(JED/IFEX) – Rapid Intervention Police (Police d’intervention rapide, PIR) officers have barred RTKM (Radiotélévision Kin-Malebo) journalists and employees from entering the station’s studios and newsroom since Sunday 29 October 2000. PIR officers were stationed outside the offices of the station in the early hours of 29 October. The formerly private station was recently nationalised by […]
(JED/IFEX) – Rapid Intervention Police (Police d’intervention rapide, PIR) officers have barred RTKM (Radiotélévision Kin-Malebo) journalists and employees from entering the station’s studios and newsroom since Sunday 29 October 2000. PIR officers were stationed outside the offices of the station in the early hours of 29 October. The formerly private station was recently nationalised by order of Minister of Communications Dominique Sakombi Inongo.
A short time earlier, on Saturday 28 October, at about 8:30 p.m. GMT, RTKM programmes were abruptly interrupted by order of Victor Kasonga Mbunga, previously nicknamed “Black Scissors” when he led the public station OZRT (Zairian Office of Radio and Television Broadcasting, Office zaïrois de radiodiffusion et de télévision). Kasonga Mbunga was recently appointed RTKM’s official representative by the minister of communications. He replaces the station’s recently dismissed directors.
According to RTKM journalists, this measure is a consequence of the station’s refusal to follow through with the new programming schedule drawn up by the Ministry of Communications since the station’s programming was relaunched.
