Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. UNITED Kingdom’s Lord Jonny Oates has strongly criticised Zimbabwe’s media freedom record, highlighting the southern African nation’s history of intimidating, detaining and murdering journalists as well as silencing public dissent.
He said this while making a contribution in the British Parliament, the House of Lords.
Oates specifically mentioned the case of Heart & Soul TV (HStv) journalist Blessed “Dhara B” Mhlanga, who today has spent 61 days in prison after HStv broadcast a Press conference addressed by firebrand war veteran Blessed “Bombshell” Geza, who is the face of resistance against a plan to extend President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s term by two years to 2030.
Geza has also accused Mnangagwa of failing to deal with corruption that has reached alarming levels in the country, as well as promoting nepotism and cronyism.
“In Zimbabwe, a country close to my heart, media freedom has been under siege for decades now.
“Journalists are regularly intimidated, detained and on occasion, murdered. Printing presses have been blown up and public dissent is silenced,” Oates said.
“Journalist Blessed Mhlanga has, as we speak, been detained for 59 days, denied his constitutional right to bail.
“His crime: Having the temerity to conduct an interview with a former war veteran who opposes President Manangagwa’s desire to extend his term in office and who has highlighted the criminal corruption of the regime and the President’s family.”
He urged the British government to maintain pressure on Zimbabwe, calling for consequences for the Zanu PF regime’s actions.
“And I hope that the government will continue to make clear that there will be no resumption of normal relationships with Zimbabwe, while the Zanu PF regime continues to detain journalists, deny media freedom and defy democratic norms. As Baroness Mubarak said in her excellent speech, there must be consequences for such actions,” Oates said.
He also encouraged parliamentarians attending a summit in London, where First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa is scheduled to speak, to challenge her on Mhlanga’s detention and the regime’s brutality.
“I note that the president’s wife is due to speak at a summit in London in June and I hope that members of our Parliament who are choosing to take part will challenge Zimbabwe’s First Lady on the continued detention of Blessed Mhlanga and the overall brutality of the regime that she represents,” he said.
Oates also bemoaned media freedom violations in Sudan and Gaza.
Meanwhile, Mhlanga is set to appear in court on April 30 for trial.
His trial was delayed because of the absence of a key witness’ statement.
The 44-year-old Mhlanga, who is represented by Chris Mhike of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, has spent 61 days in both police and prison detention after Zimbabwe Republic Police officers arrested him on February 24, 2025 and charged him with transmitting data messages with the intention of inciting violence as defined in section 164 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act.
Judicial officers at Harare Magistrates Court and at Harare High Court have on three occasions dismissed Mhlanga’s applications and an appeal to be released from prison on bail pending trial, thereby condemning him to be detained for two months at Harare Remand Prison.
During his latest attempt for freedom, Harare magistrate Donald Ndirowei dismissed Mhlanga’s application for bail after ruling that there were no changed circumstances to warrant his release from prison and that the State had made significant progress in investigating his case to an extent that prosecutors were ready to furnish him with a trial date, adding that releasing him on bail when such significant progress has been made would not be in the interests of justice.
Prosecutors claim that Mhlanga acted unlawfully when he allegedly recorded a video of Geza and reportedly made it available to the public by transmitting and broadcasting it on YouTube, a social media and online video sharing platform and on HStv, a digital content service provider and distributor, with the intention of inciting people to commit undisclosed acts of violence.
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