Committee to Protect Journalists - Democratic Republic of the Congo tag:cpj.org,2008-09-16://1 2012-01-04T22:35:17Z Movable Type 4.34-en In DRC, RFI suspended over elections coverage tag:cpj.org,2012://1.18297 2012-01-04T21:24:08Z 2012-01-04T22:35:17Z New York, January 4, 2012--Authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo shut down broadcasts of the French government-funded Radio France Internationale over its coverage of the aftermath of the November 2011 presidential elections, news reports said.... Committee to Protect Journalists Radio France Internationale broadcasts were suspended after the station covered the aftermath of the presidential elections between incumbent Kabila (left) and opposition leader Tshisekedi. (AFP)

New York, January 4, 2012--Authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo shut down broadcasts of the French government-funded Radio France Internationale over its coverage of the aftermath of the November 2011 presidential elections, news reports said.

]]> In pre-election violence, arsonists target DRC TV station tag:cpj.org,2011://1.17817 2011-09-06T22:21:30Z 2011-09-06T23:39:43Z New York, September 6, 2011--Unidentified armed men today torched the studios of a private television station that aired programs favorable to Democratic Republic of Congo opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi, local journalists and news reports said. At around 2 a.m., a dozen men threw tear gas into the studios of... Committee to Protect Journalists A workstation inside RLTV. (John Bompengo)

New York, September 6, 2011--Unidentified armed men today torched the studios of a private television station that aired programs favorable to Democratic Republic of Congo opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi, local journalists and news reports said.

At around 2 a.m., a dozen men threw tear gas into the studios of Radio Lisanga Télévision (RLTV), based in the capital, Kinshasa, and poured gasoline on the premises. They then used Molotov cocktails and incendiary grenades to set the station on fire, news reports said. Two RLTV employees escaped the flames by climbing onto the station's rooftop through an air conditioning shaft, Mamie Mareza, the station's news director, told CPJ. 

]]> DRC politician taped threatening journalist tag:cpj.org,2011://1.17774 2011-08-25T19:49:11Z 2011-08-25T22:02:36Z New York, August 25, 2011--The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo to investigate allegations of threats made earlier this month by a member of parliament against a journalist. The politician's threats were caught on an audio recording of the phone call, which was... Committee to Protect Journalists audio recording of the phone call, which was widely posted on the Internet.

]]> DRC's Kabila government bans broadcaster favorable to rival tag:cpj.org,2011://1.17594 2011-07-13T21:36:47Z 2011-07-13T21:46:11Z Committee to Protect Journalists New York, July 13, 2011--The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the Democratic Republic of Congo's ban of a private broadcaster favorable to opposition presidential candidate Etienne Tshisekedi. The blocking and ban of the broadcaster since Saturday is in violation of the country's press laws. 

]]> Journalist murdered in Democratic Republic of Congo tag:cpj.org,2011://1.17495 2011-06-22T21:58:09Z 2011-06-22T22:06:53Z Committee to Protect Journalists New York, June 22, 2011--Authorities in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo town of Kirumba must thoroughly investigate the murder of radio journalist Witness-Patchelly Kambale Musonia, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. The reporter's bullet-ridden body was discovered early this morning in Congo's North Kivu province.

]]> Attacks on the Press 2010: Africa Analysis tag:cpj.org,2011://1.16469 2011-02-15T05:55:00Z 2011-05-03T15:40:23Z Across Continent, Governments Criminalize Investigative Reporting By Mohamed Keita Across the continent, the emergence of in-depth reporting and the absence of effective access-to-information laws have set a collision course in which public officials, intent on shielding their activities, are moving aggressively to unmask confidential sources, criminalize the possession of government... Committee to Protect Journalists Across Continent, Governments Criminalize
Investigative Reporting
Ivory Coast's President and 2010 presidential candidate Laurent Gbagbo talks to the press. (AFP Photo/Issouf Sanogo)

By Mohamed Keita

Across the continent, the emergence of in-depth reporting and the absence of effective access-to-information laws have set a collision course in which public officials, intent on shielding their activities, are moving aggressively to unmask confidential sources, criminalize the possession of government documents, and retaliate against probing journalists. From Cameroon to Kenya, South Africa to Senegal, government reprisals have resulted in imprisonments, violence, threats, and legal harassment. At least two suspicious deaths--one involving an editor, the other a confidential source--have been reported in the midst of government reprisals against probing news coverage.

]]> Attacks on the Press 2010: Democratic Republic of Congo tag:cpj.org,2011://1.16472 2011-02-15T05:38:00Z 2011-02-12T20:35:55Z h7 {float:none;width:auto;height:auto;font-family:sans-serif;font-weight:normal; margins:5px;} Top Developments • Government arrests several journalists on defamation charges. • Journalists fear repression as 2011 presidential election approaches. Key Statistic 2: Weeks that reporter Tumba Lumembu was held incommunicado by intelligence agents. On the defensive over criticism of its human rights record and its handling... Committee to Protect Journalists Top Developments
• Government arrests several journalists on defamation charges.
• Journalists fear repression as 2011 presidential election approaches.

Key Statistic
2: Weeks that reporter Tumba Lumembu was held incommunicado by intelligence agents.

On the defensive over criticism of its human rights record and its handling of the conflict with rebels in eastern Congo, President Joseph Kabila's government censored news coverage and detained several journalists during the year.

