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Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum
Torture By State Agents In Zimbabwe
questions asked. Falanga has not been reported widely before in Zimbabwe 7 , but has been growing in
frequency through the 1980s and the 1990s. It has been observed elsewhere that falanga tends to increase
as the more obvious methods of torture become detected, or as public pressure against the use of torture
grows.
As indicated above, little was done. In fact, the situation continued to worsen in 2000 and the reports of
police, CIO and army involvement in gross human rights violations proliferated. During 2000, the Human
Rights Forum issued an unprecedented number of reports, making exceedingly serious allegations
against the State and State agencies during the year. The only response of the State was for the
President to issue an amnesty in October 2000, the major consequence of which was to excuse the
epidemic levels of torture. This was despite the overwhelming evidence that gross human rights
violations had taken place; that this was attested to not only by local human-rights organisations but also
by respected international human-rights organisations; and, that there were serious allegations about
partisan policing and failure to apply the rule of law. As the Human Rights Forum commented in its Legal
Unit’s Annual Report for 2000:
We can only state at this time that the situation has deteriorated far beyond any expectation. The reports of
the Human Rights Forum on the pre and post-election violence are adequate testimony to the exceedingly
serious deterioration in respect for human rights. These reports stand alone in their condemnation of the
human rights violations committed during 2000 and, most seriously, implicate the Government in the
condonation, tacit and overt support for the perpetration of gross human rights violations. This requires the
Government to take immediate steps to restore the rule of law in Zimbabwe.
Apart from the political violence, however, we have also shown in this report that the general human rights
climate has deteriorated very seriously. We have seen an enormous increase in the number of unnecessary
shootings by the police and also a greater tendency towards the use of torture, ill-treatment and brutality. The
principle of minimum force is clearly not being adhered to and the government must take immediate steps to
ensure that the police return to the kind of behaviour expected of a well-disciplined force.
As regards the future, we can only re-iterate our statement made earlier this year:
The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum wishes to express its concern for the failure by the President and
the Government to affirm their serious commitment to the rule of law and additionally for the Government to
take positive steps to ensure an end to the political violence. Regarding the rule of law, we note the following:
1 The failure by the Government to obey the rulings of the High Court in respect of the rights of citizens to
property. All citizens have a right to free and untrammelled use of their property unless lawfully restricted by
the State and, until such time as there are proper and lawful mechanisms for changing property rights, the
State has a constitutional duty to ensure protection of citizens.
2 The failure by the Government to ensure that the Zimbabwe Republic Police carry out their duties under the
Constitution and the Police Act. Here it is important to stress the failure of the police to provide protection for
persons whose property rights were and are still being infringed through the land invasions.
7 See AMANI Trust (1998), Survivors of Torture and Organised Violence from the 1970s War of Liberation, Harare:
AMANI; See also CCJP/LRF (1997), Breaking the Silence Building True Peace A Report on the Disturbances in
Matabeleland and the Midlands 1980 to 1988, Harare: Catholic Commission For Justice And Peace & Legal
Resources Foundation.
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