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Broadcasting Services Act, 2001
Incorporates Act 3/2001, 22/200¹ (s. 4)1 , 26/2001 (s. 10)² ; 6/2003³
September 19, 2003

Contents

PART VIIIA⁴

Listeners' Licences

38A. Interpretation in Part VIIIA
38B. Licensing of listeners
38C. Collection of licence fees
38D. Appointment of inspectors and powers of inspectors and police officers
38E. Offences and penalties under Part VIIIA

38A Interpretation in Part VIIIA⁵

In this Part—

"dealer" includes—

(a) a person who carries on a trade, business or industry in which receivers are assembled, manufactured, imported, bought, sold, hired or exchanged, or offered or exposed for sale, hire or exchange; or

(b) a person who deals in motor-vehicles in which receivers are installed; or

(c) an auctioneer of receivers; or

(d) the employee or agent of a person referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (c);

"digital convergence signal carrier company" means the company formed in terms of section 3 of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (Commercialisation) Act, 2001, as the successor to the signal carriage functions of the Corporation;

"former Corporation" means the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation referred to in section 3 of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation Act [Chapter 12:01];⁶

"inspector" means an inspector appointed in terms of subsection (a1) of section thirty-eight D;⁷

"listener" means a person who has in his possession a receiver otherwise than in his capacity as—

(a) an operator of a diffusion service; or

(b) the legal representative of a person who is of unsound mind or who has died or who—

(i) has been adjudged or otherwise declared insolvent or bankrupt; or
(ii) has made an assignment to or arrangement or composition with his creditors; or
(iii) is being wound up or is under judicial management;

in terms of a law in force in any country:

Provided that a dealer who has a receiver—

(a) in or on his business premises; or

(b) being used in the course of a demonstration;

shall not be regarded as a listener in respect of his possession of that receiver;⁸

"receiver" means an apparatus—

(a) in respect of which no licence is required in terms of the Postal and Telecommunications Act [Chapter 12:05]; and

(b) which is capable of being used for the reception of a broadcasting service;⁹

"Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation" means the national broadcasting service formed as the successor to the former Corporation in terms of section 3 of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (Commercialisation) Act, 2001 (No. 26 of 2001).¹⁰

38B Licensing of listeners

(1)¹¹ No listener shall have in his possession in Zimbabwe a receiver otherwise than in accordance with the terms and conditions of a licence issued by the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation or by agents of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation appointed by it in terms of subsection (a1) of section thirty-eight D.

(2)¹² The fees payable on the issue of licences referred to in subsection (1) shall be fixed by the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation with the approval of the Minister by statutory instrument and the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation may fix different fees for different prescribed classes of listeners:

Provided that the Minister may, after consultation with the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation, exempt any class of listeners from payment of all or any of the fees referred to in this subsection.

(3) Subsection (3) shall not apply to a listener—

(a) who is a bona fide tourist residing outside Zimbabwe and who has brought a receiver temporarily into Zimbabwe for a period not exceeding three months; or

(b) whose receiver is capable of use solely in connection with a diffusion service.

38C Collection of licence fees¹³

Licence fees referred to in subsection (2) of section thirty-eight B, less such amounts as may be payable for the services of the agents of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation referred to in subsection (1) of section thirty-eight B, shall be paid into the general funds of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation for the use of the Corporation.

38D Appointment of inspectors and powers of inspectors and police officers¹⁴

(a1)¹⁵ The Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation may appoint persons employed by it to be inspectors for the purposes of this Part and shall furnish each person so appointed with a certificate signed on behalf of the company stating that he has been appointed as an inspector.

(1) An inspector or police officer may require a person who he has reasonable cause to suspect is a listener to produce his licence for inspection.

(2) If a person referred to in subsection (1)—

(a) is unable to produce his licence on demand; or

(b) cannot be located at his usual or last known place of abode or business;
the inspector or police officer concerned may serve on that person a notice in the prescribed form requiring that person to produce that notice and his licence to the police officer in charge of a police station within a period of seven days from the date of service of that notice.

(3) It shall be the duty of a police officer to whom a notice and licence have been produced in terms of subsection (2) forthwith—

(a) to issue to the person who produced the notice and licence a receipt in the prescribed form; and

(b) to notify the inspector or police officer who served the notice that the notice and licence have been so produced.

(4) If a person referred to in subsection (1) who is unable to produce his licence on demand or cannot be located at his usual or last known place of abode or business is served with a notice referred to in subsection (2) and)—

(a) fails to comply with the requirement contained in that notice, he shall be presumed, until the contrary is proved, not to have been issued with a licence;

(b) is subsequently prosecuted for failing to complying with the requirement contained in that notice, he shall be presumed, until the contrary is proved, not to have produced that notice and his licence in compliance with the requirement contained in that notice if the inspector of police officer who served that notice has not been notified in terms of paragraph (b) of subsection (3).

(5) An inspector or police officer may at all reasonable times enter premises—

(a) in or on which a dealer carries on business; or

(b) other than a dwelling-house, which are owned or occupied by a person whom he has reasonable cause to suspect is in possession of a receiver; or

(c) in or on which he has reasonable cause to suspect an offence against this Act has been committed;
and shall have power to make such examination, inspection and inquiry and do such things as may appear to him necessary for ascertaining whether or not compliance has been made with this Act.

