Foreign journalists without permits to be prosecuted, Govt warns

The government has warned that foreign journalists working in Kenya without a valid press card issued by the Department of Information will be prosecuted.

The director of Information Joseph Olewe Owiti said journalists planning to be in the country for a short period of up to three months should be issued with special passes while those deployed in the country for a period exceeding three months will have to be issued with a work permit.

Foreign journalists have also been warned against making films for public exhibition or sale within or outside Kenya without a proper licence.

The head of Film Services Ernest Kerich said that during the recently concluded General Election, foreign journalists applied for and were issued with press cards to cover the election.

"The accreditation was only for the purposes of news coverage and not for documentary film making. Contrary to the provisions of the law, it has come to our attention that some journalists went ahead and also engaged in documentary film making using the same press passes," he said Wednesday.