President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Mr Albert Kwabena Dwumfour has stated that the GJA will not hesitate to call out journalists or media organizations that work outside the tenets of the code of ethics guiding the media.
This was after Executives of the GJA, Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association (GIBA), and the Private Newspaper Publishers Association (PRINPAG) called on the Government to repeal the Electronic Communications Act, 2008 (Act 775) and the Criminal and Other Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29).
The GJA, MFWA, GIBA and PRINPAG held a joint Press Conference on Thursday, April 20, 2023, over the repeal of the Electronic Communications Act, 2008 (Act 775) and the Criminal and Other Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29).
The trigger of the press conference was the recent detention for Noah Nartey Dameh of Radio Ada on false publication charges in connection with a critical Facebook post and how he was handled by the police following his arrest.
Mr Albert Kwabena Dwumfour noted that since the beginning of 2022, a number of journalists and one civil society activist have been prosecuted in Ghana using the Electronic Communications Act and the Criminal Code, specifically Section 208 of the Criminal and Other Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29).
In one incident, he said the police arrested Kwabena BobieAnsah, a presenter with Accra FM, on February 10, 2022,and charged him with publishing “false news and offensive conduct”, adding that the police detained the journalist, who had alleged that First Lady Rebecca Akufo-Addo had illegally acquired state land for private use.
According to him, this and other similar incidents prompted a number of statesmen, academics and civil rights activists to raise concerns about the apparent introduction through the backdoor of criminal libel, which was repealed in 2001.
Incidentally, he recalled that the current President, Nana Addo-DankwaAkufo-Addo, then Attorney General, played a crucial role in the process of repealing the obnoxious law.
He said four leading civil society organisations (CSOs), Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), IMANI Africa, STAR-Ghana and the Africa Center for International Law & Accountability (ACILA), jointly issued a statement urging the authorities to put an end to the criminal prosecution of citizens for alleged defamatory publications.
“The underlisted Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) note with deep concern the apparent resurrection of the discredited criminal libel regime through a series of recent arrests and prosecution of persons for statements made or published in the media. We are deeply troubled by the growing use of the prosecutorial and judicial power of the state to punish criminally speech that allegedly falsely injures or damages the reputation of other persons or of an institution of state,” Mr Dwumfour quoted the CSOs.
As key stakeholders in the media sector, He said the GJA, MFWA, GIBA, PRINPAG and GCRN were equally concerned about the use of the Electronic Communications Act as well as the Criminal and Other Offences Act to arrest citizens and journalists and prefer criminal charges against them for press and speech offences which are merely defamatory and for which civil remedies are available.
“We recognise that the media and journalists can sometimes be reckless and unprofessional to the extent of publishing false and defamatory stories. Fortunately, the laws of the country provide aggrieved entities with remedies for civil actions against citizens, journalists and media organisations. It is regrettable therefore, that repressive sections of the Electronic Communications Act and the Criminal and Other Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) are being weaponized to muzzle free speech under the Akufo-Addo regime,” he said.
He added that,”It may be argued that the arrests and persecutions have been in accordance with the law. It is equally true that the victims of the ex-while criminal libel law were also dealt with in line with the law. Indeed, many of the world’s intolerant and autocratic governments typically deal with dissent and press offenses by exploiting the law, hence our call for a repeal of the two laws.”
Meanwhile, Mr Dwumfour said it is largely due to the wanton arrest and detention of journalists that Ghana plummeted from its lofty perch as the country with the freest media environment in Africa in 2018 to 30th in the 2022 global press freedom ranking by Reporters without Borders (RSF).
He noted the on the global stage also, Ghana dropped from 30th position in 2021 to 60th in 2022, the worst ranking in 20 years.
He noted that the violations that have been recorded in Ghana over the past year give course for pessimism regarding the country’s performance in the next ranking.
“It is obvious that our press freedom environment is deteriorating and that the abuse of the two controversial laws has contributed massively to the deterioration. It is our view therefore that efforts to bring a positive change should begin with a reconsideration of those laws. We also call on the government to adequately resource the National Media Commission to effectively carry out its mandate of monitoring and regulating media content in a proactive manner. This, we believe, will discourage police involvement in the media regulatory space,” he said.
Notwithstanding, he said the GJA was committed to promoting professional standards in the media and therefore urged all journalists and media houses to uphold the highest level of integrity and professionalism.
“We will not and we shall not hesitate to call out any journalist or media organization that indulges in the violation of the professional ethics and standards. This is in view of the recognition that our press freedom and other forms of freedom come with responsibilities and duties to respect public sensitivities, human dignity and public interests,” he added.
Ghana| Atinkaonline.com| Porcia Oforiwaa Ofori