London, United Kingdom Aug 18, 2020 (Issuewire.com) - CITY, UNIVERSITY OF LONDON, MA INTERNATIONAL JOURNALISM ALUMNI STATEMENT ON THE DETENTION OF HOPEWELL CHINO’NO IN ZIMBABWE
The London City University MA International Journalism Alumni would like to draw the world’s attention to the plight of our friend and colleague Hopewell Chin'ono, a fellow City graduate, who is currently incarcerated at the Chikurubi Maximum prison in Zimbabwe.
Hopewell's third bail hearing is scheduled today, Tuesday, 18 August. We, the City University Journalism Alumni demand his immediate granting of bail and a fair and transparent trial. The world is watching.
Hopewell is an award-winning journalist who has worked for the BBC, CNN, ITV and the New York Times in both print and broadcast. He is a Nieman Fellow at Harvard University, one of just three Zimbabwean journalists to have won the most prestigious fellowship in journalism.
Hopewell had been investigating alleged corruption, including government procurement of $60m worth of Personal Protective Equipment, at the time of his arrest on 20 July 2020. The armed raid, which involved several police officers, was live-streamed by Hopewell until he was told to put his phone down. His social media accounts have since been deleted.
The charge is that Hopewell had posted statements on his Twitter account inciting violence in an anti-government protest on 31 July. The demonstrations passed off peacefully and Hopewell denies he was encouraging public violence.
Opposition leader Jacob Ngarivhume, who is thought to be one of the organisers behind the 31 July protests, was arrested at the same time on similar charges.
Since their arrest, the hashtag #ZimbabweansLivesMatter has trended on Twitter, building upon momentum from the #BlackLivesMatter movement and support from celebrities around the world, including rapper Ice Cube and actress Thandie Newton.
Hopewell has been denied bail on two occasions and on 7 August was moved from the Harare Remand Prison to a Maximum-Security Prison shackled in leg irons. His lawyers say he is being treated like a dangerous criminal even though he is yet to receive a trial and that he has been surviving on biscuits and water.
It is clear the decision to move Hopewell to a maximum-security prison is intentionally designed to show high-handed force and power while disregarding the notion of innocent until proven guilty.
After he was denied his second bail request, Hopewell said: "Journalism has been criminalised. The struggle against corruption should continue. People should not stop - they should carry on with it."
Amnesty International agrees that Hopewell's treatment is designed to intimidate members of the media.
Alarmingly, Hopewell and Jacob have endured deliberate flouting and denial of their basic constitutional and human rights while in detention. Specifically, they have been denied private access to their lawyers, family visits, food brought from outside the prison, warm clothing, and PPE equipment (at a time when there has been a surge in coronavirus cases in Zimbabwe).
It took a ruling from a High Court judge on 14 August to order the Zimbabwe Prison and Correctional Services to comply with the suspects’ constitutional rights.
The first bail application was denied by the court with the judge arguing he was taking a preventive measure to stop Hopewell from making further statements that could incite protestors ahead of the 31 July 2020 demonstration.
The second bail application on 7 August 2020 was also denied, despite the fact the protests had already occurred. There were a further obstruction to the legal process on 14 August, with confusion over which Court Hopewell was being taken to, resulting in a delay to the hearing.
It is understood Hopewell's defence lawyer, Beatrice Mtetwa, had police stationed outside her hotel. She was later told she would have to step down for contempt for comments made on social media and upon telling the magistrate she did not have a social media account, he requested a leave of five days to investigate the matter.
It is clear that the reasons for detaining Hopewell are no longer valid. He should be granted his bail appeal today on Tuesday, 18 August 2020.
"Hopewell has always been a journalist who tackles his subject matters with total commitment and relentless pursuit for the truth," said Kennedy Makambira, International Media Specialist - FIFA, CAF and UEFA.
“Back in his City University days, Hopewell was just as bold, brave and brilliant at speaking truth to all and his work shows this trait," he continued. "He has been thorough and professional in his work and is ready to defend the charges brought against him by Zimbabwean authorities before a court hearing in full respect the Zimbabwean Constitution.”
CITY, UNIVERSITY OF LONDON, JOURNALISM ALUMNI
Media Contact
City University International Journalism Alumni helenmyates@hotmail.com 07939632475
