Lockdown to shutdown: How COVID-19 stifled digital rights in Zimbabwe · Global Voices
A police officer wearing a protective anti-virus mask talks with a motorist at a checkpoint in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, April 20, 2020. Photo by <PERSON> / ILO via Flickr/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
On the morning of July 30, 2020, Zimbabweans awoke to the presence of heavily armed soldiers standing ready to crush anti-government protesters scheduled to take to the streets the following day. No one was permitted entry into the central business district. 424
The official line was that protests were prohibited in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
A few days prior, social media — particularly WhatsApp and Twitter — was abuzz with citizens sharing Virtual Private Network (VPN) applications to download, just in case the government shut down the internet again, as they did during protests in January 2019.
COVID-19 and its subsequent government policies have had far-reaching implications on digital rights and media freedom in Zimbabwe.
A state of disaster was declared by Zimbabwe on March 20, 2020, following the World Health Organization’s declaration of COVID-19 as a pandemic. Subsequently, a national lockdown and prohibition of gatherings were legislated in the form of Statutory Instrument (SI) 83 of 2020 titled “Public Health (COVID-19 Prevention, Containment and Treatment) (National Lockdown) Order, 2020.”
Although the SI predates protests planned for July, authorities used this particular piece of legislation to clamp down on digital rights and other civil liberties protected in the constitution.
Digital rights under siege
Since January 2019, when anti-government demonstrations turned violent and resulted in several deaths after security used excessive force against protesters, Zimbabwe’s government has been on edge.
The government tightened their COVID-19 regulations just as anti-government protest plans began to circulate online.
The ruse of using COVID-19 as an excuse to clamp down on digital rights all began on July 20, when media headlines read that a Zimbabwean journalist who had exposed alleged government corruption involving coronavirus medicines supplies had been charged with inciting public violence.
Journalist <PERSON> had reported on a coronavirus-related fraud case involving a $60 million United States dollar PPE procurement, which led to the arrest and sacking of Health Minister <PERSON>.
<PERSON> faced charges of inciting public violence after he allegedly called for an end to corruption before the planned anti-government protests slated for July 31.
<PERSON>, the permanent secretary in the Information Ministry, said that nobody, including journalists, were above the law.
There is no profession which is above the law.
-Journalists are not above the law.
-Lawyers are not above the law
-Doctors and nurses are not above the law.
-Politicians & bankers are not above the law.
Anyone suspected to have commited a crime should be subjected to due process.
— <PERSON> (@nickmangwana) July 20, 2020
On July 20, <PERSON> arrested together with <PERSON>, leader of a small opposition party called Transform Zimbabwe, for allegedly participating in plans for an anti-government demonstration.
<PERSON> appeared in court on July 22, facing charges of planning to incite public violence. Both arrests were tied to tweets deemed provocative by the state.
They were charged with violating Section 187 (1) (a) as read with Section 37 (1) (a) (i) of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act, Chapter 9:23, “incitement to participate in public violence.”
On the day of <PERSON> arrest, his Twitter handle was taken down, although it was not clear by whom.
SI 83 had been in effect since May, but President <PERSON> then declared a dusk-to-dawn curfew curtailing people’s movement, purportedly to stem the spread of COVID-19 infections in the country.
Activists charge that this move was clearly aimed at stopping planned anti-government protests on July 31. In anticipation, security forces displayed an overwhelming readiness to quell protests.
Human Rights Watch Southern Africa director <PERSON> told Global Voices that the state had, in effect, weaponized the law to silence dissent:
The Zimbabwe authorities have been using the COVID-19 pandemic as an excuse to clampdown on the opposition and deny citizens their rights, particularly crushing the right to peaceful protests even where those protests comply with COVID-19 regulations.
The arrest and detention of journalist <PERSON> harassment, it is persecution through prosecution meant to silence other journalists through fear.
<PERSON> was arrested for a third time in five months on January 9, for another controversial tweet. 424