ZLHR shuts down offices

The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) has closed its offices for the annual shutdown from 18 December 2020 to 7 January 2021, however, the organisation says its lawyers will be at hand on call in urgent matters.

In a public notice, ZLHR said;

“During this period ZLHR will continue to attend to urgent matters, or emergencies through 24-hour hotlines countrywide.”

Meanwhile, ZLHR has various units that carry out different types of litigation in order to contribute to civil, political, economic and social justice and democratic reform in Zimbabwe.

Project lawyers work on constitutional litigation (challenging the constitutionality of various laws and state policies and practices and seeking to expand the Bill of Rights of the current Constitution); anti-impunity litigation (bringing civil claims for damages against named perpetrators in their official and personal capacities to reduce impunity and increase accountability of state and non-state actors for human rights violations against HRDs.

On public interest they work on (strategic/ impact) litigation (to expose potential perpetrators, or prevent or expose intended unlawful conduct by state and non-state actors); and socio-economic rights litigation (to promote social and economic justice and further development efforts in Zimbabwe).

The HRDs Unit was established to provide protection to human rights defenders who face human rights violations related to their work as individuals and also as institutions, groupings or associations.

The Unit plays a big role in the democratisation agenda of the country, and ensures that HRDs are not only able to continue with their work, but to do so in a safe environment.

Through a holistic, integrated approach, ZLHR’s provision of legal services as a safety net ensures that HRDs working on their own or in their communities advocating for their rights, are capacitated to effectively carry out their work in a safe environment.

Its main goal is to protect the rights and enhance the safety of human rights defenders through litigation, education and advocacy and to protect and defend human rights through sustainable litigation, education and advocacy which contributes positively to a culture of tolerance and adherence to democratic values and practices.

-Zwnews

Read the statement below: