One month. That is the new deadline for learning the fate of Burundian journalist Sandra Muhoza of the online media outlet La Nova. The decision is scheduled following her appearance on Friday, February 20th, at the Ngozi Court of Appeal. Nearly two years after her imprisonment, this mother of three had been sentenced to four years in prison. She has appealed, but time and the harsh conditions of detention appear to have taken their toll on her health. Today, Sandra Muhoza struggles to walk with the aid of a crutch due to an illness that is consuming her and weakening her day by day. Locked up in the women’s prison in Ngozi, in the north of the country, she is still unable to receive adequate treatment, even though, according to her relatives, she needs urgent surgery. Ukweli Coalition Media Hub was present at her last court appearance.
By Ukweli Coalition Media Hub
After more than two hours of hearings in a packed courtroom, Sandra Muhoza appeared physically weakened, walking with a crutch but ready to defend herself: “I am innocent,” she repeated throughout the hearing of her appeal, which took place on 20 February at the Court of Appeal in Ngozi, in the north of the country, recalling that “she was forced to sign papers incriminating her in an intelligence service cell in Bujumbura at 2 a.m. on the day of her arrest, while she was blindfolded”. She then went on to explain the reason for her arrest: “It all started with me and other members of a WhatsApp group of journalists making comments about a speech given by Firmin Sinzoyiheba in 1996, when he was Minister of Defence, in which he condemned the distribution of machetes and rifles to the population by certain high-ranking officials in the country.” Comments made because of an almost similar topic circulating on social media right now, that of a possible distribution of machetes to the Imbonerakure, youth of the ruling party, by the regime.
Sandra was arrested in April 2024 and then sentenced on 16 January 2026 to four years in prison and a fine of two hundred thousand Burundian francs (approximately 67 US dollars) by the Ngozi High Court, where she was transferred on 26 September 2025 after more than a year and a half in Mpimba prison in Bujumbura, the economic capital, accused of “undermining territorial integrity and racial hatred” in a trial deemed unfair by several voices and organisations, including the Burundian Union of Journalists (UBJ), which described the sentence as “a serious violation of human rights and press freedom, especially since the charges against the journalist appear to be without solid foundation”.
Judith Basutama, secretary general of the UBJ, explains that “accusing Sandra Muhoza of undermining state security for messages exchanged with colleagues in a WhatsApp group has no credible legal basis. It is difficult to understand how a journalist, who is also ill, can be considered a threat to state security. This charge is often used in similar contexts to silence voices deemed disruptive, in the absence of any clearly established offence.” For her, “this conviction reflects a clear desire on the part of the Gitega authorities to silence media professionals, making Sandra Muhoza an example to deter all Burundian journalists, in violation of freedom of the press and freedom of opinion”. This does not help the government, whose “image is already tarnished by numerous other cases of human rights violations. It should be noted that the President of the Republic now holds the presidency of the African Union.”
“A trial that violates Burundian law”
“This case presents several irregularities with regard to the guarantees provided for by Burundian law,” says Jeanne d’Arc Zaninyana, lawyer and president of the Movement of Women and Girls for Peace and Security in Burundi (MFFPS), who points out that “Sandra Muhoza’s first conviction was handed down by a court that was subsequently declared territorially incompetent by the Court of Appeal. Under Burundian law, such a decision renders the initial proceedings null and void and, in principle, requires the release of the person concerned. However, Sandra Muhoza remained in detention under a new warrant, despite this judicial nullity.” She adds: “This also raises serious concerns under international human rights law, to which Burundi is a party. Her detention after the Court of Appeal overturned the first proceedings amounts to arbitrary detention, which is prohibited by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which guarantees the right to liberty and security of person. When proceedings are declared null and void by a competent court, continued detention without a clear legal basis contravenes this principle.”
Beyond being deprived of her freedom, Sandra, separated from her three children, is now fighting an additional battle for her physical and psychological health. “When she went to a hospital in Bujumbura to be diagnosed, the scan revealed a defect in her spine. The test results showed that she needed hip surgery,” reveals a relative, who points out that Sandra now suffers from severe lower back pain, forcing her to walk with a crutch. This diagnosis was confirmed by Eric Ntibandetse, one of her lawyers, who was contacted by Ukweli Coalition Media Hub.
A situation aggravated by the conditions of her detention, which also affected her psychological health, according to a relative: “We have learned that Sandra is under surveillance even inside the prison. She has chosen to retreat into almost total silence, preferring to stay away from other inmates in order to avoid any trouble. Traumatised, she sometimes even refuses to see visitors today.”
“As of now Sandra is the only female journalist being arbitrarily detained in sub-Saharan Africa.”
This reminder comes from Reporters Without Borders (RSF), which, when contacted by Ukweli Coalition Media Hub, highlighted the absurd nature of the case: “In December 2024, Sandra Muhoza was sentenced to 21 months in prison in the first instance. With the recent verdict, the journalist’s sentence has therefore doubled,” said Camille Montagu, a researcher at RSF’s Sub-Saharan Africa desk, before commenting on the regime’s deaf ear to multiple calls for the journalist’s release: “At a press conference held on 1 December, the Head of State was asked about the possibility of a presidential pardon for Sandra Muhoza. He seemed completely unaware of the journalist’s fate. This shows the authorities’ total disregard for the multiple calls for Sandra’s unconditional release and, more broadly, for press freedom in the country. Unfortunately, Sandra is not the first female journalist to be imprisoned in Burundi. Floriane Irangabiye also spent nearly two years in prison before being released in August 2024. These arbitrary detentions allow the authorities to keep the rest of the profession under pressure.”
The new verdict is expected on 20 March. Between hope and pessimism, Eric Ntibandetse, one of the journalist’s lawyers, hopes that the recent court appearance will be the last. “We remain hopeful that she will finally be released,” he said after the hearing. Published by the Committee to Protect Journalists in December 2025, no fewer than 127 African female journalists wrote a joint letter expressing their solidarity with Sandra Muhoza and demanding her release.
PS: A few hours after the publication of our report on Sandra Muhoza’s detention, the journalist was provisionally released. This was a relief for her family, but also for journalists’ rights organizations, which nevertheless continue to demand her full release and the annulment of her conviction.