Widespread anger at police raid on CSU offices

Posted by on Tuesday, November 6, 2012 in police, Zimbabwe politics | 5 comments

From L to R, Released ZINASU Secretary General  Tryvine Musokeri   Suspended ZINASU Vice-President President  Believe  Tevera and  Detained ZINASU President Pride “Obama” Mkono

By Tererai Karimakwenda
06 November, 2012

There has been a widespread and angry reaction to the police raid on the Counselling Services Unit (CSU) offices in Harare on Monday, and fear of a general crackdown on Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO’s), ahead of the elections due next year.

Several NGOs in the country issued statements condemning the arrest of Fidelis Mudimu, Zachariah Godi, James Zidzimu, Tafadzwa Gesa and Penn Bruno – CSU employees who are being detained at Harare Central Police Station.

The raiding team of about 20 police officers was led by Detectives Inspector Henry
Dowa and Inspector Murira, who were armed with a search warrant allowing them to recover “offensive and subversive material” from the CSU offices.

CSU provides psychological and medical assistance to traumatised victims of torture. It is not quite clear what the police are accusing them of, but there is general consensus that the raid is part of a ZANU PF crackdown meant to intimidate human rights and political activists, ahead of elections next year.

Kumbirai Mafunda, communications officer at Zimbabwe lawyers for Human Rights, who are assisting the accused, said two of them were released late on Monday but three remain in custody.

Mafunda said the police were specifically looking for material that “defaces any house, building, wall, fence, lamp post, gate, elevator without the consent of the owner or occupier thereof”, in contravention of section 46 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act.

“We have been made to understand as police were preparing state papers, that this had to do with a banner or a building that was defaced recently. We are not quite clear what they will be charged with but we know they are going to spend another night behind bars,” Mafunda told SW Radio Africa.

Close sources told SW Radio Africa that all the police found at the CSU office were three cans of spray paint.

Mafunda pointed to the recent police raids at the offices of the Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ), the crackdown against NGOs in Masvingo earlier this year and the arrest of Abel Chikomo from the Human Rights NGO Forum, as signs that the government is intensifying its campaign against rights activists.

In a statement, the MDC-T condemned the arrests saying: “The MDC notes with great concern the upsurge in the arrests, intimidation and harassment of civic society members, political activists and journalists across the country by ZANU PF members and State security.”

The party has said they will not participate in any election if the atmosphere on the ground is not conducive to holding a free and fair poll.

  • Anonymous

    ZANU(PF) is after destroying our country. How can elections be contacted under such situations. We need to be mature politically.

    • wilbert_mukori

      Dumbu,
      your views and response is a true representative sample of the overwhelming
      majority of Zimbabweans. You are in the majority but sadly the passive
      majority.

      “Zanu
      PF is after destroying our country!” Hallo, we know that already.

      “How
      can elections be conducted under such situations.” God give me patience!

      “We
      need to be mature politically.” I have just pulled all my hair out. I am
      now as bald as a baby’s bottom. Thank you very much Dumbu. With friends like
      you and enemies like Chipangano; Zimbabwe has to be the prototype
      hell-on-earth!

      The
      GNU was supposed to carry out a raft of democratic reforms and write a new
      democratic constitution to put an end to the lawlessness and thuggery and
      restore all our individual rights including the right to free elections. After
      four years none of the reforms have seen the light of day and the Copac draft
      constitution will do nothing to end the culture of violence.

      If by
      “Zanu PF is after destroying our country,” you are blaming Mugabe and
      Zanu PF that nothing was done these last four years then you are naive. Did you
      really think Mugabe would president over democratic reforms and his own demise;
      he is a tyrant for Christ sake!

      It was
      for Prime Minister Tsvangirai and MDC to make sure the reforms were carried out
      and that the new constitution was a democratic one. None of these things
      happened because the PM was too busy globe-trotting, chasing women or else fast
      asleep!

      You are
      right; we do need to mature politically as a people. Many Zimbabweans have
      realized that, contrary to what MDC and Zanu PF would have them believe, this
      Copac rubbish is not going to end the violence and restore their basic rights.
      Instead of crying like a helpless child, people should do the obvious thing
      here – reject this Copac rubbish in the upcoming referendum.

      We are our own worst enemy, what could be more simple
      and obvious than to vote in one’s best interests but for a people prone to do
      as they are told nothing is simple. It take a quantum leap to get a NO vote; my
      hair would grow back, it happened!

      • Yepec

        The GNU is the government of the three Parties that signed the GPA. The GPA has a list of reforms which must and ought to be on the ground before the next harmonised elections in Zimbabwe. However, all the signatory Parties must agree to how the reforms are going to be implemented and which ones must come first.

        After that, if the Reform/s is in a form of a Commission that has never operated in the country, Parliament makes a law/s on how it will operate then the GNU will administer its operations. The GNU does not make laws neither does it choose which law to implement before the signing Parties have agreed on it before hand.

        This list of Reforms is, sometimes, called the road map or signposts of the GPA. If the signatory parties do not agree on any of the reforms on the list then that reform/s though part of the GPA (road map or signposts), will not be implemented until agreed upon by the Parties (Principals), despite being one of the Reforms of the GPA and, therefore, cannot be referred to Parliament for enactment into a law/s. The Copac Constitutional-making process was agreed upon by the GNU Parties and is one of the GPA signposts.

        It is Parliament that says (debates) in what form the law must be implemented and if the reform/s is an existing Commission then some of the laws on how it functions are on the books already. The Prime Minister looks after the Government (GNU) business in Parliament. If it is the initiation of the Government, the Reform must be the consensus of the Cabinet first and if it is a GPA Reform it must have been agreed upon by the signing Parties (Principals) first before it was taken to the Cabinet. Then the Prime Minister takes the position of Cabinet to Parliament.

        In the Cabinet the Minister responsible for the area, e.g, Police, Home Affairs would lead the discussion or responsible for clarifications. If it is a private member’s motion the Prime Minister looks after the Government’s business in Parliament but when passed by the Assembly would be taken to the Senate for action then sent to the President to be a law in Zimbabwe.

        How and in what form The Prime Minister and MDC-T is supposed to have carried the reforms that restrain the Police in this case is beyond understanding of the process, short of a revolution. Even in the extreme case of AIPPA, one is failing to understand and appreciate the processes/procedures involved.

        • wilbert_mukori

          Everything you said in the first paragraph is correct. You lost yourself after that. The three parties agree on a raft of democratic reforms, correct; after four years, why have none of these reforms seen the light of day? There has been no reforms so it is pretty pointless to talk about what form they could have been in.

          If you want to tell me that parliament could not scrap AIPPA, particularly when MDC had the majority in that house, then you clearly haven’t the foggiest idea of what you are talking about, and sadly so did the PM!

  • Common Sense

    Be careful MDC… don’t already start saying you won’t participate in elections… this is just playing into the hands of the ZPF machine.

    Unless of course you have the explicit and irrevocable backup of the SADC etc. which will ensure no election will happen until the environment is free and fair…

    Otherwise it will be a one man show again