On Friday, May 14 and Saturday, May 15, the IBJ Zimbabwe Team hosted a successful advanced defender skills training in Harare, Zimbabwe. Approximately fifty Harare-based lawyers attended the continuation of last years training, including a number of senior lawyers, some who have been practicing for approximately twenty years, and others who run the Legal Aid Directorate. Of the lawyers in attendance, forty were lawyers who agreed to take criminal cases of victims of torture or those at a high risk of being torture on behalf of IBJ over the past year.

On Friday, United States federal public defender, Anthony Natale gave detailed lectures on developing a theory on the case and cross examination, providing training on practical skills that attendants found helpful and said that they would use in their day-to-day practice.

In addition, distinguished Zimbabwean lawyer Alex Muchadehama gave a presentation on the security of criminal lawyers in Zimbabwe, highlighting that lawyers should call upon the state to enforce already existing measures to ensure their safety.In an enlightening discussion, lawyers spoke about the current state Zimbabwe and what this means for the legal system. Politically, they agreed, the inclusive government has lead to a number of legislative political compromises, which have particularly affected local criminal law. Additionally, separation of powers appears to have ceased to exist. The current economic status, they noticed, has lead to a number of problems within the criminal justice system, including mass corruption throughout the justice system, where bribes have become commonplace.

On Saturday, Anthony Natale led a cross-examination demonstration, in which every attending attorney had the chance to develop and ask questions of mock witnesses. Each participating lawyer, which was over 99% of the lawyers in attendance, found this to be the most practical and educational portion of the day.

Distinguished University of Zimbabwe Professor Feltoe gave a lecture on the importance of an independent judiciary, in which he highlighted problems of corruption and political interdependence that can be found in almost any country but particularly have plagued the criminal justice system in Zimbabwe as of late. He outlined how the Constitution of Zimbabwe, African Commission principles, UN principles, and Bagalore principles all require judicial independence , but formal legal pronouncements are not enough and that implementation and observation are fundamentally important.

The lawyers in attendance spoke about the values that they, as Zimbabwean lawyers, share, which include hope, endurance, commitment and professionalism. As a constituency of lawyers, they pledged to stand up for their shared values in order to break away from the cycle of corruption in the justice system and change the Zimbabwe criminal justice system for the better.

In Zimbabwe, the court is required, in certain instances, to hand down a death sentence. Under the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act of Zimbabwe, this mandatory death sentence is imposed upon all persons convicted of murder. In November 2009, Sheperd Mazango, of Harare, was convicted of murder and subsequently sentenced to death, as required of the Court under law. Through his lawyer, IBJ-Zimbabwe Fellow, Innocent Maja, he is challenging the constitutionality of the death sentence and its compulsory application, and petitioning that the death penalty be replaced by alternative, yet equally severe, legal sentences.

Specifically, the case against the state argues that the death penalty offends human dignity, constitutes inhumane and degrading punishment, and amounts to an arbitrary deprivation of life, all in breach of express or implicit provisions of the Zimbabwe Constitution. In addition to the aforementioned constitutional violations, the fact that a sentence of death is mandatory also denies citizens of their right to fair trial, violates the principle of separation of powers by depriving the judiciary of one of their essential functions, and, in practice, discriminates against indigent accused persons.

The petitioner describes hanging, the method used in Zimbabwe, as “horrendous, barbaric, inhumane, brutal, and uncivilized.” It focuses on the significant delays characteristic of Zimbabwe’s death row, stating that delays in execution lead to anxiety and severe emotional and physical trauma, particularly given current prison conditions. The case centers on the idea that prisoners retain some rights, even after conviction. Most fundamentally, under Zimbabwe’s Constitution, it maintains that all citizens have a right to be free from arbitrary deprivation of life and a right not to be subjected to cruel, inhumane and degrading punishments.

Though the last execution happened in 2003, currently, there are at least 49 prisoners on death row at Harare Central Prison. In the past, executions have been suspended for years due to a lack of a public hangman. While they wait, prisoners on death row have to deal with horrendous prison conditions. In Zimbabwe, twenty-five men are held in a single nine meters by four meters cell. Food portions are meager and consist of barely edible or spoilt food. Unsanitary conditions in both the over-crowded cells and the kitchen threaten the wellbeing of all prisoners.

Innocent became involved in this case after a junior lawyer at his law firm, assigned to the matter on a pro bono basis, represented Mazango during the trial in which he was convicted of murder and sentenced to death. Immediately, they decided to challenge the death penalty based on his sentence. For the purposes of monitoring the progress of the case closely and media interface, it was filed through Maja and Associates, Innocent’s law firm. Thus far, an application to the court has been filed, and both Innocent and Mazango await the state’s response, while the legal team prepares heads of argument to file with the court.

A number of state-sponsored Zimbabwe newspapers have featured Sheperd Mazango’s case, giving it a fair amount of in-state media attention. Recently, international newspapers have also expressed interest in the case. This attention comes as a result of interest and awareness in Zimbabwe on the rights of the accused. Conversely, the case and the media attention it receives are likely to attract a wider audience to the debate on the death penalty and rights retained by the accused in Zimbabwe.

According to Innocent, “Most indigent persons in Zimbabwe, who cannot afford legal counsel, are given inexperienced lawyers to represent them. Oftentimes, this leads to conviction and death sentences. It is a denial of justice. The death penalty is atrocious, in that it takes away human life. Once a human life is taken away, the rights of that person are taken away as well. The mode of killing (i.e. hanging) is horrendous, inhumane, and degrading. It is torturous.”

