Zimbabwe plans to introduce a law which will punish people who are found “unpatriotic” for criticising the country abroad.
Anyone found guilty could face criminal charges if the planned measures are passed. According to the BBC, the move is part of the Zimbabwean government’s plans to improve its image abroad by silencing activists who attack the government on the international stage.
Chief whip of Zanu-PF, Pupurai Togarepi, said “The government has always tried to persuade its citizens to behave in a patriotic way to maintain unity, but after the coming in of opposition parties, many agendas came to the fore and it led to a situation where you are at war as a country”.
One of the new law’s supporters in Parliament said that the law should be extended to organisations such as NGOs and the media.
Opposition politician Lovemore Madhuku has called the proposal “dangerous”.