Editor of independent paper charged with defamation

The editor of Zambia’s only independent daily, ‘The Post’, was arrested by police on Friday and charged with criminal defamation after his paper carried an editorial that labelled President Frederick Chiluba a thief.

News reports said Fred M’membe was arrested at the newspaper’s offices in the capital, Lusaka, by six policemen and taken to police headquarters in the city centre. In an editorial on Friday ‘The Post’ said Chiluba had presided over a deeply corrupt government that was involved in the pilfering of public property.

“This is the president who shields his thieving band of ministers! Let’s not forget that it is said that ‘You shall know them by the friends they keep’,” the editorial said. “It’s very difficult to avoid calling President Frederick Chiluba a thief because he is a thief. We have stated this many times and we will continue to do so,” it added.