The Sunday News
Lulu Brenda Harris, Sunday News Correspondent
THE US Embassy says the democratic space in the country has opened up since President Mnangagwa took over in November last year.
Speaking at a New Media Summit in Bulawayo last weekend, US Embassy Public Affairs Officer, Mr James Callahan, said in his short stay in Zimbabwe he had observed that democratic spaces were opening up as people were now engaging more freely than before.
“From what I have been hearing in my short stay in Zimbabwe, the democratic space in Zimbabwe has opened up since mid-November last year. The authorities have welcomed election observers and the media,” he said.
The New Media Summit was running under the theme “Re-imagining Civic Engagement: New Media, Youths and Elections. Mr Callahan said the election period was an opportunity for the country to show its commitment to democratic principles.
“History, and the world, have their eyes on you. What a wonderful moment to show your commitment to democratic principles. There is greater space for democratic discourse today than there has been in decades.”
The envoy noted that the use of new media had altered the media landscape, as the internet and mobile communications have taken centre-stage in day-to-day interactions.
The US official said his President, Donald Trump was active on Twitter and as a growing trend most of the Zimbabwean Presidential aspirants were already part of the popular social media platforms.
“They engage you and everybody else on a day-to-day basis on issues that affect you, opening communication channels that did not exist previously,” he pointed out.
He added that his country believed that freedom of information and expression and access to information are fundamental human rights.
The New Media Summit was organised by the Zimbabwe Centre for Media and Information Literacy (ZCMIL) and brought together new media activities, media practitioners and bloggers to discuss the trends taking place in the creative digital era.
