accountability considerations when there is more democratic space and opportunities to discuss
and carry through a transitional justice agenda, it is also important to assess how justice and
accountability considerations might be utilised as an integral part of efforts to (re)build democratic
space. In these circumstances, the research/interview process also endeavoured to promote ideas
and options for the promotion and realisation of justice and accountability within the confines of
existing realities.
Methodology
Over a period of seven months, the writer visited Zimbabwe on six occasions where he met with
and discussed transitional justice options and developments with a number of individuals and
organisations, many several times over the project period.9 During these visits, the writer has also
participated in several workshops, focusing specifically on transitional justice issues with victim
groupings (see below), as well as other processes responding to proposed legislative initiatives
to regulate the NGO sector and the introduction of ‘electoral reform’ in Zimbabwe. In addition,
the writer has engaged with a range of civil society actors in both Zimbabwe and South Africa
on a continuous basis throughout the project period. He has also accessed a wide cross-section of
secondary source material on contemporary human rights issues in Zimbabwe.
This report is divided into three sections: exploring what has been done, as well as options and
constraints around widening of the debate on transitional justice options; a review of humanrights data collection in Zimbabwe, with a particular focus on quantitative data collection; and an
overview/assessment of existing human rights reports on Zimbabwe.
The report is intended as a resource and provides a framework for further engagement around
certain transitional options. It also contains a number of recommendations on taking forward some
of the various processes under consideration.
9
For obvious reasons it is not possible to publicise the list of individuals and organisations that have been engaged,
although the author is confident it represents a cross-section of Zimbabwean civil society groupings working directly with
core justice and accountability issues. For security reasons, this public report has also excised certain details relating to the
work of specific organisations.
5