Healing the dead to heal the living Reflections by Shari Eppel At a time when former president Robert Mugabe’s government avoided debate on Gukurahundi massacres to an extent that talk about the bloody past was criminalised, a human rights activist was helping the victims find closure by identifying remains of their relatives for decent burials....
As the Nation Gears for a Difficult Conversation on the Past The Code of Inclusion: Guiding Principles on Inclusive Public Consultation and Participation in Transitional Justice Processes in Zimbabwe Today we introduce the Code of Inclusion The Code of Inclusion is an answer to the questions that we have been grappling with for the past...
Remarks at the Launch of the UN and World Bank Global Report ‘Pathways for Peace: Inclusive Approaches to Preventing Violent Conflict.’ On 5 October 2018 in Harare Allow me to recognise the Honourable Vice President Mohadi, honourable representatives of government departments, the United Nations Resident Coordinator Mr. Bishow Parajuli, the Chairperson of the National Peace...
On 26 June 2018, Zimbabwe joined the rest of the world in commemorating the United Nations Day in Support of Victims of Torture. This commemoration is important in reminding perpetrators especially those aligned to the state that the crimes committed will not be forgotten just like that. On the other hand, it serves to remind...
Zimbabweans have been urged to give the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC) a chance as it prepares to start its work. This was said by Alec Muchadehama, Chairperson of the National Transitional Justice Working Group (NTJWG) in his message at the launch of the group’s latest publication, The Guide to Understanding the NPRC. In...
Legislators from the Thematic Committee on Peace and Security, Thematic Committee on Human Rights and the Portfolio Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs converged in the capital on Monday April 3 2017 to reflect on the fate of the National Peace and Reconciliation Bill (NPRC Bill) following the conclusion of the public hearings. At...
“Zimbabwe is yearning for peace and justice. At the root of that yearning is a cry for reconciliation and forgiveness.” These words, recorded in that forgotten 2006 discussion document, ‘The Zimbabwe We Want’, remain true today as Zimbabwe gears itself for the work of national peace and reconciliation. Almost three years after the Constitution established...
From 23 to 24 July 2015, 63 delegates representing 56 organisations from various transitional justice stakeholders converged in Nyanga, Zimbabwe; where they adopted the Guiding Principles for Transitional Justice Policy and Practice in Zimbabwe. Speaking at the opening of the conference, the Chairperson of the National Transitional Justice Working Group (NTJWG) Mr. Alec Muchadehama said...
Writing in National Healing and Reconciliation in Zimbabwe: Challenges and Opportunities (IJR, 2010), former Deputy Chairperson of the National Transitional Justice Working Group (NTJWG), Dr. Pamela Machakanje says, “Roads and bridges, for example, are given priority over issues of justice and national healing despite the fact that coming to terms with past injustices is an...
The recently gazetted National Peace and Reconciliation Bill (NPRC Bill) is blatantly unconstitutional and an insult to the sincerity Zimbabweans, the National Transitional Justice Working Group in Zimbabwe (NTJWG) has said. Speaking to stakeholders and journalists at a briefing meeting held at the Media Centre in Harare on Friday January 8, 2015, renowned human rights...
