Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum Special Report Enforcing the Rule of Law in Zimbabwe which happens to be a Zanu-PF one, they must voluntarily leave the civil service or we will kick them out’.1 The Speaker of Parliament, Emmerson Mnangagwa, reportedly told civil servants: ‘You are being paid by a Zanu-PF Government to effectively implement its policies for the benefit of the people. But if you decide to belong to an opposition political party, you cannot discharge your duties professionally’.2 Asked in the House to confirm Government policy on this matter, the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Patrick Chinamasa, said it was ‘very clear. We employ people on merit and on professional standing not political affiliation... If we come across any person in the Public Service who, instead of pushing the policy of government of the day, pushes other policies, we will descend on that person’.3 This unconstitutional and illegal political discrimination also extended to state dependants. At least one war veteran’s pension was stopped following Justin Sundai’s participation in the MDC election campaign in Makoni district. In contrast, Hurungwe District Administrator James Munetsi illegally occupied the farmhouse on La Vista after farmers and farmworkers had been driven out, apparently without any censure. 4 The Uniformed Forces Zimbabwe’s uniformed services are not renowned for upholding the human or constitutional rights of our citizenry, despite their spokesperson’s claim that ‘our soldiers are a disciplined force who do not go about beating up civilians’.5 State violence has been and is still frequently used, often under the dubious legal aegis of the Law and Order (Maintenance) Act. Both the army and the police are routinely drafted in to deal with public demonstrations and strikes, particularly those against increased costs (whether of food or tuition). In addition, after the June 2000 general election, the uniformed services assaulted voters in many urban constituencies which returned opposition candidates to Parliament. These actions clearly violated the law and the failure to prosecute them violated the rule of law. Chitungwiza and Harare victims of assault by State agents launched a class action against the police (including the Minister of Home Affairs and Commissioner of Police), while the Minister of Defence denied in Parliament that the army was involved in these assaults. Excluding ‘political’ violations, in the first eight months of 2001, 12 people died at the hands of state agents, including one student and four Ziscosteel workers killed as in the brutal suppression of dissent in public demonstrations.6 In 2000, 25 were reported killed, including two Hwange workers. Many civilian deaths result from police shootings, but in 2000 14 deaths were also caused by their use of teargas, including 13 at the National Sports Stadium. The kind of terror the army inflicts on civilians is captured in a recent CFU report from Norton published under The Standard’s weekly Crime Watch.7 Parliamentary Debates 27,24:2441. The Herald 2.10.00. 3 Parliamentary Debates 27,24:2374. 4 He also reportedly tried to evict followers of the Mhondoro spirit Chinenyanga, who had been claiming the farm since 1992 (The Herald 4.9.01). 5 The Standard 9.9.01. 6 The Daily News 31.8.01. 7 The Standard 9.9.01. 1 2 28