Commissions Watch 1/2016 Taking the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission to the People
17 April
COMMISSIONS WATCH 1/2016
[17th April 2016]
Taking the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission to the People
Coming Up This Week
The Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission will be meeting the people
at roadshows in Masvingo on Wednesday 20th
and Chiredzi on Friday 22nd April.
Details of venue and time below.
Please spread this news to ensure good public attendance.
This bulletin introduces the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission’s APRILJULY OUTREACH PROGRAMME that will take the Commission to the
people of Zimbabwe all-round the country. We hope that recipients will do
their best to ensure that as many people as possible hear about the
programme and are encouraged to attend.
The Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission
The Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission [ZHRC or Commission] is one
of the five independent commissions established by Chapter 12 of the
Constitution [“Independent Commissions Supporting Democracy”]. Its
broad constitutional mandate is to support and entrench human rights and
democracy, promote constitutionalism and ensure that injustices are
remedied, among other things. The functions of the Commission are
outlined in section 243 of the Constitution and include—
• to promote awareness of and respect for human rights and freedoms at
all levels of society
• to monitor, assess and ensure observance of human rights and
freedoms
• to receive and consider complaints from the public and to take such
action in regard to the complaints as it considers appropriate
• to protect the public against abuse of power and maladministration by
State and public institutions and by officers of those institutions
• to secure appropriate redress, including recommending the prosecution
of offenders, where human rights or freedoms have been violated
Background to and Purpose of the Outreach Project
The Baseline Survey on Perception, Attitudes and Understanding on
Human Rights in Zimbabwe conducted by the Commission (2013 – 2014)
revealed low levels of awareness about the existence of the Commission.
It is against this background that the Commission has decided to scale up
awareness-raising to ensure increased visibility of the Commission so that
more people are able to engage with it. The Commission has partnered
with three Civil Society Organisations in a project aimed at “taking the