles stormed the headquarters of The Standard , and ordered its affiliate television station, KTN , off the air. Another squad headed to the printing presses and burnt the newspapers. Computers and transmission equipment were taken. Two days earlier, three Standard journalists were detained and charged with publishing alarmist statements. The previous weekend's Saturday issue had carried stories revealing meetings between President Mwai Kibaki and a senior member of the opposition, Kalonzo Musyoka . Mr Musyoka denied any such meetings, but condemned the attacks on the newspaper. The Kenyan media still works under tough laws drafted under the regime of former president Daniel Arap Moi, but has enjoyed much greater freedom in recent years. Ezekiel Mutua, secretary general of the Kenya Union of Journalists said the raid was “the most outrageous and sinister act against the media we have seen. This is designed to create fear among journalists and punish the Standard group which is seen as supporting the opposition”. The Minister for Information, Mutahi Kagwe , insisted he knew nothing about the attack. Police confirmed the office had been raided, but denied setting fire to newspapers. In a statement, they said the raid followed evidence of a plot to incite ethnic hatred that would have threatened national security, and claimed Standard reporters had been paid to fabricate articles. The Internal Security Minister, John Michuki , said police must be allowed to do their job. He added, “When you rattle a snake you must prepare yourself to be bitten.” The US embassy said, “These acts of thuggery have no place in an open democratic society… We call upon the government of Kenya to disavow today's actions, identify and discipline those responsible and efforts to intimidate the media.” Stories in The Standard about corruption have annoyed President Kibaki's office. Thousands of protesters, on March 6th, called for the immediate resignation of Internal Security Minister, John Michuki, over the raid. Processions were held in Nairobi and other major towns in support of press freedom. The Standard Group has sued the government for damages over the attacks on its offices and printing press by hooded police officers. ( Independent, London 3/3, Africa Analysis 10/3 ) Corruption fallout pp. 16533, 16516

Journal

Africa Research Bulletin: Political, Social and Cultural Series – Wiley

Published: Apr 1, 2006

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