(MISA/IFEX) – On Monday 18 June 2001, four journalists from “The Zimbabwe Mirror” were beaten up and briefly detained by riot police officers while covering protests against fuel hikes in Mabvuku, a high density suburb of Harare. According to a 22 June report in “The Zimbabwe Mirror”, the four reporters, c, were covering riots sparked […]
(MISA/IFEX) – On Monday 18 June 2001, four journalists from “The Zimbabwe Mirror” were beaten up and briefly detained by riot police officers while covering protests against fuel hikes in Mabvuku, a high density suburb of Harare.
According to a 22 June report in “The Zimbabwe Mirror”, the four reporters, c, were covering riots sparked by a seventy percent hike in the price of fuel. When the reporters arrived in the suburb, youths were fighting running battles with riot police. When Shandu attempted to take pictures of the police, two police officers in civilian clothes intercepted him. One of the policemen then pointed a pistol at Chimakure, threatening to “blow off his head” and demanding identification. Despite being shown the government issued press card, the policeman went on to order the journalists out of the car and assaulted them with baton sticks. “They continued beating us, each time asking us what we wanted to do with the pictures,” said Msipa. “They said they were tired of the bad publicity that they were receiving and held us responsible for that.”
The journalists were later taken to the riot squad headquarters and endured more physical abuse along the way. At the headquarters, Shandu’s film was confiscated and their personal details taken down before being released.
Commenting on the incident, the news editor of “The Zimbabwe Mirror”, Wallace Chuma, said that the beatings demonstrate the unnecessary heavy-handedness used by police on unsuspecting journalists going about their work. “It is unfortunate that these riot police chose to descend on unsuspecting journalists lawfully carrying out their duties. It looks like it will take an eternity for this arm of the state to realise that riotous situations should not present them with an opportunity to display their shameful disposition towards violence, but to assist innocent citizens from being harassed or injured,” said Chuma.
He added that as long as Zimbabwe continued to have that kind of riot police, the country would remain locked in its pariah status as an unhealthy environment for press freedom and freedom of expression.
