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Amnesty International Report 2005 - Zimbabwe

Covering events from January - December 2004

The government continued its campaign of repression aimed at eliminating political opposition and silencing dissent. Hundreds of people were arrested for holding meetings or participating in peaceful protests. The police, army, supporters of the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) and youth militia were implicated in numerous human rights violations, including torture, assault and arbitrary detention. Despite compelling evidence that Zimbabwe would continue to experience food shortages, the government terminated most international food aid programmes. In December parliament passed legislation banning foreign human rights groups from operating in Zimbabwe and imposing restrictions on local human rights organizations, including prohibiting them from receiving foreign funding for human rights work.

Background

After a protracted court case the leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), Morgan Tsvangirai, was acquitted of treason on 15 October. In November the state filed an application with the Supreme Court for leave to appeal against the acquittal. The matter had not been heard by the end of the year. Morgan Tsvangirai also faced a second charge of treason in connection with mass protests during 2003. This case, repeatedly postponed, was still pending at the end of the year.

In August the MDC, the main opposition party, announced that it was suspending its participation in elections until the government put in place reforms that would enable free and fair elections to take place. At the end of the year it remained unclear whether the MDC would contest parliamentary elections scheduled for March 2005.

On 9 December parliament passed the Electoral Commission Act, ostensibly as part of efforts to bring Zimbabwe into line with the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections. However, human rights and democracy groups criticized some aspects of this legislation, which violate the rights to freedom of association and information.

In February President Mugabe used the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act to amend the Criminal Procedures and Evidence Act (CPEA). The amendments allowed for pre-trial detention of up to 28 days of people suspected of certain economic crimes or certain offences under the repressive Public Order and Security Act (POSA).

In July the African Union Assembly was due to consider the annual activity report of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights on the human rights situation in Zimbabwe, which contained in an appendix the findings and recommendations of a fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe in 2002. However, the Zimbabwean authorities argued that they had not been given a proper opportunity to respond to the report of the African Commission's fact-finding mission, and consideration of the annual activity report was postponed. By the end of 2004, neither the annual activity report, nor the full report of the 2002 fact-finding mission – which was known to be critical of the human rights situation in Zimbabwe – had been officially published.

In October a senior delegation of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) visiting Zimbabwe on a fact-finding mission was summarily deported from the country. The government of Zimbabwe claimed that the visit was of a political nature, apparently because COSATU intended to meet civic and human rights organizations that were critical of the government.

Human rights defenders

Human rights organizations came under renewed attack by the authorities. Following widespread publicity given to the unpublished African Commission report (see above), local human rights organizations were subjected to a campaign of vilification through the state-controlled media. Several non-governmental organizations (NGOs) were accused of "writing" the report or supplying false information to the Commissioners.

On 9 December parliament passed legislation requiring all NGOs to register with a government-appointed NGO Council. The Council was given sweeping powers to interfere with the operations of NGOs, including refusing registration and thereby shutting down NGOs. The legislation singles out organizations that work on "governance", defined as including human rights, banning foreign governance and human rights groups from operating in Zimbabwe and prohibiting national organizations involved in governance and human rights work from receiving foreign funding.

Freedom of association and assembly

The POSA continued to be used selectively to prevent the political opposition and civil society groups from meeting or engaging in peaceful protest. Hundreds of civil society activists and members of the MDC were arrested under POSA. Many of those arrested were subjected to ill-treatment and intimidation while in police custody.

• On 28 September, 48 members of the women's organization, Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA), as well as four men working with them, were detained by police, citing POSA, as they neared the end of a 440km sponsored walk from Bulawayo to Harare. They were reportedly intimidated and threatened by police officers. Another woman activist, Siphiwe Maseko, was arbitrarily detained the same day when she attempted to deliver food to those in custody; she was released the following day without charge. The rest of the group was held in custody until 1 October, when a magistrate ruled that they had no case to answer. All were released.

