State of the media in Southern Africa - 2004 against the police”. Such a charge does not exist in the Penal Code. Mwiinga said his detention was instigated by the officer in charge at Chikuni police post identified as Mwembe who, on August 29, 2004, was involved in a quarrel with two teachers from a nearby school. The quarrel resulted in the police officer being attacked by one of the teachers. Mwiinga witnessed the incident. However, for unexplained reasons, the officer in charge accused Mwiinga of spreading rumours that the assault did not happen and sent one of his police officers to fetch Mwiinga from his home and detain him. “Radio Chikuni” news editor Matongo Maumbi confirmed the incident. • ALERT Date: November 15, 2004 Persons/Institutions: Southern Africa Centre for Constructive Resolution of Disputes (SACCORD) Violation(s): Other (censored) Minister of Home Affairs, Lt. Gen. Ronnie Shikapwasha has deregistered the Southern Africa Centre for Constructive Resolution of Disputes (SACCORD), accusing the organisation of “engaging in activities inimical to the interests of the state”. SACCORD is a non-governmental organisation involved in human rights, good governance, election monitoring and lobbying for legislative reform. Recently, the organisation has been outspoken in calling for the amendment of the Public Order Act, which regulates public processions and gatherings. Shikapwasha said in a letter dated November 11, 2004, which was made available to the media on November 15, 2004, that he was deregistering SACCORD “with immediate effect” and that it should stop operating. But SACCORD executive director Lee Habasonda told MISA-Zambia that he was shocked to learn about the banning of his organisation and had written to the minister to name the activities that his organisation was engaged in which were a danger to national security. In the meantime, he was consulting his lawyers with a view to sue the minister for breach of his association’s rights to freedom of association and assembly. The banning of SACCORD has been received with alarm by a number of NGOs especially that it follows threats made by President Levy Mwanawasa on November 1, 2004 that government would introduce legislation to check the source of NGO funding. He accused some unnamed NGOs of trying to destabilise the government. The Zambia Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU), Zambia Episcopal Conference (ZEC) and Inter-African Network for Human Rights and Development (AFRONET) are among the organisations that have criticised the banning of SACCORD and have challenged Shikapwasha to give the reasons for his action. But Shikapwasha told the state-owned “Times of Zambia” on November 16, 2004, that his action was final and not subject to appeal. “By law I am not even supposed to give SACCORD a hearing if I am convinced that they are involved in serious issues meant to undermine the security of the country,” he said. • UPDATE Date: November 24, 2004 Persons/Institutions: Zambian media organisations/coalition Violation(s): Legislation On November 24 2004, lawyers representing the six media bodies in the case in which they have sued the Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services and the Attorney General for vetoing the names recommended to sit on the boards of the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) and Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC), asked the Lusaka High Court So This Is Democracy? 2004 132 Media Institute of Southern Africa