Posted on 09/19/2003 3:52:21 PM PDT by Pan_Yans Wife
Zimbabwe's embattled independent daily Friday filed contempt of court charges against police after they refused to allow staff to re-enter their offices, defying a High Court order, a company official told AFP.
Police on Friday barred staff members at the Daily News from returning to their central Harare offices despite a court ruling on Thursday allowing the paper to reopen.
The Daily News, Zimbabwe's best-selling daily, was shut down a week ago for operating illegally. It has not appeared on the streets since.
"We filed our papers before lunch. We're waiting for the registrar to set the matter down for hearing," said Gugulethu Moyo, the paper's legal adviser.
A Daily News reporter complained he was being prevented from working.
"The police were back. They wouldn't let us in. We were told we might be arrested. When it's not in their favour the rule of law doesn't apply," the reporter, who asked not to be named, told AFP.
The battle between the government and the paper, which is fiercely critical of President Robert Mugabe, has been raging for a week now.
Last Thursday the Supreme Court, Zimbabwe's highest, ruled the paper was operating illegally because it was not registered with a government media commission, as required under tough new media laws.
Police moved in a day later, shutting down the paper and confiscating equipment.
The closure sparked an outcry, both internationally and locally. Earlier this week more than 100 pro-democracy activists were arrested in central Harare for demonstrating against the paper's shutdown.
There were high hopes on Thursday amongst Daily News readers and opposition supporters, that the paper would be soon available after High Court Judge Yunus Omerjee ruled it could resume publishing.
Omerjee said the paper was no longer operating illegally under the controversial Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) because it had filed a speedy application for registration.
But those hopes were quickly dashed a few hours later when the government's top lawyer said it would be filing an appeal. That appeal was filed on Friday, state television reported.
And the state-owned Herald on Friday reported that the Media and Information Commission (MIC) might make a decision on the Daily News' application for registration within the day, giving rise to speculation it would be turned down.
Registration processes usually take several weeks, if not months.
Late Friday Daily News staffers were said to be working from an undisclosed location in a desperate attempt to get the paper back on the streets.
A Daily News lawyer said late Friday there was a chance the police would allow the workers back into their offices. If that happened, the Daily News might not pursue the contempt of court case, Ray Moyo said.
"It may then not be necessary to continue with the contempt of court proceedings," he said.
Since it was founded four years ago, the Daily News has had a troubled relationship with the Zimbabwe authorities. Its former editor was arrested and several of its journalists briefly imprisoned.
There have also been two unexplained bomb attacks on the paper.
This latest battle over the Daily News has thrown into question Zimbabwe's attendance at a December Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Nigeria.
Australian Prime Minister John Howard, who heads a Commonwealth troika on Zimbabwe, this week called for the southern African country to be excluded from the meeting.
The call sparked an angry reaction from the Zimbabwe government. Foreign Minister Stan Mudenge said Howard had been "abandoned by his senses", while state media accused him of being a racist.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.