Press Release: Human rights defenders at risk as elections approach

Paris,Geneva, Harare, July 27, 2018 – Ahead of Zimbabwe’s much anticipated generalelections scheduled on July 30, the Observatory forthe Protection of Human Rights Defenders* (an FIDH-OCMT partnership) releasespreliminary findings resulting from its most recent field mission conductedfrom July 9 to 13, 2018, in Zimbabwe, to assess the environment in which humanrights defenders have been operating during the electoral campaign, in acontext of increased intra-party violence and succession battles. TheObservatory expresses serious concerns on the climate of fear and uncertaintywhich curtails national civic space and hinders the work of human rightsdefenders during this crucial moment for the democratic life of the country.

After37 years of authoritarian rule, that disintegrated the country into a failedstate, Zimbabweans will, for the first time, experience an election processwithout Robert Mugabe, who was in power from the independence of the country in1980 until his forced resignation on November 21, 2017 through a militaryassisted change of government.

SinceNovember 24, 2017, when Emmerson Mnangagwa was sworn in as President to leadthe remainder of Robert Mugabe’s term before the 2018 elections, nationalauthorities have stated their commitment to ensure that July 30 generalelections will be credible, free, fair and transparent. Despite the fact thatpolitical space seems to have opened up since Robert Mugabe left power, civicspace and the exercise of fundamental freedoms have remained restricted by theregime. Violently repressed under Robert Mugabe, human rights defenders andcivil society actors continue operating in a hostile environment under EmmersonMnangagwa.

Thefield mission documented that a number of repressive laws used under thenPresident Mugabe, including the Public Order and Security Act (POSA) and theAccess to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA), are still used tothreaten and intimidate human rights defenders, and more broadly anyone seen asopposed to ZANU-PF.

“The current government is responsiblefor ensuring 30 July elections are held in a conducive environment providingpeace, transparency and fairness for all Zimbabweans to go to polls free offear. The protection of human rights defenders over this period must also be apriority to ensure that elections can be truly fair and participative. Acts ofintimidation and harassment reported against them must immediately stop”,said Okay MACHISA, National Director of ZimRights.

DespiteRobert Mugabe's departure from power in November 2017 and Emmerson Mnangagwa'scommunication strategy to reach out to the international community, oldrepressive practices remain very much alive. Among other issues, the fieldmission documented that ZANU-PF's still exercises firm control on the State;Zimbabwe political life is characterised by inter and intra-party violence thearmy is often deployed for law enforcement operations instead of the police. Currently, thedeployment of military forces in rural areas is denounced by civil society as astrategy to intimidate populations.

“The 30 July vote has to be the opportunity to definitely turn the pageon a system that has stifled Zimbabweans for nearly 40 years, and to initiate areal democratic transition. This requires putting an end to malpractices, strengtheningthe rule of law and protecting human rights for all.”, said Arnold TSUNGA, FIDHVice-President.

The fieldmission could further observe that the Zimbabwean people have lost confidencein the electoral process. The credibility and transparency of the process havebeen so much damaged that there is a high risk for disputed election results.As perpetrators of past human rights violations remain in power and militarystaff keeps holding strategic senior positions within the government andadministration, the mission delegation expressed its fear that electoral disputesmay lead to violence and social unrest.

“SADC, the African Union and the European Union have all sentelectoral observer missions to Zimbabwe and must now accompany the country inensuring any dispute over election results are democratically addressed,through peaceful and legal means, in accordance with SADC guidelines onElections, the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance andinternational standards in this respect.”, concludedAlice MOGWE, Secretary General of FIDH and Executive Director of DITSHWANELO –the Botswana Centre for Human Rights.

Followingits mission, the Observatory wishes to highlight the following key issues.

Actsof harrassment against and of intimidation of kuman rights defenders must beinvestigated

While under Robert Mugabe dispensation human rightsdefenders (HRDs) faced gross violations culminating in summary executions andenforced disappearances, these abuses still persist in more subtle forms underPresident Mnangagwa.

Independent journalists and media practitioners havehistorically been consistently repressed in Zimbabwe. Since November 2017,cases of harassment and intimidation against journalists have relativelyreduced, however, as the elections approach, fears have re-surfaced overthreats to journalists. For instance, during a media briefing on thepreparation of the elections, held by the military on July 4, 2018, the Director of Public Relations of the ZimbabweDefence Forces, Colonel Overson Mugwisi, singled out HRDS like Siphosami Malunga,human rights lawyer based in South Africa, and journalists such as RichardChidza, Snodia Mawupeni and Blessing Mashaya for “bad and mischievous reporting”[1][2].

Draconianlaws used to suppress human rights defenders must be repealed

Afterthe fall of Mugabe, several repressive laws were not repealed nor amended.Therefore, a number of old laws – some adopted prior to independence in 1980 –are still used to persecute HRDs, activists and journalists, the most relevantbeing the Public Order and Security Act of 2002 (POSA) and Access toInformation and Protection of Privacy Act of 2003 (AIPPA).

