Newspaper publisher slammed 18-month sentence for defamation

Investigative cameroonian journalist, Adalbert Hiol has been handed an 18-month prison sentence and a 2 million FCFA fine after being found guilty of defamation and the spreading of false information against Prof. Njock Louis Richard, Director of the Laquintinie Hospital in Douala.

The sentence handed down to Hiol, who doubles as publisher of Ades-Infos Jeunesse en Action newspaper, has since been criticised by many.

According to the Mandela Center International, the journalist prior to the sentence had been arbitrarily detained at the New Bell Central Prison in Douala since November 07, 2019.

According to International Human Rights Law (DIDH), the Mandela Center International states, “Adalbert Hiol has never had the right to a free and fair trial as enshrined in the laws of a democratic society”. The publisher’s sentence, the center adds, is unjustifiable and inadmissible.

Adalbert Hiol’s sentence comes as a reminder to a similar case, that of Paul Chouta defamation against Franco-Cameroonian writer Calixthe Beyala and so far is reported to have made several court appearances in her absence.

Several calls have also been made for his release to no avail.