(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to the special advisor to the head of state on security matters, Nono Lutula, RSF asked that the pursuit of Nounou Booto and Fidèle Musangu cease. Robert Ménard, the organisation’s secretary-general, stated: “To our knowledge, by reporting on statements made during a public hearing, these two journalists did nothing more […]
(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to the special advisor to the head of state on
security matters, Nono Lutula, RSF asked that the pursuit of Nounou Booto
and Fidèle Musangu cease. Robert Ménard, the organisation’s
secretary-general, stated: “To our knowledge, by reporting on statements
made during a public hearing, these two journalists did nothing more than
exercise their right to inform.” He added that “the Democratic Republic of
Congo has ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,
Article 19 of which guarantees freedom of expression.”
According to information received by RSF, on 9 August 1999, two independent
dailies, “Le Phare” and “Le Potentiel”, published reports on a public
hearing of the Military Court during which the accused made mention of
conspiracies within the security services. On 11 August, further to the
publication of these reports, agents of the State Security Council visited
the offices of the two newspapers to detain the authors of the two reports,
Booto of “Le Potentiel”, and Musangu of “Le Phare”. Because the journalists
were not there, the security services agents arrested the editor-in-chief of
“Le Potentiel”, Modeste Mutinga. The journalist was released that same
evening after being interrogated.
