HARARE — Zimbabwe Independent editor Faith Zaba was arrested on Tuesday and charged with undermining the authority of the president, following the publication of a satirical column that criticised Zimbabwe’s leadership role within the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
The weekly Muckraker column mocked Zimbabwe’s soon-to-end chairmanship of SADC, describing the regional bloc as a “trade union of dictators.”
Trevor Ncube, the owner of Alpha Media Holdings — the publishers of the Zimbabwe Independent — said Zaba had ongoing health issues and prison would harm her health.
“Police have an order to detain Faith overnight at Harare Central Police Station. Faith is currently unwell and was recuperating on bedrest. #JournalismIsNotACrime,” Ncube wrote on X late Tuesday.
Media watchdogs and rights groups have frequently criticised the use of laws criminalising insult or undermining the president in Zimbabwe, warning they are used to intimidate journalists and suppress free expression.
There was no immediate comment from police or government officials.
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