Action Alert 22 June 2000

The South African Press Agency reported that about 20 Zimbabwean assailants attacked a car carrying four foreign media workers at a farm in southern Zimbabwe on June 21, in full view of Commonwealth election observers.

The four were; Beatrice Khadige of Agence France Press, Sharon Chetty of the "Sowetan" (South Africa), Guy Oliver of e-TV (South Africa) and his camera operator, Brian Ramapulana who escaped unhurt. The windows of their rented car were smashed.

The attackers, dressed in orange worksuits, with one wearing a ruling Zanu-PF party T-shirt, attacked the car with stones and knobkerries after an opposition Movement for Democratic Change team distributed campaign leaflets at the farm, named England. Two Commonwealth observers, one from Papua New Guinea and another from Canada, witnessed the attack at this rural farming district about 120km, south of the capital, Harare.

Send letters of protest to:

The Ministry of Home Affairs, Dumiso Dabengwa, expressing concern about an assault on four foreign journalists in Zimbabwe. Also urge the minister to ensure that journalists can work freely and safely throughout the country because the state of press freedom in Zimbabwe has been deteriorating since April 2000, ahead of the parliamentary elections.

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