Two journalists critical of the government in Togo were sentenced to three years in prison on Wednesday March 15 by the Lomé tribunal de grande instance, in particular for “contempt of authority”, their lawyer told AFP.
Ferdinand Ayité and Kokou Kouwonou – known as Isidore Kouwonou -, respectively director of publication and editor-in-chief of the bi-weekly L’Alternative, have been indicted since December 2021 for “contempt of authority” and “spreading comments lies on social media”. These lawsuits follow the complaints of two ministers for remarks made in a program broadcast on YouTube.
A court in Lomé, following the requisitions of the prosecution, sentenced them to “three years in prison and a fine of 3 million CFA francs [4,573 euros] each. An international arrest warrant has been issued against the two,” said lawyer Elom Kpadé, denouncing an “expedited trial”. “The two journalists not being present, I formally requested a dismissal so that the prosecution could issue a new summons to the defendant. But the court opposed this request,” added Kpadé.
Mr. Ayité and another journalist had already been imprisoned in Lomé civil prison in December 2021 in the same case, before being released a few days later. Ferdinand Ayité, “missing” since the beginning of the month according to his relatives, said a week ago that he was “relatively well” and “more or less safe from danger” in a message posted on Facebook. “The two journalists are fine and they are safe,” Kpadé said.
The Alternative had been suspended in February 2021 for four months in a case involving the current Minister of Urban Planning, Koffi Tsolenyanu.
