Ÿ the actual perpetrators of the shootings, including those who gave the command and hold them accountable. Ÿ The Government must quickly establish a National Reparations Fund specifically for victims of human rights violations as a permanent Fund to cater for the victims of August 1 shootings and all the other victims whom the Government has refused to compensate over the years. Ÿ The Government must initiate the process of security sector reform to ensure that the security services operate within the confines of the law according to the principles outlined in the Constitution with greater attention to the respect for human rights. Ÿ The Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) must be encouraged to be seized immediately with the recommendations of the Montlanthe Commission and take over from where it left. 3.2 The National Dialogue Process a. Elusive Dialogue Process Following the military coup of November 2017, Zimbabwe has been rocked by a series of crises which have now led to a growing chorus for national dialogue. The NPRC has commenced consultation processes towards the establishment of a framework for national dialogue. President Emerson Mnangagwa started his own process, ignoring the NPRC process. The initial dialogue session was held on 6 February 2019, which the main opposition ignored. On 7 February the Zimbabwe Council of Churches held a National Leaders Prayer Breakfast. President Mnangagwa did not attend. The hide and seek has continued between the ruling party and the main opposition. 7 b. Way Forward The international community can help Zimbabwean political leaders in realising the magnitude of the challenges Zimbabwe is facing and support the commencement of a national dialogue that goes beyond political parties. 3.3 The National Symposium on Transitional Justice Policy in Zimbabwe From 21 to 23 November 2018, over 118 delegates converged in Bulawayo for the 2018 Transitional Justice Policy Symposium which was jointly convened by the National Transitional Justice Working Group (NTJWG) and the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation (CSVR). The theme of the symposium was, ‘Never Again: Setting the Transitional Justice Agenda for Zimbabwe.’ The symposium was designed to give Zimbabweans an opportunity to reflect on the most urgent transitional justice needs of the country and contribute to the development of a proposal for a transitional justice policy for Zimbabwe. A transitional justice policy for Zimbabwe allows the country to join the continent in putting in place measures to ensure that past atrocities are dealt with, victims find redress and closure. It further ensures that mechanisms are put in place to spur and drive national commitment to say ‘Never Scan to watch Again’ to violence. the video STATE OF TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE IN ZIMBABWE 2018 REPORT NATIONAL TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE WORKING GROUP ZIMBABWE