Jonathan Moyo and Nyarota spar for a fight

Information Minister Jonathan Moyo threatened to invoke the recently passed Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act against the Daily News editor-in-chief Geoff Nyarota for “continued misrepresentation”.

Moyo said the Daily News knowingly published a false report that the joint African Caribbean Pacific-European Union parliamentary assembly passed a resolution calling for a re-run of the presidential poll in Zimbabwe.

He asked the paper to make a public correction or face legal action but Nyarota said he would rather go to jail than correct a story that was 100 percent correct.

Full cable:

Viewing cable 02HARARE808, MEDIA REPORT INFORMATION ACT; HARARE

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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

271446Z Mar 02

UNCLASSIFIED     PTQ7585

PAGE 01       HARARE 00808 271503Z

ACTION AF-00

INFO LOG-00   NP-00   AS-01   A-00     ACQ-00   CIAE-00 DODE-00

DS-00   EUR-00   UTED-00 VC-00   H-01     TEDE-00 INR-00

LAB-01   VCE-00   NSAE-00 TEST-00 USIE-00 EPAE-00 IIP-00

DSCC-00 DRL-02   NFAT-00 SAS-00     /005W

——————7B5542 271503Z /38

FM AMEMBASSY HARARE

TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1344

INFO NSC WASHDC

AMEMBASSY PRETORIA

AMEMBASSY LUSAKA

AMEMBASSY WINDHOEK

AMEMBASSY GABORONE

AMEMBASSY LILONGWE

AMEMBASSY LONDON

UNCLAS HARARE 000808

SIPDIS

AF/PD FOR COX AND ROBERTSON, AF/S FOR KRAFT AND

SCHLACHTER, AF/RA FOR SWANN, INR/R/MR, NSC FOR JENDAYI

FRAZER

E.O. 12958: N/A

TAGS: ZI PREL PHUM

SUBJECT: MEDIA REPORT INFORMATION ACT; HARARE

¶1. THE INDEPENDENT DAILY “THE DAILY NEWS” FACES LEGAL

ACTION AFTER ALLEGEDLY CONTRAVENING CERTAIN SECTIONS

OF THE RECENTLY ENACTED ACCESS TO INFORMATION AND

PROTECTION OF PRIVACY ACT. ACCORDING TO FRONT-PAGE

ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN THE MARCH 27 EDITIONS OF THE

“DAILY NEWS” AND THE GOVERNMENT-CONTROLLED DAILY “THE

HERALD,” INFORMATION MINISTER JONATHAN MOYO HAS

THREATENED TO BRING CHARGES AGAINST “DAILY NEWS”

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF GEOFFREY NYAROTA FOR “CONTINUED

MISREPRESENTATION.”   MOYO SAYS THAT THE DAILY NEWS

KNOWINGLY PUBLISHED A FALSE STORY IN ITS MARCH 22

REPORT THAT THE JOINT AFRICAN CARIBBEAN PACIFIC-

EUROPEAN UNION PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY PASSED A

RESOLUTION CALLING FOR A RE-RUN OF THE PRESIDENTIAL

POLL IN ZIMBABWE. MOYO HAS ASKED THE PAPER TO MAKE A

PUBLIC CORRECTION OF THE “DELIBERATE FALSEHOOD” OR

FACE LEGAL ACTION IN TERMS OF THE ACCESS TO

INFORMATION AND PROTECTION OF PRIVACY ACT. THIS IS

THE FIRST TIME THE CONTROVERSIAL ACT HAS BEEN INVOKED

SINCE IT WAS ENACTED ON MARCH 15.

¶2. IN RESPONSE TO MOYO’S LETTER, NYAROTA IS QUOTED IN

A FRONT PAGE ARTICLE PUBLISHED IN THE MARCH 27 EDITION

OF THE “DAILY NEWS” AS SAYING: “I WOULD RATHER GO TO

JAIL, IF IT PLEASES THE HONORABLE MINISTER, THAN BE

FORCED BY HIM TO PUBLICLY CORRECT A STORY THAT IS 100

PERCENT CORRECT. IF MOYO GENUINELY BELIEVES HE CAN

INTIMIDATE ‘THE DAILY NEWS’ IN THIS MANNER THEN IT IS

PATENTLY CLEAR HE FAILS COMPLETELY TO COMPREHEND HOW

MUCH THE PAPER VALUES ITS INDEPENDENCE.”

SULLIVAN

UNCLASSIFIED

PAGE 03       HARARE 00808 271503Z

UNCLASSIFIED

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