Reporters sans Frontières (Paris)
17 July 2008
press release
Reporters Without Borders strongly condemns this week's deportation of Fuhara Mugisha, the deputy managing editor of Rwanda's leading independent weekly, Umuseso. Despite having a Rwandan mother, Mugisha is a citizen of neighbouring Tanzania.
"This is an unacceptable act of intimidation that yet again highlights the Rwandan government's inability to tolerate the few independent publications," Reporters Without Borders said. "In the run-up to legislative elections, we remind the government that media diversity is an essential condition for the holding of democratic elections."
Plain-clothes police came to Mugisha's home in the north Kigali district of Kacyru at 4 a.m. on 12 July and said they wanted to take him to their office to assist in an investigation. But instead they drove him to the immigration department and from there he was taken to the Rumoso border crossing into Tanzania and expelled.
"This is all part of a desire to gag the press and uproot the independent media," Umuseso publisher Charles Kabonero said. Employed by Umuseso since 2003, Mugisha was the victim of a knife attack in 2004 by assailants who were never identified.
With a Rwandan mother and a Tanzanian father, Mugisha used to have a Rwandan passport and ID card, but the authorities refused to renew them in 2005.
Reporters Without Borders defends imprisoned journalists and press freedom throughout the world. It has nine national sections (Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland). It has representatives in Bangkok, London, New York, Tokyo and Washington. And it has more than 120 correspondents worldwide.
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Ok, now I'm confused! I just read in another publication that both his parents are Tanzanian and Mr Mugisha himself confirmed it. So...half Rwandese or not? Shouldn't be hard to know!
This is astonishing for a country like Rwanda to do this to a Tanzanian. Suppose Tanzania decide to expell all Rwandise living in Tanzania . This is a true colour for new East African members!!
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This is unacceptable! The man has every right to live in the country, he has a Rwandese mother, for Christ's sake! How exactly do they explain treating him as an illegal?? I expect every respectable media in the country to support him or else they'll just be useless to their own.