Zimbabwe

Case against Valentines day sweet-hearts dropped by prosecutor

Article published on the 2009-02-19 Latest update 2009-02-19 18:14 TU

Valentines day roses
(Photo: Reuters)

Four Zimbabwean women, who refused to pay fines following their arrest for a peaceful march on Valentines day, have had their charges dropped after the prosecutor at the Bulawayo Magistrates court dismissed the case on Thursday.

The women, who were all members of Women of Zimbabwe Arise – WOZA, spent four days in prison following their arrest on 14 February. They were released from custody on Tuesday and had to present themselves before the court for judgement.

“They had taken part in a peaceful demonstration on Valentines Day [...] the group were distributing red roses and Valentines cards to passers-by,” says Annie Sibanda, a spokesperson for WOZA.

Tactics by the police had delayed the hearing, after the police changed the charges filed against the women on Wednesday.

“The message to Zimbabweans was, let love light the way, we have a new unity government, we are calling on that government to prioritise peoples' needs, to prioritise education for our children,” Sibanda told RFI. “Government schools in Zimbabwe have still not opened this year and thousands of children are still not able to go to school.”

WOZA is a nonviolent civic group founded in 2002 by Jenni Williams who previously represented the Commercial Farmers' Union in the country.

“It has no political affiliation; we are simply asking politicians in both parties to stop the bickering, to stop putting party politics and power games in front of the needs of ordinary Zimbabweans […] concentrate on the suffering of the people of Zimbabwe,” adds Sibanda.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International urged the African Union and UN on Wednesday to send monitors to the country to evaluate human rights violations committed by security forces.

Cholera and hyperinflation in the country has also made the humanitarian situation particularly difficult.

“I would say that women and children are bearing the brunt of this crisis, generally it’s women who provide the care to those who are ill, many men have left the country in search of a better life, and to provide for their families left back home,” Sibanda told RFI. “In fact I don't think you'll find a single family in Zimbabwe that does not have at least one member in the diaspora – that’s the only way people are surviving.”

“It is women who have to boil the water in times of cholera, to search for food, to search for firewood because we have no electricity, and in many, many cases, its children as well [...] they have to pick up the burden of care for their families,” says Sibanda.