Trevor Ncube's AMH charged for 'insulting' Mnangagwa

A week after the arrest of Zimbabwe Independent editor Faith Zaba, the Zimbabwean government has escalated its legal crackdown on independent media by charging the newspaper's parent company, Alpha Media Holdings (AMH), with allegedly insulting or undermining the authority of President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

The charges stem from a satirical Muckraker column published in a recent edition of the Zimbabwe Independent, a weekly newspaper under the AMH stable.

On Wednesday afternoon, July 9, 2025, detectives from the Law and Order section at Harare Central Police Station recorded a statement from AMH Editor-in-Chief, Kholwani Nyathi. He was accompanied by the company's legal representative, Advocate Chris Mhike.

"Lamentably, it is true that the State has instituted criminal proceedings against AMH," said Mhike following the recording of statements.

He confirmed that a court appearance for the company's representative has been scheduled for Thursday, July 10, 2025, or soon thereafter. "The company denies all allegations levelled against it by the State, and the details of that denial shall be traversed at the forthcoming court session," Mhike added.

The development comes amid mounting criticism of the government's increasing hostility toward independent journalism. Zaba's arrest last week on similar allegations sparked outrage both locally and internationally.

Media freedom groups, including the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), condemned her arrest and called for all charges to be dropped.

"Instead of arresting journalists and criminalising the profession, Zimbabwean authorities should be doing everything in their power to protect media freedom and the hard-won constitutionally guaranteed rights of the country's media professionals," said WAN-IFRA's press freedom executive director, Andrew Heslop.

He defended the satirical content published by the newspaper, stating, "Satire is an essential component of a free press, and public figures — presidents included — should accept that their roles expose them to greater levels of public scrutiny."

Heslop added that in a democratic society, the press must be allowed to "hold a mirror to itself and the actions of its leaders," urging authorities to release Zaba and cease criminalising critical journalism.

Local media bodies, including the Zimbabwe National Editors Forum (ZINEF) and the Zimbabwe Union of Journalists (ZUJ), have also decried what they describe as a sustained assault on press freedom. They have called for an end to the intimidation and targeting of independent media voices.

Zaba's case marks the second high-profile arrest of a senior AMH journalist this year. Earlier, Blessed Mhlanga, head of news at AMH-owned HStv, spent 72 days in pre-trial detention following the broadcast of press conferences by expelled ZANU PF central committee member Blessed Geza, who publicly called for President Mnangagwa's resignation.

AMH publishes NewsDay, The Standard, Zimbabwe Independent, and Southern Eye, and owns online broadcaster HStv — outlets that have frequently faced scrutiny for their independent editorial stance.

As the media community braces for Thursday's court proceedings, rights groups continue to call for the protection of journalistic freedoms enshrined in Zimbabwe's Constitution.