Nairobi – A Burundian journalist held since April 2024 was sentenced to four years in prison, one of her lawyers told AFP on Wednesday, denouncing the proceedings as “unfair”.
“The court delivered its verdict yesterday and notified our client this afternoon at Ngozi prison, where she is being held, that she has been sentenced to four years for undermining the territorial integrity of the nation and racial hatred,” her lawyer said.
He said they would appeal the decision and condemned the process as “unfair and erratic”.
Prosecutors had sought a 12-year prison term.
Her relatives declined to comment on the conviction but told reporters that prison authorities had denied her proper medical care.
Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemned the “very harsh sentence” and “trumped-up charges” in a statement.
It said Muhoza was punished for sharing information in a private WhatsApp group about alleged arms distribution by the government.
RSF called the case proof that the authorities “continue to treat journalism as a crime”, noting Muhoza is the only woman journalist arbitrarily detained in sub-Saharan Africa.
Muhoza was previously sentenced to one year and nine months by a Bujumbura court in late 2024, but that ruling was overturned on appeal in May last year, with the case sent to Ngozi.
Burundi ranks 125th out of 180 countries for press freedom by RSF.
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Source: AFP
