MISA Zambia convened a high-level multi-stakeholder meeting aimed at strengthening the monitoring and response to media and digital rights violations in the country.
The meeting brought together key stakeholders, including representatives from the Human Rights Commission, the Zambia Police Service, the Media Self-Regulation Council of Zambia, civil society organisations, media practitioners, as well as MISA Zambia board members and staff.
Speaking during the opening session, MISA Zambia Board Chairperson Mrs. Lorraine Mwanza Chisanga expressed gratitude to participants for attending, noting that their presence reflects a shared commitment to advancing media freedom, strengthening democratic governance, and promoting accountability in Zambia.
The meeting sought to build consensus among stakeholders on the identification and standardisation of media and digital rights violation categories, as well as the development of a practical framework for grading such violations based on severity, impact, and urgency.
“This engagement is both timely and necessary,” said Mrs. Chisanga. “It provides a critical platform for dialogue, consensus-building, and collective ownership in addressing challenges affecting the media sector.”
The meeting comes against a backdrop of increasing challenges faced by journalists and media organisations in Zambia. These include incidents of harassment, intimidation, arbitrary arrests, unlawful detentions, censorship attempts, and threats of litigation from both state and non-state actors.
Such actions undermine the media’s watchdog role and pose a threat not only to press freedom but also to democratic governance by weakening transparency, accountability, and public trust.
MISA Zambia noted that while efforts have been made to document and respond to violations, the absence of a standardised classification and severity grading system has limited the effectiveness of existing monitoring mechanisms.
The meeting laid the foundation for a more coordinated and responsive system to safeguard media freedom and digital rights in Zambia.
