According to AFP, Malian authorities have decided to shut down the local private television station Joliba TV News, following a recent complaint from Burkina Faso against the channel.
Malian communications regulator HAC has decided to shut down Joliba TV News by revoking its license, a channel official told AFP on condition of anonymity. The measure will take effect on November 26, according to the same source.
The measure comes after a complaint on November 12 by the Higher Council for Communication of Burkina Faso against Joliba TV News. The complaint followed remarks by Issa Kaou N'Djim, a Malian political figure known for having supported the junta leader, Colonel Assimi Goïta, before distancing himself. During a program on this local
television station, Mr. N'Djim made "remarks deemed extremely serious" by Ouagadougou against the military rulers of Mali's neighboring country.
With his comments, Mr. D'Djim called into question "the umpteenth attempt to destabilize Burkina Faso," claiming that it was "nothing but a setup," according to Burkina Faso's media regulatory authority.
The latter had asked the Malian HAC "to take whatever action it deemed appropriate in response to the broadcast of this program." The HAC then accused the private television station of "violations of ethics and professional conduct" and "insulting a foreign head of state," according to sources close to the body.
Mr. N'Djim was remanded in custody in Bamako on November 13 for "publicly insulting a foreign head of state." He is scheduled to stand trial on December 23.
Former Malian Prime Minister Moussa Mara said he learned of the HAC's decision with "deep sadness but also great concern" in a statement posted on Facebook.
He called on the Malian regime "to work to guarantee (press and opinion) freedoms and to protect them, because without them, no social, political, or institutional stability will be sustainable."
In recent months, Mali and Burkina Faso have taken repressive measures against the press, suspended access to or broadcasting of several media outlets—particularly foreign ones—and silenced or imprisoned journalists and other critical voices.