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Judge confirms detention of Mozambican journalist
4:26 CAT | 21 Jan 2019
in file CoM
A judge of the Macomia court confirmed the arrest of Mozambican journalist Amade Abubacar on Friday, a source from the independent Committee for the Protection of Journalists (CPJ) has posted on the Internet, adding that efforts are under way to get him released on bail.
Amade Abubacar, a Nacedje community radio journalist and Zitamar News freelancer, was arrested on January 5 in Macomia, Cabo Delgado, while photographing families fleeing the region for fear of armed attacks.
He was detained at a military base in Mueda and on Monday was transferred to a police command and then heard by a judge and accused of “public instigation using computerised means”, an official source said.
Civil society press freedom organisations have demanded his release, denouncing it as illegal detention and intimidation of press freedom.
In statements made on Friday, Human Rights Watch (HRW) investigator Zenaida Machado said it was “unacceptable” for a journalist to be arrested by the police and handed over to the military “who kept him hidden for 12 days” without any explanation.
“The security services violated the Constitution of the Republic and the basic rights of a Mozambican citizen, who was arrested without any court order” while photographing people, he added.
On Thursday, the Higher Council of Social Communication of Mozambique (CSCS) demanded his release, excoriating the behaviour of the police and armed forces.
This is the second case of a journalist arrested in Cabo Delgado in the last two months.
In December, three foreign and one Mozambican journalists were detained for 48 hours by the Mozambican army while travelling to Palma district in the same province, despite being accredited to work in the area.
Districts of the province of Cabo Delgado, in the extreme northeast of the country, have been targeted for attacks by unidentified groups since October 2017. According to official figures, about 100 people, including residents, alleged assailants and members of the security forces, have died since the wave of violence began.
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Source: Lusa
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