Harassment of the Media As mentioned above, the police in Zimbabwe continue to harass members of the media and to improperly limit the right to free expression. In an unusual case marking the first time journalists working for state-run media have been charged under repressive media laws, on April 7, 2009, the police arrested Brezhnev Malaba, the editor of the state-run and pro-ZANU-PF provincial daily newspaper, the Chronicle, and one of its reporters, Nduduzo Tshuma, on charges of defaming the police in contravention of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act (CLA).26 The two journalists were later released but charges against them remain on the books. The arrest of the two journalists appears to have been driven by personal reasons on the part of senior police officers named in a published article alleging corruption at the Grain Marketing Board, rather than a case of harassment on political grounds.27 On May 11, 2009, police arrested Vincent Kahiya and Constantine Chimakure, editors of a privately run weekly paper, the Zimbabwe Independent, on charges of publishing falsehoods with the intention of undermining public confidence in law enforcement agents, in contravention of the CLA.28 There was no basis for prosecuting Kahiya and Chimakure because they merely published information from indictment papers presented in court by the Office of the Attorney General, which are a matter of public record.29 The trial of the two journalists is ongoing, but they have since appealed to Zimbabwe’s Supreme Court on the grounds that the sections of the CLA under which they were charged are unconstitutional.30 On June 7, 2009, police barred four freelance journalists from covering a regional trade summit taking place in Victoria Falls, despite their having produced a valid High Court order granting them permission to cover the event.31 26 “GPA demands a genuine commitment towards achieving freedom of expression in Zimbabwe,” Sokwanele, http://sokwanele.com/thisiszimbabwe/archives/4146 (accessed July 19, 2009). See also, “Chronicle editor charged with defaming police,” Zimbabwe Times, April 7, 2009, http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=14797 (accessed August 5, 2009). 27 Human Rights Watch telephone interview with journalists familiar with case C.M., T.Z., and J.M., August 12, 2009. 28 “Independent journalists arrested,” Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) news release, Zimbabwe alert, May 12, 2009. 29 “Journalists arrest ‘Affront to freedom of expression,’” Zimbabwe Independent, May 15, 2009. 30 Human Rights Watch telephone interview with two representatives of the Media Institute of Southern Africa, Zimbabwe Chapter, N.K. and T.M., who are familiar with the case, August 7, 2009. 31 “Journalists barred from covering summit despite high court order,” Association of Zimbabwe Journalists news release, June 8, 2009, http://www.zimbabwejournalists.com/story.php?art_id=5673&cat=1 (accessed July 7, 2009). 9 Human Rights Watch | August 2009