The international press watchdog Reporters without Borders (RSF) has protested the seizure by Rwandan police of the first issue of a new independent weekly newspaper.
The Paris-based RSF called on Rwandan Interior Minister Jean de Dieu Ntiruhungwa to return the seized copies of Indorerwama (The Mirror) to the paper’s owner.
”This measure amounts to censorship, and proves that freedom of the press is not guaranteed in Rwanda,” said RSF secretary general Robert Menard.
All copies of the new publication were seized on Tuesday by police on the border with Uganda and taken to police headquarters in Kigali, RSF said.
Like most of the Rwandan press, the weekly was published in the Ugandan capital of Kampala, where production costs are less than in Rwanda.
Owner Ismael Mbonigaba told RSF police gave no reason for the seizure. He has had previous run-ins with authorities over articles he has written. – Sapa-AFP