Top South African lawyer advises Zimbabweans to consider amnesty for Mugabe

By Violet Gonda
28 June 2007

Distinguished South African human rights advocate George Bizos has called on Zimbabweans to consider granting Robert Mugabe amnesty, to find a peaceful solution to the national crisis. He was speaking at a seminar entitled "Zimbabwe at the Crossroads – a perspective on current developments" at the South African Institute of International Affairs in Johannesburg on Wednesday.

The veteran human rights campaigner is well known for his struggle against apartheid and acted as an advocate for Nelson Mandela as well as other South African Nationalists like Walter Sisulu. He was also part of the legal team that successfully defended MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai against charges of conspiring to assassinate Mugabe before the 2002 presidential elections.

Bizos said: “I believe that sometimes steps have to be taken in order to put an end to a blood feud or an intolerable situation that people in a society find themselves in. And it’s not justice. Those who have been personally affected cannot be expected to forgive him but there is another form of justice – transformative justice.”

Robert Mugabe has ruled Zimbabwe with an iron grip since independence in 1980 and there are many who say such dictators should not be granted amnesty or be allowed to retire, without being prosecuted for crimes against humanity.

But the legal expert said if one of Mugabe’s reasons for wanting to remain in power is that he fears prosecution, there is nothing morally wrong in taking lessons from South Africa. He said: “If we did not settle, if we did not promise amnesty to wrongdoers, there was likely to be a civil war along racial lines and how many more injustices would have been done if we did not settle?”

He said such decisions are not unheard of and cited the example of Ireland where the people made a decision about coming to terms with one another, despite the killings that were committed by both sides. Bizos added: “It may be argued that here (in Zimbabwe), it’s only one side that needs to apologize but be that as it may there comes a time when it should be considered as a possible solution.”
The advocate also noted that it is imperative that Zimbabwe has a genuine election under a new constitution and that there should be the beginning of a reconciliation process.

Meanwhile Dr. Ibbo Mandaza, who is believed to be aligned to Vice-President Joyce Mujuru’s ZANU PF faction, predicted that Mugabe would no longer be President next year. Mandaza was speaking at the same seminar in South Africa where he said he expects Mugabe to announce his retirement as early as September this year, warning that "to do otherwise would be crazy."
He added: "I think that the major determinant is what happens in ZANU-PF this year, and my expectation is that as he promised to do last year, Mugabe will retire... He will make the announcement by September to give the party time to campaign.”

However, there was considerable doubt by participants at the seminar that Mugabe would retire quietly.

In a related issue, South African Nobel peace prize laureate Desmond Tutu told Reuters news agency on Wednesday that Mugabe needed face-saving options if there was to be any chance of him stepping down. Despite conceding that the change of Prime Minister in the United Kingdom could help the situation the outspoken cleric is convinced much depends on negotiations being brokered by South Africa. He told Reuters: "I would hope that there might just be a way of providing face-savers that would enable people to exit without feeling that they had lost a great deal of personal stature."