ZLHR CONDEMNS SAVAGE ATTACK ON HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER SHAVA

strongly condemns the savage attack on Obey Shava, a prominent and award winning human rights lawyer and urges law enforcement agents and prosecutorial authorities to thoroughly investigate, apprehend, prosecute and penalise the perpetrators of this heinous act.

Shava, a founding partner with Shava Law Chambers (Rights and Business Centre) and a member of ZLHR, was attacked on Wednesday 5 July 2023 by four unidentified men, who accosted him after masquerading as potential clients in need of legal assistance.

Before the assault, Shava had in the company of human rights lawyer Charles Kwaramba, spent much of the day at Mbare Police Station, where he had been invited for interviews and meetings by some Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) officers, who were reportedly carrying out some investigations into some “hotly” contested matter in Mbare, where he is a Chairperson of a certain board.

Some moments after the interviews and meetings, Shava reportedly received calls from some people, who were pretending to be potential clients in need of legal assistance and wanted to meet him.

Shava then met the so-called potential clients, who were four unidentified men and who were driving a Mercedes Benz vehicle with no registration number plates.

Upon meeting them, the four unidentified men thoroughly assaulted Shava and he sustained injuries and they also assaulted an assistant at his law firm, who managed to escape.

ZLHR condemns this barbaric form of violence against Shava as a violation of human rights as he has a right to live free from violence and mistreatment.

Shava has been an untiring advocate for justice and equality and has courageously stoopd up for the rights of oppressed persons and some marginalised communities.

We believe that this savage attack on Shava is a desperate attempt to silence him and deter him from carrying out his critical work as a legal practitioner.

Just like any other legal practitioner, Shava has a right to practice law without fear of retribution for carrying out his professional duties.

No lawyer should be assaulted, intimidated, hindered or interfered with in the execution of his professional duties.

Regardless of who a lawyer represents, they should be treated in a manner consistent with the provisions of the Constitution and those of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and those of the United Nations Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers.

The savage attack of Shava demonstrates the increasingly hazardous environment in which lawyers are carrying out their work in Zimbabwe.

The assault, harassment and interference with a lawyer in the course of execution of his professional duties is in direct contradiction to the United Nations Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers.

To allow legal practitioners to be able to fulfil their role in defending the rights and freedoms of citizens, without fear of assault and persecution, ZLHR calls upon law enforcement, prosecutorial authorities and government to:

Ensure and guarantee Shava’s safety, security and physical integrity and to ensure that legal practitioners are able to carry out their work free of fear, harassment or intimidation and to adequately protect the safety and independence of all lawyers and end the culture of impunity;

Allow legal practitioners to carry out their professional duties without interference and not to identify them with their clients’ causes;

Take immediate, meaningful steps to enable lawyers to carry out their professional duties safely and independently, and protect them against assault, intimidation, threats and other forms of reprisals;

Promptly and thoroughly investigate the assault of Shava with the aim of identifying those responsible and holding perpetrators accountable in order to serve justice and to prevent re-occurrence of violations;

Inculcate and create awareness about the core values underlying the legal profession, amongst others by bringing the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers to the attention of both state and non-state actors.

Source: Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights