Gabon: anti-corruption campaigners released on bail

Sherpa and Transparence International (France) welcome decision and urge Gabonese authorities to allow French lawyer into Libreville to assure their defence

Sherpa and Transparence International (France) are delighted to learn of the release on Monday 12 January 2009 at 7pm, of the four Gabonese civil society activists – Grégory Ngbwa Mintsa, Marc Ona Essangui, Georges Mpaga and Gaston Asseko [1] – who had been detained in Libreville since 30 and 31 December 2008, respectively.

This release follows days of large-scale international mobilisation by both non-governmental groups and French authorities in Paris and Libreville.

Although released on bail, charges against the four activists have not been dropped [2]. Therefore, it remains crucial to ensure that Mr Thierry Lévy, a French lawyer mandated by their families to assure the activists’ defence, is granted a visa so as to travel to Libreville and prepare for judicial proceedings together with Gabonese lawyer Ruphin Nkoulou Ondo, Esq. [3].

Notes

[1] Gregory Ngbwa Mintsa, civil servant and civil plaintiff in the “Misappropriated Public Assets” case, filed a complaint in France together with Transparence International (France) denouncing the alleged embezzlement of public funds in Gabon ; Marc Ona Essangui, Coordinator of the “Publish What You Pay” (PWYP) campaign in Gabon and Chair of the non-governmental organisation “Brainforest”; Georges Mpaga, President of the Gabonese civil society network for good governance in Gabon (ROLBG); and Gaston Asseko, a journalist with the Catholic Radio “Sainte-Marie”. Dieudonné Koungou, a journalist at “Tendance Gabon” who was also arrested on 30 December 2008, was the first to be released on 7 January 2009.

[2] The activists have been charged with “possession of a document for dissemination for the purpose of propaganda” ( Détention d'un document en vue de sa diffusion dans un but de propagande), and with ”oral or written propaganda aimed at inciting rebellion against state authorities” ( Propagande orale ou écrite en vue de l'incitation à la révolte contre les autorités), which are offences according to articles 88 and 90 of the Gabonese criminal code.

[3] On 8 January 2009, Gabonese authorities cancelled Thierry Lévy’s visa for the Republic of Gabon at the very last minute, in breach of the Franco-Gabonese convention on mutual legal assistance (1963) that expressly provides that lawyers registered to the French bar are allowed to “assist or represent parties before all Gabonese jurisdictions (…) in the same conditions as lawyers registered to the Gabonese bar”.

PRESS CONTACTS:

Transparence-International (France) | Myriam Savy | Daniel Lebègue | 01 47 58 82 08 or 06 87 88 53 07 | Julien Coll | 06 72 07 28 65

Association Sherpa | Maître Bourdon (avocat de M. Gregory Ngbwa Mintsa) | 06 08 45 55 46 | Yann Queinnec | 06 13 30 36 57 | Maud Perdriel-Vaissière | 06 83 87 97 34