Arrested WOZA members forced to pay fines in Harare

By Tererai Karimakwenda
15 February 2006

More than 150 members of The Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) who were arrested in Harare Tuesday were still in police custody on Wednesday evening. The police had finally decided to charge them under The Miscellaneous Offences Act for conduct likely to cause breach of the peace. The WOZA members had intended to march to the parliament building in Harare, giving out roses and cards for Valentines Day. But riot police descended on them before they had spread much of their message of “Bread and Roses”, a protest call for affordable food and a dignified life.

The women say they committed no crime, and lawyers say they are being forced to pay admission of guilt fines of $ 25,000 each to avoid staying in detention till next Monday. Police claim it would take that long to process at least 200 people. 10 of the women have toddlers less than a year old and the cells are overcrowded, filthy and hot. The lawyers say under these conditions, the women have no choice but to pay for their freedom. The fines were still being sorted as of Wednesday evening.

All day Wednesday, lawyers struggled to get information on the arrested women and the nature of the charges. It was only towards the end of the day that WOZA released a statement with some detail. We also managed to talk to lawyer Tafadzwa Mugabe of The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, who was at Harare Central where the women were being processed. Mugabe himself was arrested, then released without charge on Tuesday after he tried to assist the WOZA members. He told us the total number arrested has varied from 152 to 300 depending on the section of the police you speak to. The police were originally charging the women under The Public Order and Security Act, but this has changed. Under POSA the women cannot be held for more than 48 hours without being charged.

Meanwhile in Bulawayo, WOZA officials say the police visited the homes of WOZA members who had been released from custody Tuesday, claiming they were verifying their addresses. The move was seen as intimidation by a certain Chief Inspector Martin Matira. WOZA members believe he gave the order for the house visits as retaliation after he had failed to get the court to open a docket.