The IPI global network condemns the killing of journalist Narcisse Oredje in Chad on October 20, 2022. Oredje worked for a private radio station owned by Cefod, a media training center for information and development in Chad. Authorities must fully investigate this killing and protect journalist safety amid the country’s ongoing anti-government protests.

Oredje’s death marks the second time a journalist has been killed in Chad this year.

According to a close colleague of the journalist who spoke to IPI on the condition of anonymity, Oredje was killed by a bullet fired by security forces in front of his house. Further details of the incident, including whether Oredje may have been targeted for his work, are not yet clear. The killing took place amid public protests against the extension of the country’s military regime. The protest was violently repressed, with at least 50 people reportedly killed and several others injured due to the police’s use of lethal force.

Other journalists have also been subject to attack in the context of the protests. Mathurin Ngakoutou, editor-in-chief working at the privately owned media Chad 24, also told IPI, that he has been receiving threats over a video he published on Facebook about the deadly repression meted out to the protestors in N’Djamena, Chad’s capital.

“I fear for my life and for my family”, Ngakoutou told IPI via phone. “Since I published the video on Facebook, I have been followed by unknown individuals on motorbikes, and people knocking on my door late at night.”

“Chadian authorities must immediately and transparently investigate the killing of Narcisse Oredje, including determining whether it was work-related, and those responsible must be held to account”, IPI Director of Advocacy Amy Brouillette said. “Officials must respect the rights of the press to report freely on issues of public interest – including the ongoing public demonstrations – and must ensure that the safety of journalists is fully protected and that journalists can carry out their work with fear or reprisal.”

Earlier this year, on February 9, Evariste Djai-Loramadji, a journalist working with a community radio station in Lotiko, in the southeast region about 600 kilometers from N’Djamena  was shot dead by unknown individuals while reporting on an intercommunity clash.

IPI also reiterates its call on Chadian authorities to investigate the earlier murder of journalist Evariste Djai-Lormadji and bring the perpetrators to book.