THE Zimbabwean government’s deceptive attitude towards civil society has been laid bare after Defence minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri appealed to the Red Cross Society to help with de-mining, yet the same government is pushing for the enactment of a law proscribing the activities of non-governmental organisations.
BRENNA MATENDERE
Muchinguri-Kashiri made the appeal at the belated World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day commemorations held in Gweru on 18 May.
The Red Cross is an NGO that helps people affected by conflict and armed violence.
The Zimbabwe Red Cross Society was established in 1981 through an Act of Parliament as an auxiliary to the government and the Act is administered by the Defence ministry in recognition of the fact that the primary role of the Red Cross is to augment army medical units.
Muchinguri-Kashiri in her speech in Gweru beseeched the Red Cross to help with de-mining following the liberation war that left landmines in several parts of the country.
“The Ministry of Defence has benefitted from the Zimbabwe Red Cross Society in the area of training in international humanitarian law,” Muchinguri-Kashiri said.
“Our members have found the training beneficial, not only in their day-to-day activities, but also on international deployment on peace support operations.
“Going forward, we wish to resuscitate our partnership in de-mining operations.
“We believe that your expertise in humanitarian work and wide network within and outside the country is critical in mobilising resources for demining operations in the country, particularly with regards to the rehabilitation of victims of landmines.”
Communities living along Zimbabwe’s border with Mozambique continue to suffer from the effects of anti-personnel landmines, more than 42 years after they were laid.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) at some point worked with the Zimbabwe Mine Action Centre (Zimac) to enhance the capacity and skills of its deminers to search for, clear and destroy anti-personnel mines in south-eastern Zimbabwe.
Countries that have signed up to the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, including Zimbabwe, have an obligation to clear and destroy anti-personnel mines, and the ICRC works with governments to reduce the humanitarian consequences of these devices.
According to ZIMAC, anti-personnel mines have killed more than 1 500 people and 120 000 livestock since 1980.
It is estimated that there are 1.5 million to 1.8 million anti-personnel mines that still need to be cleared in Zimbabwe.
The government has been carrying out de-mining, but in smaller areas and with very limited human and technical resources, hence mulling over the resuscitation of the programme with the ICRC.
In September last year, President Emmerson Mnangagwa declined to sign the controversial PVO Amendment Bill into law, and sent it back to Parliament for reconsideration, but the proposed law is now going through public hearings for purposes of passing it.
United Nations experts urged Mnangagwa to reject the Bill that would severely restrict civic space and the right to freedom of association in the country.
The Senate passed the Bill on 1 February 2023, and it has been awaiting Mnangagwa’s signature since then.
Rights groups and lawyers had warned that the Bill gave disproportionate and discretionary powers to the newly established Office of the Registrar of PVOs. The registrar’s powers include the ability to consider, grant or reject the registration of PVOs, with little to no judicial recourse against such decisions.
The Bill’s requirements would also immediately render existing organisations, operating lawfully as trusts and associations, illegal.
Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi, who steered the Bill in Parliament in the face of fierce resistance by opposition MPs, claimed the proposed law would stop PVOs from meddling in the country’s political affairs and limit them to their mandate. PVOs that defied the law would be de-registered.
“I think Parliament has done a good job. The Bill was debated and there was general support for [it],” Ziyambi said in February last year.
UN experts however voiced concern over the Bill, telling Mnangagwa: “It is not too late for the President to change course.”
The experts raised concerns about the prohibition of any “political affiliation” and unjustified restrictions on PVOs’ ability to obtain funding, including foreign funds. The vagueness or non-definition of many provisions in the Bill also raised concerns that the proposed law will be misapplied.
“While one of the stated aims of the Bill is to counter terrorism and money laundering in Zimbabwe, the restrictions contained therein will have a chilling effect on civil society organisations — particularly dissenting voices. By enacting this legislation, authorities would effectively be closing an already shrinking civic space,” the UN experts said.
The UN experts submitted an analysis of the Bill to the government in 2021, concluding that the law was incompatible with international human rights obligations, in particular the right to freedom of association.
