WASHINGTON, United States – The New York Times said on Friday it was “deeply concerned” over the arrest of its Zimbabwe correspondent Jeffrey Moyo after he was remanded in custody on allegations of facilitating an unlawful reporting trip for two foreign journalists from the U.S.-based newspaper.
Moyo, 37, was arrested in Harare on Wednesday and charged with violating the Immigration Act after allegedly presenting false information to authorities to help his colleagues into the country.
He is also accused of securing fake accreditation cards for them from the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) after conniving with an official from the regulatory body Thabang Farai Manhika, who is also in custody.
“We are deeply concerned by Jeffrey Moyo’s arrest and are assisting his lawyers to secure his timely release,” The Times said in a statement.
“Jeffrey is a widely respected journalist with many years of reporting experience in Zimbabwe and his detainment raises troubling questions about the state of press freedom in Zimbabwe.”
Moyo and Manhika appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Rachel Mukanga for a bail hearing on Friday with prosecutors arguing that they were not eligible for bond as they had breached national security.
The two visiting New York Times reporters Christina Goldbaum and João Silva were ordered out of the country four days into their trip after flying into Bulawayo on May 5 to report on the situation in Zimbabwe.
Authorities told them that their accreditation credentials had been obtained without approval from the information ministry.
Moyo’s lawyer Douglas Coltart complained in court that his client had been subjected to inhumane conditions at Bulawayo Central Police station where he was thrown into a crowded and stinking cell with 18 other detainees.
He had been stripped of warm clothes and left at the mercy of frigid temperatures, Coltart said.
The lawyer also complained about the involvement of the information ministry in accrediting journalists saying “this case really brings to the fore the interference that the ministry of information also becomes involved in the accreditation process of journalists.”
“That is in complete violation of the provisions of the law, in particular the provisions of the constitution which provide that the media commission is an independent commission which is not subject to the control of anyone else,” Coltart told VOA Studio 7.
The Committee to Protect Journalists, a New York-based advocacy group, called for Moyo’s immediate release.
“Zimbabwean authorities must immediately release journalist Jeffrey Moyo, who should never have been detained, let alone charged,” said Angela Quintal, the group’s Africa program coordinator.
“The fact that he was arrested, and his New York Times colleagues forced to leave the country, shows that Zimbabwe continues to violate the right to press freedom and the public’s right to know.”
Moyo, who is based in Harare and has a wife and 8-year-old son, has also done work for a number of other news outlets, including The Globe and Mail of Canada, The Times reported.
