I.Coast denies journalists at risk ahead of presidential vote

ABIDJAN - Ivory Coast on Wednesday denied that members of the press were at risk, a day after an advocacy group called on authorities to "protect journalists" ahead of presidential elections.

The west African nation, just three months away from the first round of presidential elections, has experienced several bouts of violence during past electoral periods.

At the end of 2010 and the beginning of 2011, clashes around the election of President Alassane Ouattara, contested by his rival Laurent Gbagbo, resulted in approximately 3,000 deaths.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) denounced in a statement Tuesday the intimidation of at least two Ivorian journalists since early May, urging "authorities as well as political actors to ensure the safety of journalists, both in the field and on social media".

"We don't feel concerned," said Communication Minister Amadou Coulibaly.

"The president protects journalists, who freely exercise their profession," he told AFP, adding that "no journalist has been troubled in the exercise of their duties since Alassane Ouattara has been in power".

The NGO cited the case of M'ma Camara, a journalist for France 24 who was allegedly the target of a "smear campaign" after covering a June meeting of the main opposition party.

The journalist, RSF said, was accused of downplaying the number of attendees at the Democratic Party of Ivory Coast (PDCI) meeting.

"Some people published my address and that of my family," said Camara, quoted in the statement.

RSF criticised "calls targeting journalists" after the publication of certain articles, including from some government members.

Sadibou Marong, who leads RSF's Sub-Saharan Africa bureau, also pointed to "the arrest of a political refugee and information professional".

Hugues Colman Sossoukpe, a journalist from Benin and a critic of his country's government, was arrested mid-July in Abidjan after being invited to Ivory Coast by the ministry of digital transition.

Ivorian authorities then extradited him to Cotonou.

Coulibaly said on Wednesday that authorities had taken "no illegal action" in the matter.

"We simply executed an arrest warrant in the name of judicial cooperation with Benin," he said, adding that the minister of digital transition was unaware of the existence of such a warrant.