48 To date the violence is continuing, with beatings, rape, murder, and harassment, and it is not only the security forces that are the perpetrators, but also the youth militia, war veterans, and ordinary supporters are being used to commit these offences. As we draw closer to the Parliamentary elections in March 2005, it is likely to get worse, as the government is looking to ensure that they maintain power at all costs. Throughout Zimbabwean history, the methods of torture and violence have been largely the same; forced pungwes, falanga (beating on the underfoot), mutilation, arbitrary killings, isolation, and widespread property destruction. Some civilians were ordered to kill or rape their own parents or siblings. There were gang rapes, beatings, wholesale arson, dogs set on innocent people, specialised methods of torture like electrocution, and teargas was used indiscriminately on demonstrators. Repressive laws were enacted, illegal detentions were rampant, verbal attacks, arrest of journalists, denying people access to food, and forced exile. From 2000, the abuses took a more humiliating and psychological turn, with victims being forced to drink urine, and crocodile teasing (where victims would be placed into a dam with a controlled crocodile). Live cats were dipped in drums of sulphuric acid in the presence of the victims, mortuary visits, death threats, and dipping of victims in ice-cold water. It is worth pointing out here that this chronicle was derived mainly from the victims’ own experiences or the experiences of their close family and associates, and is corroborated by the many human rights reports over the past 4 years. Dealing with human rights abuses: Without healing the wounds of past injustices there is little chance of success to ensure peace in Zimbabwe. Before victims can forgive and forget, the perpetrators have to acknowledge the part they played in the commission of crimes, committed deliberately in the pursuit of political goals. There was discussion about a Truth and Reconciliation Commission as in South Africa, and Zimbabwean victims are interested in the truth, but not in reconciliation without justice. As they put it, someone has to pay for all the atrocities committed. When referring to the crimes, and, as indicated above, the victims mentioned arson, torture, beatings, murder, rape and other sexual offences, and disappearances, these are arguably crimes against humanity. Others have stated that these are merely a part of political violence, but the international conventions i.e.93 all state that, when any of the following acts are carried out in peacetime, they are crimes against humanity: · · · · · · · · 93 Murder; Extermination; Enslavement; Deportation or forcible transfer of population; Imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty in violation of fundamental rule of international law; Torture; Rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced sterilization, or any other form of sexual violence of comparable gravity; Persecution against any identifiable group or collectivity on political, racial, national, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender as defined in paragraph 3, or other Here the victims made reference to the following: the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions (1949), the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (1951), UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966), UN Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984), The African Charter on Human and People’s Rights, and finally Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (1998). IDASA: Zimbabwe at the Cross-Roads: Views of Zimbabwean citizens on democracy and transitional justice.