Zimbabwe’s Information Minister calls Job Sikhala “a common criminal”

HARARE – Zimbabwe’s Information Minister Jenfan Muswere, has labeled opposition politician Job Sikhala a “common criminal” and dismissed claims of political persecution, saying his nearly 600-day stay in remand prison was due to his criminal activities.

Sikhala, a prominent lawyer and former opposition member of Parliament, was arrested on June 14, 2022, for allegedly inciting public violence and denied bail in what critics said was political persecution.

He was recently released from prison after serving 595 days in pretrial incarceration.

During a post-Cabinet media briefing in Harare, Muswere stated that Sikhala’s arrest was based on his criminal activities and not political persecution.

“He is not a political prisoner, and his claims of political persecution are in sharp contrast to his indisputable violation of the Criminal Codification and Reform Act,” said Muswere.

Sikhala had alleged political persecution during a recent Human Rights and Democracy summit in Geneva, Switzerland, stating that his arrest was a result of his political activism and opposition to the government.

Muswere, however, countered that, saying Sikhala’s conviction and acquittal in some of the cases attest to the impartiality and independence of the judiciary.

The Minister also criticised former leader of the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) Nelson Chamisa, for his recent statements about the country’s August 2023 Presidential elections being in dispute.

Muswere told Chamisa that the authority to govern the country is derived from the people of Zimbabwe, “who voted overwhelmingly for Zanu-PF and its Presidential candidate, President ED Mnangagwa.”

Sikhala delivered a speech at the Geneva summit, detailing his traumatic experiences in prison, including solitary confinement, denial of food and visits from relatives, and lack of access to medical care.

He alleged that his persecution reflects the suffering of countless Zimbabweans who have endured persecution for resisting the government.

“It is disheartening to disclose sad moments of traumatic experiences one has walked through in life as it gives persecutors the satisfaction of their evil deeds.

“I’m just one among thousands of Zimbabweans who have become victims of persecution in my country. My arrest was nothing more than political persecution,” he said.

“In my political career spanning more than three decades, I have been arrested 68 times by the authorities in Zimbabwe. In nearly all those cases, I was always found innocent.

“But on the 14th of June 2022, when I was 49 years old, with a wife and 11 children at home, yes, 11 children, I was arrested and thrown into prison. This time around, they refused to release me on bail.

“It was the only way Zimbabwe’s corrupt regime would distill the 2023 general elections, which they stopped me from contesting.”