NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) – A prominent Zimbabwean journalist accused of reporting falsehoods has been sent to prison isolation after it was revealed he was likely exposed to people with COVID-19 before his arrest.
On Friday, Zimbabwean police arrested Hopewell Chin’ono for the third time in five months. The latest arrest comes after he tweeted that police had beaten a child until he complied with COVID-19 blocking rules this week. Police later said the information was false.
On Saturday, his lawyers defended his release, claiming his detention was illegal, but the court could not finish hearing the arguments and put him in pretrial detention.
His lawyer, Harrison Nkomo, said Chin’ono could have been exposed to people who had since tested positive for COVID-19 during a recent visit to South Africa, which is why he should be allowed to stay. at home.
The prosecution, on the other hand, argued that his statement was reason to send him to pretrial detention “to keep everyone safe” until he undergoes a medical examination.
Magistrate Lazini Ncube ordered Chin’ono to be remanded in custody separately from the other inmates and to remain isolated while his candidacy for freedom continued to be heard on Monday.
The magistrate said Chin’ono should be provided with blankets and warm water, conditions that were not available during his pre-prison stays, according to his lawyers.
Prior to his last arrest, Chin’ono was released on bail on charges of inciting violence after expressing support for an anti-government protest in July, and also for contempt of court for allegedly alleging corruption in the national tax agency.
Chin’ono is one of Zimbabwe’s most prominent critics against the administration of President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who accuses him of corruption and human rights abuses. The government denies the charges.
Prior to his arrest in July, Chin’ono had posted an exposure on Twitter in which he boasted of corruption consisting of a $ 60 million purchase of protective equipment for health care workers.
Mnangagwa later fired the health minister, who has been formally charged with corruption. Chin’ono and his sponsors say he is being targeted to expose the government graft. The government and the ruling party accuse him of being out to tarnish Mnangagwa’s image.