Journalists were attacked by a mob of ZANU-PF supporters in Harare while covering a public debate on human rights legislation on Saturday, local news reports said.
Levy Mukarati of the Financial Gazette, Tsvangirai Mukwazhi of the Daily News, Nqaba Matshazi of the Standard, Aaron Ufumeli of Newsday and John Cassim, a freelance photographer, were allegedly attacked by ZANU-PF supporters after the group had attacked politician Brian Tshuma, according to The Zimbabwe Mail.
Reports said the supporters, some of whom are alleged to have been drunk, evicted the journalists from the meeting room, accusing them of having written erroneous stories. IPI condemns the alleged act.
“We are dismayed by the assault of the journalists in Harare that took place on Saturday. All people, including political party supporters, ought to respect the media and know that its obligation is to gather and disseminate information for society’s sake,” said IPI Director Alison Bethel McKenzie. “Those who harass media figures impair the public’s right to be informed.”
The Zimbabwe Union of Journalists and the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) groups condemned the mob attacks on the MP and journalists and called for the attackers to be prosecuted, according to The Standard. ZUJ has called for the government to ensure the safety of media workers.
With the political temperature heating up in Zimbabwe ahead of elections, the Standard said that about 20 supporters of President Robert Mugabe’s party, the Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front (ZANU PF) intentionally disrupted a public hearing set to hear the public’s perspective on the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) Bill.
Reports said that the supporters beat up politician Brian Tshuma on Saturday, after he was reportedly accused of not singing the national anthem at the commencement of a hearing on the proposed human rights bill.
The bill is amongst reforms agreed on in a power-sharing agreement, reached between Mugabe and Tsvangirai in the aftermath of the 2008 polls dispute.
