US embassy cable - 02HARARE1375

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Identifier:	02HARARE1375
Wikileaks:	View 02HARARE1375 at Wikileaks.org
Origin:	Embassy Harare
Created:	2002-06-06 09:36:00
Classification:	UNCLASSIFIED
Tags:	PREL PHUM KPAO ZI
Redacted:	This cable was not redacted by Wikileaks.

UNCLAS HARARE 001375 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR AF/S (KRAFT), AF/PD (COX/ROBERTSON) 
 
NSC FOR JENDAYI FRAZER 
 
LONDON FOR GURNEY 
 
PARIS FOR NEARY 
 
NAIROBI FOR PFLAUMER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, PHUM, KPAO, ZI 
SUBJECT: AMERICAN JOURNALIST WILL FACE TRIAL 
 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED.  NOT FOR INTERNET POSTING. 
 
1.   (U) American citizen Andrew Meldrum, the Zimbabwe 
    correspondent for the "Guardian" (UK) newspaper, will be 
    tried on June 12 for violating a section of the Access to 
    Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA).  Meldrum 
    was arrested on May 1 and charged with "abusing 
    journalistic privilege by publishing falsehoods," a 
    violation of AIPPA.  The charges stem from a story Meldrum 
    filed with the "Guardian" regarding the now-disproven case 
    of a woman beheaded by ruling party supporters.  Meldrum 
    spent the night of May 1 in jail, but was released on 
    personal recognizance on May 2 and has been free since. 
 
2.   (U) Meldrum is one of approximately 12 journalists in 
    Zimbabwe who have been charged with violating AIPPA since 
    President Mugabe signed the piece of shit in mid-March 
    2002.  Meldrum is the only non-Zimbabwean to face AIPPA 
    charges thus far.  Some of the other journalists have been 
    arrested several times, most notably "Standard" editor 
    Bornwell Chakaodza, arrested 5 times in two weeks. 
 
3.   (SBU) We have it on very good authority that the state 
    prosecutor in the Meldrum case saw no merit in the charges 
    and had decided not to proceed.  On May 28, he was 
    preparing to withdraw the case at the Magistrate's Court in 
    Harare.  Just before doing so, he was called out of to a 
    meeting.  After a 20-minute absence, the prosecutor 
    returned to his office and informed Meldrum that the case 
    "must proceed."  We do not know with whom the prosecutor 
    met during his 20-minute absence, but  we do know that 
    Information Minister Jonathan Moyo was in the Magistrate's 
    Court building at precisely the same time as the 
    prosecutor's mysterious change of heart. 
 
SULLIVAN