Cosmas Ndira and 12 other activists from the Restoration of Human Rights in Zimbabwe (ROHR) group were released on Friday, after being arrested at the High Court on Wednesday for taking part in a protest against the continued detention of eight Glen View residents charged with the murder of a policeman.
On Sunday at around 8pm Ndira “was heavily assaulted by a group of more than 5 people identified as members of the Zimbabwe National Army,” ROHR said in a statement. The attack, which took place in Mabvuku on the outskirts of Harare, saw Ndira sustaining serious head injuries and losing a lot of blood.
ROHR said “he is currently battling for his life at a local hospital.” Efforts by the Ndira family to report the assault at Mabvuku police station were fruitless as the police there are said to have refused to open a docket for unspecified reasons. The incident highlights once again the selective application of the law in the country.
ROHR spokesperson, Stendrick Zvorwadza condemned the assault as an act of “brutality against civilians’ by the security forces. A statement by the group said an ‘unreformed security sector’ is the biggest threat to peace and stability in the country.
Post published in: News