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IN PICTURES: Gay-Couple In Demo At Zim Consulate In Capetown
12 April 2021
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ZIMBABEAN GAY CRUSADERS LGBTQIA+ PETITION TO THE GOVERNMENT OF THE

REPUBLIC OF ZIMBABWE 

PETITION TO BE HANDED OVER AT THE 

ZIMBABWEAN CONSULATE

CAPE TOWN

REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA

12 APRIL 2021

Contact Information

Director:       Shingerai Promise Musekiwa

Contact No:  +27 (0) 84 *******

Introduction

Zimbabwe Gay Crusaders (ZGC) is a movement which was formed by LGBTQIA+ Zimbabwean citizens residing in South Africa. The movement is incorporated under a founding Constitution which subscribes to universal human rights, freedoms, and social liberties for LGBTQIA+ persons globally. 

ZGC is an independent and non-partisan formulation advocating for the rights of LGBTQIA+ people in the Republics of South Africa and Zimbabwe alike. The movement stands to foster and develop programmes that will influence policy and legislative development in Zimbabwe, promote inclusivity, respect and basic human rights, as well as freedoms for LGBTQIA+ people in Zimbabwe and in Africa. In addition, ZGC will carry out programmes which will assist civilian outreach by educating communities and the public around the LGBTQIA+ community and all matters relating to such persons. 

The movement exists to accommodate a neglected space in Zimbabwe’s efforts to promote and develop basic human rights and vouch for the inclusivity of LGBTQIA+ persons who remains neglected by the Zimbabwean Constitution. 

ZGC is an a-political organisation which strives to become a recognised voice for LGBTQIA+ persons regardless of political and religious affiliation. The challenges the movement stand to address relate to gender and sexual orientation injustices and will conduct all its activities in direct relation to these social dispositions.

There exist fundamental issues affecting LGBTQIA+ persons which went unaddressed for extensive periods of time, the movement will serve as a catalyst to craft solutions and pioneer its implementation to ensure that a harmonious environment is created, catering specifically for LGBTQIA+ people minority groups.

LGBTQIA+ Assessment in Zimbabwe

ZGC is a formation of LGBTQIA+ Zimbabwean citizens seeking to uphold the basic human rights of LGBTQIA+ people; which the implementation is monitored by the Human Rights Committee. Zimbabwe has affirmed its commitment to filling this convention by signing and ratifying the convention in 1996. Part of the country’s commitment to fulfilling the obligations of this convention is that it must submit to a periodic review by the Human Rights Committee on its progress in achieving the aim of the convention. Stakeholders such as civil society organisations may participate in this process by submitting evidence-based reports and queries to the Human Rights Committee, which (if accepted), will form part of the List of Issues Prior to Reporting (LOIPR). The main idea of the LOIPR is that the State is now obligated to reply to the questions in the document that was adopted by the Human Rights Committee. Civil society can do the same, in an alternative report. These replies will then form the basis of the review that will take place in a few years’ time.

TREAT, though the support of the Out and Proud Project, made a submission to the Human Rights Committee for the Zimbabwe periodic review of 2020. This submission was derived through a consultative process which consisted of focus group discussions with community members, and civil society organisations that included, but was not limited to, LGBTQIA+ organisations.

The Human Rights Committee accepted the report, and noted the following issues to be addressed in the Zimbabwe country review:

  1. LGBTQIA+ persons in Zimbabwe experience a climate of intimidation, stigma and discrimination which may exclude them from society, affect their access to public services and job opportunities. Numerous LGBTQIA+ persons have lost their jobs, been expelled from education, or been evicted once their sexual orientation has been revealed. During the discussions held with members of the LGBTQIA+ community in preparation of this report in July 2020, stigma and discrimination were highlighted as major issues of concern. Public attitudes towards LGBTQIA+ persons are generally intolerant, thus LGBTQIA+ persons generally do not openly express their sexuality or gender identity in their workplaces, or within their families. Some authorities are also reported to arbitrarily harass LGBTQIA+ persons on the grounds of indecency and public order offences.
  1. Criminalization of same sex relations creates a hostile environment for LGBTQIA+ people and has a hampering effect on national initiatives for the realisation of health-related development goals for the nation. This factor coupled with religious leader’s rhetoric, which singles out and targets LGBTQIA+ communities specifically, further exacerbate this. In addition, criminalisation of same sex relations ultimately has a severe negative effect on the mental health of the LGBTQIA+ community, which often results in depression, anxiety, substance abuse and suicidal ideation. Lastly, laws and policies which are not LGBTQIA+ inclusive, further alienate them from full and active citizenry. The decriminalisation of same sex relations is one of the key recommendations for Zimbabwe.
  1. Transgender and intersex individuals have faced numerous challenges, the lack of accurate and timely data on transgender identities and intersex persons makes them “invisible” and exacerbate their vulnerability. The issue of gender markers continues to be an issue for the transgender community. For as long as gender markers are disregarded, the transgender and intersex community continue to be side-lined and made to feel like they have no place in society, which contributes to the existing stigma and discrimination they already face. Which explains the high level of stigma and discrimination faced. There is currently no legislation regarding gender identity and transgender people are not legally acknowledged.
  1. Hate crimes have continued unabated in Zimbabwe and this is evidenced by the September 2018 incident at which, a teacher at a Harare school who came out as gay resigned after he received death threats from members of the public over his sexual orientation. Also, violence against the LGBTQIA+ community has continued without any justice served.
  1. The current Zimbabwean human rights landscape is under scrutiny due to tensions evidenced by the recent clampdowns of protests against the corruption and human rights violations perpetrated in the name of Covid19 response restrictions. Generally, the right to demonstrate has usually been politicised or viewed as anti-government protests which has also affected the already discriminated LGBTQIA+ serving organisations in terms of visibility and opportunity to highlight the disproportionate experiences of their communities during this period. The government of Zimbabwe recently enacted the Maintenance of Peace and Order (MOPA) which regulates people’s rights to protest. Section 2 of MOPA speaks, on most provisions that rehash that of the Public Order and Security Act (POSA). It reconstitutes the conflation of public demonstrations and public meetings under the moniker of public gatherings. This ensures the police maintain their regulatory powers over the assemblage of both a demonstrative and deliberative nature. This conflation also allows the risks normally associated with violent protests to be used as a basis for regulating public meetings. It increases the scope of government powers whilst restricting the exercise of fundamental freedoms. While this may seek to promote public order it also restricts LGBTQIA+ serving organisations from highlighting the plight of their constituents relating to the violence and discriminatory practices faced by the LGBTQIA+ persons in their harsh, lived realities as marginalised citizens. This, considering the backdrop of raids of LGBTQIA+ gatherings and visibility initiatives under the previous administration.

It is on this background that the Human Rights Committee will engage with the Zimbabwe’s government on its plans to address these issues. It will also encourage the Zimbabwean government to work in collaboration with LGBTQIA+ organisations to guide its process in ensuring it meets its ICCPR obligations.

Objectives of this Petition

  • Repeal laws banning the legal right to: 
  • Promote anti-discrimination rights in employment, housing, education, the public and private sector, hospitality and all sectors of economic activity.
  • Introduce anti-bullying legislation to protect LGBTQIA+ children at schools, community institutions and all sectors of society. 
  • Recall laws promoting hate crimes, policies and legislation imposing enhanced criminal penalties for prejudice-motivated violence against LGBTQIA+ people
  • Redeploy bathroom bills affecting access to sex-segregated facilities for transgender people
  • Review:
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