SUMMARY
1. Zimbabwe’s constitution guarantees the right to “freedom of artistic expression”. The right is further
protected by Zimbabwe being a signatory to the main international conventions guaranteeing the right to
freedom of expression including artistic freedom.
2. However, several laws including the Censorship Act and the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform)
Act limit artistic expressions, and the practices of the police and other government agencies creates an
environment of fear and self-censorship.
THE UNIVERSAL RIGHT TO ARTISTIC FREEDOM
3. The freedom to create art is increasingly recognized as an important human right under international law.
In a 2013 report, “The Right to Artistic Freedom and Creativity”, the UN Special Rapporteur in the field
of cultural rights, Ms Farida Shaheed, observed that the “vitality of artistic creativity is necessary for the
development of vibrant cultures and the functioning of democratic societies. Artistic expressions and
creations are an integral part of cultural life, which entails contesting meanings and revisiting culturally
inherited ideas and concepts.”1
4. The right to artistic freedom and creativity is explicitly guaranteed by international instruments: most
importantly, Article 15(3) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights
(ICESCR), under which state parties to the treaty “undertake to respect the freedom indispensable for . . .
creative activity” and in International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) Article 19(2),
which provides that the right to freedom of expression includes the freedom to seek, receive and impart
information and ideas of all kinds “in the form of art”.
5. Furthermore, artistic freedom is protected by other fundamental rights, chiefly: liberty and security of
persons; freedom of association, assembly, and movement; freedom of thought, conscience, and religion;
and equal protection of the law. The exercise of artistic freedom supports these fundamental rights and
freedoms by witnessing their violation and by engendering cultures that affirm the inherent and equal
dignity of the person.
6. At the Human Rights Council’s 30th session an oral statement joined by 57 states reaffirmed the right to
freedom of expression including creative artistic expressions. 2
NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL LEGAL FRAMEWORK
7. Section 61 of Zimbabwe’s constitution provides that “every person has the right to freedom of
expression, which includes … freedom of artistic expression and scientific research and creativity”. The
1
Farida Shaheed, UN Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights, “The Right to Artistic Freedom and Creativity,”
http://artsfreedom.org/?p=5311
2
https://geneva.usmission.gov/2015/09/18/hrc-statement-reaffirms-right-to-freedom-of-expression-including-creativeand-artistic-expression/
2