THE RORY PECK AWARDS 2004
Sponsored by Sony

The Freelance World

In Zimbabwe

The signs were there from the start.

I remember being overly excited as a graduating journalism student when I got a stint with the BBC as a fixer during the general elections of 2000. The euphoria was not to last though, I was arrested on my first assignment, my crime then was working with a camera in the president’s home area without his knowledge and permission.

It is now four years since I graduated and working in Zimbabwe as a cameraperson has become even more difficult. Seasoned camera people that have worked in several parts of the world maintain that while Zimbabwe might not be Iraq, it’s still one of the most difficult places to work in. Merely being in possession of a camera is enough for one to be treated with suspicion and most times hostility. The police detain first and investigate later. The government, through its propaganda machinery has convinced the people that a person with a camera who does not work for the national broadcaster is an enemy of the state. One has to be extra careful when venturing onto the street with a camera. It’s not just the police that you have to worry of but even the common man on the street. There are plenty of cases where even the young street people prevent us from working. Even the simplest of tasks requires not less than two people; you always need to be on the look out.

All of my colleagues have been arrested at least once and many have been beaten and had their equipment destroyed for attempting to record what is happening in this country.

Zimbabweans are just so scared of publicity at the moment, especially television publicity. People are afraid that if they were to speak on camera and gave their opinions on burning pertinent issues, someone will knock on their door and make them disappear in the middle of the night. So you find that even something as simple as vox-pops on the shortage of basic commodities is not simple. People will have a lot to say off camera but once you bring out one they suddenly do not have any comment. One man once told me that he had no comment because he had kids and wanted to see them grow. Its not easy to approach anyone in the streets and ask for their opinion, you never know who they are and which side of the divide they are on and in this country that is important.

Zimbabwe now has some of the most repressive media laws in the world and we are regularly ranked amongst the top three worst countries in the world for freedom of expression. It is mandatory that we register with a partisan media and information commission set up by the government to control the media. However being accredited is not a passport to operate. You are still denied access, in a lot of cases you will always have to seek further accreditation and even if this is obtained you are still vulnerable to arrest.

This morning I am preparing to cover the court appearance of 8 women and a four month old baby, arrested two days ago for staging a peaceful protest against a new law to regulate the activities of non-governmental organizations. Summer is approaching and the daytime temperatures in Harare are over 30 degrees Celsius. But as usual, I dress for the potential of a night in prison rather than filming on the streets during the day.

Tendai Musiya
Freelance cameraman

The Rory Peck Awards Brochure 2004

• Programme
• Why Freelancers Matter
• A Year of Growth...
• ...and Freelance Achievement
• From Sony
• The Overseas Project
• Reporting Iraq
• The Freelance World
  An Iraqi in Iraq
  An American in Iraq
  In Pakistan
  In Haiti
  In Zimbabwe
• Report on Safety Training Course
• Trauma can get stuck in the system
• For Roddy - and Helping Others

The Rory Peck Awards

• Winners
• Finalists

  
  

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