(JED/IFEX) – In a 26 May 2003 letter to JED, Mulegwa Zihindula, a spokesperson for Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Joseph Kabila, said a camera and other equipment belonging to the private television station Télé Kin Malebo (TKM) was returned on 21 May. The station has since confirmed that its confiscated equipment was returned. […]
(JED/IFEX) – In a 26 May 2003 letter to JED, Mulegwa Zihindula, a spokesperson for Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Joseph Kabila, said a camera and other equipment belonging to the private television station Télé Kin Malebo (TKM) was returned on 21 May. The station has since confirmed that its confiscated equipment was returned.
In his letter, the presidential spokesperson also said he “regrets what happened to cameraman Kadima Baruani and other media workers who covered the 17 May public rally.” The march was organised to mark the sixth anniversary of the late Laurent-Désiré Kabila’s accession to power in the DRC. The presidential advisor added that “investigations are underway concerning the incidents that took place during the 17 May march, which [JED] described as constituting serious violations of press freedom and of the public’s right to information. Whoever is found guilty will be held fully accountable in accordance with the law.”
The presidential spokesperson was responding to a 19 May JED letter in which the organisation denounced “the humiliation and threats suffered by journalists during the 17 May rally.” The targeted journalists were officially accredited by the office of the president to cover the events marking the Kabila regime’s sixth year in power.
Baruani, a TKM journalist and cameraman, was prevented from filming the rally, which was held along Kinshasa’s Triomphal Boulevard. Soldiers claiming to be from the Intelligence Services confiscated his camera and press card. They accused Baruani of filming too close to President Kabila, who led the day’s ceremonies.
In addition, a group of journalists from the private press were also manhandled during the 17 May rally. They were beaten up and prevented from carrying out their work on the pretext that they did not have the official badges necessary to cover the day’s official events.
In its protest letter, JED had urged Zihindula, who oversees journalists’ accreditation with the presidency, to make every effort to identify and punish those responsible for the violent incidents. The organisation also asked him to take the necessary measures to guarantee the safety of journalists, so that they can work without fear of harassment. Finally, JED asked the presidential spokesperson to see to it that TKM’s confiscated equipment was returned promptly.
