Zimbabwe Inclusive Government Watch : Issue 6

Click on the chart to enlarge: The chart above depicts a breakdown of breaches, by party, since the start of the ZIG Watch project. The vertical marker (grey) marks the date when MDC-T and MDC politicians were sworn in and assumed their respective roles alongside Zanu-PF in a power-sharing government. The breaches are recorded by daily monitoring of media reports. The counts therefore have to be viewed in the context of a repressive media environment, and as an indicator of total breaches rather than a comprehensive picture. It is likely to be an underestimate. For full details on each recorded breach, please visit  http://www.sokwanele.com/zigwatch

The month of May closed on another low, as the unrelenting assault on democratic space in Zimbabwe took its toll. In broad terms, breaches logged in the May – June period fell into the following categories:

• Violent and unconstitutional invasions and seizures of property and farms,
• Harassment and deprivation of freedom of individuals through contrived arrests on spurious charges,
• Wanton politically motivated violence,
• The deprivation of the rights to freedom of speech and association, and
• Deliberate misinformation by senior public figures.

Statistics on our website indicate that responsibility for 87% of these breaches are attributable to Zanu PF.

The media shock of the month was the publication of video footage of police instructors violently beating helpless recruits at Morris Depot police training camp in Harare. The aim of the sadistic beatings of the recruits by their own instructors is yet to be established.  The culture of violence promoted and perpetuated by Zanu PF has long reached epidemic proportions.  Corroborating this, an article published in mid-June details the growth in the use of violence and intimidation by the uniformed forces and Zanu PF supporters in Masvingo, Muzarabani, Mberengwa, Chililmanzi, Mutoko, Cashel, Shamva, Dombashawa, Marondera, Odzi and Mudzi.  Further instances of violence were recorded in articles detailing the violent disruption of peaceful demonstrations by activist groups – notably Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) – during the month.

The most recorded theme during the month was the ongoing – and escalating – issue of farm invasions.  The most prominent story catalogued the events on Mount Carmel farm in Chegutu, where Zanu PF stalwart Nathan Shamuyarira is still attempting to illegally seize the land, property, produce and livelihoods of the farm owner, Mike Campbell, his family and their workers.  The illegality of this and other actions by Zanu PF and its supporters was highlighted for the whole world to see when the SADC Tribunal, a new human rights court sitting in Windhoek, Namibia, held the Government of Zimbabwe in contempt of a previous ruling by the same court.

The latter ruling – in favour of Mike Campbell and 77 other white commercial farmers – ordered the Zimbabwe Government to “protect the possession, occupation and ownership of the lands of the applicants”. In true Zanu PF style, Justice and Legal Affairs Minister Patrick Chinamasa publicly denounced the court’s ruling and – in the same breath – condoned farm attacks.  Sadly Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has not seen fit to take a public stand against farm attacks – a matter that has angered, mystified and demoralised Zimbabweans from all walks of life.

Reflecting another escalating trend, Zanu PF this month intensified harassment through the courts of Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) MPs, politicians, activists, prominent legal figures and journalists.  In the true blindness of self preservation, Zanu PF sees these actions as “legal”  and “justified”, as they have been perpetrated through the courts.  In a more notable case this month, Attorney General Johannes Tomana had three MDC activists (only recently released from illegal detention) re-abducted.  The reason?  To force them to turn state witness against some of their co-accused.  Little wonder then that these activists are in the process of appealing to the High Court to be released!

Following on from this issue, the State recalled prominent human rights lawyer Alec Muchadehama to court on trumped up charges of “attempting to defeat the course of justice”. In another convoluted court case, MDC-T MP Shuah Mudiwa was convicted of kidnapping and awaits sentencing, in a case that MDC lawyers say is clearly manufactured. To add insult to injury, when Mudiwa’s lawyers tried to appeal against the conviction they were told that the court docket could not be found,  making it technically impossible to proceed with the appeal.  The “loss” of court dockets is a common occurrence in Zimbabwe.

Turning to the issue of freedom of speech, the month started with journalists being instructed to register with the now defunct Media and Information Commission (MIC). Taking rightful exception to this, journalists took the Information Ministry to court and won their case. Not to be outdone, Zanu PF functionaries, acting in contempt of the ruling, physically stopped the same journalists from covering the Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA) Summit in Victoria Falls, giving rise to a new round of time-consuming and costly court cases to resolve the issue.

