Ladder: prior restraint, in Africa

An order or rule that stops something from being published before it appears, rather than penalising it afterwards. Examples are boards that must approve articles, books or films before release, court injunctions against publication, and rules that require officials to review material before it is published.

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

Narrow this ladder

StageAnyRestrictPressurePunishSilenceEliminate

ContinentAnyAfricaAsiaEuropeNorth AmericaSouth AmericaOceaniaAntarctica

From (year or date)

To (year or date)

Apply Clear all

1. Restrict
2. Pressure
3. Punish
4. Silence
5. Eliminate

2Pressure

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.

EGEgyptRSF 2026 rank: 169th of 180

October 2018Abdel Fattah el-Sisi

Egypt's Supreme Council for Media Regulation required news websites to obtain a government license to operate, and independent outlet Al-Manassa's application, filed in 2018, went unanswered for more than two years.

Note: A national council required a license before a news site could operate at all and left the application unanswered for years rather than approving, denying or fining it.

Ongoing 26 October 2020 · 2 sources · Full entry

4Silence

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

ZASouth AfricaRSF 2026 rank: 21st of 180

17 July 1950Daniel François 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.

Reversed 31 July 1991 · 4 sources · Full entry

All ladders · Prior restraint: by country and year · The United States chapter