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Daily News journalist acquitted
MISA-Zimbabwe
August 31, 2005

Kelvin Jakachira, a journalist with the banned Daily News has been acquitted on charges of practising journalism without accreditation after a magistrate ruled that the State’s evidence was vague and confused.

Harare magistrate Prisca Chigumba on 31 August 2005 ruled that Jakachira had not only applied for accreditation, but had also complied with the application procedures in terms of the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA).

She asserted that Jakachira was lawfully entitled to continue practising while awaiting determination to his application from the government-controlled Media and Information Commission (MIC).

Jakachira who was represented by Beatrice Mtetwa, was being charged under Section 83 (1) Chapter 10:27 of AIPPA which deals with practising journalism without accreditation.

He was being accused of practising without being accredited between January 2003 and September of the same year. The offence carries a two year prison term or alternatively a fine of Z$400 000 or both such fine and imprisonment.

The magistrate, however, said Jakachira had submitted his application for the year 2003 on 18 December 2002, but had not received any response from the MIC.

"The State failed to lead any reliable evidence on this aspect as to whether it had received his application. There is no evidence that a determination was made nor was there evidence as to whether there was such communication (to Jakachira).

"The State’s evidence was not credible. The accused was entitled to continue practicing as no proof was produced that there was communication on the determination (of his application)," said the magistrate.

The State had relied on evidence from its sole witness, MIC executive chairman Dr Tafataona Mahoso.

Mahoso conceded under cross examination by Mtetwa that he had not considered Jakachira’s application as an individual matter as that was not necessary because Associated Newspapers of Zimbabwe (ANZ), the publishing company he worked for, was not registered with the MIC.

ANZ chief executive officer Samuel Sipepa Nkomo, told MISA-Zimbabwe that Jakachira’s trial was a test case as it came ahead of that of eight other ANZ journalists who are facing similar charges and are expected to appear in court on 12 October 2005.

"The fact that no journalists have been convicted under AIPPA since its enactment shows that this is a law that was designed just to fix journalists. The government should just get rid of this law by repealing it," said Sipepa.

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