{"id":25003,"date":"2015-12-02T09:28:33","date_gmt":"2015-12-02T08:28:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html"},"modified":"2015-12-02T09:28:33","modified_gmt":"2015-12-02T08:28:33","slug":"fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html","title":{"rendered":"Fresh Attempts to Muzzle Free Speech in Burundi"},"content":{"rendered":"

Burundi\u2019s journalists and human rights defenders have had a rough year. A relentless government crackdown has forced almost all of them to flee the country. The assault has been overwhelming: government closure of all the main private radio stations, repeated death threats, threats of prosecution on trumped-up charges, beatings, and the attempted murder<\/a> of leading human rights activist Pierre Claver Mbonimpa.<\/p>\n

<\/strong>Burundi\u2019s vibrant civil society movement and strong independent media used to be the envy of other countries in the region. But the government has spent the past year trying to destroy them. <\/p>\n

The latest blow came just last week, when Interior Minister Pascal Barandagiye ordered 10 Burundian nongovernmental organizations to suspend their activities. The move came four days after the prosecutor general ordered their bank accounts to be frozen. The organizations include Mbonimpa\u2019s group, the Association for the Protection of Human Rights and Detained Persons (APRODH), and Maison Shalom, which helps vulnerable children and runs a hospital in Ruyigi province. <\/p>\n

<\/strong>Just a week earlier, Antoine Kaburahe, director of Burundi\u2019s respected independent newspaper Iwacu<\/em>, was summoned to the prosecutor\u2019s office, in connection with his alleged role in a failed military coup d\u2019\u00e9tat in May. He complied with the summons. The authorities questioned him and let him go, but issued a second summons five days later, and have since requested his extradition from Belgium, where he had travelled for professional purposes. <\/p>\n

Iwacu <\/em>is a prime target for a government that has been lashing out<\/a> at all its critics, particularly since President Pierre Nkurunziza announced \u2013 and won \u2013 a controversial third term in office this summer. Since all the country\u2019s main private radio stations were shut down<\/a> six months ago, Iwacu<\/em> is now the only independent media outlet in Burundi investigating and reporting on killings, arbitrary arrests, and other abuses. Several of its journalists have been threatened before, but have carried on working. Now the government has the boss in its sights, and it may only be a matter of time before it muzzles Iwacu<\/em> too.<\/p>\n

<\/strong>If the Burundian government wants to salvage any of its human rights reputation, it should immediately lift its suspension of these organizations\u2019 activities, unblock their bank accounts, and drop its attempts to silence Kaburahe.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Burundi\u2019s journalists and human rights defenders have had a rough year. A relentless government crackdown has forced almost all of them to flee the country. The assault has been overwhelming: government closure of all the main private radio stations, repeated death threats, threats of prosecution on trumped-up charges, beatings, and the attempted murder of leading […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[567],"tags":[],"ji_location":[2153],"class_list":["post-25003","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-opinion","ji_location-burundi"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFresh Attempts to Muzzle Free Speech in Burundi - JusticeInfo.net<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Fresh Attempts to Muzzle Free Speech in Burundi\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Burundi\u2019s journalists and human rights defenders have had a rough year. A relentless government crackdown has forced almost all of them to flee the country. The assault has been overwhelming: government closure of all the main private radio stations, repeated death threats, threats of prosecution on trumped-up charges, beatings, and the attempted murder of leading […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"JusticeInfo.net\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/JusticeInfo\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-12-02T08:28:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/JusticeInfoNet_logo_1200x630px.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Carina Tertsakian, Human Rights Watch\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@justiceinfonet\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@justiceinfonet\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Carina Tertsakian, Human Rights Watch\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"solivri\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/6e53cba1629e2e66f3fc1821d3091865\"},\"headline\":\"Fresh Attempts to Muzzle Free Speech in Burundi\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-12-02T08:28:33+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html\"},\"wordCount\":381,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Opinion\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html\",\"name\":\"Fresh Attempts to Muzzle Free Speech in Burundi - JusticeInfo.net\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2015-12-02T08:28:33+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Fresh Attempts to Muzzle Free Speech in Burundi\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/\",\"name\":\"JusticeInfo.net\",\"description\":\"For justice to be done, it must be seen\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Justice Info\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/justiceinfo_logo-trans_1200x1200px.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/justiceinfo_logo-trans_1200x1200px.png\",\"width\":1199,\"height\":1200,\"caption\":\"Justice Info\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/JusticeInfo\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/justiceinfonet\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/justice-info\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCyCEsARodyuWtkWyhn-e7pA\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"name\":\"Carina Tertsakian, Human Rights Watch\",\"url\":\"\/en\/?s=Carina Tertsakian, Human Rights Watch\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Fresh Attempts to Muzzle Free Speech in Burundi - JusticeInfo.net","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Fresh Attempts to Muzzle Free Speech in Burundi","og_description":"Burundi\u2019s journalists and human rights defenders have had a rough year. A relentless government crackdown has forced almost all of them to flee the country. The assault has been overwhelming: government closure of all the main private radio stations, repeated death threats, threats of prosecution on trumped-up charges, beatings, and the attempted murder of leading […]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html","og_site_name":"JusticeInfo.net","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/JusticeInfo\/","article_published_time":"2015-12-02T08:28:33+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":630,"url":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/JusticeInfoNet_logo_1200x630px.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Carina Tertsakian, Human Rights Watch","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@justiceinfonet","twitter_site":"@justiceinfonet","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Carina Tertsakian, Human Rights Watch","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html"},"author":{"name":"solivri","@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/6e53cba1629e2e66f3fc1821d3091865"},"headline":"Fresh Attempts to Muzzle Free Speech in Burundi","datePublished":"2015-12-02T08:28:33+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html"},"wordCount":381,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#organization"},"articleSection":["Opinion"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html","url":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html","name":"Fresh Attempts to Muzzle Free Speech in Burundi - JusticeInfo.net","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#website"},"datePublished":"2015-12-02T08:28:33+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/25003-fresh-attempts-to-muzzle-free-speech-in-burundi.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Fresh Attempts to Muzzle Free Speech in Burundi"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/","name":"JusticeInfo.net","description":"For justice to be done, it must be seen","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#organization","name":"Justice Info","url":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/justiceinfo_logo-trans_1200x1200px.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/justiceinfo_logo-trans_1200x1200px.png","width":1199,"height":1200,"caption":"Justice Info"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/JusticeInfo\/","https:\/\/x.com\/justiceinfonet","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/justice-info","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCyCEsARodyuWtkWyhn-e7pA"]},{"@type":"Person","name":"Carina Tertsakian, Human Rights Watch","url":"\/en\/?s=Carina Tertsakian, Human Rights Watch"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25003","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25003"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25003\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25003"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25003"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25003"},{"taxonomy":"ji_location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.justiceinfo.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ji_location?post=25003"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}