Protest sent to The Right Honourable General Sising Walla Minister of the
Interior and Security, Lome, Togo C/o H.E. Ambassador to France.
4 June 2001
Dear Minister,
We are writing on behalf of the World Association of Newspapers and
World Editors Forum, which represent more than 17,000 publications in 93
countries, to express our serious concern at the arrest of journalist Lucien
Messan.
According to reports, on 23 May Mr. Messan, editorial director of the
weekly Le Combat du peuple, was arrested when he presented himself to the
police to answer a summons. He was informed that you had lodged a complaint
against him for "falsehood and the use of falsehood" and was immediately
transferred to Lome civil prison, where he is still being held. Mr. Messan
was charged with having signed a communique from the Togolese Private Press
Publishers Association (ATEPP). In fact, the publication director of Le
Combat du Peuple is Mr. Messan's son, Messan S. Junior, and it is he who
is authorised to sign ATEPP documents. The communique denounced statements
by the Togolese prime minister and accused the government of "seeking to
use the private press".
We respectfully remind you that the criminal law is a wholly inappropriate
means of dealing with this issue, and that such practice contravenes a
number of international agreements. Furthermore, the United Nations Commission
on Human Rights considers that "detention, as punishment for the peaceful
expression of an opinion, is one of the most reprehensible ways to enjoin
silence and, as a consequence, a grave violation of human rights."
We respectfully call on you to ensure that Mr. Messan is immediately
released from prison and that all criminal charges against him are dropped.
We urge you to ensure that in future the criminal law is not used to secure
the silence of those seeking to exercise their right to freedom of expression.
We look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience.
Yours sincerely, Roger Parkinson, President World Association of Newspapers.
Ruth de Aquino President World Editors Forum
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