AT 10am 7 May 1400 members from Bulawayo civic organisations including WOZA members marched to demand an apology from President Robert Mugabe for tribal slurs made at the SADC summit.

First stop after the march started was at the Human Rights Commission offices along Fife Street. Commissioners did not come out to address the peaceful citizens. Fortunately an ‘early bird’ had already dropped in before the protest to deliver the petition.

The procession then proceeded to the Mhlahlandlela government complex to deliver a petition to government to disassociate themselves with the president’s insults. At the complex 12 anti-riot police officers blocked the gate into the complex refusing to allow any delegation to go in to hand over the petition to the resident minister Ms. Sandi or welcome her to address the crowd. Fortunately a copy had already made its way by early bird into her office.

Members sang song calling for unity of all Zimbabweans and an end to discrimination. Several civic leaders address the crowd calling for the president to apologise soon. Leaders also detailed the long track record of tribal and racial discrimination suffered by Zimbabweans and said enough was enough.

A young Kalanga lady speaking in the Kalanga language also addressed the crowd. She said that it was Mugabe’s intention to push people out of Zimbabwe that is why he has dis-invested the building of schools in Matabeleland causing challenges in people of Matabeleland getting an education.

The procession peacefully dispersed with police officers remaining in position at the government complex gate.

WOZA wish to thank the Zimbabwe Republic Police for practising restraint today unlike the Valentine’s Day procession where they forcefully pushed WOZA members out to the industrial area beating those who tried to divert to their commuter points.
CSOs Petition to the Human Rights Commission of Zimbabwe

CSOs Petition to the Government of Zimbabwe

Sharing Love
In 2007, WOZA observes its fifth Valentine’s campaign. It was on Valentine’s Day 2003 that WOZA held its first peaceful demonstration and Tough Love as born. Valentine’s Day was chosen as a significant date in the WOZA calendar because of the association with love – love of self, of family, of community and of country.

A History of WOZA and Valentine’s Day
In 2003, WOZA marched against violence in Bulawayo and Harare, calling on Zimbabweans to ‘learn to love again’. In Bulawayo, 14 women and one man were arrested and held in appalling conditions for 24 hours. They were charged under the Public Order Security Act (POSA) and then released. The Harare protest was conducted outside the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) office. Riot police arrested over 49 members, including a 65-year-old Dominican Nun. Only one member, Jennifer Williams, was charged and all members were released within hours of arrest.

2004 saw WOZA take to the streets again with the theme, ‘choose love over hate’. Whilst it had been originally planned to march in Bulawayo, Harare and Victoria Falls, the marches in Bulawayo and Victoria Falls had to be postponed. In Victoria Falls, police threatened organisers who decided to postpone. In Bulawayo, police refused to allow the protest to go ahead and a court application taken by WOZA was never heard in the High Court. In Harare, police told organisers that they would shoot to kill if the women marched. Despite these threats, WOZA marched in four suburban centres in Harare. In Chitungwiza, they marched into the police station and handed over Valentine cards. When police accepted the cards, the march was declared a success.

‘The power of love can conquer the love of power’ was the message WOZA marched with in 2005. Peaceful protests were successfully conducted in Bulawayo and Harare. In both protests police did not respond during the protest but arrested members as they disbursed. In Bulawayo, 72 women had a hard time in custody. Police tried every dirty trick – they hid members away in cupboards to avoid them having access to lawyers and harassed them into paying admission of guilt fines but lawyers finally managed to gain access and obtain their release. In Harare, the few members arrested were also released on admission of guilt deposit fines as they too lacked access to their lawyers. The campaign was a very important part of getting Zimbabweans out to vote for the March 2005 Parliamentary Election.

