Mail & Guardian owner, Zimbabwean-born Trevor Ncube, will challenge attempts by President Robert Mugabe’s government to revoke his citizenship in the Harare High Court on Wednesday.
If he loses his citizenship, Ncube will not be able to own a majority interest in his Zimbabwean newspapers and will only be entitled to a 40 percent share.
Ncube owns Zimbabwe’s last two remaining independent newspapers, the Zimbabwe Independent (circulation: 28,000) and The Standard (circulation: 41,000) which have been critical of the Mugabe regime.
The Zimbabwean government is arguing that he is in fact Zambian because his father was born in Zambia.
Ncube will not attend Wednesday’s court hearing for security reasons.
“I will not be travelling to Zimbabwe because I’m convinced the government will impound my passport and I will not be able to leave the country. I don’t want to subject myself to that again,” he told reporters.
“As a businessman I have to travel. My family is also here in Johannesburg so I cannot afford to be imprisoned in Zimbabwe.”
In December 2005, the media owner’s passport was confiscated after he was found to be on the country’s list of enemies.
But the Zimbabwean High Court then ruled in his favour and his passport was returned.
The same judge that presided over that case, the Honourable Mr Justice Bhunu, will also preside over the current case.