Senegal frees two journalists
2007-11-08 20:04
Dakar - Authorities in Senegal on Thursday freed two of four journalists detained by police recently for allegedly offending the head of state and publishing misinformation, officials and lawyers said.
Those freed were Pape Amadou Geye, the managing editor of the private daily Le Courier who was arrested on Monday, and El Malick Seck, who runs the online news site Rewmi.com, held in police custody since Wednesday, they said.
The ministry of the interior said in a statement that "instructions were given to the Criminal Investigation Division" to release Seck immediately, and news of Geye's release came from his lawyer, Cledor Cire Ly, who said that the decision had been made by prosecutors.
Seck was arrested in the town of Thies about 70km east of Dakar, after Rewmi.com republished a newspaper story about the purchase of a limousine for President Abdoulaye Wade.
Local papers reported that he was hauled in because of remarks posted on the website's forum.
The former French colony is one of Africa's oldest democracies with a reputation for its flourishing private press.