Accra, July 24, GNA - The National Executive Committee of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), has proposed to hold Media Dialogue with the Police Administration in future as part of measures to promote greater understanding between the Police and Editors.
This was the outcome of a meeting between officials of Ghanaian Times newspaper and representatives of Police Administration under the auspices of GJA to resolve misunderstandings that arose from the newspaper's publication of July 21, 2010 headlined; 93Robbers occupy 5 Police building" in Accra on Friday.
A statement issued by the GJA and signed by Mr Affail Monney, Vice President, said during the deliberations, the Police explained that as a law enforcement agency, the allegation of robbers inhabiting their premises had terrifying connotation for the institution's image.
"The meeting agreed that they were squatters and not robbers," it added.
It was established that the intent of Ghanaian Times publication was not to undermine the image of the Police Service as the Police Administration had argued.
The view of the GJA representatives was that the first action of the Police should have been to approach the Editor of Ghanaian Times to seek clarification and possible redress, considering the good relations that existed between them.
The meeting agreed that the symbiotic relationship between the media and the Police required that they work in a cooperative manner without necessarily compromising their roles.
The GJA accepted the fact that the media was not above the law but restated its position that criminalisation of speech in any form was unacceptable and would be resisted with the support of society in consonance with the spirit of the 1992 Constitution because it would undermine the credentials of Ghana as a beacon of freedom of expression and democracy.
