VOP radio Director arrested by police

By Lance Guma

19 December 2005

The station director for Voice of the People radio station, John Masuku was arrested by police at 11am on Monday. On a day in which public prosecutors ordered the release of three female journalists from VOP after 5 days in detention, Masuku and Board Chairperson David Masunda handed themselves over to the police. They were both accompanied by a lawyer from Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), Rangu Nyamurundira. Masunda strangely was allowed to go home with police saying they will interview him the following day.

The trio of Maria Nyanyiwa, Nyasha Bosha and Kundai Mugwanda were released on the same day the stations top brass handed themselves in. Last week the police held the journalists to ransom warning they would only release them once the stations directors had handed themselves in. Its reported the Attorney General refused to charge the journalists saying only the board that runs the radio station is answerable to the authorities. Press reports indicate the police also raided the house of Shorai Kariwa, a senior editor with the station but he was not home and is thought to be in hiding.

On Thursday last week Central Intelligence operatives raided the Harare offices of the station. The officers frisked the offices of the station before confiscating computers, tapes and files. Five security operatives raided the station asking for John Masuku, before arresting all three female journalist present.

Government recently started jamming the shortwave transmissions of the station which broadcasts in the country via a Radio Netherlands transmitter in Madagascar. This happened soon after SWRA switched to medium wave following persistent jamming of its own signal. In August 2002, VOP’s offices in Milton Park were destroyed by a bomb blast. The blast also completely destroyed their production facilities. This took place soon after threats by government officials on the operations of private radio stations in and outside the country.