Theformer provides for the notification of the regulating authority of anyintentions to hold a meeting that is “of a political nature”. Since itsadoption, many human rights defenders have been arrested, detained andprosecuted under its provisions. The actunreasonably and unjustifiably encroaches on the rights of individuals andgroups to exercise their rights to freedom of assembly and association.

Thesecond Act requires accreditation of journalists by authorities. In previousmission reports, the Observatory documented how licenses have been allegedlyselectively granted to pro-government journalists while denied to independentjournalists Moreover, AIPPA has been effectively used to silence theindependent media such as the privately-owned Daily News and the Daily News onSunday, which have now been closed. Journalists have experienced difficultiesin having their accreditation processed in terms of the requirements of theAct. A number of journalists from the independent media have been arrested andcharged under AIPPA for offences such as the publication of falsehoods, andfailure to register or accredit under the politicised and non-professional bodyof the Media and Information Commission under Robert Mugabe’s rule. This hasseverely restricted the enjoyment of the right to freedom of expression andfreedom of the press.

Adiscredited Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and an instrumentalisation of theState apparatus by Zanu-PF created an imbalance and unequal electoral campaign

Although the political and civil space has seeminglyopened up since November 2017, access to resources has been still veryimbalanced in favour of the ruling party. In a report by the Zimbabwe ElectionsSupport Network (ZESN), ZANU-PF has been accused of gaining an unfair advantageover the opposition by using state resources such as vehicles, land, food aidand state media[3]. The report also disclosedthat ZANU-PF used threats and violence to force people to attend rallies.

Furthermore,state media is still biased towards ZANU-PF in terms of coverage. Only minoropposition parties are covered in the media, while major opposition partieshave very little access to media coverage. In reaction to this limitation,members of opposition parties have found ways around this through the increaseduse of social media to organise campaigns, mobilise and conduct their advocacywork e.g. via Twitter, Facebook,Youtube, WhatsaApp and other online platforms. For instance, the #ThisFlag,#Tajamuka and #OccupyAfricaUnitySquare were all successful online movementsinitiated by HRDs.

Additionally,members of ZANU-PF have been accused of appropriating school and churchbuildings, furniture and vehicles for political rallies and campaigns, andforcing teachers and school children to attend political meetings. TheAssociation of Rural Teachers Unions of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) lodged an urgentapplication, before the High Court of Zimbabwe,against ZANU-PF and the Ministeyof Primary and Secondary Education in June 2018 (the ‘Safe Schools’ case) detailing several specific incidents, includingwhere rallies were held on school grounds, teachers and children were forced toattend rallies during school hours, benches and chairs were removed fromclassrooms.[4]. On 28 June 2018, the HighCourt delivered an order barring political parties from “asking, encouraging orforcing children in schools from attending political rallies, forcing teachersto attend rallies or to make financial contributions toward rallies, and usingschool property for rallies including school grounds, buses, furniture, etc[5].ZANU-PF appealed this order on flimsy grounds and continued to perpetrate theviolations prohibited by the court order. This forced ARTUZ to make anotherurgent application to Masvingo High Court, on 11 July 2018, to ensure that ZANUPF and the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education comply with the ordergranted by the High Court, pending the appeal.[6] . ARTUZ was once again successful in courtbut there are still reports of ZANU-PF continuing with these prohibitedactions.

The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC), theindependent constitutional institution officially tasked to prepare for,conduct and supervise the elections in Zimbabwe, has been accused, by civilsociety organisations and activists, of failing to uphold its constitutionalmandate by ensuring that elections are free, fair, transparent and legal, forseveral years. In the run-up to July 30, 2018 there appears to be a widespreadlack of confidence in ZEC once again. This is evidenced by the various courtcases, brought by members of opposition parties, currently pending beforecourts and complaints from Zimbabwean civil society organisations against ZECon issues of transparency, accountability, release of the voters roll,integrity of the voters roll, design, printing, security and transporting ofthe ballot paper, the postal ballot process, collusion with ZANU-PF and themilitary, credibility of the appointed chairperson and commissioners, fraudetc.[7] .

According to June and July 2018 reportsfrom ZESN and Zimbabwe Solidarity Forum (ZSF)), the inordinate number ofindictments against ZEC significantly compromises the integrity of the upcomingelections and presents a very high risk for the electoral malpractices andirregularities of previous elections to be replayed, or at least raises a basisfor strong suspicion on the part of the contestants – mainly opposition parties– in a way that poses a danger to a smooth electoral process taking place.

