The 'war' to tell the Zimbabwean story

Dongozi speaks to journalism students at LJMU (Picture: Vegard Grott); YouTube: Speaking to the NUJ

Printing press bombings, arrests, harassment, and

intimidation. The life of a Zimbabwean journalist is a

world apart from anything you would expect in the UK.

Liverpool Screen School students were recently given a fascinating and harrowing insight into the struggles faced by journalists in the Southern African state by Foster Dongozi, general secretary of the Zimbabwean Union of Journalists (ZUJ).

“Our state has become like a police state,” he said. “Journalists going into a cyber cafe face the genuine threat of people standing behind them and reading what they are writing. “

Once known as the “breadbasket of Africa”, under the rule of President Robert Mugabe since 1980, Zimbabwe has come to world attention for economic mismanagement, hyperinflation, human rights abuses and political instability.

Far from being just another failed African state, Dongozi described the government of his country as a very “sophisticated dictatorship”. Independent media organisations are currently banned as are foreign news organisations such as the BBC and CNN.

Dongozi experienced the crackdown on media freedom whilst working for The Daily News, a hugely popular independent newspaper that the government tried to suppress from the moment it gained popularity after launching in 1999.

“We were suddenly labelled as enemies of the state. That is a very chilling and frightening statement because you are public enemy number one.”

The newspaper remained popular which forced the government to first bomb its printing presses, before it eventually closed it down along with many other independent media organisations.

“A climate of fear began to invade our industry,” said Dongozi. “So very experienced, professional journalists fled the country to work in any menial jobs they could lay their hands on.”

As a result Zimbabwe has one of the largest communities of exiled journalists alongside the likes of Ethiopia, Eritrea, Iran and Cuba.

Despite the crackdown there are numerous underground publications and there has been emergence of online media in Zimbabwe. In rural areas, Dongozi described how communities gather around radios to listen to independent news shows.

Despite the ascension of the opposition party Movement For Democratic Change (MDC) into government last year little has happened in terms of reversing media restrictions.

A commission was supposed to be established but it is only President Mugabe who can appoint its members and he is under no obligation to do this. It means media reform is at the tail end of the new government’s priorities.

Zimbabwe has what Dongozi describes as “draconian” media laws where any statements that might cause disaffection towards the president are illegal. This effectively means there can be no criticism of Mugabe or his government.

Dongozi also believes Zimbabwe is becoming increasingly militarised: “State broadcasters have retired army majors and generals sitting on their boards as do national railways and power stations. Look at the way the successful campaign to reverse the president's loss in the first election was led by the military.”

As a result, Dongozi believes the fight of the ZUJ is a war, but a war worth fighting despite the fear and restrictions journalists face on an almost daily basis.

“If we all flee who is going to fight for our profession? Who is going to tell our story?” he says.

“The war to tell the Zimbabwean story is not outside it is in Zimbabwe. We are not only fighting for our members in the ZUJ but for our media freedom.”

Alumni

Meet the staff