Al Jazeera faces property seizure in Zimbabwe

Philemon Jambaya

Zim Now Editor

THE Sheriff of Zimbabwe has been ordered by the High Court to attach all properties owned by the Al Jazeera Media Network in Zimbabwe as security costs after one of its sources in the investigative documentary Gold Mafia filed an application suing them for US$2 million.

Mehluli Dube, the applicant, had approached the court claiming to have left employment with a good track record and solid relations with the former employer, saying the foreign-based media institution which conducts its operations via various media platforms had tarnished his reputation.

Al Jazeera provides a satellite television service in Zimbabwe through a company called MultiChoice under its DStv platform channel 406.

In his application before High Court judge Justice Siyabona Musithu, Dube approached the court for the attachment of the media firm’s property for purposes of confirming the jurisdiction of the court in a defamation claim he intends to institute against the peregrini (foreign company) Al Jazeera.

According to the background of the case, Dube claimed that between March 23 and April 14 last year, Al Jazeera released a documentary series titled Gold Mafia with four extensive and intrinsically related episodes.