“This program is an action against arbitrary arrest of women that the police is carrying out at the moment on the basis soliciting. They are interfering with the freedom of movement of women. Many of the women here have been arrested and harassed so we have decided to take action,” Tsitsi Dangarembga who was the spokesperson said.
She added: “It depends on who arrest the women some police will say it is on the basis of loitering. Loitering is not a crime or an offense in Zimbabwe that law was repealed.”
But Harare provincial spokesperson James Sabau said they don’t just arrest everyone, saying they arrest women with the regalia meant to lure clients.
“I would love these women to come on wearing the regalia that they will be wearing when they are on the streets. It’s unfortunate when you see them it’s very different on how they look during the night.
“We have arrested some men in brothels for soliciting. We have made some raids using private vehicles where these women flock to the car wearing robs and we arrest them.
“We are appealing to people to come and report if they have complaints. We did send our police officers to arrest people loitering on the streets in specific areas that are known for prostitution and not in beer halls,” Sabau said.
Dangarembga said they are going to hand a petition to the co-minister of home affairs and the police.
“We have a petition which we are going to send to the police and also to the co ministers of home affairs .We have outlined our grievances that women were part of the liberation struggle and we have been working with the rest of the nation to build this country and therefore we expect to be treated as equal as full citizens of this country and also enjoy our citizens’ rights.”
Part of the petition reads as follows: “Concerned with the apparent discrimination and stereotyping of Zimbabwean women by the State through the targeting of only women during the arrests, as noted by the deliberate naming of its operations only to target women such as: Operation ‘Chipo chiroorwa’ (Chipo get married), Operation ‘Chengetedza hunhu’ (Maintain Dignity), Operation ‘Dyira Bonus kumba’ (Take your bonus money home and others”
Post published in: News