]]> After officials are criticized, DRC radio host is arrested tag:cpj.org,2010://1.16446 2010-12-21T21:30:50Z 2010-12-21T21:48:59Z New York, December 21, 2010--Authorities should immediately release Congolese radio journalist Robert Shemahamba, who has been held in the eastern city of Uvira since Friday in connection with a political program critical of local officials, the Committee to Protect Journalists said.... Committee to Protect Journalists New York, December 21, 2010--Authorities should immediately release Congolese radio journalist Robert Shemahamba, who has been held in the eastern city of Uvira since Friday in connection with a political program critical of local officials, the Committee to Protect Journalists said.

]]> Congolese journalist under arrest; stations forced off air tag:cpj.org,2010://1.15015 2010-07-28T21:00:07Z 2010-07-28T21:46:44Z Committee to Protect Journalists New York, July 28, 2010—Authorities arrested a journalist on Tuesday on criminal defamation charges in Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Hours earlier, in an unrelated incident, armed men briefly forced the city’s three main opposition broadcasters off the air, according to local journalists and news reports.

]]> In eastern DRC, soldiers suspected in cameraman’s murder tag:cpj.org,2010://1.14520 2010-04-06T21:07:13Z 2010-04-06T21:36:18Z New York, April 6, 2010—Following Monday’s murder of freelance cameraman Patient Chebeya in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Committee to Protect Journalists called for a renewed commitment from the government to solidly investigate and prosecute those who kill journalists.Armed men in military uniforms jumped Chebeya, at left, around... Committee to Protect Journalists JED

New York, April 6, 2010—Following Monday’s murder of freelance cameraman Patient Chebeya in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Committee to Protect Journalists called for a renewed commitment from the government to solidly investigate and prosecute those who kill journalists.

Armed men in military uniforms jumped Chebeya, at left, around 10 p.m. as his wife let him in his house in the volatile eastern city of Beni, according to local press freedom group Journaliste En Danger (JED). 

]]> Attacks on the Press 2009: Democratic Republic of the Congo tag:cpj.org,2010://1.13863 2010-02-16T05:40:00Z 2010-02-15T19:33:31Z h7 {float:none;width:auto;height:auto;font-family:sans-serif;font-weight:normal; margins:5px;} Top Developments • RFI removed from FM frequencies; other stations censored.• Hundreds march in nine provinces to protest ongoing threats, violence. Key Statistic 3: Female journalists threatened with “a bullet to the head” after focusing their work on women’s issues. Authorities censored coverage of armed conflict... Committee to Protect Journalists http://cpj.org/ Top Developments
• RFI removed from FM frequencies; other stations censored.
• Hundreds march in nine provinces to protest ongoing threats, violence.

Key Statistic
3: Female journalists threatened with “a bullet to the head” after focusing their work on women’s issues.

Authorities censored coverage of armed conflict and human rights violations in the mineral-rich eastern Kivu provinces. Insecurity reigned in the volatile region, despite the presence of the world’s largest U.N. peacekeeping force. Tens of thousands of people continued to die every month from conflict, disease, and famine, while human rights groups detailed pervasive rape and sexual violence. The vast Central African nation remained among the region’s riskiest for journalists three years after it transitioned to democracy in historic U.N.-backed elections. Throughout the country, officials harassed and obstructed journalists who criticized local officials.

]]> CPJ tells Clinton of threats to women journalists in Congo tag:cpj.org,2009://1.13596 2009-09-15T20:20:18Z 2009-09-15T20:38:34Z Dear Secretary Clinton: In light of your recent advocacy on behalf of Congolese women during your visit to Goma, in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, we are writing to bring to your attention our deep concerns about the safety of three reporters covering women’s issues in Bukavu, south of Goma. Committee to Protect Journalists In DRC, three journalists report death threats tag:cpj.org,2009://1.13582 2009-09-11T18:16:40Z 2009-09-11T18:30:17Z New York, September 11, 2009—Authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo must aggressively investigate threats made against three radio reporters in the eastern city of Bukavu in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.... Committee to Protect Journalists Three members of the South Kivu's Association of Women Journalists, or AFEM, have received death threats. (AFEM)New York, September 11, 2009—Authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo must aggressively investigate threats made against three radio reporters in the eastern city of Bukavu in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.]]> In Bukavu, third journalist murdered since 2007 tag:cpj.org,2009://1.13488 2009-08-24T20:35:28Z 2009-08-24T20:46:03Z New York, August 24, 2009--Following the brutal murder on Sunday of radio journalist Bruno Koko Chirambiza in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo--the third journalist to be slain in the restive region since 2007--the Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Congolese authorities to end the alarming pattern of impunity in journalist... Committee to Protect Journalists New York, August 24, 2009--Following the brutal murder on Sunday of radio journalist Bruno Koko Chirambiza in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo--the third journalist to be slain in the restive region since 2007--the Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Congolese authorities to end the alarming pattern of impunity in journalist murders. Democratic Republic of Congo bans RFI tag:cpj.org,2009://1.13167 2009-07-30T17:23:11Z 2009-07-30T17:25:10Z New York, July 30, 2009--The Committee to Protect Journalists called on authorities today in the Democratic Republic of Congo to lift a ban on the FM broadcasts of Radio France Internationale (RFI) across the Central African country. The government silenced the station in response to its coverage of the ongoing... Committee to Protect Journalists New York, July 30, 2009--The Committee to Protect Journalists called on authorities today in the Democratic Republic of Congo to lift a ban on the FM broadcasts of Radio France Internationale (RFI) across the Central African country. The government silenced the station in response to its coverage of the ongoing conflict in the east, RFI said.

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