• ALERT Date: August 30, 2007 Persons: Tendai Murove Violation: Other In the first case of its kind, a Harare magistrate has tried and convicted a man who was found in possession of a printed email message containing information that was said to denigrate President Robert Mugabe and Vice President Joice Mujuru. On August 23 2007, Tendai Murove was charged and convicted on his own plea of guilt to contravening section 26(1)(a) as read with section 33 of the colonial Censorship and Entertainment Control Act after he was found in possession of a six-page letter allegedly sent to him by a friend. Section 26 prohibits the possession of prohibited articles while section 33 states the determination of what is indecent or obscene or offensive or harmful to public morals. The message, which was written in Shona, repeatedly makes reference to Mugabe and Mujuru, mocking Mugabe for his economic policies and Zimbabwe’s record inflation, which now stands above 6,000 percent. “There is not a drop of fuel in Zimbabwe. Neither is there any sign of beer. I pray that Bush (George) and (Tony) Blair can come and rid us of this bespectacled man,” the email laments in apparent reference to Mugabe. “My sister-in-law hails from a wealthy family. She only gets reminded of matters to do with Zimbabwe’s economic problems and inflation when Gono (Gideon, the central bank governor) presents his monetary policy statements. She has a sizeable round bottom. From that you can tell she grew up sitting on a sofa, unlike those (bottoms) of (Vice President) Mai Mujuru which were repeatedly scratched by thorny bushes and bullets during the liberation war.” Murove was convicted and sentenced to a fine of Z$1 million (approx. US$33) or seven days’ imprisonment. Murove was initially arrested for public drinking in Harare’s Avenues area. The police then discovered the document on him. • ALERT Date: August 23, 2007 Persons: Betty Makoni, Loreen Karara, Michealene Rosley Violation: Other (Expelled) American children’s rights activists Loreen Karara and Michealene Rosley were deported from Zimbabwe on allegations of practising without accreditation in terms of Section 83(1) of the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act. • ALERT Date: August 3, 2007 Persons: Media in Zimbabwe, citizens of Zimbabwe Violation: Legislation (threatening) President Robert Mugabe has signed the Interception of Communications Bill into law. The Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet Misheck Sibanda announced this in a general notice issued in the Government Gazette of August 3, 2007. The Act will make lawful the interception and monitoring of communications in the course of their transmission through a telecommunication, postal or any other related service or system in Zimbabwe. The Act also provides for the establishment of a monitoring centre. An interception warrant, to be issued by the Minister of Transport and Communications, may be applied for by the Chief of Defence Intelligence, the Director-General of the Central Intelligence Organisation, the Commissioner of Police, the Commissioner General of the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority or any of their nominees. Service providers, among them Internet Service Providers (ISPs), are required to install systems that are “technically capable of supporting lawful interception at all times.” ISPs will not have So This Is Democracy? 2007 -131- Media Institute of Southern Africa