In 2006, WOZA called for ‘Bread and Roses’ on Valentine’s Day, bread signifying the need for affordable basic commodities and roses signifying the need for dignity and the better things in life. In Bulawayo, 181 men and women and 14 babies were arrested and held for one night before being released. In Harare, 242 women and five babies were arrested and held under terrible conditions for four days. Given the appalling nature of the conditions and the psychological pressure that the women were subjected to, several women paid admission of guilt fines. 63 defiant souls endured the harsh conditions to be taken to court on day four and be released on free bail. The Valentine 63 were charged under the Miscellaneous Offences Act with ‘conduct likely to cause a breach of the peace’. They were finally acquitted in August 2006 in a trial that lasted seven months with 13 courts appearances. In his judgement, the magistrate declared that the women had been illegally detained and had been held in inhumane and degrading conditions.

In 2007, WOZA will be commemorating the fifth Valentine’s campaign with the theme:
‘The People’s Charter: giving you a better life, a better Zimbabwe’.

Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) leaders arrested in April 2010 took a challenge against the state on intolerable conditions they were kept under for 5 days. On 5 June 2014 the judgement was finally delivered by Justice Ziyambi in Harare. The court directed the first (Co-Ministers of Home Affairs) and second respondents (Police Commissioner and Attorney General) to
‘take all necessary steps and measures within their powers to ensure that at Harare Central Police Station
a) All holding cells shall have clean and salubrious flushing toilets with toilet paper and washing bowl.
b) The flushing toilets to be cordoned off from the main cell to ensure privacy.
c) A good standard of hygiene shall be maintained in the holding cells.
d) Every person detained in police custody overnight shall be furnished with a clean mattress and adequate blankets.
e) Adequate bathing facilities shall be provided for all persons detained in police custody overnight.
f) Every person detained shall have access at all times to wholesome drinking water from a source other than the tap above the toilet.
g) Women detained in police custody shall be allowed to keep their undergarments including brassieres, and to wear suitable footwear.
Whilst WOZA members morale is boosted, members will celebrate when these conditions are a lived reality.

WOZA would like to acknowledge the courage of the four members – Jennifer Williams, Magodonga Mahlangu, Celina Madukani and Clara Manjengwa for taking this case and remaining committed to defending women’s rights.
WOZA pay tribute to Advocate Lewis Uriri and Dzimbabwe Chimbga and Bellinda Chinowawa of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights for legal support and for believing that members rights had been violated and seeing the case through over the last 4 years.
Joint Statement ZLHR and WOZA WOZA_ZLHR Joint Press Statement On ConCourt Judgment

Ruling copy Supreme Court ruling on Conditions Case – JLW&Others vs State (note poor copy)

Report on police station inspection and background http://wozazim.org/?p=1275

WOZA calls on Zimbabweans to practice the spirit of Ubuntu for the love of Zimbabwe
Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) will conduct their traditional Valentines Days peaceful protests, handing out red roses and calling on public office bearers to practice the spirit of Ubuntu (I am because we are) and realise that they represent people, and should do by respecting their own and the peoples dignity. This activity comes at a time when the nation is shocked by revelations’ of obscene salaries being earned by office bearers. As this looting continues unchecked, the economy crumbles.

The anniversary of the referendum soon approaches on 16 March 2014 but very little has been done to harmonise laws so that the full richness of the constitution can provide much needed dignity to citizens and empower them with ways to check theft of public finance, corruption and to recall representatives who have been missing from their constituencies since the July 2013 election.

Valentine’s Day also comes at a time when the promise of free primary education a foundation of the liberation war and a clause in the constitution declaration of rights is in disarray. School levies have skyrocketed and corruption in schools has now reached unacceptable levels. Members of WOZA report that more children are being chased away from school. The Basic education Assistance Module, (BEAM) has been bankrupted and has been discontinued, when just one month’s salary of former CEO of the Premier Services Medical Aid could have paid fees for hundreds vulnerable children. During the peaceful marches WOZA will be exposing these injustices and demanding the urgent activation of the constitution, with the delivery of primary schooling as a priority to be met by 30 December 2014.

