AFRICA - House Foreign Affairs Committee Democrats

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allegedly plotting to assassinate Mugabe, was asked to sign a warned and cautioned
statement. He was alleged to have contravened Section 5 of POSA, which refers to
planning the overthrow of government, by allegedly telling persons at a rally in
Gwanda that ‘‘what the MDC had planned for Mugabe shall remain a secret.’’
Tsvangirai was not charged formally.
In a number of rural areas, war veterans and other ZANU-PF supporters conducted
pungwes, in which they forced villagers to chant ZANU-PF slogans or denounce
the opposition (see Sections 1.c. and 6.a.).
Several major daily newspapers and one local-language tabloid belonged to the
Mass Media Trust (MMT), a holding company heavily influenced by the ZANU-PF.
The Government, through the MMT, controlled two daily newspapers, The Chronicle
and The Herald. The news coverage in these newspapers generally focused on the
activities of government officials, neglected opposition parties and other
antigovernment groups, and also downplayed events or information that reflected
adversely on the Government. The Government-controlled media always portrayed
favorably President Mugabe and the Government. In 2001 Jonathan Moyo, Minister
for Information and Publicity in the President’s Office, announced the dissolution
of the MMT board and its replacement by a new board, which reportedly was more
sympathetic to ZANU-PF. The Minister also controlled the Zimbabwe Inter-Africa
News Agency wire service.
The independent press continued to operate despite frequent attacks and intense
pressure from the Government. In addition to the Daily News, an independent
newspaper that had the nation’s largest circulation, there were three major weeklies
(The Financial Gazette, The Independent, and The Standard), and three monthlies.
The major independent newspapers continued to monitor government policies and
open their pages to opposition critics, but most of them also continued to exercise
self-censorship in reporting due to growing government intimidation of the press
and the continuing prospect of prosecution under criminal libel and security laws.
The Government increasingly was intolerant, especially of reports perceived to be
critical of the security forces. The Government tolerated private media criticism of
official corruption; however, corruption was not a major focus of the private media
during the year. The Government arrested and prosecuted editors and journalists
who contributed to published stories critical of government policies or security force
operations; however, the Government did not censor directly the independent media.
Stricter measures, including the passage of two restrictive new laws, were introduced
to prevent negative coverage of the Government and its policies. On January
22, the POSA was enacted to replace the colonial-era LOMA. Clause 15 of POSA,
intended to replace section 50 of LOMA, makes it an offense to publish or communicate
false statements prejudicial to the state. Legal experts have criticized this
section saying that it imposes limits on freedom of expression beyond those permitted
by the Constitution. Clause 16 of POSA also makes it an offense to make
statements that will engender feelings of hostility towards the President. An extremely
broad Official Secrets Act makes it a crime to divulge any information acquired
in the course of official duties. In addition, antidefamation laws criminalize
libel of both public and private persons.
In March the Parliament enacted the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy
Act (AIPPA), which was criticized strongly by journalists, media analysts, and
human rights organizations. Section 80 of AIPPA requires journalists to apply for
accreditation from the Media and Information Commission, the members of which
were appointed by the highly partisan Minister of Information and Publicity. Section
81 of this Act also makes it an offense for journalists to submit a story that
already was published by another mass media service without the permission of the
owner of that service. Journalists also were prohibited from falsifying or fabricating
information, publishing rumors or falsehoods, and collecting and disseminating information
for another person without the permission of their employer. On November
21, a trial challenging provisions of the AIPPA began and was pending at year’s
end.
During the year, the Government used these acts to harass and intimidate many
persons, including journalists, human rights activists, and opposition members. For
example, on March 27, members of the CIO arrested and detained overnight Peta
Thornycroft, the Zimbabwean correspondent for Britain’s Daily Telegraph and for
South Africa’s Mail and Guardian, in Chimanimani while she was investigating reports
of post-election violence and of a campaign of retribution against the MDC.
Her legal counsel was denied access to her and only was allowed to see her after
she was transferred to a Mutare police station. She was detained in Mutare for 3
more nights and was released on March 31 only after a High Court ordered her release.
The police seized her documents, her camera, and her automobile during the
detention. Her attorney described her charges as a ‘‘fishing expedition’’ by the state.
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