African Nations Urged to Eliminate Criminal Defamation Laws

This is a brilliant idea advocated by Africa's Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information, Pansy Tlakula, as part of her annual report to the African Commission on Human and People's Rights (ACHPR).

Rapporteur Tlakula brought up an issue of critical importance to the fight against corruption in that continent.

Here is from Botswana's www.Mmegi.bw:

Commissioner Pansy Tlakula went on to state that criminal defamation laws are being used to prosecute journalists who publish articles that are critical and exposing to elected public officials.

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Media laws can only effectively promote and protect freedom of expression and access to information if they are guided by the principle of maximum disclosure and if publications regarding matters of public interests are not considered defamatory.

She also called on State Parties to end the use of imprisonment for publications made which governments may consider critical to them and that they should abstain from imposing penal sanctions on journalists regarding their articles."

Criminal defamation laws should therefore be revoked or amended to conform with international and regional standards.

As long as public officials have the arbitrary option to invoke criminal defamation or insult laws to shield themselves from the rest of society, progress and development will be severely impaired.

This human rights axiom applies not only to African nations but to any country in the world. About 90 percent of the world's nations do have defamation laws in their criminal codes.

In other words, journalists in any of those countries risk being imposed exorbitant fines or imprisonment just because of their choice to fulfill their duty to keep the public informed about matters of crucial importance.

Rapporteur Tlakula has chosen to fight the good fight, an uphill battle of continental proportions. She has our wholeheartedly support.