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Rights of journalists when arrested
prepared by Tawanda Hondora for Media Institute of Southern Africa - Zimbabwe Chapter (MISA-Zimbabwe)
November 2002

Right to be Presumed Innocent Until Proven Guilty⁵
Every person has a right to be presumed innocent until s/he is proved guilty by a court of law. This means that the accused has a right not to be treated as a convicted criminal, and his or her liberty should only be restricted in excess of 48 after judicial enquiry and approval.

Right to be Informed of Details of Offence Charged With⁶
It is unlawful to detain a person without advising him of the offence the he is suspected of having committed. It is every person’s right to be informed as soon as is reasonably practicable, in a language understood by the accused, the precise details of the nature of the offence charged. This right is intended to prevent abuse of the powers of arrest by the police. Failure to inform an arrested individual of the reason for arrest may vitiate any proceedings initiated and a ripe ground for civil suit.

Right to be Given Adequate Time and Facilities to Prepare Defence⁷
After being personally or through a legal representative, given full details of the charge preferred, a person that has been arrested is entitled to be given sufficient time and facilities to prepare for his defence. This means that he must be given time to communicate with his legal counsel, as well as facilities that permit him to study the charge papers and prepare for court. Therefore even at the first hearing of the matter, where it is not usual to present one’s defence to the merits of the matter, the accused is still entitled to time and facilities to prepare to raise technical defences, at times which is unrelated to the actual merits of the case.

Right to a Lawyer⁸
Every person that has been arrested or detained has a right to legal counsel. A disturbing trend of denying lawyers’ access to their clients seems to have been perfected by some, if not most, members of the police. This is unlawful. Every accused person has a right to seek legal advice, and to refuse to answer any questions from the police except in the presence of his lawyer. No adverse inferences will be drawn if an accused refuses to speak to, or answer any questions from the police, without his lawyer’s involvement. Journalists are particularly warned against giving in to police intimidation. It is true that some, if not most police officers will abuse the 48 hour right of detention, and use that as a bargaining tool in order to get accused persons to talk in the absence of their lawyers. Some, particularly devious and over-enthusiastic officers will not advise accused persons of their right to have a lawyer available.

Journalists whose right to have legal counsel has been violated must raise this point and expose and emphasize the vulgarity of the actions of those responsible, in addition, to stating what such actions mean for democracy in Zimbabwe.

Right to Cross-examine⁹
In court, every accused person has a right to have access to and cross-examine all the evidence and witnesses arraigned against him by the State. Using the court, an accused person can subpoena any and all persons that can lend evidence in his favour or clarify issues. The State is obliged to secure the presence of such persons and any relevant physical evidence, as far as is practicable.

Right to an Interpreter¹⁰
The official language in Zimbabwe’s court system is English. Notwithstanding the high calibre of English spoken by most Zimbabweans, most litigants find its use in court uncomfortable, since it is in reality a second language. Any person that is not comfortable or fluently conversant with the English language is entitled to an interpreter at the expense of the State.

Right to a Fair trial before an Independent and Impartial Tribunal¹¹
In addition, all persons have a right to a fair trial before an independent and impartial trial, in the determination of the existence and extent of civil rights and obligations. This means that a court should not be biased in favour of one or other of the parties before it, and all the parties must be permitted to question evidence and witnesses of the other.

Right to Humane Treatment¹²
The police sometimes tortures many accused persons during periods of incarceration. Torture is the deliberate infliction of physical or mental pain by state agents. Usually the accused is powerless to prevent torture, and because it is a gross abuse of power, all affected journalists must initiate claims, in addition to pressurising the police to investigate and prosecute their own rogue elements.

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