As we commemorate this year’s World Press Freedom Day on 3rd May, I take time to reflect on the threats to Free Expression and Media Freedom for journalists in Malawi and the African region with the case of Zimbabwean colleague Blessed Mhlanga who has been in detention since February 24, 2025 in mind.
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On Mach 26 this year, Human Rights Watch (HRC) challenged Zimbabwean authorities to immediately release and drop the groundless charges against Mhlanga, a senior journalist for the independent media outlet Heart and Soul TV.
He has been in detention since his arrest in Harare on February 24, 2025 and was charged with transmitting information that incites violence or causes damage to property under Section 164 of Zimbabwe’s Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act.
The charges relate to interviews that he did in November 2024 and February 2025 with Blessed Geza, a war veteran and leader of the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) party, who fought during Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle in the 1970s.
During one interview, Geza demanded the resignation of President Emmerson Mnangagwa, accusing him of nepotism, corruption, and incompetence.
Human Rights Watch further stated that the arrest and prolonged detention of Mhlanga sends a message to all journalists that their work makes them a target for mistreatment.
“Zimbabwean authorities should immediately release the journalist Blessed Mhlanga and drop the charges against him for simply doing his job,” said Idriss Ali Nassah, senior Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch. “
“These baseless charges are yet another stark reminder that the rights to freedom of expression and the media are under serious threat in Zimbabwe.”
On February 28, a magistrate court denied Mhlanga bail on the grounds that his release would cause national unrest and undermine peace and security.
The High Court upheld the decision on March 21, leaving him languishing in prolonged pretrial detention at Harare’s maximum-security Chikurubi Prison.
Zimbabwe’s Constitution and two international treaties to which Zimbabwe is a party, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), protect the right to freedom of expression.
On February 26, 2025, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) called on Zimbabwean authorities to free Mhlanga, on charges of incitement in connection to his critical interviews with a war veteran.
“It is absolutely shameful that Blessed Mhlanga has been thrown behind bars simply because he gave voice to a war veteran’s criticism of Zimbabwe’s government,” said CPJ Africa Program Coordinator, Muthoki Mumo, in Nairobi.
“Zimbabwean authorities should free Mhlanga unconditionally and respond to their citizens’ concerns, rather than punishing the messenger.”
If found guilty, Mhlanga could be jailed for up to five years and fined up to US$700 under the 2021 Cyber and Data Protection Act.
I was privileged and honoured to be nominated for an International Reporting Tour courtesy of the Foreign Press Centers and facilitated by the American Embassy in Malawi in 2022 to cover the US Mid-term elections where Mlanga was also one of the participants.
The tour took us to the States of Arizona and North Carolina to have a firsthand experience on elections coverage and Africa was represented by Malawi, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, the Gambia and Nigeria.
Blessed is a down to earth, well rounded and hands-on journalist and we benefitted a lot from his vast skills and experience in different ways and he was always ready to lend a helping hand.
To imagine him being in detention all this while for doing his job sends chills down my spine and I somewhat agree to the assertion that journalists are an endangered species. I totally support calls to have him released.
Back home, 2024 will be remembered as the year when violence, intimidation and the Cyber security law were used to suppress critical voices. State actors such as the police, the army, the courts, political parties and some non-state actors took turns in violating media freedom, restricting freedom of expression and shrinking the civic space.
In its assessment of the media in 2024, National Media Institute for Southern Africa (NAMISA) Chairperson Golden Matonga construed the pattern of attacks on scribes in the previous year as deliberate to muzzle, frustrate and even destroy the free and independent media in Malawi.
In January, Journalist Gregory Gondwe of Platform for Investigative Journalism (PIJ) went into hiding, on advice from military sources, following his expose’ on the payments that Malawi Defence Force (MDF) made to businessman Zuneth Sattar, a fraud suspect under the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) probe.
In February, police confiscated mobile phones and laptops from over 14 Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) journalists for alleged offenses committed under the Electronic Transactions and Cyber security Act.
This followed a complaint by MBC Management. The gadgets were later returned to the owners without any explanation.
In April, three supporters of Mighty Mukuru Wanderers Football Club assaulted Television Islam reporter Yasin Limu during a Super League of Malawi (SULOM) match at Kamuzu Stadium. In the assault, a TV Islam camera tripod and Limu’s wrist watch were damaged.
In April, police detained journalist Macmillan Mhone over a story that an online news site Malawi24 published in August 2023. Police transferred Mhone from Blantyre to Malawi Police Service Headquarters in Lilongwe, a distance of over 300 kilometres.
In August, police stopped Nation Publications Limited crew from using mobile phones in live streaming the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) convention which President Dr. Lazarus Chakwera attended.
In August, some people operating under the banner ‘DPP media team’ during the party national convention at COMESA Hall in Blantyre threatened and ‘forced’ Nation Publications Limited team to delete a Facebook news update on what was happening at the convention.
In August, Times Group reporter Cathy Maulidi received WhatsApp threats from strange numbers over a story on what Minister of Tourism Vera Kamtukule said in Parliament. There were also social media trolls against Maulidi over the same story.
In December, officers from Blantyre Police Station detained Times Group journalist Isaac Salima and forced him to delete pictures and videos of a fracas at the Southern Region Headquarters of the Directorate of Road Traffic and Safety Services.
The media body indicated that in 2024, Electronic Transaction and Cyber security Act of 2016 was actively used as a tool of silencing and intimidating critical voices. A number of Malawians including journalists were arrested and ill-treated for allegedly contravening the Act.
With the September 16, 2025 general elections approaching, Misa Malawi expressed fears in upholding the freedoms enshrined in the Constitution, particularly press freedom and the freedom of expression.
“We expect all political parties to create an environment where journalists can carry out their duties without fear, intimidation, or interference. This is essential for ensuring transparency and fostering informed democratic participation. We also urge all stakeholders to guarantee that citizens can fully exercise their right to freedom of expression both during and after the elections”.
