“DRC authorities should have never detained Willy-Albert Kande or questioned Marcelin Mwananteba, Don Kubutana, and Laurent Ngala, and must end their efforts to intimidate the press over coverage of matters of public interest,” said CPJ’s Africa Regional Director Angela Quintal.

Local media reported that stadium manager Dadou Ethambe lodged a complaint against RTNC after the state-run outlet’s June 8 broadcast of the complex littered with trash and Kande raised concerns on air about the stadium’s conditions ahead of hosting a 2026 World Cup qualifying match. 

Police officers summoned and detained Kande and Mwananteba at a Kinshasa station on June 9 and questioned them about their reporting before releasing Mwananteba the same day and transferring Kande to the office of the National Cyberdefense Council (CNC), an intelligence service of the presidency, according to media reports and an RTNC journalist with knowledge of the case who spoke with CPJ on condition of anonymity.

According to those sources, Kande was accused of denigrating the stadium in a way that promoted Kamalondo Stadium in the south-eastern city of Lubumbashi, which is owned by Tout Puissant Mazembe, the local football team managed by opposition politician Moïse Katumbi.

On Thursday, June 11, authorities additionally arrested RTNC cameraperson Kubutana and reporter Ngala, who filmed the conditions at the stadium and took them to the CNC offices, according to the same RTNC journalist and a post on X by a local reporter. Kande, Ngala, and Kubutana were released later that day evening following the intervention of minister of sports and leisure Didier Budimbu Ntubuanga and the chief of staff for the minister of communication and media, Nicolas Liyanza.

CPJ’s calls to Budimbu and Ethambe received no responses. A WhatsApp message to Ethambe also went unanswered.

This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by CPJ Staff.

A Dakar court judge charged Zik Fm editor-in-chief Simon Pierre Faye with spreading false news on April 14 and released him under judicial control. On the same day, the Dakar gendarmerie questioned for several hours online broadcaster Source A TV’s journalists Omar Ndiaye and Fatima Coulibaly, and freelance news commentator Abdou Nguer, over their comments on the death of a local official. Nguer’s lawyer told local media that the gendarmes detained the journalist on false news charges related to a TikTok post that does not belong to him. The post called for an autopsy of the official. Ndiaye and Coulibaly were released without charges.

“Senegalese authorities must drop all charges against journalist Simon Pierre Faye, release news commentator Abdou Nguer, and end their judicial harassment of journalists,” said Moussa Ngom, CPJ’s Francophone Africa Representative. “Authorities should instead focus their efforts on advancing promised reforms to decriminalize press offenses.”

Police arrested Faye on April 10 for a post on his outlet’s Facebook page, later deleted, republishing another article on the alleged distrust of President Faye’s leadership.

Responding to a parliamentarian’s question about Faye’s detention, Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko said that “penal policy will now be zero tolerance” for spreading “false news.”

CPJ has documented detentions of Senegalese journalists on false news charges, an offense punishable by one to three years in prison. In his campaign, President Faye promised to replace imprisonment for press offenses with fines. 

Separately, on April 13, police and gendarmes stopped and questioned Al Jazeera Qatar journalist Nicolas Haque and his camera operator, Magali Rochat, upon their arrival in the southern Ziguinchor city, where they sought to report on the return of people displaced by the region’s conflict. The journalists were sent back to Dakar the day after, Haque told CPJ.

CPJ’s email to the government’s information and communications office was not answered.

This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by CPJ Staff.

