SA police arrest workers erecting Zimbabwe voting billboard

By Lance Guma
10 October 2007

There was drama in Musina on Wednesday when armed South African police, accompanied by 9 soldiers in a troop carrier, swooped on 2 advertising workers erecting a billboard targeting Zimbabweans living in South Africa. The massive billboard read, ‘We know why you are in South Africa: Life in Zimbabwe is Murder; But please go back to vote in March. We can all be free.’

The poster was originally put up a month ago but within two days had been scraped off, in what locals say was a job done in the middle of the night. Initially it was thought operatives from Zimbabwe’s state security agency had crossed the border and clandestinely removed the paper on the board.

Washington Times correspondent Geoff Hill happened to be in Musina Wednesday and witnessed the arrest of the employees from Red Dot Media, involved in the placement of the poster. He says the workers were about to put up a new version of the same advert when the police and soldiers arrived at lunchtime and ordered them off the site. They were handcuffed and carted off to Musina Police Station in what Hill described as a heavy handed manner.

It’s not clear why the authorities are blocking the placement of the billboard or if they were behind its destruction a month ago? What is known however is that the site is a council accredited area which has previously hosted adverts from the likes of fast food chain KFC and soft drink manufacturer Coca Cola. Information received seems to indicate that police acted on a complaint from the ANC dominated Musina City Council.

Captain Makoki, the officer who supervised the arrests, refused to comment when Newsreel called him on his mobile. He insisted he could only speak to journalists face to face and not on the phone. Geoff Hill however told Newsreel the police were stonewalling on confirming the arrest of the Red Dot employees. Only when they became aware that a journalist had witnessed everything and was in possession of photographic evidence did they make a u-turn and confirm the incident.

Red Dot Media boss Will Basson confirmed the incident and spent the day trying to find out the reasons for the police arresting their workers. The South African media was abuzz with news of the incident. One radio station coined the headline ‘Armed police and soldiers swoop on 2 poster boys armed with glue.’ Meanwhile Geoff Hill confirmed the release of the employees at 16:45 (SA time). They were not charged.