In Algeria, Hakim Laâlam, a columnist for the daily "Le Soir d’Algérie", and Fouad Boughanem, the paper’s director, were sentenced to two months in prison with no parole by the Sidi M’hamed Court in Algiers on 17 May, for "insulting" and "offending" the head of state. In addition, the journalists and the paper were each fined 250,000 dinars (approx. 2,700 euros). Laâlam was accused of writing a column published on 31 December 2003 that was deemed insulting to President Abdelaziz Bouteflika. The two journalists were sentenced under Article 144 of the Penal Code. The June 2001 amendments to Article 144 include provisions for heavy prison sentences and fines. During an earlier hearing, the state prosecutor had sought a one-year prison sentence for the journalists.

  In the Central African Republic, several death threats have been made against journalists since 8 May. Zéphirin Kaya and Patrick Akibata, two reporters of Radio Ndeke Luka (RNL), have received several death threats from members of the presidential guard and President Bozizés supporters following the journalists’ coverage of recent elections. On 14 and 15 May, during a Radio Centrafrique programme, electoral candidate Edouard Ngaïssona and his campaign director, as well as an anonymous caller, issued death threats against Kaya and Maka Gbossokoto, the publication director of the privately-owned daily "Le Citoyen". Also on 15 May, the Bangui-M’Poko airport deputy chief of security, Lieutenant Gbadora, issued death threats against Kaya and unsuccessfully tried to detain him at the airport. On the evening of 17 May, Gbadora reiterated his threats in personal calls to Kaya and Gbossokoto.

  In the Ivory Coast, Laurent Aké, editor-in-chief of the independent daily LIntelligent dAbidjan, and Traoré Moussa, editor of the independent Nord Sud, were assaulted by activists of the ruling Ivorian Popular Front (FPI) on 14 May. The journalists lost their tape recorders and an amount of 40,000 CFA (approximately US$ 75.00) during the attack. According to local reports, Aké and Moussa had followed a reporting crew of the national television (RTI, La Premiere), to collect copies of the final resolution from the FPI partys seminar, and mistakenly walked into a room where a group session was in progress. On entering the room, the journalists were confronted by Professor Richard Kadio, a party official and former Minister of Health. When they identified themselves, Kadio began shouting and drawing attention to the presence of the journalists with the words: Point of order, there are spies here, opponents, opposition journalists in the hall! Aké and Moussa were subsequently attacked by the party members, some of who demanded that they be put to death. Also in the Ivory Coast, Honre Sepe, supervising editor of the daily newspaper Le Front, was arrested by three gendarmes in his home in Abidjan on 9 May. His wife and five-year-old child were also detained. The gendarmes entered the home of the journalist and thoroughly searched the house, despite the fact they had no search warrant. Two cellular phones and an address book were confiscated. According to local sources, the gendarmes accused Honre Sepe of allegedly colluding with rebels occupying the northern half of the country since September 2002, and questioned him for several hours on his dealings with the rebellion. He was released later the same day.

  In the Democratic Republic of Congo, Radiotélévision Kasaï (RTDK), a community radio station in the central diamond mining town of Mbuji-Mayi, was closed on 17 May, allegedly for inciting violence. Earlier, at least three people had been killed during violent anti-government protests that were reportedly sparked by the fact that Mbuji-Mayi had been without running water for two days, and news that national elections would be delayed. RTDK director Isaac Lambert Mbuyi Kana said the station had simply reported on rising tensions in the town and on the circulation of fliers calling for a two-day, stay-at-home protest. Following the reports, police hade allegedly surrounded the radio station and ordered it off the air, telling the staff to leave the premises. Police said they were acting on the orders of the provincial governor, Dominique Kanku, but gave no reason and produced no judicial order. The station was allowed to resume broadcasting on 18 May.

  In Gambia, the bi-weekly newspaper The Independent, which lost its printing press in an arson attack in April 2004, was forced to stop publishing on 6 May after its printing arrangement with the private Daily Observer was abruptly terminated. Other printing houses have refused the newspaper’s requests for a contract, reportedly out of fear that they may face reprisals.

  In Mauritania, Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Abouelmaaly, editor-in-chief of the Arabic independent weekly, "Akhbar Nouakchott", was arrested in his home on the morning of 19 May. The keys to Abouelmaaly’s car and his cellular phone were also seized. According to local sources, a group of four men were seen lurking around Abouelmaaly’s residence throughout the night before his arrest. In the morning, two of the men went into the journalists house, introduced themselves as policemen and arrested him. The men then drove him in his car to an unknown destination. Abouelmaaly is also a reporter for the independent daily, "Nouakchott Info", and a correspondent to the "Voice of Germany".

  In Nigeria, Orobosa Omo-Ojo, the publisher of the "Midwest Herald" newspaper who was arrested in Lagos on 2 May on allegations of sedition, was released on 14 May. He was detained for 12 days without formal charges. Omo-Ojo was arrested on 2 May by detectives who were allegedly acting on the orders of Stella Obasanjo, Nigeria’s first lady. They reportedly acted on orders from the first lady to arrest Omo-Ojo over a publication in the 22 April edition of "Midwest Herald", titled "Greedy Stella". According to the newspaper publisher, shortly after his arrest, he was offered a conditional release if he agreed to turn in the paper’s assistant editor, Philipson Abah, whose by-line accompanied the controversial story. He rejected the offer.

  In Sierra Leone, Harry Yansaneh, acting editor for the daily For di People, was allegedly assaulted on 10 May by family members of the parliamentary representative for the Tonkolili Central Constituency, Fatamata Hassan Komeh, for writing negative comments about the government. Two of Mrs Komeh’s sons and three others reportedly entered the newspaper’s offices and assaulted Mr Yansaneh. They also chased other staff members out of the offices and damaged computers and other equipment. Also in Sierra Leone, on the same day, six independent newspapers were reportedly forced to interrupt their activities for three days following an order that no generators be used in a building belonging to Mrs Komeh. The building houses the offices of The Independent Observer, For Di People, The Pool, The African Champion, The Pioneer and The Progress. Mrs Komeh has also reportedly asked all six newspapers, which have been operating from her building for more than a decade, to leave the premises within six months and requested that they restrict working hours from 7.45am to 7.45pm.

  In Sudan, the 21 May issue of the English-language Khartoum Monitor newspaper was banned by state security forces after the editor refused to withdraw a report and an editorial on riots that had occurred in a refugee camp south of the capital on 18 May. According to local sources, state security police went to the Khartoum Monitor’s printing press on the night of 20 May and ordered the withdrawal of a Reuters dispatch and an accompanying editorial that were to appear on the front page. At around 3 a.m. on 21 May, after the newspaper’s editors refused to withdraw the dispatch and editorial, the police ordered the cancellation of the entire issue. Acting editor William Ezechiel said this would result in a loss of 6 million Sudanese pounds (20,000 euros) in advertising and sales. The state security police reportedly returned to th