We strongly condemn illegality in the British media, especially the hacking scandal that has led to the closure of News of the World by its publishers.
We recognise this as a failure of law enforcement and not a failure of journalism and press freedom.
While we endorse British government reaction by way of the setting up of two enquiries to look into the affair, we caution that this quest for revenge should not be a basis to undermine the robust history of press freedom in the UK in particular which could cause a ripple effect globally.
It would be a tragedy if governments elsewhere now use events in Britain to justify the repression of the media in their own countries.
Signed
Alison Bethel McKenzie, Director IPI
Nduka Obiagbena,
President, Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN)