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Alert

Journalist and his family held incommunicado

(MFWA/IFEX) - Moise Sidibe, a reporter with "L'Indépendant", a privately-owned weekly newspaper, was picked up by the military, together with three of his family members, on 27 May 2009. They are in detention at the Alpha Yaya camp in Conakry, the capital of Guinea.

Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)'s correspondent reported that the Red Berets forcibly took the reporter from his house, together with his younger sister, son and brother, after they had embarked on a violent raid on a nearby restaurant.

The correspondent said the journalist has not been told the reasons for their arrest and subsequent detention. They have also been denied visitors.

Mamadou Dian Balde, managing editor of "L'Indépendant", told the correspondent that Sidibe was eating at his home when he was picked up. He said the journalist was not at the restaurant at the time of the raid and therefore he sees no reason for the arrest.

Sources at the Alpha Yaya camp told the correspondent that Sidibe started a hunger strike on 1 June to protest the unlawful arrest and detention.

MFWA condemns this unlawful detention of the journalist and his family and demands that they be released immediately or charged for whatever offence they may have committed.