In spite of these apprehensions, itappears that the elections will still be held on July 30, 2018, as provided forunder the Constitution. MDC Alliance organised a mass public protest on July11, 2018 in Harare where people took to the streets chanting “No reform, no elections!” and marched tothe office of ZEC. During the protest, The leader of MDC Alliance, Mr. NelsonChamisa stated that the party will not boycott elections but will make sure theelections are not held if ZEC fails to meet the party’s demands andexpectations of transparency and impartiality. Just a few days before July 30elections, MDC Alliance claims they are at a “stalemate” with ZEC and intentson shutting down Harare with another mass demonstration, requesting a massmeeting with the political parties, civil society and the church and escalatingthe matter to SADC by requesting an extraordinary summit.”[8] .

Among the last controversies, MDC Alliancedenounced that the advance vote of the police and the military on July 12, 2018took place quietly, without the presence of representatives of thedifferent political parties, or even officials of ZEC. The latter laterreported that it had not been kept informed of the holding of this advancevote. Only police officers in charge of monitoring the process were present.[9].

The militaryis still considered as a potential threat to a peaceful and credible democraticprocess

Since thefall of Robert Mugabe, the country remains apprehensive about the military’scontinued involvement in government compounded by the already existing threatof the conflation between the military and ZANU-PF. The military assistedchange of government, although generally accepted at the height of the“Mugabe-must-go” movement, further confirmed public perception that themilitary is intertwined with ZANU-PF. Much like his predecessor, PresidentEmmerson Mnangagwa has been criticised for seemingly consolidating his power byawarding senior military generals who facilitated his rise to power with keycabinet positions. For instance, retired Major General Sibusiso Moyo, whoannounced the military takeover on state television was appointed Minister ofForeign Affairs, long-serving Chief Air Marshall Perence Shiri is now Ministerof Agriculture, Lands and Rural Resettlement, and the Chief of the ArmyConstantino Chiwenga was appointed Vice-President and Minister of the DefenceForce.

The militaryplayed a key role in cementing the Mugabe regime since 1980 but turned on himon 14 November 2017 and installed Emmerson Mnangagwa as President. There aretherefore well-founded fears that if the outcome of the general elections isnot in favour of the ruling party instability would ensue.

SinceNovember 2017 the military has replaced the police (ZRP) and the CentralIntelligence Organisation (CIO) as the main instrument of intimidation, fearand perpetration of violence against opponents of ZANU-PF. There are reports byZimbabwe civil society organisations that between 2,000 and 5,000 members of themilitary have been deployed to rural villages ahead of the elections, in orderto intimidate villagers and campaign for Mnangagwa and ZANU-PF. According toreports from Zimbabwe Democracy Institute, these soldiers are deployed in thevillages to do government agricultural work or peace and security maintenance.Some wear uniforms and others civilian clothing but are still identifiable. Thesoldiers work closely with war veterans and traditional leaders to distributefood aid and agricultural inputs to the villagers. According to the ZimbabweDemocracy Institute (ZDI) report published on July 10, 2018, the mainobservation was that this embedment of the military in rural villages is a formof structured subtle intimidation by ZANU-PF to secure fear induced votes.[10]

Context:

In the coming months, the Observatory will publish a full reportdetailing findings of the mission and addressing specific and targetedrecommendations on the situation of human rights defenders and of fundamentalfreedoms in Zimbabwe. This report willinclude analysis and recommendations for upholding respect for fundamentalfreedoms, respect of civic space for HRDs and ensuring the protection of HRDs.

Themission delegation was composed of Arnold TSUNGA, FIDH Vice-President, AliceMOGWE, FIDH Secretary General and Executive Director of DITSHWANELO – theBotswana Centre for Human Rights, Jacob VAN GARDEREN, Director of PublicInterest Practice and Legal advisor at Lawyers for Human Rights - South Africa,Thandeka CHAUKE, Candidate Attorney at Lawyers for Human Rights – South Africa.It was accompanied by Okay Machisa, National Director of ZimRights.

Notably, the mission metwith:

- specific CSOs including:Zimbabwe Christian Alliance, Elections Situation Room, Grace to Lead, BulawayoProgressive Residents Association, Youth for Innovation, Christian LegalSociety, Zimbabwe Human Rights Association, Women of Zimbabwe Arise, BulawayoVendors and Traders Association, Bindura University, Shalom Projects, NationalAssociation for Non-Governmental Association, Habakkuk Trust, Women’s Institutefor Leadership Development, Election Resources Centre and Counselling ServicesUnit;

- representatives of political partiesincluding : ZANU-PF, MDC Youth Assembly, Peoples Rainbow Coalition, MthwakaziRepublic Party;

- representatives of the nationalJudiciary;

- representatives of internationalpartners and foreign diplomatic mission of representatives of the EuropeanUnion, the United Nations (Fiona Adolu), the Swedish embassy and the Frenchembassy.

