(MISA/IFEX) – On 3 September 2000, “The Post” newspaper suffered heavy losses when a large part of its newsroom was gutted and several computers were destroyed in a fire. Damaged estimated at US$500,000 was caused in the fire, which destroyed twenty-six computers, the office’s air conditioners and electrical installations, and resulted in structural damage. On […]
(MISA/IFEX) – On 3 September 2000, “The Post” newspaper suffered heavy losses when a large part of its newsroom was gutted and several computers were destroyed in a fire.
Damaged estimated at US$500,000 was caused in the fire, which destroyed twenty-six computers, the office’s air conditioners and electrical installations, and resulted in structural damage.
On 5 September, Joseph Chanda, a graphic designer with “The Post”, was arrested “to help with investigations” into the fire. He was later charged with arson and remains in police custody.
Publication of “The Post” has not been affected and each edition, including the Internet edition, has thus far appeared. Reporters are continuing to file stories from the damaged building, using spare computers that had been stored elsewhere.
In an editorial subsequent to the fire, the newspaper made it clear that it believed the fire was deliberately started, adding that the “saboteur responsible was not acting alone”. “He is a hired mercenary, working with an organised group of anti-Post journalists and other elements and agents on the payroll of the state”, the editorial said.
The Zambia Independent Journalists Association (ZIMA/MISA-Zambia) expressed in a statement that the fire was a “big blow not only to ‘The Post’ as the leading independent newspaper, but also for the media in the country”. ZIMA called upon the police command to investigate the matter thoroughly and bring whoever is responsible to book soon.
