Freedom of the Press 2008 - Chad

Status: Not Free
Legal Environment: 23 (of 30)
Political Environment: 30 (of 40)
Economic Environment: 21 (of 30)
Total Score: 74 (of 100)
(Lower scores = freer)

Chad's constitution allows for freedom of expression, but authorities have routinely used threats and legal provisions criminalizing defamation and vaguely defined "incitement" to imprison journalists and censor critical reporting. In Chad's conservative, ethnically polarized society, many subjects are considered off-limits to the press, including the armed rebellion on the border with Sudan and recurring tensions among tribal clans. The High Council of Communication (HCC), the official media regulatory body, has the authority to suspend publications and broadcast outlets for defamation or excessive criticism of the government, particularly President Idriss Deby. The first five months of 2007 were dominated by a nationwide state of emergency, which subjected local newspapers to prior censorship and barred local media coverage of the opposition and the ongoing conflict in the east. Authorities imposed a state of emergency in eastern Chad in October that included blanket restrictions on nationwide media coverage, depriving Chadians of vital sources of information at a time of domestic conflict and instability.

During the year, journalists in Chad faced the threats of harassment and detention. On January 31, Marcel Ngargoto, a journalist with Radio Brakos, a critical station based in the southern town of Moissala, was detained without charge for two days; he was later accused of "ruthless handling of sensitive news which could harm national cohesion," according to Reporters Without Borders. In March, Adji Moussa, the director of the bimonthly Le Mirroir, received a six-month suspended prison sentence and a fine of approximately US$50 for allegedly defaming a Catholic priest due to corruption allegations. In October, authorities detained three French journalists in eastern Chad who were traveling with Zoe's Ark, the French nonprofit charged late in the year with involvement in child trafficking in response to the organization's attempt to transport over one hundred purported Darfuri orphans to France for adoption. The journalists were held for 10 days on charges of complicity in kidnapping before being released on bail and allowed to leave the country, after intervention from France's President Nicolas Sarkozy. Following the incident, authorities in eastern Chad tightened travel restrictions on journalists and NGO workers in the region, according to the France-based newspaper L'Humanité. In December, authorities arrested the prominent local journalist Nadjikimo Benoudjita, director of the private weekly Notre Temps, following an editorial critical of Deby. Benoudjita was charged with inciting ethnic and religious hatred and was detained for three days before leaving the country, according to Reporters Without Borders; the paper, however, remained closed at year's end.

Private newspapers, some of which publish commentary critical of the government when not operating under prepublication censorship requirements, circulate freely in N'Djamena, but they have little impact on the largely rural and illiterate population; radio is the primary means of mass communication. The only television station, Teletchad, is state owned, and its coverage favors the government. Despite high licensing fees for commercial radio stations, there are over a dozen private and community-run stations on the air, some operated by nonprofit groups, including human rights organizations and the Roman Catholic Church. These broadcasters are subject to close official scrutiny, and those that fail to pay annual fees to the state are threatened with closure. There are no reports that the government restricts internet access, although according to the U.S. State Department, there are reports that the government occasionally monitors email. The intranet infrastructure remains government owned, and less than one percent of the population had access to this resource in 2007.