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Editor's trial resumes
MISA-Zimbabwe
February 04, 2008

The trial of Bright Chibvuri the editor of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions’ The Worker magazine charged under the repressive Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) resumed on 1 February 2008 in Plumtree only to be postponed yet again. 

The trial but had to be postponed after the magistrate ruled that he needed time to consider legal arguments which arose during the trial.This comes hardly a day after the trial was postponed on 31 January 2008 because the trial magistrate was on a prison visit in the town. 

Plumtree resident magistrate Mark Dzira postponed the matter to 28 February to give him time to consider legal arguments which arose at the resumption of the trial and determine the issue of whether an accreditation card is similar to a press card.  The issue arose during the cross-examination of the second prosecution witness, Inspector Sifelani who is the officer in charge of law and order section in Plumtree. 

Sifelani had earlier told the court that he had arrested Chibvuri after he failed to produce an accreditation card and had charged him for practicing journalism without an accreditation card. However, under cross-examination, it was put to him that under AIPPA, there is no mention of an accreditation card but a press card.

A dispute arose between the state led by the prosecutor a Mr Thandabantu and the defence lawyer Munyaradzi Nzarayapenga. While the prosecution argued that the line of questioning was unnecessary and calculated at harassing the witness, the defence argued that this was the gist of the matter aimed at proving that the charge had therefore been improperly instituted. 

Earlier, magistrate Dzira had adjourned the matter and called the prosecution and the defence to his chambers following an argument over the prosecution's intention to produce in court Chibvuri's warned and cautioned statement.  The defence objected to the production of the warned and cautioned statement arguing that the statement had not been confirmed as having been adduced freely and voluntarily as required in terms of Zimbabwe's laws.   

Chibvuri is being charged with contravening Section 83 of AIPPA which penalises the practice of journalism without accreditation. 

The prosecution is expected to close its case on 28 February 2008. 

Background 
Chibvuri was arrested in Plumtree on 3 March 2007 and spent two nights in police custody. He was only released on 5 March 2007.

At the time of his arrest, Chibvuri had applied for accreditation but had not received a response from the Media and Information Commission (MIC), but was eventually duly accredited.

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