Veteran journalist and Zimbabwe Independent editor Faith Zaba has been granted bail after spending three nights in custody. The Harare Magistrates Court today ordered her release on US$200 bail, following delays caused earlier in the week by reported power outages at the courthouse.
Zaba is charged with “undermining the authority of the president”, after publishing a sharply critical column that described Zimbabwe as a “mafia state.” Prosecutors allege the article was designed to tarnish the image of President Emmerson Mnangagwa and erode public confidence in the government.
Her arrest sparked strong condemnation from press freedom advocates, opposition leaders, and international human rights groups, who called the case a politically motivated attack on free expression.
