The South African National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) expressed alarm on the eve of parliamentary elections in Zimbabwe that the country’s government “has failed to lift all restrictions on journalists and media, especially foreign media”.
A statement on Wednesday by deputy chairperson Liz Barrett and secretary general Hopewell Radebe said: “While it appears that South African journalists have now all gained accreditation to cover the elections from inside the country, it is clear that the Zimbabwean government, by barring many foreign news organisations, has not demonstrated a full commitment to the free flow of information concerning the elections.
“These actions do not bode well for free and fair parliamentary elections tomorrow [Thursday]. It suggests that the ‘Burma syndrome’ — the attempt to prevent news from reaching the outside world — still infects Zimbabwe.”
Sanef noted that the Zimbabwean independent media and correspondents based in the country continue to face harassment, which affects their ability to cover the election “without hindrance”.
“In addition, the state broadcaster, the Zimbabwean Broadcasting Corporation, has not effectively opened up the airwaves to opposition parties as the Zimbabwean government pledged to in the Southern African Development Community guidelines for free and fair elections,” Sanef noted.
“Monitoring agencies report that the ruling Zanu-PF still enjoyed a disproportionate amount of airtime across public television and radio.
“All of this has meant that the media playing fields remained skewed for the election campaign and suggests there is a lot of post-election work to do to ensure a free and fair media in Zimbabwe.”
Zimbabwean voters elect 120 seats out of a Parliament of 150 seats on Thursday. — I-Net Bridge