via RadioVop Zimbabwe – Chihuri, Mohadi Face Imprisonment Over House Demolitions January 11, 2015
Some peeved Mazowe families have moved to block the ongoing demolition and eviction of their houses by seeking the arrest and imprisonment of the country’s top police commander on charges of defying a court order.
The five Mazowe families are part of 200 people whose homes were demolished by police officers early this week to pave way for the construction of a wildlife sanctuary which is linked to President Robert Mugabe’s wife, Grace.
The five families whose dwellings were recently demolished by police officers petitioned the High Court on Friday seeking an order for the arrest and imprisonment of Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi and Police Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuri for disobeying a lawful court order.
The five Mazowe families whose houses were demolished by armed police officers who stormed Anold Farm in Mazowe on Wednesday in a ruthless eviction that saw the villagers’ personal possessions being burnt filed a court application for contempt of court against Mohadi, Chihuri and Lands and Rural Resettlement Minister Douglas Mombeshora.
The villagers who include Aspinas Makufa, Daaisi Musekiwa, George Musa, Costa Chirimba, and Gift Chikowore charged that the government officials were unquestionably guilty of contempt of court after intentionally disobeying a court order by demolishing their homes and attempting to evict them from Anold Farm in Mazowe from which they have been conducting farming operations for more than a decade.
In an application filed in the High Court by their lawyers Tonderai Bhatasara of Mupanga Bhatasara Attorneys and Gift Mtisi of Musendekwa Mtisi Legal Practitioners, who are all members of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, the lawyers want the High Court to order Mohadi, Chihuri and Mombeshora to stop government officials, agents, police officers or anyone acting on their instructions from demolishing and evicting the villagers from Anold Farm.
The lawyers said should Mohadi, Chihuri and Mombeshora fail to stop government agents from ending the harassment of the villagers, the Sheriff of Zimbabwe must procure several Zimbabwe Republic Police officers to arrest the Home Affairs Minister, the ZRP boss and the Lands and Rural Resettlement Minister and imprison them at Harare Central Prison until such a time they purge their contempt.
According to the Mazowe families, Mohadi, Chihuri and Mombeshora’s conduct is reprehensible and a risk to the administration of justice while the deliberate disobedience of a court order by public officials undermines the authority and integrity of the judiciary.
The villagers said they are now exposed to the vagaries of weather conditions with their crops and source of livelihood being razed to the ground at a time when their children are scheduled to start attending school lessons next week.
The applicants argued that since the granting of the court order in August 2014 interdicting and stopping respondents from demolishing homes and evicting them, police officers ceased to destroy their property. But the law enforcement agents recently resumed the house demolitions inspite of a court order granted by High Court Judge Justice Charles Hungwe in August 2014 interdicting the respondents from interfering with the Mazowe villagers’ farming activities on Anold Farm until they have been legally relocated to other lands with valid offer letters.
Meanwhile, six other families from Anold Farm in Mazowe also filed an urgent chamber application on Friday in the High Court seeking an order interdicting Mohadi, Chihuri and Mombeshora from demolishing their houses and property or evicting them from the Mazowe farm.
COMMENTS
“Chihuri, Mohadi Face Imprisonment Over House Demolitions” What a misleading headline. These guys are above Zimbabwean law. Who will arrest them. Any Judge that tried to convict would lose his job AND HIS FARM.
that would be the day. Arrest who?????????? Giresi will protect them and besides those cops and judge can kiss their measly jobs good bye.
Yes it’s good for the families to take the thugs to court and show the world the injustices still carried out by this regime. They want FDI etc but no rule of law etc. Talk about stupid these ZanuPF Mobsters are the original dummers.