Part 4: Chansa Kabwela

The story of the woman who gave birth to a stillborn child outside a Zambian hospital did not end on the pavement that night. A family member photographed the tragedy and delivered two photographs of the birth to The Post, Zambia’s sole national independent national newspaper. The Post ran a report describing what happened, but it did not publish the two photographs, calling them “too gruesome” to put in print.

Chansa Kabwela, a 29-year-old editor at the Post, felt the photos were too powerful to suppress altogether. She sent copies of them to Zambia’s Vice President, copying the Secretary to the Cabinet, the Minister of Health, the Archbishop of Lusaka and two NGOs. Her letter stated:

“I write you to bring to your attention images that we have difficulty publishing in our newspaper of the very desperate situation at our hospitals arising from the on-going strike. I am doing this in the hope that these pictures will move you and your colleagues to take quick action and bring to an end this strike. Enclosed are very disturbing pictures from the University Teaching Hospital in Lusaka that have been brought to our newsroom.”

Zambian President Rupiah Banda was incensed. At a press conference, he said the Post was “a malicious paper” which resorted to “publishing pornography.” “[T]oday it’s pornography,” he said, “tomorrow it’s something else.” He continued: “Just because you are morbid and peculiar, you sent photographers to go and take pictures of your mother naked, shame on you! . . . I hope those responsible for the law of this country will pursue this matter.”

Kabwela and the Post responded to Banda’s accusations in an editorial. Among other things, they pointed out that the photographs were not taken by a Post photographer, but rather by a family member of the woman who delivered that night. They also made clear that their purpose in sending the photos was to increase awareness of the serious issues surrounding the strike -- not to corrupt society’s morals. NGOs and religious leaders went on record saying that the photographs were not pornography.

About a week after Banda said that the person who showed the photos should be “watched and arrested,” -- and just around the time the strike was coming to an end -- the police interrogated Kabwela for three hours. A “call-out” statement alleged that Kabwela violated Section 177 1(a) of the Zambian Penal Code, which sets a punishment for possession and distribution of pornography. The law states: “Any person who makes, produces, or has in his possession any one or more obscene writings, . . . photographs . . . or any other object tending to corrupt morals is guilty of a misdemeanor and is liable to imprisonment for five years or to a fine. . . .”

On July 13, after the strike had come to an end, Kabwela was arrested for possession and distribution of pornography. The next day, she pled not guilty in court. The trial is set for August 5, 24, and September 8. The prosecution intends to call ten witnesses to show that the photographs Kabwela sent were pornographic.

Just a few days ago, a Post journalist was attacked in broad daylight by a group of men allegedly employed by President Banda. This attack was not unprecedented: In mid-July, the NGO Reporters Without Borders wrote that it was “aware of at least six cases of members of [the Post] staff being physically or verbally attacked by leaders of the ruling Movement for Multiparty Democracy since the start of the year.”

That’s the news from Zambia for now.