(Click legend to enlarge – or view project detail here)

With respect to the Global Political Agreement (GPA), Zanu PF this month played havoc with their continued control of the state media, downplaying Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s successes on his international tour. They toted the diplomatic tour (not a fundraising trip) as a failure, since monies promised by Western donors were limited, and all were to be channelled through aid organisations, rather than being directed via the Reserve Bank, still headed contentiously by Gideon Gono. In addition, the state media made no effort to include news of the MDC formations in their broadcasts, despite repeated requests to comply with the provisions of the GPA.

Legal right to freedom of association took a battering later in the month when the police violently disrupted a peaceful march by activists. The irony of the incident was that the secretary-general of Amnesty International, giving a presentation on human rights violations in Zimbabwe, was not more than 50 metres away from the scene.  Had she looked through a curtained window, she would have witnessed this violence first hand.  Some days later, anonymous police officers gave testimony to the fact that the police force was constantly getting directives from Zanu PF hardliners to beat and detain demonstrators – something that many police officers were actually trying to avoid.

The month closed with a disappointing article reporting that Deputy Mining Minister Murisi Zwizwai (MDC-T) had told a meeting of the Kimberley Process in Namibia that claims of mass killings in the Chiadzwa diamond fields in Zimbabwe were a result of “unsubstantiated reports”. His statements run contrary to many authoritative reports by respected persons and bodies who have documented large numbers of human rights abuses in the area.

Shocking video footage shows police recruits in Zimbabwe being tortured and beaten in a series of sickening assaults – apparently by their instructors. In one attack, a recruit is pinned down by six officers with one stepping on his back as laughing instructors whip and kick the defenceless man. The recruit can be heard screaming while one officer shouts, ‘wuraya’ (kill him). Other officers are also heard shouting ‘castrate him’, and ‘step on his throat.’ Screaming recruits are also seen being wrestled to the ground and held down while laughing officers kick and beat them with batons. The footage appears to have come from Morris Depot training camp in Harare. To view the 2-minute video: http://www.sokwanele.com/thisiszimbabwe/archives/4225

• ARTICLE VII : PROMOTION OF EQUALITY, NATIONAL HEALING, COHESION AND UNITY
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS
• ARTICLE XIII : STATE ORGANS AND INSTITUTIONS

Worrying signs of growing violence and intimidation
This is Zimbabwe (Sokwanele blog): 17/06/2009

Violence against the MDC has occurred in Masvingo, Muzarabani, Mberengwa, Chililmanzi, Mutoko, Cashel and Shamva where some houses were burnt. In Dombashawa during the last two weeks soldiers have been beating up MDC members, using iron bars and bayonets at random. They are in groups of 15 to 20, some dressed in uniform. In Mutoko, some MDC members visited Zanu PF people in the area requesting they return livestock stolen from them last year. Agreement was reached amicably but police are now charging the MDC members with extortion. Trained Zanu PF youths are also intimidating MDC residents. In Odzi, a Zanu PF member evicted all his farm employees this week saying their political allegiance was dubious. They are now homeless and join the more than 90% unemployed. In Mudzi, a number of MDC members’ houses have been burnt. Police have been told to ignore this. Today, an MDC member was abducted from his home.

• ARTICLE VII : PROMOTION OF EQUALITY, NATIONAL HEALING, COHESION AND UNITY
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS
• ARTICLE XIII : STATE ORGANS AND INSTITUTIONS
• ARTICLE XVIII : SECURITY OF PERSONS AND PREVENTION OF VIOLENCE

Chinamasa slams SADC land ruling & condones farm attacks
SW Radio Africa (ZW): 15/06/2009

Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa has slammed a SADC Tribunal ruling, meant to stop the ongoing wave of farm invasions, saying orders issued by the regional human rights court have no legal force in Zimbabwe. Chinamasa warned the same court against trying to ‘lecture’ Robert Mugabe. He condoned the attacks that have left thousands of farm workers without jobs, saying they are a justifiable protest against unfair land ownership by the white descendants of colonial-era settlers. It is now up to SADC countries to enforce SADC law. SADC is responsible – Zimbabwe being a SADC member state – for the safety and human rights of Zimbabweans. Zimbabwe, as a signatory to the SADC Treaty, is bound by law to respect the regional bloc’s rulings. But with regards to the SADC rulings on land reform, the government refuses to comply. SADC itself has remained deafeningly silent on the matter.

