# Ladder: licensing and closure of outlets, in Africa

A government requires newspapers, broadcasters or news websites to register or to hold a licence, and uses that power to refuse, suspend or cancel it, or to close the outlet. Broadcast licences, which governments issue because radio and television frequencies are limited, are a common lever.

The number of entries reflects the depth of this record, not the severity of a country's conduct.

Narrow with ?stage= (restrict, pressure, punish, silence, eliminate), ?continent=, ?from= and ?to= (year or date).

## Pressure

Using state power short of prosecution to change coverage: regulatory threats, licence reviews, funding cuts, lawsuits by officials, official "fake news" or "foreign agent" labels, advertising pressure, tax audits.

| Date | Country | Head of government | What was done | Outcome | Sources |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 15 March 2002 | [Zimbabwe](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/zw) ([RSF 2026 rank: 124th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Robert Mugabe](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/robert-mugabe) | Zimbabwe's parliament passed the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA), requiring every journalist and media company to obtain a government license renewed every two years, weeks before a closely contested 2002 presidential election. [Full entry](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2002-zimbabwe-aippa-media-licensing) | Unknown | 1 |
| 16 March 2018 | [Tanzania](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/tz) ([RSF 2026 rank: 117th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [John Magufuli](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/john-magufuli) | Tanzania's government, under President John Magufuli, issued regulations requiring anyone running a blog or website with user content to register with the telecoms regulator and pay an annual fee reported at roughly $930, with vaguely worded content bans. [Full entry](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2018-tanzania-online-content-regulations) | Unknown (12 April 2018) | 2 |

## Punish

Legal or physical action against individual journalists or sources: subpoenas and record seizures, prosecutions, arrests, detention, expulsions, visa denials, assault where a government actor is involved.

| Date | Country | Head of government | What was done | Outcome | Sources |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 3 September 2025 | [Ethiopia](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/et) ([RSF 2026 rank: 148th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Abiy Ahmed](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/abiy-ahmed) | Ethiopian authorities arrested at least six journalists between August and September 2025, including three from Sheger FM after the Ethiopian Media Authority ordered the station to delete a broadcast it accused of bias and inciting violence, ahead of national elections scheduled for 2026. [Full entry](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-ethiopia-arrests-journalists-sheger-fm) | Ongoing (22 September 2025) | 1 |

## Silence

Removing outlets or channels from the public sphere: closures, licence withdrawals, forced sales, blocking and shutdowns, prior restraint, nationalisation.

| Date | Country | Head of government | What was done | Outcome | Sources |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 17 July 1950 | [South Africa](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/za) ([RSF 2026 rank: 21st of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Daniel François Malan](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/daniel-francois-malan) | Under Prime Minister Daniel François Malan, South Africa's parliament approved the Suppression of Communism Act in 1950, defining communism broadly enough to cover most opposition to apartheid. [Full entry](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1950-south-africa-suppression-of-communism-act) | Reversed (31 July 1991) | 4 |
| 24 May 1960 | [Egypt](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/eg) ([RSF 2026 rank: 169th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Gamal Abdel Nasser](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/gamal-abdel-nasser) | President Gamal Abdel Nasser's government issued a decree on May 24, 1960 placing every newspaper and magazine in Egypt under state ownership and management, with the government appointing editors and deciding content, ending private control of the country's press. [Full entry](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1960-egypt-nasser-nationalizes-press) | Ongoing (1 January 1989) | 2 |
| 19 October 1977 | [South Africa](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/za) ([RSF 2026 rank: 21st of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Balthazar Johannes Vorster](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/john-vorster) | On October 19, 1977, a day South Africans came to call Black Wednesday, the government banned the newspapers The World and Weekend World and had the Special Branch police arrest editor Percy Qoboza and deputy editor Aggrey Klaaste. [Full entry](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1977-south-africa-world-newspaper-banned-qoboza-detained) | Sustained (1 March 1978) | 4 |
| 12 September 2003 | [Zimbabwe](https://thewaronnews.com/countries/zw) ([RSF 2026 rank: 124th of 180](https://rsf.org/en/index)) | [Robert Mugabe](https://thewaronnews.com/leaders/robert-mugabe) | Zimbabwe's Supreme Court ruled the Daily News, the country's largest independent newspaper, was operating unregistered under a 2002 media law, and police shut its offices the next day; the paper stayed closed for nearly seven years. Note: The country's largest independent newspaper was shut by police and kept off newsstands for nearly seven years, not a temporary suspension or fine. [Full entry](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2003-zimbabwe-daily-news-shut-down) | Reversed (27 May 2010) | 3 |

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