Geneva, Switzerland – The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights criticized Mali’s decision to ban French media and urged its military rulers to reverse their decision.
“We are deeply dismayed by the decision of the Malian media regulator to permanently shut down Radio France International [RFI] and France24,” said a spokeswoman for High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet on Friday.
“These suspensions are the latest in a series of measures restricting press freedom and freedom of expression in Mali, and come at a time when more, not less, scrutiny is needed.”
Mali’s military leaders first imposed the suspensions on March 16, accusing the two broadcasters of making false claims about reports of human rights abuses by the army.
On Wednesday, the High Authority for Communications announced that these temporary suspensions would be final.
Journalists’ associations have denounced an increase in attacks and hate campaigns against reporters, particularly French media representatives, over the past year. Foreign and local reporters covering Mali have denounced a deteriorating climate for media workers in the country.
“We didn’t have this kind of scrutiny before,” said a freelancer for French media, who asked not to be named for security reasons. “The situation has deteriorated since tensions between France and Mali increased. It’s a political issue.”
‘Penetrating Cooling Effect’
On Friday, the Committee to Protect Journalists also asked the authorities to reverse their decision to ban RFI and France 24.
“The Malian authorities’ decision to solidify these suspensions demonstrates their determination to deny people in their country access to information,” said Angela Quintal, CPJ’s Africa program coordinator, in a statement.
On February 6, French journalist Benjamin Roger, a reporter for Jeune Afrique, was arrested and expelled within 24 hours of his arrival in the Malian capital, Bamako. Authorities said the reporter did not have press accreditation. A week earlier, they had announced that it was becoming more difficult for media representatives to obtain media permits.
“Press accreditation has rarely been required,” Reporters Without Borders said in a statement, “and the lack of accreditation has not prevented journalists from working freely.”
On April 8, Reporters Without Borders marked a year since the kidnapping of French journalist Olivier Dubois, a correspondent for French publications Liberation, Le Point and Jeune Afrique. On March 14, the al-Qaeda-affiliated Jama’a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM), a coalition of armed groups, released video showing that he was still alive.
French aid worker Sophie Petronin was kidnapped in Gao in 2016 and released after four years. In 2013, Ghislaine Dupont and Claude Verlon, two journalists from RFI, were kidnapped and killed by gunmen in the Malian city of Kidal while finishing an interview with a Tuareg separatist leader.
A member of the Malian Special Forces stands guard in Kati, Mali [File: Florent Vergnes/AFP]
Meanwhile, the UN denounced how such a situation is enticing those reporters still in the country to practice self-censorship.
“The current climate is having a pervasive chilling effect on journalists and bloggers,” UN spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told reporters on Friday.
“Our office continues to document serious allegations of violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law in many parts of the country, and we remain seriously concerned about moves to further shrink the already limited space for civil society.”
Tensions between Mali and France have been rising since a military coup led by Colonel Assimi Goita on August 8, 2020 that overthrew French-backed President-elect Ibrahim Boubacar Keita.
In June 2021, France, a former colonial power in the region, halted its joint military operations with Malian forces and awaited guarantees that civilians would return to positions of power.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced he would begin withdrawing troops, some 5,100 troops, stationed in the region since 2013 as part of his so-called Operation Barkhane, which spans five countries in the Sahel – Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger.
In response to the army’s seizure of power in Mali, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) regional bloc and the African Union expelled Mali from their organizations and threatened sanctions.
In January, Malian Prime Minister Choguel Kokalla Maiga accused France of fostering insecurity and division in the country and expelled its ambassador.
According to Reporters Without Borders, Mali is ranked 99th out of 180 countries in the 2021 World Press Freedom Index.