Spokesperson for the UN High
Commissioner for Human Rights: Rupert
Colville
Location: Geneva
Date: 16 August 2019
Zimbabwe
We understand that today’s planned
protests in Harare have just been called off by the organisers, following a
High Court decision to uphold a Government ban. The crowds that had already
gathered were dispersed by police, with reports emerging of the use of force
against protestors.
With opposition demonstrations
still likely to take place in Zimbabwe in the near future, we urge the
Government to find ways to continuously engage with the population about their
legitimate grievances on the economic situation, and to stop cracking down on
peaceful protestors. If demonstrations go ahead we urge the security forces and
protesters to ensure they proceed calmly and without any violence.
We are deeply concerned by the
socio-economic crisis that continues to unfold in Zimbabwe. While acknowledging
efforts made by the Government, the international community and the UN in
Zimbabwe to mitigate the effects of the crisis and reform process, the dire
economic situation is now impacting negatively on the realization of the
economic and social rights of millions of Zimbabweans.
Long-term neglect and structural
deficiencies have contributed to hyperinflation, resulting in soaring prices
for fuel, food, transport and health services, which is having a dramatic impact
on the population, and particularly on marginalized working-class people. The
fact that key commodities and services have become less affordable for poor
families, means there is an increasing need for strong social protection
measures.
The economic crisis is converging
with the impact of cyclone Idai that hit Zimbabwe last March, as well as the El
Niño-induced drought, to create a rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation,
with the result that around five million Zimbabweans, or one third of the total
population of 16 million people, are now estimated to be in need of
humanitarian aid.
Ahead of today’s planned protest,
which was called off at the last minute, there were worrying reports of threats
against citizens who wish to exercise their right to express their opinions of
the economic situation via peaceful protests, with allegations of increased
surveillance of, and threats against, civil society organizations by State
agents.
More disturbing still, there have
been reports of actual physical attacks on, and arrests and detention of, civil
society leaders and activists over the past few months, with one human rights
defender and one political activist reportedly temporarily abducted and
severely beaten by unidentified armed men a few days ago, apparently because of
their role in helping to organize the protests today. In the last few hours, we
have heard reports of more such cases and are looking into them. Senior
officials have also reportedly issued threats against organisers of demonstrations
or against people who take part in them.
State authorities have a duty to
ensure people’s rights to freedom of expression, and to facilitate and protect
the right to peaceful assembly. In addition, we urge the Senate when reviewing
the Maintenance of Peace and Order Bill to protect the essential democratic
freedoms of peaceful assembly and demonstration by ensuring the Bill’s
compliance with the Constitution, decisions of the Constitutional Court, and
international human rights standards.
In January, we expressed concerns
about reports of excessive use of force, including live ammunition, by
Zimbabwean security forces during protests following the announcement of an
increase in petrol prices. We are not
aware of the indictment or prosecution of a single alleged perpetrator of human
rights violations committed during or after of those protests. The Government
does not appear to have carried out the requisite investigations into the
violence, including the alleged excessive use of force by security forces, in a
prompt, thorough and transparent manner, with a view to accountability, and we
urge it to do so without further delay.
We also urge the Government to
redouble its efforts to address the current challenges through a national
dialogue, with the support of the international community, and to ensure that
civil society organizations, human rights defenders, and activists can carry
out their activities in a safe and secure environment without fearing
intimidation or reprisals for their work.
ENDS
For more information and media
requests, please contact: Rupert Colville - + 41 22 917 9767 /
rcolville@ohchr.org or Ravina Shamdasani - + 41 22 917 9169 /
rshamdasani@ohchr.org
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