On September 18, 2009 the state closed the case in which The Post news editor Chansa Kabwela is charged with circulating obscene matters or 'material' tending to corrupt pubic morals. This after the state had called ten witnesses to testify in the case.

Magistrate Charles Kafunda has set November 16, 2009 as the date for ruling on whether Chansa has got a case to answer or not.

During continued cross examination, arresting officer in the Chansa Kabwela case Sharon Zulu agreed that the pictures of the woman in childbirth cannot be classified as pornographic. "No your honour, I never said that they are pornographic," Zulu said.

She told the court that Health Minister Kapembwa Simbao’s secretary, Clare Kalunga, Secretary to the cabinet Dr. Joshua Kangaja's secretary, Nawina Hagwagwa and Vice president George Kunda's senior private secretary Kenneth Ngosa never told her that the pictures created any lust or that they felt like having sex after seeing them.

"All the three never said that they had lustful feelings after seeing those pictures," defence Lawyer George Chisanga questioned as Zulu answered: "No, Your Honour, they never mentioned all those."

She told the court that she never interviewed the people to whom Kabwela addressed the letters and the pictures, but rather the persons who received those letters.

When asked why she never interviewed the people to whom the letters were addressed, Zulu said she had gathered enough evidence from the people she interviewed.

She said that she did not recall that she was investigating the circulation of pictures to Vice president George Kunda and other people to whom the letters were copied. Kabwela denies the charges stating the pictures were sent to select authorities to highlight the plight of pregnant women at the height of a health workers strike in Zambia.

Reagan Malumo
Programme Officer: Media Freedom Monitoring and Research
Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Regional Secretariat
21 Johann Albrecht St
Private Bag 13386
Windhoek
Namibia
Phone: +264 61 232 975
Fax: +264 61 248 016
Mobile: +264 81 311 2626
E mail: reagan@misa.org