Barry Bearak retells his Harare prison experience
New York Times reporter Barry Bearak was arrested in Harare during the farcical election process that began last month, and that continues with no firm outcome a month after it began. He retells his story in the American press,
I’d been caught at it red-handed, my notes spread across my desk, my text messages readable on my cellphone, my stories preserved by Microsoft Word in an open laptop.
At one point, 21 policemen and detectives milled about my room at a small lodge in Harare, the capital. They knocked against one another as they ambled about, some kneeling, some on tiptoes, searching for clues in the cabinets and drawers. Men with rifles guarded the door.
They immediately found my two US passports, ample evidence of subterfuge. One contained work papers indicating I was a reporter; the other, the one with my visa, said I had entered the country as a tourist.
“But you’re actually a journalist?” I was asked.
“Yes,” I answered. link