The CNDD-FDD regime does not tolerate journalists who give a voice to their opponents, armed or not, as well as to those who carry away any discordant voice, including those of civil society activists.
Every May 03, the world celebrates Press Freedom Day. In Burundi, two women journalists and two men are in prison and a hundred other journalists have been in exile for 9 years. Why is it so difficult for journalists and politicians to live together in Burundi? Journalists give their opinions.
“The media are currently censoring themselves in Burundi”, says Jean-Claude Kavumbagu, director of the online news agency Net Press. With 28 years’ experience, he is one of the few journalists still working in the country. “We work in a very difficult climate. Journalism is a profession that’s frowned upon, fought against, even.” he adds.
The director of the Net Press agency deplores the fact that investigative journalism, once the pride of the Burundian media, has been abandoned. Journalists have serious problems accessing sources of information, especially official sources.
For Jean-Claude Kavumbagu, members of the government hide behind their spokesmen, who regularly organize public conferences. “Information is held by ministers, and they are the ones who should be answering questions from journalists and the general public”, stresses JC Kavumbagu.
Without contradicting the Reporters Sans Frontières ranking, which shows an improvement in the ranking, 108th place in 2024 compared with 114th in 2023 out of a total of 180 countries, JC Kavumbagu nevertheless sees no progress on the ground.
Fiacre Munezero, a former journalist with Radio Télévision Nationale and one of the founders of the (private) Radio Isanganiro, paints a similar picture to that of his former colleague JC Kavumbagu.
According to Fiacre Munezero, the CNDD-FDD regime does not tolerate journalists who give a voice to their opponents, armed or not, as well as to those who carry away any discordant voice, including those of civil society activists.
Fiacre Munezero, one of the journalists who extended the microphone to the country’s current leaders still in hiding, regrets that the CNDD-FDD regime is reproducing what it claimed to be fighting in the past.
“When we went to meet them in the maquis, the FDD fighters were very appreciative of us for having dared to risk our lives in order to carry their demands far.”
Having operated in a climate of tension and intimidation under the regimes that preceded the current one, Fiacre Munezero believes that the CNDD-FDD has set the bar high. “Attacking media outlets and shooting at equipment is unimaginable and incomprehensible.”
A victim of his profession on several occasions, JC Kavumbagu has already been imprisoned five times, by different regimes. For him, Burundi’s rulers persecute journalists for only one reason. “Journalists disseminate information that they wanted to keep secret.
Also deploring the muzzling of the press, the president of the Union Burundaise des Journalistes UBJ, one of the journalists in exile, regrets that crimes committed against journalists go unpunished. Alexandre Niyungeko, director of one of the radio stations broadcasting from exile, hails what he describes as the bravery of the journalists remaining in exile.
At the head of Burundi since June 2020, President Evariste Ndayishimiye is making promising speeches, but these are not being followed by concrete action.
With one year to go before the first elections (legislative elections scheduled for 2025), a draft electoral code is awaiting promulgation. One of the amendments prohibits journalists from publishing election results before the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI). This is yet another blow to the profession of journalism, according to guest journalists.
“We’re waiting to see what the President of the Republic does. If he is in favor of a free press, he should not promulgate the electoral code as it stands”. declares JC Kavumbagu.
But while awaiting concrete action from the Head of State, two women journalists remain imprisoned.
Floriane Irangabiye, from Radio Igicanoro, has been locked up for over a year. She has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for undermining the internal security of the state. Sandra Muhoza, of the online agency LaNova, has been a tenant in Mpimba central prison since April 18. She is charged with undermining state security and racial aversion.
