The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) has condemned the assault and detention of two JoyNews journalists by National Security operatives in Accra, describing the incident as “a gross violation of human dignity and constitutional protections of press freedom.”
Reporter Carlos Calony and cameraman Jonas Dodzi Voegborlo were attacked on Wednesday, 30 July 2025, while covering the demolition of a warehouse at Spintex, allegedly linked to the McDan Group. An eyewitness they were interviewing was also assaulted.
According to Calony, the incident began when soldiers approached and questioned why they were filming the exercise.
“Around that time, we were to go on air, so I was speaking to my producer. And in the process of talking to my producer, another military man from behind said it seemed I was filming, and so he punched me from behind, two direct blows to my neck,” he recounted.
“At that point, I lost control and almost fell down,” Calony told JoyNews, as noted by MFWA.
MFWA reported that “the journalist and three others, and the eyewitness, were subsequently detained and transported to the National Security Secretariat (Blue Gate), where their phones were searched for footage of the incident.”
“Calony said he was detained for 45 minutes before being released.”
The foundation said it spoke with the journalist, who indicated he was receiving treatment at the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC) for severe neck pain.
“I am not feeling well. We were beaten for simply doing our job,” Calony said.
MFWA noted that the attack occurred barely a day after President John Mahama urged African governments to protect press freedom during a continental governance dialogue in Addis Ababa, cautioning that “democracy cannot thrive in the presence of fear and repression.”
The organisation further observed that this is the second time in less than a month that journalists have been attacked by security officers while on duty.
While acknowledging a statement from the Presidency condemning the assault and calling for investigations, MFWA insisted that stronger measures were required.
“We demand that the Minister for Defence and the National Security Coordinator attend to this urgently and with the highest level of transparency,” it said.
The foundation urged the government to address “the worrying trend” of national security operatives disregarding constitutional rights.
