On 6 February 2017 Justice John Mativo ruled that Section 194 of Kenya’s Penal Code, which creates the offence of criminal defamation, violates the right to freedom of expression as guaranteed under Article 33 of the supreme law of the land. Jaqueline Okuta and Jackson Njeru, two individuals separately charged with criminal defamation...
A two-day conference held in Juba to mark International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists (2 November), has recommended decriminalization of defamation as is contained in the South Sudan 2013 Media Authority Act. It also appealed to the government to speed up investigation of the seven journalists killed in South Sudan,...
If journalists are the frontline in the battle to protect media freedom, then the last line of defense is perhaps the idealistic lawyers with the smarts to challenge restrictions by taking litigation beyond national courts through to regional and international structures. In early July, KAS Media Africa partnered with the Media Legal Defence...
The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) held yesterday, 9 July 2015, in Mogadishu a private lobby meeting with 32 Members of the Federal Parliament on the need to seriously reform the Media Law 2008 and further amend the current draft media law which was distributed to parliamentarians for debate, amendment and approval....
If the Storify does not load automatically please click here. [View the story “FXI seminar unpacks decriminalisation of expression campaign” on Storify]
A Report on the Media Law Reform in Africa Conference in Cape Town by Christian Echle and Katharina Lang. In many African countries, freedom of expression and editorial independence of the media, are often only guaranteed on paper. In many cases media laws from the colonial era continue to be or are altered...
