Month: August 2024

kigali, rwanda / washington — Burundian President Evariste Ndayishimiye has pardoned journalist Floriane Irangabiye, who had been serving a 10-year prison sentence.

The pardon was announced through a presidential order issued Wednesday.

Irangabiye, a talk show host for Igicaniro Radio, an online media outlet operating from abroad, was arrested in August 2022 after traveling to Burundi from Rwanda, where she had been living in exile.

She was convicted of undermining national security and collaborating with armed groups, charges that her colleagues and various human rights organizations had consistently contested, arguing that her arrest was a direct result of her work as a journalist.

The superior court of Ntahangwa had sentenced Irangabiye to a decade in prison, a ruling that sparked widespread condemnation from journalists’ associations and human rights groups. These organizations had tirelessly campaigned for her release.

Speaking to reporters outside Bubanza Prison after her release Friday, Irangabiye said it was the news her family had been waiting for.

“I am very happy and have a lot to say,” she said. “I am going to rejoin my family and meet my children again. I hope this is a special day for them. August 16, 2024, will always be a special date in my life, a date that will be part of my history in one way or another.”

She said her time behind bars had been trying and thanked those who pushed for her release.

“This is not a place you would wish anyone to be, not even your enemies. The pardon from President Evariste Ndayishimiye is something I will never forget. I have been touched in a special way. I am grateful to local and international human rights organizations that did a lot of advocacy on my behalf for such a day to happen,” she said.

The arrest highlighted a repressive media environment in Burundi where, according to Reporters Without Borders, media members face intimidation and live in fear of attacks or detention. Many practice self-censorship to report on issues in the country. VOA has been forbidden from broadcasting inside the country since 2018.

The news of Irangabiye’s pardon has been met with joy and relief by her family, colleagues and supporters.

Irangabiye’s colleagues at Igicaniro Radio have expressed their belief that her arrest was a direct consequence of her reporting.

Jeremie Hatangimana called her release a victory for free press. “We are happy and grateful about the pardon and release, but this should not have happened in the first place,” he said.

Justine Nkurunziza, a member of Inamahoro, a women’s organization that advocates for peace and security, expressed her gratitude that Irangabiye would soon be reunited with her children.

“This is a moment of relief and joy,” she said.

Irangabiye’s sibling, who preferred not to be named, also said she was overjoyed by the news of the pardon. “We have been waiting for this moment for two long years,” she said.

Burundian rights group Ntabariza, which advocates on behalf of prisoners and their families, also welcomed Irangabiye’s release but called on Ndayishimiye to extend similar clemency to other individuals who they believe have been unjustly imprisoned, including another journalist, Sandra Umuhoza.

This story originated in VOA’s Central Africa Service.
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GENEVA  — U.N. aid agencies welcome the opening of the Adre border crossing with Chad, which, they say will allow desperately needed humanitarian assistance to flow to millions of people who have been trapped in Sudan’s conflict hot spots for months with limited access to food, medicine and other essential relief.  

The decision by Sudan’s military to reopen this crucial border crossing comes as aid agencies say they are racing against time to save the lives of millions of people at risk of starvation and deadly disease outbreaks.   

The World Food Program calls Sudan the world’s largest hunger crisis, noting that 25.6 million people are “in acute hunger.” 

“That is 54% of the population. So, that basically means that one in two Sudanese is not able to put a basic meal on their plate every day, are struggling every day just to eat,” Leni Kinzli, WFP Sudan spokesperson, told journalists Friday in Geneva. 

Speaking from the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, she said that about 755,000 people are in the highest stage of food insecurity, “catastrophic hunger,” which basically means they have run out of all options and are surviving in whatever way that they can — “eating leaves off trees, eating grass.” 

“In fact, we have received reports of people dying of hunger,” she said noting, “Famine was confirmed just two weeks ago in Zamzam IDP [internally displaced people] camp,” which is around 12 kilometers away from El Fasher, North Darfur’s capital, “where fighting continues to intensify week by week with more people fleeing.” 

Kinzli added that the opening of the critical humanitarian corridor through Adre will enable the delivery of aid into Sudan’s conflict-rattled Darfur region. She said WFP was “immediately” assembling vital food and nutrition supplies to be transported across the Adre corridor over the coming weeks. 

“We need to see trucks moving across this border every single day to get a consistent flow of aid into the region,” she said, noting that enough food for half a million people was being loaded, and was ready to go to famine areas in the North, Central and West Darfur states “as soon as official government communication and clearances are received.” 

Besides the Zamzam IDP camp, the U.N. Famine Review Committee recently reported that 13 other areas are on the brink of famine, largely in Darfur, Kordofan, Khartoum, and Gezira. 

Aid agencies warn heavy rainfall and floods are worsening the already devastating food security situation in Sudan. They say floods are forcing more people from their homes; that broken bridges, and muddy roads are cutting communities off from vital assistance. 

