22 Time for accountability reported that demonstrators started pelting police with stones after the shooting incident. On the same day, about 50 people were arrested either on their way to the prayer meeting or when they went to enquire about those arrested, including high profile political and civil society activists such as Morgan Tsvangirai, Sekai Holland, Arthur Mutambara of the MDC and Lovemore Madhuku of the National Constitutional Assembly. They were detained at Machipisa police station and tortured while in police custody by the anti-riot police and other security agents in plain clothes. At least 17 people sustained serious injuries including broken limbs. Amnesty International documented dozens of cases of arrests of human rights defenders and political activists in 2007. Significantly, these arrests have consistently failed to lead to prosecution or, in the few cases where prosecutions have taken place, to conviction. In some cases the prosecution was declined because of insufficient evidence, in others the case was withdrawn before plea or those accused have simply been acquitted by the courts. Other victims were coerced into paying “admission of guilt” fines before being released, often under the Miscellaneous Offences Act (until it was repealed) and under the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act. The fact that the cases have not stood up in court suggests that the vast majority of human rights defenders and political activists were wrongfully arrested and unlawfully detained, purely for having exercised their right of peaceful assembly. Despite compelling evidence that police have acted in contravention of national and international law, Amnesty International is not aware of any specific measure taken by the Zimbabwean authorities to bring those responsible for these violations to account for their conduct. Failure by the ZRP leadership and the government to institute independent and impartial investigations into violations of human rights is indicative of their tacit approval of unlawful police actions against government critics. Hundreds of NCA members arrested and tortured On 25 July 2007 anti-riot police in Harare used excessive force to break up a peaceful march outside parliament organized by the non-governmental National Constitutional Assembly (NCA). Police first rounded up scores of demonstrators and ordered them to sit down. They then proceeded to assault them with batons in full view of the general public before releasing them. Police then went to the NCA offices on Herbert Chitepo Avenue where they arrested at least 240 people, including NCA director Ernest Mudzengi. The NCA demonstrators were taken to Harare Central police station. They were held for about six hours, and many of them were beaten, before they were released without charge at around midnight. Among those arrested were six mothers with babies. One of the injured was Amnesty International AI Index: AFR 46/028/2008