Media Institute of Southern Africa (Windhoek)
10 November 2008
press release
MISA Zimbabwe has received reports regarding the police's intensions to arrest human rights lawyer Harrison Nkomo, who was representing Phillip Warington Taylor, a British journalist who recently skipped bail.
Taylor was expected in court on 5 November 2008 but failed to appear after informing Nkomo through a text message that he had already left the country.
Nkomo later told Harare magistrate Catherine Chimanda that Taylor had left the country and was in South Africa.
The police reportedly want to charge Nkomo with defeating the course of justice under Section 184 subsection 1 paragraph A of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act.
Police officers from the Law and Order Section reportedly visited Nkomo's offices in Harare looking for the lawyer, but he was said to be out of town.
BACKGROUND:
Nkomo represented Taylor, who was arrested on 30 October by members of the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) at Harare International Airport on allegations of practicing journalism in Zimbabwe without accreditation. He was arrested aboard his flight which was about to take off. Taylor denied practicing journalism in the 30 days he was in the country. He was granted bail by a Harare magistrate but later left the country.
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Blah blah blah... more defence of a tyrannous regime
Ichy ,are you for real??Even to the point where you become a little on the nose with your paranoia of whitemen and the west.Mugga loves the "palefaces".He does business with them out the backdoor .But you Ichy, you keep me guessing........Look out Ichy there's a "whitey' under your bed!!! and oooh.. look there's another!Here's a LAW you should think of:-"the crap you cook up is the crap you will eat". it's called cause and effect.Bon appetit.
I think that what we should be asking ourselves is why it's illegal to be a journalist in Zimbabwe? This is a vital profession. Why should the state put any impediments in the way of people getting their news? Could it be that they don't want the people to get the news? What motive could there be for denying people access to basic information if only to prevent them from finding out how much they've been lied to and cheated by their own government. This law serves no practical purpose except to protect the government, or more properly, ZANU-PF, since… [Read Full Text]
Its illegal to be a journalist in Zimbabwe because Zimbabwe is not a country that respects basic human rights, including freedom of speech. Pure and simple.
There is really nothing unusual if the police want to question this lawyer on foresaid issue. He is a human being just like any other Zimbabwean citizen. By the way does the law in Zimbabwe descriminate on who should and should not be arrested. So-called human rights lawyers and journalists should not be arrested, is it that they are a sacred lot, no, some of them are just stupid criminals who just need even not be bailed out by the courts. This MISA organisation wants to protect these criminals heh, we know misa"s agenda and it doesn"t surprise us.Stop advocating… [Read Full Text]