The month of May will be rich of colorful events in Zimbabwe. From May 14th-16th, a legal defense training will be conducted in Harare, with the aim to build on last year’s training conference by training the core group of IBJ volunteer lawyers at a more advanced level. All 40 members of the team of volunteer lawyers - who, along with IBJ fellows ‘efforts, have defended more than 130 detainees last year - will gather to discuss ways to leverage the existing legal framework to ensure systematic protection of the rights of the accused, in particular early access to counsel, freedom from torture and speedy trial. Lawyers from the Legal Aid Directorate, the State-sponsored legal aid organ, will engage with private lawyers on ways to strengthen the existing legal aid system and to expand access to justice to provinces, where legal needs remain widely unmet. The training will be led by Anthony Natale, a practicing trial lawyer for 30 years. Presently, he is a Supervising Assistant Federal Public Defender in Miami, Florida and the training coordinator for the Federal Defender Office for the Southern District of Florida. His experience as a criminal defense trainer in China, Vietnam and Zimbabwe will offer a comparative approach and inspire Zimbabwean lawyers to identify within their own laws provisions that can be leveraged to ensure speedy justice.

Above: The Supreme Court of Zimbabwe in Harare (Photo by Florence Chatira)

The training will promote an interactive approach where lawyers will be put in the situation to develop the theory of the case, interview a client and cross-examine witnesses. IBJ International Program Director, Sanjeewa Liyanage, and IBJ Zimbabwe Fellows, Innocent Maja and John Burombo will appeal to lawyers’ inner values and urge them to take action to improve the fair and speedy delivery of justice across the country. At the end of the training, lawyers will be offered the possibility to take pro-bono cases to stem the tide of the country’s legal needs. The last day of the training will be devoted to identifying and training senior lawyers become instructors/trainers themselves. The hope is to empower local lawyers with a set of teaching skills so that they can themselves later replicate legal defense trainings and mentor their peers throughout the country. Next regional training session in the Fall 2010 will integrate these local instructors in order to increase the sustainability of the training approach.

Above: The Mission Statement of the Zimbabwe Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs.

To ensure that Zimbabwean lawyers are able to learn “on the job”, follow-up one-on-one mentoring sessions will be conducted at IBJ’s Defender Resource Center in Harare on May 17th and 18th. Anthony Natale will spend time with lawyers to dissect the nuances of their case and help them more fully utilize the portfolio of lessons drawn from the training and the criminal defense handbook. The goal is to provide individualized and innovative solutions to challenges that arise from specific cases and help the accused get the most professional defense possible - especially in cases featuring homicide or other serious crime that could result in the death penalty.

As access to legal aid crucially lacks in provinces, the goal of the series of trainings is also to increase the total number of lawyers trained by reaching out to new areas where IBJ was not present before. Following activities in Harare, the IBJ team will head to Bulawayo to conduct a legal defense training on May 22nd and 23rd. Zimbabwe’s second biggest city, Bulawayo has a rich legal tradition which IBJ hopes to build upon to promote access to justice in Matabeleland North Province. The training will focus on increasing the capability of provincial lawyers to provide competent defenses to accused persons, particularly indigents, of which has been a problematic issue for many Zimbabweans. The training will explore a plethora of legal concepts such as cross-examination and procedures to prevent torture against prisoners, helping the participating lawyers in garnering invaluable skills and building a provincial movement in favor of the protection of the rights of the accused.

Above: Zimbabwean street vendors (Photo by Florence Chatira)

This series of trainings will be an opportunity to intensify awareness-raising and community-building activities by engaging with local partners, meeting lawyers, observing trials and visiting prisons.

On July 7, 2009, participants of IBJ-Zimbabwe’s first official roundtable discussion spoke passionately about the role of lawyers in decongesting Zimbabwe’s prisons. The discussion was chaired by IBJ Fellow, Innocent Maja. In attendance was Sanjeewa Liyanage, the IBJ Program Director, Professor Geoff Feltoe, five private practicing lawyers and representatives from the Law Society of Zimbabwe, Legal Resources Foundation, and Zimbabwe Association for Crime Prevention and Rehabilitation of the Offender (ZACRO).

Above: IBJ Fellow Innocent Maja leading a discussion. (Photo by Florence Chatira.)

Participants cited corruption, economic hardship, little resources, and shortage of transport to convey accused persons to court as causes of overcrowding. After much deliberation and IBJ Zimbabwe Fellow, John Burombo presented the concept paper and a moving story of how IBJ Zimbabwean fellows released 26 accused persons from remand prison, participants agreed that lawyers had an ethical obligation to represent indigent accused persons pro bono as one of the means to decongest prisons.

Above: John Burombo, an IBJ Laywer, presenting during the roundtable discussion.  (Photo by Florence Chatira.)

At the conclusion of the discussion, ZACRO (with the assistance of the Law Society of Zimbabwe and IBJ) undertook to create a database for indigent accused persons in remand prison in need of pro bono legal assistance. Legal practitioners present pledged to take up at least two cases a month pro bono and at a nominal fee, to help indigent incarcerated citizens.

Above: IBJ Program Director Sanjeewa Liyanage discussing criminal justice with a roundtable participant. (Photo by Florence Chatira.) 

The roundtable was a resounding success. In giving feedback about the roundtable, one participant stated that she had “learnt a lot of things” and another branded the event as “quite insightful and thought provoking.” As IBJ Zimbabwe Fellows look to organize their next roundtable, they are certain it will be another great success.

Above: Participants in the July 7 Roundtable dicussion in Harare.  (Photo by Florence Chatira.)