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This article participates on the following special index pages:
Violence, recrimination and arrests after policeman's death in Glen View - Index of articles
Legal
Monitor - Issue 159
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR)
September 03, 2012
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15 months
of hell
It has been 15 months since the detention of 29 Glen View residents
charged
with murdering a policeman and it appears it will be a long
and bumpy walk to freedom.
Following the
stoning to death of Inspector Petros Mutedza in a beerhall brawl
in May last year, police swooped on the sprawling Harare suburb
and rounded up residents known for their affiliation to the Movement
for Democratic Change (MDC).
After suffering
severe beatings at the hands of the police, they were charged with
murder and thrown into remand prison.
Others, such
as MDC national youth chairperson Solomon Madzore, were picked up
later and charged with the murder of Mutedza.
All 29 are languishing
in remand prisons around the city and for 15 months their families
have had to do with seeing them from jail.
Their pleas
of innocence and appeals to regional bodies such as the Southern
African Development Community have yielded negative results. Some
have tested freedom before they were committed to prison. Since
then it has been hell for some of them.
The accused
include: Madzore, Last Maengahama, Councillor Oddrey Sydney Chirombe
of Ward
33, Councillor Tungamirai Madzokere of Ward 32, Cynthia Manjoro,
Stanford Mangwiro, Tendai Chinyama, Jefias Moyo, Abina Rutsito,
Gabriel Shumba, Stephen Takaedzwa, Linda Madyamhanje, Tafadzwa Billiard,
Simon Mudimu, Dube Zwelibanzi, Simon Mapanzure, Augustine Tengenyika,
Nyamadzawo Gapara , Paul Rukanda, Lazarus and Stanford Maengahama,
Kerina Dewa and Memory Ncube, Rebecca Mafukeni, Yvonne Musarurwa,
Phineas Nhatarikwa and Stanford Mangwiro.
The arrest of
the 29 attracted international condemnation after they came to court
with cuts, bruises and swollen faces whilst others were limping,
claiming that they had been assaulted in police custody.
Their lawyers
argue that the suspects were arrested purely on political grounds
as the arrests targeted mostly supporters and officials of the MDC-T
party.
While in remand
prison they have complained of being ill-treated by some members
of the Zimbabwe Prison Service.
Earlier this
year when they were briefly released, Musarurwa and Mafukeni told
The Legal Monitor that they were confined in a dingy cell for more
than 23 hours a day.
Councillor Madzokere
complained about physical assaults on Boxing Day last year after
he refused to hand over his prison garb to another inmate until
he had been given a doctor's certification that a skin infection
he had contracted in custody would not be spread to the next prisoner
to receive the clothing.
Rights groups
such as Zimbabwe
Human Rights Association (ZimRights) say the long incarceration
is uncalled for, especially after the State's case began crumbling
as its witnesses contradicted each other during trial.
"It is
now approximately 450 days with the matter pending before the courts,
moving at a snail pace and accused persons in detention. No progress
has occurred regarding the trial since July due to the court's
indefinite postponement of the case because of the deteriorating
health of one of the accused persons," said Zimrights in a
statement marking the residents' 15 months of imprisonment.
ZimRights said
with the coinciding court vacation, the trial could possibly resume
sometime in September.
"Meanwhile,
the State witnesses that have testified so far have failed to provide
consistent information pointing to how the unfortunate incident
ensued. Even the police have given contradicting statements to the
extent that the court had to visit the crime scene on the 26th of
June 2012 for an 'inspection in loco'.
"Zimbabwe
Human Rights Association therefore demands finalisation of the matter
to ensure restoration of liberties to those who are innocent. There
is no justification for the incessant deprivation of their right
to freedom.
"It is
distressing and inhuman to keep a person for almost two years without
defining his/her fate. This is a clear indication of lack of objectivity
in the way Zimbabwean law, security and judiciary systems are run.
Responsible authorities must define the fate for the 29 accused
persons without further delay," the group said.
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