Family of aid worker detained in Central African Republic for alleged rebel contacts urge release

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — The family of a Portuguese-Belgian aid worker detained in the Central African Republic for allegedly being in touch with armed groups to plot a coup maintained his innocence and called for his release Tuesday, even as the African government said it had evidence to support its accusations.

The brother of Joseph Figueira Martin earlier told The Associated Press the aid worker had only been in touch with the rebels to help guarantee his safety and stay alive while working in dangerous parts of the Central African Republic.

“When he reaches certain areas, he has the obligation to get in contact with these people to be sure he’s not gonna get shot at,” Georges Martin said in late June. He described the consultant for a U.S.-based aid organization as a new father with deep experience in conflict zones in Africa.

On Tuesday, his family released a statement pleading with the governments of Portugal and Belgium for help.

Figueira Martin, a consultant for the American aid organization FHI 360, was arrested in May, according to the Central African Republic prosecutor’s office, over allegations of spying, being in communication with armed groups to plot a coup and jeopardizing national security. He has not been formally charged.

He is being held in a military prison and started a hunger strike last week to protest the conditions of his detention.

“The treatment inflicted on Joseph Figueira Martin in Bangui represents a real defeat for all institutions and humanitarian organizations operating in Central Africa,” the family statement said.

The statement comes after authorities in Central African Republic said last week they had found evidence that Figueira Martin financed and coordinated the activities of armed groups.

“These facts are corroborated by money transfers, audio recordings and incitement to war crimes,” they said.

While arrests of foreign aid workers in the Central African Republic are rare, the country is tightening its grip over aid organizations operating in areas where the military is fighting armed groups. Following Figueira Martin’s arrest, authorities warned foreign NGO workers against taking part in activities that could jeopardize national security or face judicial proceedings.

Martin, Figueira Martin’s brother, said his sibling likes that “kind of environment.”

“That’s where he feels that he’s making a difference,” he said.

Central African Republic has been in conflict since 2013, when predominantly Muslim rebels seized power and forced then-president François Bozizé from office. Mostly Christian militias fought back. A 2019 peace deal helped slow the fighting but six of the 14 armed groups that signed later left the agreement.

The Russian mercenary group Wagner is also present in Central African Republic to hold off armed rebel groups and keep President Faustin-Archange Touadera, who has been in office since 2016, in power.

Figueiro Martin was arrested in Zemio, a town in southeastern Central African Republic that has been plagued by fighting between ethnic militias and anti-government rebels for over a decade.

FHI 360 says Figueira Martin had come to the Central African Republic to support the design of a project focused on alleviating poverty, growing economic opportunities and preventing gender-based violence.

“The allegations against Mr. Martin do not align with the facts surrounding his visit or the work of FHI 360,” the organization said in a statement earlier this month.

Central African Republic’s government spokesperson, Maxime Balalu, told the Associated Press that the accusations against the FHI360 consultant are “very serious” and that he has faith in the “professionalism and independence” of his country’s judiciary.

Following the announcement of Figueira Martin’s hunger strike last week, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner issued a report deploring human rights violations, such as torture and arbitrary arrests, in the country’s places of detention.

Figueira Martin had worked as a consultant for FHI 360 on several occasions since 2023, according to the public health organization. He had also worked for other aid organizations before, going on missions to Congo, Chad, Sudan and the Central African Republic on several occasions.

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The Associated Press writer Jean Fernand Koena contributed reporting from Bangui, Central African Republic.