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GOVERNMENT TOUGHENS REPRESSIVE MEDIA LAW

With national elections in Zimbabwe slated for March 2005, the embattled administration of President Robert Mugabe is making it clear that critical media coverage will not be tolerated. Parliament has passed amendments to the already repressive Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) that lengthen jail terms and increase fines for journalists caught working without government accreditation.

Under the amended act, individuals can be jailed for up to two years and fined up to Zim $200,000 (US$35), report the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF). The act also restricts accredited journalists to working for one media outlet, a stipulation MISA says is aimed at discouraging independent freelance journalists from writing for foreign outlets who are more critical of the government than local media.

The AIPPA already requires all journalists in Zimbabwe to register with a government-appointed Media and Information Commission, a regulation that free expression groups say violates international human rights standards. It also bars foreign journalists from working in the country.

In the two years since it was enacted, the AIPPA has been successful in undermining freedom of expression in Zimbabwe, say MISA and ARTICLE 19. In a recent report, the groups note that the only independent Zimbabwean daily newspaper, The Daily News, has effectively been banned and the likelihood of its returning to the streets in the foreseeable future seems remote.

Dozens of journalists have suffered direct legal harassment, mostly in the form of short-term detention. The system of licensing for journalists has been constitutionally affirmed by the Supreme Court, and it is likely to play an increasing role in direct targeting of those who dare to criticise the ruling party and government.

The AIPPA has been condemned as illegal and undemocratic by many international organisations, including the European Union, the Commonwealth and Amnesty International.

Read MISA and ARTICLE 19's report "The Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act: Two Years On": http://www.article19.org/docimages/1862.doc

Visit:

- MISA: http://www.misa.org/
- ARTICLE 19: http://www.article19.org
- RSF: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=11828
- Independent Media Use Internet to Avoid Censorship: http://www.rap21.org/article18347.html
- CJFE Award Honours The Daily News: http://www.cjfe.org/releases/2004/041024-awards.html
- The Daily News Online: http://www.daily-news.co.za/
(Image courtesy of RSF)