On 13 April Burundi state prosecutor, Marc Ndabakeshimana asked a panel of judges to hand down the maximum life sentence to Mr Kavumbagu who was charged with treason following the publication of two articles critical of the country's security forces in July 2010.

Further Information

Defence lawyers Gabriel Sinarinzi and Bernard Maingain called for Mr Kavumbagu's release on the basis that a charge of treason was only applicable at times of war. During a previous bail appeal hearing in November 2010, a state prosecutor had already acknowledged that Burundi was not at war, which makes the criminal charge inapplicable. The defence lawyers also argued that charges of defamation against the army and police were not applicable as such charges were restricted by the criminal code to cases in which those allegedly defamed were individuals or groups of individuals and not institutional bodies.

See here the original appeal on behalf of Jean-Claude Kavumbagu