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Chadian journalists on Russia 'collusion' charges await hearing
Chadian journalists on Russia 'collusion' charges await hearing
Three Chadian journalists accused of collusion with Russia remained in pre-trial custody on Friday, awaiting a hearing before an investigating magistrate, their lawyers said.
The trio, including French broadcaster RFI's Chad correspondent, were arrested earlier this month over claims they colluded with the Russian paramilitary group Wagner.
Lawyer Alan Ndilyam said an estate agent was also remanded in custody at the same time on the same matter.
A hearing before an investigating magistrate had been expected to take place on Thursday but did not go ahead. "No date has been fixed for the next hearing", another lawyer, Allahtaroum Amos, added.
All four were charged with "collusion with the enemy, attacking institutions, conspiracy and undermining constitutional order, the integrity and security of the state", the lawyers said.
If convicted, they could receive between 20 to 30 years in jail.
The public prosecutor, Oumar Mahamat Kedelaye, said there was documentary evidence to incriminate the journalists.
The estate agent is accused of having "acted as an intermediary to find the premises for the Russian House" cultural centre, Ndilyam said.
All four "have had no contact with anyone whatsoever", said Amos, adding: "No one has ever produced any document which comprises them nor any document proving that they have undermined the constitutional order."
Chadian press organisations have voiced alarm at the detentions while international media freedom watchdog Reporters Without Borders called for an end to the media crackdown.
"It's quite unprecedented to see such serious charges" against journalists in Chad, said RSF regional director Sadibou Marong.
"It shows that the prosecutor's office is seeking to remove the case from the scope of the law on the press", which exempts certain offences from custodial sentences, he told AFP on Thursday.
Russia, Hungary and the United Arab Emirates are among those forging closer ties with Chad, which at the end of January saw the complete withdrawal of troops from its former colonial ruler France.
In September last year when the Russian House was inaugurated in N'Djamena, three Russians, including one with close links to the Wagner Group's late founder Yevgeny Prigozhin, were arrested on arrival in Chad.
They were unable to leave for several weeks. Neither the Chadian authorities nor Russia have said why they were held.
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This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
