They have launched a challenge to the law being used against them, calling it vague and outdated. It dates back to the 1960s when colonial governments were trying to suppress African nationalism, according to Chavunduka, and has probably not been used in 20 years.

"This fight is not just for me. I want this law overturned not just for my and Ray's case," he said. "The law is too wide to be realistic in any civilized constitution. It is draconian."

The high court must rule on this issue before the trial can progress. If it votes in their favor, both journalists will be free, and Chavunduka will be able to continue his studies at Harvard without interruption.

Chavunduka said he expects the October trial date to be further postponed to give the Supreme Court, which rules on all constitutional matters, more time to make its decision.

History of Integrity

Chavunduka has been at the helm of the weekly newspaper since it was founded three years ago and is also a shareholder in the company.

He claimed that the army does not dispute the basic premise of the article--that there was an attempted coup in December 1998. Army officials simply want the names of those who anonymously leaked the information to the press, he said.

"They were not interested in going into the rights and wrongs of the story," Chavunduka said. "They [just] wanted the sources."