Guinea-Bissau: Lusa, RDP and RTP Expelled from the Country
The Guinea-Bissau government's decision to expel delegations from the Lusa news agency, RTP and RDP from the country provoked a strong wave of criticism and reignited the debate on the limits to press freedom in the Portuguese-speaking world.
Without giving official reasons, Bissau ordered the immediate suspension of broadcasts and ordered representatives of these bodies to leave the territory by Tuesday, a measure that prompted a firm diplomatic reaction from Lisbon and a chorus of condemnation from journalistic organizations.
The Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs classified the expulsion as “highly reprehensible and unjustifiable” and immediately summoned the Guinea-Bissau ambassador in Lisbon to provide explanations.
The meeting is scheduled for Saturday and is part of a dialogue effort that the Portuguese government says it wants to maintain, highlighting the importance of the work of Lusa, RTP and RDP for the populations of both countries and for the Portuguese-speaking community.
The Portuguese government states that it will do "everything to reverse the decision" and recalls that bilateral relations with Guinea-Bissau are historically guided by ties of friendship, but that it cannot fail to react to a measure that violates fundamental principles of democracy and the rule of law.
Immediate Reactions
The incident occurred just weeks after President Umaro Sissoco Embaló assumed the rotating presidency of the CPLP at the July summit in Bissau. To date, the Guinea-Bissau government has not publicly explained the journalists' expulsion.
The lack of explanations fuels speculation about political motivations and reinforces criticism that this is a measure aimed at controlling the internal narrative and limiting the dissemination of information considered uncomfortable, proving that, with political instability in the country, the relationship between power and the media tends to be fragile, with recurring episodes of censorship and intimidation.
The news directorates of Lusa, RDP and RTP issued a joint statement denouncing "a deliberate attack on freedom of expression" and accusing the Guinean government of attempting to "silence journalists" in a discriminatory and selective manner.
For editorial directors, this measure constitutes "an attack on the fundamental principles that guide journalistic activity" and represents a setback for the population's right to information. The same statement expressed solidarity with the professionals deployed in Bissau and with all journalists who face pressure and threats in the exercise of their profession.
The press environment in Bissau has been tense in recent months. In July, journalist Waldir Araújo, RTP's delegate in Guinea-Bissau, was assaulted and robbed in the center of the capital by unknown assailants, claiming the attack was politically motivated. According to Araújo, the attackers accused RTP of "tarnishing Guinea-Bissau's image abroad."
His planned visit to Lisbon to participate in a session at the organization's headquarters, where Sissoco was scheduled to be received in a formal session by the executive secretary, ambassador Maria de Fátima Jardim, and by the permanent representatives of the Member States to the community, has, however, been postponed.
Freedom of the press
With Guinea-Bissau currently holding the rotating presidency of the CPLP, the decision to expel the media from a founding member state can only be considered an atypical situation, especially considering that the three affected companies are pillars of Portuguese-language news.
In a joint statement of repudiation, the information directors of the three companies – Lusa, RTP and RDP – signed by the information directors Luísa Meireles (Lusa), Mário Galego (RDP) and Vítor Gonçalves (RTP), accused the Guinean government of persecuting freedom of the press.
“Such a decision can only be part of the Guinea-Bissau government's continued intention to silence journalists whose job it is to inform.”
"This is a discriminatory and selective action, constituting a deliberate attack on freedom of expression . "
The statement also adds that the expulsion of the journalists " is an attack on the fundamental principles that guide journalistic activity " and that, therefore, it violates democracy and the rule of law.
RTP África and RDP África cover the entire Portuguese-speaking world, including specific content for Guinea-Bissau, and Agência Lusa provides news services to multiple international partners.
This episode once again highlights the challenges to press freedom in some Portuguese-speaking countries. International organizations have warned of signs of deteriorating working conditions for journalists, whether through physical threats, legal harassment, or administrative restrictions.
The Portuguese-speaking community, united by the CPLP, is now forced to take a stand on a case that, more than just a bilateral matter, has implications for the democratic values that the organization claims to defend.
Conclusion
The expulsion of the Lusa, RTP, and RDP delegations from Guinea-Bissau represents more than a diplomatic incident. It is a warning about the risks to press freedom and the right to information when unilateral and unfounded decisions prevail.
With Lisbon pushing for a reversal of the measure and Bissau remaining silent, the outcome remains uncertain, but the message is clear: free journalism remains a frontier that some governments are trying to limit.
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Picture: © Manuel Almeida
