Edward Chikombo (born 1942/43,"Zimbabwe's government responds with violence", International Herald Tribune, April 8, 2007 murdered in March 2007) was a Zimbabwean journalist, who, until 2002, worked as a cameraman for the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC)."Journalist's death probed as murder", Los Angeles Times, April 7, 2007 He was murdered in late March 2007.
Background Chikombo is believed to have sent to foreign media images of police brutality against supporters of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), including images of opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai lying in hospital after one such beating on 11 March. On 29 March Chikombo was abducted from his home. According to The Independent, His captors drove a silver pick-up truck of the same make used in numerous similar abductions during a sustained three-week terror campaign targeting government opponents."Zimbabwe journalist murdered 'over leaked Tsvangirai pictures'", The Independent, April 4, 2007
Chikombo's body was discovered a few days later."In Zimbabwe, Mugabe Critics Face Beatings", New York Times, April 8, 2007
The murder sparked an outcry from international media"La presse mondiale, réunie au Cap, condamne la répression au Zimbabwe" , World Association of Newspapers, June 5, 2007 and the International Federation of Journalists."IFJ Condemns Callous Murder of Journalist in Zimbabwe" , International Federation of Journalists, April 5, 2007 The murderers were not identified, but foreign media linked the killing to an "escalation of the government's campaign of violence and intimidation"."Zimbabwe journalist murdered 'over leaked Tsvangirai pictures'", The Independent, April 4, 2007 Chikombo's death in 2007 foreshadowed the killings of over eighty MDC supporters during the Zimbabwean presidential election in 2008"UN 'regrets' Zimbabwe election", BBC, June 28, 2008 - including Gibson Nyandoro and Tonderai Ndira.
See also List of solved missing person cases (2000s)
References