Apology Not Enough For Transitional Justice In Zimbabwe: Solusi youths

Retributive justice must be the result of an appropriate national healing process in Zimbabwe, Solusi students said.

During a public lecture organized by the NYDT on the topic: Confronting a culture of violence: challenges opportunities and gaps in the national healing process in Zimbabwe., students at Solusi University argued that any meaningful National healing process must have both retributive and restorative justice as its ultimate goal.

"A simple apology will not bring back the skilled labour that was killed during the Gukurahundi Massacres," said one of the students.

Young people stated that there is need to full calculate the economic cost of the Gukurahundi genocide and use that as a starting point for national healing in Zimbabwe. They argued further that Gukurahundi marked the beginning of the marginalization of Matabeleland which has lasted since then.

The students identified the organ on national healing as a useless body that will not lead to the achievement of true peace in Zimbabwe. The organ was compromised from inception through the inclusion of perpetrators. A proper national healing process must apolitical,non-partisan and have a punitive approach as its key driver. According to Solusi students Zimbabwe needs an independent Truth, Justice and Reconciliation commission with quasi-judicial mandate to enable it to carry out its mandate.

Security sector reform was also identified as key in any national healing programme in Zimbabwe. A non- partisan security sector is a pre-requisite to the creation of an environment which allows the victim to tell their story without fear of further victimization.  

Public lectures are part of NYDT programming that target students in tertiary institutions. These forums allow interaction among students on contemporary issues centred around peace building, human rights and democracy.