Freedom of the press in Djibouti

Freedom of the press in Djibouti is not specifically mentioned by the country's constitution. However, Article 15 of the Constitution of Djibouti does mention an individual's right to express their opinion "...by word, pen, or image..." and notes that "these rights may be limited by prescriptions in the law and in respect for the honour of others."[1]

Despite this, journalism in Djibouti is severely limited by the government and all television and radio stations within the country are government-controlled.

The country has one national newspaper called La Nation de Djibouti,[2] which is published daily. It is also owned by the government along with the country's only news agency L'Agence Djiboutienne d'Information.[3] An opposition-backed newspaper, Le Renouveau,[4] ceased operations in 2007 after publishing an article accusing President Ismaïl Omar Guelleh[5]'s brother-in-law (the former governor of the Central Bank of Djibouti, Djama Haid) of accepting bribes.[6]

There are also several weekly or monthly publications published by opposition parties, though they are often opinion and politically based information rather than fact-based news. One example is L'Aurore; founded in 2015 it is published and heavily influenced by the USN, the main opposition coalition in Djibouti.[7]

There is one independent radio station which reports uncensored news: La Voix de Djibouti.[8] The station broadcasts in both French and Arabic, and was set up by the Djibouti diaspora in 2010. Although the station broadcasts from Belgium (both online and over AM radio[9]), its employees are subject to Djibouti's press laws while in Djibouti.

  1. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 25, 2016. Retrieved July 19, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. ^ "La Nation - 1er Quotidien Djiboutien". Lanationdj.com. June 20, 2014. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
  3. ^ "Les Nouvelles de Agence Djiboutienne d'Information 1999 - 2012". Adi.dj. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
  4. ^ "Le Renouveau". Ardhd.org. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
  5. ^ "African countries are suffering the consequences of breaching international business rules". Nation. October 11, 2023. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
  6. ^ "Djibouti | Country report | Freedom in the World | 2011". Freedomhouse.org. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
  7. ^ "Journal AURORE – ARD". Ard-djibouti.org. January 19, 2015. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
  8. ^ "LVD News". Lavoixdedjibouti.com. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
  9. ^ "DJIBOUTI : Written comments of Reporters Without Borders prior to the adoption of a List of issues" (PDF). Refworld.org. Retrieved April 29, 2017.