President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government has seemingly ignored the recommendations outlined in the report by the Kgalema Motlanthe-led Commission of Inquiry into the August 1, 2018 shootings.
Four months after the Commission submitted its final report, no action has been taken as far as its recommendations are concerned.
The Commission held hearings across the country and submitted its report mid-December last year after roughly 3 months after its inception. Part of the recommendations read as follows:
Those particular members of the military and the police found to have been in breach of their professional duties and discipline on August 1, 2018, should be identified as soon as possible for internal investigations and appropriate sanction, which should include hearing from the victims and their families for impact assessment and to provide the necessary compensation.
… The commission recommends the establishment of a multi-party reconciliation initiative, including youth representatives, with national and international mediation to address the root causes of the post-election violence and to identify and implement strategies for reducing tensions, promoting common understandings of political campaigning, combating criminality and uplifting communities.
At least 6 people were shot dead by the Presidential Guard Unit in Harare’s Central Business District after violence erupted over ZEC’s alleged refusal to release presidential election results.
The deaths prompted Mnangagwa to establish the Commission that comprised of Motlanthe, British international law expert Rodney Dixon, former Commonwealth secretary-general Emeka Anyaoku from Nigeria and former chief of the Tanzania People’s Defence Forces Gen Davis Mwamunyange, Charity Manyeruke, Lovemore Madhuku and Vimbai Nyemba.