• The United States has freed a close ally of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in exchange for the release of 10 Americans imprisoned in the South American country and the extradition of a fugitive defense contractor.
• The United Nations Security Council has failed for a third time to pass a Gaza ceasefire resolution, even as the death toll reaches the grim milestone of 20,000. U.S. officials state that they want any resolution to include wording that condemns Hamas and affirms Israel’s right to defend itself. Negotiations over a resolution continue, while in Washington, lawmakers and the White House are engaged in their own negotiations over an aid package for Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan.
• In a year-end news conference Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he’s confident his country will get the proposed package of aid currently stalled in Washington. The Pentagon says money for Ukraine will run out at the end of the year.
• The Justice Department today announced that it’s suing a Houston-based land developer for allegedly targeting Hispanic home buyers with false statements, misleading advertising and predatory lending.
• Challengers are telling a federal judge that Georgia Republican state lawmakers’ new voting districts don’t cure illegal vote dilution and should be rejected.
• Workers at fast-food locations across the Bay Area went on strike to demand their companies address dangerous conditions onsite, including broken building services and a string of violent robberies.
• Lawmakers, homeless advocates, and other community members came together to commemorate the homeless individuals who died in the city of San Jose this year.

The post The United States has freed a close ally of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in exchange for the release of imprisoned 10 Americans – December 20, 2023 appeared first on KPFA.

This content originally appeared on KPFA - The Pacifica Evening News, Weekdays and was authored by KPFA.

• The United States has freed a close ally of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in exchange for the release of 10 Americans imprisoned in the South American country and the extradition of a fugitive defense contractor.
• The United Nations Security Council has failed for a third time to pass a Gaza ceasefire resolution, even as the death toll reaches the grim milestone of 20,000. U.S. officials state that they want any resolution to include wording that condemns Hamas and affirms Israel’s right to defend itself. Negotiations over a resolution continue, while in Washington, lawmakers and the White House are engaged in their own negotiations over an aid package for Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan.
• In a year-end news conference Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he’s confident his country will get the proposed package of aid currently stalled in Washington. The Pentagon says money for Ukraine will run out at the end of the year.
• The Justice Department today announced that it’s suing a Houston-based land developer for allegedly targeting Hispanic home buyers with false statements, misleading advertising and predatory lending.
• Challengers are telling a federal judge that Georgia Republican state lawmakers’ new voting districts don’t cure illegal vote dilution and should be rejected.
• Workers at fast-food locations across the Bay Area went on strike to demand their companies address dangerous conditions onsite, including broken building services and a string of violent robberies.
• Lawmakers, homeless advocates, and other community members came together to commemorate the homeless individuals who died in the city of San Jose this year.

The post The United States has freed a close ally of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in exchange for the release of imprisoned 10 Americans – December 20, 2023 appeared first on KPFA.

This content originally appeared on KPFA - The Pacifica Evening News, Weekdays and was authored by KPFA.

After 10 years of non-attendance, France turned up to this week’s French Polynesia sitting of the UN Special Committee on Decolonisation (C-24) — but the French delegate did not deliver the message that pro-independence French Polynesian groups wanted to hear.

French Polynesia was re-inscribed to the United Nations (UN) list of non-self-governing territories in 2013.

Pro-independence leader Moetai Brotherson, President of French Polynesia, came to power in May 2023.

• READ MORE: Macron warns of ‘new colonialism’ in Pacific, but clings to French ‘colonies’
• Other France in the Pacific reports

Since then he has claimed he received assurances from French President Emmanuel Macron that France would end its “empty chair” policy regarding UN decolonisation sessions on French Polynesia.

President Macron apparently kept his promise, but the message that the French Ambassador to the UN, Nicolas De Rivière, delivered was unambiguous.

He declared French Polynesia “has no place” on the UN list of non-autonomous territories because “French Polynesia’s history is not the history of New Caledonia”.

The indigenous Kanak peoples of New Caledonia, the other French Pacific dependency currently on the UN list, have actively pursued a pathway to decolonisation through the Noumea Accord and are still deep in negotiations with Paris about their political future.

French public media Polynésie 1ère TV quoted the ambassador as saying: “No process between France and French Polynesia allows a role for the United Nations.”

The ambassador also voiced France’s wish to have French Polynesia withdrawn from the UN list. At the end of his statement, the Ambassador left the room, leaving a junior agent to sit in his place.

This was just as more than 40 pro-independence petitioners were preparing to make their statements.

The C-24 session started on Tuesday morning.

