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Three journalists assaulted by “war veterans” - RSF

    JOHANNESBURG

    Concerned over the recent arrest of journalists from Zimbabwe’s independent ‘Daily News’, Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) on Wednesday urged police commissioner Augustine Chihuri to do everything in his power to ensure that journalists could work safely throughout the country.

    “It is your responsibility to protect journalists who use their right to inform, this without consideration of their editorial policy,” Robert Ménard, RSF general secretary, said in the letter. Ménard said journalists from a pro-government newspaper who covered the same event were not attacked. “After having pushed foreign journalists to leave the country, Zimbabwean authorities are attacking the local press,” he added.

    According to information gathered by RSF, on 17 September, reporters Mduduzi Mathuthu and Collin Chiwanza, photographer Urgina Mauluka and a driver were attacked by war veterans in Hwedza, about 60 km southeast of Harare. The journalists went to a farm after the death of two veterans in a clash with a white farmer. RSF said that since the beginning of the year, 17 local journalists had been arrested and seven assaulted by the police or war veterans.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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