Primarily of the Bantu group of south and central Africa, the black Zimbabweans are divided into two major language groups, which are subdivided into several ethnic groups. The Mashona (Shona speakers), who constitute about 75% of the population, have lived in the area the longest and are the majority language group. The Matabele (Sindebele speakers), representing about 20% of the population and centered in the southwest around Bulawayo, arrived in within the last 150 years. An offshoot of the South African Zulu group, they maintained control over the Mashona until the white occupation of Rhodesia in 1890.

More than half of the white Zimbabweans, primarily of English origin, arrived in Zimbabwe after World War II. Afrikaners from South Africa and other European minorities, including Portuguese from Mozambique, are also present. Until the mid-1970s, there were about 1,000 white immigrants per year, but from 1976 to 1985 a steady emigration resulted in a loss of more than 150,000, leaving about 100,000 in 1992. Renewed white emigration in the late 1990s and early 2000s reduced the white population to less than 50,000. English, the official language, is spoken by the white population and understood, if not always used, by more than half of the black population.

The literacy rate is estimated at 76%. Primary and secondary schools were segregated until 1979 when racial restrictions were removed. Since independence, the educational system had been systematically enlarged by the Zimbabwean Government, which is committed to providing free public education to all citizens on an equal basis. As of the late 1970s, some 50% of the African children (5-19 years old) were listed officially as attending rural schools. Today, most African children attend primary school. Primary through post-secondary enrollment has expanded from 1 million to about 2.9 million since independence. About 40% of the rural primary schools were destroyed during the Rhodesian conflict, which delayed improvement of the rural education system. Higher education, offered at the University of Zimbabwe in Harare, the new National University of Science and Technology in Bulawayo, the new Africa (Methodist) University in Mutare, several teacher-training colleges, and three technical institutes, are being expanded with assistance from several donor countries.

Archaeologists have found stone-age implements and pebble tools in several areas of Zimbabwe, a suggestion of human habitation for many centuries, and the ruins of stone buildings provide evidence of early civilization. The most impressive of these sites is the "Great Zimbabwe" ruins, after which the country is named, located near Masvingo. Evidence suggests that these stone structures were built between the 9th and 13th centuries A.D. by indigenous Africans who had established trading contacts with commercial centers on Africa's southeastern coast. In the 16th century, the Portuguese were the first Europeans to attempt colonization of south-central Africa, but the hinterland lay virtually untouched by Europeans until the arrival of explorers, missionaries, ivory hunters, and traders some 300 years later. Meanwhile, mass migrations of indigenous peoples took place. Successive waves of more highly developed Bantu peoples from equatorial regions supplanted the original inhabitants and are the ancestors of the region's Africans today.

In 1888, Cecil Rhodes obtained a concession for mineral rights from local chiefs. Later that year, the area that became Southern and Northern Rhodesia was proclaimed a British sphere of influence. The British South Africa Company was chartered in 1889, and the settlement of Salisbury (now Harare, the capital) was established in 1890. In 1895, the territory was formally named Rhodesia after Cecil Rhodes under the British South Africa Company's administration. Following the abrogation of the company's charter in 1923, Southern Rhodesia's white settlements were given the choice of being incorporated into the Union of South Africa or becoming a separate entity within the British Empire. The settlers rejected incorporation, and Southern Rhodesia was formally annexed by the United Kingdom that year. Until 1980, Rhodesia was an internally self-governing colony with its own legislature, civil service, armed forces, and police. Although Rhodesia was never administered directly from London, the United Kingdom always retained the right to intervene in the affairs of the colony, particularly in matters affecting Africans. After 1923, European immigrants concentrated in developing Rhodesia's rich mineral resources and agricultural potential. The settlers' demand for more land led in 1934 to the passage of the first of a series of land apportionment acts that reserved certain areas for Europeans. In September 1953, Southern Rhodesia was joined in a multiracial Central African Federation with the British protectorate of Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland in an effort to pool resources and markets. Although the federation flourished economically, it was opposed by the African population, who feared they would not be able to achieve self-government with the federal structure dominated by White Southern Rhodesians. The federation was dissolved at the end of 1963 after much crisis and turmoil, and Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland became the independent states of Zambia and Malawi in 1964.

The European electorate in Rhodesia, however, showed little willingness to accede to African demands for increased political participation and progressively replaced more moderate party leaders. In April 1964, Prime Minister Winston Field, accused of not moving rapidly enough to obtain independence from the United Kingdom, was replaced by his deputy, Ian Smith. Prime Minster Smith led his Rhodesian Front Party to an overwhelming victory in the 1965 elections, winning all 50 of the first roll seats and demoralizing the more moderate European opposition. Although prepared to grant independence to Rhodesia, the United Kingdom insisted that the authorities at Salisbury first demonstrate their intention to move toward eventual majority rule. Desiring to keep their dominant position, the white Rhodesians refused to give such assurances. On November 11, 1965, after lengthy and unsuccessful negotiations with the British Government, Prime Minister Smith issued a Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) from the United Kingdom.

