News / Local
Zimbabwe's Patriotic Bill imposes death on 'sell-outs'
02 Jun 2023 at 13:19hrs | Views
Zanu-PF Wednesday invoked its parliamentary majority to muscle through, the controversial Criminal Law Amendment Bill - better known as the Patriotic Bill - which seeks to impose death, at the very extreme, on citizens "willfully damaging the sovereignty and national interest of Zimbabwe".
The law, fiercely opposed by the opposition, sailed through with a 99 affirmative vote while 17 opposed it.
CCC legislator for Harare West Joanna Mamombe said Zanu-PF MPs overwhelmed the opposition to pass the draconian law.
"The Patriotic Bill was passed by Parliament last night despite our spirited opposition as legislators. Unfortunately, Zanu-PF has the majority that voted for its passing," she said.
Among its gamut of punishable offences, the law criminalises active participation by citizens in meetings inside and outside Zimbabwe on issues of military intervention, subverting, upsetting, overthrowing or overturning the constitutional government, or on economic sanctions and trade boycotts.
The law seeks to punish any person who engages foreign governments' officials or embassies without prior government authorisation amid strong fears this could endanger the works of journalism.
The proposed law, also expected to be passed by the Zanu-PF dominated senate before it could get presidential accent, is widely seen as targeted at opposition politicians, accused of selling out after engaging western government officials to impose sanctions on government officials, military top brass and associated firms.
In a statement Thursday, the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) said provisions of the law are "vague, lack certainty, are imprecise and are thus prone to abuse by the law enforcement".
"The Bill does not define sovereignty and national interest, which could be interpreted broadly and subjectively to criminalise the legitimate conduct of those asserting their freedom of expression," said the lawyers' group.
The law has extra territorial effect, meaning one could be charged in Zimbabwe for allegedly committing the crimes on foreign land.
Added ZLHR, "Of grave concern in the Bill are the excessive penalties for willfully injuring the sovereignty and national interest of Zimbabwe which include the death penalty, lengthy imprisonment, revocation of citizenship, prohibition from being registered as a voter or voting at an election for a period of at least five years".
ZLHR said the inclusion of the death penalty in the law violates section 48 of the national constitution which only prescribes capital punishment on persons convicted of murder in aggravating circumstances.
The government maintains there is nothing controversial about the law, drawing comparisons with the Logan Act in the United States which criminalises negotiation by unauthorised American citizens with foreign governments having a dispute with the United States.
Only two people have ever been indicted on charges of violating the Logan Act, one in 1802 and the other in 1852. Neither was convicted.
The law, fiercely opposed by the opposition, sailed through with a 99 affirmative vote while 17 opposed it.
CCC legislator for Harare West Joanna Mamombe said Zanu-PF MPs overwhelmed the opposition to pass the draconian law.
"The Patriotic Bill was passed by Parliament last night despite our spirited opposition as legislators. Unfortunately, Zanu-PF has the majority that voted for its passing," she said.
Among its gamut of punishable offences, the law criminalises active participation by citizens in meetings inside and outside Zimbabwe on issues of military intervention, subverting, upsetting, overthrowing or overturning the constitutional government, or on economic sanctions and trade boycotts.
The law seeks to punish any person who engages foreign governments' officials or embassies without prior government authorisation amid strong fears this could endanger the works of journalism.
The proposed law, also expected to be passed by the Zanu-PF dominated senate before it could get presidential accent, is widely seen as targeted at opposition politicians, accused of selling out after engaging western government officials to impose sanctions on government officials, military top brass and associated firms.
In a statement Thursday, the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) said provisions of the law are "vague, lack certainty, are imprecise and are thus prone to abuse by the law enforcement".
"The Bill does not define sovereignty and national interest, which could be interpreted broadly and subjectively to criminalise the legitimate conduct of those asserting their freedom of expression," said the lawyers' group.
The law has extra territorial effect, meaning one could be charged in Zimbabwe for allegedly committing the crimes on foreign land.
Added ZLHR, "Of grave concern in the Bill are the excessive penalties for willfully injuring the sovereignty and national interest of Zimbabwe which include the death penalty, lengthy imprisonment, revocation of citizenship, prohibition from being registered as a voter or voting at an election for a period of at least five years".
ZLHR said the inclusion of the death penalty in the law violates section 48 of the national constitution which only prescribes capital punishment on persons convicted of murder in aggravating circumstances.
The government maintains there is nothing controversial about the law, drawing comparisons with the Logan Act in the United States which criminalises negotiation by unauthorised American citizens with foreign governments having a dispute with the United States.
Only two people have ever been indicted on charges of violating the Logan Act, one in 1802 and the other in 1852. Neither was convicted.
Source - zimlive