This week, French Polynesia’s 40-plus strong — mostly pro-independence delegation — of petitioners included the now-ruling Tavini Huiraatira party, members of the civil society, the local Māohi Protestant Church, and nuclear veterans associations and members of the local Parliament (the Territorial Assembly) and French Polynesian MPs sitting at the French National Assembly in Paris.

It also included President Moetai Brotherson from Tavini.

French position on decolonisation unchanged
For the past 10 years, since it was re-inscribed on the UN list, French Polynesia has sent delegates to the meeting, with the most regular attendees being from the Tavini Huiraatira party:

“I was angry because the French ambassador left just before our petitioners were about to take the floor [. . . ] I perceived this as a sign of contempt on the part of France,” said Hinamoeura Cross, a petitioner and a pro-independence member of French Polynesia’s Territorial Assembly, reacting this week to the French envoy’s appearance then departure, Polynésie 1ère TV reports.

Since being elected to the top post in May 2023, President Brotherson has stressed that independence, although it remains a long-term goal, is not an immediate priority.

Days after his election, after meeting French President Macron for more than an hour, he said he was convinced there would be a change in France’s posture at the UN C-24 committee hearing and an end to the French “empty chair policy”.

“I think we should put those 10 years of misunderstanding, of denial of dialogue [on the part of France] behind us [. . .]. Everyone can see that since my election, the relations with France have been very good [. . . ]. President Macron and I have had a long discussion about what is happening [at the UN] and the way we see our relations with France evolve,” he told Tahiti Nui Télévision earlier this week from New York.

President ‘for all French Polynesians’ – Brotherson
President Brotherson also stressed that this week, at the UN, he would speak as President of French Polynesia on behalf of “all [French] Polynesians, including those who do not want independence today”.

“So in my speech I will be very careful not to create confusion between me coming here [at the UN] to request the implementation of a self-determination process, and me coming here to demand independence which is beside the point,” he added in the same interview.

He conceded that at the same meeting, delegates from his own Tavini party were likely to deliver punchier, more “militant”, speeches “because this is Tavini’s goal”.

“But as for me, I speak as President of French Polynesia.”

Ahead of the meeting, Tavini Huiraatira pro-independence leader Oscar Temaru said that “It’s the first time a pro-independence President of French Polynesia will speak at the UN (C-24) tribune”.

Temaru, 78, was French Polynesia’s president in 2013 when it was reinscribed to the UN list.

Speaking of the different styles between him and his 54-year-old son-in-law — Moetai Brotherson is married to Temaru’s daughter — Temaru said this week: “He has his own strategy and I have mine and mine has not changed one bit [. . .] this country must absolutely become a sovereign state.

“Can you imagine? Overnight, we would own this country of five million sq km. Today, we have nothing.”

French Minister of Home Affairs and Overseas Gérald Darmanin wrote on the social media platform X, previously Twitter, earlier this week: “On this matter just like on other ones, [France] is working with elected representatives in a constructive spirit and in the respect of the territory’s autonomy and of France’s sovereignty.”

Darmanin has already attended the C-24 meeting when it considered New Caledonia.

The United Nations list of non-self-governing territories currently includes 17 territories world-wide and six of those are located in the Pacific — American Samoa, French Polynesia, Guam, New Caledonia, Pitcairn Island and Tokelau.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by APR editor.

• Venezuela’s President Maduro in China
• Tencent unveils AI model
• Regulating product packaging
• Small-town bookstores

This content originally appeared on Dissident Voice and was authored by Dongsheng News.

• Venezuela’s President Maduro in China
• Tencent unveils AI model
• Regulating product packaging
• Small-town bookstores

This content originally appeared on Dissident Voice and was authored by Dongsheng News.

HP Risk Management, which provides security advice to the Committee to Protect Journalists, spoke on CPJ’s behalf to a number of journalists in the region about their experiences, the reasons for the increasing violence, and how media workers can protect themselves.

Those interviewed included McKernan, West Bank-based freelance reporter and producer Haya Abushkhaidem, La Croix Israel correspondent Nicolas Rouger, and Noam Shalev, producer and managing director of Israel’s Highlight Films.

