Media bashed for abusing freedom

John Agyekum Kufuor is a former President of the Republic of Ghana.

Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com

By William Yaw Owusu

Thursday August 11, 2011.
Hate speech, use of intemperate language, insults, fabrications, character assassination among others in the media were common concerns raised by dignitaries at a dinner organized to mark the tenth anniversary of the repeal of the infamous Criminal Libel Law in Ghana.

Speaker upon speaker including former President John Agyekum Kufuor expressed worry that if the menace was not checked immediately it could plunge the country into civil conflict while some even went ahead to warn that should media practitioners persist in the act, there would be a time when the public would want certain media freedoms to be curtailed.

On Friday July 27, 2001, Parliament unanimously repealed the Criminal Libel Law by amending Sections 112-119 on the Criminal Libel and Section 183-185 on Seditious Libel of the criminal Code Act 29 of 1960 and on August 9, 2001, then President John Agyekum Kufuor assented to the passage.

A memorandum on the bill presented to the House by then Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, stated, "The purpose of the bill is to fulfill the promise of repeal, and thereby demonstrate the Kufour government's determination to make good its promise to the nation".

On Wednesday night at the plush Movenpick Ambassador Hotel in Accra, the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), defending and promoting media rights, organized a dinner to mark decade of advocacy for press freedom and freedom of expression under the theme “A celebration of freedom of expression: Marking the 10th anniversary of the repeal of the Criminal Libel Law”

The event attracted top-notch media practitioners, human rights activist and politician including Vice President John Dramani Mahama, former President Kufuor, NMC Chairman Kabral Blay Amihere, NPP flagbearer Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo among others.

President Kufuor as the Guest of Honour did not hide his admiration for the effort put in by his government to get the law which he described as “inimical to democracy” repealed. However, he expressed grave concern about the conduct of some journalists in the country.

He said the repeal of the Criminal Libel Law was not a license for media practitioners to become irresponsible adding “If you should think because you have the power of the pen that you become higher than the constitution that acknowledged you and the laws that gave you the freedom to express yourself, then I say you are mistaken,” he said.

"Since 2000, when the law was passed, our country has been put on a pedestal that compares favourably with even first-world countries. With the speed at which the world is moving, no one person would be able to advocate the causes that media, as organized as you are, would be able to advocate and so we need you.

“But every media house or broadcasting company must have a code of ethics and regulatory system to ensure that the practitioners exercise their freedom of expression with a high sense of responsibility”.

Vice President, John Mahama who was chaired the function also expressed similar worry over the level of indiscipline and intolerance creeping into the profession of journalism and said the trend is undermining the peace of the country.

He said “the way to go is not to go back to criminalizing speech, it is to promote self-regulation. It is important for players in the media landscape to enforce ethics, advocating fairness, truth and accuracy”.

He advocated improved training programmes for journalists to enable them to operate professionally saying, “You need to qualify to practice as a lawyer or a doctor and without a certificate; you could end up in jail. With journalism, you may not need any form of training and honestly, some of the best journalists are not even properly trained. Such skill would even be better if journalists were properly trained thus training is very essential.”

Chairman of the National Media Commission (NMC), Ambassador Kabral Blay Amihere who gave a very moving speech, tracing the history of the media’s role in national development cautioned that the public will soon turn against the media if it does not deal with unethical journalism and corruption as well take steps to mend their ways.

“Ghana’s democracy is quiet better because we have a vibrant press but the actions of journalists can bring down this nation. We have a false belief that the media is free but I say that by our transgressions it will give the authorities opportunity to clamp down on the media,” he said.

Ernest Abotsi, a Law Lecturer at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science Technology (KNUST) said even though the Criminal Libel Law has been repealed there were still “a lot of traps” in the existing causing fear and panic law.

Ransford Tetteh, President of Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) said the current media landscape cannot be solely attributed to the repeal of the law that criminalized free speech but rather the vibrant nature of the 1992 Constitution helped in the expansion of the frontiers of press freedom.

Professor Kwame Karikari, Executive Secretary of MFWA appealed to the President through the Vice President to consider a review of Section 208 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960, Act 29, to remove those sections that make certain media publications a criminal offence.