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The FIDH
and the OMCT have, as part of their joint programm, the Observatory
for the protection of defenders of human rights, published in
the coming event of the French-African Summit (Paris - the 20th
and 21st of February) a ZimRights report on the "Onslaught
against human rights defenders in Zimbabwe"(see www.fidh.org
and www.omct.org).
The Observatory
and Zimrights call on the French authorities
- to act in accordance with the european policy, in particular
regarding resolutions of the European Parliament and decisions
of the Council, which has renewed targeted sanctions towards
the Zimbabwean authorities considering the lack of any progress
in the field of human rights.
- to exercise the strongest political and diplomatic pressures
against the authorities so as to garantee freedom of action
for defenders and freedom of association.
Defenders
of human rights have been one of the targets of the political
violence that has marked Zimbabwe in 2002. This violence, caused
by security forces and members of president's Mugabe party,
has reached its height during the March presidential elections
which have been tainted by serious irregularities.To add to
this situation a food shortage which, in December 2002, affected
almost 6 million person (out of a population of 11,9 million).
The lack of food is due to the dryness which affects the south
of Africa but is also due to political factors among which the
lack of democratic control on the food distribution and the
extreme polarisation concerning the right to land and the distribution
of lands.
Numerous
defenders - NGO's members, journalists defending democracy,
trade unionists, or judges and sollicitors trying to exercise
their profession with independence towards the power- have been
this year arbitrarily arrested or sued. Those acts of reprisals
have been followed by smear campaigns orchestrated by the authorities
and relayed by the medias and have been reinforced by the adoption
of restrictive legislations.
The authorities
and pro-govermental newspapers have multiplied positions and
articles denigrating NGOs: in March, three NGO have been accused
in the newspaper The Chronicle of leading a campaign "
demonizing Zimbabwe " and beeing " against Zimbabwe".
In November, the Minister for Justice has released a list of
NGOs, including Amani Trust and the Westinster Foundation for
Democracy, presented as constituting a threat for national security
and being financed by foreing funds, notably British.
Legislation
on the Public Order and Security (POSA) and on the Access to
Information and Protection of Privacy (AIPPA), adopted respectively
in January and March, restrict in a drastic way fondamental
liberties. For exemple, the POSA allows to sue authors of public
declarations involving the intention or the risk to " denigrate
or insult the authorities, including declarations open to generate
a feeling of hostility towards the President". To add with,
the authorities have released a note in September which reinforces
the application of the law on associations (PVO act), imposing
on all NGOs to register to the Labour Ministry and to the Public
Service. NGOs which are not registered face penal sanctions.
They must cease all activities including funds raising. This
notice testifies the will of the authorities to control and
neutralize the independent civil society.
Hindrance
to the defender's freedom of action and to freedom of association:
The Zimbabwe
Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) is, since its creation in 1998,
the target of an incessant onslaught. Its members are constantly
threatened. During meetings, police forces deploy in numbers
and disturb the agenda, as it was the case during the executive
Council of the ZCTU in March, which could not take place. In
December, several trade union leaders were arrested and released
a few days later, the judge had refused to charge them in accordance
with the POSA despite the request of the Public prosecutor.
NGOs have
been denied their right to observe the elections during the
presidential elections on the grounds of two laws: the first
forbids NGOs and the civil society to form voters during the
pre-electoral period and the second forbids NGOs to monitor
the elections. The Minister of Justice nonetheless opened an
accreditation list although very restrictive, rendering the
system of observation ineffective. Numerous observators were
arrested on the election day.
Lawyers
and judges are particularly threatened and several of them are
forced to resign. Sometimes, demonstrations are organized against
magistrates. For exemple, in January, a member of ZANU-PF organized
a demonstration against a magistrate of the Rusape Court after
the latter had refused to release on bail supporters of the
ZANU-PF party. In August two judges of Chipinge were seriously
injured by supporters of the ZANU-PF. Allegedly, two police
officers escorted these supporters and did not intervene to
stop them. The president and the secretary of Lawyers for Human
Rights were arrested in June on the grounds of fallacious informations.
Since 2000
Zimbabwe authorities have developed a neutralization strategy
of all those who denounce violations and abuses commited by
the goverment which are contrary to the principle of the Rule
of Law. Thus, the authorities can openly violate freedoms of
speach, association and demonstration guaranteed by the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Labor
Organization Convention 87 on the right to organize and the
right to bargain collectively ratified by Zimbabwe in 1998,
and also the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders
adopted in 1998.
The Observatory for the protection of Human Rights Defenders
and Zimrights urge to:
- Immediately put an end to any kind of harassment against all
human rights defenders and guarantee freedom of expression and
association
- Guarantee the independence of the judiciary
- Order impartial investigations into acts of violence perpetrated
against human rights defenders in order to sanction those responsible
- Review legislation, in particular the provisions of the PVO
act, the POSA and the AIPPA to put it in conformity with international
human rights standards,
- Ratify the ILO 87 Convention on the right to organise
- Implement the principles stipulated in the NEPAD Declaration
and adhere to the NEPAD African Peer Review mechanism
- Give a positive answer to the request made by the Special
Representative of the UN Secretary General on Human Rights Defenders
to visit the country.
The Observatory
and Zimrights urge
- Member states of the UN Commission on Human Rights to adopt,
at its 59th session a resolution condemning human rights violations
perpetrated in Zimbabwe
- The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights to give
particular attention to the situation in Zimbabwe and adopt
a resolution during its next session to be hold in May
- The African Union, the NEPAD and the Southern of West African
Development Community to give particular attention to the situation
of human rights in Zimbabwe and to adopt the necessary measures
to put an end to the deterioration of this situation.
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