Human rights in Zimbabwe

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There were widespread reports of systematic and escalating violations of human rights in Zimbabwe under the regime of Robert Mugabe and his party, ZANU-PF, between 1980 and 2017.

According to human rights organisations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch the government of Zimbabwe violates the rights to shelter, food, freedom of movement and residence, freedom of assembly and the protection of the law. There are assaults on the media, the political opposition, civil society activists, and human rights defenders.

Opposition gatherings are frequently the subject of brutal attacks by the police force, such as the crackdown on an 11 March 2007 Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) rally. In the events, party leader Morgan Tsvangirai and 49 other opposition activists were arrested and severely beaten by the police. Edward Chikombo, a journalist who sent images of the beatings to foreign media, was abducted and murdered a few days later.[1] After his release, Morgan Tsvangirai told the BBC that he suffered head injuries and blows to the arms, knees and back, and that he lost a significant amount of blood. The police action was strongly condemned by the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, the European Union and the United States.[2] While noting that the activists had suffered injuries, the source of injury was not disclosed,[3] the Zimbabwean government-controlled daily newspaper The Herald claimed the police had intervened after demonstrators "ran amok looting shops, destroying property, mugging civilians, and assaulting police officers and innocent members of the public". The newspaper also argued that the opposition had been "wilfully violating the ban on political rallies".[4]

  1. ^ "Zimbabwe journalist murdered 'over leaked Tsvangirai pictures'", The Independent, 4 April 2007
  2. ^ BBC (14 March 2007). "Unbowed Tsvangirai urges defiance". BBC News. Retrieved 14 March 2007.
  3. ^ The Herald, Zimbabwe (14 March 2007). "Opposition protesters' case not heard". Archived from the original on 16 March 2007. Retrieved 14 March 2007.
  4. ^ The Herald, Zimbabwe (14 March 2007). "Violence flares in Glen View". Archived from the original on 16 March 2007. Retrieved 14 March 2007.