'ZImbabwe reserves the right to sue Britain over heroes' skulls'

Lawyers in Zimbabwe have reportedly said that the country reserves the right to sue Britain over heroes' skulls displayed at British museums.

This comes after President Robert Mugabe said early this week that his government was set to repatriate the skulls of the country's fallen heroes which were taken to Britain during the colonial era.

Speaking during the country's Heroes Day commemorations in Harare, Mugabe said Britain had invited Zimbabwe to collect the remains, adding that the repatriation of the skulls would afford the war heroes decent burials.

Mugabe castigated Britain for having kept the skulls as "war trophies" in the British History Museum.

Legal experts in Harare said Zimbabwe reserved the right to sue for brutality in terms of international legal instrument.

"There are international conventions to recovery and restoration. The Mau Mau people in Kenya did the same [over the torture they were subjected to by the settler regime]; they sued the United Kingdom and won their case. We could follow the same route and our chances are quite good," Harare lawyer, Terence Hussein was quoted as saying.

Another lawyer, Jonathan Samkange said Zimbabwe could claim for damages against the UK, adding that the country could also sue Britain over the brutality of former prime minister Ian Smith's government.

The lawyers said Britain's continued holding of the heroes' remains was "despicable and unjustifiable" in a modern society.

Layer Tendai Toto said Britain owed Zimbabwe "unconditional apology" for keeping the skulls as "human trophies".

Some researchers believed other heroes like Mbuya Nehanda and Sekuru Kaguvi were hanged and their heads were also taken overseas.