‘Facilitate self-defence training for journalists’ – Govt told

The National Youth for Peace (NYFP), a non-governmental organisation is calling on the government to facilitate self-defence training for journalists across the country to help them confront senseless attacks.

According to the NYFP, the media which is referred to as the fourth arm of government performed the most difficult task in the country, yet had no proper security governing their act of work.

“The Executive have security, the second arm which is the Legislature have security, the third arm which is the Judiciary also has security, but the media which is the fourth arm has no protection, yet performs the most difficult work among all,” it said.

This was contained in a statement issued by the Executive Director of the NYFP, Eric Baffoe-Nyarkoh and copied to the Ghanaian Times in Accra yesterday.

“In our traditional institution, if a town crier is attacked by someone, the person’s offence is grave, for if the town crier is attacked, the chief is also attacked.

But in our modern days, people beat journalists and go scot-free, I challenge the authority to make laws that will protect the journalists from attacks,” the statement said.

It called on the Parliament to pass a law that would protect the journalists from being attacked in their course of duty, saying the law must jail the individual who commit such an act.

“We want to take the opportunity to call on all Ghanaians especially the civil society groups and churches to stand on their feet to fight against media intimidation and abuses,” it added.

The statement also admonished the media to be cautious in their course of activities and exhibit professionalism to avoid such acts.