As women we are failing to come into terms with the level of inhumane treatment of our daughters Ceclia, Joana and Netsai by the regime’s state security. The trio were taken by police at a roadblock after staging a flash demonstration over hunger with other youths in Warren Park on Wednesday afternoon. They were taken to Harare Central Police Station and they told alerted leadership that they were indeed at Police Station. People who went there could not find them and also checked in all police stations to no avail.

They were later dumped along Bindura road at a certain homestead heavily beaten and tortured by state security. They were sexually assaulted, made to sing and toyi toyi, called all sorts of names and accused of wanting to overthrow an elected government. This was all denounced by President Chamisa during his presser at the hospital after seeing the girls. We are so concerned as the Assembly of Women that the state can target harmless women, with no guns at all and beat them for merely exercising their rights. These youths leaders were only highlighting the plight of all Zimbabweans who are dying of hunger under lockdown. Their constitutional rights were violated by the state security who actually are supposed to be protecting them.

We condemn this barbaric act in its strongest term and demand that justice prevail by bringing these perpetrators to book. We note with great concern that this has been going on for quiete a long time and perpetrators have just been left scot free.

We would want to unequivocally state that women’s rights are human rights and no woman must be subjected to this kind of treatment by anyone particularly the state. We will do every thing we can to make sure that our girls get justice. We are hurt as mothers and we are feeling the same pain as them and we say NO to Abductions and torture of innocent citizens especially the youth who are the leaders of today and not tomorrow.

We call upon all women and Women’s Organisations to stand up against state brutality and Women rights violations. We call upon International Organisations to speak out about Mnangagwa’s brutality and abuse of human rights. Zimbabwe is a signatory to so many human rights protocols, conventions and charters that are binding.

We would like to wish our girls speedy recovery and we are going to stand with them in solidarity until justice prevails. We end by saying state torture is an International crime and must be dealt with accordingly.

Barbara Tanyanyiwa
Spokesperson
MDC Alliance Assembly of Women