The police claim a truck containing broadcast equipment for British
broadcaster Sky News was parked at the company workshop for a long time and
accused Eddy of helping journalists who were arrested last week for
allegedly working without accreditation and possessing broadcast equipment.
Police entered the premises and closed all the doors telling employees no
one could work until police had seen the owner. They also temporarily
confiscated all the mobile phones belonging to the workers. One of them was
then told to call Eddy onto the site.
Although state media reports say three people, including two South Africans,
were arrested Friday last week, our Bulawayo correspondent Lionel Saungweme
insists he saw the arrested trio Thursday of the same week, in a police
Peugeot car. This brings to seven the number of days the journalists have
spent in custody. So far their names have not been released and questions
have been raised as to why the state media took their time in reporting the
story. Allegations are that the three were detained when police found a
factory in Bulawayo’s Belmont suburb that had ‘Sky television broadcasting
equipment’ including computers, laptops, disks, tapes and ‘a South African
bound car.’
Tavengwa Hara a lawyer for the journalists, says they were detained at a
roadblock in Gwanda and he only managed to locate them Tuesday this week. In
their defence the trio say they were asked to collect the equipment from
Bulawayo and return it to South Africa. The lawyer confirmed the charges
were related to telecommunications legislation for, ‘being in possession of
equipment believed to be used for broadcasting without a licence.’ Hara
proceeded to say, ‘It’s a small matter, they didn’t know what was in the
boxes. It’s a fineable offence. I expect them to plead guilty and to pay a
fine. There is no proof they were broadcasting.’
Despite reports the trio would appear in court Thursday, Saungweme was at
the courts in Bulawayo and says the case was not even on the court’s roll.
Eddy was also due to appear in court, but the case was also not on the court
roll.
SWRadio Africa
Post published in: News