KEY POINTS
- Over a dozen political activists in Zimbabwe were released on bail after being detained before the SADC summit.
- The activists were accused of planning protests, but some were released after the summit ended without incidents.
- Opposition groups criticize the government for using arrests to suppress dissent and political opposition.
Over a dozen political activists detained before the SADC summit in Zimbabwe have been released on bail.
The activists had been held for weeks after they were arrested on charges of planning protests against the government during the summit. Their release comes barely a month after Zanu PF spokesperson Christopher Mutsvangwa suggested that it may not be necessary for their detention any longer once the summit is over.
Some of the released included Namatai Kwekweza, Robson Chere and Samuel Gwenzi, who had to spend 35 days in jail. The High Court bailed them a sum of $150 each. All three had been charged with disturbing the Harare Magistrates Court while demonstrating in support of the CCC, an opposition party. This happened after they were chucked off a flight at the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport for Victoria Falls where they were charged with disorderly conduct.
Protests and arrests before, during and after the summit
There has been tension during the SADC summit which was held in Mt. Hampden in August this year, with more than 160 activists detained in the run-up to the meeting. During the summit which Zimbabwe hosted and where Mnangagwa took the post of chairing the regional bloc the President sought to market Zimbabwe as a secure country.
Speaking in an interview, Mutsvangwa said that the government perceived the activist as a dangerous force that may disrupt the event and this made their arrest reasonable.
That is after the summit had come and gone without any incidences hence Mutsvangwa implying that the activists might not be needed anymore. As promised, several activists were later discharged on bail among them fourteen residents from Kariba who were arrested for conducting an anti-government demonstration. More than a month ago they were arrested, and only the High Court allowed them to leave the police station but only on the condition that they will report their presence to the police twice per month.
Calls for judicial reform
The latest arrests and detentions have raised concern to criticism that the Zimbabwean government is using power to suppress political opposition.
Concerned in the release of the party members and other pro-democracy activists, CCC spokesperson Promise Mkwananzi described the detentions as having taken long. He demanded changes to be made in the country’s legislation to ensure the population’s confidence in the judiciary in the meantime, the regime uses state entities as tools against dissidents.
“There is need to do something as it seems the whole judicial system in Zimbabwe has been compromised,” said Mkwananzi. “We, therefore, deprecate unnecessary detention of Timba and others on what we consider to be frivolous reasons. ”
Some of the grievances include the continued detention of senior CCC official Jameson Timba as well as 65 other activists. The activists were arrested in June while attending what police said was an unauthorized event at Timba’s house, but the activists said it was the Day of the African Child. The two and others are still in detention despite some of their co-accused have been freed on different bails and or acquittal.
Opposition members released
Besides the activists, CCC candidate Tineyi Munetsi who was also charged with violating the provisions of the law was also released on bail by the High Court.
Munetsi who contested in the banned August 2023 elections for the Goromonzi West constituency seat was arrested for anti-government protests five years ago. He was charged with a bond fee of $500 and will be required in court in early September.
More activists are released from jail putting pressure on the Zimbabwean government to stop what most people consider politically motivated arrests. The opposition groups, citizens and human rights activists have claimed that through the legal mechanisms, the government has been waging war against its opponents. They say that the arrest of activists before the SADC summit was in attempt to avoid any incidences that would divert attention from the SADC meeting.
Government Denies Political Motivations
While the political leaders of the country claimed that the arrests were needed to prevent violence during the summit, some of the governmental representatives later tried to publically distance themselves from the crackdown. Information Minister Jenfan Muswere said that the government and Zanu PF did not have any hand in the arrests as pointed out by Mutsvangwa. Such exchange has only served to add to such criticism, this time accusing the state of using power for political purposes.
Prior to the Zimbabwean summit, Mutsvangwa had been very vocal in the media in terms of the event, pointing out that anyone who would wish to protest would be dealt with an iron fist. “If you do something different, you will be locked up so that nothing distracts from this event,” he told journalists during a press briefing ahead of the summit.
However, the idea that he came up with that the activists were no longer a danger to anyone caused their release later. The opponents continue that it only proves the political nature of the arrests as the activists were released only after the summit was over.
