VOA News
The United States says it is "troubled" by news that two foreign journalists have been arrested and charged in Zimbabwe under the country's tough media laws.
Police arrested New York Times correspondent Barry Bearak and an unidentified British reporter in Zimbabwe's capital, Harare, on Thursday.
The two are being charged with practicing journalism without government accreditation. Zimbabwean law defines that as a crime, punishable by prison time or deportation.
Speaking to reporters Friday, a spokesman for the U.S. National Security Council said journalists and non-governmental organizations in Zimbabwe should be permitted to do their work.
Gordon Johndroe spoke from Romania, where he is traveling with President Bush.
In the wake of the arrests, the U.S. embassy in Zimbabwe has warned Americans not to use cameras in urban areas or around any political activity.
Zimbabwe's government refused accreditation to most of the foreign journalists who applied to cover general elections last Saturday.
The United States has repeatedly expressed concern about the fairness of the elections.
The nation suffers from chronic food shortages, and has an annual inflation rate of more than 100,000 percent.
New Articles
This website is 'do follow' enabled: You comment, I follow!