Amnesty urges Mnangagwa to reject Patriotic Bill as grave assault on human rights

Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for East and Southern Africa Flavia Mwangovya has urged President Emmerson Mnangagwa to reject the Patriotic Bill as a “grave assault on human rights”.

The Patriotic Bill, a clause in the Criminal Law Codification and Reform Amendment Bill 2022 which criminalises “wilfully damaging the sovereignty and national interest of Zimbabwe”, sailed through Parliament last week and the Senate this week. It now awaits Presidential assent.

Mwangovya urged Mnangagwa not to sign it citing that it adds to the existing plethora of offences punishable by death in Zimbabwe.

“The passing of the ‘Patriotic Bill’ by the Senate is deeply concerning and signals a disturbing crack down on Zimbabweans’ rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association.

“The weaponization of the law is a desperate and patent move to curtail the rights to freedom of expression and to public participation in elections due in August this year,” Mwangovya said.

“The Bill’s deliberately vague and overly broad provisions on damaging Zimbabwe’s interest and sovereignty, including by calling for economic sanctions, flies in the face of Zimbabwe’s international human rights obligations.

“All laws must be defined precisely, allowing people to know exactly which acts will make them criminally liable.

“The Bill, if passed into law, could give authorities greater powers to unduly restrict human rights, and worryingly, it would allow for imposing the death penalty against those perceived as being critical of the government, including political activists, human rights defenders, journalists, civil society leaders, opposition parties, and whistle-blowers.

“We are deeply concerned that the Bill adds to the existing plethora of offences punishable by death in Zimbabwe.

“We call upon the President to reject this bill. The government of Zimbabwe must urgently ensure that it abides by its obligations under international human rights law.”

The Criminal Law Codification and Reform Amendment Bill, 2022, criminalizes anyone caught “wilfully injuring the sovereignty and national interest of Zimbabwe” and those who participate in meetings with the intention of promoting calls for economic sanctions against the country.

Analysts argue that, if passed, the law would open the door to violations of the human rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association. The penalties provided by the Bill range from loss of citizenship, denial of the right to vote and the death penalty.