(6) An inspector or police officer may require a dealer to produce to the inspector or police officer such books, accounts or other documents relating to the business carried on by the dealer and required to be kept by the dealer as the inspector or police officer may specify.

(7) An inspector shall, on demand by any person affected by the exercise of the powers conferred upon the inspector by this section, exhibit the certificates issued to him in terms of subsection (a1).¹⁶

38E Offences and penalties under Part VIIIA¹⁷

(1) A person who—

(a) fails or refuses to register as a dealer with the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation when required to do so in terms of regulations made under section forty-six; or

(b) fails or refuses to furnish a return or to supply information to the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation in the manner and in the time prescribed under section forty-six or furnishes a false or incomplete return or supplies false or incomplete information to the Corporation; or

(c) fails to comply with the requirement contained in a notice served on him in terms of subsection (2) of section thirty-eight D or with a requirement made by an inspector or police officer in terms of subsection (6) of that section; or

(d) wilfully delays or obstructs an inspector or police officer in the exercise of the powers conferred upon him by or under this Part; or

(e) fails or refuses, without reasonable cause, to give information to an inspector or police officer, when required to do so in terms of section thirty-eight D, or gives false or incomplete information; or

(f) fails to comply with the terms and conditions of a licence issued to him in terms of this Part; or

(g) for the purpose of obtaining, whether for himself or another person, the issue of a licence in terms of this Part, makes a declaration or statement which he knows to be false in any particular or does not know or believe to be true, or knowingly makes use of such a declaration or statement or a document containing the same; or

(h) contravenes—

(i) subsection (1) of section thirty-eight B;

(ii) regulations, orders or notices made or issued in terms of section forty-six for the purposes of this Part;
shall be guilty of an offence and liable)—

A. for a contravention of subsection (1) of section thirty-eight B to fine not exceeding level three;

B. in the case of any offence not referred to in subparagraph A, to a fine not exceeding level five or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding six months or to both such fine and such imprisonment.

(2) A court convicting a person of an offence of—

(a) having in his possession a receiver the possession of which is not authorised by a licence referred to in subsection (1) of section thirty-eight B; or

(b) making a declaration or statement referred to in paragraph (g) of subsection (1) or making use of such a declaration or statement or a document containing the same, thereby obtaining in respect of a receiver in his possession a licence referred to in subsection (1) of section thirty-eight B on payment of a fee which is less than the appropriate licence fee;

may, on the application of the prosecutor and in addition to any penalty which it may impose, do either or both of the following—

(i) order that the receiver concerned be forfeited to the State;

(ii) give summary judgment in favour of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation for the amount of the appropriate licence fee or, as the case may be, an amount equal to the difference between the fee actually paid by the person and the appropriate licence fee.

(3) On the hearing of an application referred to in subsection (2) a court shall, for the purpose of determining the amount of the appropriate licence fee and, in the case of a prosecution for an offence referred to in paragraph (b) of that subsection, the liability of the accused to pay the same, refer to the proceedings and evidence at the trial and consider such further evidence, whether oral or documentary, as may be tendered by the prosecutor and the accused.

(4) A judgment given by a court in terms of subparagraph (ii) of subsection (2) shall have the same force and effect and may be executed in the same manner as if the judgment had been given in a civil action instituted)—

(a) in the case of the court of a regional magistrate, in the court of a magistrate other than a regional magistrate; or

(b) in the case of a court other than the court of a regional magistrate, in the first-mentioned court.

(5) If the Minister has, in terms of subsection (3) of section forty-six, classified listeners, a certificate purporting to be signed by the managing director or general manager of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation and alleging that a person is a member of a particular class of listener shall, on its mere production, be admissible—

(a) on the prosecution of the person for a contravention of this Part; or

(b) for the purpose of determining the amount of the appropriate licence fee to which an application made in terms of subsection (3) for summary judgment relates;

as prima facie evidence of the facts stated in the certificate.

(6) A certificate under the hand of an inspector shall, in any proceedings under this Part or in any criminal proceedings in respect of a contravention of this Part or regulations made under section forty-six for the purposes of this Part, be prima facie evidence of the facts stated therein and it shall not be necessary to tender oral evidence of those facts unless the court before which the proceedings are held so directs, in which event a postponement shall be allowed to enable the inspector whose oral evidence is required to attend.

1 Criminal Penalties Amendment Act, 2001 (commencement: 20th May, 2002).
2 Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (Commercialisation) Act, 2001 (commencement: 2nd February, 2002)
3 Broadcasting Services Amendment Act, 2003 (commencement: 19th September. 2003).
4 Part VIIIA inserted by s. 10(d) of Act 26/2001.
5 Former definitions of "broadcasting company" and "Corporation" were repealed by s. 12 of Act 6/2003.
6 Definition inserted by s. 12 of Act 6/2003.
7 Definition inserted by s. 12 of Act 6/2003.
8 Definition inserted by s. 12 of Act 6/2003.
9 Definition inserted by s. 12 of Act 6/2003.
10 Definition inserted by s. 12 of Act 6/2003.
11 Subsection substituted by s. 13 of Act 6/2003.
12 Subsection amended by s. 13 of Act 6/2003.
13 Section substituted by s. 14 of Act 6/2003.
14 Section heading substituted by s. 15 of Act 6/2003.
15 Subsection inserted by s. 15 of Act 6/2003.
16 Subsection amended by s. 15 of Act 6/2003.
17 Section inserted by s. 16 of Act 6/2003.

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