A Zimbabwean opposition politician who has spent more than 200 days in prison has been denied bail for the fifteenth time.
Job Sikhala, an outspoken lawyer for the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), who was arrested in June 2022 for inciting violence when he allegedly threatened to avenge the murder of an opposition activist, is a victim of political persecution before a crucial election this year, say government critics.
His co-accused, Godfrey Sithole, was released in November, along with 14 others.
A trial that began on 3 January has stalled after Sikhala requested that the proceedings be broadcast live.
In a letter sent from the Chikurubi maximum security prison in Harare, Sikhala said he is unwell.
“I have not been feeling well for the past three weeks,” he wrote in a letter seen by the Guardian.
“I don’t really understand and do not know what it is. I pray it is not colon cancer,” he wrote, referring to sharp pains in his abdomen, adding that prison wardens had denied him access to his doctor.
“I ask all Zimbabweans to pray for me to be healed from this pain,” Sikhala wrote, adding that he believed his life to be under threat, and that he feared being killed in prison.
In the letter, Sikhala alleges he is being persecuted for speaking out on the murder of opposition member Moreblessing Ali in June last year, whose body was mutilated before it was dumped in a shallow well.
If found guilty on two charges of inciting violence and defeating the course of justice, Sikhala could be sentenced to 20 years in prison. His continued incarceration has stoked concerns over another government crackdown on opposition politicians.
CCC spokesperson Fadzayi Mahere said: “The continued incarceration of Job Sikhala is one of the latest signs of the political crisis and shrinking democratic space in Zimbabwe. He is being persecuted. There is no legal justification for him to be detained without trial for over 200 days.”
Zimbabweans will go to the polls in a general election later this year, at a yet-to-be-announced date, amid growing fears of violence by the ruling Zanu-PF party. Opposition politician Nelson Chamisa will challenge President Emmerson Mnangagwa for the second time, with early indications pointing to another close race.
“It appears inevitable that the onslaught on the opposition will intensify as elections approach, not to mention the accompanying violence and bloodshed,” said political analyst Ibbo Mandaza, who has petitioned the international community to intervene in Sikhala’s case.
Lawyer Doug Coltart said: “It is clear that the state intends to keep him for an extended period of time and you can tell this is politically motivated. It is meant to remove him from the political scene.”
A government spokesperson was not available for comment.
Sikhala, a militant opposition figure known for his confrontational style of politics, is viewed as an important figure in drumming up urban support for CCC, a new political party born out of the former Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) organisation. He has been arrested more than 60 times, with a Harare court describing him as a habitual offender.
Sikhala’s arrest has drawn widespread criticism.
“We are shocked by continued denial of bail to Job Sikhala. The state is clearly not ready. That alone constituted a fundamental change of circumstances. The law must protect itself against capture. It must remain autonomous,” said Tendai Biti, a former finance minister and opposition MP.
The journalist Hopewell Chin’ono has also condemned the arrest in several Twitter posts.
“I have just seen Zimbabwe political prisoner and opposition MP Job Sikhala who has been in jail for more than six months without conviction. He asked me to tell you that regardless of how long it takes to come out, he will not abandon the struggle for freedom through the back door,” he wrote.
Zimbabwean actor Chipo Chung has added her voice, writing in a tweet: “Dear Mr President, why has Job Sikhala been detained for more than six months without trial? I wept when I read about the terrible death of Moreblessing Ali. We need justice for victims of violence. We expected a new dispensation. Where is it? #zimbabwe,” she tweeted.
