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Zimbabwe journalist arrested, prosecutors throw out case
Radio VOP
July 28, 2011

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Police in Bulawayo on Thursday morning arrested and dragged to court Newsday senior court reporter, Richard Muponde on charges of criminal defamation.

However Muponde was temporarily released after state prosecutors based Bulawayo Tredgold Magistrate Court refused to present him before a magistrate court saying that police should bring more evidence in the case.

According to the police Muponde defamed a bogus Bulawayo Estate Agent, Christopher Mangisi who is also facing charges in court of defrauding a 70 year-old city woman Sophie Mpofu.

Mangisi made a report to police against Muponde saying that he defamed him, by writing his fraud case in the Newsday before talking to him. Police then picked the journalist at his Bulawayo Newsday offices on Thursday morning before dragging him to court.

Speaking to Radio VOP Muponde's lawyer Josphat Tshuma of Webb Low and Barry, said he was surprised that the police had arrested a journalist who was exposing corruption.

"When a case is in court it's longer a private matter but it is for public compensation and I don't see the reasons why police arrested a journalist for reporting such a case. This is just continuous harassment of media practitioners in Zimbabwe by police," said Tshuma.

The arrest of Muponde comes barely two weeks after police arrested four other journalists from the same city, Nqobani Ndlovu of The Standard, Pindai Dube of Daily News and two freelancers, Osca Nkala and Pamenos Tuso who were detained at Ntabazinduna police training depot for witnessing an eviction of senior police officer who had been fired from the force for playing Movement of Democratic Change (MDC) songs.

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