SECTOR 1 1.2 The right to freedom of expression is practised and citizens, including journalists, are asserting their rights without fear. Even though the constitution guarantees freedom of expression, it is not entirely effective for citizens such as journalists. Whether referring to the old or the new regime, the majority of panellists believe that journalists still suffer from “certain fears of reprisals”. The pre- and post-electoral period of 2010/2011 was particularly testing for freedom of expression. Citizens in general and the media in particular had every reason to anticipate acts of violence by the Student Federation of Côte d’Ivoire (FESCI), the Young Patriots, the Republican Forces of Côte d’Ivoire (FRCI) and the Dozos. Today these threats express themselves less frequently through physical aggression towards journalists.They persist, however, in newspapers frequently and repeatedly being suspended (the closure of nine newspapers prior to the elections in 2010, for example) or via the ‘muscled’ visits to newspaper premises (such as during the March 2011 post-election period when the premises of the local newspaper Notre Choix were first vandalised, then confiscated for a few weeks). The panellists agreed on the fact that the State did not necessarily sponsor these actions but the state lacks interest in penalising those responsible. One of the members of the panel pointed out, that following the publication of his article on the ‘devaluation of the CFA’ in September 2010, Ousmane Sy Savané, journalist and media owner of a newspaper, was imprisoned for two weeks at the House of Arrest and Correction of Abidjan (MACA), before being released upon the Prime Minister’s intervention. The same panellist also cited the example of Sylvain Gagneto of Radio Yopougon (Yopougon is neighbourhood in Abidjan), who was assassinated in May 2011, apparently for political reasons. Another panellist added that today, still, certain journalists who work for public media can have their salaries suspended and that other colleagues were still in exile. Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country meets only a few aspects of indicator 3 Country meets some aspects of indicator 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator Average score: 2.9 (2009: 3.0) AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER COTE D’IVOIRE 2012 71