The British government considered the UDI unconstitutional and illegal but made clear that it would not use force to the rebellion. On November 12, 1965, the United Nations also determined the Rhodesian government and UDI to be illegal and called on member states to refrain from assisting or recognizing the Smith regime. The British government imposed sanctions on Rhodesia and requested other nations to do the same. On December 16, 1966, the UN Security Council, for the first time in this history, imposed mandatory economic sanctions on a state. Rhodesia's primary exports including ferrochrome and tobacco, were replaced on the selective sanctions list, as were shipments of arms, aircraft, motor vehicles, petroleum, and petroleum products to Rhodesia. On May 29, 1968, the Security Council unanimously voted to broaden the sanctions by imposing an almost total embargo on all trade with, investments in, or transfers of funds to Rhodesia and imposed restrictions on air transport to the territory. In the early 1970s, informal attempts at settlement were renewed between the United Kingdom and the Rhodesian administration. Following the April 1974 coup in Portugal and the resulting shifts of power in Mozambique and Angola, pressure on the Smith regime to negotiate a peaceful settlement began to increase. In addition, sporadic antigovernment guerilla activity which began in the late 1960s, increased dramatically after 1972, causing destruction, economic dislocation, casualties, and a slump in white morale. In 1974, the major African nationalists groups--the Zimbabwe African Peoples Union (ZAPU), and the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), which split away from ZAPU in 1963--were united into the "Patriotic Front" and combined their military forces, at least nominally. In 1976, because of a combination of embargo-related economic hardships, the pressure of guerilla activity, independence and majority rule in the neighboring former Portuguese territories, and a U.K.-U.S. diplomatic initiative, the Smith government agreed in principle to majority rule and to a meeting in Geneva with black nationalist leaders to negotiate a final settlement of the conflict. Blacks represented at the Geneva meeting included ZAPU leader Joshua Nkomo, ZANU leader Robert Mugabe, UANC chairman bishop Abel Muzorewa, and former ZANU leader Rev. Nadabaningi Sithole. The meeting failed to find a basis for agreement because of Smith's inflexibility and the inability of the black leaders to form a common political front. On September 1, 1977 a detailed Anglo-American plan was put forward with proposals for majority rule, neutrally administered with pre-independence elections, a democratic constitution and the formation of an integrated army. Reactions were mixed, but no party rejected them. In the interim, on March 3, 1978, the Smith administration signed the "internal settlement" agreement in Salisbury with Bishop Muzorewa, Rev. Sithole, and Chief Jeremiah Chirau. The agreement provided for qualified majority rule and elections with universal suffrage. Following elections in April 1979, in which his UANC party won a majority, Bishop Muzorewa assumed office on June 1, becoming "Zimbabwe-Rhodesia's" first black prime minister. However, the installation of the new black majority government did not end the guerilla conflict that had claimed more than 20,000 lives since 1972. Shortly after British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's conservative government took power in May 1979, the British began a new round of consultations that culminated in an agreement among the Commonwealth countries as the basis for fresh negotiations among the parties and the British involving a new constitution, free elections and independence.

The British and the African parties began deliberations on a Rhodesian settlement at Lancaster house in London on September 10, 1979. On December 10, 1979, in preparation for the transition under British authority to officially recognized independence, the "Zimbabwe-Rhodesia" reverted de facto to colonial status. On December 12, British Governor Lord Christopher Soames arrived in Salisbury to reassert British authority over the colony. His arrival signaled the end of the Rhodesian rebellion and the "internal settlement," as well as the beginning of Zimbabwe's transition to independence. The United Kingdom lifted all remaining sanctions against Zimbabwe that day. The United States lifted sanctions effective December 16. On December 21, after three months of hard bargaining, the parties signed an agreement at Lancaster House calling for a cease-fire, new elections, a transition period under British rule, and a new constitution implementing majority rule while protecting minority rights. The agreement specified that upon the granting of independence, the country's name would be Zimbabwe. The same day, the UN Security Council endorsed the settlement agreement and formally voted unanimously to call on member nations to remove sanctions. During the transition period, nine political parties campaigned for the February 27-29 pre-independence elections. The elections were supervised by the British government and monitored by hundreds of observers, most of whom concluded that, under the prevailing circumstances, the elections were free and fair and reflected the will of the people. Robert Mugabe's ZANU(PF) party won an absolute majority and was asked to form Zimbabwe's first government.

