By Crime and Courts Reporter- The late Transport Minister, Joel Biggie Matiza’s son, Batsirai, has been named in the forced disappearance of Environmental activist Nadia Vongai Mabvirakare.
Nadia was forcibly taken from her home in Chitungwiza last Wednesday evening by unknown men in what appears to be a politically motivated abduction.
Her disappearance is linked to a group of politically connected individuals, including Batsirai, who allegedly sought to seize control of her farming project in Murewa.
A police report has been filed at Makoni Police Station under RRB Number 6346710, yet authorities have made no progress in locating her.
Mabvirakare, a key figure in Green Rebirth, an environmental advocacy organization, played a pivotal role in resisting illegal land grabs disguised as development initiatives.
After realizing Matiza’s intentions to take over the Murewa project unlawfully, the Green Rebirth board urgently filed a High Court application to block the move.
On the same day the case was brought before the court, suspicious individuals, including a CID officer identified as Shenje from Murewa, were reportedly seen near her home.
That evening, as Mabvirakare stepped outside to lock her gate, she disappeared without a trace.
Mabvirakare’s case is the latest in a series of politically motivated abductions in Zimbabwe, where activists, opposition figures, and government critics have been targeted by suspected state security agents or individuals with strong ties to Zanu PF.
For decades, enforced disappearances have been used to instill fear and silence dissent.
The Gukurahundi massacres (1980s), the 2008 election violence, and more recent cases like the 2019 abduction and torture of MDC Alliance activists Joanna Mamombe, Cecilia Chimbiri, and Netsai Marova highlight a long-standing pattern of repression.
Most of these abductions follow a similar script: victims are seized by unidentified men, held incommunicado, tortured, and later dumped in remote areas—if they are found at all.
The government routinely denies involvement, while law enforcement agencies make little effort to investigate or hold perpetrators accountable.
Zanu PF officials and politically connected individuals have repeatedly weaponized state institutions, including the police, Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO), and military, to suppress dissent, intimidate opponents, and grab land and resources for personal gain.
Cases like Mabvirakare’s illustrate how politically connected elites operate with impunity, using violence and intimidation to assert control over economic and environmental resources.
Human rights groups and opposition leaders have condemned the abduction and demanded an urgent response from authorities.
Amnesty International, the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum, and other advocacy groups have called for an immediate investigation and the safe return of Mabvirakare.
However, with Zimbabwe’s history of state-sponsored violence, accountability remains elusive.
If history is any indicator, authorities may ignore, downplay, or outright deny their role in the disappearance, as they have in numerous past cases.
Mabvirakare’s family, colleagues, and fellow activists are urging international organizations, diplomatic missions, and civil society to intervene and push for her release.