Emmerson Mnangagwa is a prime candidate for the
International Criminal Court because of heinous crimes against humanity by
rogue elements of the army who twice callously murdered innocent Zimbabweans in
a space of five months under his watch.
He has dismally failed to compensate aggrieved families of
the State-instigated murders in line with the recommendations of an
international investigation committee that he commissioned himself. Mnangagwa
has lied to international community that he has compensated the victims of the
murders when in fact orphans and families of the State-sanctioned murders are
wallowing in abject poverty as evidenced by the video accompanying this
statement. The orphans of the six victims of the August 1, 2018 murders are failing
to go to school and are scrounging for food while the murderers are still to be
prosecuted, in spite of Mnangagwa lying to the world that he has complied with
the recommendations of the Mothlante Commission.
The Commission found the police and the army liable for the
murders, which makes Mnangagwa personally culpable because he is
commander-in-chief of the military, whose rogue elements needlessly snuffed out
the lives of the six innocent Zimbabweans.
The United Nations Security Council has let Zimbabwe down
by failing to drag Mr. Mnangagwa before the International Criminal Court for
crimes against humanity. While Zimbabwe is not a signatory to the Rome Statute
of the ICC, there is a precedent of the world body not folding its hands when
non-State parties have grossly abused human rights. The UN Security Council
intervened in Sudan in 2005 and in Libya in 2011 when the respective countries’
leaders were fingered in crimes against humanity. Notwithstanding the excesses
of the P5 members of the UNSC in Libya in 2011, the Responsibility to Protect
(R2P) remains a noble principle that should send a clear and unequivocal
message to killer governments such as the Mnangagwa regime. Africa has also let
Zimbabweans down as she has adequate provisions under Article 4 (h) of the
constitutive Act of the African Union that allows the regional body to
intervene in member States in respect of “grave circumstances.”
And the murderous predisposition of the ED regime
constitutes a grave circumstance.
Zimbabweans are not safe from their own government. State
security agents have twice killed people under the murderous regime of Mr.
Mnangagwa while machete-wielding vigilante groups have wreaked havoc in the
countryside, with no action whatsoever being taken against them. A slow
genocide is also taking place in the country’s health institutions as the
regime has completely abdicated its responsibility in respect of providing
prudent health services to the citizenry.
Zimbabwe is ripe for intervention and Mr. Mnangagwa is a prime
candidate for the ICC. No government elected by the people can kill the very
people who voted for it unless such a government has no mandate from the
people.
Zimbabweans will soon be taking it upon themselves to
engage in a robust but legitimate call for the true people’s government they
voted for in 2018.
Luke Tamborinyoka
Deputy National Spokesperson.
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