Posts Tagged ‘Harare’
November 30, 2013
Scores of peaceful marchers from Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) were beaten and some arrested by police in anti-riot gear on Friday. The women were on their way to the Mhlahlandlela Government Complex, where they submitted a petition outlining the needs and expectations of Zimbabwean women in the context of the on-going campaign against gender-based violence. WOZA leader Jenni Williams said baton-wielding officers, who were accompanied by dogs, pounced on the group of women, chasing and beating them up.
She added: “We have long argued that police in Bulawayo have seemingly a tribal and regional agenda. Why is it that when we demonstrate in Bulawayo our demos are either stopped before they even start or our members are beaten up? Yet I can go to parliament (in Harare) and nobody will arrest me?”Some women were arrested and then released without charge three hours later, at the intervention of the officer in charge at Drill Hall in Bulawayo, who simply said the women were free to go, without offering any explanation why the women had been violently and brutally arrested in the first place. Williams explained: “He just came in and said we could go, there was no problem. We said to him ‘Just like that? When people have been beaten up and dogs almost set on them and you say there is no problem?’.” The WOZA leader, who has been arrested more than 50 times, expressed concern at the heavy-handedness of Bulawayo police.
WOZA activists brutalised on Women Human Rights Defenders Day | SW Radio Africa.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: arbitrary arrest, Bulawayo, Harare, Human right, Human Rights Defenders, International Women Human Rights Defenders Day, Jenni Williams, peaceful demonstration, police brutality, SW Radio Africa, women human rights defenders, Women of Zimbabwe Arise, WOZA, Zimbabwe
November 26, 2013
(ZimRights chairperson Everson Ndlovu announcing the awards)
Human rights awards are growing more and more popular both at international and national level. For that reason my post number 1000 (this is number 999!!) tomorrow will be fully devoted to international human rights awards. The national human rights awards created by Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZIMRIGHTS) in 2012 are to be extended this year, increasing categories from an already very high number of 14 to 20. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Abel Chikomo, Africa, Amnesty International, awards, Everson Ndlovu, freedom of association, Harare, Human right, human rights awards, Human rights defender, national award, Zimbabwe, ZimRights
June 11, 2013
On 6 June 2013 five unknown assailants wielding hammers forced entry into the Harare offices of human rights organisation Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ). GALZ is an association founded in 1990 that advocates social tolerance for sexual minorities and the repeal of homophobic legislation in Zimbabwe. On the morning of the raid, the assailants gained entry by disguising one of their group as a mentally challenged person and driving in whilst this member threatened the security personnel at the gate with a hammer. Upon entry, the assailants forced all staff present into the Guard Room and locked them there whilst they ransacked the offices, gathering laptops, mobile phones and bags which contain sensitive information about the work of the organisation and individual members. It is believed that the incident was not a normal robbery, but an attack carried out under orders, as the assailants frequently made contact over the phone with an unknown person called ‘Machacha‘ from an unknown ‘security wing’. In a statement, GALZ said “GALZ is not taking this incident as a random act of attempted robbery but that of deliberate attack by the youth militia, acting on the orders of someone superior.” [President Robert Mugabe has in the past made some extremely homophobic comments]
Perhaps surprisingly but mercifully, the police arrived swiftly and arrested the assailants, who have now been taken for further questioning at Harare Central Police Station. No members of staff were injured during the raid, and most of the equipment which the assailants had gathered has been returned to GALZ.
Front Line Defenders welcomes the swift action of the Zimbabwean police, but remains concerned about the motives behind the raid, which are possibly related to the peaceful and legitimate work that GALZ carries out in defence of human rights, particularly LGBTI rights, in Zimbabwe.
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Tags: attacks, Front Line Defenders, GALZ, gay, Harare, Human right, Human Rights Defenders, LGBT rights, LGBT social movements, LGBTI, Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe
April 11, 2013
Interesting example of how NGO pressure can have effect on the EU: last December, FIDH organised a round of advocacy with its Vice-President and Laureate of the MEA 2006, Arnold Tsunga, to convey to the European Union its concerns around the ongoing risks for human rights defenders in the context of political deadlock and pre-electoral period [“Zimbabwe: Ongoing risks for human rights defenders in the context of political deadlock and pre-electoral period”, report of the Observatory for the protection of human rights defenders published in November 2012.] FIDH’s objective was to gear up the EU’s attention to ensure early warning and appropriate reaction in case of human rights violations taking place in the electoral cycle staring with the upcoming referendum on the new Constitution before the holding of Presidential elections in the summer of this year. FIDH’s advocacy was reflected in the European Parliament’s prompt reaction to the arrest of Okay Machisa, National Executive Director of ZimRights, and two other ZimRights members Leo Chamahwinya, Dorcas Shereni through an urgent resolution adopted on 7 February, which also relays the Observatory report recommendations. In addition, the EU Delegation and Heads of Missions in Harare issued a Statement on 22 February to indicate the EU’s particular concern around the pattern of incidents of harassment against civil society organisations and to call on the authorities to demonstrate impartiality in their relation to civil society. 
via Zimbabwe : UE pays particular attention to the situation of … – FIDH.
