Tsvangirai’s lawyer said in papers filed with the High Court that he had to seek the intervention of the court after Mudede refused to grant him a new travel document citing “unspecified reservations from the police”.
The lawyer, Alex Mambosasa, said Tsvangirai applied for a new passport on June 12 after the old one he had ran out of pages. Mudede, whose office issues passports, turned down the application on the grounds that the police had not cleared Tsvangirai. Â
Mambosasa said his client’s application was turned down despite the fact that he has no criminal conviction or any pending criminal allegations that may disqualify him from holding a Zimbabwean passport.
“Denying the applicant a passport in the above mentioned circumstances is tantamount to depriving him his constitutional right to freedom of movement,” the lawyer said.
The nature of Tsvangirai’s job as leader of Zimbabwe’s main opposition party required him to frequently travel in and outside the country, Mambosasa said in the application.
Mudede is first respondent in the matter while Police Commissioner General Augustine Chihuri and Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi are second and third respondents respectively. – ZimOnline
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