A recent editorial in one of Zimbabwe's independent newspapers argued that the pen was mightier than the sword. That seemed true up until last weekend, when President Robert Mugabe, in a surprise address to the nation, hit back at his critics.
His virulent attack on the judiciary and the media has drawn the battle lines for what many analysts see as a taste of what is to come in the run-up to next year's general elections. Mr Mugabe is digging his heels in and a major crackdown is under way.
The arrest and torture of two journalists from the Standard newspaper last month shocked and outraged human rights groups, governments and individuals. Under Zimbabwean law, the military has no powers to detain civilians, yet the journalists, Mr Mark Chavunduka and Mr Ray Choto, were held over a story concerning an alleged coup attempt by 23 senior army officers fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The episode has signalled a constitutional crisis because of the military's refusal to be bound by law. The journalists were tortured by security agents who wanted them to reveal their sources.
The Minister of Defence, Mr Moven Mahachi, and the secretary of his department ignored a court order for the immediate release of Mr Chavunduka. The Minister denied the torture claims, although the journalists emerged from custody with swollen hands, feet and faces. Both were charged under Section 50.2 of the Law and Order (Maintenance) Act with publishing a false report "likely to cause fear, alarm and despondency among the public".
The ruling ZANUPF has always made use of this Act, inherited from colonial days. The government itself admitted it was draconian and brought before parliament the Public Order and Security Bill to replace it.
However, the first two drafts were heavily criticised by human rights groups. The government now argues that the new Act, which was passed by Parliament towards the end of last year, does not protect the army from the press and so has reverted to the old Act, under which the journalists were charged. The government continued to use this piece of legislation after independence in 1980. It was used extensively in the detention and torture of civilians during the disturbances in the Matabeleland and Midland regions in the mid-1980s. The repressive nature of the Act allowed the government to repeal the state of emergency while retaining powers to crush dissent.
Ten years after the disturbances in Matabeleland and parts of the Midlands, the report Breaking the Silence - Building True Peace was published in February 1997. Compiled by the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP) and the Legal Resources Foundation (LRF), it documents the death, torture, rape and maiming of thousands of people in Matabeleland from 1980 to 1987.
The crimes perpetrated by the government's 5 Brigade and other government agencies in their efforts to flush out dissidents and support for ZAPU remain unacknowledged - reflecting the current government's view of human rights.
Many critics saw the report as an opportunity for the country to show its maturity, to acknowledge its wrongs. Now there is real concern that a state of emergency, lifted only in 1990, could be reintroduced.
Today it is the judiciary, media and human rights activists who are in the front line. Three out of the five Supreme Court judges, appalled at the abuse of law by the military, expressed their concern in a petition to President Mugabe, asking him to ensure that the rule of law be upheld. They asked for a public statement in relation to events, that the judiciary not be ignored or sidelined, and that the due processes of the law be followed.
The President's televised address last weekend was partly in response to this petition. But no assurances were forthcoming. Instead, he attacked the judiciary and anyone else who dared to speak.
Most commentators support the judges' concerns. Mr Mugabe condoned the military's treatment of the journalists by saying: "If the Standard had not behaved in such a blatantly dishonest and unethical manner, the army would not have behaved in the way it did."
He sought to discredit the judges, telling them they should quit the bench and join or form political parties. The media were accused of arrogating to themselves "super-rights" and of instigating "a mutiny" against an elected government.
A warning was sent to the media and prominent white human rights activists that "unless their insidious acts of sabotage cease, government is going to take very stern measures against them and those who have been elected to be their puppets".
The 74-year-old President, now in his 19th year of power, glorified the liberation struggle, reminding the public of their independence and who they should be grateful to.
While on the one hand referring to his conciliatory efforts at the time of independence, Mr Mugabe reminded whites that "they must atone the sins of their evil past". The President still garners some sympathy among the rural population but even they are growing restless with the rhetoric and unfulfilled promises. Land is still off limits for most and with the land issue taking a back seat to the war in the Congo, rural people are beginning to occupy farms and seize land for themselves.
It is not the first time that President Mugabe has made such remarks, but to pardon the military at the expense of the judiciary is for many observers an indication of the increased "militarisation of the state", as one activist put it.
"We are dealing with a government that desperately realises that its popularity is on a downward spiral; it thinks its loss of popularity has been brought by the independent media," according to Mr Trevor Ncube, Editor of the Zimbabwe Independent, one of the government's staunchest critics.
Mr Ncube said the most worrying aspect of the speech was that a head of state was siding with elements within the military police and intelligence service (CIO) who had broken the law.
"Where is the common man going to hide when the CIO have been given a carte blanche by the President to be brutal?" he asked. "What kind of a country are we going to be when we have a President condoning the breaking down of law and order by senior officials, the use of torture and illegal detention by the army? My country is degenerating into this farce. When the head of state says he is going to dish out stern measures upon you, you hope and pray that justice and fairness will prevail," Mr Ncube said.
On Monday morning two more journalists - this time from the Zimbabwe Mirror, an independent weekly - were picked up and have since been charged with causing "alarm and despondency" because of a story the paper published in October relating to the Congo.
The war has exposed a raw nerve in Zimbabwe. Those in favour of Zimbabwean troops being involved are few and far between. Most Zimbabweans see the war as folly, particularly when the country is facing one of its worst economic crises. Critics argue that it is eroding the government's financial resources as well as distracting from other issues.
Zimbabwe was gripped last year by strikes and riots in protest at food and fuel price increases. In December, the unions were banned from demonstrating for six months.
With the continuing war in the Congo, the unresolved land issue at home and President Mugabe's criticism of the judiciary and attacks on the media, tensions have risen.
Most people expect that the intimidation of journalists is going to intensify. Measures are already being put in place to limit the freedom of the independent press. It seems clear from Mr Mugabe's speech that all dissenting voices will be silenced.
"What Mugabe wants is compliance, period. Anybody that is not prepared to comply is going to face his wrath," says Mr Ncube.