The International Press Institute is outraged at the raid of the offices of Newsday and the search of the senior investigative journalist’s residence on 9 February by the Anti-Corruption Investigations Bureau of Trinidad and Tobago. The police officers executed a warrant and searched Andre Bagoo’s desk in the newsroom during two hours. They went through his computer and documents and after the inspection they took with them two flash drives, two cell phones and a computer hard drive used by the reporter, the newspaper informed.
Later that day, the officers searched Bagoo’s residence and took away three personal computers. The searches and seizures followed a letter dated 20 January from the police requesting from the reporter the source of his 20 December 2011 story about a “Bitter row” between members of the Integrity Commission.
According to Therese Mills, Newsday’s executive chairman & editor-in-chief, when the raid was executed, Newsday’s attorneys were in the course of formulating a reply on behalf of Bagoo that refused to reveal his sources.
“Newsday stands by Mr. Bagoo’s right to refuse to reveal his sources under any circumstances. If this offends the Integrity Commission, under its present chairman, (or any other chairman) to the extent where police raids are made on our newsroom and on the house of our reporter, so be it,” Mills said.
IPI is deeply concerned about these warrants, especially because a similar action happened five weeks earlier against Caribbean Communications Network Television 6 (CCN).
IPI Executive Director Alison Bethel McKenzie said: “The authorities appear to be suddenly conducting acts of intimidation against the media in Trinidad and Tobago . Instead of searching for their cooperation, they are using their power first. It is unacceptable that they are pressing Andre Bagoo in order to make him reveal his sources. It is a clear violation of press freedom and an insult to anyone who values democracy.
“We are concerned about this recent and frequent intimidation of Trinidad ’s journalists and demand that the police commissioner immediately issue an apology to Mr. Bagoo and Newsday,” she added.
Dawn Thomas, Chief Executive Officer of One Caribbean Media Limited and IPI Board Member, said the conduct of criminal investigations affecting CCN and Newsday has spotlighted concerns over application of the press freedom right provided in the T&T Constitution. “Though the ruling administration has sought to distance itself from the search-and-seizures, top T&T Police Service officers have stated their determination to carry out their work, effectively rejecting criticism that this work is being carried out in a heavy-handed way,” she added.
The Trinidad & Tobago Publishers & Broadcasters Association, IPI’s partner in the World Congress 2012 scheduled to be held in Port of Spain in June, has called on the commissioner of the police to publicly explain the reasons for the raids.22
