Demos must not infringe on other people’s rights

IN every state, one of the unconditional responsibilities of government, through its organs is to superintend over constitutionalism and protect life and property. It has to ensure that no excesses from perverted minority freedoms intrude upon popular basic human rights, children, freedoms of assembly and association as well as national peace.

It is at law that every human action must be legally checked so that it does not stimulate a negative propensity to excesses that infringe on other people’s rights. Peace, freedoms and rights are enshrined in the universal charters and domestic constitutions of every progressive nation.

Zimbabwe’s constitution and its subordinate statutory instruments provide for a litany of rights and freedoms that every human being unconditionally enjoys on day to day living.

Because life is sacrosanct, the constitution and all the subordinate laws uphold it and criminalise in a court of law any constructive, omission, social disobediences or violent impurities that lead to mass, callous or brutal extermination of human life or theft of private properties for whatever reason. From the universal law standpoint ,killing is unjustifiable and moves to ban death by hanging criminals of any dispositions confirms the government’s commitment to compliance to international conventions on the sanctity of life.

The constitution further provides for numerous rights for both adults and children. The government has an obligation to ensure that children have a right to clean water, parental care, basic health ,shelter, education and security. The law does not condone any act, by omission or commission that has an effect of violating the rights of children.

Apart from morally instigated abuse of children, society is fast getting seized with politically motivated child displacement, deaths, dropout from school and homelessness with ballooning street kids following the death of parents. The law also extensively covers property and no one can wantonly steal, take away by coercion or destroy another’s property for whatever reason.

Adults have freedoms of assembly and association that allow them to freely choose social or political groups to which they can be mutually affiliated.

The highest forms of associations manifests themselves in the form of one seeking voluntary membership in a political party. Zimbabwe is a pluralistic country where every Zimbabwean has a right to choose an organisation, union ,association or party to which to belong. Non Governmental organisations have also found space within the country’s democratic political landscape where they preach issues of good governance, constitutionalism and rule of law. Membership can freely act under the auspices of civil society or political parties to organise marches, backing workers strikes or staging peaceful demonstrations.

Bulawayo, Harare and some parts of the country were last week hit by a wave of school interruptions, looting from stores, supermarkets and food outlets, destruction of property including cars and loss of life in some cases.

This came at the backdrop of recent strikes by doctors. Teachers and other civil servants are also in the process of engaging government for a review of salaries and working conditions. By character, the strikes have never been known to be violent. However, the scenario was different last week. The demonstrators were looting from shops, burning cars, destroying property and beating up people, thus infringing on other people’s rights.

There is a fervent concern among citizens who assert that there are social or political miscreants who castrate, abuse, highjack, circumvent and arm twist democracy which allows legal demonstrations for their own selfish agendas.

Using the obdurate criminal antics, well coordinated young men and women working in common purpose unleashed a wave of violence and terror that brought some cities into a stand still. Schools were forced to close, scores of shops were broken into and looted, several cars were set ablaze and a police officer killed in Bulawayo. Vendors were also not spared.

A visibly terrified teacher in one of the primary schools located in Tshabalala, Bulawayo said a group of menacingly drunk youths descended on the school and ordered its immediate closure last Monday.

“We were fear-stricken. The group looked menacing and merciless. They ordered everyone out of school. They were about 15. We complied and left the school.”

Reacting to the restlessness, the Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Hon Monica Mutsvangwa said “the state is aware of numerous subversive meetings aimed at overthrowing an elected authority to replace it by an unelected person .”

She said the barbaric acts were in violation and abuse of Section 59 of the Constitution. She said to provide relief, the government had given allowances to all civil servants pending the conclusion of the matter under the National Joint Negotiation Council.