WOZA also support the joint position of civic society regarding the need for more transparency and accountability by public officials. The statement by CSOs calls for the government to take urgent action to restore sanity by “instituting a commission of enquiry tasked with further investigating the obscene salary saga, ‘tenderpreneurship’ and any other underhand dealings taking place in the public sector”. The statement also calls for the dismissing all those found to be on the wrong side of the law. WOZA along with CSOs also expects the dismissing all board members implicated, naming and shaming them and also calling on them to right the wrong by paying back the money or donating to BEAM.

WOZA ask members of the Zimbabwe Republic Police to respect the right to protest and petition contained in the constitution and ask them not to trample upon the roses of love. Valentines Woza Moya 2014

EIGHT hundred members of Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) began two separate peaceful protests at 2pm on Monday 2 December 2013. Their objective to march to parliament and hand over a petition. The petition being a research report produced under the 16 days of activism against gender based violence – Zimbabweans beat the drum of peace and development to break the silence on violence.

Both protests began without incident and converged on the Kwame Nkrumah entrance of parliament at 2:15pm. WOZA national coordinator began to negotiate for someone to officially receive the petition. A female officer was assisting and asked Williams to please request silence from the singing members. Members then observed non violent discipline and sat down on the hot tarmac with the blazing sun on their heads.

Seconds dragged to many minutes and it became apparent the clerk of parliament would not attend to receive the petition. Police officers, schooled in the culture of harassment continued to attempt to disperse the protesters and tried to scatter members by attempting to drive their truck into the crowd. Despite this obvious attempt to curb the right to protest, WOZA members remained resolute and started to sing a shone song saying – we also have rights!

After a 30 minutes wait, Williams was directed to the counsel to parliament, Ms Gladys Pise who received the petition and provided proof.

WOZA national coordinator, Jenni Williams then addressed members informing them that the petition had been delivered and asked members to go peacefully home and await a formal response from parliament. WOZA members then formally left parliament with the police officers still obviously restraining themselves in frustration at the new constitution clauses on respect for the right to petition.

WOZA express dismay that the police in Bulawayo seem to have not had the same training on the new ‘right to petition’ as the Harare police officers seem to have had. Once again the Bulawayo police officers have shown that there is selective harshness in responding to protests in Bulawayo. WOZA members are still shocked that Bulawayo police bosses ordered the deployment of police dogs to run the peacefully protesting members out of town. WOZA expects to take legal action against the police for wrongful arrest and for curtailing the right to protest and use of maximum force against members.

ON THE DRAFT RESOLUTION ON PROTECTING WOMEN HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS
We write to you as a group of African human rights defenders from across the continent working at national, regional and international levels. We are following negotiations on the draft resolution on the protection of women human rights defenders currently being advanced in the UN General Assembly’s Third Committee, with great interest. This is the first time a draft resolution has been put forward focusing exclusively on the protection of women human rights defenders. It is a hugely significant and important initiative for African societies.
Women who engage in the defence of all human rights and all those who defend the rights of women and work on issues related to gender equality make a vital contribution to democratic processes, securing and maintaining peace, and ensuring security, development and respect for human rights in our communities. However, in doing this work, women human rights defenders can face a range of violations and abuses – including gender-based violence – at the hands of State and non-State actors. States need to pay attention to the risks faced by women human rights defenders, acknowledge the value of their role, and commit to ensuring their protection. This is the time for all States to show leadership by supporting a resolution that seeks to do this globally.
We are extremely concerned to hear that the African Group has developed a group position objecting to several core elements of the draft resolution. Fifteen years ago, all States agreed to the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, including State obligations to protect all human rights defenders working on all human rights. This commitment has been reiterated and built upon in subsequent General Assembly and Human Rights Council resolutions.
In addition, African human rights instruments include important references that relate to the protection of women defenders. The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights Article 18:3 speaks of States’ obligations to ensure the elimination of discrimination against women and also ensure the protection of women’s rights as stipulated in international declarations and conventions. Ten years ago, the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa – the Maputo Protocol – was adopted. Acknowledged as a key text on the protection of women’s rights, the Protocol speaks of States parties commitment to increasing women’s participation ‘in structures and process for conflict, prevention, management and resolution’ and at all levels of decision-making. African States should be working to implement such commitments, and to ensuring it is reiterated and strengthened at international levels.
African UN Member States are putting forward important resolutions related to women’s rights, such as on ending female genital mutilations, addressing the situation of obstetric fistula and improving the situation of the girl child. At the Commission on the Status of Women in 2013, African States played a key role in securing agreed conclusions on ending violence against women, which also recognized the need to “support and protect those who are committed to eliminating violence against women, including women human rights defenders in this regard, who face particular risks of violence”. The GA resolution on women human rights defenders would complement and reinforce these important efforts by African Member States, as it would support and give recognition to the efforts by women human rights defenders in African countries seeking to implement these initiatives at national and local levels.
We call on every African State to live up to their human rights commitments by supporting this UN resolution, and by taking concrete steps to protect women defenders in their work. We call upon African States at the General Assembly to stand alongside all women human rights defenders in their work for the respect of human rights across the continent.