• ARTICLE III : RESTORATION OF ECONOMIC STABILITY AND GROWTH
• ARTICLE V: LAND QUESTION
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS

Tsvangirai again downplays severity of land attacks
SW Radio Africa (ZW): 22/06/2009

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai once again downplayed the severity of the farm invasions. In a BBC interview on Sunday, Tsvangirai referred to the current wave of farm invasions as “isolated incidents”. He also dismissed the critical fact that farm production had been halted in Zimbabwe, saying the farm invasions are “not an explosion that has started all over again to disrupt farm productions.” Tsvangirai then said during a later interview that the political parties had agreed to a land audit, as an answer to the current land attacks, despite the fact that a comprehensive land audit will take several years to complete. The President of the Commercial Farmers Union expressed great concern that the Prime Minister has again dismissed the attacks, saying Tsvangirai is playing a “game” in an attempt to secure government funding. He explained that the attacks on farmers are likely to intensify as farm attacks have been all but legalised in terms of the law.

• ARTICLE III : RESTORATION OF ECONOMIC STABILITY AND GROWTH
• ARTICLE V: LAND QUESTION
• ARTICLE VII : PROMOTION OF EQUALITY, NATIONAL HEALING, COHESION AND UNITY
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS

MDC Activists Re-abducted
RadioVOP: 03/06/2009

Three MDC activists who were illegally abducted and detained by State security agents last year, were on Tuesday forcefully taken from their homes again by State security agents. A party statement said the trio was abducted and taken to the Attorney-General’s office in Harare. They were instructed by the police that they should testify against other MDC activists who face trial on trumped-charges of banditry, or they would face unspecified consequences. The three were released and told to go home, but to come to court next week. The three were arrested in October last year and spent four months in illegal detention. They were never charged or brought to court and were released in February 2009 following a High Court order. MDC lawyers have prepared an urgent High Court application to stop the State from using the three as witnesses.

• ARTICLE VII : PROMOTION OF EQUALITY, NATIONAL HEALING, COHESION AND UNITY
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS
• ARTICLE XIII : STATE ORGANS AND INSTITUTIONS

Muchadehama Summoned for Trial in Renewed State Onslaught
SW Radio Africa (ZW): 09/06/2009

Prominent human rights lawyer Alec Muchadehama was on Tuesday summoned to stand trial at the Harare Magistrates’ Court on 17 June on allegations of obstructing or defeating the course of justice. Muchadehama was removed from remand on Monday 1 June 2009 by Harare Magistrate Catherine Chimanda who granted his application for refusal of further remand. This was after determining the State’s evidence tendered in court did not show that Muchadehama caused High Court Registry officials to unlawfully cause the release from custody of his clients. Magistrate Chimanda further held that if Muchadehama intended to defeat or obstruct the course of justice, he would not have communicated with and notified Chris Mutangadura of the Attorney General’s Office in writing that he was seeking the release of his clients. Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights believes that the swift revival of the case against Muchadehama is an attempt by the state to prevent him from properly representing his clients who are on trial on allegations of banditry, insurgency and terrorism.

• ARTICLE VII : PROMOTION OF EQUALITY, NATIONAL HEALING, COHESION AND UNITY
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS
• ARTICLE XIII : STATE ORGANS AND INSTITUTIONS

Appeal of Convicted Zimbabwe Lawmaker Stymied As Court Docket Disappears
VOANews (USA): 22/06/2009

Lawyers for MDC MP Shuah Mudiwa on Monday were unable to enter an appeal in Mutare magistrates’ court of his conviction Saturday on charges he kidnapped a 12-year-old girl in 2007, or seek bail for him, as his court docket could not be found. Mudiwa faces sentencing Saturday. Two other MDC-T members of parliament, Trevor Saruwaka, who represents Mutasa Central in the House of Assembly, and Mike Makuyana, who represents Chipinge South, also await sentencing on charges which their party and lawyers say are politically motivated.

• ARTICLE VII : PROMOTION OF EQUALITY, NATIONAL HEALING, COHESION AND UNITY
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS

Journalists barred from Comesa summit despite High Court order
SW Radio Africa (ZW): 08/06/2009

Four journalists who last week won a landmark case against the government over the legality of the Media and Information Commission (MIC), were this weekend barred from attending the Common Market for East and Southern Africa (Comesa) summit. The Information Ministry two weeks ago instructed journalists wishing to cover the event to register for accreditation with the MIC. The journalists took the state to court over the issue and a High Court Judge ruled that the MIC was defunct, so no journalist was legally required to register with it. The court granted the journalists an interim order barring government ministers and others from interfering with their operations. But the four journalists were turned away from the summit venue in Victoria Falls, despite their production of the High Court order, as they were not on the Information Ministry’s list of accredited journalists.

