Event Summary
On 18 February 2026, five Burundian journalists were arrested in Bujumbura while carrying out their duties. Three of them — Amani Papy Ndikumana, known as Papy Jamaica, Tchandrou Nitanga, a photographer working for Agence France-Presse (AFP), and a production assistant — were covering European Commissioner Hadja Lahbib’s visit to the Ministry of External Relations. They were questioned and then taken to the National Intelligence Service (SNR), where their phones were searched and confiscated before they were released that same evening. The authorities cited “illegal filming” as the reason for their arrest.
On the same day, Olivier Manirambona and Aline Niyonizeye, journalists from Jimbere magazine, were arrested while covering the enforcement of a court ruling in a land dispute in Ntahangwa. Despite their accreditation, they were detained in Ngagara prison for at least two nights, separated from their families. The detention of Aline Niyonizeye, a nursing mother, sparked widespread outrage. They were provisionally released on 20 February 2026, but legal proceedings are still ongoing.
These arrests, although temporary for some, reinforce a climate of fear and self-censorship within the media. They are part of a broader context of persistent pressure against the press and civil society in Burundi, marked by intimidation, legal proceedings and increasing restrictions. By hindering the work of journalists, the authorities are undermining freedom of expression and the right to information. These events are a worrying sign of the continuing shrinking of civic space and the weakening of democratic guarantees in the country.