Gukurahundi Massacres and Statelessness
When Zimbabwe gained independence in 1980 it was a deeply divided country. Tensions between the Robert Mugabe-led ZANU-PF and the Joshua Nkomo-led ZAPU led to an eruption of violence between the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (ZANLA) and the Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army (ZIPRA), the respective military wings of ZANU-PF and ZAPU.
By early 1982, authorities were violently cracking down on ZIPRA forces in Matabeleland, the homeland of the Ndebele people. Special forces of the Zimbabwe National Army Fifth Brigade were deployed, who carried out atrocious attacks against not only militants but also ZAPU officials and other people. The political tensions spilled into mass atrocities against the Ndebele people, and an estimated 20,000 people were killed between 1983 and 1987. Thousands were tortured and abducted, women were raped, and homes destroyed.
When the crackdown, known as operation Gukurahundi, was over, traumatized survivors had to grapple with the challenges of statelessness as they were required to produce death certificates as proof of their parents to apply for Zimbabwean nationality. However, death certificates for people killed in the Gukurahundi operation were not issued, meaning that those who were orphaned as a result of the violence had no way of proving their parents’ nationality.
Vaina Ndlovu, 68, lives in Tsholotsho in Matebeland North. Vaina’s father was abducted by Fifth Brigade forces and never heard from again following his abduction. When Vaina tried to obtain a death certificate for her father, registry office officials told her they needed witnesses to confirm that her father was abducted during Gukurahundi, which Vaina’s family could not provide.
Statelessness resulting in violations of economic, social and cultural rights
Stateless people in Zimbabwe struggle to access housing, healthcare and education, violating their rights under the Constitution, as well as international and regional human rights treaties including the UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, to which Zimbabwe is a State Party.
"The Zimbabwean authorities must publicly commit to creating an equal and inclusive society that accords citizenship to any person born on Zimbabwean soil, without discrimination based on national or ethnic origin" Muleya Mwananyanda
While states have a right to determine their citizenship laws, these laws must be in conformity with international human rights law. As such, domestic law and practices must not be discriminatory and must conform to international legal obligations to not render anyone stateless.
“Zimbabwe must make concrete and urgent changes to the law to bring the Citizenship Act in line with the Constitution. The authorities must take the necessary steps to ensure no further generations are condemned to the margins of society,” said Muleya Mwananyanda.
“The Zimbabwean authorities must publicly commit to creating an equal and inclusive society that accords citizenship to any person born on Zimbabwean soil, without discrimination based on national or ethnic origin.”
Amnesty International is calling on the Zimbabwean government to urgently take adequate measures to ensure the registration and restoration of Zimbabwean nationality to all those entitled to it, as provided for under the Constitution, including all those born and raised in Zimbabwe to foreign parents. {See the full Amnesty International Report - CLICK HERE}