In a series of public statements during the transition period, Prime Minister Mugabe indicated that he was committed to a process of national reconciliation and reconstruction as well as moderate socioeconomic change. His priorities were to integrate the various armed forces, reestablish social services and education in rural areas, and resettle the estimated one million refugees and displaced persons. Mugabe also announced that his government would begin investigating ways of reversing past discriminatory policies in land distribution, education, employment, and wages. Mugabe stated that Zimbabwe would follow a non-aligned foreign policy while seeking assistance from all actions and would pursue a pragmatic relationship with South Africa. He noted that while Zimbabwe opposed apartheid and would support democratic change in South Africa, it would not provide bases for anti-South African guerillas.

The British Government formally granted independence to Zimbabwe on April 18, 1980. Most nations recognized Zimbabwe following independence. The United States was to first nation to open an embassy in Salisbury on that day. Parliament convened for the first time on May 13, 1980. Zimbabwe became a member of the United Nations on August 25, 1980. In seeking national reconciliation, Prime Minister Mugabe's first cabinet comprised members of ZANU-PF, PF-ZAPU, and independent white members of parliament (MPs) and senators. The government embarked on an ambitious reconstruction and development program and instituted increases in minimum wages. Land redistribution proceeded under four experimental models on land that the government had purchased at market rates from willing sellers.

Prime Minister Mugabe's policy of reconciliation was generally successful during the country's first two years of independence, as the former political and military opponents began to work together. Although additional blacks were hired to fill new places in the civil service, there was no retribution for those whites who had worked for the Smith regime. Smith and many of his associates held seats in the parliament where they participated freely in debates. Likewise, Joshua Nkomo, Mugabe's rival as leader of the nationalist forces, was included in the first cabinet along with several other members of PF-ZAPU. Splits soon developed, however. In 1981, several MPs from Smith's party left to sit as "independents," signifying that they did not automatically accept his antigovernment posture. More importantly, government security officials discovered large caches of arms and ammunition on properties owned by ZAPU, and Nkomo and his followers were accused of plotting to overthrow Mugabe's government. Nkomo and his closest aides were expelled from the cabinet. As a result of what they perceived as persecution of Nkomo (known as "Father Zimbabwe") and of his party, PF-ZAPU supporters, some of them deserters from the army, began a loosely organized and ill-defined campaign of dissidence against the government. Centering primarily in Matabeleland, home of the Ndebeles who were PF-ZAPU's main followers, this dissidence continued through 1987 and involved attacks on government personnel and installations, armed banditry aimed at disrupting security and economic life in the rural areas, and harassment of ZANU-PF members. Occasionally, some demanded the Nkomo and his colleagues be reinstated in the cabinet. More frequently, however, dissidents called for the return of farms and other properties seized from PF-ZAPU. Because of the unsettled security situation immediately after independence and the continuing anti-government dissidence, the government kept in force a "state of emergency," which was first declared before UDI. This gave government authorities widespread powers under the "Law and Order Maintenance Act," including the right to detain persons without charge.

In 1983-84, the government declared a curfew in areas of Matabeleland and sent in the army in an attempt to suppress dissidents. Credible reports surfaced of widespread violence and disregard for human rights by the security forces during these operations, and the level of political tension rose in the country as a result. The pacification campaign, known as the "Gukuruhundi," or strong wind, resulted in as many as 20,000 civilian deaths. Nkomo and his lieutenants repeatedly denied any connection with the dissidents and called for an all-party conference to discuss the political problems facing the country. In the 1985 elections, ZANU-PF increased its majority, holding 67 of the 100 seats. ZANU-PF and PF-ZAPU agreed to unite in December 1987, and the parties formally merged in December 1989. In October 1987, in accordance with the Lancaster House Accords, the constitution was amended to end the separate roll for white voters and to establish an executive presidency to replace the whites whose reserved seats had been abolished; among the new members were 15 whites in the Senate and House of Assembly. Elections in March of 1990 resulted in another overwhelming victory for Mugabe and his party, which won 117 of the 120 election seats. However, voter turnout was only 54% and the campaign was not free and fair although the actual balloting was. Not satisfied with a de facto one-party state, Mugabe called the ZANU-PF Central Committee to support the creation of a de jure one-party state in September 1990 and lost. The state of emergency was lifted in July 1990. However, though control of the media, the huge parastatal sector of the economy, and the security forces, the government has managed to keep political opposition to minimum. Beginning in 1999, Zimbabwe has experienced a period of considerable political and economic upheaval. Opposition to President Mugabe and the ZANU-PF government has grown quickly in recent years, in part due to worsening economic and human rights conditions. The opposition is currently led by the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), established in September 1999.

