ACTSA stands with Zimbabwean civil society organisations and UK-diaspora collectives as they respond to increasingly shocking irregularities in the run up to elections announced for 23 August.
Today the diaspora organized a protest in Parliament Square, London, calling attention to the continued pre-trial detention of elected MP Job Sikhala. It began with a prayer for the late activist Moreblessing Ali, who was abducted by forces said to be close to the governing party a year ago. Mr Sikhala is the lawyer for Ms Ali’s family and was arrested on what is known to the diaspora to be trumped up charges after calling for justice for Ms Ali. Mr Sikhala has been held without bail for 365 days on reasons his lawyers have appealed, since the alleged bail violations did not occur and remain unproven.
This means Mr Sikhala is also unable to plan to contest his seat in the upcoming elections. In a letter from prison today, Mr Sikhala said “I am no stranger to contrived allegations bearing no substance. I have been arrested over 68 times now. Hitherto, I had never been convicted of any of the allegations brought to bear against me. My oppressors felt hard hit, and they orchestrated a false conviction to blemish my hitherto untainted record”.
Ms Ali’s dismembered body was found three weeks after her disappearance on June 11 2022, dumped in a well. No charges have yet been made, a year on from her murder; no burial is able to proceed while the investigation stalls. It is an agonizing situation for friends and family. The prayers for family, for justice in the case, and for the government to create a peaceful environment for free and fair elections were led by Reverend Helena Percival and approved by Moreblessing’s brother, Washington Ali.
UK based activists said ‘We call on the Commonwealth, SADC region, United Nations Africa, and African Union to also play their part when it matters, which is before, not after elections. Instead, President Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe was invited to the coronation of King Charles; and the London Stock Exchange hosted an investment conference with the Zimbabwean Finance Minister. These outward displays of ignoring human rights abuses in Zimbabwe are unacceptable in the circumstances where attempts to exercise the rights of freedom of speech and association are met with violence and threats’.
The protest in Parliament Square at 12 noon today is co-ordinated by the pro-democracy diaspora including Restoration of Human Rights in Zimbabwe, Change Radio, Zimbabwe Democracy Institute, Women of Zimbabwe, My Right to Vote, and ACTSA.