TWO non-governmental organisations (NGOs) last week repeated calls for government to scrap the death penalty which has been included in the current draft constitution.
Report by Jairos Saunyama
The call came as the country celebrated the World Day Against the Death Penalty last week.
Amnesty International (AI) and the Zimbabwe Association for Crime Prevention and Rehabilitation of the Offender (Zacro), said they dedicated the world anti-death penalty day to lobbying the government to lift the law that allows for a death sentence.
AI’s Zimbabwe executive director, Cousin Zilala, said the draft constitution had done enough justice to the issue of death penalty.
“Amnesty International welcomes Zimbabwe’s efforts to reduce the application of the death penalty in the draft constitution, but calls on the government to ensure equality for all by abolishing the death penalty in all cases”, he said.
“It is the predetermined and cold-blooded killing of a human being by the state and it is unacceptable, regardless of the nature of the crime, the characteristic of the offender or the method used.”
He said the death penalty was cruel, inhumane and a degrading punishment.
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“It is the ultimate breach of the right to life as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” he added.
Zimbabwe last carried out executions in 2005, but there are about 60 inmates still facing capital punishment. Zacro director, Edison Chihota, appealed to all countries including Zimbabwe that still uphold capital punishment to follow the example of progressive African countries such as Angola, Mozambique, Namibia and South Africa, that have abolished the death penalty.