Excerpts and safety advice from the discussions:

What are the main drivers behind the current violence in the West Bank?

The four journalists agreed that the pace, volatility and intensity of clashes have increased dramatically, although perhaps not to the same level witnessed during the second intifada, which is estimated to have left more than 4,000 dead between 2000 and 2005.

The journalists identified three key reasons for the escalation in violence, all of which have increased the risks for journalists reporting in the area.

• Increasingly provocative and violent behavior by the West Bank’s Israeli settlers, seen as being emboldened by their perceived support from the far-right Israeli government that took office in December 2022.

• The proliferation of firearms amongst Palestinians and Israeli settlers in recent years.  

• The emergence of new Palestinian militant groups in the West Bank. These groups appear less organized and independent of the traditional chains of command in the waning Palestinian Authority, leading to increasing uncertainty on the ground and raising the risks that journalists face while reporting.

How can media workers stay safe when operating in the West Bank?

All the journalists interviewed agreed that the main threat to reporters is being caught in crossfire and random acts of violence while on the road. However, they felt it was still safe enough for journalists to continue to operate — provided they observe some crucial mitigation measures:

• Good risk assessment and situational awareness is a must in preparation and during an assignment. Reporters should not simply wander into an area expecting it to be fine. (See CPJ’s risk assessment template for more information on how to prepare and conduct a risk assessment.)

• “If you are going to invest in anything, invest in people,” said Nicolas Rouger. More than ever before, local knowledge and contacts are crucial. Both Palestinians and the Israeli settler communities are increasingly distrustful of foreigners and the media, believing reporters to be highly partisan. That makes it important for journalists to work with a local producer or fixer who knows and is accepted as an intermediary in the community/area they will be working in, and can vouch for them with the local population. The facilitator should speak the appropriate language (Arabic or Hebrew) to the community. Reporters should also ascertain if the fixer understands the geography, where the hotspots are around settlements/checkpoints, and the nature of the prevalent conflict dynamics.

Journalists who do not have enough funds to hire a fixer should first go to safer places — mainly Ramallah and Bethlehem — and build a local network, starting with their colleagues from the foreign press community, to gain secure access to more dangerous areas.

• When traveling through the West Bank, journalists should take every measure to avoid being mistaken for “combatants.” This can be done by keeping a low profile, clearly identifying themselves as foreign press, or choosing appropriately plated vehicles that do not arouse any suspicion in the area they are in.

• Whenever possible, journalists should travel in groups through the West Bank and avoid working alone. While there is minimal risk of being kidnapped, the current security situation is extremely volatile and it is safer to have the protection of a group.

• Hiring security advisers comes at the risk of appearing military and can sow distrust amongst locals. All interviewed journalists felt security advisers should only be used in exceptional circumstances. Israeli advisers can be armed; Palestinian advisers cannot. 

• Journalists should be respectful and careful not to antagonize people. They should ask permission before taking pictures – not only out of courtesy, but also because these pictures may have security implications for local residents.

• Distrust of journalists is significant amongst settler communities. Since many are armed, journalists should cautious when engaging with them and careful when entering settlements, particularly in the northern West Bank’s Shilo area and south of Nablus.

• International journalists enjoy more freedom of speech and movement than their Palestinian colleagues and are unlikely to be arrested or deported. However, their relatively protected status does not transfer to Palestinian fixers or crew members, whose safety and security needs have to be given special consideration.

What equipment is needed and what can cause issues?

• Journalists who are planning on covering raids and unrest should bring a blue bullet proof vest and helmet clearly labeled with a PRESS badge in the front and back. They should not wear any other color body armor in case they are mistaken for a member of an aggressive faction or the military. (See the CPJ’s guide to PPE for more information).

• The use of tear gas is commonplace; journalists should, therefore, have access to the appropriate respirators and canisters. If they do not, they should consider moving away from potential confrontations when it becomes clear hostilities will commence. See CPJ’s video for journalists as they prepare to cover assignments where teargas may be deployed.