Draft res – protecting women human rights defenders

Woza Moya May 2013

Women of Zimbabwe Arise  – (WOZA) express solidarity with the people of Burma in their ongoing struggle to free themselves from the tyranny of military rule. We recognise the need for all people’s movements to join together in a common effort to build genuine democracies, which can work to bring the benefits of collective wealth to everyone and not just the privileged few.

We are inspired by the courage and determination of the tens of thousands of Burmese citizens and urge them to believe in their own power to achieve their goals however long it takes and despite the sacrifices. May we all work in solidarity to create a just world which values the life of every human being.

MAGODONGA Mahlangu, a Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) leader was to appear in Tredgold Magistrates Court on 25 September 2013 to be formally charged under the Postal and Telecommunications Act Chapter 12:05, two counts under section 88 (c ) ‘making offensive phone calls without reasonable cause for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience or needle anxiety’. However despite appearing in court at 8:30am, no magistrate would accept the case, one after another recusing themselves for personal reasons. The drama in court had comical moments as law and Order police officers, Mahlangu, her lawyer Nontokozo Tachiona and over 20 WOZA activist attending the court in solidarity kept traipsing in an out of various courts hoping for a hearing. As the police officers insisted Mahlangu should appear in court, justice department personnel had no option but to issue a summons for her to appear in court on Monday 30 September 2013 for trial in the hopes that a magistrate would have been found to hear the matter.

Mahlangu previously appeared in court one on this matter on 7 August 2013 wherein the magistrate advised the police to proceed by way of summons once they had their case in order. The police officers, re charged Mahlangu on Monday advising her to come to court on 25 September 2013 to appear and be formally charged.

The complainant is Gladys Dube, a ward chair of the Movement for Democratic Change lead by Morgan Tsvangirai. She alleges that Mahlangu called her on two occasions and threatened her saying, “you are a big sell out from the ruling party, we are coming to get you with police, CID personnel, if Welshman loses you will see it.” On the second occasion, she alleges that Mahlangu said “you will see it I don’t want to talk to you again”. The state paper alleges that this caused the complainant annoyance and needles anxiety.

Mahlangu does not dispute that phone calls took place but disputes that threats were made. Mahlangu and Jenni Williams the national coordinator of WOZA, made several calls to both MDC parties to advise them of a flyer being circulated in Matshobana suburb of Bulawayo on Elections day 31 Julys 2013. This flyer, whose authorship is unclear, bears stolen WOZA logos and uses the name of WOZA to de-campaign Morgan Tsvangirai. WOZA leaders realising that the timing of this mysterious flyer on Election Day could disturb the peace and so decided to be proactive in disassociating WOZA with the contents. Despite calls being made to various political leaders, including MDC T Nelson Chamisa and to David Coltart and MDC Secretary General Pricilla Msirambwe -Mushonga, Gladys Dube decided to fabricate threats and made a report to the police resulting in the charges against Magodonga Mahlangu.

