Mnangagwa warned against abusing media

THE Minister of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services, Dr Chris Mushohwe, has castigated politicians who fight factional battles using the media, saying they were abusing their Constitutional right to freedom of expression. Mnangagwa allies have been fighting Professor Jonathan Moyo using Zimpapers' Command journalists.

Dr Mushohwe said the electronic, print and social media should not be used as arsenal or battle ground for political or factional battles.

In his speech in Gweru to officially launch 98.4 Midlands FM which is owned AB Communications Group yesterday, Dr Mushohwe said government supports freedom of speech as enshrined in the Constitution.

"Let me take this opportunity ladies and gentlemen to reiterate that as government we support freedom of expression as enshrined in our Constitution. In this vein, I would want to caution our friends in the media, both electronic and print, that while it is a right, it is not a licence to propagate hate speech and spreading unsubstantiated and malicious stories about our country. The electronic, print and social media should not be used as an arsenal or battle ground for political or factional battles," said the Minister who was accompanied by the Ministry's Permanent Secretary, Mr George Charamba.

Dr Mushohwe said the media is supposed to be a vehicle for the promotion of Zim-Asset programmes, unity and the national interest.

The media, he said, should always be factual and portray a positive image of the country.

"As broadcasters you have an obligation to be professional, factual and impartial in the dissemination of information. Ladies and gentlemen I want to remind you that radio, television and other media platforms should know that their role is exclusively to inform, entertain, educate and not as I have said to be used as whips by political gladiators. Anything to the contrary is unacceptable," said the Minister.

He said abusing the media especially radio can lead to genocide.

"Radio can be used to build or destroy societies if its use is left unguarded. During the build-up and execution of the Rwandan genocide, radio was used as a tool of propaganda to communicate and instil hate for the Tutsi minority. The radios did this by first broadcasting music that was popular to draw attention before they disseminated hateful information about the Tutsis, a minority ethnic group in Rwanda," the Minister said.

"In a largely illiterate population, the radio station soon had a very large audience who found it immensely entertaining. During the genocide, radio was broadcasting lists of people to be killed and instructed killers on where to find them.

"Media executives Jean-Bosco Barayagwiza and Fedinard Nahimana were arrested and convicted. They were sentenced to  35 years and life in prison respectively at the United Nations tribunal in Arusha, Tanzania for their role in the media campaign to incite ethnic Hutus to kill Tutsis in Rwanda in 1994."

He said during the Bosnian war in 1992, the media especially radio, was used as a propaganda tool during a military campaign to exterminate Bosnian Croats and Muslims and quell the Bosnian movement for independence.

"Ladies and gentlemen from these few examples it is clear that the media, radio in particular, can be used to create disharmony and in worst cases it can be used to exterminate whole populations as witnessed in Rwanda and in the former Yugoslavia situation. This must not be tolerated in Zimbabwe and elsewhere," Dr Mushohwe said.

He said the government has successfully opened the airwaves in line with provisions of the Broadcasting Services Act of 2001.

"As government we are pleased to note that eight regional stations have started full stream broadcasting. In total over the last five years, 10 radio stations have been opened either at regional or national level.

"This is in line with Government efforts to promote Zim-Asset by providing an enabling environment for sustainable economic empowerment and social transformation. In line with the goals of the digitalisation programme, information dissemination becomes truly a basic human rights entitlement," said Dr Mushohwe.

He said government was about to complete the digitalisation process.

The Minister said the completion of the process is set to benefit the nation through local content creation especially the 75 percent local content policy.

He said government strongly believes the digitalisation process shall allow local broadcasters to operate at par with global players.