Executive Summary It is a year and a half since November 2017 when President Robert Mugabe was deposed as the leader of Zimbabwe through a military putsch. Favored by Zimbabweans' quest for a new beginning the military led by Army General Constantine Chiwenga moved in to secure the Presidency for the then beleaguered Mugabe's ex deputy, Emmerson Mnangagwa. Events took a swift turn and before long the military junta and the civilian face of Mnangagwa's faction had slipped into power inevitably. In July 2018, a general election followed and Mnangagwa was declared the winner in a controversial and still disputed victory. Several international observer groups refused to give the elections a clean bill. On 1 August 2018, six civilians were killed on Harare's streets in cold blood following widespread protests over discrepancies associated with the disputed election. A Commission of Inquiry led by the former President of South Africa Kgalema Monthlathe and some notable but controversial figures from Zimbabwe and outside the country made the rest of the Commission. The Commission carried out its mandate but the nation was left with more questions than answers about justice for victims, lack of accountability from the state security agents and a general dissatisfaction with the execution of justice in Zimbabwe. “Impunity by design” is what this report chooses to describe this lack of accountability. The above is part of the story that is told in this report. The narrative seems to be the story of Zimbabwe from pre-independence to present day. The report notes that the failure to hold accountable perpetrators of human rights violations especially state security agents reigns supreme in Zimbabwe. This report narrates the level and extent of state agents' level of impunity in Zimbabwe informed by the legal cases that the Forum has been working on since its formation in 1998. In Zimbabwe, state security agents such as the police, the army and the central intelligence are by law expected to play a pivotal role in the protection of the internal and external security of the nation. Their roles are set out in Zimbabwe's Constitution and other subordinate laws related to policing and national security services. However, over the years different state and non-state actors including the police have been accused of serious human rights violations against citizens. In Zimbabwe, the bedrock of state-sanctioned impunity for human rights violations lies between perpetrators of state-organized violence who cannot be sued in their personal capacities, or those who cannot afford to pay the damages by themselves and a government which abuses its own laws to save itself from a victimized populace. The 'untouchable' nature of state security officials such as the police, the military and intelligence officials remains a cause for concern in Zimbabwe's quest for justice for victims of state-sanctioned human rights violations. Zimbabwe's challenge today is to fight this impunity and have state security agents that are accountable, uphold human rights, and protecting its citizens. Investigations against the reports of wanton human rights abuses have been carried out in some instances through the use of official Commissions of Inquiry and police investigations but in most instances, these have come to naught. Cases remain unresolved, reports are never released and perpetrators are not held accountable. For those cases where state security agents have been found guilty by the courts, fines and sentences have been imposed. Where cases have been taken for civil litigation and awards for damages given, these have often taken time to be paid and some have remained outstanding for extensive periods with the government of Zimbabwe pleading incapacity to pay because of the poor economy. In some cases, where damages have been paid the victims have complained that the money was not adequate as it failed to ensure restorative justice for the victims. Anti-Impunity Report 1