• ARTICLE VII : PROMOTION OF EQUALITY, NATIONAL HEALING, COHESION AND UNITY
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS

MDC accuses state media of bias
Zim Online (ZW): 17/06/2009

In letters written to Zimpapers’ editor-in-chief and the head of ZBC, the MDC-T Director of Information and Publicity accused the two media houses of violating the Global Political Agreement (GPA) through unfair coverage and blacking out of MDC-T party activities. Issues raised were: – The refusal to deploy journalists to accompany Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai during his international tour, – The blackout of the Prime Minister’s press conferences, especially those relating to the GPA, – biased reporting on the MDC national conference, – amplification on the Zanu PF position on the issue of the RBZ governor Gideon Gono and the Attorney-General Johannes Tomana, – the attempt to suppress the High Court ruling confirming the Media and Information Commission as a nullity, and – ZBC’s refusal to flight television programmes which involved MDC Senator Obert Gutu.

• ARTICLE VII : PROMOTION OF EQUALITY, NATIONAL HEALING, COHESION AND UNITY
• ARTICLE X : FREE POLITICAL ACTIVITY
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS
• ARTICLE XIX : FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND COMMUNICATION

Zimbabwe police take batons to women protesters 50m from Amnesty chief
Times, The (UK): 19/06/2009

Minutes after the secretary-general of Amnesty International, Irene Khan, accused elements of the Zimbabwean Government of “persistent and serious human rights abuses” yesterday, riot police broke up a peaceful demonstration only yards away from where she stood. Ms Khan described the human rights situation in Zimbabwe earlier as grim. She said there was no indication that Mugabe intended to honour commitments to freedom of association and expression made as part of the deal to form the new Government last year. She also criticised Prime Minister Tsvangirai, saying that she saw “no sense of urgency” in implementing human-rights provisions in the power-sharing agreement. She urged Mugabe and Tsvangirai to make public statements clearly instructing all party activists to stop harassment, intimidation and threats. She said that reform of the police and other elements of the security apparatus had been too slow, and criticised efforts to bring suspected abusers to justice.

• ARTICLE VII : PROMOTION OF EQUALITY, NATIONAL HEALING, COHESION AND UNITY
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS
• ARTICLE XII : FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY AND ASSOCIATION
• ARTICLE XIII : STATE ORGANS AND INSTITUTIONS

Police instructed to beat up civilians
Zimbabwean, The (ZW): 22/06/2009

The Zimbabwe Republic Police Support Unit continuously gets directives from Zanu PF hardliners to beat and detain anyone suspected to be planning a demonstration, said a top police official. As police, he said, they can only apply force to violent demonstrations, not small groups of law-abiding civilians organizing their social meetings.

• ARTICLE VII : PROMOTION OF EQUALITY, NATIONAL HEALING, COHESION AND UNITY
• ARTICLE X : FREE POLITICAL ACTIVITY
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS
• ARTICLE XII : FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY AND ASSOCIATION
• ARTICLE XIII : STATE ORGANS AND INSTITUTIONS
• ARTICLE XVIII : SECURITY OF PERSONS AND PREVENTION OF VIOLENCE

Minister denies mass killings in Chiadzwa diamond fields
SW Radio Africa (ZW): 24/06/2009

Deputy Mining Minister Murisi Zwizwai has denied there were any killings in the eastern Marange diamond fields last year, telling a meeting of the Kimberley Process in Namibia on Wednesday that claims were a result of ‘unsubstantiated reports’, and that the situation had been brought under control. There have been widespread accounts of killings in the Chiadzwa area. Last October the army was called in to disperse thousands of illegal diamond hunters. Government originally, illegally, seized the diamond claim and encouraged locals to help themselves. But violence and murder resulted after the area was sealed off by troops. Accounts from survivors detailed killings, machine-gun attacks by helicopter and armed attacks by ground troops. Locals reported that anyone attempting to enter Chiadzwa was arrested and often tortured and killed. Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights have said about 5,000 people were arrested during the operation, with three quarters showing signs of severe torture. MDC also claimed that hundreds of people were buried in mass graves, and that soldiers sent to ‘guard’ the fields had become illegal diamond dealers themselves.

• ARTICLE VII : PROMOTION OF EQUALITY, NATIONAL HEALING, COHESION AND UNITY
• ARTICLE XI : RULE OF LAW, RESPECT FOR THE CONSTITUTION AND OTHER LAWS

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