20 Time for accountability which the Law and Order officers have tortured and ill-treated human rights defenders and political activists and denied them their rights while in police custody. In executing its duties, the Law and Order section appears to have operated in a partisan manner. Detainees seen as opponents of the government have frequently been subjected to physical and psychological torture and have also often been detained for prolonged periods. This treatment has apparently been a form of punishment as well as a means of extracting “confessions” and obtaining information about their organizations and activities. Officers from the section have threatened and even assaulted detainees’ lawyers and have ignored or openly defied court orders. Amnesty International has recorded scores of cases of human rights violations by the Law and Order section against members of Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA), the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA), the MDC, the Save Zimbabwe Campaign and student activists. None of the officers alleged to have been involved in these violations has been brought to justice. The police authorities and government have ignored calls by Zimbabwean civil society and regional and international human rights bodies to investigate allegations of human rights violations involving officers from the section. Torture and ill-treatment of MDC activists In March and April 2007, 32 MDC activists were arrested and detained in connection with alleged petrol bombings of buildings. The MDC activists were detained for periods of between two and four months at Harare Central Remand Prison. Several detainees reported that they had been tortured or ill-treated by officers from the Law and Order section. MDC-Tsvangirai Member of Parliament for Glen View, Paul Madzore, was arrested by police at his home on 28 March 2007. Paul Madzore, his wife, children and others were arrested at his home and taken to Harare Central police station. At about 11am Paul Madzore was called into a room at the police station where he saw at least eight men in plain clothes, whom he suspected to be from the Law and Order section. Three of the men appeared to be drunk. One of the men started questioning Paul Madzore demanding that he tell them who was burning police stations and who was leading the “terrorists”. When Paul Madzore attempted to respond, one of the interrogators spat in his face. He was made to lie on his back with his legs up on a table. The men started beating him in turns under his feet, with instruments including a metal rod about a metre long and a rubber baton stick. One of the interrogators asked Paul Madzore if he wanted something to drink. The interrogator then brought an empty glass bottle and started hitting him with it around the knees. Paul Madzore bled heavily as a result of the beating. Paul Madzore told Amnesty International delegates: “One man was stepping on my head [and] forcing my head on the floor with booted feet. All I could hear were sounds. I just could feel that they were beating me, and the sound of my body. I tried to block Amnesty International AI Index: AFR 46/028/2008