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Zambia's Post newspaper defies government, continues to publish

Lusaka - The Post newspaper's editor-in-chief Fred M'membe has defiantly said that the newspaper will continue publishing despite having the newsroom and other operation offices locked up under police guard.

M'mbembe said that there was no law that the publication was breaking by continuing to be in circulation, despite the seizure of it's offices by the Zambia Revenue Authority last week.

"The order does not stop us from coming out. They have seized our printing facilities, they have seized our editorial offices and they have even garnished our bank accounts. But there is no law that stops us from publishing… We have our own personal computers, there are many printing presses in the region where we can print," M'mbembe was quoted as saying. 

News24 previously reported that the forced closure of The Post's offices was done to silence the paper by Zambian President Edgar Lungu, who was highly criticised for using intimidation and force as weapons to gain voters.

Amnesty International also lambasted the decision to shut down the newspaper, calling it a deliberate ploy to silence the media before the upcoming August 11 general election. 

M'mbembe cited that The Post never refused to pay taxes, pointedly adding that the government was using unpaid taxes as a smokescreen to silence an independent newspaper that was exposing their criminality.


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