• A regular cell phone is usually enough to maintain communication as the phone reception, 3G not 4G, is good in most areas of the West Bank. Journalists may consider using both an Israeli and a Palestinian SIM card to ensure the best possible reception. Carrying a satellite phone to the West Bank is legal but not currently necessary as the phone reception is good and the Israeli government rarely jams cell phone signals, even at the location of security raids.

• The use of armored vehicles by journalists is not common, but this could change if tensions escalate. A 4X4 vehicle is more popular and it is sensible to get press plates as well as foreign press stickers. Any media signage should ideally be magnetic to easily be taken on and off. Identifying yourself as press in Palestinian areas can increase safety, but it can be problematic in some Israeli settler areas. 

• The Israeli government is sensitive about the use of drones in the West Bank and throughout areas of conflict. Government permission is required for the commercial use of drones, and it is recommended to use certified Israeli drone operators who can get the drones cleared for takeoff by the authorities and obtain the appropriate insurance.

Are there restrictions on movement?

• Foreign journalists can move freely from Israel into and around the West Bank, but should be aware that a heavy security presence and unscheduled movement restrictions are commonplace.

While there are no checkpoints when entering the West Bank from Israel, “border” checkpoints have to be passed when returning from the West Bank to Israel. In addition, checkpoints are found around Israeli settlements and “flying checkpoints” are set up across the West Bank. Some of the “flying” checkpoints, like the one between Nablus and Jenin, are relatively permanent and others are erected at short notice. Members of the foreign press typically do not have issues clearing checkpoints, but correspondents should carry proper identification, follow all official directives, and be prepared to answer questions about the nature of their assignment and the equipment they carry.

Palestinian journalists or fixers can cross “border” checkpoints if they have the appropriate permit to enter Israel or are Israeli citizens or residents. All journalists, including Palestinians should in theory be able to pass “flying” checkpoints or police cordons, but there is no guarantee that the Israeli police or military will let anyone through.

• Official press credentials are recommended but not required for foreign journalists reporting from the West Bank. They can be acquired from both the Israeli Government Press Office and the Palestinian Ministry of Information. Correspondents can apply for the Israeli press pass online but have to collect it in person.
  
  It is strongly recommended that foreign journalists apply for an Israeli press pass. This can provide an additional level of protection by confirming the holder’s protected status as a member of the foreign media, help with clearing checkpoints — especially those set up in connection with security raids — and facilitate access to military or government officials.

Palestinian journalists living in the West Bank can get press accreditation from the Palestinian Authority through the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate. The Palestinian press credentials only provide access to areas under the control of the Palestinian Authority and usually do not facilitate Palestinian journalists’ interactions with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) or the Israeli police.

Medical emergencies — the basics.

• All media should ensure that they have insurance for working in the West Bank, with an appropriate level of medical and emergency cover.
  
• Medical facilities in Israel and the West Bank are familiar with treating medical emergencies commonly arising in conflict areas.
  
• The emergency number is 101 for both Israel and the Palestinian Territories and operators usually speak English. Israeli and Palestinian emergency services are highly professional and, especially when foreigners are involved, coordinate with each other in order to reach the nearest hospital.
  
• There have been some reports of ambulances being blocked from accessing areas of unrest, but this is not the norm.
  
  Digital safety

• CPJ is aware of an elevated risk for digital surveillance of journalists by the Israeli government. Nevertheless, internet access is generally not being blocked in the West Bank.
  
  
• Foreign journalists should be aware that even though their devices might not be compromised, Israel’s digital surveillance systems in the West Bank are sophisticated and wide-ranging and the devices of Palestinians they interact with probably are.

• Journalists may have their electronic devices searched at the airport, especially when leaving Israel, and should take all appropriate measures to protect sensitive information. See CPJ’s Digital Safety Kit for more information.

For more information on physical, digital, and psychosocial safety resources for journalists, please visit CPJ’s Emergencies page.

This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by HP Risk Management.

On Wednesday, January 25, officers of Venezuela’s investigative police unit detained El Nacional news editor José Gregorio Meza and human resources manager Virginia Nuñez, according to news reports and Miguel Enrique Otero, the president and editor of El Nacional, who spoke to CPJ via messaging app.

