Editors of newspapers met in Yaounde last April 28 ahead of the tomorrow’s 27 Edition of World Press Freedom Day to be celebrated under the theme: “JOURNALISM WITHOUT FEAR OR FAVOUR.”
The decision to institute a press blackout on Monday May stems from the following:
1.) Refusal by the state to support the resilience of the private press during the COVID-19 period.
2.) The accentuation of the economic fragility of the press due to the measures the state has taken in the framework of COVID-19.
3.) The non-disbursement and on time of statutory state assistance to the private press.
4.) Accumulated arrears of payment of benefits by public bodies and administrations.
5.) Limited access by private newspapers to public order when it comes to advertising insertions.
6.)The growing weight loss of the advertising portfolio and the unexplained extensions of the payment dates for said advertisements by companies;
7.) The poor sales of newspapers following distribution difficulties across the country;
8.) Taxation unsuitable for the press business and non-compliance with national and / or international conventions and agreements;
9.) Failure to implement the relevant recommendations of the 2012 Laws of Communication, including the non-grooming of the law on social communication in Cameroon;
10.) Arbitrary arrests of journalists in the exercise of their function and the maintenance of deprivation of freedom for press offenses in contradiction with the standards and international commitments of Cameroon.
On the strength of the above, the Press Publishers of Cameroon call to witness the national and international community on the miseries inflicted on press enterprises.
Press publishers reserve the right to undertake other energetic actions likely to restore the Press to its role of information, education and a barometer of democracy. In the end, the Press Editors remain open to any proposal coming mainly from the government for the resolution of the various points raised. ”
Mwalimu McMua