Ghislaine Dupont (; 13 January 1956 – 2 November 2013) was a French journalist who specialised in African issues.

Personal history

She lived as a child some years in Africa. After college, she enrolled in the

École supérieure de journalisme de Paris The ''École supérieure de journalisme'' (ESJ Paris; in English: ''Paris School of Journalism'') is an institution of higher education in Paris dedicated to journalism and related studies. Its origin was in the ''Collège Libre des Sciences S ...

Career

She began her career by writing in ''

Ouest-France ''Ouest-France'' ( ; French for "West-France") is a daily French newspaper known for its emphasis on both local and national news. The paper is produced in 47 different editions covering events in different French départements within the régi ...

'' and ''

Témoignage Chrétien Témoignage may refer to : * Témoignage (book), a 2006 book written by French President Nicolas Sarkozy Témoignages may refer to : * Témoignages (TV series), a 1973 French TV series by Jean-Marie Périer * , a French daily newspaper edited by ...

''. She worked afterwards with free radio stations, including ''Gilda La Radiopolitaine'' in Paris. She joined Radio France

Belfort Belfort (; archaic , ) is a city in northeastern France, situated approximately from the Swiss border. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Territoire de Belfort. Belfort is from Paris and from Basel. The residents of the city ...

then for the first time

Radio France Internationale Radio France Internationale, usually referred to as RFI, is the State media, state-owned international radio news network of France. With 59.5 million listeners in 2022, it is one of the most-listened-to international radio stations in the world ...

in 1986, before going to Morocco in Tangier for private Radio Méditerranée Internationale. After her final return to RFI in 1990, Dupont worked only about African issues: with

UNITA The National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (, abbr. UNITA) is the second-largest political party in Angola. Founded in 1966, UNITA fought alongside the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) and the National Liberat ...

in Angola, in

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

in the territories handed by the RUF,

Djibouti Djibouti, officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia to the south, Ethiopia to the southwest, Eritrea in the north, and the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden to the east. The country has an area ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

Eritrea Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...

conflict,

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

, Sudan, Algeria and

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...

where she revealed the existence of mass graves in

Abidjan Abidjan ( , ; N'Ko script, N'ko: ߊߓߌߖߊ߲߬) is the largest city and the former capital of Ivory Coast. As of the Demographics of Ivory Coast, 2021 census, Abidjan's population was 6.3 million, which is 21.5 percent of the overall population ...

. She was active in the

Democratic Republic of Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

between 1997 and 2007. Ghislaine Dupont was known as a first class investigator, having editorial rigor and finesse and a very good political analysis. She became in July 2013 editorial advisor at RFI.

Democratic Republic of Congo

Ghislaine Dupont began her involvement in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in 1997. In 2002, she was involved in the creation of

Radio Okapi Radio Okapi is a radio network that operates in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. On an annual budget of USD$4.5 million, a staff of 200 provide news and information to the entire urban population of the DRC. Radio Okapi provides programming ...

in the

DRC The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

. ''"The Frequency of Peace"'' was created at the initiative of the Swiss Hirondelle Foundation, an NGO active in supporting the media in crisis situations, with the support of the UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC). She trained young journalists and Radio Okapi is now at the forefront of the news media of the country. In 2006, she was expelled by the Kinshasa government of Kabila between the first and second round of the

presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The p ...

Death and legacy

Dupont was killed on 2 November 2013, not far from

Kidal Kidal ( Tuareg Berber: ⴾⴸⵍ, KDL, Kidal) is a town and commune in the desert region of northern Mali. The town lies northeast of Gao and is the capital of the Kidal Cercle and the Kidal Region. The commune has an area of about and incl ...

in northeastern

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

after being abducted by unidentified assailants. She was with the technician

Claude Verlon Claude Verlon (6 July 1958 – 2 November 2013), a 30-year veteran French journalist and sound engineer with Radio France Internationale, was killed along with his colleague Ghislaine Dupont in Kidal, Mali while reporting. Personal informa ...

, who was killed with her. On 5 November 2013, Dupont and Verlon received posthumous decorations from

Ibrahim Boubacar Keita Ibrahim may refer to: * Ibrahim (name), including a list of people with the name ** Abraham in Islam * Ibrahim (surah), a surah of the Qur'an * ''Ibrahim'' (play) or ''Ibrahim The Illustrious Bassa'', a 1676 tragedy by Elkanah Settle, based on a ...

, the president of Mali. In September 2014, Radio France Internationale announced the Ghislaine Dupont et Claude Verlon scholarships to honor its deceased journalists. The annual award is presented to a journalist under 30 and a technician from Africa, and they will have the opportunity to study in Paris. The award was first presented on 2 November 2014 in Bamako, which is the first anniversary of their death. In 2015, the United Nations assigned the date of commemoration for the International Day to End Impunity based on the outrage behind the murder of Dupont and Verlon as stated in its official resolution.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dupont, Ghislaine 1956 births 2013 deaths Deaths by firearm in Mali People murdered in Mali 20th-century French women journalists 20th-century French journalists French radio journalists French reporters and correspondents French war correspondents Women in 21st-century warfare Assassinated French journalists French people murdered abroad French women war correspondents 20th-century French women writers École supérieure de journalisme de Paris alumni French women radio journalists 21st-century French women writers People assassinated in the 21st century 21st-century French women journalists 21st-century French journalists