HARARE Police have summoned journalists from the Zimbabwe Independent over a story exposing Police Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuris opposition to electoral reforms. Detective Inspector Henry Sostein Dowa delivered the summons to the newspapers offices in Harare on Monday.The police want to question the papers editor, Constantine Chimakure and Farai Mutsaka, the newspapers former news editor, who wrote the story in August.
In the story headlined *****Chihuri opposes electoral reforms****, the newspaper disclosed that Chihuri demanded a reversal of sweeping electoral reforms agreed to by coalition government partners and suggested that police maintain a presence in polling stations as well as the postal voting system, which could be seen as aiding vote rigging.
In his story, Mutsaka, a veteran journalist, quoted a letter written by Chihuri to the Home Affairs co-ministers, Kembo Mohadi and Theresa Makone, in July protesting against the agreed electoral reforms.
Dowa, who has earned a reputation for targeting human rights and political activists, reportedly told Chimakure that the police wanted to know the source of the story.
Harassment and attacks on the media have increased in recent weeks a situation analysts say is a sign that Zanu (PF) is gearing up for elections in 2011.
Post published in: World News