Demonstrations are perfectly legal in Zimbabwe!

Where are some people getting the notion that participating in demonstrations is somehow illegal?

I am sure we have come across this narrative that has been peddled numerous times, especially by the ZANU PF government and its sympathizers.

As the 44th Ordinary SADC Heads of State and Government Summit beckons, this distortion of the law has become even more glaring.

Even the head of state has not been left out.

President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa has even gone to the extent of issuing threats against what he termed ‘rogue elements’ who sought to destabilize the country.

Equally not to be outdone have been the ministers of home affairs (who overseas the police) and information: Kazembe Kazembe and Jenfan Muswere, respectively.

Muswere alleged that the opposition and civil society organizations were planning to instigate anarchy, despondency, chaos, mayhem, and subversive activities within Zimbabwe.

The minister warned that such activities were intended to undermine the rule of law and that the organizers’ ‘days were numbered’.

This has led to the crackdown and arrest of opposition activists in the recent past – who have been accused, without a shred of evidence, of ‘planning illegal activities’.

We have even witnessed some so-called church leaders going as far as ‘praying for peace’ during the SADC Summit, whilst dissuading Zimbabweans from demonstrating.

Only yesterday, former Norton legislator Themba Mliswa discouraged citizens from engaging in demonstrations as southern African heads of state meet in Harare on 17th August 2024.

He urged citizens to ‘respect the Constitution and adhere to the dictates of the law’.

In all these statements, one message is clear: demonstrations are being packaged as illegal.

Not only that, but they are characterized as violent and meant to cause chaos and anarchy in the country, thereby leading to instability and unrest.

Wow!

This is what I do not understand.

If demonstrations are so undesirable – maybe even a danger to the country – why then is participating in them protected in the country’s Constitution?

Under section 59, “Every person has the right to demonstrate and to present petitions, but these rights must be exercised peacefully”.

What can be clearer than this?

Do we even need a constitutional law expert such as Professor Lovemore Madhuku to explain this provision of the Constitution, which is as clear as day?

So why are we hearing all this noise against demonstrations?

It is not troubling and unsettling that those who are expected to know better – who even hold respectable positions in the country – are actually the ones at the forefront of peddling falsehoods and deliberately distorting the law?

Let it be made abundantly unequivocal: there is absolutely nothing wrong with taking part in demonstrations in Zimbabwe.

Not only is it perfectly legal, but this right is enshrined in the country’s supreme law.

The only condition here is that this right ‘must be exercised peacefully’.

If all those people making all this noise were genuinely concerned about respecting the law and preserving peace, should they not actually be defending this right to demonstrate but urging citizens to do it peacefully?

What is the purpose of demonizing the entire process of demonstrating?

If these people were sincere in their commitment to the law and peace, should they not actually be encouraging Zimbabweans to freely exercise their constitutional right to demonstrate but making sure to do it in a peaceful manner?

However, demonizing demonstrations in their entirety – under some veneer of abiding by the law and peace – is a clear sign of a government unnerved and over the edge over the possibility of ordinary citizens exposing their suffering and impoverishment under the Mnangagwa regime.

One thing all these individuals need to understand is that this right to demonstrate is one of the most important rights in the Constitution of Zimbabwe.

To show this importance, all rights stipulated under Chapter 4 are so protected that they can not be amended merely through the two-thirds parliamentary vote required for amending other provisions of the Constitution.

Chapter 4, The Declaration of Rights, not only needs a two-thirds majority but also has to go to a national referendum to be amended.

In other words, no matter how much those in power may seek to portray the right to demonstrate as undesirable – bordering on rebellion, unpatriotism, and even subversion – this is actually an inalienable right which should be respected and enjoyed by all Zimbabweans.

The reason this right is so treasured is because this is the only way ordinary citizens can make their views, grievances, and demands known to those in power.

There is nothing in a country that gives the people a louder and more powerful voice than demonstrations.

As such, taking away or denying that right from the people is akin to cutting out their tongues.

A nation where the right to demonstrate is stifled or denied can never be described as a genuine democracy.

Let us remember that demonstrations are conducted in numerous ways.

Indeed, the most popular and common form is through marching along the streets, whilst also singing and chanting the participants’ demands, grievances, and views.

It is never automatic that this type of demonstration will inevitably degenerate into violence and anarchy.

In other countries where demonstrations are respected by their governments, the police are actually deployed to protect and safeguard the demonstrators.

Unlike in Zimbabwe, where the police are deployed to prevent and crash the demonstrations.

There are also other types of demonstrations.

People can simply march along the streets in total silence – without singing or making any sound – but merely carrying placards.

There are also ‘sit-ins’, in which demonstrators occupy an area – usually for a stated period or even indefinitely – until they feel their issue has been addressed.

These ‘sit-ins’ can also be conducted in total silence without any singing or chanting – if the participants so wish.

There are those who may resort to simply staying at home as a form of demonstrating – whereby a town or country is left virtually empty and brought to a standstill.

Other demonstrators may even opt for more colourful means of conveying their views, grievances, and demands.

For instance, they may organize a music concert, where people sing and dance whilst having fun, but at the same time, sending a very serious message.

We can even have those who release thousands of balloons into the sky carrying specific messages.

The list is endless.

It is all a matter of being creative.

Nonetheless, these are all peaceful ways of demonstrating – and some of these do not even place the demonstrators in direct confrontation with overzealous brutal security forces.

Therefore, it becomes incomprehensible how some people would come to the conclusion that demonstrations are not only illegal but also violent.

If Zimbabweans have any message they want the visiting SADC heads of state to hear, then they are free to do so.

The law is on their side.

It is their inalienable right.

As already highlighted, demonstrations can even be an enjoyable and fun-filled undertaking – which may actually bring people together.

Not all demonstrations have to be driven by anger.

The only condition is that all these demonstrations be peaceful in nature.

• Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. Please feel free to WhatsApp or Call: +263715667700 | +264782283975, or email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com, or visit website: https://mbofanatendairuben.news.blog/