8.0 Recommendations The Forum is gravely worried about the human rights situation in Zimbabwe and will continue to monitor and document human rights issues as they unfold. The following recommendations are urgent: • The Forum maintains that the current deployment of the military is unlawful and unwarranted. The military must be withdrawn from the streets, return to the barracks and let police undertake policing duties. The deployment procedure must be investigated. • The current violations have become so gross and systematic so as to warrant being treated as crimes against humanity. Hence SADC and the African Union are called upon to pressure the Zimbabwean government to stop these violations, failure which the Forum will approach international platforms seeking prosecution of the perpetrators. • The Prosecutor General must abstain from reckless statements and must forthwith begin the process of compiling evidence on ongoing crimes by members of the security apparatus to bring all perpetrators to book. • The judiciary must uphold the rule of law and ensure that fair trial rights including the rights of the accused persons are respected. • The government must stop the crackdown against civil society leaders and recognize the legitimate work of human rights defenders. • The government must, without further delay, establish the independent complaints mechanism in line with section 210 of the Constitution. The independent complaints mechanism is designed to receive and investigate complaints against the security services. • Since 14 January 2019 there has been a wanton assault on the Constitution by the government, the police, the military, and some magistrates and prosecutors. This must stop. The sanctity of the Constitution must be restored especially relating to the bill of rights and the deployment of the military. 14