{"id":13689,"date":"2022-09-10T15:06:47","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T15:06:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/all-news\/press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana"},"modified":"2022-09-10T16:18:47","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T16:18:47","slug":"press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/all-news\/press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana","title":{"rendered":"Press Institute raises red fag on state of free press in Botswana"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Botswana. <\/strong><\/span>The International Press Institute (IPI) has said the independent media environment in Botswana faces key risks and challenges that require close monitoring.<\/b><\/p>\n

In a new report following a three-day fact-finding visit to Botswana on August 22 to 24, the IPI global network found that Botswana\u2019s government should affirm its stated commitment to press freedom by shoring up protections for independent journalism in the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring our visit, the high-level IPI delegation, led by former IPI Executive Board Chair Markus Spillmann, met with journalists, civil society, government, and members of the diplomatic community,\u201d the international media watchdog said.<\/p>\n

The report says the goal of these meetings was to understand more about the media environment and the challenges that journalists in Botswana face in being able to do their work freely, independently, and safely.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the conclusion of these meetings, IPI finds that while there is space for critical media and independent journalism in Botswana, and while recent media law reforms have been seen positively by the media community,\u201d the report says.<\/p>\n

It says; \u201cFurther reforms and improvements are needed in order to strengthen the environment for press freedom and to ensure that all media in the country are able to operate free of political and government interference.\u201d<\/p>\n

Regarding Government\u2019s control over public media, IPI said Botswana lacks a true public service media. Instead, IPI said, the country\u2019s publicly owned media serve as a mouthpiece for the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP).<\/p>\n

\u201cStrong reforms are necessary in order to ensure the country\u2019s public media can operate free of government and political inference, in accordance with international freedom of expression standards guaranteeing the public\u2019s right to receive diverse and independent news and information,\u201d IPI said.<\/p>\n

Touching on misuse of government advertising, IPI said as in many media markets, private media in Botswana rely on advertising revenue for survival, including state-funded advertising, given the country\u2019s small market.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowever, numerous stakeholders highlighted that publicly funded advertising in Botswana is misused as a tool of influence and control. The government should take concrete steps to enable fair market conditions for private media, including by ensuring that public advertising is allocated transparently and according to clear and objective criteria,\u201d IPI said.<\/p>\n

IPI said editors and journalists report an increase in strategic lawsuits against the media \u2013 or \u201cSLAPPs\u201d \u2013 aimed at draining independent outlets of vital resources. \u201cThese abusive lawsuits are brought against media outlets as a way of punishing and stifling critical journalism and have a deeply corrosive effect on press freedom,\u201d said IPI in its findings.<\/p>\n

Regarding the use of penal code against journalists, IPI expressed concern about the use of provisions in the criminal code, including sedition, to charge journalists for their reporting. \u201cBotswana should work to bring its criminal laws in line with international standards on freedom of expression and ensure that journalists do not face criminal prosecution for their work,\u201d IPI said.<\/p>\n

IPI also found that editors and journalists report that police and intelligence agencies routinely seize reporters\u2019 equipment \u2014 including mobile phones, cameras, and laptops \u2014 without any legal basis or a warrant.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are deeply concerned that these types of actions are a form of censorship, surveillance, and intimidation that pose undue restrictions on the press,\u201d the organisation said.<\/p>\n

Regarding expansive government intelligence apparatus and powers, IPI said, even after the government rolled back controversial provisions of the 2022 Criminal Procedures and Evidence Act that allowed for warrantless surveillance of journalists, stakeholders continue to voice credible concerns over the expansive and unchecked powers of the government\u2019s intelligence agency, Directorate of Intelligence and Security Services (DISS), and the potential for government overreach and abuse.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe remind the government of Botswana that a free, independent, and diverse media is essential to upholding a system of independent institutions and robust checks and balances,\u201d IPI said.<\/p>\n

The report states that; \u201cWe also recognize that establishing the ideal legal, regulatory, and market conditions that enable independent media to thrive is especially challenging in today\u2019s media environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

IPI added that; \u201cWe also urge the international and diplomatic community to prioritize press freedom in Botswana, as a free, pluralistic, and independent media are essential for the country\u2019s democracy and stability.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to former IPI Executive Board Chair Markus Spillmann, the IPI delegation was led by IPI Deputy Director Scott Griffen, IPI Director of Advocacy Amy Brouillette, and IPI Africa Programme Manager Patience Zirima.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Botswana<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Botswana. The International Press Institute (IPI) has said the independent media environment in Botswana faces key risks and challenges that require close monitoring. In a new report following a three-day fact-finding visit to Botswana on August 22 to 24, the IPI global network found that Botswana\u2019s government should affirm its stated commitment to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":13688,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,6,8,16],"tags":[233,237,234],"class_list":["post-13689","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-files","category-homepage-english","category-twitter","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-botswana","tag-botswana"],"yoast_head":"\nPress Institute raises red fag on state of free press in Botswana - Botswana<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The International Press Institute (IPI) has said the independent media environment in Botswana faces key risks and ch ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/all-news\/press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Press Institute raises red fag on state of free press in Botswana\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The International Press Institute (IPI) has said the independent media environment in Botswana faces key risks and ch ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/all-news\/press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Botswana\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-09-10T15:06:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-09-10T16:18:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/botswana\/sites\/38\/2022\/09\/postQueueImg_5-631cb8d138e31.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"696\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"464\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/all-news\/press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/all-news\/press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Press Institute raises red fag on state of free press in Botswana\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-09-10T15:06:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-09-10T16:18:47+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/all-news\/press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana\"},\"wordCount\":753,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/all-news\/press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/botswana\/sites\/38\/2022\/09\/postQueueImg_5-631cb8d138e31.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Botswana\",\"Botswana\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"files\",\"homepage-english\",\"twitter\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/all-news\/press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/all-news\/press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/botswana\/all-news\/press-institute-raises-red-fag-on-state-of-free-press-in-botswana\",\"name\":\"Press Institute raises red fag on state of free press in Botswana - 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