This natural disaster follows months of insecurity, which have limited humanitarian aid from reaching beleaguered communities.    

The World Health Organization reports access to health care has been constrained because of insecurity in the region. This has caused a shortage of medicines, medical supplies and health workers — with those remaining “not being paid.” 

“And we are seeing many, many attacks on health care,” said Dr. Margaret Harris, WHO spokesperson. “In the conflict hot spots, 70% to 80% of the hospitals are non-functional. So, people are dying simply from a lack of access to basic and essential health care and medication.” 

The nonprofit group Medecins Sans Frontieres, also known as Doctors Without Borders, warns that the last hospital in El Fasher risks closure. It says the last MSF-supported Saudi hospital — the last remaining public hospital in the city “with the capacity to treat the wounded and perform surgery” — has been attacked, “causing extensive damage and leaving the facility only partially functioning.” 

If the hospital is hit again and becomes non-functional, MSF warns “there will be nowhere left for the injured to seek care and the death toll will soar.” 

While WHO also welcomes the Adre crossing’s opening, spokesperson Harris observed that nothing can be done to help people in dire need unless they can be reached. 

She said people who are malnourished or starving are at risk of very grave health consequences.  

“Anything that is a mild infection in somebody with good nutrition, a good immune system, becomes a catastrophic illness in somebody who is malnourished, particularly a child,” she said. “And they can die very, very quickly from what would be a minor infection if they are malnourished.”   

WHO says thousands of cases of cholera, measles, dengue, meningitis and other diseases, including hundreds of deaths, have been reported in numerous states, as well as 1.7 million malaria cases, including 173 deaths from malaria. 

“Confirmation of all these cases is very challenging because we do not have functional public health laboratories. So, again, those numbers are highly likely to be an underestimate,” Harris said. 

The decision by the Sudanese government to open the Adre crossing followed the start of U.S.-sponsored peace talks Thursday in Geneva. Aid agencies see these talks as offering an opportunity for the international community to address the widespread obstruction of aid delivery by the warring parties.   

“It is critical that warring parties leave the battlefield and show up at the negotiating table, so we can get food moving quickly to hunger-struck communities across the country in time before it is too late,” Kinzli said. 

A delegation from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, is present in Geneva.  However, the head of the Sudanese Armed Forces, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, so far has not sent a delegation. 
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Abuja, Nigeria — Nigerian authorities on Thursday placed key entry points into the country on high alert following the outbreak of the mpox virus in Africa. Authorities have also put nine Nigerian states, including the commercial hub, Lagos, and the capital, Abuja, under serious surveillance.

The Nigerian Center for Disease Control and Prevention told journalists that the action is in response to surging cases of the mpox virus in Africa and to intensify coordination to limit importation and spread of the virus.

This week, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it had recorded 2,863 confirmed cases of mpox, with 517 deaths, across 13 countries this year. It said there are about 17,000 suspected cases of mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, in total.

So far this year, Nigeria has recorded 39 cases of mpox, with no deaths.

Jide Idris, head of the Nigerian CDC, said it’s best to be prepared.

“We’re intensifying surveillance activities by tracking cases across Nigeria to swiftly detect and respond to any new cases,” he said. “Along this line, five designated international airports, some key seaports … land and foot crossing borders have been placed in high alert. Declaration forms have been distributed to airlines where there’s an ongoing outbreak of mpox in the last 90 days.”

The Nigerian CDC said authorities are distributing diagnostic tools to states. They also have issued a public advisory on ways to prevent the spread of the mpox virus, including limiting contact with animals such as rodents and monkeys.

“We’re also considering vaccination efforts for high-risk groups, as Nigeria expects to receive about 10,000 doses of the new vaccines that have just recently been approved for emergency use,” Idris said. “We’re also meeting with collaborative agencies like Ministry of Environment and Agriculture for support and coordination efforts.”

Authorities say a new strain of the virus, which is more deadly and more easily transmitted, is responsible for the recent spread. The strain was first discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo and later reported in Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, all previously unaffected nations.

On Tuesday, the Africa CDC declared mpox a public health emergency of international-continental concern.

Jean Kaseya, head of the Africa CDC, said, “This declaration is not merely a formality. It’s a clarion call to action. It’s a recognition that we can no longer afford to be reactive; we must be proactive and aggressive in our effort to contain and eliminate this threat.”

Mpox is a viral disease that causes pus-filled lesions resembling rashes to appear on the skin.

In 2022, the World Health Organization declared it an international health emergency after cases were found in more than 70 countries.

Health analysts say the new strain is worrisome and will need a coordinated international response to control it and save lives.
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There is no evidence the United States set any conditions for Sudanese participation. According to the United Nations, Sudan does not have a government, and the United Arab Emirates and Egypt are key to a successful cease-fire.
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