Journalist arrested for story yet to be published

  1. Posted on Monday 31 October 2011 - 10:30
    jerrynguwa
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    Jerry Nguwa, AfricaNews reporter in Nairobi, Kenya
    With the General Elections in almost a month time, tension is rising in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Insecurity is rife, abuse by security forces on the population and the media has also become very rampant. The latest case involves a journalist and priest.
    newspaper
    Mr. Odon Mwamba Kayembe, a journalist from Grognon a local newspaper in Lubumbashi – DR. Congo – is been held by Special Forces since October 23rd 2011. His offence? An article he was still working on unearthing a prohibited relation between a priest and his parishioner in Lubumbashi.

    In his quest to get all the facts right, Odon Mwamba contacted some parishioners around a densely populated neighbourhood in a Lubumbashi outskirt neighbouring Katanga’s Major Seminary that Father Twite also head. Upon hearing of that, Father Twite did not approve of the article and sought to thwart Odon’s efforts. He confronted the scribe and requested that he hands over all materials and discloses the sources of his information.

    Faced with a categorical refusal from Odon, Father Twite using his high placed friends in security agencies, called the Criminal Police that incarcerated the scribe. It is important to highlight the fact that Mr. Odon Mwamba has been arrested for an article he has never published.

    JED – Journalist in Danger – an umbrella body that defends the right of journalists in the Democratic Republic of Congo has denounced the arrest and described it as unlawful. According to Ms Sylvie Manda, executive director of JED in Lubumbashi – Katanga Province, Odon Mwamba was to be summoned before been arrested. Him been detained is a clear violation of press freedom and hi basic Human Rights.

    The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), which launched a review of press freedom around the world during World Newspaper Week, held from 10 to 15 October in Vienna, Austria says that 44 journalists have been murdered this year globally. The Democratic Republic of Congo has been a haven of press freedom oppressors according to reporters without borders.

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