Shangaan land activist threatened in Zimbabwe
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on 263Chat
Ephraim Mtombeni, a Zimbabwean activist campaigning for the Shangaan community’s land rights in Chilonga, has reportedly received threats attributed to State security agents. The Zimbabwe Solidarity Forum is calling for his protection, that of villagers and an independent investigation into the alleged intimidation.
The Zimbabwe Solidarity Forum says land rights activist Ephraim Mtombeni has received threats attributed to individuals presented as State security agents. Mtombeni leads the Masvingo Centre for Rural Advocacy and Development (MACRAD), an organisation defending the rights of the Shangaan community in the Chilonga area of Chiredzi, according to 263Chat.
The organisation believes the threats are intended to intimidate the activist and obstruct challenges to planned evictions in the region. It is calling on the government to guarantee the safety of Mtombeni, the villagers concerned and other activists, as well as to open an independent investigation. The forum is also demanding legal and psychosocial support for the families and defenders threatened.
The Zimbabwe Solidarity Forum is urging the authorities not to use coercion to move residents from their ancestral lands. The land rights of the Shangaan community are at the heart of a long-running dispute over Chilonga’s future, according to 263Chat.
The threats come amid a series of tensions over evictions in Zimbabwe, after rights defenders denounced the evictions in Masvingo on 26 October. On 30 October, the Mutasa Rural District Council also demolished houses in Hauna, according to a headline published by the outlet.
