Zimbabwe – Ready for Elections? 49 lawyer at ZLHR who had attended the police station to represent another lawyer who had been arrested. Police were interdicted by the High Court from breaching this privilege. On 24 October 2011, ZLHR lawyers Bellinda Chinowawa, Jeremiah Bamu and Kennedy Masiye who were representing sexual minorities were threatened with violence by one Jim Kunaka the ZANU PF youth Chairperson if they returned to represent their clients. This was done in the full view of court officials including police officers. On 14 December 2011, Ernest Jena was arrested and accused of insulting the Office of the President after asking a Public Prosecutor what he continued to prosecute people who made certain comments at campaign rallies. The AG eventually declined to prosecute. On 17 March 2013, ZRP officers arrested Beatrice Mtetwa on allegations of obstructing the course of justice. She had attended her clients’ place of residence to represent him during a search. She was initially accused of saying ‘Stop what ever you are doing, it is unconstitutional and illegal’ later the allegations were expanded. She is currently on trial. Despite these attacks, lawyers have remained steadfast in human rights litigation and have continued to defend the HRDs. 3.6.4 Electorate woes ZANU PF supporters have been accused of force-marching people to rallies, thus violating their right to freedom of association.77 Some Chiefs who were supposed to be apolitical, have assisted in this.78 3.7 Freedom of expression and right to information The right to freedom of expression has two facets: imparting and receiving information. Freedom of expression lies at the heart of a democracy. It is valuable for many reasons, including its instrumental functions of guaranteeing democracy, recognising and protecting the moral agency of society, and facilitating the search for truth by individuals and society generally. It is the core value in any democratic society. The right to freedom of expression is guaranteed in several human right instruments such as the ACHPR. The African Commission’s Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression in Africa also elaborates on this right. Further underlining treaty commitments are the Windhoek Declaration advocating for the promotion of an independent and pluralistic African press in that it calls for national media and labour laws to give an appropriate role to representative associations. 77 B Chiketo “ZANU PF forces people to rallies” Daily News (24 July 2013) p 1. 78 X Ncube “Tsvangirai warns chiefs” Daily News (24 July 2013) p 2.