On 29 September, WOZA activists who had not been arrested the previous day finished the walk, gathered at Africa Unity Square in Harare and held a brief prayer service for those in detention. As they began to disperse nine women were arrested by police, who reportedly claimed that the women had contravened Section 19 of POSA by "praying in public". Section 19 of POSA refers to "gatherings conducing to riot, disorder or intolerance". The activists were detained at Harare Central Police Station where three of the women were allegedly assaulted by a plain-clothes officer during interrogation. All were released on bail on 1 October. When they appeared in court on 13 October to answer the charges, no charge sheets were presented and all were released. No further action had been taken by the end of the year.

Repression of independent media

The authorities continued to use the repressive Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) to harass, intimidate and silence journalists and newspapers viewed as critical of the government. In November parliament amended the AIPPA, making the practice of journalism without accreditation a criminal offence punishable by up to two years in prison.

• On 9 January the High Court ordered the Zimbabwe Republic Police to vacate the offices of Zimbabwe's only independent daily newspaper, the Daily News. The police had occupied the newspaper's offices in December 2003, just hours after a court had ordered that the paper – closed down in September 2003 – be allowed to resume publication. The police initially failed to obey the 9 January court order, and the Daily News was only able to recommence publication on 21 January. On 22 January the Media Information Commission (MIC) and the Minister for Information and Publicity initiated court proceedings to once again prevent the Daily News from publishing. The MIC had consistently refused to register the Daily News, despite a court order compelling it to do so.

On 5 February the Supreme Court ruled that the AIPPA was constitutional. The decision was in response to a constitutional challenge by the Independent Journalists Association of Zimbabwe to sections of the AIPPA. This ruling effectively forced the Daily News to cease publication as it meant that publishers and journalists faced arrest. The Daily News remained unable to publish at the end of the year.

• On 10 January, Iden Wetherall, Vincent Kahiya and Dumisani Muleya, editor, news editor and chief reporter respectively of the weekly Zimbabwe Independent newspaper, were arrested and charged with criminal defamation in connection with a story printed in the newspaper on 9 January which alleged that President Mugabe had commandeered an Air Zimbabwe plane for personal travel. A fourth journalist, Itai Dzamara, was arrested on 14 January and also charged with criminal defamation. All were released on bail. The case was still pending at the end of the year.

Excessive use of force

The Zimbabwe Republic Police continued to use excessive force when policing public gatherings. Police also used excessive force during forced evictions which took place in the second half of the year.

• On 2 September police, war veterans and youth militia attempted to forcibly evict some 10,000 residents from Porta Farm, an informal settlement on the outskirts of Harare. The police were acting in defiance of a court order prohibiting the eviction. The police reportedly fired tear gas directly into the homes of some of the Porta Farm residents. One man, who had been ill with tuberculosis, died shortly after being exposed to the tear gas. At least 10 other people died during the following three weeks. Residents claimed that all those who died, several of whom were reported to have had pre-existing illnesses, had been exposed to the tear gas. Five of the dead were children under the age of one. Hundreds of other residents complained of chest and stomach pains and other ill effects resulting from their exposure to tear gas.

Torture and ill-treatment

State security agents, including members of the Zimbabwe Republic Police and the Central Intelligence Organization (CIO), were implicated in numerous cases of torture, assault and ill-treatment. Victims were primarily members of the political opposition and those perceived as critical of the government. Throughout the year ZANU-PF supporters and youth militia were also implicated in the assault, abduction and intimidation of those believed to be members or supporters of the political opposition. Both state and non-state perpetrators appeared to operate with impunity.

• On 14 October, three unidentified men assaulted Philani Zamchiya, President of the Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU), near the union headquarters in Harare. Several police officers then reportedly arrived on the scene and Philani Zamchiya was pushed into a vehicle. He reported that the police officers then assaulted him. He managed to escape by jumping from the moving vehicle and subsequently spent several days in hospital. While Philani Zamchiya was in hospital, men believed to be state security agents reportedly entered his hospital room and demanded information on ZINASU activities, although he was unable to speak as a result of his injuries. No one had been arrested in connection with the assault on Philani Zamchiya by the end of the year.

• On 22 April police in Harare brutally assaulted Tinashe Chimedza, a youth activist and former ZINASU president. He had been due to speak at an education forum in Harare. Police detained him at the venue and kicked, punched and beat him with batons. He was hospitalized for several days as a result of his injuries.

