ZIMBABWE: NGOs condemn abuses and obstruction of UN Special Rapporteur on Torture's visit
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November
11, 2009
ALRC-OLT-004-2009
A Joint Open Letter to the Government of Zimbabwe by human rights organizations from 14 countries
November 7th, 2009
Government of
Zimbabwe
Your Excellencies
President Robert Mugabe
Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
Copy to:
Southern African
Development Community
African Union
UN Human Rights Council
ZIMBABWE: NGOs condemn abuses and obstruction of UN Special Rapporteur on Torture’s visit
Ref: UN Special Rapporteur on Torture’s cancelled visit to Zimbabwe, widespread violence and arbitrary arrests
Your Excellencies,
We
the undersigned human rights organizations, from 14 countries, firmly
regret the last-minute refusal to receive Mr. Manfred Nowak, UN Special
Rapporteur on Torture, after his official invitation to conduct a
factfinding mission from October 28 to November 4, 2009.
We also
express our concern with regard to Zimbabwe´s current human rights
situation, in light of its: ongoing and widespread violence; and recent
arbitrary arrests of senior civic leaders, political activists and human
rights defenders. These human rights abuses highlight the urgency of
Mr. Nowak’s visit, whose mission would undoubtedly help to improve the
human rights protection of Zimbabwe’s citizens, particularly to combat
torture and ill-treatment.
The Global Political Agreement and
its subsequent power-sharing government were originally accompanied by
great hope from in the international community for the overall
improvement of the human rights situation in the country.
Therefore,
we call upon the Government of Zimbabwe to end human rights violations
occurring in the country and to cooperate with all UN human rights
mechanisms, including by finding a prompt solution to resolve the
impasse resulting from the cancelation of Mr. Nowak’s visit to the
country.
Yours Sincerely,
1. Asian Legal Resource
Centre - ALRC, Hong Kong (China)
2. Botswana Civil Society
Solidarity Coalition on Zimbabwe (BOCISCOZ - Botswana Civil Society
Solidarity
3. Coalition for Zimbabwe)
4. Cairo Institute of
Human Rights Studies (Egypt)
5. Centro de Estudios Legales y
Sociales – CELS (Argentina)
6. Centre for Human Rights, University
of Pretoria (South Africa)
7. CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen
Participation(South Africa)
8. Comisión Colombiana de Juristas
(Colombia)
9. Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (India)
10.
Conectas Human Rights (Brazil)
11. Corporación Humanas (Chile)
12.
Democracy Coalition Project (USA)
13. DITSHWANELO – The Botswana
Centre for Human Rights (BOCISCOZ - Botswana Civil Society
Solidarity Coalition for Zimbabwe)
14. Fondation Humanus (Cameroon)
15.
Human Rights Concern (Eritrea)
16. Instituto de Defensa Legal
(Peru)
17. Legal Assistance Centre (Namibia)
18. MISA Botswana
(BOCISCOZ - Botswana Civil Society Solidarity Coalition for Zimbabwe)
19.
Mouvement Citoyen (Senegal)
20. Open Society Initiative for
Southern Africa - OSISA
21. OIKOUMENE (BOCISCOZ - Botswana Civil
Society Solidarity Coalition for Zimbabwe)
22. People Opposing Women
Abuse – POWA (South Africa)
23. People to People Coalition of
Zimbabwe (BOCISCOZ - Botswana Civil Society Solidarity Coalition for
Zimbabwe)
24. Physicians for Human Rights (USA)
25. Southern African
Human Rights Defenders Trust – SAHRDT (South Africa)
