UN mission condemns murder of Congolese journalist

The United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) has “categorically” condemned the murder of independent Congolese journalist Bapuwa Mwamba, who was killed by a group of armed men at his home in the capital city of Kinshasa on Saturday.

“This odious crime, which comes eight months after the still unsolved assassination of journalist Franck Ngyke Kangundu of the daily ‘Reference Plus’ and his wife, only increases the very real apprehension, expressed many times recently by MONUC, over acts of violence, threats, intimidation and all sorts of restrictions aimed at journalists, whether they be national or international, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC),” the mission said in a formal statement released yesterday.

The mission requested that everything possible be done to find the murders of both journalists and bring them to justice, saying it actively encouraged the Congolese National Police to fully assume their responsibilities to ensure the security of individuals in the country, particularly members of the press.