Local human rights advocacy group, the Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP) says there has been a surge in violations across the country with over 2,175 victims affected by various forms of abuse in September alone.
The organization’s latest Monthly Monitoring Report recorded 180 incidents of politically motivated violence, threats, and assaults, painting a grim picture of the country’s political climate.
The ZPP’s findings reveal that politically motivated threats of violence accounted for the highest number of violations, with 87 reported cases.
Assaults, restrictions on freedoms of assembly, and freedom of expression were also significant, highlighting a growing atmosphere of fear and repression.
“Perpetrators affiliated to the ruling party ZANU PF accounted for 52.52% of the violations committed in September. Other perpetrators include members of the police force (25.22%) and municipal police (4.45%).
“Traditional leaders contributed 5.04% of the population of perpetrators in September while 4.75% were not belonging to any organised group. Other violations were committed by state security agents (3.86%), members of the Citizens Coalition for Change (2.97%) and members of the Forever Affiliate Zimbabwe (1.19%),” read the report
The report added “Of the 2175 victims affected, 40.27% were females of which 0,09% were females with disabilities. Men constituted 59.73% of the victim’s population where 0.37% of them were persons with disabilities.”
One particularly alarming case in Midlands Province involved ZANU PF activists threatening a local woman with eviction and persecution if she did not join the ruling party.
“The persistent nature of these threats erodes the upholding of basic rights, particularly freedom of expression,” the report noted, underscoring how deeply entrenched fear has become in Zimbabwean society.
The organisation called on the Government to review policies that are aiding human rights abuses.
“The Zimbabwe Peace Project recommends that the government of Zimbabwe, through relevant ministries and departments, reviews policies and practices that are systematically aiding human rights abuses, investigate and prosecute all perpetrators of human rights violations.
“ZPP further recommends to the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) to strengthen its commitment of promoting administrative justice in accordance with the Constitution of Zimbabwe by investigating abuses committed in public institutions as well as by other actors,” said ZPP
The advocacy group called on the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) to investigate and prosecute perpetrators impartially, irrespective of political affiliation.
“Addressing both physical and structural violence is essential if Zimbabwe is to move toward a brighter future,” said ZPP