For the past ten years, the Observatory has monitoredthe situation of HRDs and civil society organisations operating in Zimbabwe,and carried out several facts- finding and advocacy missions in the country.

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders(the Observatory) was created in 1997 by FIDH and the World OrganisationAgainst Torture (OMCT). The objective of this programme is to intervene toprevent or remedy situations of repression against human rights defenders. FIDHand OMCT are both members of ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union Human Rights Defenders Mechanismimplemented by international civil society.

Press contacts:

FIDH: Samuel Hanryon: +33 6 72 28 42 94 / Maryna Chebat: +336 48 05 91 57

OMCT: Marta Gionco: +41 22 809 4939

[1] See “Zimbabwean Army addresses MediaBriefing on Elections” posted by Zimbo Media on 4 July 2018: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZO3YbiP1uU&feature=youtu.be&t=8m50s; see also “Safetyof journalists in question as poll date nears” article in the Daily Maverickpublished on 11 July 2018: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2018-07-11-safety-of-journalists-in-question-as-poll-date-nears/ .

[2] The army warning wasdescribed as “ominous” and has been condemned by one of the HRDs, Mr. SiphosamiMalunga, as an unconstitutional and criminal attempt to stifle the right tofreedom of expression See “Why army warning is ominous” article by SiphosamiMalunga in the Standard published on 15 July 2018: https://www.thestandard.co.zw/2018/07/15/army-warning-omnious/ .

[3] See ZESN Report on thePre-Election Environment and Observation of Key Electoral Processes: http://www.zesn.org.zw/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/ZESN-REPORT-ON-PRE-ELECTION-POLITICAL-ENVIRONMENT-AND-OBSERVATION-OF-KEY-ELECTORAL-PROCESSES.pdf.

[4] See ARTUZ v ZANU-PF and the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education (HC 263/18) 25 and 28 June 2018: http://veritaszim.net/node/2495; see also 2017 report by the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission “Investigative report on Participation of School Children at Political Rallies” http://www.zhrc.org.zw/download/teachers-unions-of-zimbabwe-vs-1-ministry-of-primary-and-secondary-education-2-zanu-pf/#

[5] Seestatement on ARTUZ and Veritas’ litigation for safe schools:https://bulawayo24.com/index-id-news-sc-press+release-byo-140196.html

[6] See ARTUZ v ZANU-PF the Minister of Primary andSecondary Education (HC 297/18) 17July 2018: http://veritaszim.net/node/2495.

[7] See “Zimbabwe 2018 Elections:BVR Analysis” report by Team Pachedu published on 16 July 2018: http://kubatana.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/mainreport.pdf; see also ZESNPress Releave on Audit of 2018 Voters Roll dated 19 July 2018: http://www.zesn.org.zw/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/ZESN-Press-Release-on-Audit-of-the-2018-Voters-Roll.pdf

[8] Watch MDC Alliance media briefby Mr. Nelson Chamisa on 17 July 2018 (from 11:48 – 17:25): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dosq7WQ0RHY; see also “NelsonChamisa Threatens to take ZEC Headon over Printing of Ballot Papers” article byVOA Africa published on 17 July 2018: https://www.voazimbabwe.com/a/nelson-chamisa-threatens-to-take-zec-headon-elections-zimbabwe/4486127.html

[9] Read the article « Uproar as policevotes clandestinely », The Independent Zimbabwe, 13 July 2018 : https://www.theindependent.co.zw/2018/07/13/uproar-as-police-vote-clandestinely/

[10] Seereport “Zanu-PF/Military Deterrence of the VillageVote”:http://kubatana.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/zdi_zanupf_military_village_vote_180710.pdf @font-face { font-family: Arial;}@font-face { font-family: "Cambria Math";}@font-face { font-family: Calibri;}@font-face { font-family: Tahoma;}@font-face {}p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }h2 { margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; text-indent: 0cm; page-break-after: avoid; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-weight: normal; }p.MsoFootnoteText, li.MsoFootnoteText, div.MsoFootnoteText { margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt 16.95pt; text-indent: -16.95pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }p.MsoBodyText, li.MsoBodyText, div.MsoBodyText { margin: 0cm 0cm 6pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed { color: rgb(149, 79, 114); text-decoration: underline; }span.Titre2Car { }span.FootnoteCharacters { vertical-align: super; }span.FootnoteReference { vertical-align: super; }span.Ancredenotedebasdepage { vertical-align: super; }span.WW-FootnoteReference { vertical-align: super; }span.CommentReference { }span.CorpsdetexteCar { font-family: Tahoma; }p.ListParagraph, li.ListParagraph, div.ListParagraph { margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt 36pt; line-height: 105%; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }span.NotedebasdepageCar { }.MsoChpDefault { font-size: 10pt; }div.WordSection1 { }ol { margin-bottom: 0cm; }ul { margin-bottom: 0cm; }