Elections and the Media in Post-Conflict Africa: Votes and Voices for Peace?

306 Pages·2011·1.4 MB·English

by  Marie-Soleil Frere

About the author
Marie-Soleil Frère is research associate at Belgium’s
National Fund for Scientific Research and also professor
of journalism at the Department of Information and
Communication Sciences at the University of Brussels.
Her research focuses on the African media, and her pub-
lications include Presse et démocratie en Afrique francophone
(2000), Médias et Communications sociales au Burkina
Faso (2003) and The Media and Conflicts in Central Africa
(2007). She was previously assistant professor at the Uni-
versity of Ouagadougou and programme officer in charge
of Southern Francophone Media at the International
Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF). She is involved
in many international NGOs, and in particular is an
associate expert at the Institut Panos Paris, supporting
media in Central Africa.

elections And the mediA in post-
conflict AfricA
votes and voices for peace?
Marie-Soleil Frère
Zed Books
London | new York
Des médias pour la pluralité
Elections and the Media in Post-Conflict Africa: Votes and voices for peace?
was first published in English in 2011 by Zed Books Ltd, 7 Cynthia Street,
London n1 9jf, uk and Room 400, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, nY 10010,
usa
www.zedbooks.co.uk
Copyright © Institut Panos Paris 2011
Translated by Patrick Lennon
The right of Marie-Soleil Frère to be identified as the author of this work
has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act, 1988
Typeset in Monotype Plantin and FontFont Kievit by
Ewan Smith, London
Index: [email protected]
Cover designed by John Yates at stealworks.com
Printed and bound by CPI Group (UK) Ltd, Croydon,
cr0 4YY
Distributed in the usa exclusively by Palgrave Macmillan, a division of
St Martin’s Press, LLc, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, nY 10010, usa
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored
in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of Zed
Books Ltd.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data available
IsBn 978 1 78032 019 9 hb
IsBn 978 1 78032 018 2 pb
contents
Tables | vi Acknowledgements | vii
Abbreviations | ix Note on currency | xii
Introduction: new votes and new voices. . . . . . . .1
1 Elections and the media in Central Africa: stakes
and challenges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
2 The preparatory phase: the media’s pre-election
commitments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
3 The media during the election campaign . . . . . .127
4 From polling day to the results . . . . . . . . . .185
General conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . .238
Notes | 259 Bibliography | 276
Index | 280
tAbles
1 Summary of the role of the media and possible state action at
various stages of the election process. . . . . . . . . . . 4
2 The media’s role outside the electoral period. . . . . . . . 18
3 Summary of the media’s role in the pre-election period. . . . 76
4 Summary of the media’s role during the election campaign . .128
5 Summary of the media’s role from polling day to the final
outcome of the election. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .186
6 Back to regular work: the media’s role outside the electoral
period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .231
7 Summary of the obstacles faced by the media at each phase
of the election process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
8 Summary of the opportunities likely to help overcome the
obstacles facing the media in Central Africa . . . . . . . .252
Acknowledgements
This book would not have seen the light of day without the vital contribution
of many people, and I would like to thank them all sincerely. All my grati-
tude goes to my colleagues from the Institut Panos Paris (IPP), who gave
me the opportunity and the confidence to undertake this research. Without
their constant understanding and their firm belief in the importance of the
work, this book would never have been completed. In particular, Françoise
Havelange and Pascal Berque secured funding to support this project – from
Cordaid (The Netherlands), DDC (Switzerland), DfID (United Kingdom),
Irish Aid (Ireland) and Sida (Sweden).
I also wish to thank the Belgian National Fund for Scientific Research
and the University of Brussels. They allowed this collaboration with the IPP
and gave me the flexibility I needed to make the necessary trips to collect the
data on which the book relies.
During field trips to the six Central African countries covered in this book
I conducted the interviews and gathered the material used here, and I could
never express enough gratitude to the journalists of the region who trusted
me sufficiently to answer my questions and give me access to their archives.
My main concern is that this book, even if it does sometimes criticize their
daily work, appears in their eyes as a fair and truthful depiction of the
context in which they carry out their difficult job.
I am greatly indebted to the colleagues and friends who read through the
manuscript and enriched it with their comments and suggestions. Edouard
Adzotsa in the Republic of Congo, Donat M’Baya Tshimanga, Aziza
Bangwene and Pierre Nsana in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Begoto
Oulatar in Chad, Christian Aimé Ndotah in the Central African Republic,
Cyprien Ndikumana in Burundi and Privat Rutazibwa in Rwanda. In
Belgium, Paule Bouvier, Elisabeth Burdot, Philippe De Boeck, Julie Frère,
Benoît Grevisse and Jean-Jacques Jespers all made a substantial contribution.
In France, Domitille Duplat-Saunier and Michel Leroy, besides devoting
their valuable time to reading and correcting the manuscript, have been very
supportive and enthusiastic about this project. Nevertheless, any mistakes,
misjudgements or errors that appear are entirely mine.
I also wish to thank the people who breathed life into the English
version of this book: Patrick Lennon, who translated the manuscript from
French, and Mary Myers and Clive Liddiard, who lent a valuable hand in
finding the most appropriate English translations. Monica Chibita’s input
viii | acknowledgements
was i nvaluable, as she tracked down in the English version all the French
‘ peculiarities’ that would be unfamiliar to an Anglophone audience.
Finally, the process of researching and writing has had a major impact on
my family, whether because it necessitated my regular physical absence from
home or because it monopolized my attention for months. Yaël, Yeleen and
Yanaé, as well as Etienne, have all accepted that ‘the book’ somehow invaded
our life and I thank them for having behaved as if the adventure of this book
was also theirs.
AbbreviAtions
ABP Burundi Press Agency
AIF Intergovernmental Agency of La Francophonie
AMP Alliance of the Presidential Majority
ANEAP National Association of Private Broadcasting Corporations
ANECO National Association of Newspaper Publishers in the Congo
ARCO Association of Community Radios of the Congo
BBC British Broadcasting Corporation
BONUCA United Nations Peace-building Office in the Central African
Republic
CAR Central African Republic
CCIB Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Burundi
CCTV Canal Congo Television
CECI Independent Communal Electoral Commission
CEI Independent Electoral Commission
CEMI Mixed Independent Electoral Commission
CEMPC Centre for Listening to and Monitoring the Congolese Press
CENAP Conflict Alert and Prevention Centre
CENI National Independent Electoral Commission
CEPI Independent Provincial Electoral Commission
CIAT International Committee in Support of the Transition
CKTV Canal Kin Television
CNC National Communications Council
CNDD-FDD National Council for the Defence of Democracy – Forces
for the Defence of Democracy
CONEL National Electoral Commission
COSOME Coalition of Civil Society for Elections Monitoring
CSLC High Council for the Freedom of Communication
CVEM Commission for Vigilance and Electoral Ethics in the Media
DRC Democratic Republic of Congo
ECCAS Economic Community of Central African States
EU-EOM European Union Election Observation Mission
EUFOR European Military Force
FDD Forces for the Defence of Democracy
FDU Unified Democratic Forces