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MISA-Zimbabwe AGM 2010 Communique
MISA-Zimbabwe
August 03, 2010

MISA-Zimbabwe held its annual general meeting (AGM) in Bulawayo on 31 July 2010 with increased calls for the transformation of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) into a truly independent public broadcaster.

In his report, MISA-Zimbabwe Chairperson Loughty Dube acknowledged the licensing of new media players in the print media notably Newsday, The Daily News, The Daily Gazette and The Worker as positive developments.

"We should therefore not relent in pushing for media diversity, pluralism and independence in the wake of this development, but raise the decibels in our agitations for a liberalised broadcasting sector environment," said Dube.

"MISA-Zimbabwe therefore takes this opportunity to reiterate its calls for the government to free the airwaves and allow for the entry of new players in the broadcasting sector as well as community radio stations as stipulated under the African Charter on Broadcasting's three-tier broadcasting system.

"The Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation should equally be transformed into a truly independent public broadcaster for it to fulfil its public service mandate as stipulated in terms of the African Charter on Broadcasting and the SADC Principles and Guidelines on the Conduct of Democratic Elections.

While he noted the relative decline in the number of cases involving the harassment and arrests of journalists, he expressed concern with the sporadic nature of cases involving media violations since the advent of the inclusive government. Dube attributed this to the continued existence of repressive legislation such as AIPPA, POSA and Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act.

"In calling for the repealing of these pieces of legislation, we also urge the inclusive government to condemn these violations and also ensure the safety and security of journalists as they conduct their lawful professional duties."

On the constitution making process, he said this offered an opportunity to push for comprehensive media reforms as enunciated by MISA-Zimbabwe's 2010 World Press Freedom Day theme: Media Freedom and Access to Information Should Be Constitutional Rights!

"We should stay the course by seizing this opportunity and ensuring that our position on the need for constitutional provisions that explicitly guarantee media freedom and citizens' right to access to information is captured and recorded by the COPAC outreach teams for ultimate inclusion in the envisaged draft constitution."

Dube said he was happy that the issue of media freedom, community radios and ZBC coverage were among issues being raised by citizens during the constitution making process. He attributed this positive development to the lobby and advocacy strategies of MISA-Zimbabwe's Advocacy Committees which are decentralised throughout the country. "I therefore urge journalists to also capture these issues in their reportage of the constitution making process."

National Director Nhlanhla Ngwenya chronicled activities undertaken during the year under review and in terms of MISA-Zimbabwe's five programme areas that advance and add value to its mission and vision.

In his outlook for the next year, Ngwenya highlighted the need to strategically build on achievements to date through five strategic areas namely: parliamentary lobby; political power brokers; constitutional reform process; consensus building and strong membership.

As part of our strategic intervention, it would be important to keep tabs on the intra-party political dynamics so that we are fully informed of the repositories of power within political parties whom we should lobby for reforms.

This is particularly important as it is increasingly becoming clear that any reforms would ultimately be a function of negotiations and compromises by the ruling parties.

Our regional advocacy should also identify regional powerhouses that are better placed to influence reforms. On consensus building within civil society and across the media divide, he said MISA-Zimbabwe should use its stature as the main media freedom advocacy group in the country to articulate requisite solutions on how best to proceed with envisaged media reforms.

Meanwhile, delegates to the AGM agreed on the need for increased networking and co-ordination of outreach programmes among the organisation's Advocacy Committees.

Gwanda and Chinhoyi committees were the joint winners of the Advocacy Committee of the Year Award for 2010 while Harare and Bulawayo came second and third.

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