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Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa) has called upon media players and stakeholders from the region to intervene in the deteriorating media environment in Zimbabwe as a matter of urgency.
After the much publicised closure of Zimbabwe’s Daily News on September 12, private media institutions in Zimbabwe are said to live in fear of meeting the same fate as their government does not take kindly to opposing views.
Delegates from Misa Zimbabwe addressed a press conference in Blantyre on Thursday aimed at sensitising the media in other countries on the realities of the situation in Zimbabwe and to urge them to take action in addressing their plight.
According to Sarah Chiumbu, National Director of Misa Zimbabwe, media players from the member countries of Sadc have so far not been using their regional weight to help in assisting each other.
“What’s happening in Zimbabwe is a case of political survival, it can happen to any country in this region” said Fortune Mguni, a Board member of Misa Zimbabwe, citing an example of Botswana which he said was considered one of the most democratic countries but has now come up with a media bill which reads exactly like Zimbabwe’s Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA).
Newspapers in Zimbabwe, including all other media services, are supposed to register with the government’s ministry of information, according to the AIPPA.
“The situation is so hopeless for Zimbabweans. The people have been disempowered and there is nothing they can do about it. There is a possibility that Misa offices in Zimbabwe may be closed down because it is also considered to be operating illegally,” said Chiumbu.
Emmie Chanika, Civil Liberties Committee (Cilic) Executive Secretary, urged the media and civic society to take some action-oriented interventions to help curb the situation in Zimbabwe.
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