MONROVIA, September 27 – The Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism (MICAT) has strongly warned all foreign journalists, particularly those covering the forthcoming October 11 elections, that they must be registered and duly accredited by the Ministry before taking up journalism practice in the country.

A MICAT release issued last night stated the Ministry's preparedness to sternly deal with any foreign journalists who will fail to conform to its regulation. “Any journalist violating this provision shall be charged with a misdemeanor in the first degree according to Liberian Law,” the MICAT release threatened.

The release further warned, “The Ministry is calling on all foreign journalists to take note and govern themselves accordingly.”

The MICAT release only gave immunity from this stringent regulation to foreign journalists who are employed by the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL).

MICAT also made it clear in its release that neither UNMIL nor any other entity in the Republic of Liberia has the authority to accredit foreign journalists who have not duly registered with the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism.

Recently, the National Elections Commission (NEC) has been issuing press accreditation cards to local and foreign journalists. Local journalists only qualify with an updated Press Union of Liberia (PUL) membership, a standard set by the PUL.

The ministry did not make clear its reasons for issuing the warning about accreditation of foreign journalists.

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