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National Peace Days a bluff
Restoration of Human Rights (ROHR)
July 23, 2009

In an extraordinary government gazette Robert Mugabe declared that 24-26 July will be a period for all Zimbabweans at home and abroad to 'renounce and report all forms of political violence, in an effort to 'restore peace and stability in the country'. Therefore the days have been declared National Peace days for renouncing political violence and promoting national healing. At a glance the idea seems to be noble and peculiar, but subjected to further scrutiny the context of the call ebbs all the confidence we had in the sincerity of both the office and the person of President Robert Mugabe.

ROHR Zimbabwe is horrified at the dishonesty of the inclusive government and has no faith in the genuineness of Robert Mugabe's initiative in declaring 24 - 26 July national peace days. ROHR will be taking to the streets tomorrow (24th July) to protest against this cover-up and demand truth, justice and transparency from the inclusive government.

Below is ROHR's commentary on the government's new initiative.

Firstly for peace to prevail in any given nation, the state should be totally transformed into a safe house for every individual. The powers of the state to carry extra-legal mandates such as militia and para-militia activities against its people should end. The state should lead its citizenry and fulfill its duties under the spotlight of sacrosanct values, ideas and legal instruments that ensures that the bill of rights is elevated to a supreme position that becomes the campus of how the populace and the state interact.

This has not happened in present day Zimbabwe, because that the police, state intelligence and other arms of the executive are still carrying out extra-legal activities with impunity. The people of Zimbabwe's safety remains severely endangered.

That we are coming from a dark age of reprisal and state sponsored human rights violations and organised state acrimony on those holding dissenting views is undisputable. What is dismissive from our side is an attempt by the present day government to create symbolic days and moments in our country where by the people, region and the international world are misled to believe that the incumbent is whole heartedly moving the country from the abyss of terror towards a glimpse of light and peace.

Peace in its totality is a function of political will and maturity on those who are holding public office and the people of Zimbabwe at large believing that proper mechanisms of truth and reconciliation have been met. Only after those who were grieved acknowledge that restorative measures have been done and those who would have committed acts to terror acknowledging that they violated other people's rights could peace as a concept be fully recognized. Mr. Mugabe cannot be the agitator of violence and define peace at the same time, as if he holds the rod of making the rule as he goes.

One will be forgiven to imagine that the person who boasted of degrees in violence not so long ago, can easily sublimate the 'ideas' of war and the funning of violence in a blinker of an eye. We remain cognizant of the need for national healing, but at the same time the concept of national healing should be holistic by mainly addressing the following fundamental issues:

• The state should be separated from political parties, that is to say, Zanu PF should disband its infrastructure of violence and its proxies. This is in light of the tidal wave of violence which erupted at the Rainbow Towers, instigated by the ZANU PF hoodlums and buttressed by its public relations outfit, Zimbabwe Broadcasting Cooperation.
• The uniformed forces should start to behave accordingly with the spirit and letter of co-existence to ensure that lasting peace is equally attained.
• The state broadcaster should desist from funning hate speech and lies aimed at prejudicing the public against civil society organizations and other political parties apart from ZANU PF.
• The state should immediately cease harassing human rights and political detainees within and without the Zimbabwe prisons.
• ZANU PF should demobilize and disarm the militia, the proxies of violence that are still active since the acrimonious epoch of political terror that claimed more than 180 lives and displaced thousands in 2008.
• Known perpetrators of violence must face the law regardless of political affiliation and rank in society.
• The state should immediately stop violence happening at the farms and respect the ruling made by the SADC tribunal disputed of farms in 2008.

Put differently, peace can never be wished into existence by mere words and public relations stunts as the Organ on National healing, Reconciliation and Integration would have the nation believe. The stark reality is that peace will remain elusive in Zimbabwe as long as the political parties are only as prepared as to condemn violence through the media yet leave institutions and infrastructures of violence in position for further instructions. Furthermore war veterans continue to be violent with the protection of the police and the public broadcaster as evidenced by the recently disrupted conference at rainbow towers hotel. The reports made by MDC of violence against its supporters even after the advent of the inclusive government are equally worrying. Without taking concrete steps towards restoring the rule of law, disbanding militia camps, and other recommendations stated above, the call for observing three days to 'celebrate Zimbabwe's newfound peace and unity' remains what it really is - a bluff!

Important Note: ROHR Zimbabwe invites you to wear black attire on 24 July to protest the eclipse of peace in Zimbabwe and to remember our fellow countrymen who lost lives, property and homes in the political violence that preceded the June 27 sham elections.

Visit the ROHR fact sheet

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