Harare, June 15 — Zimbabwe’s youngest parliamentarian, 27-year old Joana Mamombe along with her other female opposition Movement for Democratic Change Alliance activists, Netsai Marova and Cecilia Chimbiri were on Monday denied bail by Harare magistrate Bianca Makwande.
The trio stands accused of faking an abduction last month.
Their arrest last month followed their abduction after they led a demonstration organized by the youths from their party against the government’s failure to provide social protection for the poor during the current COVID-19 lockdown.
Now, the trio has been remanded in prison at the Chikurubhi maximum jail, Zimbabwe’s notorious prison until the 26th of June.
The MDC Alliance activists have leading positions in their party, with Marova as the Deputy Organizing Secretary and Chimbiri as the opposition party’s Youth Assembly Vice Chairperson while Mamombe is the legislator for Harare West Constituency.
In denying bail to the trio, Harare magistrate Makwande said the accused face very serious charges and are likely to be given custodial sentences if convicted, which may force them to abscond or commit a similar offense.
“It (bail) can only be denied if there are compelling reasons,” she said before postponing the case to 26 June.
State Prosecutors also argued that Mamombe and her accomplices committed a very serious offense and were likely to flee if granted bail.
To the magistrate, therefore, ‘the court is of the view that the State’s opposition for bail in the respect of propensity to commit a similar offense is acceptable.’
Following the denial of bail to Zimbabwe’s abducted opposition activists, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Southern Africa, Muleya Mwananyanda, said ‘the continued arbitrary detention of Joana Mamombe, Cecilia Chimbiri, and Netsai Marova amounts to persecution.’
“These women are victims of escalating crackdown on the right to freedom of expression and criminalization of dissent. Instead of persecuting them, the Zimbabwean authorities should focus their efforts on holding those suspected to be responsible for their horrifying abduction, torture, and sexual assault to account,” said Mwananyanda.
MDC Alliance spokesperson, Fadzayi Mahere echoed Mwananyanda’s sentiments.
“Justice has been turned on its head. We expected the perpetrators of the abduction of these women to be brought to book. The State is at war with its citizens,” said Mahere.