Police arrest and then release 5 Radio VOP Board members

By Lance Guma
24 January 2006

Several members of the Voice of the People Board of Trustees were arrested Tuesday after handing themselves over to police at Harare Central Police Station in the presence of their lawyers. They were released late Tuesday. Human rights lawyer Arnold Tsunga, Nhlanhla Ngwenya, Isabella Matambanadzo, David Masunda and Millie Phiri are reported to have all been arrested for their involvement in VOP. One of the trustees told journalists they were being held at the Headquarters of the Criminal Investigations Department in Harare. They have been released on Z$4 million bail each.

Award winning lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa and Otto Saki of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) spent the day trying to get their clients released and seems they succeeded in the end. Two employees of the ZLHR, who were arrested for allegedly obstructing the course of justice by refusing to disclose Tsunga’s whereabouts, have also since been remanded out of custody. VOP was shut down last year after police raided their offices in Harare and confiscated files and equipment.

They accused the station of violating broadcasting laws by operating without a licence. VOP disputed this saying they do not own or operate any signalling or broadcasting equipment and therefore do not need a licence. Their programming is relayed to Radio Netherlands who then broadcast back into Zimbabwe via a transmitter in Madagascar.

Last week Wednesday police in Mutare arrested journalist Sidney Saize on allegations of working without accreditation and filing a ‘false’ story alleging militia youth were beating up teachers in the province. His release followed intervention by his lawyer, Innocent Gonese, who filed an urgent application with the Mutare Magistrates Court. Police also spent the same week raiding the homes of all VOP directors insisting they wanted to interview them over their involvement with the station.