Reporters Without Borders urges release of French filmmakers detained in Togo for alleged immigration violations

Two French documentary filmmakers and their Togolese fixer have been placed in pretrial detention in Togo and charged with making false declarations in immigration procedures, their advocacy group reported Thursday, amid strained relations between the West African nation’s government and French media. The detentions, which have lasted nearly a month, have prompted press freedom organization Reporters Without Borders to call for their immediate release.

Filmmakers Gaël Mocaër and Sebastian Perez Pezzani, along with fixer Fred Vedomey, were arrested on July 27 in Kara, a city in northern Togo. They were working on an episode for a travel documentary series for French public broadcaster France 5. After initially being placed under house arrest, the three men were moved to a military detention facility near the capital, Lomé, and formally charged on Monday, according to Reporters Without Borders. The organization stated the crew had applied for work visas and received a filming permit from Togo's Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Arts.

"Togo's authorities must release these journalists. They were simply doing their job, reporting on the daily lives of Togolese people as part of a...