/ 6 November 2001

JOURNO ACQUITTED OF WORKING FROM HOME

AN American radio correspondent accused of working from his state-owned home in Angola has been acquitted, the Angolan journalists’ trade union SJA said on Tuesday. Legal proceedings were brought against Isidoro Natalicio, the correspondent for Voice of America, by the Angolan authorities, who accused Natalicio of working from home in Cuanza Norte. The Angolan authorities said Natalicio, who is also the correspondent for an Angolese Catholic radio station, should not be allowed to use his state-owned home to work and earn money. But the court found that the journalist was not acting illegally by working from home, the trade union said. The trade union said the charge was an ”excuse” aimed at preventing the journalist from working since the majority of homes in Angola belong to the state. The SJA also stated that Angolese law does not impose any condition on where a journalist should work. – Sapa-AFP

Monday November 5, 2001