Africa's Press of Freedom.

Cameroonian editor Pius Njawe, has established "Le Messager," as one of the most prominent representatives of a new brand of independent newspapers and magazines that has been emerging in sub-Saharan Africa over the past couple of years. The new journals are one of the most heartening developments in the continent in a long time. They are appearing as far west as Senegal, in Kenya in the east, and all the way down to Namibia and Zimbabwe. The independent newspapers are an important part of the increasing popular demands for democracy in what until quite recently were mainly repressive dictatorships. Many factors are prompting these political changes. Africa's foreign debt is higher per capita than almost anywhere else in the Third World, and continued tow commodity prices, along with mismanagement and corruption, have caused ten years of economic stagnation. The new press has played an indispensable role in giving voice to the opposition. The independent editors and reporters are some of the most courageous and genuinely public-spirited people on the continent.