Officers brought them to the attorney general’s office in Caracas, where they were questioned about a recent article and released.

Authorities also sent citations to appear at the attorney general’s office to Otero and El Nacional reporters Carola Briceño, Hilda Lugo, and Ramón Hernández, all of whom are based outside of the country and do not plan to comply with the summonses, Otero said.

“Venezuelan authorities’ latest attempt to intimidate journalists at El Nacional by threatening them with criminal investigations is completely unacceptable,” said Carlos Martínez de la Serna, CPJ’s program director, in New York. “Authorities must drop their criminal investigations into the two editors, three reporters, and the human resources manager of the outlet, and allow them to practice journalism freely.”

The citation sent to Otero, dated January 17 and which CPJ reviewed, said he was to be formally charged but did not specify what crime he was alleged to have committed. Otero added that the other journalists were cited the same day.

Otero told CPJ that authorities have threatened Briceño and Hernández’s relatives in Venezuela in retaliation for their journalism.

Police questioned Meza and Nuñez about an article alleging that President Nicolás Maduro’s son, Nicolás Maduro Guerra, who is also a politician, was connected to two Venezuelans sanctioned in 2020 by the U.S. Treasury Department for their alleged involvement in illegal gold mining.

CPJ’s calls and text messages to the attorney general’s office and President Maduro’s press office were not answered. CPJ could not find contact information for the president’s son.

The criminal investigation is the latest move by Venezuela’s authoritarian government against El Nacional, founded 80 years ago in Caracas, which used to be one of the country’s largest-circulation and most influential newspapers. However, a newsprint shortage and government harassment, including fines, defamation lawsuits, and the seizure of its building and printing presses in 2021, forced El Nacional to become a web-only news operation with many journalists and editors living in exile.

This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by Committee to Protect Journalists.

The Biden administration has ruled out the idea of pushing Ukraine to negotiate with Russia to end the war, even though many U.S. officials believe neither side is “capable of winning the war outright,” reports The Washington Post. This comes as the war in Ukraine appears to be escalating on a number of fronts, with Russian President Vladimir Putin accusing Ukraine of committing a “terrorist act” and launching the largest strikes on Ukraine in months. For more on the war, we speak with CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin and independent journalist Nicolas Davies, the co-authors of the forthcoming book, “War in Ukraine: Making Sense of a Senseless Conflict.” “We, the American public, have to push the White House and our leaders in Congress to call for proactive negotiations now,” says Benjamin.

This content originally appeared on Democracy Now! and was authored by Democracy Now!.

Around 9 p.m. on September 12, four armed men in uniforms resembling those of the Congolese army forced their way into the office of the privately owned faith-based radio station in Oicha, the capital of the Beni territory in North Kivu province, threatened two technicians, beat one on the back with the butt of a gun, and seized three computers, a recording device, and two mobile phones belonging to the technicians, according to media reports and Faustin Saumbire, the broadcaster’s editor-in-chief, who spoke to CPJ via messaging app. The station stopped broadcasting after the attack and equipment seizures.

In May 2021, the Congolese government imposed military governance known as the “state of siege” over the country’s eastern North Kivu and Ituri provinces; repeated attacks and harassment of journalists in those regions have followed.

“Congolese authorities should conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into the attack on the office of Radio Evangélique Butembo-Oicha, ensure those responsible are held to account, and work to bring the broadcaster back on air,” said Muthoki Mumo, CPJ’s sub-Saharan Africa representative, in Nairobi. “Attacks on the press in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo by armed men in government military uniforms are far too frequent. They are grim indicators for freedom of the press in the country.”

Saumbire said the technicians, Delphin Sibaminya and Ishara Siwako, told him that the armed men broke down the office door and threatened to harm them if they tried to stop the attackers from seizing the broadcaster’s equipment. They also confiscated their phones to prevent them from contacting others. When Sibaminya objected, the armed men hit him on the back with the butt of a gun and then began taking the equipment. Saumbire said Sibaminya received treatment at a local hospital the next day for a small wound on his back. Siwako was not physically injured in the incident.

