M'membe said he would do whatever it takes to have the Bill trashed. We will oppose this Bill up to the International Court of Justice, unless we are assassinated. It is the actions of these fools that are tarnishing the image of our country internationally and when we launch a world campaign against their inhuman Bill they will accuse us of being unpatriotic. He cited the Penal Code which, among other things, empowers the president to ban any publication at his pleasure, without necessarily giving reasons. Edwin Musaika, chairman of the Zambia Union of Journalists, said the curtailment of press freedom would affect the public at large.
Journalists are mere purveyors of ideas and information.
When you restrict them, that will be an infringment of the right of information to the people of Zambia. The media organisations have since formed a Media Liaison Committee to spearhead the struggle which has presented a petition to the Ministry of Information. The agenda seems to be one of criminalising the journalism profession.