Commission as well as its Terms of Reference which some argued had a predetermined outcome.83 The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum expressed concern that the Commission, in their view, had not been transparent in its handling of evidence because it concluded its hearings without acknowledging evidence from the NGO Forum.84 On 18 December 2018, the Commission released its report and while it said the use of live ammunition to quell the protests was “disproportionate and unjustified”, its findings were seen by many as an attempt to “whitewash” state complicity in allegations of killings, torture and excessive use of force.85 In this already deteriorating climate,86 the government’s response to the January protests and arbitrary measures that followed reveal a significant and disturbing trend of erosion of the rule of law, impunity and growing disregard for human rights obligations in the country since President Mnangagwa took the reins. This pattern reveals the continued use of restrictive legislation such as POSA by the Zimbabwean authorities who regard as “unlawful” any public assembly held without the police’s express prior permission, in violation of the country’s domestic, regional and international legal obligations. SUSPENSION OF THE INTERNET AND SUPPRESSION OF INFORMATION Zimbabweans rely heavily on the internet for most of their financial transactions, including mobile money transfers, online banking, point of sale transactions and to pay for groceries and basic services, as the country has been experiencing a prolonged shortage of US Dollars, the country’s most accepted currency by retailers after the country abandoned its own currency in 2009 due to abnormal inflation. They also rely on the internet to access information, exchange ideas and express themselves. On 15 January 2019, the government instructed internet service providers to shut down the internet, in an apparent attempt to suppress information sharing among protestors.87 Telephonic communication was also affected, with limited reach in major areas. The largest internet service provider and telecommunications company, ECONET, confirmed that it had been directed to suspend all internet services by the Minister of State Security, Owen Ncube, on 16 January.88 While the internet was later restored in the late hours of 16 January, it was again suspended on 17 January.89 Social media sites like WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter remained blocked until 20 January. The internet blackout also resulted in a complete media blackout and communication breakdown by ordinary people who rely heavily on social media. A statement issued by the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on 18 January said that disconnecting people from the internet is a human rights violation and goes against international law.90 This arbitrary suspension of the internet services is also a clear violation of the country’s laws. Section 61 of the Constitution guarantees the right of every person to freedom of expression. This right includes the “freedom to seek, receive and communicate ideas and information.” Following a challenge mounted by ZLHR and the Media Institute against the government, Econet, Net One and Telecel, the High Court ruled on 21 January that the directive to suspend the internet was illegal as the Minister of State Security did not have Various critics including former Information Minister Jonathan Moyo, former Finance Minister in the Government of National Unity and MDC member, Tendai Biti, MDC Leader Nelson Chamisa, Ringisai Chikohomero, Researcher at the Institute of Security Studies (ISS), Academic, Alex Magaisa, and the Zimbabwe crisis coalition among others, questioned the impartiality of the Commission. See https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2018-12-14-motlanthe-commission-could-be-a-high-level-pr-stunt-for-mnangagwa/ ; https://www.zimbabwesituation.com/news/cizc-statement-on-the-commission-of-inquiry/ 84 Post Zim election violence: Rights groups raise concern over Motlanthe-led commission: In a statement released Director of the NGO Forum Blessing Gorejana 30 November 2018 - https://www.news24.com/Africa/Zimbabwe/post-zim-election-violence-rights-groups-raiseconcern-over-motlanthe-led-commission-20181130 85 In an interview with Nehanda Radio on 29 August 2018, MDC Spokesperson Jacob Mapfume said the Commission’s findings were “equating the victim to the perpetrator” 86 Zimbabwe was ranked 108 out of 113 countries surveyed by the World Justice Project (WJP) in its Rule of Law Index; see World Justice Project Rule of Law Index 2017/2018 87 The Instruction came from State Security Minister Owen Ncube. See Court Papers and Provisional Order in Zimbabwe Lawyers For Human Rights and Others Vs Minister of State in the President’s Office for National Security, Case No. HC 265/19, 17 January 2019 88 https://allafrica.com/stories/201901160010.html 89 The Minister of State Security ordered a second shutdown of the internet on 17 January https://www.news24.com/Africa/Zimbabwe/zimbabwe-again-forces-total-internet-shutdown-amid-unrest-20190118-2 90 UN rights office calls on Zimbabwe Government to end ‘crackdown’ in response to fuel protests, Released by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights: https://news.un.org/en/story/2019/01/1030792 83 ‘OPEN FOR BUSINESS, CLOSED FOR DISSENT’ CRACKDOWN IN ZIMBABWE DURING THE NATIONAL STAY-AWAY, 14-16 JANUARY 2019 Amnesty International 19