STATUTES REQUIRING CONSTITUTIONAL ALIGNMENT __________________________________________________________________________________ 12. Citizenship of Zimbabwe Act [Chapter 4:01] The Act must be amended to bring it into line with Chapter 3 of the Constitution, which protects the rights of citizens and limits the circumstances in which people can be deprived of their citizenship. In particular: • Citizens by birth must be protected from being deprived of their citizenship, and the grounds on which citizenship may be revoked must be adjusted. • The fact that spouses of citizens, and persons who have been resident in Zimbabwe for at least 10 years, are entitled to be registered as citizens in terms of section 38 of the Constitution, must be reflected in the Act (i.e. the grant of citizenship to these people cannot be discretionary). • The grounds on which citizens by registration may be deprived of their citizenship must be limited to those set out in section 39 of the Constitution. • Foundlings [children under the age of 15 of unknown parentage who are found in Zimbabwe] must be accorded their right to Zimbabwean citizenship. • The new Citizenship and Immigration Board mandated by section 41 of the Constitution must be established. • The circumstances in which citizenship by registration may be lost or revoked must be limited to those set out in section 39 of the Constitution. This means that children of persons whose citizenship has been revoked cannot be deprived of their citizenship (section 12 of the Act) and citizens by registration cannot lose their citizenship through absence from Zimbabwe (section 13 of the Act). • The Minister must be obliged to give reasons for his decisions under the Act (section 16): this will ensure respect for administrative justice (section 68 of the Constitution). 13. Companies Act [Chapter 24:03] Section 238 of this Act provides that where a company is wound up compulsorily and the Master has reported that he or she suspects there has been fraud in relation to the formation or running of the company, anyone suspected of the fraud may be examined before the High Court. Section 238(4) states that persons so examined must answer all questions put to them even if the answers may tend to incriminate them. Their answers may be used in evidence against them (subsection (6)). Clearly this violates the right to silence and the right against self-incrimination, both guaranteed by sections 50 and 70 of the Constitution. 14. Control of Goods Act [Chapter 14:05] What was said above in relation to the Animal Health Act applies equally to this Act, which also dates back to the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. It confers enormous regulation-making power on the President: he can control imports and exports and the distribution, disposal, purchase, sale and prices of goods – in fact, he can control the entire economy through regulations. Section 134(a) of the Constitution prohibits the delegation of Parliament’s primary law-making power, which means that regulations should not go further than filling in details. Regulations under this Act go much further, and because the Act allows such regulations to be made it is unconstitutional. 5