Ngozi : Journalist Sandra Muhoza continues to be detained despite calls for her release

SOS Médias Burundi

Ngozi, October 14, 2025 — The Ngozi First Instance Court decided on October 14 to continue detaining journalist Sandra Muhoza, pending a thorough review of her case. This decision comes despite repeated calls from international human rights and press freedom organizations.

At the previous hearing on October 7, the defense had denounced several irregularities, including the fact that the journalist was brought before the court without a prior hearing by the Ngozi prosecutor’s office in Butanyerera province, northern Burundi.

Sandra Muhoza, a journalist for the newspaper La Nova, is accused of violating th3 territorial integrity and ethnic hatred. She was arrested on April 13, 2024, in Ngozi and has been detained in Bujumbura’s central prison, known as Mpimba, since the 18th of the same month.

Previously, the Bujumbura Municipality Court of Appeal had declared itself incompetent to hear the case, further complicating the journalist’s legal situation.

The court’s decision to maintain Ms. Muhoza’s detention has raised concerns among human rights and press freedom organizations, who are calling for a transparent and legally compliant procedure.

Her family and colleagues hope that the full review of the case will lead to a swift restoration of justice and the guarantee of her fundamental rights.

Reactions from international organizations :

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemned the extension of Sandra Muhoza’s detention, noting that the Mukaza Court of Appeal had previously ruled that the original court lacked jurisdiction to try her, thus rendering her previous conviction null and void. RSF urged the Burundian authorities to end this illegal detention and immediately release the journalist.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) called Sandra Muhoza’s continued detention a “grave injustice,” despite the Court of Appeal’s overturning of her conviction. CPJ called on the Burundian authorities to release her immediately, stressing that this situation reflects a desire to suppress press freedom in the country.