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ZIMBABWE
State of the media in Southern Africa 2002
Act.
Nyarota was arrested by police officers
at around 10:00 a.m. (local time)
at the offices of “The Daily News”.
He was released five hours later. The
editor was arrested in connection with
a story published in the April 23 edition
of “The Daily News” that said
two young girls had witnessed the decapitation
of their mother by alleged
supporters of the ruling Zimbabwe African
National Union Patriotic Front
(ZANU-PF) party in Magunje, province
of Mashonaland West.
Nyarota’s lawyer, Lawrence
Chibwe of Stumbles and Rowe, told
MISA-Zimbabwe that the editor was
arrested and charged under Section 80
(1b) of the Access to Information and
Protection of Privacy Act, for authorising
the publication of “falsehoods”
without verifying the facts.
Chibwe was not sure when Nyarota
would be tried but said the police were
going to proceed by way of summons
once they had completed their investigation.
The arrests of journalists Nyarota,
Lloyd Mudiwa, Collin Chiwanza and
Andrew Meldrum, a correspondent
for the British newspaper “The Guardian”,
followed the publication of a 23
April article in “The Daily News”.
A magistrate court in Harare ruled
on May 7 that Mudiwa and Meldrum
have a case to answer. The two journalists
were remanded out of custody
to May 22. Charges against Chiwanza
were dropped.
In a front-page story on April 27,
“The Daily News” apologised to the
ruling party and to the government,
after it was revealed that the husband
of the victim had misled the newspaper.
The apology is in line with the requirements
of the Access to Information
and Protection of Privacy Act,
which states that a publication must
issue a retraction and apology in the
event of its story being proven wrong.
However, the police went on to arrest
several journalists despite the apology.
The journalists have also argued that
they had not intended to lie but rather
were genuinely misled.
The new media law places stringent
measures on the media. If convicted,
journalists face a fine of Z$100,000
(approx. US$1,800), up to two years
in jail, or both.
ALERT
DATE: 2002-05-22
PERSON(S): Geoffrey Nyarota,
Mark Chavunduka
VIOLATION(S): Legislation
Zimbabwe’s police spokesperson,
Assistant Police Commissioner
Wayne Bvudzijena, has initiated legal
proceedings against and is seeking
damages from “The Standard”
and “The Daily News” over what he
alleges to be defamatory articles
about him that were published in the
two private newspapers.
Bvudzijena is also suing “The Daily
News” editor Geoffrey Nyarota and
“The Standard” editor Mark
Chavunduka.
The police’s chief public relations
officer is alleging that the newspapers
wrote that he once served in the militia
of Bishop Abel Muzorewa during
the colonial era. Muzorewa was opposed
to the ruling party and present
government, under which Bvudzijena
is serving.
Bvudzijena’s lawyer, Jasper
So This Is Democracy? 227