(JED/IFEX) – Feu d’Or Bonsange Ifonge, Aristote Dola, Kala Bokango and Guy Batshika, journalists with the thrice-weekly Kinshasa newspaper “L’Alarme”, were arrested on Saturday 11 November 2000, early in the morning, at the Place Victoire in Kinshasa/Kalamu. The four men were arrested while distributing issue 236 of their newspaper, which had been published that same […]
(JED/IFEX) – Feu d’Or Bonsange Ifonge, Aristote Dola, Kala Bokango and Guy Batshika, journalists with the thrice-weekly Kinshasa newspaper “L’Alarme”, were arrested on Saturday 11 November 2000, early in the morning, at the Place Victoire in Kinshasa/Kalamu. The four men were arrested while distributing issue 236 of their newspaper, which had been published that same day.
The men who chased and arrested the four journalists were not identified. They were dressed in civilian clothes. According to information received by JED from “L’Alarme”‘s management and Ifonge’s family, on 12 November, Ifonge was taken to the National Information Agency (Agence nationale de renseignements, ANR) in Kinshasa/Gombe and locked in a cell. According to these same sources, the detained journalist has been denied the right to receive visitors. Ifonge’s wife was not allowed to see him and had to leave food for him with a guard.
“L’Alarme”‘s management has not had any news of the whereabouts of Dola, Bokango and Batshika since 11 November. Other sources claim the three journalists have gone into hiding.
“L’Alarme” had published a lead article by Dola in the issue in question titled: “Mbandaka is burning…”. In the article, the newspaper contended that the population of Mbandaka – the province of Equator’s main city, in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s north-east, under the control of forces loyal to President Laurent-Désiré Kabila – is “fearing an imminent attack” by rebel troups of the Movement for the Liberation of the Congo (Mouvement pour la libération du Congo, MLC).
According to the newspaper, because of their fears, the population has abandoned all productive work. In addition, private shipowners are no longer willing to take the risk of sending their ships to the city. As a consequence, explains “L’Alarme”, prices have soared, leading to fears among non-governmental organisations of a coming famine in Mbandaka.
“L’Alarme” is owned by Albert-Gilbert Bonsange Yema, who has been living in exile since serving a one-year prison term in a Kinshasa prison.
