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Soldiers 'ban' Masvingo weekly newspaper in Gutu
MISA-Zimbabwe
January 18, 2011

Soldiers from 42 lnfantry Battalion in Gutu on Friday 14 January, 2011 allegedly banned vendors from selling Masvingo province weekly independent newspaper, The Mirror, after it published a story alleging that army personnel had beaten up people at Mupandawana growth point on Christmas Eve.

The story which was published in the January 7 - 13, 2011 edition headlined 'Soldiers run amok' alleged that one soldier, Nxolise Ncube, was arrested for beating a policemen during the incident. Ncube, according to the article, was sentenced to one year in prison. The soldiers claim that Ncubes' case was an isolated bar brawl.

According to The Mirror's editor, Golden Maunganidze, vendors and agencies were on Friday 14 January, 2011 threatened by soldiers at the Mupandawana growth point in Gutu after approximately 500 newspapers were delivered for circulation. Maunganidze says the newspapers were immediately returned to the newspaper offices. He said that the occurrence was unfortunate as the story was based on facts as confirmed by the Spokesperson for the army in the Province, Officer Kingston Chivave and Ncube's sentencing.

Maunganidze said that army officials have since been in contact with the paper to apologise for the incident and that The Mirror was back in circulation in Gutu on Monday 17 December 2011. No incidences of violence have been reported yet.

Background

According to MISA-Zimbabwe's State of the media report of 2010 the latter half of the year 2010 saw an increase in the number of cases involving arrests, assault and harassment of journalists in the wake of calls by the two leading political players President Mugabe and Prime Minister Tsvangirai that the nation should prepare for elections in 2011.

The upsurge in such cases appeared targeted at journalists working for the privately owned media involved the arrest and nine day detention of Standard journalists Nqobani Ndlovu on 17 November 2010 at Khami Remand Prison.

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