In a context marked by security challenges in Ituri, freedom of the press is being undermined, with a worrying increase in threats and attacks against journalists. According to information reported by the NGO Journaliste en danger (JED), around ten media professionals have been the target of death threats and arbitrary arrests during this year.
Journalists working in the Ituri region are thus confronted with a climate of growing insecurity, hindering their essential mission of informing the population. Extremely serious acts have been perpetrated against them, ranging from arbitrary detentions to physical attacks, including kidnappings by armed groups or unscrupulous bandits.
These acts, some of which have gone unpunished despite complaints filed with the judicial authorities, constitute a direct threat to freedom of the press and the right to information. The situation is all the more worrying because journalists play a crucial role in disseminating reliable and verified information in a region where access to credible sources of information is already restricted.
Rachidi Koudra, a journalist for the online media Ituri.cd and himself a victim of aggression, deplores the lack of follow-up of the cases of journalists who have been attacked: “The justice system must take these threats and aggressions against journalists seriously, because they hinder our ability to objectively inform the population”. He stresses the importance of days such as the one organized by JED, which highlight the urgent need to protect journalists in the exercise of their profession.
Freddy Upar, head of Journaliste en danger in Ituri, insists on the urgency of concerted action to guarantee the safety of journalists and preserve press freedom in the region. He highlights the challenges faced by journalists in eastern DRC, and calls for increased mobilization to address these threats.
In this context, the representative of the Attorney General at the Ituri Court of Appeal encourages victims to contact her office, promising rigorous monitoring of cases relating to crimes against journalists. This is a crucial step in the fight against impunity and ensuring the protection of journalists in a region where their work is more essential than ever to inform and enlighten public opinion.