As their phones were taken in the incident and the station is not operating, CPJ has been unable to reach Sibaminya or Siwako.  

Station director Caleb Wanzire, told CPJ by phone that he filed a complaint about the incident on Thursday, September 15, on behalf of the radio station, to the offices of Charles Ehuta Omeonga, military administrator of the Beni territory, and Nicolas Kambale Kikuku, mayor of Oicha.

Contacted by CPJ via messaging app, Ehuta said he heard about the attack but had not received a complaint. He said he would investigate as soon as the complaint was received.

Reached by phone, Kambale told CPJ that the incident was deplorable and was discussed in a security meeting of Oicha officials held on Thursday, September 15. “I condemn this attack and during (the) security meeting, we deplored and analyzed this situation by seeking effective solutions to stem general insecurity in Oicha and above all to discipline the soldiers,” Kambale told CPJ. “Investigations are ongoing to find out more.”

Pascal Mapenzi, media coordinator for Beni territory, told CPJ by phone that, in solidarity with the station, Beni journalists gave local authorities 48 hours to find the armed men and return the materials taken from the broadcaster. However, that deadline expired and there were “days without information” on Saturday, September 17, and Monday, September 19, according to Mapenzi and a local Radio Oasis report.

This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by Committee to Protect Journalists.

On July 13, officers with the National Intelligence Agency (ANR) arrested U.S. freelance journalist Nicolas Niarchos and Kazadi, a Congolese journalist known for his reporting on the mining sector for various local outlets, in the southeastern city of Lubumbashi, and transferred them on July 14 to Kinshasa, the capital, according to media reports and a statement by Niarchos about the incident.

Niarchos was released on the night of Monday, July 18, but Kazadi, who also goes by the name Jeef, remained in detention as of Wednesday evening, according to Niarchos’ statement, National Press Union of the Congo (UNPC) Secretary-General Jasbey Zegbia, who spoke to CPJ over the phone, and a tweet by the Congolese Association for Access to Justice (ACAJ), a local rights group.

“DRC authorities should immediately release Congolese journalist Joseph Kazadi, just as they did his U.S. colleague Nicolas Niarchos,” said Angela Quintal, CPJ’s Africa program coordinator, from Durban, South Africa. “Journalists in the DRC are far too often arrested and detained for their work. Authorities seem not to believe that journalism is not a crime.”

Niarchos wrote in his statement that he and Kazadi were detained while setting up an interview relating to reporting on the alleged ties between mining groups and separatists in the country. He wrote that he and Kazadi were “both accredited journalists and were conducting journalistic work.”

Niarchos wrote in his statement, dated July 20, that no charges had been filed against him or Kazadi. CPJ was unable to immediately determine whether authorities had opened legal proceedings against Kazadi as of Wednesday evening.

Niarchos has reported on the DRC for The New Yorker and is working on a book about cobalt mining, according to his author page for The Nation, U.S.-based magazine where he also contributes reporting.

A senior DRC intelligence official told Agence France Presse that Niarchos’ arrest was connected to his contact with members of local armed groups.

Radio France Internationale reported that Kazadi was working with Niarchos when they were arrested.

Niarchos said in his statement that Congolese authorities seized his passport and devices when he was detained and destroyed records of his journalistic work. A copy of his passport was subsequently circulated on social media, he said.

CPJ repeatedly called ANR communications manager Patrick Kitenge for comment, but received no response.

In an emailed statement, the U.S. State Department told CPJ that they were “aware” of Niarchos’ detention and release, adding that the U.S. Embassy in the DRC “communicated its concern with Congolese authorities regarding Mr. Kazadi’s continued detention and calls for a swift resolution of his case.”

At least two other journalists — Patrick Lola and Christian Bofaya — have remained in detention since they were arrested on January 10 in Mbandaka, the capital of Équateur province, as CPJ has documented.

This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by Erik Crouch.