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June 13, 2025 – Chad –
Human Rights Watch called for the pretrial release of two Chadian journalists—Olivier Monodji, editor of Le Pays and Radio France Internationale correspondent, and Mahamat Saleh Alhissein, a reporter with state broadcaster Télé Tchad—who have been held for three months by the N’Djamena High Court. Prosecutors initially accused them, alongside other suspects, of espionage, conspiracy, and threatening state security through alleged collaboration with Russia’s Wagner Group. Among the evidence cited were documents Alhissein reportedly translated from French to Arabic and an article by Monodji about a Russian cultural center opening.
Following a two-month investigation, the charges have been downgraded to Article 95 of Chad’s Penal Code—sharing intelligence with a foreign power—carrying one to five years in prison. Still, prosecutors have extended their detention and referred the case to trial. Human Rights Watch emphasizes that this ongoing detention violates international norms, which assert that pretrial detention should be the exception, not the rule.
These detentions reflect a broader pattern of repression, intensified ahead of the 2024 elections. Authorities shut down media outlets, suspended reporting on political events, imposed internet blackouts, and threatened journalists with legal action. Prominent critics, including opposition leader Succès Masra, were jailed under similar pretenses.
HRW warns that Monodji and Alhissein appear to have been singled out due to their coverage of Wagner’s operations—an extremely sensitive topic given the group’s alleged plot against the Chadian government and its controversial involvement in regional conflicts.
This case highlights Chad’s escalating crackdown on media freedom and dissent, contradicting international law that mandates presumption of innocence and limits on pretrial detention. HRW demands their immediate release and urges that any legal proceedings conform to fair trial standards.
As the trial approaches, press freedom advocates are calling on Chad to reverse its authoritarian trajectory, respect freedom of expression, and cease using national security allegations to silence journalists. The international community, they argue, must hold N’Djamena accountable for these abuses.
Reference –
https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/06/13/journalists-in-chad-entitled-to-pretrial-release