• Lovemore Madhuku, Chairman of the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA), was severely beaten on 4 February when police officers broke up a peaceful NCA demonstration outside parliament. He was taken from the site of the demonstration to another location in Harare where police punched him and beat him with batons before dumping him on the outskirts of the city centre. Lovemore Madhuku was hospitalized for several days. No one had been arrested in connection with the assault by the end of the year.

Workers and their families on the Charleswood Estate farm of the opposition member of parliament (MP) for Chimanimani, Roy Bennett, were systematically targeted in a series of violent attacks by state agents and ruling party supporters. The farm workers had been repeatedly targeted since 2000 because they worked for an MDC MP. During the year dozens of farm workers were beaten, harassed and intimidated. In one incident children as young as eight were reportedly assaulted by soldiers. At least two women were raped, one allegedly by a police officer. One man was fatally shot (see below). On 9 April state agents, including the police and army, took possession of Roy Bennett's farm in defiance of court orders which prohibited acquisition of the farm by the state, and which directed the state and its functionaries to vacate the farm and cease interference with its operations and staff.

• On 8 February a group of some 20 ZANU-PF supporters attacked the home of Amos Makaza, a security officer at Charleswood Estate. When other farm workers came to Amos Makaza's assistance the assailants left, but later returned with members of the Zimbabwe Army. The soldiers opened fire on some of the farm workers. Shemi Chimbarara was shot and died instantly. Another farm worker, John Kaitano, was shot in the leg. A soldier was reported to have been arrested in connection with the shooting of Shemi Chimbarara.

Elections

By-elections held during the year were marked by politically motivated violence and intimidation. Scores of MDC supporters were assaulted and intimidated during a by-election in Zengeza in March. The main perpetrators of this violence were reported to be ZANU-PF supporters. MDC supporters were also the targets of violence before, during and after by-elections in Gutu-North in February and in Lupane in May.

• On 28 March, MDC activist Francis Chinozvina was shot dead when a group of ZANU-PF supporters reportedly attacked the house of the MDC candidate for Zengeza, James Makore. Another MDC activist was shot in the leg. Eyewitnesses reportedly implicated a senior ruling party figure in the shooting. However, on 6 April police arrested a different man in connection with the killing.

Administration of justice

On 28 October, in a parliamentary procedure which failed to meet many of the requirements for a fair trial, MDC MP Roy Bennett was sentenced to a 15-month jail term with hard labour for pushing the Minister for Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs to the ground during a heated exchange in parliament on 18 May. Roy Bennett was denied the right of appeal and placed in Harare Central Prison. On 26 November he was transferred to Mutoko prison in north-east Zimbabwe, which restricted the ability of his family and lawyers to visit him. Initial attempts by lawyers acting for Roy Bennett to bring the matter before the courts were blocked by the Speaker of Parliament. However, on 9 November an urgent application was heard in the High Court of Zimbabwe. The judgement had not been delivered by the end of the year and Roy Bennett remained in prison.

Violations of the right to food

In May the government announced that Zimbabwe had had a "bumper" harvest and no longer needed international food aid. By June most food aid distribution had stopped although some programmes aimed at very vulnerable populations continued. The government's claims about the size of the 2004 harvest were widely discredited, and by the end of the year there was mounting evidence of hunger and food shortages in many areas of Zimbabwe. There were also reports that ZANU-PF party cards were being demanded in some areas before people could access state-controlled grain. The government-controlled Grain Marketing Board (GMB) has an almost total monopoly on the import of and trade in maize, the staple food of most Zimbabweans, and a history of discriminatory allocation of the food it controls.

In November the government agreed to allow the World Food Programme to undertake a one-off distribution of food aid to 1.6 million people during December.

Forced evictions

In the last four months of 2004 the police and army forcibly evicted thousands of people from farms where they had settled between 2000 and 2002. Homes and belongings were destroyed and families left destitute. Human rights lawyers subsequently obtained court orders which allowed people to return to the farms, but some families reported that government officials and state agents continued to harass them and threaten them with removal.

AI country visits

AI delegates visited Zimbabwe in February and June.