ZIMBABWE will ban foreign newspapers from being distributed in the country because they have failed to comply with the law, the press regulator said.

All publications must pay a tax the equivalent of 0.01 percent of their total revenue and have a representative office in Zimbabwe, but none of the foreign newspapers have complied, according to Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) chairman Godfrey Majonga.

“Most of the local publications complied, but we are going to bar the foreign ones from coming into the country because they are not in compliance with the law,” Majonga said.

Publications expected to be hit by the move include the South African Sunday Times and The Zimbabwean and The Zimbabwean on Sunday whose publisher is based in the UK.

The ZMC boss said the commission would soon notify the police and border authorities to prevent the newspapers from entering the country.