"Nothing will ever bring my wife back, but the perpetrators of this are
still there roaming the streets," he told IWPR. "Justice must be served
and if [the newly formed] inclusive government fails to deal with this
issue there will never be national healing. How do I work with people
who murdered my wife? They must tell me who sent them to kill my wife
and how they did it. There has to be a way to secure justice. Our
hearts are sore."
In terms of the agreement signed in September by Mugabe, Morgan
Tsvangirai, leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change,
MDC, and Arthur Mutambara, leader of a breakaway MDC faction, which
provided for a government of national unity, to which the MDC finally
agreed on January 30, also calls for a process of national healing in
Zimbabwe, but does not say what form this should take.
It also omits to mention whether senior members of ZANU-PF and the
military, who are accused of masterminding the political violence,
including the murder of more than 200 people in the run-up to the June
vote, should face justice.
According to prime minister-designate Tsvangirai, senior members of
ZANU-PF should face trial for political violence, though he does not
believe Mugabe himself should be tried. ZANU-PF, however, and
Mutambara’s faction of the MDC believe that any action taken should be
aimed at "achieving national healing rather than punishment and
retribution".
Chiroto, one of 45 MDC councillors in Harare, is unequivocal on the
issue – for him punishment of those who murdered his wife is the only
acceptable option.
"I have problems forgetting and forgiving the people who killed my
wife," he said. "Justice must one day be meted out to whoever organised
the killing. What do I tell my son when he grows up?"
A hit squad descended on Chiroto’s Hatcliffe home on June 16 last year,
the day after he was elected mayor, firebombing the house and reducing
it to cinder. The attackers then seized 27-year-old Abigail and the
couple’s four-year-old son, Ashley, and bundled them into one of two
double-cab trucks with no number plates. Some of the kidnappers wore
military uniforms, said witnesses. Chiroto was not at home at the time.
On June 18 the dreaded phone call came – Abigail’s body had been
discovered on a farm near Borrowdale – her head crushed, her tongue
sliced off, probably to muffle her screams, and her eyes gouged out.
Church leaders in Zimbabwe have called on parties to the inclusive
government to establish a truth and reconciliation commission, TRC,
similar to that set up in South Africa to expose apartheid-era crimes,
to investigate the violence that followed the disputed March 29 general
election which was won by the MDC but without a sufficient majority for
Tsvangirai to become president without a run-off vote.
A 20-strong church delegation comprising representatives from the
Zimbabwe Council of Churches, the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe,
the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops Conference and the Zimbabwe Christian
Alliance, ZCA, met Tsvangirai on February 2 and agreed to support the
new government, but requested the establishment of a TRC.
ZCA spokesman Raymond Motsi told IWPR that there was a need to resolve
the divisions and injustices of the past. However, he said this would
only be possible if there was full disclosure by perpetrators of human
rights violations and other wrongs as well as some form of justice for
victims.
"Churches are saying the truth, justice and reconciliation process
should start once a new inclusive government is in place. That should
mark the beginning of the transitional justice system," Motsi said.
"This process should not be left to the political parties alone. It
should not be elitist and should not be a political decision between
ZANU-PF and the MDC."
A spokesman for the civil society group the Crisis in Zimbabwe
Coalition believes that "joint peace rallies should be convened by
leaders of all parties to promote peace and reconciliation. True peace
and lasting unity will only be achieved once past human rights abuses
are fully addressed".
The former archbishop of Cape Town and Nobel peace laureate, Desmond
Tutu, who led South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission and,
in the past, has called for a military invasion of Zimbabwe to topple
Mugabe, has now urged world leaders to back the inclusive government in
the interests of reconstructing the shattered lives of the Zimbabwean
people. He has also appealed for an end to the "totally unacceptable"
violence.
"My heart aches for Zimbabwe. Your countrymen and women have suffered
greatly," he said. "It is in your power to stop the violence if you act
as one. You have an opportunity now to stand up for peace."
But a defiant Mugabe, who has denied orchestrating the election-related
violence that killed and injured hundreds and displaced thousands, has
demanded security guarantees for himself and his Joint Operations
Command – a think tank of army generals who reportedly planned and
executed the violence.
Official sources say secret guarantees of immunity against prosecution
were negotiated between Mugabe and Tsvangirai, facilitated by
SADC-appointed broker, former South African president Thabo Mbeki, and
include crimes committed as far back as the 1980s, when thousands of
opponents of ZANU-PF were massacred in Matabeleland; the murders that
took place during the land grab initiated in 2000; the brutal army-led
Operation Drive Out Filth of 2005, which left more than 700 000
homeless after bulldozers moved into townships and flattened homes; and
last year’s election-related violence.
AfricaFocus Bulletin is an independent electronic publication providing
reposted commentary and analysis on African issues, with a particular
focus on U.S. and international policies. AfricaFocus Bulletin is
edited by William Minter.