=DPELD $OHUW Date: June 29, 2012 Person/ institution: Muvi TV, Times of Zambia Violation/ issue: Detained On Thursday, 21 June 2012, members of the Zambia Police Service detained two journalists from privately-owned Muvi TV reporter and the state-owned Times of Zambia newspaper. The two had gone to investigate allegations of the torture of a suspect accused of being involved in one of the largest ivory theft scandals in Zambia’s Chilanga area, near Lusaka. According to the Muvi TV journalist, Bruce Mwale, who is a court reporter, the tipoff came to him while on duty and he decided to rush to Chilanga to investigate the story and put it on tape. The alleged victim had been detained at a police post in Linda within Chilanga. &RPPXQLTXp Date: July 2, 2012 Person/ institution: Public media Violation/ issue: Other The public media in Zambia are now free to set their own agenda as they execute their mandate of informing, educating and entertaining the nation, minister of Information, Broadcasting and Labour 6R7KLVLV'HPRFUDF\" Fackson Shamenda has said. Reports in the Zambia Daily Mail of 27 June 2012, indicate that Shamenda said this as he launched the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation’s (ZNBC) Strategic Plan for 2012 – 2014 and TV2 newsroom. Reacting to these developments, chairperson of the Zambian Chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA-Zambia), Daniel Sikazwe said that although there is to a degree some level of freedom at public media entities, there was need for government to back the pronouncements with progressive laws. &RPPXQLTXp Date: July 9, 2012 Person/ institution: Media Council Violation/issue: Legislation, Victory The long-awaited Zambia Media Council (ZAMEC) was last week on Friday 6 July 2012 launched by several Zambia media bodies at the Government Complex in Lusaka following a full day Extra Ordinary General Meeting (EOGM) held at Cresta Golfview Hotel earlier. Information, Broadcasting and Labour Minister Fackson Shamenda, speaking during the launch in Lusaka on 6th July 2012, said the Government would give conditional backing to the self-regulatory body and