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Trial of the valentine 63 - Adjourned to resume 18 May 2:15 pm
Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA)
May 17, 2006

THE trial of 63 members of WOZA arrested on 14 February 2006 during a peaceful protest finally began in Harare on 15 May. The first day was mostly consumed by a shuttling of the accused from Court Five to Eight and back again. Finally, the Court Eight magistrate started proceedings but the prosecutor failed to produce witnesses. The matter was adjourned to 16 May 2006. The following day, with 60 of the 63 accused and three witnesses present, proceedings finally began.

After the state outline, the defence lawyer raised several in limine points (outlined below) related to the Bill of Rights within the Constitution. This was viewed as an application for the matter to be referred to the Supreme Court. The State argued that the points raised were frivolous and vexatious and a waste of the Supreme Court's time. Similarly the State argued that though these rights are guaranteed in the Constitution, there are limitations to those rights and that the Miscellaneous Offences Act is in conformity with those rights and does not in any way infringe upon them.

WOZA do not agree and feel that these are real violations of human rights as enshrined in our Constitution and that this issue needs to be decided; particularly in how the police treat arrested persons both at the point of arrest and in holding them in detention pending appearance before a court of law.

The matter was therefore adjourned to 18 May 2006 at 2:15pm whereupon the State will be required to respond, before the Magistrate allows the application. WOZA invites anybody who wishes to show solidarity for the 'Valentine 63' to attend the proceedings.

Points in limine
The Accused persons wish to state that their rights as enshrined in the Declaration of Rights contained in the Constitution have been derogated from, trampled on and gravely abused, to their detriment as citizens of Zimbabwe entitled to such inherent rights in that;

I. The right to freedom of expression as contained in the Constitution of Zimbabwe under section 20 have been violated by the arrests effected by police against unarmed women and children, who were imparting their ideas and information on what they felt St Valentine's Day meant to them, in a peaceful and non-threatening manner.

2. The protection of the right to freedom of assembly and association as provided for in section 21 of the Zimbabwe Constitution, in so far as it allows persons to, "...assemble freely and associate with other persons..."

3. The protection of the right to be free from inhuman treatment outlined in section 15 of the Zimbabwe Constitution, in that the accused persons were treated in degrading and inhuman manner, which treatment was not reasonably justifiable in the circumstances.

4. The Miscellaneous Offences Act derogates from the provision safeguarding freedom of expression as provided in the Constitution of Zimbabwe in section 20 and the freedom of assembly and association provided for in section 21, in so far as it criminalizes the peaceful assembly of persons within Zimbabwe. The Miscellaneous Offences Act in so far as it is inconsistent with the Constitution of Zimbabwe is thus null and void, particularly section 7 (c) of the Act under which the accused persons are charged.

5. The Constitution of Zimbabwe provides in section 24(1) in no uncertain terms that,

"If any person alleges that the Declaration of Rights has been is likely to be contravened in relation to him (or, in the case of a person who is detained, if any other person alleges such a contravention in relation to the detained person), then, without prejudice to any other action with respect to the same matter which is lawfully available, that person (or that other person) may, subject to the provisions of subsection (3), apply to the Supreme Court for redress".

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