Posted in FIDH, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, MEA, OMCT | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Arnold Tsunga, civil society organisations, election violence, EU, European Parliament, European Union, FIDH, Harare, Human right, human rights, Human rights defender, International Federation for Human Rights, MEA, NGO, Observatory, Observatory for the Protection of HRDs, OMCT, World Organisation Against Torture, Zimbabwe
March 26, 2013
Having reported on 9 March 2013 on the case of Mukoko, who was arrested and ‘released’ a few days later (although the case against her remains pending), there is now the case of another well-known woman lawyer who was arrested and released after 8 days: As AP reports from Harare on 25 March: “Zimbabwe’s High Court on Monday freed on bail a top rights lawyer who had been held for eight days on allegations of obstructing the course of justice…. She told reporters outside the courthouse that her arrest was a ploy to intimidate human rights defenders ahead of elections scheduled around July. “It is a personal attack on all human rights lawyers but I was just made the first example. …Beatrice Mtetwa was arrested on March 17 along with four officials from Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s party. ….Mtetwa was accused of shouting at police officers who were conducting a search at Tsvangirai’s staff offices when she demanded to see a search warrant.Mtetwa and the four officials deny any wrongdoing. High Court Judge Joseph Musakwa ruled early Monday that Mtetwa was following professional legal procedures when she demanded to see a search warrant from police at the offices of the four officials.”She was entitled to be appraised of the legality of the search,” Musakwa said. Critics have cited the arrests as the start of a fresh wave of political intimidation against opponents of President Robert Mugabe by loyalist police and judicial officials ahead of elections.
Last week police ignored an earlier High Court order to free Mtetwa and on Wednesday the lower Harare magistrates court ordered her held in custody to reappear in that court on April 3. Charges of obstructing justice carry a maximum of two years imprisonment. Mtetwa said she was not well-treated while in police custody. She wasnt allowed to take a bath and was denied access to her lawyers and family. But she said she will not give up the fight for human rights. The judge said Mtetwa should not have been denied bail because of her “professional standing.”
Mtetwa is a recipient of awards from international jurists groups including the American Bar Association … state media controlled by Mugabe’s ZANU-PF party has criticized Judge Charles Hungwe, who issued the first order for Mtetwa’s release. It said his actions pointed to the need for some judges to come under closer scrutiny over their rulings, and accused him of inefficiency and negligence in hearing other cases. Mugabe’s party claimed Hungwe illegally made the first ruling not in a court but at his private home during the night after her arrest without giving police the right to state their case against freeing her. The Sunday Mail newspaper criticized lawyers who thought themselves “untouchable” and said Mtetwas “stage-managed antics in and outside the courts” earned her “dubious awards” from African and international lawyers groups.
via Zimbabwe court orders rights lawyer to be released – Yahoo! News.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: American Bar Association, AP, awards, Court order, Harare, High Court judge, human rights lawyers, Independence of Lawyers, independence of the judiciary, judicial harasment, Morgan Tsvangirai, Mtetwa, Mukoko, political intimidation, president robert mugabe, Robert Mugabe, woman lawyer, Zimbabwe
February 21, 2013
It is clearly election time in Zimbabwe! This blog has reported previously on a number of intimidations and threats against human rights defenders. Now Front Line Defenders informs us that on 21 February 2013, the offices of Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) in Masvingo were raided for the second time this week and several items were stolen. The incident follows a raid on ZESN’s offices in Masvingo and Harare on 18 and 19 February respectively, during which confidential material was stolen. Established in 2000, ZESN is a coalition of 31 non-governmental organisations promoting democratic processes, in particular free and fair general elections. 
For graphic detail see: http://www.frontlinedefenders.org/node/21750
Posted in human rights | Leave a Comment »
Tags: election monitoring, elections, Front Line, Harare, harassment, Human rights defender, intimidation, Masvingo, Non-governmental organization, Police, raids, Robert Mugabe, ZESN, Zimbabwe
November 12, 2012
On 8 November 2012 Amnesty International and other organizations (including Protection International) report on the situation of three Zimbabwean human rights defenders (HRDs), who have been detained without charge since Monday 5 November. On 7 November, they were illegally transferred from Harare to Bulawayo, taking them far from their support networks and raising fears for their safety. They are prisoners of conscience.
Fidelis Mudimu, Zachariah Godi and Tafadzwa Geza are senior staff members of the Counselling Services Unit (CSU) a registered medical clinic which provides medical and counselling services to victims of organized violence and torture. They were arbitrarily arrested by police following a raid on the organisation’s office in Harare on Monday 5 November.
