Human rights activist abducted

Zimbabwe Watch extremely concerned by the abduction of the director of leading human rights organisation in Zimbabwe.In the early morning of the nationwide protest day by the trade union organisation ZCTU, Jestina Mukoko, director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP) was abducted. ZimbabweWatch extremely fears for Jestina Mukoko’s safety.

A group of 15 unidentified plain clothed men abducted Jestina from her home in Norton, South of the capital, Harare for unknown reasons. The ZPP has played a crucial role in documenting politically motivated violence before and in the run-up to the March 2008 harmonized elections and in the run-up to the June sham presidential election. As a human rights organisation, ZPP has continued to document politically motivated violations in the country.

Abduction very worrying and totally unacceptable

Today also the Secretary General of the ZCTU, Wellington Chibebe, and 50 other leading trade unionists were arrested. ZimbaweWatch is very worried by the increasing number of arrests and disappearances of human rights activists in Zimbabwe – and particularly the abduction of Jestina Mukoko. Pascal Richard, coördinator ZimbabweWatch: "This abduction is very disturbing. A prominent member of the opposition party Movement for Democratic Change was found dead after a similar abduction. We call on the EU and the African embassies in Zimbabwe to hold Mugabe’s ZanuPF authorities responsible for anything that may happen to Jestina Mukoko and to indicate clearly that this is totally unacceptable.”

Role of the Zimbabwean authorities

The violent crack down on the trade union protests and the lack of reaction to the adbuction of Jestina Mukoko inicates clearly, according to Pascal Richard dat ZanuPF has no interest in a political solution to the current impasse. Pascal Richard: “Mugabe stays in power through violence. This kidnap and the arrests as well as the current cholera outbreak are visible symptoms of the failure and corruption of this regime”

Also see:

Cholera in Zimbabwe and abduction of ZPP Director

For more information contact Pascal Richard, coördinator Zimbabwe Watch, 0031 - (0)6 -2891 3181, pascal.richard@niza.nl.