STATE OF THE MEDIA IN ZAMBIA STATE OF THE MEDIA IN ZAMBIA arrived and demanded that Kambwili follows them to Kitwe Central Police for questioning over his Chisokone Market tour earlier in the day. In his defence, Kambwili said he had only gone to buy Fish from Chisokone Market and did not see anything wrong with it. But police insisted that he follows them and whilst pulling Kambwili away, a News Diggers! journalist by the name of Julia Malunga was spotted taking some notes and a police officer cocked and pointed his rifle at her, threatening to shoot. The said officer told her he did not care whatever she would do about the incident. In response, MISA Zambia on the 20th November, 2019 condemned the action by the police that involved cocking and pointing an AK47 gun at News Diggers reporter Julia Malunga as she was documenting Mr. Kambwili’s extraction from Lunte Lodge. The News Diggers! reported that; In a statement, MISA Zambia Chairperson Hellen Mwale said it was saddening that attacks on the media by police had continued. “MISA Zambia condemns in the strongest terms the death threat on News Diggers Journalist Julia Malunga by a police officer in Kitwe yesterday while on assignment”. According to the reports reaching MISA Zambia, an unidentified police officer cocked and pointed his rifle at Malunga, threatening to shoot her for documenting Mr. Kambwili’s extraction from Lunte Lodge. As MISA Zambia, we are saddened by such continued attacks on the media by police officers because it has barely been three days when a similar incident happened in which iWave Station Manager Lucy Kaonga was picked up by the police in Chingola for questioning following a radio programme that was aired after news broke out that Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) had allegedly discharged sulphur dioxide which left 42 employees and several pupils from KCM Nchanga Trust Secondary School hospitalized. As if not enough, the police officers went further to disrupt a program on air. We would like to urge the police and the public at large that a free and independent media is crucial to the development of democracy in the country and holding power to account. 29