Zimbabwe journalist in detention for a week for alleged defamatory report on corruption

Lusaka, February 24, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Zimbabwean authorities to release journalist Gideon Madzikatidze who has been in detention since February 18, on charges of cyberbullying and broadcasting without a license, over an article alleging bribery by a local business.

“Zimbabwean authorities should not use licensing regulations or cybercrime provisions to censor or criminalize legitimate journalism,” said CPJ Africa Director Angela Quintal. “Keeping a journalist in detention for more than a week over their reporting is a totally disproportionate response. Authorities should free Gideon Madzikatidze, drop all charges against him, and allow journalists to work without fear of arrest.”

Madzikatidze, a reporter with the online news site Bulawayo24, is set to appear at the capital’s Harare Magistrate’s Court on February 25 for a bail application hearing, the journalist’s lawyer Godwin Giya told CPJ.

“The state is opposing our bail, but we are back in court on Wednesday,” he said, adding that the magistrate had been absent from Monday’s hearing.

The charge sheet, reviewed by CPJ, alleges that between December 15 and 16, the journalist published a story on the Bulawayo24 site, accusing local company Geo Pomona Waste Management’s leadership of bribing journalists and editors to evade scrutiny.

If found guilty, Madzikatidze could serve up to 10 years in prison and/or a fine of up to $700 for cyberbullying, under the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act, and up to three months imprisonment and/or a fine of up to $700, under Section 7(1) of the Broadcasting Services Act, according to Giya and the press freedom group Media Institute of Southern Africa-Zimbabwe. 

A person familiar with the case told CPJ, on condition of anonymity, citing fear of reprisals, that it was unclear why authorities were charging Madzikatidze under a section of the law that criminalizes airing of television and radio programming without a license as the story was only published on a website.

The Bulawayo 24 site, named after Zimbabwe’s second largest city, has provided domestic and international news coverage for over a decade.

CPJ’s requests for comment via phone to Geo Pomona’s legal representative, Dorothea Moyo, and via phone and messaging app to police spokesperson Paul Nyathi were not immediately answered.