Police brutality must be stopped

REPORTS of arbitrary arrests, beatings and shootings by police demonstrate that Zimbabwe – almost 37 years after the overthrow of the colonial regime – has so far failed to give human rights sufficient priority in its agenda for reform.

Rampant police brutalities also highlight a disregard for human rights by the country’s law enforcement officials and a lack of legal and institutional reforms on the part of the authorities.

In our NewsDay Weekender issue on Saturday, we carried a report that 10 police officers – including one female – allegedly forced a Victoria Falls woman to sit on caustic soda, badly burning her backside and privates in a shocking incident.

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