Malian authorities ban French TV channel over its coverage of a pro-democracy protest

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Mali’s media regulatory body said it is banning a French television channel in the country due to “defamatory remarks” it made about a pro-democracy demonstration in the capital earlier this month.

The High Authority for Communication said in a letter published on Tuesday that it was cutting the signal of French channel TV5 Monde after a news anchor remarked that “hundreds of security forces were mobilized to prevent demonstrators from accessing” the Palais de la Culture during a May 3 protest.

The authority said this was incorrect and that “the forces of law and order were present at the Palais de la Culture to secure the demonstrators.”

TV5MONDE did not immediately comment on the announcement.

The decision was the latest move by Malian authorities that targeted media outlets. The signals of France 24 and Radio France Internationale (RFI) have been blocked for three years, and Mali’s private TV channel, Djoliba TV News, had its signal cut off for six months last December over a debate questioning the official version of a thwarted coup attempt in neighboring Burkina Faso.

Like Burkina Faso and Niger, Mali is ruled by military regimes that took power following coups. The regimes have formed an alliance called the Alliance of Sahel States and have severely restricted freedom of expression by cutting off media signals and arresting journalists, political figures, and civil society leaders.