The first opportunity to test opposition to the Mugabe government came in February 2000, when a referendum was held on a draft constitution proposed by the government. Among its elements, the new constitution would have permitted President Mugabe to seek two additional terms in office, granted government officials immunity from prosecution, and sanctioned government seizure of white-owned land. The referendum was handily defeated. Shortly thereafter, the government, through a loosely organized group of war veterans, launched an aggressive land redistribution program often characterized by forced expulsion of white farmers and violence against both farmers and farm employees. Parliamentary elections held in June 2000 were marred by localized violence, and claims of electoral irregularities and government intimidation of opposition supporters. Nonetheless, the MDC succeeded in capturing 57 of 120 seats in the National Assembly. Local and international human rights monitors have noted a marked increase in human rights abuses since the February 2000 constitutional referendum. Presidential elections in March 2002 in which Mugabe emerged victorious were marred by disenfranchisement of urban voters, violent intimidation against opposition supporters, intimidation of the independent press and the judiciary, and other irregularities. The intimidation of opposition supporters, political dissenters, the press, and the judiciary continued post-election.

Today, Zimbabwe is a republic in which President Robert Mugabe and his Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) have dominated the executive and legislative branches of the Government since independence in 1980. Although the Constitution allows for multiple parties, opposition parties and their supporters were subjected to significant intimidation and violence by the ruling party and government security forces, and financial restrictions continued to be imposed on the opposition. The 2000 parliamentary elections were preceded by a government-sanctioned campaign of violence directed towards supporters and potential supporters of the opposition. Although most election observers agreed that the voting process itself generally was peaceful, there were irregularities. In 1999 the country's first viable opposition party emerged, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), which won 57 out of 120 seats in the June 2000 parliamentary elections. The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary, and in practice the judiciary remained largely independent despite government attempts to dilute its independence; however, the Government repeatedly refused to abide by judicial decisions.

An estimated 60 percent of the population of approximately 12 million survive on subsistence agriculture and approximately 75 percent rely directly or indirectly on agriculture for their livelihood; however, there are significant mining, manufacturing, and service sectors. The country has abundant arable land, minerals, good but deteriorating infrastructure, an educated and disciplined work force, and an ecotourism sector. Its chief sources of hard currency are tourism and exports of tobacco, gold, ferroalloys, nickel, and remittances from citizens working in other countries. Important sectors of the nonfarm economy continued to be dominated by state-owned monopolies and suffered from mismanagement and poor governance, including corruption, and from large fiscal deficits exacerbated by the Government's military operations since 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). These conditions contributed to accelerating price inflation, rapid currency depreciation, shrinking real incomes, and high unemployment. The formal sector unemployment rate exceeds 65 percent. The country's gross domestic product (GDP) was estimated at approximately $2 billion (Z$600 billion). During the year 2001, per capita GDP fell to $392 and, according to government estimates, more than 70 percent of the population lives below the poverty line. The Government has faced growing pressure from urban labor groups and rural low-income groups as the standard of living dropped. International experts estimated that HIV/AIDS infects one-third of the adult population, and has created an estimated 900,000 orphans since the late 1980's.

The crime rate in Zimbabwe is medium compared to industrialized countries. For purpose of comparison, data were drawn for the seven offenses used to compute the United States FBI's index of crime. Index offenses include murder, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, and motor vehicle theft. In the UN reports, murders are referred to as "intentional homicides." Aggravated assaults are referred to as "major assaults," and larcenies are referred to as "thefts." According to the United Nations Seventh Annual Survey on Crime, crime recorded in police statistics shows the crime rate for the combined total of all Index crimes in Zimbabwe to be 2058.78, per 100,000 inhabitants in 2000. This compares with 1951.92 for Japan (country with a low crime rate) and 4123.97 for USA (country with high crime rate). For intentional homicides, the rate in 2000 was 7.24 for Zimbabwe, 0,.50 for Japan, and 5.51 for USA. For major assaults, the rate in 2000 was 198.89 for Zimbabwe, compared with 34.04 for Japan, and 323.62 for USA. (Note these data for Japan are for total recorded assaults, since Japan did not report a figure for major assaults.) For rapes, the rate in 2000 was 44.18 for Zimbabwe, 1.78 for Japan, and 32.05 for USA. For robberies, the rate in 2000 was 94.09 for Zimbabwe, 4.07 for Japan, and 144.92 for USA. For automobile theft, the rate in 2000 was 10.65 for Zimbabwe, 243.81 for Japan, and 414.17 for USA. The rate of burglaries for 2000 was 438.73 for Zimbabwe, 233.45 for Japan, and 414.17 for USA. The rate for thefts in 2000 was 1265.00 for Zimbabwe, compared with 1434.27 for Japan and 2475.27 for USA. (Note that USA data were those reported to INTERPOL for year 2000, since USA has not yet reported this data to UN.)

