by Nurat Uthman
More than 70 activists were acquitted Wednesday after being arrested in Zimbabwe in June for disorderly conduct for allegedly planning to peacefully demonstrate during a meeting of the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
Jeremiah Bamu of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights is representing 78 opposition activists who were arrested in mid-June at the home of Jameson Timba, the acting opposition leader of the Citizens Coalition for Change. The activists were charged with participating in a public gathering with the intent to promote public violence and disorderly conduct in a public place.
“They were all found not guilty and were acquitted on the second count of one disorderly conduct in a public place,” Bamu said outside the Harare Magistrates Court. “And with respect to the first count of participating in a public gathering with intent to promote public violence, [at] least 11 of them were discharged at the close of the state’s case, with the remaining being put to their defense. We then made an application for an inspection in loco [on the spot] before we begin the defense case in earnest.”
The minister of home affairs, Kazembe Kazembe, said the activists were arrested in June because of plans to protest at the Southern African Development Community meeting held last month in Harare.
Others were arrested in other parts of the country, bringing the tally to more than 100.
Among those was 25-year-old Namatai Kwekweza, a human rights activist and feminist advocate who was arrested along with Robson Chere and Samuel Gwenzi, and forcibly removed from a domestic plane. Later in court, the trio said they had been tortured while in police detention. They were granted bail and released on September 4.
