2005

NOVEMBER 12, 2005 Posted: December 8, 2005 Salifou Soumaila Abdoulkarim, Le Visionnaire IMPRISONED, LEGAL ACTION Abdoulkarim, director of the private newspaper Le Visionnaire, was placed in “preventive detention” at police headquarters in the capital, Niamey, after State Treasurer Siddo Elhadj brought a criminal defamation suit against him. Abdoulkarim was transferred to prison on November 17…

JULY 11, 2005 Updated: July 28, 2005 Jean Marie Kanku, L’Alerte IMPRISONED Kanku, publisher of the private newspaper L’Alerte in the capital, Kinshasa, was arrested on July 11 and charged with criminal defamation.

New York, November 11, 2005—Police in southwestern Cameroon detained an Australian freelance journalist today as he was researching secessionist movements in the region. Cameroonian Communications Minister Pierre Moukoko Mbonjo told the Committee to Protect Journalists that authorities are investigating Andrew Mueller’s activities. Speaking by phone from detention, Mueller told CPJ that he was traveling to…

New York, November 9, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists today voiced outrage at the criminal defamation charge brought against award-winning journalist Fred M’membe for criticizing Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa. M’membe, editor of Zambia’s leading daily The Post, was charged and released on bail after six hours in policy custody. He is due in court tomorrow,…

Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists is writing to protest your government’s targeting of the private press following clashes last week between protesters and security forces, in which at least 40 people were killed, according to international news reports.

New York, November 8, 2005—A court in the Democratic Republic of Congo today freed journalist Jean-Marie Kanku on bail after 12 days of detention, press freedom group Journaliste en danger (JED) said. But journalist Patrice Booto, who was detained last week without charge, remains behind bars, JED said. Local journalists raised the detention of both…

New York, November 4, 2005—Ethiopian authorities have jailed at least two journalists and increased censorship of media coverage of anti-government protests, which today spread north of the capital Addis Ababa. Local sources told the Committee to Protect Journalists that police arrested two editors and a reporter from the independent Amharic-language weekly Hadar on Wednesday. Many…

NOVEMBER 3, 2005 Posted: November 8, 2005 Franck Kangundu, La Référence Plus KILLED—UNCONFIRMED Kangundu, a veteran political affairs journalist at the independent daily La Référence Plus, was shot dead shortly after midnight by unidentified assassins who accosted him at his home in the capital, Kinshasa. The attackers also killed Kangundu’s wife, Hélène Mpaka.