Mtetwa reinstated back on Chi’nono’s case

Lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa has been reinstated   to represent investigative Journalist Hopewell Chi’nono after High Court Judge Happius Zhou set aside Magistrate Nduna ruling which barred her from being his Lawyer.

Judge Zhou also ruled out that  Nduna must recuse himself from the case.
Nduna barred  Mtetwa from  Chi’nono  case for allegedly  writing a letter to the High Court registrar expressing her emotions on the case and also authoring Facebook posts to do with his case.

The magistrate the removed her from the case citing that she abandoned professional conduct but developed personal interest in the journalist’s case.

The ruling was handed down after Mtetwa and her client approached the courts challenging the barring.

The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) announced  on Tuesday that , “ Justice Zhou sets aside magistrate Nduna’s disqualification of Beatrice Mtetwa and instead disqualifies magistrate Nduna from presiding over Chin’ono’s criminal trial and orders that a new magistrate presides over.” 

Chin’ono was arrested in July this year and spent close to two months at Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison on charges of inciting public violence.