Zimbabwe: Two independent newspapers to be published

The Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) is to authorize the publication of two newspapers independent of state control in Harare. The privately produced Daily News and Newsday, also publishers of the weekly Zimbabwe Independent and Standard newspapers, have both had their applications to publish accepted by the ZMC secretariat following their closure as a result of legislation censoring the media in 2003. Journalists from a series of media houses and newspapers previously banned by Robert Mugabe’s government have re-applied for their previous jobs whilst many organizations have applied for magazine and periodical publishing licenses since 4 May. The Zimbabwean government has yet to announce changes to restrictions on the granting of broadcast licenses.

Zimbabwe angry over radio “hate messages”

The Zimbabwean government is reported to be lodging a formal diplomatic complaint with Botswana over the alleged transmission of foreign radio news broadcasts into their territory. The state-controlled Herald newspaper, closely aligned with the former ruling ZANU-PF party of President Robert Mugabe, quoted Foreign Affairs Secretary Joey Bimha as saying the government objects to the transmission of what Bimha called “hate messages” from Botswana. Read more here

Zimbabwe: MDC censored

Zimbabwe’s ministry of Media, Information and Publicity has ordered the state-controlled Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) and public newspapers to stop reporting on ministers from the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T), until Morgan Tsvangirai and his party reverse its decision to withdraw contact with ZANU PF, led by President Robert Mugabe.
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