The first call on was in response to a report that Gladys Dube in the company of another women had gone door to door threatening members for the flyers distribution. Mahlangu called the other women who immediately apologised when told that WOZA had not authored the flyer. Ms Dube when called denied any knowledge of the flyer or the threats on members and so she was just asked to keep calm and ignore the flyer and the call was gut short. Surprisingly she called back two hours later in the company of WOZA members who she asked to vouch for her that she had not threatened anyone and once again she was asked to just ignore the flyer and keep calm.

At a meeting of WOZA Human rights monitors on 2nd August 2013, a member Christine Dube reported that Gladys had threatened her for reporting on her to the WOZA leadership, calling her a sell out. In the presence of 20 members, a further call was made to Gladys Dube asking her to please stop the threats. With the call on speaker phone, all 20 witnesses over heard her shouting insults and threats against Magodonga who could not get a word in edgeways. Stranger still is the fact that Ms Dube admitted making a vulgar insult to Magodonga in the presence of police officers in the senior area prosecutors office on 6th August 2013 but no charges were made against her.
flyer link http://wozazim.org/?p=1443

see also WOZA statement
State of the Nation March

Matabeleland Civil Society Organisations Press Statement
Following the unredeemable police brutal action against protests that took place between 1 – 25 July 2016 in Beitbridge, Victoria Falls and Bulawayo, The Matabeleland Civil Society Organisations (MCSOs) would like to urgently call on the Zimbabwean Government to immediately engage citizens and listen to their grievances as regards the state of the nation and its socio economic meltdown. Failure to do so may result in serious civil strife and unrest as has periodically been witnessed in the past few weeks.

It is noted with concern that, while citizens were acting well within their constitutional rights as enshrined in the Bill of Rights and other sections of the Constitution, police officers in the above mentioned areas took extreme measures to crush protests, thereby leading to violent clashes, beating of protesters, arrests and thereafter extremely inhumane treatment of detained demonstrators while in police custody. Of further concern isthe vicious retributive action taken by the police in following up after demonstrators, which led to the death of an infant and assaults on innocent civilians residing in and around Burombo flats in Bulawayo. Police heavy handedness during and after the protests is condemned in the strongest terms as many people were left suffering injuries caused by the use of force and tear gas.

As Matabeleland civil society organisations, we would like to unequivocally state the following:
1. We condemn the brutal beatings, torture, indiscriminate and careless use of tear gas and arbitrary arrests of minors and adults for exercising and enjoying their fundamental rights. We therefore appeal to all officers of the Zimbabwe Republic Police to honor and respect their Police charter and the Bill of Rights in the constitution of Zimbabwe to protect human life, human dignity and human rights and in particular children’s safety and peace of mind.
2. We call on the Government to;
-Genuinely and urgently engage citizens and listen to their grievances as regards the state of the nation, as Failure to address the socio economic meltdown may result in continued serious civil strife.
– Investigate and prosecute all human rights violations detailed in the attached report.
– Immediately repeal statutory instrument 64/2016 and review all laws that hinder citizen’s right to trade and earn a living.
– To respect, protect and fulfil fundamental rights as outlined in the Bill of Rights.
3. We call on the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission to take its mandate and investigate, document and make recommendation on the human rights violations in this report.
4. We call on citizens to peacefully continue to demand their fundamental rights as enshrined in the Constitution.
5. We call on the regional and international community to ensure the plight of Zimbabwean citizens remain on the agenda
6. We call on the SADC, in particular the Heads of States summit to be held in Mbabane, Swaziland as from the 15th to the 17th of August 2016 to priorities the plight of Zimbabwean citizens and directly address the issues raised in this report.

Endorsed by the following Institutions:
1. Bulawayo Vendors and Traders Association
2. Habakkuk Trust
3. National Youth Development Trust
4. Public Policy Research Institute of Zimbabwe
5. Radio Dialogue
6. Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA)
7. Zimbabwe Christian Alliance
8. Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights