By Jean Sovon
Journalists sometimes have no choice but to flee their country of origin when their lives are threatened. Yet exile does not always bring security, as illustrated by the recent experience of Beninese journalist Comlan Hugues Sossoukpè: He took refuge in Togo but was arrested in Côte d’Ivoire.
In many countries, even on the African continent, journalists who criticize those in power face hostility. They frequently face threats and intimidation, and in some cases are detained or jailed. Faced with such risks, some have decided to flee their homeland and seek asylum in neighboring nations or further away.
International refugee law covers journalists in situations like these, yet its provisions are not consistently observed. In fact, certain governments take steps to detain and extradite journalists who were meant to be safe within their borders. Such was the case in Côte d’Ivoire on the night of July 10–11, 2025, when Beninese journalist Comlan Hugues Sossoukpè was arrested on Ivorian territory and sent back to Benin.
Comlan Hugues Sossoukpè, a professional journalist and director of the Beninese publication “Olofofo,” is also a cyberactivist and whistle-blower. He has been a sharp critic of Patrice Talon, Benin’s president since March 2016.
Following the publishing ban imposed on his media outlet in 2019 — which was later confirmed and upheld by the Beninese judiciary in March 2025 — Comlan Hugues Sossoukpè left his native Benin and moved to Togo, where he obtained refugee status in 2021. From Togo, he has continued his activism and taken part in forums and conferences around the world while remaining a target, closely tracked by the Beninese regime.
In the 2025 Reporters Without Borders ranking, Benin fell three places, dropping from 89th in 2024 to 92nd out of 180 countries.
In early July, Sossoukpè received a letter from Côte d’Ivoire’s Ministry of Digital Transition and Digitisation inviting him to cover the first edition of the Ivoire Tech Forum, held in Abidjan on July 9–11, 2025. As BBC Afrique reported in an article dated July 25, the journalist accepted the invitation and travelled there on July 8.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF), which documented the case, detailed the journalist’s arrest in an article published on its website:
The sequence of events, from his arrest to his transfer to the airport for extradition, points to possible involvement by Ivorian authorities, said Gameli Nouwade, one of the victim’s lawyers, in an interview with Radio France Internationale, published on RFI Afrique’s X account:
Relations between Benin and Côte d’Ivoire are strong across several sectors, including vocational training, justice, military cooperation and counter-terrorism, diplomacy, and economic affairs.
The Beninese authorities have leveled several charges against the journalist, including “online harassment,” “rebellion,” and “glorification of terrorism.” The victim denies all the charges but admits to one thing: carrying out his work as a journalist, criticizing the regime, and informing public opinion about the country’s realities. In a letter cited by “La Dépêche,”
He stated:
As a recognized refugee in Togo, Comlan Hugues Sossoukpè falls under the protection of international refugee law, which applies to journalists in exile. Côte d’Ivoire and Benin are both signatories and have ratified the framework. In a piece devoted to the case, RSF points out:
Against this backdrop, the commitments made by these states lose credibility. Côte d’Ivoire defended itself, justifying its actions by invoking judicial cooperation with Benin. Amadou Coulibaly, Ivorian Minister of Communication and government spokesman, insisted the extradition of the journalist was not illegal, saying to BBC Afrique:
For African journalists, the biggest risk is that this extradition may establish a legal precedent across the continent. Going forward, other states could adopt a similar tactic and hand over exiled journalists to their home countries.
In August 2024, another Beninese cyberactivist, Steve Amoussou, was arrested and kidnapped in Togo. He is likewise known for his strong criticism of Patrice Talon’s rule.
Given these instances of cross-border repression, journalists are wondering whether the security of exiled political journalists can still be assured.
(GlobalVoices/NS)
This article is republished from GlobalVoices under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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