The human rights committee of the General Council of the Bar of South Africa has urged the South African government to pressurise the Zimbabwean government to reopen the Daily News.
The Daily News, Zimbabwe’s only independent daily newspaper was shut down on Friday by armed police officers. It was sealed off without lawful warrant.
”Our government, other states in the region and organisations such as the SADC [Southern African Development Community] should put pressure on the Zimbabwean government to ensure that the Daily News is immediately reopened and remains open pending the Supreme Court’s final determination of the constitutional challenges,” spokesperson advocate Brian Spilg said on Wednesday.
He said the committee deplored this further act of state sponsored lawlessness, ”which is made more reprehensible because the police are aware that the court has yet to rule on the merits of a constitutional challenge to the Zimbabwean press laws … which the Daily News is still intending to pursue, despite a recent unfavourable interim decision”.
The Daily News was the highest circulating newspaper in Zimbabwe and often published articles critical of the ruling party and its leaders, Spilg said.
The South African government was not immediately available for comment. — Sapa