At around 11h30 on Monday 5 November about a dozen police officers arrived at the office of the CSU, without a search warrant. Around two hours later they were joined by a truck-load of anti-riot police who threatened to fire tear gas into the clinic, risking the lives of patients, staff and others in the building. Police later produced a search warrant stating that they were there to recover “offensive and subversive material” which “defaces any house, building, wall, fence, lamp-post, gate or elevator without the consent of the owner or occupier thereof”. Police entered the premises and conducted a search and illegally seized confidential medical records, a computer and documents which were not covered by the search warrant. The three HRDs were then arrested.
On Wednesday 7 November Fidelis Mudimu, Zachariah Godi and Tafadzwa Geza were illegally transferred more than 400km from Harare to Bulawayo, in an open pick up truck without protection from the sun, despite temperatures exceeding 30°C. Harare police handed them over to Bulawayo police in the town of Kwekwe, where they were immediately handcuffed. On arrival in Bulawayo they were immediately placed in detention without being interviewed. It is illegal to detain someone without charge for over 48 hours in Zimbabwe.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
The CSU is a highly respected organisation because of its work to support thousands of survivors of human right violations. Amnesty International believes that the arbitrary arrest, unlawful detention and illegal transfer of the three human rights defender is part of systematic harassment and intimidation of civil society in Zimbabwe as the country is heading for another election in 2013.
This is the second raid on the office of an NGO in Harare in less than three months. In August the office of Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) was raided by police twice and members were arrested and detained.
Go to original article
Posted in human rights | 2 Comments »
Tags: AI, Amnesty International, Bulawayo, CSU, Harare, Human rights defender, Non-governmental organization, Protection International, Zimbabwe
September 18, 2012
The Press statement below was issued by the Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) and shows the need for the continued attention and support from the UN as well as NGOs:
AT noon on 12th September 300 members of Women of Zimbabwe Arise
(WOZA) were prevented from conducting a peaceful protest to The
Chronicle in Bulawayo. Three small groups that managed to arrive at
the Chronicle but were quickly dispersed by Riot Police with raised
baton sticks. In 5 parts of the Central business district Riot Police
were standing in groups of 4 carrying baton sticks and obviously ready
to stop the protests as they began.
A block away, WOZA national coordinator, Jenni Williams was standing
alone when 4 police officers surrounded her. One of these police
officers had arrested Williams on 21 September 2011 while shopping in
an Electrical shop. On that day, 30 minutes previously he had also
arrested Magodonga Mahlangu. Both activists were then charged with
Kidnap and Theft, charges that are still being prosecuted in 2012.
On the 12 September, he once again refused to give his name but asked,
“Jennifer what are you planning here?” To which Williams replied,
“What are you doing here beating people?” The other police officers
then started to lecture Williams on the need for WOZA to notify police
before any protest. A legal argument ensured. One the officers then
announced that the Officer Commanding of Bulawayo, Central Assistant
chief Inspector Rangwani wanted to see Williams. The police officers
then escort her to the station on foot.
As they began to walk, Magodonga Mahlangu arrived and asked Williams
what was happening. It was at this point that a further legal argument
ensued. Williams advised Mahlangu that it seemed she was under arrest.
The officers said she was not but then refused to allow her to go and
reschedule the meeting with the chief Inspector.
As the two arrived at the police station, eight members entered the
station in solidarity bringing the number ‘arrested’ to 10. They were
taken to the chief inspector Rangwani’s office and they were told he
would be arriving shortly. Lawyers were deployed to represent the
activists but were denied access. A two and a half hour circus then
ensued with the activists being told they were being charged but some
officers refusing to charge them, mentioning the letter of complaint
filed the week before. The arresting officers then stage-managed the
separation of Williams and Mahlangu from the other 8. The 8 and other
activists outside were rounded up by a Riot squad and force marched to
the bus terminus.
The WOZA leaders who were now back in the OC Rangwani office were
still unable to access their lawyers. Finally two senior officers
seated themselves in the OC chair and surprisingly asked the two if
they had wanted a meeting with the OC. Williams then asked the
whereabouts of OC Rangwani, the officers admitted he was on leave. The
WOZA leaders then stood up and said, ‘as we are told we are not
formally under arrest we are now leaving and will be submitting a
further letter of complaint.” Williams then left her phone number for
a meeting to be scheduled and the two activists walked out of the
police station.
WOZA wish to draw attention to the disparate police response between
the police at Parliament in Harare and the Bulawayo police. On 12
September it was obvious that the WOZA leaders were arrested to
prevent their exercising their right to protest. This right is
provided by constitutional law buttressed by Supreme Court ruling of
2010 after legal action taken by Williams and Mahlangu. ‘Once again
police in Bulawayo have acted overzealously and acted to discriminate
against WOZA members from Bulawayo which is regional and tribal
discrimination.
See the complaint against the police at
http://wozazimbabwe.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/WOZA-complain-of-police-harrasment-ZRP-Jomic.pdf
Posted in Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Bulawayo, freedom of association, freedom of expression, Harare, harassment, Human Rights Defenders, Jenni Williams, Police officer, Women of Zimbabwe Arise, WOZA, Zimbabwe
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 