Between 1998 and 2000 the rate for all recorded Index offenses increased from 1914.39 to 2058.78 per 100,000 in Zimbabwe, an increase of 13.5%. The rate of intentional homicide increased from 6.38 to 7.24, an increase of 13.5%. However, the rate for major assaults increased from 191.22 to 198.89, an increase of 4.0%. The rate of rape decreased from 45.61 to 44.18, a decrease of 3.1%. The rate for robberies increased from 71.5 to 94.09 per 100,000, an increase of 31.6%. The rate for automobile theft decreased from 13.49 to 10.65, a decrease of 21.1%. The rate of burglaries increased from 400.14 to 438.73, an increase of 9.6%. Thefts increased from 1086.05 to 1265, an increase of 16.5%.

The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) is responsible for maintaining law and order. Although the ZRP officially is under the authority of the Ministry of Home Affairs, in practice it is controlled by the President's office. The Zimbabwe National Army and Air Force under the Defense Ministry are responsible for external security; however, they frequently were called upon for domestic operations during the year 2001. The Central Intelligence Organization (CIO), under the Minister of State for National Security in the President's Office, is responsible for internal and external security, but it does not have powers of arrest. Senior government and ruling party members tightly control the security forces. Members of the security forces committed numerous, serious human rights abuses.

Security forces committed at least four extrajudicial killings, and in numerous other cases, army and police units participated or provided transportation and other logistical support to perpetrators of political violence and knowingly permitted their activities.

In March a soldier reportedly died from injuries after he was tortured by police and CIO officers at the Harare Central police station. There was no further information available on the case by year's end 2001.

On April 9, police beat to death a University of Zimbabwe (UZ) student in his dormitory room following student demonstrations on the campus the previous day. The UZ student reportedly was not involved in the protests. Police denied that the student died from injuries sustained from the assault by several police officers, and no further action was taken on the case by year's end 2001.

On October 15, two army soldiers used batons to beat to death a man in a Guruve police station. The soldiers reportedly accused the man of looting. They were arrested and charged with murder, and a Bindura magistrate ordered them to be held without bail. The case remained pending at year's end 2001.

On November 24, six ZDF soldiers beat and threw Lameck Chemvura, a UZ student who they suspected of supporting the MDC, from a moving train; he subsequently died from his injuries. Six soldiers were arrested; however, only one was charged with murder. The police denied that the case was politically motivated. The case was pending at year's end 2001.

The Government used excessive force to disperse demonstrations and strikes during the year 2001. On August 8, members of the security forces attempted to disperse forcibly a strike at the Zimbabwe Iron and Steel Company (ZISCO) plant in Redcliff. Three truckloads of heavily armed army and police units fired tear gas, beat participants, and shot at the strikers indiscriminately, which resulted in the deaths of 3 strikers and injuries to 10 others. The Government claimed that the police shot the three accidentally; however, labor activists stated that the security forces fired at the workers deliberately to break up the strike. Although police conducted an investigation, the results were not announced by year's end 2001. The Steel Workers' Union sued the police and army for using excessive force; the case still was pending at year's end 2001.

Harsh prison conditions and a high incidence of HIV/AIDS are acknowledged widely to have contributed to a large number of deaths in prison; the Zimbabwe Prison Service documented that 1,051 prisoners have died of HIV/AIDS-related causes since 1998. However, some deaths in custody and prison may have been due to abuse.

On August 13 in Gokwe, Vusumuzi Mukweli, an activist for the MDC, died in prison under suspicious circumstances 5 days after he was arrested for allegedly inciting violence in a campaign for local council elections. The MDC called for an official investigation into Mukweli's death, but there was no action on the case by year's end 2001.

During the year 2001, a civilian teenager in Masvingo province near the border with Mozambique reportedly was killed by a landmine explosion. In 2000 two persons were killed and two were injured by landmine explosions.

In 2000 at a soccer match in Harare, 12 persons were trampled to death after police fired tear gas into stands where opposition supporters were waving MDC banners and chanting antigovernment slogans. Five others were injured critically, one of whom later died from injuries. Human rights organizations were supporting individual legal cases against the ZRP for using excessive force in the incident; however, the cases had not been tried by year's end 2001.

No action was taken in the case of Notice Zhakata, who reportedly died at Norton Hospital in 1999 of injuries inflicted on him by police at the Kadoma police station, where he was detained following an arrest.

