MDC Alliance MP Joana Mamombe has been forcibly removed from a private hospital in the middle of the night and returned to Chikarubi maximum security prison even though she was still receiving treatment.

Mamombe and fellow activists Cecilia Chimbiri and Netsai Marova were abducted and abused last May and charged with violating Covid regulations after taking part in a street demonstration.

Mamombe was recently admitted to hospital with ‘acute stomach pain’. MDC Alliance spokesperson Fadzayi Mahere says she was scheduled to be seen by a specialist on Friday but was taken away apparently on ‘instructions from above’.

The women have been denied bail by both the Magistrate’s Court and the High Court. The MDC Alliance says it is part of concerted efforts by Zanu PF to destroy the opposition before the 2023 elections.

MDC Alliance Vice President Tendai Biti said Mamombe’s forced removal from hospital was ‘particularly sickening’. He added: ‘This regime is completely pathological. Joana, Netsai, and Cecilia have suffered enough.’

Zimlive reports that, meanwhile, an Harare magistrate has denied a bail request by opposition activists Legwani Mavhunga and Munyaradzi Mafararikwa, who were tortured while in police custody last week. They were arrested after attending a court hearing for MDC Alliance national deputy chairman Job Sikhala and charged with ‘obstructing or endangering free movement of persons or traffic’.

The activists were hospitalized at Parirenyatwa with severe torture wounds, barely able to walk. Their first court hearing was held at the hospital where the magistrate ordered an investigation into their treatment by the police (see: https://www.zimlive.com/2021/04/22/joana-mamombe-forcibly-removed-from-private-hospital-at-night-returned-to-chikurubi/).

While convicted criminals are released from overcrowded prisons on health and safety grounds, opponents of the regime are refused bail and sent to languish in maximum security prisons while their trials are deliberately delayed.

No wonder the American financial services firm Fitch Solutions, in its latest report, says Zimbabwe is the riskiest investment destination in Southern Africa – above even Mozambique which is facing Islamist terrorism in the North (see: https://www.theindependent.co.zw/2021/04/23/zim-a-risky-investment-destination/).

Fitch is unlikely to be encouraged by reports that Zanu PF is proposing to bring back the notorious youth militia, the Green Bombers, who under the Mugabe regime were unleashed to viciously target Zanu PF opponents in a reign of terror involving rape camps where abducted girls were held.

The UK Times newspaper reports that Kirsty Coventry, the Minister of Youth, has apparently proposed its resurrection ‘to instil patriotism and loyalty’ among young people. Last year Coventry, the only white cabinet member, was criticised for taking a lease on a prized farm seized during Mugabe’s land grab (see: http://www.zimvigil.co.uk/vigil-news/campaign-news/1136-mugabes-violent-youth-militia-could-be-ready-to-march-again).

Other Points:

• Zimbabwe is to sell rights to kill as many as 500 elephants this year. A spokesman for the Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, Tinashe Farawo, said falling tourism revenue because of the pandemic was one of the main reasons for the move. A spokeswoman for the Centre for Natural Resource Governance, Simiso Mlevu, said:  the decision to allow elephant hunting was ‘appalling’. ‘We strongly condemn trophy hunting – a practice that agitates wild animals and escalates human-wild life conflicts, Mlevu said (see: https://edition.cnn.com/2021/04/22/africa/zimbabwe-elephants-hunting-intl-hnk/index.html).
• Because of the coronavirus we can no longer physically meet outside the Zimbabwe Embassy in London, so we have a virtual Vigil while the restrictions continue. We ask our activists to put on Vigil / ROHR / Zimbabwe regalia and take a photo of themselves holding an appropriate poster reflecting our protest against human rights abuses in Zimbabwe. The photos are uploaded on our Flickr site.

• For Vigil pictures check: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zimbabwevigil/. Please note: Vigil photos can only be downloaded from our Flickr website.

Notices:

• The Restoration of Human Rights in Zimbabwe (ROHR) is the Vigil’s partner organization based in Zimbabwe. ROHR grew out of the need for the Vigil to have an organization on the ground in Zimbabwe which reflected the Vigil’s mission statement in a practical way. ROHR in the UK actively fundraises through membership subscriptions, events, sales etc to support the activities of ROHR in Zimbabwe. Please note that the official website of ROHR Zimbabwe is http://www.rohrzimbabwe.org/. Any other website claiming to be the official website of ROHR in no way represents us.
• The Vigil’s book ‘Zimbabwe Emergency’ is based on our weekly diaries. It records how events in Zimbabwe have unfolded as seen by the diaspora in the UK. It chronicles the economic disintegration, violence, growing oppression and political manoeuvring – and the tragic human cost involved. It is available at the Vigil. All proceeds go to the Vigil and our sister organisation the Restoration of Human Rights in Zimbabwe's work in Zimbabwe. The book is also available from Amazon.
• Facebook pages:

         Vigil: https://www.facebook.com/zimbabwevigil

         ROHR: https://www.facebook.com/Restoration-of-Human-Rights-ROHR-Zimbabwe-International-370825706588551/