Front Line strongly condemns the murder of human rights defender, Didace Namujimbo. Didace Namujimbo was a journalist with Radio Okapi in Bukavu, the capital of Southern-Kivu Province. Radio Okapi is jointly run by the UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC) and the Hirondelle Foundation, a Swiss non-governmental organisation (NGO), to promote access to information as part of the peace building efforts in the region.
Further Information
On 21 November 2008, at approximately 9:30 pm, Didace Namujimbo was returning home from work and was metres from his house in the Ndendere Quarter in the d´Ibanda Community of Bukavu when he was shot in the head by unknown individuals. The attackers took his two mobile phones but left his money, which would indicate that his killing was not the result of violent robbery. On 22 November 2008, the Southern-Kivu provincial police launched an inquiry into the attack. According to Provincial Chief of Police, General Gaston Lunzembo, the ongoing investigation and eye-witness testimony received suggest that Didace Namujimbo was well-known to his attackers. In addition, reports received by Front Line indicate that Didace Namujimbo had been receiving death threats for more than a year in relation to his reporting on violence and human rights abuses in Southern-Kivu.
Didace Namujimbo is the second Radio Okapi journalist murdered in Bukavu. On 13 June 2007, Serge Maheshe, the editor of Radio Okapi, was shot multiple times by unknown assailants as he left a friend´s home. In the past three years, seven journalists have been killed in the province of Southern-Kivu in cases which have never been resolved.
Front Line believes that Didace Namujimbo was targeted as a direct result of his work in defence of human rights, in particular his reporting of human rights violations in the Southern-Kivu Province. Front Line is concerned that this latest assassination forms part of an increasing trend of harassment and attacks against journalists for their human rights work in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Action Finished:
This Urgent Appeal has now ended. No further action is requested at this point. Thank you for taking action on this case.
Front Line issues Urgent Appeals on behalf of human rights defenders at risk on a daily basis. These Appeals normally remain active on our web site for a period of up to six weeks, depending on the situation. After this time they will be archived. Front Line maintains a watching brief on all these cases but no further action is requested after the six weeks, unless there is a significant development in the case.
Didace Namujimbo.