Renowned Zimbabwean novelist Tsitsi Dangarembga is planning to challenge an arrest warrant after she failed to appear in court over a charge of incitement to violence.
Dangarembga told the BBC that she missed the late June court appearance because of a medical condition.
The charge relates to anti-government protests that had been reportedly planned in 2020, but the novelist denies accusations that she incited violence against the government of President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
The author of award-winning books Nervous Conditions and This Mournable Body has spent the last year tutoring aspiring writers across Africa.
She’s been telling them about the importance of creativity on the continent – that “the problems we have need to be solved by new ideas”.
“Writing is an act of bravery, it’s an act which requires courage,” she added.
Dangarembga says she trusts the Zimbabwean justice system to do its job when it rules on her case.