OVERVIEW

A report by the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum

OVERVIEW

The month of June was characterized by a decline in the cases of human rights violations, particularly those related to organized violence and torture. This can be attributed to a low profile in terms of activities in civil society. Usually cases of organized violence and torture are on the increase during major political events such as elections and demonstrations organized by some civic groups. This is a trend that the Forum has witnessed. This decline may also be attributed to violations not having been reported to the Forum at all or for them to be incorporated into the monthly report timeously.

Isolated cases of human rights violations continue to take place. A victim was arrested near Harvest House and was taken to Harare Central Police Station where he was unlawfully detained for four days. He was heavily assaulted and denied food whilst he was in the police cells. He was only released after the court had established that he had no case to answer.

The Harare City Council, through its Department of Housing and Community Services, gave about 30 residents of Matapi flats in Mbare notices of eviction. The victims state that the City Council was evicting them because they did not have certificates of occupation to the flats. These victims were either children of the deceased original leaseholders or their parents had relocated to the rural areas. The notices of eviction were issued despite the fact that some of the residents had stayed at these premises for more than ten years and were paying the required rentals to the City Council on monthly bases. The Human Rights Forum deplores such actions by the City authorities and urges the authorities to offer alternative accommodation whenever undertaking such exercises.

On 22 July, State Security agents reportedly threatened pastors from Harare and Chitungwiza saying that that a meeting held at a Methodist Church in Highfield earlier in the day was illegal. It is reported the threats were made in order to prevent religious leaders; students and workers from demonstrating against economic hardships, fearing the protests might degenerate into a nationwide event. Bishop Levee Kadenge of the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe is reported to have gone into hiding after he had been threatened with death by a CIO operative, who warned that they wanted to kill him. The Forum again deplores such unwarranted actions by state security agents and urges their members to desist from the practice of using death threats as a way of stifling the exercise of civil and political rights as enshrined in the Constitution of Zimbabwe.

Totals: 1 June 2006 – 30 June 2006

Cumulative Totals: 1 January 2006 – 30 June 2006

The graph should be read along with the table depicting the monthly totals of violations from 1 January 2006 to 30 June 2006. The total quantifiable number of victims reported in June 2006 is 18.

Key Abbreviations

AIPPA – Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act PTUZ – Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe

BSA - Broadcasting Services Act UMP – Uzumba Maramba Pfungwe

CIO – Central Intelligence Organisation ZANU PF – Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front

MDC – Movement for Democratic Change ZCTU – Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions

MP – Member of Parliament ZNA – Zimbabwe National Army

ZPS – Zimbabwe Prison Service ZRP – Zimbabwe Republic Police

NAGG - National Alliance for Good Governance ZNLWVA – Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans

NCA – National Constitutional Assembly Association

OVT – Organised Violence and Torture ZIMTA – Zimbabwe Teachers Association

POSA – Public Order and Security Act ZUPCO – Zimbabwe United Passenger Company

Sources: The information contained in this report is derived from statements made to the Public Interest Unit of the Zimbabwe Human Rights Forum, statements taken by a network of human rights activists and newspaper reports.

Notes to the tables:

Torture:

All cases of torture fall under the definition of torture according to the general definition given in the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment and Punishment.

The four elements of torture are:

1. Severe pain and suffering, whether physical or mental

2. Intentionally inflicted

3. With a purpose

4. By a state official or another individual acting with the acquiescence of the state.

Those individuals referred to in point # 4 include the ZRP, ZNA, ZPS and the ZNLWVA (as a reserve force of the ZNA) and by any other grouping when directly sanctioned by the state.

Unlawful arrest and detention:

Arrest by the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) with no reasonable suspicion that an offence has been committed. Detention thereafter for a period exceeding 48 hours without access to redress through the courts or subsequent release without charge.

Abduction/kidnapping:

A kidnapping by a member(s) of an organised group that is not the ZRP, political party, ZNLWVA, ZNA, MDC, Zanu PF etc

Disappearance:

Kidnapped persons whose whereabouts remained unknown at the time of reporting. Their whereabouts have still to be ascertained through follow up reports or further investigation.

Property related

These are incidents in which property rights have been violated. This includes arson, property damage and destruction and theft.

Cases of Political Violence

Note: The identities of victims whose names have not been published in the press and are not public officials are protected. This is done in order to protect the victim from further violence, intimidation and possible recriminatory attacks.

The purpose of this report is to record the nature of the politically motivated violence and intimidation that continues to prevail in the country. The Monthly Political Violence Reports are primarily based on victims’ accounts, accompanied by medical evidence where possible, obtained from member organisations of the Human Rights Forum and other partner organisations. Use is also made of press reports on politically motivated violence. The Monthly Political Violence Report cannot therefore be considered as the exhaustive record of all incidents of politically-motivated violence in Zimbabwe in the period under review. Nevertheless, every incident reported to the Human Rights Forum directly or through its members is meticulously documented and included in the reports. Care is also taken to record the incidents in the language in which they were reported to the Forum.

The situation prevailing in the country is such that it has not been possible to verify all of these accounts. The Human Rights Forum has done what it can to verify the reports, and is satisfied that the vast majority of them are substantially true. It is also not possible to rule out whether a victim’s account is exaggerated or contains inaccuracies.

All reports derived from the press are denoted with the symbol ∑.

Bulawayo

Bulawayo North-East

12 June 2006

On the date of the incident, about 10 students from the National University of Science and Technology (NUST) were arrested following a skirmish at the Mhlahlandela Government Complex. The students, together with members of the Bulawayo Residents Association (BORA) were petitioning for the downward review of public transport fares. The police however, professed ignorance on the arrests but said that hey had only dispersed the gathering and did not actually make any arrests. The students’ lawyers advised the students’ leadership to carry out physical audits to ascertain whether the arrested students had indeed been released. It was later established that the students were released without charge.