Police killed eight persons during the 1998 food riots. The Government conducted investigations into these cases, and private legal actions were instigated against the police. At year's end 2001, only 3 of 42 cases still were pending before the courts. In the resolved cases, 26 judgments were issued against the police, and payments in 7 cases were made.

By year's end 2001, the Government still had not responded formally to a 1997 report by the Legal Resources Foundation (LRF) and the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP) on atrocities committed during the 1982-87 Matabeleland crisis, despite the 1999 release of a shortened version of the report that was made available in local languages, and as a result of mounting pressure from civic groups, political parties, and churches. The LRF and Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights subsequently subpoenaed the Government in January 2000 to release the findings of two commissions that investigated the Matabeleland massacres; however, the Attorney General claimed that the documents were missing. In July 2000, the LRF petitioned the Supreme Court to force the Government to release the findings; by year's end 2001, the Court ruled that the President could be sued in court but did not rule on whether the Government was required to release its findings. An estimated 10,000 to 20,000 persons died in the Matabeleland massacres.

The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum, an umbrella group of 9 prominent domestic human rights organizations, reported that 48 persons were confirmed killed as a result of political violence during the year 2001. According to human rights groups, at least 130 persons reportedly have been killed during political violence since early 2000, which these groups consider to be a conservative estimate because it includes only the number of confirmed killings. ZANU-PF supporters committed almost all of the killings during the year 2001; however, opposition supporters reportedly were involved in at least two killings. In the 5-month period before the 2000 parliamentary elections, 31 deaths were reported officially as a result of political violence, which were mostly perpetrated by supporters of the ruling party. The majority of those killed in political violence were MDC activists or supporters. A number of farm workers reportedly were killed in political violence; however, exact figures were not known. In 2000 at least five farm workers were killed; three of the five were found hanged, and the police recorded their causes of death as suicides.

On January 9, six MDC supporters were charged with killing Bernard Gara, a ZANU-PF supporter, during clashes between ruling party and opposition supporters at Baradzanwa Business Centre in Bikita West in early January. The case still was pending at year's end 2001.

In March ZANU-PF supporters reportedly chased and killed two MDC members in Muzarabani and Hoya wards, Mashonaland Central province. One of the victims was beaten with logs and had his eyes gouged out. The other reportedly drowned after he was chased into a river by ZANU-PF supporters. No action was taken against those responsible by year's end 2001.

In late June, Misheck Mwanza, who worked at Dick Farm in Chinhoyi district, died from injuries suffered during an assault in May. Mwanza's wife stated that she and her husband were approached by four suspected ZANU-PF supporters while walking on the farm in May. Her husband was asked what party he supported and, upon answering that he supported the MDC, the four men immediately attacked him. No arrests were reported.

On October 29, Tawanda Mutinzwe, a ZANU-PF supporter, was charged with murder and held without bail for allegedly torturing two men to death with a hot iron. The case remained pending at year's end 2001.

On November 5, approximately 10 armed men reportedly abducted Cain Nkala, Bulawayo War Veterans Chairman, from his home and killed him. One week later, Nkala's body was found in a shallow grave 25 miles southwest of Bulawayo. The Government, including President Mugabe, accused the MDC of committing the killing. Approximately 30 MDC members were arrested and detained in connection with the murder. The MDC denied responsibility for the killing and accused the security forces of killing Nkala.

On December 8, Augustus Chacha, an MDC activist, was abducted from his home by suspected ZANU-PF supporters; his body was found in a reservoir near his home in Shurugwi district on December 10. A local ZANU-PF spokesman denied that the party was responsible for the killing. There were no reports of action taken against those responsible by year's end 2001.

Between December 21 and 26, ZANU-PF youth brigade members killed four MDC activists, and one other died from injuries after a December 6 attack. Among those persons killed were Trymore Midzi, the MDC vice-chairman for the Bindura district, and Titus Nheya, an MDC candidate who ran for office but was defeated in the 2000 parliamentary election. No action was taken or investigation conducted by year's end 2001.

On December 25, MDC supporters reportedly killed Willis Dhliwayo, a war veteran and ZANU-PF supporter, near the town of Chipinge and left his body on a road near the Mount Selinda border post. Dhliwayo reportedly was arguing with MDC supporters during the night before the killing. Police stated that the killing probably was politically motivated; the investigation was ongoing at year's end 2001.

In 2000 in Buhera district, a group of men in a ZANU-PF vehicle pulled in front of a vehicle driven by MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai's campaign manager and eight other passengers and forced the vehicle to stop. The men beat the driver and passengers with rifle butts and then set the car on fire. The driver and one passenger died in the attack, and two other passengers reportedly were hospitalized. Police later arrested two persons implicated in the attack, but they were released after a brief detention without explanation. There were no other arrests or court action in the case.

