A prosecutor in the Democratic Republic of Congo has petitioned a court in the capital Kinshasa to impose a 20-year prison sentence on journalist Stanis Bujakera, as conveyed by one of his legal representatives on Friday.
Bujakera, a Congolese national affiliated with international media outlets, including Reuters, was apprehended on September 8 and subsequently charged with disseminating false information regarding the demise of a prominent opposition figure. He refutes the allegations.
According to Jean-Marie Kabengela, one of Bujakera’s attorneys, “The prosecutor has requested that our client be sentenced for the sum of all offences to a cumulative penalty of 20 years, and the payment of one million Congolese francs ($364).” Kabengela addressed reporters outside the court, stating, “We are awaiting the court’s ruling.” A verdict from the court is anticipated next week.
The legal proceedings stem from a report published by the French news magazine Jeune Afrique concerning the circumstances surrounding the death of Cherubin Okende, a former transport minister whose body was discovered in Kinshasa on July 13. Jeune Afrique affirmed in September that it stands by its August 31 article, which referenced an internal report by the National Intelligence Agency implicating military intelligence agents in Okende’s demise. The magazine emphasized that Bujakera was not the author of the article and his name did not appear on it.
Congolese authorities have challenged the veracity of the Jeune Afrique article, asserting last month that Okende had taken his own life.
Both local and international human rights organizations, including Reporters Without Borders and Amnesty International, decried Bujakera’s detention, characterizing it as an assault on press freedom. Reuters has also advocated for his release.
(Note: $1 = 2,745.0000 Congolese francs)
(Reuters)
