Zambia’s Chief Justice, Dr. Mumba Malila SC announced in August 2024, the approval by the Judiciary’s Policy Committee to allow the broadcast of selected public-interest court proceedings on television.

This follows Chief Justice Malila’s proposal to the Judiciary Policy Committee to consider the live streaming of court proceedings as part of efforts to enhance accountability in the Judiciary.

Making the announcement, Chief Justice Dr. Mumba Malila, emphasized the importance of such an initiative, noting that opening the courts to public inspection and actively engaging in the exchange of information were essential pillars of a functioning democracy. He stated that the Judiciary has much more to gain when it engages in vigorous and unfettered communication with the public, thereby deepening their understanding of the judicial system and general court procedures. The Chief Justice further stated that the Judiciary has a duty to be transparent and open to public scrutiny, just like any other public institution in a democratic society.

The judiciary is now expected to formulate rules and guidelines which will guide the implementation of this policy decision.

Once implemented, Zambia will join other African Countries such as South Africa, which has since 2017 allowed the live broadcast of court proceedings.

This development should be welcome by the media fraternity and the general public as it will enhance accountability in the Judiciary and will open up the Judiciary to the public who have had very limited access to the courts and demystify wrong assumptions that the public may have about the Judiciary.

The open policy of the judiciary being championed by the Chief Justice Malila, should be able to address the long history of misinformation and mystery associated with the Judiciary and the courts in particular. The Courts in Zambia have remained inaccessible by the citizenry, partly owing to fear and intimidation the courts pose on people due to the lack of information about their operations. Live court proceedings will also help to enhance the integrity, credibility, and effectiveness of the judicial system, ultimately contributing to a healthier democracy.

As part of modernizing and opening up the judiciary to the public, live broadcasts of court proceedings will allow the media to have a more enhanced media coverage. Live broadcasts will be able to provide accurate and unbiased information to the media, reducing the risk of misreporting and misrepresenting facts of very crucial court cases.

The media also have a responsibility to facilitate this progressive policy development by the judiciary by ensuring that media houses put in place modalities and logistics that will be in tandem with judicial practice and not allow for abuse of court processes. It will be important as the Judiciary comes up with guidelines on the implementation of this policy to engage the media and other stakeholders in the broadcast industry to ensure that all issues relating to the successful implementation of this policy such as appropriate broadcast equipment and necessary technical facilities are incorporated in the process of implementation.

The media is also encouraged to ensure that journalists are well trained and equipped with modern skills in legal and court reporting in order to enhance the quality of reporting and coverage of court proceedings. The Judiciary in this case should play a role in providing and facilitating the requisite training for journalists attached to covering court proceedings.

With the Access to Information Law now in place and government working on modalities of implementing the Law, it is hoped that the Judiciary being an arm of government, through this historic policy decision of opening up the courts to more public scrutiny through live broadcast will also play a significant role in actualizing the Access to Information Law by making the Judiciary and courts in particular more accessible to the public in terms of making available necessary information in the course of its duties.

In the course of the Judiciary working on modalities to implement this policy decision, Judicial officers are also encouraged to acquaint themselves with the operations of the media and ensure that there is the healthy relationship between the media and judiciary. The media and judiciary must however maintain their independence from each other to ensure impartiality and avoid conflicts of interest.

As the media and public welcome this important milestone in the history of the Judiciary in Zambia, it is hoped that the media and judiciary can work together to promote transparency, educate the public, and improve the administration of justice.

The author is a Media Practitioner.