Cameroon journalists urge investigation after death of colleague

Journalists in Cameroon gathered on Monday (Jan.23) in Yaoundé to pay respect and demand justice for the killing of their colleague Martinez Zogo, whose was abducted last week and whose body was found this weekend near the capital.

Gathered among candles, flowers and banners demanding justice, friends and colleagues stood outside the radio station Amplitude FM, where Martinez Zogo worked.

Journalist Jean Bruno Tagne said during the event that he believed the killing was "a message that was sent to all independent journalists and to all those who think that this country can function differently."

Tagne added: "Journalists must continue to do their job. We absolutely must not cede to fear so that we don't play into the hands of Martinez's executioners and so that he didn't die for nothing."

The mutilated body of Zogo was found on Sunday near Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon, five days after he was kidnapped.

Zogo hosted a popular daily show on Amplitude FM where – according to the Committee to Protect Journalists - he recently commented on alleged embezzlement in public-sector procurement that benefitted a prominent businessman. Zogo served a two-month prison sentence for criminal defamation in 2020, the CPJ said.