Abuja,
Nigeria, February 3, 2015 - The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on
Nigerian authorities to ensure that international journalists are allowed
access to cover the country's elections this month. Nigeria's
presidential and parliamentary elections are scheduled for February 14, while state
elections are set for February 28.
President Goodluck
Jonathan is seeking re-election amid an insurgency by the radical Islamist
group, Boko Haram, which has taken over territory in the country's northeast.
International observers have called on Nigeria to ensure a free and fair
election, while some analysts have warned of low turnout amid fears of
violence, according to news reports.
"The
legitimacy of Nigeria's election depends in no small part on whether the
international press is allowed to cover it," said Peter Nkanga, CPJ's West
Africa representative. "We call on authorities to quickly cut through the
red tape and approve visas and accreditation for foreign journalists."
Kayode
Idowu, a spokesman with the Independent National Electoral Commission, told CPJ
that for foreign journalists to be allowed to cover the elections they are
expected to have arrived in Nigeria, applied to be accredited, and obtained
their Elections Press Pass from INEC by February 11.
Geoffrey
York, Johannesburg-based correspondent for the Canadian daily newspaper Globe
and Mail, wrote on Twitter last week that Nigeria had blocked at least 40 journalists from entering the country
to cover the elections. The Foreign Correspondents Association of Southern
Africa issued a statement on Friday saying many of its members had been
denied visas or accreditation.
Journalists
at one international news outlet--who asked that the outlet not be named as it
continues to seek access to cover the elections--told CPJ that it had made
eight different visa requests from locations including Paris, London, Nairobi,
Dakar, and Johannesburg. All of the applications, submitted between December
2014 and January 2015, had been delayed by embassy officials requesting
additional paperwork, the outlet said.
However,
some international journalists have been granted access. Journalists from The
New York Times, BBC, and the Netherlands-based television channel RTL Nieuws
told CPJ they had visas approved.
Difficulty
in getting visas may be compounded by discrepancies in the application process
from embassy to embassy and between embassies and the Nigeria Immigration
Service.
According
to the guidelines on the Nigeria Immigration Service website,
journalists can apply for visas by completing an application form, paying fees,
and submitting payment receipts, passport, and other documents to the Nigerian
embassy in their country of residence. Chukwuemeka Obua, a spokesman of the
Immigration service, told CPJ that there is no special application for
journalists.
However,
seven other journalists, speaking on condition of anonymity, told CPJ that
Nigerian embassy officials were asking international journalists to get
approval letters from Nigeria's Information Ministry in Abuja. The websites of
some Nigerian embassies and consulates, including in Paris and in
Ottawa,
Canada, also state that journalists' entry requires approval from the
Ministry of Information.
Joseph
Mutah, a spokesman for the Information Ministry, told CPJ that all visa
requests had been sent to the Director General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) for security clearance
and approval.
The
NIA is under the Office of the President. Presidential spokesmen Reuben Abati
and Doyin Okupe did not respond to CPJ's calls and text messages requesting
comment.
Separately,
thugs attacked at least five local journalists on Monday following a bomb blast
in Gombe State, northeastern Nigeria, according to news reports.
The blast occurred minutes after President
Goodluck Jonathan's convoy left after an election campaign. The journalists'
bus was also damaged.
CPJ is an
independent, nonprofit organization that works to safeguard press freedom
worldwide.
Media contacts:
Sue Valentine
Africa Program
Coordinator
Peter Nkanga
West Africa
Representative
Email: pnkanga@cpj.org
Tom Rhodes
East Africa
Representative
Email: trhodes@cpj.org
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