NCA leader, constitutional lawyer Lovemore Madhuku, and several party activists were reportedly assaulted over the weekend after armed men stormed the party’s Harare offices and disrupted a meeting. The attackers are suspected to be security agents.
Madhuku told journalists that the masked assailants attacked them for opposing the Constitutional Amendment Bill as police looked on.
Among other provisions, the Bill proposes extending presidential and parliamentary term limits from five to seven years and shifting the power to elect the president from the public to parliament.
In a statement, Amnesty International said authorities must “promptly, thoroughly, impartially, independently, transparently, and effectively investigate the attacks on these NCA members and bring to justice those suspected to be responsible.
“Professor Lovemore Madhuku, Effort Manono, and other activists from his party had gathered for a meeting when they were violently beaten with batons in the presence of uniformed police officers.
“This violent attack is a blatant violation of the rights to personal security, freedom of expression, and peaceful assembly.
“This assault is the latest outrage targeting critics opposed to changing the Constitution to allow the extension of presidential term limits,” said Amnesty International Zimbabwe’s Executive Director, Lucia Masuka.
Masuka said the government must end what she described as an escalating crackdown on peaceful dissent, which has included the banning of public meetings and the arrest or intimidation of critics.
“Authorities must ensure access to justice and effective remedies for victims and their families.
“They must create an environment that guarantees and ensures the effective exercise of the human rights of everyone in the country, including the rights to freedom of opinion, expression, and peaceful assembly, allowing everyone to peacefully express their opinions without the risk of interference, intimidation, attacks, or reprisals.”
The attacks come amid growing tensions over the proposed Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3, which has sparked strong opposition from civil society groups and opposition parties.
Civil society organisations and opposition groups have vowed to resist any changes to the Constitution, arguing that the proposed amendments threaten democratic principles and citizens’ fundamental freedoms.
Black News 