Harare

Harare Central

19 June 2006

The victim claims that on the date in question, while near Harvest House, two CID officers (Law and Order) approached him and asked him to come with them. They took him to Harare Central Police Station and locked him up. They said they would speak to him later. On Tuesday evening ZRP officers visited him in his cell and started assaulting him. They stopped assaulting him when he started bleeding from his forehead from the impact of an iron bar. He did not receive any medical assistance and spent Wednesday 21 June in the cells sleeping. He was not given any food during his detention. On Thursday 22 June at around 10:00 hrs a CID officer came and took him to court. It was later established by the court that the victim had no case to answer. He was released on that day, 4 days after his arrest.

Highfield

22 June 2006

∑.It is reported that the Central Intelligence Organisation threatened pastors from Harare and Chitungwiza saying that that a meeting held at a Methodist Church in Highfield earlier in the day was illegal. It is reported the threats were made in order to prevent religious leaders, students and workers from demonstrating against economic hardships, fearing the protests might degenerate into a nationwide uprising that could remove the government from power. Bishop Levee Kadenge of the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe is reported to have gone into hiding after he had been threatened with death by a CIO operative, who warned that state security agents wanted to kill him. It is reported that the government was concerned that the pastors may have mobilised their congregation to boycott the Zimbabwe National Day of Prayer Rally which had been organised by some pro-Zanu PF church leaders, the ruling party’s Commissariat and the Department for Information and Publicity of the ruling party. It is further reported that the threats had extended to leaders of other civic organisations such as Zimbabwe National Students Union (Zinasu), Harare Municipal Workers’ Union ( HMWU) and General Agriculture and plantation Workers’ Union of Zimbabwe (Gapwuz).

Mbare

27 June 2006

The Harare City Council, through its Department of Housing and Community Services, gave about 30 residents of Matapi Flats in Mbare notices of eviction. The victims state that the City Council was evicting them because they did not have certificates of occupation to the flats. These victims were either children of the original deceased leaseholders or their parents had relocated to the rural areas. The notices of eviction were issued despite the fact that some of the residents had stayed at these premises for more than ten years and were paying the required rentals to the City Council on monthly bases. Furthermore, the victims state that sometime early this year, the authorities had told them to fill in forms to change ownership into their names. They were told that these forms were being processed. It is further claimed that for the forms to be processed, the applications had to go through some Zanu PF structures, starting from the cell. The notices of eviction were served on them whilst they were still waiting for these forms to be processed

MANICALAND

Chimanimani

20 June 2006

The victim claims that on the date in question, suspected members of the Zimbabwe National War Veterans Association beat him. He stated that he was assaulted with iron bars on head, left knee and was kicked in chest.

Mutasa South

02 June 2006

Members of the Zimbabwe National Army near Osborne Dam allegedly beat up two people. The victims state that they were assaulted with sticks and were punched and kicked. One of the victims claims that he was forced to crawl along the ground while being assaulted.

Full alphabetical list of reported deaths related to political violence 1 January 2006 to 31 June 2006 recorded indicating name, political affiliation, date of death, constituency and province.

TOTAL: 0

The table below and the graphs on page 3 above depict the number of violations committed on the persons whose circumstances are described in the report. One individual may have been subjected to many violations and thus appear under several categories of violations.

Monthly totals of human rights violations from 1 January 2006 to 30 June 2006

Administrative Map of ZIMBABWE

Zambia

Mozambique

The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum (also known as the “Human Rights Forum”) is a coalition comprising 16 member organisations. It has been in existence since January 1998 when non-Governmental organisations working in the field of human rights joined together to provide legal and psychosocial assistance to the victims of the Food Riots of January 1998.

The Human Rights Forum has now expanded its objectives to assist victims of organised violence, using the following definition:

“Organised violence” means the inter-human infliction of significant avoidable pain and suffering by an organised group according to a declared or implied strategy and/or system of ideas and attitudes. It comprises any violent action, which is unacceptable by general human standards, and relates to the victims’ mental and physical well-being.”

The Human Rights Forum operates a Research and Documentation Unit and offers legal services through the Public Interest Unit of the (formerly the Legal Unit of the ZHRF.)

Core member organisations of the Human Rights Forum are:

• Amani Trust (AT)

• Amnesty International (Zimbabwe) (AI (Z))

• Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP)

• Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ)

• Human Rights Trust of Southern Africa (SAHRIT)

• Legal Resources Foundation (LRF)

• Media Monitoring Project of Zimbabwe (MMPZ)

• Nonviolent Action and Strategies for Social Change (NOVASC)

• Transparency International (Zimbabwe) (TI (Z))

• Zimbabwe Association for Crime Prevention and the Rehabilitation of the Offender (ZACRO)

• Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights (ZADHR)

• Zimbabwe Civic Education Trust (ZIMCET)

• Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights)

• Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR)

• Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP)

• Zimbabwe Women Lawyers Association (ZWLA)

The Human Rights Forum can be contacted through:

The Administrator, P O Box 9077, Harare – email: admin@hrforum.co.zw

The Public Interest Unit, P O Box 9077, Harare – email: legal@hrforum.co.zw

The Research Unit, P O Box 9077, Harare – email: research@hrforum.co.zw

Address: 8^th Floor Bluebridge North, Eastgate, Harare; Telephone: 250511 - Fax: 250494

The International Liaison Office,56- 64 Leonard Street London EC 2A 4JX– email: IntLO@hrforumzim.com

Telephone+44-20-7065-0945

Website: www.hrforumzim.com

Previous reports of the Human Rights Forum can be found on our website.

To report political violence incidents occurring to yourself or someone you know, please contact us on the above addresses.