US embassy cable - 03HARARE1135

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HARARE 001135 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR J. FRAZER 
LONDON FOR C. GURNEY 
PARIS FOR C. NEARY 
NAIROBI FOR T. PFLAUMER 
BANGKOK FOR W. DAYTON 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, ZI, Media and Communications, Parliamentary Affairs 
SUBJECT: "NEW" MEDIA AMENDMENT TOPS PARLIAMENT AGENDA 
 
REF: HARARE 874 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1.  Parliament resumes on June 10, after a two-week 
adjournment, to allow legislators to review the new text of 
the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Amendment 
Bill introduced by Minister Patrick Chinamasa on May 13.  The 
new text is by-and-large the old amendments with only one 
substantive change pertaining to the composition of the 
regulatory authority.  Parliament will most likely debate the 
fate of and dismiss Tafadzwa Musekiwa, MDC MP for Zengeza, 
who has missed 21 consecutive days of Parliament.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
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AIPPA STILL ON THE TABLE 
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2. On June 10, Parliament will resume debate on the Access to 
Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) Bill, after 
a two-week adjournment during which legislators reviewed the 
new text Minister of Justice, Legal, and Parliamentary 
Affairs Patrick Chinamasa introduced on May 13, 2003. 
Chinamasa introduced and got passed a motion that the text of 
the AIPPA Bill be treated as having already been introduced, 
which means the new version of the Bill will not be 
re-gazetted nor will it go through the Parliamentary Legal 
Committee (PLC).  It is unclear whether the passage of this 
motion means the Bill will be fast-tracked, preventing debate 
on the portfolio committee,s report. 
 
3. The government will meet with the PLC on June 5 and 6 to 
try to avert an adverse report.  If the government is 
successful in forestalling such a report, the Bill could 
proceed to the Second Reading and the House could suspend the 
necessary Standing Orders to circumvent the portfolio 
committee and get this legislation passed into law before 
this year,s Parliamentary Session adjourns.  (NOTE: 
Typically, at the second reading stage, the minister explains 
the bill, the portfolio committee presents its report, and 
debate on the bill follows.  After the second reading, the 
House goes through the bill line by line and adopts any 
changes to it before it proceeds to the third reading when 
Parliament passes the bill and it goes to the Head of State 
for assent into law. END NOTE.) 
 
4. AIPPA became law in March 2002 and restricts the operation 
of Zimbabwe,s independent and foreign journalists and media 
companies.  (See Reftel).  Critics of AIPPA contend that it 
contravenes the constitutional right of freedom of expression 
and is meant to gag the independent media.  The Independent 
Journalists Association of Zimbabwe (IJAZ) is challenging the 
constitutionality of AIPPA and the hearing was scheduled to 
begin June 3 but has been postponed indefinitely after 
Supreme Court Chief Justice Chidyausiku, whose allegiance to 
President Robert Mugabe is without question, said the court 
needed time to consider the Minister of Information Jonathan 
Moyo,s request to not hear the case. 
 
5. The new set of amendments carry some changes that the 
Portfolio Committee on Transport and Communications suggested 
but most of the controversial elements of the Bill remain. 
Changes to the Bill include: 
 
--The deletion of the clause allowing the Minister of 
Information and Publicity the authority to hand pick all the 
members of the Media and Information Commission (MIC), the 
body charged with registering, accrediting, and monitoring 
mass media and journalists. 
 
--The deletion of a clause prohibiting owners of mass media 
services that publish newspapers for sale for mass 
circulation from continuing to own local mass media services. 
 
--The augmentation of the penalty for intentionally or 
recklessly falsifying information, maliciously or 
fraudulently fabricating information, or publishing any 
knowingly false or reckless statement from a fine not 
exceeding level seven or imprisonment not to exceed two years 
to a fine not exceeding level 14 (maximum level is 15) or 
imprisonment not to exceed three years. (NOTE: On May 7, the 
Supreme Court ruled that this section, section 80, was 
unconstitutional, violating Article 20 of the Zimbabwe 
Constitution, which guarantees freedom of expression. END 
NOTE.) 
 
--The addition of a clause that would allow a foreign 
journalist to stay in the country beyond the 30-day maximum 
proposed before if the MIC feels that the accredited 
journalist needs additional days to cover an event. 
 
The remaining amendments, which would expand the list of mass 
media products under government control and the restriction 
of foreign journalists and media operators, remain unchanged. 
 
 
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ABSENT MP 
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6. Parliament is likely to debate the fate of Zengeza (a 
high-density Harare suburb) MDC MP Tafadzwa Musekiwa, 
who--having secured asylum in the UK--has missed more than 
the constitutional limit of 21 consecutive days of 
Parliament.  Prior to the adjournment, Chinamasa gave notice 
to move a motion that Parliament declare the seat vacant. 
Gibson Sibanda, MDC Vice-President, delayed debate by 
promising to persuade Musekiwa to resign by the June 10 
resumption of Parliament.  When the seat becomes vacant, 
there would be three parliamentary by-elections (one ZANU-PF 
seat, two MDC seats) due, although the government seems in no 
hurry to set dates for them (The three seats would appear 
safe for the previous incumbents' parties, i.e. two MDC and 
one ZANU-PF).  To unseat Musekiwa, more than one-half of the 
membership (76 people) would have to vote for his dismissal. 
ZANU-PF currently has enough support between the elected MPs, 
non-constituency MPs and provincial governors to exceed the 
one-half mandate. 
 
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CITIZENSHIP BILL 
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7. The other bill that Parliament may work on before 
concluding the Third Session is the Citizenship of Zimbabwe 
Amendment Bill.  The Citizenship Bill, which exempts persons 
of Southern African Development Community parentage, who may 
be citizens of these countries by descent, from compliance 
with the dual citizenship prohibition and the requirement to 
renounce the foreign citizenship in order to keep Zimbabwean 
citizenship, has not had its first reading and still needs to 
be considered by the parliamentary Legal Committee.  One of 
USAID,s contractors who is working on Zimbabwean 
parliamentary reforms surmised that the government would try 
to convince the PLC not to issue an adverse report on the 
Citizenship Act amendments in their June 5 and 6 meetings. 
If this happens, the House may be able to fast-track this 
bill too. 
 
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COMMENT 
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8. The GOZ has been trying to push through the AIPPA Bill 
since November 2002, when the PLC began deliberating on the 
constitutionality of the Bill.  The &new8 Bill that 
legislators have been reviewing keeps the most controversial 
elements of the Bill and makes a few cosmetic changes.  In 
particular, it will be interesting how the architects of 
AIPPA will try to reconcile (or not) the Supreme Court,s 
ruling that Section 80 is unconstitutional and the more 
stringent punishment advocated in the new text.  The big 
question of the week will be how the executive and 
legislative branches of government play the last week of the 
Third Session of Parliament and whether the Executive will 
ram the Bill through Parliament regardless of an adverse PLC 
report or portfolio committee report.  It will be a test of 
the commitment of legislators to parliamentary reform.  END 
COMMENT 
 
SULLIVAN