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Media clampdown in Kenya

Jeevan Vasagar

Masked policemen raid newspaper office, shut down TV station

Nairobi: Armed police officers wearing masks shut down a Kenyan television station, disabled a printing press and made a public bonfire out of thousands of copies of a pro-Opposition newspaper on Thursday after a dispute over a story about President Mwai Kibaki.

Police carrying AK-47 rifles seized computers, cut power cables and beat up security guards during midnight raids on the joint headquarters of the Standard, Kenya's oldest newspaper; KTN, a private TV station; and the newspaper's printing press. The raids followed the arrest of three Standard journalists over a story in Saturday's paper which claimed Mr Kibaki had secretly met an Opposition leader.

It is the first time a Kenyan Government has shut down a major media company used to operating in a relatively liberal environment.

``We believe this is a direct and blatant attempt to undermine the freedom of the press in this country, that is guaranteed by the Constitution,'' said Tom Mshindi, the chief executive officer of the Standard Group.

The story, which triggered the dispute, claimed that Mr Kibaki had held a secret meeting with Opposition leader Kalonzo Musyoka to discuss how the former minister could rejoin the Government. Both sides have denied this.

- Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006

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