State of the media in Southern Africa - 2004 tighten the controversial media law was tabled in Parliament on 6 October 2004. Among others, the Bill seeks to provide a penalty fine and imprisonment term for journalists practicing without government accreditation. • ALERT Date: October 6, 2004 Persons/Institutions: Richard Musazulwa Violation(s): Detained On October 13, 2004, special correspondent of the privately-owned “Standard” weekly newspaper Richard Musazulwa, appeared in court on charges of publishing falsehoods under the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) arising from a story published in January 2004. The story alleged that hungry ZANU PF youths had stormed a Heroes luncheon hosted by military chiefs at Thornhill Airbase in Gweru. He was charged with contravening Section 80 (1) (b) of AIPPA which deals with the publication of falsehoods. He was granted $50 000 bail and remanded to October 26, 2004. • ALERT Date: October 13, 2004 Persons/Institutions: Members of the Zimbabwe Social Forum Violation(s): Other On October 13 2004, Zimbabwe Police barred members of the Zimbabwe Social Forum from holding a meeting scheduled for October 14, 2004, in the Harare Gardens claiming that the meeting would disturb public order. The Forum comprises anti-globalisation activists, social movements, NGOs, community based organisations, faith-based groups and unions opposed to neo-liberalism. The meeting was to be convened under the theme “People’s Forum Against Poverty, Gender Inequality and Oppression” and was meant to prepare for Zimbabwe’s participation in the forthcoming Africa and World Social Forums scheduled to be held in Zambia in December 2004 and in Brazil in January 2005. • ALERT Date: October 13, 2004 Persons/Institutions: Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) Violation(s): Other The government will not allow the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) access to the public media ahead of the parliamentary elections slated for March 2005, the Minister of Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Patrick Chinamasa said in Harare on October 13, 2004. The SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections which, among other provisions, stress the need for political tolerance, binds member states to allow all political parties equitable access to the state media. On the ruling party’s monopoly of the state media, he said the scales were in fact tilted in favour of the MDC which he said enjoyed extensive coverage by CNN and the VOA. • ALERT Date: October 13, 2004 Persons/Institutions: Owen Matava Violation(s): Detained On 13 October 2004, the editor of the Kwekwe-based “Midlands News” Owen Matava, was picked up by police in Kwekwe and questioned over a story on the alleged retirement plans of the Governor of the Midlands Province, Cephas Msipa. So This Is Democracy? 2004 152 Media Institute of Southern Africa