WAN-IFRA Condemns Libel Judgment in Liberia

WAN-IFRA Condemns Libel Judgment in Liberia

The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) and the World Editors Forum have protested to the President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, against the use of draconian libel awards to stifle press freedom in the west African nation.

In a letter to the President, the global press organisations condemned a US$900,000 libel judgment against one newspaper and a US$ 2 million libel action brought by a government minister against another.

"We remind you that an award of damages should in all cases be reasonable and proportionate to any harm that may have been caused,² the letter said. ³Furthermore, they contradict the principles of the Declaration of Table Mountain, which call on African governments as a matter of urgency to review and abolish all laws that restrict press freedom.

Jurors in Monrovia found the New Democrat newspaper liable for US$900,000 in damages on 17 February on the grounds that it had defamed Consolidated Group Incorporated, a privately owned company of former President Charles Taylor. The newspaper has said it would appeal.

In a separate case, a former Agriculture Minister, Christopher Toe, filed a US$2 million action for libel damages against FrontPage Africa newspaper, its editor-in-chief Rodney Sieh, and reporter Samwar Fallah. The lawsuit cited several articles dating back to 2007 that accused Dr. Toe of diverting millions of dollars away from funds intended for public use.

"Without commenting on whether the facts of these two cases justify a finding of liability, we are seriously concerned that the size of the award made against the New Democrat and the damages sought against FrontPage Africa are punitive," said WAN-IFRA and the World Editors Forum in the letter to President Sirleaf.

The Liberian judicial system has come under scrutiny following US State Department allegations that it is "largely nonfunctional and plagued by corruption. Judges regularly received bribes or other illegal gifts from damages that they awarded in civil casesÅ [and] sometimes requested bribes to try cases... Defense attorneys and prosecutors sometimes suggested that defendants pay a gratuity to appease or secure favorable rulings from judges, prosecutors, jurors, and police officers.

WAN-IFRA has launched a campaign to abolish insult and criminal defamation laws across Africa. Its Declaration of Table Mountain can be found at http://www.declarationoftablemountain.org/home.php

The full letter read:

"We are writing on behalf of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers and the World Editors Forum, which represent 18,000 publications, 15,000 online sites and over 3,000 companies in more than 120 countries, to express our serious concern at the use of draconian libel awards to stifle press freedom. "According to reports, on 17 February a Monrovia court ordered the New Democrat newspaper to pay Consolidated Group Incorporated US$900,000 in damages after publishing a story in October 2008 headlined: "For Scrap Government paid US$800,000". The newspaper, quoting an assessment document, described road maintenance equipment bought by the Public Works Ministry from the plaintiff as ³scrap² ¬ a claim the company said was damaging to its reputation. "On 24 February former Agriculture Minister Dr Christopher Toe filed a US$2 million action of damages for libel against FrontPage Africa newspaper, its editor-in-chief Rodney Sieh and reporter Samwar Fallah. The lawsuit referred to several articles alleging that Dr Toe had diverted millions of dollars of public funds.

"Without commenting on whether the facts of these two cases justify a finding of liability, we are seriously concerned that the size of the award made against the New Democrat and the damages sought against FrontPage Africa are punitive. We respectfully remind you that an award of damages should in all cases be reasonable and proportionate to any harm that may have been caused. Draconian awards have a chilling effect on investigative journalism and freedom of the press. Furthermore, they contradict the principles of the Declaration of Table Mountain, issued by our organisations at the 60th World Newspaper Congress and 14th World Editors Forum Conference in Cape Town, South Africa, in June 2007, which called on African governments as a matter of urgency to review and abolish all laws that restrict press freedom. "We are also concerned that the Liberian judicial system has itself come under scrutiny following US State Department allegations that it is "largely nonfunctional and plagued by corruption. Judges regularly received bribes or other illegal gifts from damages that they awarded in civil casesÅ [and] sometimes requested bribes to try cases... Defense attorneys and prosecutors sometimes suggested that defendants pay a gratuity to appease or secure favorable rulings from judges, prosecutors, jurors, and police officers. "We respectfully call on you to ensure that libel is not used as a means of silencing critical media and that all libel awards are proportionate to any harm that may have been caused. We also urge you to do everything possible to ensure that corruption in the judicial system is halted."

More WAN-IFRA press freedom protests can be found at http://www.wan-press.org/pfreedom/rubriques.php?id=304

WAN-IFRA is the global organisation for the world¹s newspapers and news publishers, with formal representative status at the United Nations, UNESCO and the Council of Europe. The organisation groups 18,000 publications, 15,000 online sites and over 3,000 companies in more than 120 countries.

The organisation was created through the merger of the World Association of Newspapers and IFRA, the research and service organisation for the news publishing industry.

Learn more about WAN-IFRA at www.wan-ifra.org or through the WAN-IFRA Magazine at http://www.wan-ifra.org/magazine .

ENDS

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