Zimbabwe Independent editor Faith Zaba and her employer, Alpha Media Holdings (AMH), were removed from remand after the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) withdrew criminal charges against them before plea, bringing the prosecution to an end.
Harare magistrate Aplonia Marutya ordered that Zaba and AMH be removed from remand after the state formally withdrew the charges.
The development comes days after the High Court quashed the charges against Zaba and AMH, setting aside an earlier magistrates’ court ruling that had allowed the matter to proceed.
Zaba’s lawyer, Chris Mhike, confirmed the latest development.
“Zaba was removed from remand by Magistrate Marutya. The state withdrew charges before plea. Faith and AMH were accordingly removed from remand,” Mhike said.
Zaba and Alpha Media Holdings had been jointly charged over a satirical article published in the Zimbabwe Independent’s Muckraker column titled ‘When You Become a Mafia State’, which prosecutors alleged undermined the authority of President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
The High Court last week quashed the charges against both accused, overturning an earlier decision by a magistrate that had dismissed their application to be removed from remand. Justice Emilia Muchawa ruled that the prosecution could not proceed and ordered that the charges be quashed.
Monday’s withdrawal of the charges before plea formally concluded proceedings in the magistrates’ court.
The case had attracted widespread attention from media freedom and human rights groups, which argued that prosecuting journalists over published content threatened freedom of expression and press freedom.
Zaba was arrested last year and spent several days in custody before being granted bail. She and AMH had remained on remand while challenging the prosecution in the High Court.
