‘Barbaric and inhumane’: Zimbabwean campaigner details ‘torture’ of female activists

Cecilia Chimbiri, Netsai Marova, and Joana Mamombe, have accused suspected state security services of subjecting them to a harrowing catalogue of torture allegations, which span from being beaten to suffering repeated sexual assaults to being forced to drink each other’s urine.

Ms Chimbiri, who is 32, Ms Marova, 25, and Ms Mamombe, 27, are Zimbabwean human rights activists. The three women allege they suffered torture and unspeakable humiliation after being abducted by suspected state security services in May.

Chenayi Mutambasere, who is also a human rights campaigner and a close friend of the three female opposition activists, has now spoken to The Independent about the alleged abuse they endured and their alleged mistreatment since. She said the trio had been arrested again on Friday but have now been released.

“The treatment they suffered back in May is barbaric and inhumane,” Ms Mutambasere tells The Independent. “They had head injuries after they were tortured. They were sexually violated. They were raped. Cecilia had a gun put up her back passage.”

The three women are all senior leaders of the opposition party which is called the Movement for Democratic Change, while Ms Mamombe is one of the youngest Zimbabwean members of parliament. The trio appeared in court in Harare on Friday where they were told their trial was being postponed until 25 September.

Ms Mutambasere, a Zimbabwean activist living in the UK who started a petition demanding the women’s release, said: “On the way to report to the police on Friday as part of their bail restrictions, they were stopped by police. Soldiers harassed the three women and beat Cecilia before arresting them.

“It really is awful treatment. The soldiers are trying to victimise them and shame them so no other activists speak up. They want to rule us by fear.

“In May, the women were raped and tortured. They were protesting against communities not having enough food in lockdown and then when the protest finished, they got into Joana’s car and then they were taken into police custody. They called their lawyers. The lawyers turned up and they were nowhere to be found because they were abducted by state officials.

“I have known the women for a long time. They refer to me as their big sister. We have been in this struggle for a long time. They are trying to break them. They are trying to break the spirit of activism. The persistent unrelenting attack on them is heart-wrenching. Their resolve is not shattered but we can’t deny the atrocity of what happened. They know the only way out is for regime change.”

Ms Mutambasere, who is regularly speaking with the three women, said after they were in hospital for three weeks, they were rearrested by plainclothes police. They were then placed in a remand prison before being moved to a maximum-security prison for two weeks, she added.

The activists have to report to the police three days a week as part of their bail conditions, the activist, who also works as an architect, added.

Ms Chimbiri has said their torture involved being hurled into a pit dug in the soil where they endured hours of beatings and sexual assault by five men.

Faiza Mohamed, Equality Now’s Africa Director, told The Independent she was “extremely concerned” about the “grave” human rights violations perpetrated by the Zimbabwean state against human rights activists.

She said: “The three women were arrested after attending a peaceful demonstration. After being taken to a police station they were forcibly disappeared from policy custody by five unidentified men, who are believed to be members of Zimbabwe’s security service. The women were repeatedly beaten, sexually assaulted, and tortured, requiring hospital treatment as a result of their ordeal.

“These women have demonstrated considerable courage by speaking out about the abuse and trauma they have endured. Despite the credibility of their allegations, the Zimbabwean authorities have failed to conduct a timely and impartial investigation. Rather than seeking to bring those who are criminally responsible to justice for their unlawful actions, the government has instead continued to target the women by charging them with falsely reporting their abduction.

“It is abhorrent that Zimbabwean state officials are targeting women for peacefully calling for positive social change. Women’s participation in public life is already limited because of gender inequality and the government’s actions are further reducing women’s ability to participate in civil society. Women should be free to exercise their civil rights without the fear of arrest or torture.”

Ms Mohamed, whose organisation promotes the rights of women and girls, accused the Zimbabwean government of denying its citizens their constitutional right to “freedom of expression and assembly” and instead “perpetrating tyranny, violence, and intimidation against the very people it should be protecting”.

Although Zimbabwean newspapers initially reported the police had confirmed the women’s arrest, the police later denied issuing the statement.

Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi has claimed the women fabricated the story to deflect attention from the fact that they had infringed lockdown regulations by going to a demonstration.

“I don’t believe the abduction is genuine,” he told the BBC.

The three female activists are now facing criminal charges which accuse them of faking their abduction, lying to police, and blocking justice, as well as taking part in an illegal protest.