Zimbabwe 1.5 Protection of confidential sources of information is guaranteed by law. ANALYSIS: Confidential sources of information are not protected by any law and journalists can be forced to reveal their sources. SCORES: Individual scores: 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1 Average score: 1.0 1.6 Public information is easily accessible, guaranteed by law, to all citizens including journalists. ANALYSIS: AIPPA – the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act – professes to make access to public information possible. But this is not the case. The criteria to gain access to information in the hands of government are very restrictive, as is the process. Within 30 days after applying for access to information of a certain document from a ministry, and the application having been ignored or turned down, the applicant can complain to the minister – the same minister heading the ministry that refused access in the first place. Government keeps tight control over its own publications such as the Government Gazette. Even the Hansard, which contains parliamentary debates, has not been published for a while. Citizens who wanted information relating to investments by a governmentrun social security organisation were denied the right to such information. A workers’ organisation was equally denied access to the information. These restrictions also cover normal comment from official government spokespersons who routinely refuse to speak to African Media Barometer - Zimbabwe 2006 9