Veteran Zimbabwean journalist Geoffrey Nyarota was laid to rest yesterday. Widely regarded as one of the country's most courageous and influential media figures, Nyarota rose to prominence in the late 1980s while serving as editor of The Chronicle, a state-run newspaper. His fearless reporting on the "Willowgate" scandal exposed high-level government corruption and triggered a national commission of inquiry - a rare moment of accountability in Zimbabwe's post-independence history.

Nyarota later endured political persecution, arrests, and threats under Robert Mugabe's government, prompting him to leave Zimbabwe. In 2003, he became a Nieman Fellow at Harvard University and went on to launch The Zimbabwe Times, an online publication giving voice to independent journalism during a time of state censorship. He returned to Zimbabwe in later years and, in 2014, chaired a government-backed panel on media ethics.
Geoffrey Nyarota passed away last Saturday at the age of 74, after a battle with colon cancer.

To reflect on his legacy and impact on journalism in Zimbabwe and beyond is Dumisani Muleya, editor of The NewsHawks and Chairperson of the Zimbabwe National Editors Forum.