UK Commons award winner Muleya honoured

UK Commons award winner Muleya honoured

Muleya, the award winning Independent journalist receives his award from the UK Speaker of Parliament Michael Martin

• Muleya scoops Commons award

• Mugabe thugs threaten to shoot Independent journalists

• Reporter Muleya attacked

• Mugabe undermining judiciary

By Staff Reporter

THE UK Speaker of Parliament Michael Martin has paid a glowing tribute to the Zimbabwe Independent Chief Reporter Dumisani Muleya after he won the innaugural House of Commons Speaker Abbot award.

Speaking at a reception in the Speaker's House in the Palace of Westminster to honour the 29 year old journalist last Tuesday evening, Martin described Muleya as courageous and brave for exposing corruption, election rigging and writing about the plight of Zimbabwe's farm workers.

Speaker Martin also drew parallels between Zimbabwe's struggle for freedom and the breakthrough in South Africa.

"One day we hope Zimbabwe will have its freedom like the cousins you have in South Africa. And when that freedom is won, people will make the observation that you were at the forefront of the fight and struggle for democracy, justice and peace in your country."

He added: "Parliamentary democracy to us here in Britain is something we have from the day we are born to the day we die. When you fight for parliamentary democracy in your home land, you are put in jail and you are beaten."

Speaker Martin compared Muleya's fight for the rights of farm workers to that of assassinated Archbishop Romero of El Salvador and Irish journalist Veronica Guerin who was shot by terrorists.

"We thought this should go to a journalist somewhere in the world who had struggled to fight for democracy and freedom at personal risk to themselves."

Muleya, who has been imprisoned and threatened with his life by President Robert Mugabe's brutal regime dedicated the award to his colleagues at the Zimbabwe Independent whom he said were brave in the face of a repressive government.

"Zimbabwe is a country deeply in crisis at the moment and that crisis is touching all facets of life in the country. The media is in the firing line as a result, " Muleya said.

"Journalists are being arrested and presented with malicious charges. They are also being harassed all the time."

The award was inaugurated to mark the bi-centenary of the admission of the Press to the House of Commons Chamber and is named after the Speaker who first allowed the Press access to Commons proceedings.

It is given to a journalist who is considered to have made 'the greatest contribution internationally to the protection, promotion and perpetuation of parliamentary democracy'.

As Muleya claimed the award, an uncertain future awaited him in Zimbabwe. Claiming his award could attract further charges as Robert Mugabe's
government is likely to distort the occasion for anti-British propaganda
purposes.

"I don't expect to be physically harassed," Muleya said, "but I do certainly expect there will be intimidation through attacks from the government. The Information Minister writes a column in the state media under a pseudonym and he will no doubt use it to try and discredit me. The government will say it is a British organised award and that I came here to be given propaganda.

"They will say we now have evidence he is a British puppet."

Muleya stressed he was not attempting to overthrow the Mugabe regime
and 'certainly did not' agree with everything the British government stood for.

"I can point to some of the mistakes the British made in Zimbabwe. It
is worrying that some British officials think Robert Mugabe only became
a problem recently but he was the same all along."

He would only support international intervention through diplomacy which
was already gathering force.
JOIN THE DEBATE ON THIS ARTICLE ON THE NEWZIMBABWE.COM FORUMS
newsdesk@newzimbabwe.com