Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights Alert
Zimbabwean police have arrested a woman and her toddler in connection with the alleged bombing of some Zanu PF sub-offices in Harare’s high density suburb of Highfield.
Spiwe Pambayi aged 32, together with her one year-old baby, Clifford Mbewe, endured two nights in police custody, first at Machipisa Police Station and later on at the notorious Harare Central Police Station, after she was arrested on Saturday 28 September 2013.
Police alleged that an informant purportedly overheard the 32 year-old Pambayi, who is self-employed as a vendor, boasting that “fire-fire operation yatakaita nezuro yakabudirira,” which the police translated to mean “the fire-fire operation that we conducted yesterday (Friday night) was a success”.
Pambayi, who denied the allegation when police detectives recorded a warned a cautioned statement from her in the company of her lawyer Charles Kwaramba of Mbidzo, Muchadehama and Makoni Legal Practitioners was released on Monday 30 September 2013 after the detectives indicated that they would carry out further investigations.
According to media reports, the Zanu PF offices were allegedly petrol-bombed during an attack which reduced the offices together with an adjacent supermarket, Grocery World Supermarket to ashes.
