CPJ condemns government

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has registered its concerns over the current climate of press freedom in Zambia in a letter on Tuesday to President Frederick Chiluba.

“We condemn recent hostile statements made by government officials against the local media, and we are particularly disturbed by the ongoing espionage trial of eleven journalists from the independent daily newspaper ‘The Post’,” the CPJ said.

The letter criticised remarks made by Minister of Information Newstead Zimba that so-called “political” radio stations would face unspecified reprisals from the government. The CPJ also reported that an independent journalist had received threatening phone calls in April over an article that reported that Xavier Chungu, head of the Zambian Secret Service, had been named in a UN report investigating violations of sanctions against the Angolan UNITA rebel group.

“In such a climate of widespread harassment of journalists by government officials, CPJ has little confidence that the journalists from ‘The Post’, arrested last year over coverage of state security-related issues, will receive a fair trial when court hearings resume” on 19 June, the US-based committee said.

“CPJ believes that the case against ‘The Post’ journalists violates their rights under the Zambian Constitution and international law. CPJ therefore urges Your Excellency to ensure that the charges against these journalists are immediately and unconditionally dropped,” the letter said.