By Zivanai Dhewa
In a clear indication of the selective supervision of human rights violations by the self-imposed human rights police, the United States of America, the United Kingdom and their surrogates, the Civic Society Organisation seem to have gone mum on similar arrests in Australia as those that happened in Zimbabwe, revealing nauseating double standards.
Three weeks ago the Zimbabwean police arrested a journalist, Hopewell Chin’ono for inciting people to gather up and stage anti-government protests, while Jacob Ngarivume was arrested for using seditious language meant to incite people to cause violence and disturb the country’s peace.
Chin’ono posted messages on social media calling for mass demonstrations by any means against Government, notwithstanding that the country was burdened with a spike in Covid-19 infections. His calls if left unrestrained would have exposed a lot of people to Covid-19.
However, since the arrest of the duo, the US, UK and CSOs have mobilised the local and regional opposition political parties in an offensive dubbed the #ZimbabweanLivesMatter, a campaign meant to pressure the Zimbabwean Government to release the duo.
Meanwhile, Australia has gone and done exactly what Zimbabwe did by arresting two delinquents, who decided to mobilise some anti-government protests in Melbourne, amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
Melbourne police officers seized phones and computers belonging to the two men aged 41, both from Mooroolbark and Chirnside Park. Their crime was calling on the people to protest against the six-week lockdown regulations.
The Victorian Police pronounced that the protests were a completely blatant breach of the Chief Health Officer’s directions which would expose the Victorian lives to a risk of contracting and spreading Covid-19 virus.
This occurrence in Melbourne did not make international headlines nor did it trend on social media networks exposing the selective policing of human rights by the West and their surrogates.
A comment from one political analyst, Grace Tsvakai, said “Zimbabwe is under attack, there is nothing wrong with arresting people who work against set down regulations. Chin’ono and Ngarivhume, were wrong to mobilise people direct defiance of the lockdown of the Covid-19 set down country regulations.
“Everyone knows that our country is experiencing a spike in Covid-19 infections and the number of deaths has also risen, so for the duo to call for mass demonstrations was unreasonable. Why not wait until this pandemic is under control instead of exposing many people to death sentences,” she said.
In the meantime, the High Court has ruled against both Chin’ono and Ngarivhume’s bail applications.
