IP: FYI -- Zamnet censorship --[perhaps DoJ is planning to

[Dave Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>]

> ACTION ALERT UP-DATE - ZAMBIA
> FEBRUARY 16, 1996
>
> INTERNET EDITION OF THE POST ALSO BANNED
>
>
> The Internet edition of The Post newspaper of February 5 - banned by
> President Frederick Chiluba in terms of Section 53 of the Penal Code - has
> been removed from the paper's World Wide Web (WWW) site.
>
> Mark Bennet of Zamnet Communications, the privately-owned Internet service
> provider which hosts The Post's WWW site, says Zamnet was left with little
> choice but to make the February 5 edition of The Post inaccessible on the
> Internet.
>
> Bennet says Zamnet kept the banned version of The Post on the WWW for two
> days after it was published, but was then warned by a "someone senior in
> the police" that the company was liable to be raided and charged with
> possession of a prohibited publication.  The President's ban of edition 401
> of The Post covered "all forms" of the paper, says Bennet.
>
> Visit The Post's WWW site (http://www.zamnet.zm) and you will find the
> February 5 edition listed in the paper's archive of back editions, but
> click on the edition and the file will not open. However, following
> editions of the paper - containing stories about the banning, the police
> raid on The Post's offices, and subsequent arrest and charging of
> Editor-in-Chief Fred M'membe, Managing Editor Bright Mwape and Special
> Projects Editor Matsautso Phiri with contravening the State Security Act -
> can be read. The State Security Act charges relate to a report published in
> the February 5 edition of The Post revealing the government's plans to hold
> a referendum on the adoption of a new constitution.
>
> A recent addition to the Zamnet WWW site is "Zambia Today" - stories from
> the state-run news agency ZANA, which are up-dated every couple of hours.
> "State House was very keen that the world didn't see The Post newspaper
> alone," said Bennet. "We kept telling them that we were going to keep The
> Post, but that we were happy to put up a State House page, or a page for
> ZANA. We are trying to actively encourage them to be positive."
>
> Bennet stresses Zamnet was an independent company and would not succumb to
> self-censorship as a result of political pressure. Zamnet is housed at the
> University of Zambia, which has a 52 per cent share holding in the company.
> Although funded by the government, the University enjoys academic autonomy,
> says Bennet, "so there is no possibility of pressure (being exerted on
> Zamnet) through the University".
>
> M'membe, Mwape and Phiri are due to appear in the High Court today to hear
> whether or not their bail - granted last week Wednesday (February 7) after
> initially being turned down by a magistrate - can be reviewed. If the court
> decides their bail can be reviewed, the three stand a chance of returning
> to jail to await trail on the charges of contravening Section 4 of the
> State Security Act, which prohibits the publication of classified
> information. If convicted, the journalists could be jailed for up to 25
> years.
>
> However, speaking on Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) news this
> morning (February 16), Mwape said he was not deterred by the prospect of a
> lengthy term in jail if convicted. "It is about time such a challenge was
> made," said Mwape. "The freedom we are talking about will only come if we
> are prepared to make sacrifices for it."
>
> ends
>
> David Lush
> Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA)
> Private Bag 13386
> Windhoek, Namibia
> Tel. +264 61 232975, Fax. 248016
> e-mail: dlush () ingrid misa org na