Justice Minister Criticised For Permitting Police To "Shoot" Mashurugwi

Justice Minister, Ziyambi Ziyambi has been criticised for his remarks which indicated that the government has given the police authority to shoot machete gangs popularly known as Mashurugwi.

The minister had, in an audio-recorded interview with VOA said that killing of terrorists was common practice worldwide. He said:

Even in America terrorists are killed, machete criminals are terrorists, I talked to the Minister of Homes Affairs for the police to shoot them.

The people called Mashurugwi will be arrested, we will deny them bail because they would threaten their victims after bail application.

He also said that Mashurugwi has become a threat to public security as a result measures are being taken by his ministry and the Ministry of Homes Affairs to enable the police to shoot the gang when need be.

Some legal practitioners have however said that the order is likely to create “another Gukurahundi” referring to the killings which occurred in Matebeleland and some parts of Midlands on the aftermath of Independence.

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