There was no known investigation or action taken against the ZANU-PF supporters responsible for the following killings in 2000: The June killing of Mandishona Mutyanda, NDC ward chairman for Kwekwe district; the May beating to death of Mationa and Onias Mashaya; the May beating to death of Alex Chisasa; the April killing of Luckson Kanyurira and another MDC supporter; and the March killings in Mberengwa district.

Several white commercial farmers were killed during the year 2001; however, it was unclear if any of the attacks were connected to land seizures. On March 4, unknown persons shot and killed 72-year-old Gloria Olds, a commercial white farmer, in front of her farm gate in Matabeleland North province. Her son, farmer Martin Olds, was killed by ZANU-PF supporters in 2000. The police who investigated the crime claimed that robbery was the motive because her truck was stolen after the attack. However, the Commercial Farmers Union stated that political intimidation of white commercial farmers was the most likely motive. Police arrested one suspect shortly after the murder, but no further action was taken by year's end 2001. On August 6, Kwekwe farmer Ralph Fenwick Corbett died in a hospital as a result of head injuries sustained in an attack by suspected war veterans. The suspects reportedly broke into his home and tied him with wire before assaulting him with an axe. Police conducted an investigation, but no further action reportedly was taken by year's end 2001.

In April 2000, a group of war veterans, including active duty defense force personnel in civilian clothing, abducted MDC organizer and commercial farmer David Stevens from his farm and took him to their base in Murewa, where they beat him badly and then shot and killed him. In September 2000, after receiving an anonymous tip, police arrested a Marondera war veteran and charged him with murder. The suspect was released on bail pending a court hearing; however, the Attorney General later withdrew the charges due to a lack of evidence, although the suspect had been apprehended with the murder weapon and had been identified by a number of witnesses. No further action was taken on the case by year's end 2001.

No action reportedly has been taken against the three men armed with rifles who killed white farmer Henry Elsworth and seriously injured his son in an ambush attack outside his farm gate in December 2000.

There were continuing reports of ritual murders and killings of children for body parts that were associated with traditional religious practices. In 1999 Faber Chidarikire, a ZANU-PF official and mayor, was charged with the murder of a girl in 1987. In June Chidarikire was tried; however, the court deferred its judgment, and no judgment was issued by year's end 2001.

There were reports of a growing number of politically motivated disappearances committed by ZANU-PF supporters during the year 2001, especially in the rural areas where most organized groups are loyal to the Government, and there are few opposition organizations. Domestic human rights organizations believe that there were disappearances in rural areas that were not reported due to fear of retribution by progovernment factions. Some abductees were tortured, and others later were found killed. The number of abductions in which abductees were known to be released increased significantly during the year 2001.

The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum reported 61 disappearances between January and July; 27 remained unresolved at year's end 2001. On January 8, four CIO agents abducted Eide Javachava, a messenger working for former MDC parliamentary candidate Elliot Pfebve, in Harare. The agents detained Javachava for 2 nights, continually beat him, and questioned him. On May 26, masked men suspected of being ZANU-PF supporters reportedly abducted and detained for several hours Joel Sithole, the MDC candidate for a local election in Plumtree. In July in Bindura, the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum reported that armed police officers claiming to be war veterans abducted Chipo Ruzive and 27 MDC supporters. Five of the supporters, who were youths, still were missing at year's end 2001. Other youths were assaulted by police officers at the Bindura police station but later were released.

In July war veterans reportedly kidnaped and tortured 13 MDC supporters at torture camps in Bindura district.

On September 4, the wife and daughter of Elliot Pfebve were abducted at knifepoint and held for 4 hours.

In April and May, war veterans abducted managers of urban NGO's and private companies and took them to ZANU-PF headquarters in attempts to extort wage concessions for the NGO and company employees.

In 2000 Patrick Nabanyama, a local MDC official and polling agent for Bulawayo South Member of Parliament (M.P.) David Coltart, was abducted by suspected ZANU-PF supporters from his home. Ten war veterans, including Cain Nkala, the chairman of the National Liberation War Veterans Association in Bulawayo, reportedly were detained for the kidnaping. On November 4, the 10 detainees pleaded not guilty to charges of kidnaping and were released on bail. The following day, Cain Nkala was kidnaped and killed. At year's end 2001, Nabanyama still was missing.

No action reportedly was taken against the war veterans who beat and abducted a journalist for The Independent newspaper, a foreign journalist, and her cameraman, in Mutoko district in 2000; the police rescued the kidnaped journalists within a few hours of the abduction.

