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State of the media in Southern Africa 2002 2002 “Abuse of Journalist Privilege” is proposed to be amended by Clause 20, to read: “A journalist who abuses his journalistic privilege by - (a) Intentionally or recklessly falsifying information; or (b) Maliciously or fraudulently fabricating information; or (c) Publishing any statement (1) Knowing it to be false or without having reasonable grounds for believing it to be true (2) Recklessly or with malicious or fraudulent intent, representing it as true”. The words “Intentionally or recklessly” and “maliciously and fraudulently” are the proposed additions. The Bill seeks to repeal Section (d) of Clause 80, which stipulates that a journalist would have committed a criminal offence if he/she “contravenes any part of this Act” (AIPPA). The original Section 80 imposed criminal liability even where the reputations and freedoms of other parties had not been threatened by the so-called “falsehoods” and “fabrications”. The amendment therefore seeks to place intention as a prerequisite to the application of this law. In other words, it must be demonstrated that someone’s reputation, freedoms, rights, etc. have been maligned, threatened by the publication of a “falsehood” or a “fabrication”. However, journalists can still fall foul to the proposed amendment of Clause 64, on “Abuse of Freedom of Expression”, which still provides for a broad interpretation. Whereas the principal Act stipulates that foreign journalists can be accredited for a “short period”, the amendment proposes that foreign journalists be accredited “for any period specified 244 So This Is Democracy? by the commission not exceeding 30 days”. This proposal in the Bill will, in other words, mean that no foreign journalist can report from Zimbabwe for a period of more than 30 days. Clause 2 proposes to widen the definitions of mass media, media services and journalists. The dissemination of information has been widened to mean the sale, subscription, delivery, diffusion, or distribution of periodically printed publications, audio recorded, electronically distributed information or teletext programmes. This definition will include such information and dissemination mechanisms as websites and cell phone text messages. A mass media service is proposed to be defined as a mass medium service and to include any medium or media consisting in transmission, circulation or distribution of voice, visual, data or textual messages to an unlimited number of persons and includes an advertising agency, publisher, production house. This definition is a catchall, as any form of publication, even by civic society organizations, will be covered under that. The definition of a journalist as proposed under Clause 2 of the Bill would be “a person who gathers, collects, edits or prepares news, stories and materials for a mass media service, whether as an employee of the service or as a freelancer”. Mass media service would mean “any service that produces mass media products, whether or not it also disseminates them”. Clause 6 of the amendment Bill proposes to make it a criminal offence to “deliberately falsify information to a public body”. This information would have been gathered by any public body and specifically by the Media and In-
ZIMBABWE State of the media in Southern Africa 2002 formation Commission. This clause, in a way, allows the Commission and public bodies to attain quasi-judicial powers. It must be noted that under Zimbabwean law, any judgments and determinations of any matter under criminal law are supposed to be administered by the judiciary (courts) and its affiliate bodies. ALERT DATE: 2002-10-24 PERSON(S) Aaron Ufumeli, Henry Makiwa, Trust Maswela VIOLATION(S): Detained, censored A crew from “The Daily News” covering a demonstration by secondary school students was detained in a Harare suburb on October 21, 2002. The three-person crew - reporter Henry Makiwa, photographer Aaron Ufumeli and driver Trust Maswela - was arrested for “inciting students to protest”. The three were arrested while covering a demonstration by secondary school students in the high-density Harare suburb of Mabvuku. The students were seeking the reinstatement of their dismissed teachers. The crew was taken to Mabvuku police station, where they were detained for over 90 minutes. The police confiscated a film that Ufumeli had taken of the students, who were later tear-gassed by the police. The crew was not charged. State media journalists, which included a Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation crew, were not interrupted in their coverage of the demonstration. Approximately 627 teachers were recently dismissed by the Zimbabwean government for allegedly staging an illegal strike. Raymond Majongwe, the secretary general of the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ), which called the strike, was arrested during the week of 14 October and charged under the country’s draconian Public Order and Security Act for “invading the rights of others”, after he allegedly called on teachers to join the strike. He has since been released on bail. ALERT DATE: 2002-10-28 PERSON(S) Abel Mutsakani, Sydney Masamvu VIOLATION(S): Threatened Minister of Information and Publicity Jonathan Moyo and his permanent secretary, George Charamba, have launched a scathing attack against “The Financial Gazette” newspaper and private media journalists for what the two called “treasonous” and “antigovernment” reporting. Moyo and Charamba have warned that the government “will not brook any criticism” and that appropriate measures will be taken against “errant” journalists. In a statement, Moyo castigated a front-page article that appeared in the October 24, 2002 edition of “The Financial Gazette” as “unlawful” and “treasonous.” Moyo dismissed the story, entitled “Mbeki plots Mugabe’s exit”, as a “fabrication.” “The Financial Gazette” reported that South African President Thabo Mbeki was planning to hold consultations with Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and the opposition over the crisis in Zimbabwe. The story further stated that Mbeki wants the parties to reach a compromise that would see Mugabe leave office in 2005 So This Is Democracy? 245
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