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people had been killed and at least 10 others wounded during police
violence. Most of the detainees were released on the same day or a few
days later, but Abbas was held incommunicado for 10 days and not
released until 23 June.
SWAZILAND
On trial
*Bheki MAKHUBU: editor of the privately-owned magazine Nation, was
sued by Member of Parliament Marwick Khumalo for defamation of
character on 9 July 2007. The charges are based on an article by
Makhuby published in the magazine in June 2007, which accused
Khumalo and his business associates of trying to win a pharmaceutical
tender through corrupt means. PEN is seeking an update.
Under investigation – cleared
*Mbongeni Mbingo: editor of the privately-owned Sunday Times, was
investigated by a Select Committee of the House of Assembly for
allegedly breaching the limits of freedom of expression and insulting the
Speaker of the House. He had reportedly criticised the Speaker for not
allowing MPs to question an alleged attempt to make changes to the
Constitution without public knowledge in his weekly column. Some
Assembly members considered that Mbingo had acted in contempt, and
ordered the editor and newspaper to be investigated. Mbingo faced a
maximum two years’ imprisonment and a fine but was cleared of the
charges against him on 10 October. The Committee found that he was
legitimately expressing his journalistic opinion.
UGANDA
On trial
*Bernard TABAIRE, Henry OCHIENG and Chris OBORE:
managing editor, Sunday editor and journalist respectively, for the
privately-owned newspaper Monitor, were charged with sedition on 30
September 2007. The charges stemmed from a story entitled ‘Soldiers
train to take police jobs’, in which it was alleged that soldiers were
secretly trained as policemen, in order to have the police force under
military control. The three were summoned to the police on 1 October
and released on bail the same day. PEN is seeking further information.
Case closed
James TUMUSIIME and Semujju Ibrahim NGANDA: editor and
reporter respectively for the independent Weekly Observer, have been
charged with “promoting sectarianism” following an article which criticised
government persecution of the opposition leader Kizza Besigye
published on 1 December 2005. The article, which preceded a presidential
election in February won by President Yoweri Museveni, claimed
that the president and a small group of army generals from his Bahima
ethnic group organised “an operation to keep Besigye in jail”. At the time
of the article’s publication, Besigye was imprisoned facing charges of
treason, terrorism and rape. Although a ruling by a civilian court had
granted him bail, he remained in prison as a result of a warrant issued by
the military, later declared illegal. Besigye was released in early January
2006. The date for Tumusiime and Nganda’s trial to begin was given as
15 June 2006 and the journalists reportedly intended to plead not guilty.
If convicted, they face up to five years in jail. The charge brought against
them falls under article 41 of Uganda’s penal code, criminalising any
statement likely to promote “feelings of hostility among or against” any
group on ethnic, regional or tribal lines. The Committee to Protect
Journalists (CPJ) protested the decision to prosecute the journalists,
claiming that it “smacks of political retribution” and calling for the criminal
charges to be “dropped immediately”. In January 2007 it was
reported that petitions challenging the “promoting sectarianism” provision
of Uganda’s penal code were pending before the Constitutional
Court. No further information as of 31 December 2007; case closed.
ZIMBABWE
On trial
*Bright CHIBVURI: editor of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions
(ZCTU) magazine The Worker, is on trial for practicing journalism
without accreditation. He was arrested on 3 March 2007 and spent two
nights in police custody. He was released on 5 March after being charged
with contravening Section 83 (1) of the Access to Information and
Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA), which deals with practising journalism
without accreditation. Chibvuri pleaded not guilty. He had reportedly
already applied for accreditation at the time of his arrest, but had not
received a response. He has since received accreditation. The trial began
in the south-western border town of Plumtree on 26 September but was
adjourned to 5 November 2007. It was then postponed indefinitely as a
result of a magistrates’ strike over poor salaries and working conditions.
PEN is seeking further information.
Acquitted
Gift PHIRI: Harare correspondent of the independent exile newspaper
The Zimbabwean, on trial since April 2007 for working as a journalist
without official accreditation and “publishing false news”, was finally
acquitted on 30 August. Phiri was arrested on 1 April 2007 and detained
for four days during which time he was allegedly tortured and access by
lawyers and doctors was restricted. He was initially accused of a number
of offences, including involvement in bombings and “publishing falsehoods”
in connection with his reporting on government activities. On 5
April he was charged with working as a journalist without official
accreditation and publishing false news under sections 79 (1) and 80 (1)
(b) of the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA).
On his release on bail, Phiri was hospitalised for five days to receive
treatment for injuries sustained from beatings received in police custody.
It was alleged that he had been tortured and forced to sign a confession.
The charge of publishing false news was dropped in July, the trial
proceeding only on the basis that Phiri practised journalism without official
accreditation. The latter charge was then dropped on 30 August. If
convicted the journalist could have faced a jail sentence of up to two
years. The investigation into the torture allegations was apparently not
carried out. Concerns continue for Phiri’s safety. His name and those of a
number of other print journalists in Zimbabwe were included in a
purported government “blacklist” apparently leaked to the independent
Zimbabwean press at the end of September. The document, dated June
2007, listed some 15 journalists accused of “working hand in hand with
hostile anti-Zimbabwean forces” who were to be subject to strict surveillance
and other unspecified measures in the run-up to Zimbabwe’s presidential
and parliamentary elections in 2008. In addition to Phiri, the list
reportedly included the UK-based editor of The Zimbabwean, Wilf
Mbanga. The Zimbabwean government has denied the authenticity of
the document. However, Phiri and two of the journalists listed were
attacked following the alleged leak. This threat mirrored made another
against Phiri in March, a few days before his arrest and detention. A list