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Detention of Dr Frances Lovemore, Amani Trust
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR)
August 30, 2002

We learned with utmost concern of the arrest of Dr Lovemore, a member of the medical staff of the Amani Trust, on allegations under section 15(1)(c) read together with subsection (2) of the Public Order and Security Act (POSA) that she had published a false statement prejudicial to the State. Dr Lovemore has denied the charges. It is our opinion that her arrest constitutes further evidence that the said Act was designed to harass perceived critics of the government and to protect the ruling party from scrutiny, quite apart from being an unconstitutional limitation of the right to freedom of expression.

However, what is of the gravest concern in the arrest of Dr Lovemore is the manner in which she was treated by the police. She was arrested by officers of the Law and Order section, Harare Central Police Station, and was interviewed in the absence of her legal practitioner, who was barred from the interview room. We understand that police officers attempted to evade proper service of an urgent chamber application in the presence of several of our member lawyers, and instead Dr Lovemore was secretly moved to Warren Park Police Station whilst her legal representatives were attempting to apply for her release, as they believed that there was no genuine cause for her arrest. Her whereabouts were unknown for the better part of last night and she could not be provided with food and suitable clothing.

In a further example of the now constant harassment of legal practitioners, when one of her lawyers queried her questionable removal from Harare Central Police Station after 5:00 pm and insisted on remaining with Dr Lovemore, the lawyer was threatened with physical harm. Moving detainees from one police station to another only serves to frustrate the detainee’s lawyers and to intimidate the detainee. We are horrified that this continues to be a common occurrence in Zimbabwe. We feel that the police need to be reminded that their duty is to uphold the law and serve the interests of justice in a transparent manner, and not to intimidate suspects and their legal practitioners in a manner which is clearly outside the law.

It is perhaps necessary to remind the police that they may not arrest to investigate. In The Herald of this morning (30 August) the police spokesperson, Asst Comm. Bvudzijena, is quoted as saying that the police would soon be considering what charges to press against Dr Lovemore and another employee of Amani Trust. It is apparent that Dr Lovemore was arrested to investigate and that this is an abuse by the police of their constitutional powers.

We were heartened that the Attorney-General’s office, upon hearing of the moving of Dr Lovemore from one police station to another, instructed the police to return her to Harare Central Police Station. We hope and trust that their offices will continue to curb the police force when it exceeds or abuses its powers.

This situation of members of the police force believing that they can act outside the law and with impunity cannot be condoned in a democratic society. We call on the Minister of Home Affairs to act swiftly in carrying out an enquiry into such behaviour and ensuring that the rights of individuals are not contravened in such a manner in the future.

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