Authorities reportedly use force during interrogation, and Amnesty International did document several cases of prisoner abuse in 1998. Torture, however, is not systematic. Heavy leg-irons and shackles have been banned since 1997. Prisons are overcrowded and sanitary conditions poor. The government does not allow access to political prisoners.
Security forces monitor personal communications and search homes and offices without warrants.
The press is allowed a certain degree of freedom to criticize government officials and policies. Yet the government obstructs freedom of the press by occasionally detaining journalists without charge and requiring licensing fees. In 1998, at least six journalists for opposition papers were detained or imprisoned. The government also substantially raised licensing fees for newspapers in June. Almost all of the country's printing presses and radio and television stations are government-owned.