Bujumbura: Journalist Sandra Muhoza sentenced to 21 months for two offences

Our colleague was sentenced by the Mukaza court in the centre of the commercial city, Bujumbura. The decision was made on Monday 16 December. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) denounces “an unjust political decision”, and calls on the Burundian justice system to reverse its decision.

INFO SOS Médias Burundi

Reporters Without Borders, which has continued to denounce the arrest and detention of Sandra Muhoza, announced on Monday she received 18 months in prison for “attacking the integrity of the national territory” and three months for “racial aversion”.

According to the organisation that defends the rights of journalists based in Paris, France, by sentencing our colleague, the Burundian authorities “are persisting in continuing a sad series of acts of blind repression of press freedom”.

Quoted by RSF, Prosper Niyoyankana, one of Sandra Muhoza’s lawyers, considered this conviction “fanciful and motivated by a clear desire to silence anyone who is out of step with the regime”.

Another lawyer told SOS Médias Burundi on Monday evening that “we are going to appeal this decision and demand the unconditional release of our client because she has already served a quarter of her sentence”.

“The unjust conviction of Sandra Muhoza is the latest measure of repression by the authorities against journalists. A decision that comes at a time when the country is heading towards legislative and local elections. While the journalist is being prosecuted because of information implicating the ruling party, there is little doubt that this verdict is politicized”, declared Sadibou Marong, the head of RSF’s Sub-Saharan Africa desk.

“RSF strongly condemns a decision motivated by political considerations and calls on the judicial authorities to immediately release journalist Sandra Muhoza,” he responded.

There was no direct reaction from the judicial authorities of the small East African nation. RSF described the accusations against our colleague as “spurious”.

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Journalist Sandra Muhoza in prison uniform in Burundi, DR