Amnesty International Exerts Pressure On Mnangagwa to Abolish Death Penalty – Eduzim News

By A Correspondent

Amnesty International Zimbabwe has intensified its call for the abolition of the death penalty in Zimbabwe, urging President Emmerson Mnangagwa to swiftly sign the Death Penalty Abolition Bill into law.

The bill, which passed through Zimbabwe’s Senate on December 11, 2024, is now awaiting the President’s assent.

If signed into law, it would mark a significant step toward ending the practice of capital punishment in the country.

Amnesty International Zimbabwe’s Executive Director, Lucia Masuka, expressed the organization’s strong support for the bill’s passage.

In a statement released on Thursday, Masuka described the Senate’s vote as “a major step by Zimbabwe towards the abolition of the death penalty.”

She further emphasized that the decision was a victory for those who have fought relentlessly for the protection of human life.

“It is also a victory for all those who have tirelessly campaigned to consign this cruel punishment to history and strengthen the protection of the right to life and other human rights,” Masuka said.

The bill’s passage follows years of advocacy by human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, which has been campaigning for the global abolition of the death penalty since 1977.

While Zimbabwe has made progress in limiting its use — including an unofficial moratorium on executions — courts continue to impose death sentences. Zimbabwe last carried out an execution in 2005, and President Mnangagwa has periodically commuted death sentences to life imprisonment.

Amnesty International commended Zimbabwe’s legislative efforts to end the death penalty, calling them “progressive.”

Masuka added, “We urge the President to take heed of this historic landmark decision by signing this draft act without delay and commuting all death sentences to prison terms.” She further emphasized that “The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment and has no place in our world.”

Despite the country’s progress, the use of the death penalty remains a contentious issue.

Amnesty’s continued advocacy highlights the importance of fully removing it from Zimbabwe’s legal framework and securing human rights protections for all.

As the bill now awaits Mnangagwa’s signature, Amnesty International and other human rights organizations are closely watching the President’s next move, hoping that Zimbabwe will join the growing list of countries that have abolished capital punishment.

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