49 · · · grounds that are universally recognized as impermissible under international law; Enforced disappearance of persons; The crime of apartheid; Other inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health. The Zimbabwe government has acceded to all of the above conventions except for the Torture Convention and the Rome Statute, and therefore legal grounds for holding them accountable do exist. The victims and their relatives want justice, and, for justice to be done, someone has to be held accountable. The Zimbabwe government has been unwilling to bring to light these abuses committed in the name of politics, as there is evidence that it has either been the perpetrator, or it has supported and sponsored such abuses. Victims want the government to be accountable as they are of the opinion that it is it’s failure to protect them that led to these abuses taking place; it is the government that debates and decides on what to with the perpetrators without consultation with those personally affected. Unlike in other Southern African countries, Zimbabwean NGOs94 have been instrumental in ensuring that detailed reports of the abuses are made and distributed widely where government has been silent. There have been political crimes committed in Zimbabwe from before Independence in 1980, and the victims of these crimes have been neglected as blanket amnesty and reconciliation strategies have been discussed and accorded without consultation with those personally affected. The dilemma faced here is between impunity and accountability; Zimbabwean history has shown that impunity is favoured, as perpetrators have never had to account for their actions. The victims of organised violence and torture are of the opinion that their suffering has not been accorded a high level of attention, which is necessary in the pursuance of peace. The culture of amnesty in Zimbabwe encourages forgiving and forgetting; this culture began without the consent of the victims who are being asked to forgive and forget. The government has relied on amnesty and has failed to address the issue of human rights abuses committed by public officials through out its history. This not only gives the perpetrators a licence to commit similar offences at another occasion, but shows the victims that the state does not take their issues seriously, and they feel they have no-one to turn to for support. These victims have become disillusioned and distrusting as a result. Victims in Zimbabwe would like a similar process to the South African Truth and Reconciliation, but with an element of punishment for the perpetrators, as they see it as the only way to prevent this happening again in the future. Reparations can be viewed as a way of punishment, even though they not rated highly, especially for mass killings, but can be helpful for those who have medical and other economic needs as a result of the abuses. There are, however, some crimes that require justice to be done, and this is imperative for a nation to move on and recover from human rights abuses. Any one who commits grave breaches should be brought to court and be judged, as, for example, in the cases of Pinochet, Milosoviec, and those responsible for the atrocities in Bosnia and Rwanda. This is difficult to enforce in Zimbabwe at the moment, as the present government is largely responsible for the abuses, and they will certainly not allow their own to stand trial for crimes committed with their blessing. It is thus the hopes of the victims that the next government will not grant blanket amnesty for all those perpetrators who abused people that were simply trying to exercise their rights. 94 Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum has written numerous reports on human rights abuses, their most controversial being the report sent to the African Union, which was discussed at the last meeting in April 2004. This was delayed by the Zimbabwean government on grounds that they had not had sight of the report and needed time to comment on it. The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum (also known as the "Human Rights Forum") has been in existence since January 1998. A consortium of Twelve non-governmental organisations working in the field of human rights joined together to provide legal and psychosocial assistance to the victims of the Food Riots of January 1998. IDASA: Zimbabwe at the Cross-Roads: Views of Zimbabwean citizens on democracy and transitional justice.