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Police defy High Court order to release Beatrice Mtetwa
Movement
for Democratic Change
March
18, 2013
Police in Harare
are defying a High Court order to release Beatrice Mtetwa, a human
rights lawyer who was unlawfully arrested
and detained on Sunday.
Mtetwa who is
a board member of the Zimbabwe
Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) was arrested while trying to
represent Thabani Mpofu, Anna Muzvidziwa, Felix Matsinde, senior
officials in Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s office and
Harare councillor Warship Dumba who had been arrested on false charges.
The four are
expected to appear in court today.
Soon after her
arrest on Sunday, Mtetwa’s legal team filed an urgent chamber
application in the High Court and Justice Charles Hungwe ordered
her immediate release. The lawyers served the order at Rhodesville
Police Station at around 2.30 in the morning today but the police
refused to comply with the order.
The officer
commanding CID Law and Order, the investigating officer Detective
Assistant Inspector Mirimbo and one Superintendent Mukazhi who ordered
the arrest of Mtetwa were all made aware of the order and ignored
it.
ZHLR this morning
said Mtetwa was taken to Law and Order at around 9:30 in the morning
but police in defiance of the court order continue to hold her in
their custody.
At around 11:00
am she was driven back to Rhodesville Police Station by Detective
Assistant Inspector Phiri and five other police details where she
was dumped. Police at Rhodesville who were advised that they were
continuing to act in contempt of a High Court order forcibly lodged
her in cells again at 11:20, where she is at present. Mtetwa has
been denied access to her relatives who have travelled from outside
the country to be with her.
The ZHLR says
it has documented several cases involving its members and staff
who were subjected to arbitrary arrest and detention and similar
charges of obstructing justice – all of which came to naught
in the past.
It said it was
aware of the Machiavellian tactics of the law enforcement agents
and other State institutions who have everything to fear from lawyers
who represent their clients without fear and favour and insist on
full compliance with the law and constitutional safeguards.
“These
retrogressive forces believe that such tactics will intimidate Beatrice
and have a chilling effect on other human rights lawyers who continue
to soldier on bravely in representing all manner of human rights
defenders who have suffered serious rights violations. There is
a misguided belief that by attacking lawyers, as well as their clients,
positive forces who believe in a new professional way of behaving
will be cowed, and civil society engagement in issues of human rights
and democracy will be destroyed,” ZHLR said.
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