Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso – Burkina Faso’s media regulator, the Superior Council for Communication (CSC), has imposed a two-week suspension on BBC Afrique and Voice of America (VOA) following their broadcast of a report by Human Rights Watch.
The report accused the Burkina Faso army of committing abuses in opposition to civilians. In addition to the suspension of those media shops, the CSC has additionally restricted entry inside Burkina Faso to the web sites and digital platforms of BBC, VOA, and Human Rights Watch.
The state-owned information company, Agence d’Information du Burkina (AIB), reported that the BBC and VOA had been instructed through phone to right away stop rebroadcasting the offending program throughout all platforms.
The CSC has issued a stern warning to all native media shops, threatening sanctions in opposition to those that disseminate the article.
VOA responded to the suspension by affirming its dedication to its journalistic duties. An article printed by VOA on Friday acknowledged, “VOA stands by its reporting about Burkina Faso and intends to continue to fully and fairly cover activities in the country.”
The Human Rights Watch report, printed on Thursday, alleged that the Burkina Faso army executed a minimum of 223 civilians on February 25 within the northern a part of the nation.
This just isn’t the primary occasion of Burkina Faso clamping down on worldwide media; in December 2023, the West African nation suspended the French each day Le Monde for biased reporting.
Throughout the final 12 months, the federal government has additionally suspended different worldwide media entities together with Jeune Afrique, La Chaîne Info (LCI), and France24.
These actions replicate ongoing tensions between Burkina Faso’s authorities and worldwide media over protection of the nation’s inner affairs, notably referring to allegations of human rights violations.
The scenario underscores the challenges confronted by the media in reporting on delicate points in areas experiencing political instability and battle.
https://www.africanexponent.com/two-worlds-giant-media-houses-blocked-from-reporting-news-in-niger/
