Rwandan journalist Fred Muvunyi last week became the first head of the new Rwanda Media Commission, a seven-member self-regulatory body. It is a first for a country with a spotty record of press freedom and a history of self-censorship*. The commission itself was created by a government statute in March. That alone should raise concerns […]

The International Press Institute (IPI) today condemned the two-and-a-half-year prison sentence handed down by Rwanda’s Supreme Court to an exiled journalist on 3 June, after he was found guilty of allegedly insulting President Paul Kagame and inciting civil disobedience, AFP reported. Jean Bosco Gasasira, editor of the newspaper Umuvugizi, was acquitted in September, but the […]

IPI on Tuesday said that heavy prison sentences recently handed down to two Rwandan journalists demonstrated the need for legal reforms in Rwanda. A Rwandan court on 4 February sentenced one journalist to 17 years in prison for defaming senior officials, and another to seven years, for inciting unrest. IPI is concerned that, in the […]

Authorities in Rwanda are cracking down on media across the country, ahead of elections scheduled to begin 9 August. On 26 July, the Media High Council reportedly issued a communiqué listing 41 news outlets as having fulfilled the criteria laid out in the media law of the country, and inviting them to apply for an […]