HARARE – Freelance journalist and government critic Hopewell Chin’ono was freed on bail on Friday after being arrested two weeks ago on charges of obstructing justice.
Chin’ono’s arrest and that of dozens of activists in the last four months has led to accusations that President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government was persecuting opponents, a charge the authorities deny.
Chin’ono, who has criticised the government on social media, was first arrested in July on charges of inciting violent anti-government protests.
He denies the separate charges and says the government is persecuting him for exposing corruption.
Justice Tawanda Chitapi of the Harare High Court found on Friday that a lower court had erred in denying Chin’ono bail, but said the journalist should not use his Twitter account to post messages that obstructed justice.
Justice Chitapi said: “The remand process is not to determine the guilt or innocence of a person. Firstly, the court must consider if the allegations amount to a recognisable offence, and whether there’s a reasonable suspicion one committed an offence.
“It is trite at law that the guilty verdict is only reached upon finalisation of the trial.”
Chitapi said trial magistrate Murehwanazvo Gofa erred in denying Chin’ono bail only on the basis of reasonable suspicion.
“The offence the appellant is being charged with is not a Third Schedule offence. I don’t agree with the state that it is. It is wrong for a judicial officer to exercise own discretion without relying on the law,” the judge said.
Gofa had denied Chin’ono bail on the basis that he has a “propensity to commit offences.”
“I agree with defence lawyer (Beatrice) Mtetwa that there should be more than one offence to talk about propensity. It is wrong to talk about propensity and leave it like that.
“Therefore, the magistrate misdirected herself in denying the appellant bail on grounds that he has propensity to re-offend. That offence which is already pending compared with the current one are different. In the absence of other submissions militating against the accused, I do not find any grounds justifying the denial of bail.”
The judge said the charges against Chin’ono were “not an open and shut case”, adding: “The appellant is on stringent bail conditions already. The submission by Mrs Mtetwa makes sense, the appellant risks losing his property and money if he absconds and it is this court’s finding that he cannot risk losing his property.
“The accused is hereby granted bail on the same conditions given on his pending case. The magistrate’s ruling denying the applicant bail is hereby set aside.”
The judge ordered Chin’ono not to use his Twitter account in any way that defeats the course of justice.
(Additional reporting Reuters)
