H.E. Rupiah B. Banda
President
Office of the President
State House
P.O. Box 30208
Lusaka
Republic of Zambia
Fax: (011.260.1) 22.19.39
Your Excellency:
The Overseas Press Club of America urges you again to drop charges against journalist, Chansa Kabwela, and close out what is now turning into a farcical performance by some members of your government.
Kabwela, the news editor of The Post, was arrested on July 15 on trumped-up charges of circulating obscene photos of a woman giving birth in the street. For that act, she faces up to five years in prison. The photos were never published, but sent to some members of your government to call attention to a humanitarian issue — a woman giving birth in the street because of a hospital workers’ strike. Kabwela may have used provocative tactics in this instance, but hardly committed a crime. Her continued prosecution can only undermine your government’s credibility and highlight its cynicism in twisting laws for political ends.
Since then, your government has compounded this case by citing the editor-in-chief of The Post, Fred M’membe, and law school professor, Muna Ndulo, for contempt over an article Ndulo wrote calling the obscenity case brought against Kabwela and The Post a “comedy of errors.” According to news reports, when M’membe and Ndulo did not appear in court on September 1, the judge then ordered The Post’s full editorial staff of fifty persons to appear to face contempt charges. That act by itself is a way of crippling a newspaper from meeting a publishing schedule — effecting indirect censorship.
The one redeeming aspect of this case is the decision of Judge Albert Wood to stay the contempt citation against M’membe and Ndulo until they are granted a High Court judicial review. This stay affords a cooling-off period for all concerned and is, in our view, a good opportunity to end this entire drama against Kabwela and The Post. We urge you to explore every constitutional way to have the case dropped.
As noted before in our July 27, 2009 letter to you, we are aware of the history of conflict between The Post and Zambia’s ruling party, and we do not dismiss the irritation The Post causes your government. But as we all know, an adversarial relationship between the press and government goes hand-in-hand with a healthy democracy. That is an outcome far more valuable to you than a short-term spat over circulated photos. We urge you to end this case in a way that takes the high road for all.
Thank you for your attention to this important matter. We would appreciate a reply.
Respectfully yours,
Robert J. Dowling
Larry Martz
Freedom of the Press Committee
cc:
H.E. Inonge Mbikusta-Lewanika
Ambassador of Zambia to the U.S.A.
Embassy of the Republic of Zambia
2419 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington DC 20008
Fax: (202) 332.0826
Ambassador Lazarous Kapambwe
Permanent Mission
Permanent Mission of the Republic of Zambia to the United Nations
237 East 52nd Street
New York, NY 10022
Fax: (212) 888.5213
H.E. Donald E. Booth
U.S. Ambassador to Zambia
Embassy of the United States of America
P.O. Box 31617
Lusaka
Zambia
Fax: (011.260.211) 25.22.25
The editor
The Post
Post Newspapers Ltd
36 Bwinjimfumu Road
Rhodespark P/Bag E35
Lusaka
Zambia
Fax: (011.260.1) 22.92.71
E-mail: Editor@post.co.zm