Fear of executions as Zimbabwe appoints hangman

By Beatrice Obwocha

Fear is rife that Zimbabwe will start executing prisoners again following media reports that a new hangman has been appointed.

The Robert Mugabe led Government has not conducted executions since 2005, the same year Zimbabwe’s hangman retired.

Amnesty International has termed the appointment as disturbing and said the move indicates that the country does not want to abolish executions.

Amnesty International’s southern Africa director Noel Kututwa said in a statement that the death penalty is a violation of right to life.

Zimbabwe has a new draft Constitution which will be put to referendum in the next few months. The draft new Constitution exempts women, men under 21 at the time of the crime and the over 70s from the death penalty. It also prohibits the imposition of the death penalty as a mandatory punishment.

Kututwa said the death penalty should be abolished fully in the new Constitution regardless of gender and the circumstances in which a crime was committed.

“We oppose the death penalty in all cases without exception regardless of the nature of the crime, the characteristics of the offender, or the method used by the state to kill the prisoner,” said Kututwa

He said that Amnesty International is aware of at least 76 people on death row in Zimbabwe at present. Of these 76, only two are women.

The practical impact of the provisions under the current draft to exempt women would therefore not significantly reduce the use of the death penalty.