By-Constitutional law expert Professor Lovemore Madhuku has secured bail for the opposition MDC-Alliance activist Makomborero Haruzivishe.

Wednesday, Professor Madhuku and his partner Simon Chabuka successfully convinced the High Court and secured Haruzivishe’s freedom.

Haruzivishe was arrested on 17 February 2021.

On 31 March he was convicted of “inciting public violence and resisting a peace officer”. The State’s case against him was that on 5 February 2020 Haruzivishe “blew a whistle to alert protesters to pounce on police during a protest”.

On 6 April 2021, magistrate Judith Taruvinga sentenced him to 24 months in prison with 10 months suspended. The prosecutor, Moses Mapanga, had argued for this unjustifiable custodial sentence.
Haruzivishe’s then lawyers, Kossam Ncube and Obey Shava, of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, appealed against the conviction. On 3 May, Justice Webster Chinamora heard submissions from both the State and defence, and reserved judgment. Then Justice Chinamora held on to the judgment for more than two months.

Only on 15 July did he rule to grant Haruzivishe Z$10,000 bail as he said his appeal had prospects of success. He was then transferred from Chikurubi maximum security prison to Harare remand prison, but instead of going home, because he has other cases pending for which he was denied bail.