Journalists Ferdinand Ayité and Joël Egah arrested over online broadcasts in Togo

Media reports and Ayité's Facebook posts suggest Ayité was arrested on December 9 after he answered a summons to appear at the Research and Investigations Brigade (BIR). Pius Agbetomey and Kodjo Adédzé, two ministers and pastors in Togo, made a complaint about the broadcast on November 30, according to their lawyer, Elom Kpade. On the L'Alternative YouTube channel with over 15,000 followers, the journalists discussed the two ministers' alleged corruption and manipulation of the public.

The next day, on December 10, the police summoned Egah, the director of the privately owned Fraternité newspaper, and Kouwonou, the editor in chief of L'Alternative. According to the reports and posts, Egah was then arrested and detained. However, Kouwonou was released under judicial supervision the same day. Ayité and Egah were accused of "contempt of authorities" and "propagating falsehoods," and Kouwonou was accused of complicity. 

According to Togo's penal code, anyone found guilty of "contempt against representatives of public authority" can be punished with up to two years in prison and fined 1 million West African francs (US$1,722). False news can result in up to two years in prison and a fine of 2 million West African francs (US$3,445). The punishments for "coaction and complicity" aligned with those of the crimes.

In less than two years, the Togolese government has suspended L'Alternative twice: in February 2021, when Ayité also faced legal harassment, and in April 2020 when L'Alternative, Fraternité, and a third newspaper, Liberté, were suspended. According to the Pegasus Project, Ayité's phone number was also listed among those supposedly selected for spyware surveillance.

* This article contained information that was sourced from the Committee to Protect Journalists.