Pan African Parliament adopts motion to probe rights abuses in Zimbabwe

By Tererai Karimakwenda
11 April, 2007

By a majority vote of 149 to 20, the Pan African Parliament (PAP) on Friday voted to send a special mission to investigate human rights abuses in Zimbabwe. Meeting in Midrand near Johannesburg, South Africa, this organ of the African Union said the mission would "investigate allegations of the abuse of human rights and the rule of law relating to the arrest and detention, assault and murder of political activists and members of the media." MP Suzanne Vos of South Africa’s Inkatha Freedom Party had introduced the motion. The PAP will now decide who will be part of the mission.

Reports said political and media intimidation, lack of freedom of speech and expression, good governance, transparency and the rule of law would also be investigated. It was not announced exactly who the mission would be comprised of.

Piers Pigou, a South Africa based researcher on Zimbabwe, said we should be cautiously optimistic. He believes opportunities like this should be welcomed but the outcome depends on who goes on the mission, who they are allowed to see in Zimbabwe and what happens with the findings.
Pigou explained that many human rights organisations in Zimbabwe have been gathering data on the abuses and they should use this opportunity to get the information to PAP. He said it will be interesting to see how resolute PAP is in the face of the evidence.

The resolution comes at a time when negotiations are pending between the ruling party and the opposition in Zimbabwe. Pigou sees an opening for the findings of the PAP mission to play a role within these negotiations. He added that this will give the SADC mediator on Zimbabwe, South African president Thabo Mbeki, an opportunity to clarify his position.

At the opening ceremony on Monday, the Ghanaian president and African Union chairman John Kufuor said the Pan African Parliament should have more to say about nations that do not uphold or respect human rights.