Ÿ On 12 June High Court Judges Charles Hungwe and Neville Wamambo quashed the conviction and sentence of six pro-democracy campaigners who were arrested in 2011 and charged with conspiracy to incite public violence after they allegedly plotted to roll out protests against former President Robert Mugabe. The campaigners were arrested in Harare while watching video footage of the Arab Spring uprisings. The six who include University of Zimbabwe lecturer, Munyaradzi Gwisai, Hopewell Gumbo, Antonater Choto, Tatenda Mombeyarara, Edson Chakuma, and Welcome Zimuto were convicted in March 2012 by Harare Magistrate Kudakwashe Jarabini and sentenced to two years imprisonment, which was wholly suspended for five years. Ÿ The Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS) summoned prison officer John Mahlabera to a disciplinary hearing on 18 June over a tweet perceived to be supportive of MDC Alliance President Nelson Chamisa. The prison authorities said Mahlabera’s actions showed disloyalty to President Mnangagwa. However, the ZPCS later dropped the charges. Ÿ On 3 August at Bronte Hotel in Harare, riot police briefly stopped a press conference where MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa planned to speak on alleged election rigging in the aftermath of the elections. Broadcasting and Media Services Minister Simon Khaya Moyo was dispatched to stop the riot police, allowing the press conference to proceed. Ÿ On 21 August, police arrested Munyaradzi Shoko and charged him with criminal nuisance for allegedly posting offensive statements on Facebook concerning President Mnangagwa. However, prosecution was declined due to a dearth of evidence. Ÿ On 5 September formerly exiled freelance journalist Violet Gonda, was denied a passport. Officials at the Registrar General’s office stated they could not process her passport for reasons dating back to 2002 when she worked for London-based SW Radio Africa. The matter spilled into the High Court, after which the journalist got her passport. A 25-year-old man was scheduled for trial on a charge of criminal insult for allegedly tweeting a message from a ghost account he allegedly created in the name of ZEC Chairperson Justice Priscilla Chigumba. Shadaya was arrested on 7 September and charged with criminal insult under section 95 (1)(a) of the Criminal Code for allegedly impairing the dignity of Justice Chigumba after he allegedly tweeted a message in August 2018 which read; “I can’t wait for the election fiasco to come to an end. I could do with a holiday and some good sex. My body needs a break.” Ÿ Magistrate Josephine Sande ordered musician Tawanda Mumanyi to pay a fine of $100 or serve one-month imprisonment for recording a song deemed “obscene and indecent.” Authorities convicted Mumanyi of contravening CECA for the “Kurova Hohwa” song’s sexually suggestive lyrics. Ÿ Ÿ On 21 August Munyaradzi Shoko, the leader of the Children of Zimbabwe War Veterans' Association (COZWA), a known critic of President Emmerson Mnangagwa was arrested and charged with criminal nuisance as defined in section 46 as read with paragraph 2 (v) of the third schedule of the Criminal Code for allegedly posting some offensive statements on Facebook against the ZANU-PF party leader. Shoko was detained at Harare Central Police Station after posting the following words on Facebook between March and May criticising President Mnangagwa: “At one time he beat up his own biological mother, he was later suspected for killing his own family head-boy. He was pinpointed for being the brains behind Ndebele 1980s scum. His name is generally associated with evil and devilish deeds. Today he is pleading for your 57 STATE OF HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT ZIMBABWE 2018