ZHRC officials need to brush up their act

THERE is no doubt in my mind that Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) will continue to witness dwindling attendance figures at its “report back” meetings.

The reasons are attributed to many factors, but it will suffice to mention one or two of them which, regrettably, are of ZHRC's own making, advertently or inadvertently, or even a combination of both.

Not so long ago, the commission held a report back meeting in the Matabeleland North province.

Unfortunately, the attendance was drastically low, rock bottom low even by comparison with the previous meeting.

Either the low attendance reflected the negligible number of invitations extended to the residents of the province or it was because judging by the previous gathering, the people saw no value in the commission's outreach endeavours.

Whatever the case might be, people are quite at liberty to take a position or hold an opinion or both at the same time.

However, personally I take a diametrically opposite assessment than take a position or hold an opinion. A post-mortem is appropriate, instructive and informative.

ZHRC management should know that the people they invite to their gatherings need to be taken not for granted, but seriously as they consciously set aside or reschedule their commitments for the day. They deserve to be rewarded both financially and food-wise.

This is the norm worldwide. The invitees are usually leaders of the organisations and/or communities and are a vital component of the information and statistical data without which ZHRC work would not be worth the paper it is printed on.

It is very disrespectful that after the meeting has ended, people wait for food for two hours, and the meeting itself will have commenced 60 minutes or 90 minutes late. People need to be respected, as I have said before.

On a more serious note, ZHRC is a State-funded institution. Therefore, it should not reimburse the chiefs only in respect of travel allowances or other senior government officials.

The locals too deserve a token financial “thank you” for their input, without which the commission would not fulfil its national mandate.

ZHRC should not be so blatantly tight-fisted and mutely mean and stingy. The ZHRC should not discriminate on the basis of status or position. This is against the national Constitution.

There is an even more serious and disturbing dimension to the ZHRCs organisational approach at its meetings. The officials will always impose their demand on the audience to clap their hands when a chief has spoken or simply said “Salibonani, linjani? (Hello, how are you)”

The audience is manipulated and treated like animated toys. Personally, I don't clap my hands because the status or position of the speaker was of the content of the speech or contribution.

At one of the gatherings in Matabeleland North province, one of the ZHRC officials actually stated that “I see some of you don't clap hands when a chief has spoken”, or something to that effect. People are not at these gatherings for chiefs. In the end, ZHRC audiences will be drawn mainly from traditional leaders and government departments.

It becomes too monotonously repetitive to be told “mutshayeleni izandla (clap hands for him/her)” even if I disagree with the speaker.

To the ZHRC officials, everyone who attends their meetings is a minor who must be told to clap hands. I think they need to brush up on their act before engaging the communities.

It's none of the ZHRC's officials business to observe who among the audience is or is not clapping hands to the chief. Clapping hands is a personal choice exclusive to an individual, please.

The provincial development coordinator (PDC)'s office and its staff are not part of ZHRC. The office of the PDC is largely a political one.

Martin Stobart