The Constitution prohibits such practices; however, security forces tortured, beat, and otherwise abused persons. The ZRP showed poor training in criminal apprehension and interrogation, and there were unconfirmed reports of human rights abuses by the CIO. There continued to be reports of police using excessive force in apprehending and detaining criminal suspects. Government supporters continued to beat and torture suspected opposition members, commercial farmers, and farm laborers.

Security forces were involved in incidents of political violence, including instances of soldiers beating civilians in areas where persons voted for the opposition, such as Harare suburbs and Masvingo town.

On January 4, police officers and CIO agents detained and tortured for 4 days Ishmael Kauzani, an MDC supporter, at Zaka police station in Bikita West. Police blindfolded him, interrogated him about the MDC, kicked and beat him all over his body, including his genitals, with sticks and bare hands. Following the January 13-14 by-elections, the violence in Bikita West decreased.

On January 8 in Harare, four CIO agents abducted Eide Javachava, a messenger working for former MDC parliamentary candidate Elliot Pfebve. The agents detained, continually beat and questioned Javachava for 2 nights.

On April 2, police and ZANU-PF youth supporters assaulted and injured Tawanda Hondora, Chairman of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, at a police station in Chikomba. Hondora had gone to the station to investigate claims by witnesses for the MDC in its legal petition that they were being intimidated and pressured not to testify against ZANU-PF members. Hondora identified five persons who assaulted him; however, the police had taken no action by year's end 2001. A civil suit against the attackers also remained pending at year's end 2001.

Following ZANU-PF's defeat in a May mayoral election, in Masvingo town, 50 army recruits reportedly beat and injured the occupants of local nightclubs and other establishments.

On July 3, police officers in Harare's Budiriro township reportedly beat with batons Richard Jachi and his wife after they were ordered out of their house at approximately 3 a.m. According to the Amani Trust, the Jachis were taken to Budiriro police station, where they were beaten again and charged with public violence. There was no further information available on the case by year's end 2001.

In July there were reports that police beat residents in Harare's suburbs during a strike.

On September 7, police officers detained Tinaapi Diura, a local MDC official in Chikomba. The officers questioned him about a recent attack on a ZANU-PF official, then beat him. Diura was released at a cemetery where a group of young ZANU-PF members beat him with batons.

On November 24, on a train, six army soldiers beat and harassed passengers who they suspected of supporting the opposition; one UZ student was killed when the soldiers threw him from the moving train.

The Amani Trust reported that at least six politically motivated rapes were committed during the year 2001 but noted that the figure likely is grossly underreported due to cultural taboos. The attacks targeted female farm workers and health workers.

Security forces repeatedly used force, including tear gas, to disperse nonviolent demonstrations; security forces also beat demonstrators, which resulted in injuries.

The Government generally has not pursued actively past allegations of torture and has not prosecuted CIO or ZRP officers for such abuses.

No action reportedly was taken against the army soldiers who allegedly beat an MDC M.P. and MDC members at a political rally in 2000 or against the police and security forces who used excessive force to disperse demonstrations or soccer matches on the following dates in 2000: October 16; October 12; October 9; and July 9.

Unlike in the previous year, there were no reports that government forces allegedly used landmines in the DRC. There were reports in 2000 that government forces allegedly used landmines in the DRC; there was no further information available on the extent of injuries resulting from these landmines.

In 1999 the Chitungwiza police arrested, detained for 6 months, and allegedly tortured a married couple, Joyce and Shupikai Karimazondo, and another person, John Mita, in response to allegations by a neighbor that they had killed their young domestic worker for ritual purposes. In 2000 the Karimazondos and Mita were released, and the murder charge was dropped after the domestic worker was located alive and unharmed. The Magistrate Court declined the Karimazondos' defense counsel's application to have the Government prosecute the investigating officers for misconduct and unlawful detention. Mita stated that he was suing the Government for unlawful detention. The Amani Trust investigated the allegations. The Karimazondos filed a civil suit with the High Court, and at year's end 2001, the case was pending.

In 1999 the military police detained and subsequently tortured and beat two journalists, Mark Chavunduka and Ray Choto. The journalists' suit for their alleged mistreatment still was pending at year's end 2001.

In 1999 CIO officer Richard Mutswiri Mutiti reportedly filed a suit with the High Court alleging that four CIO officials had beaten and kicked him, doused him with a flammable petroleum distillate, and threatened to burn him, while detaining him without warrant at the Harare Central Police Station in 1998. A CIO disciplinary committee reportedly recommended the firing of the four officials in 1998, and one reportedly resigned soon thereafter. The case was pending in the High Court at year's end 2001.

There were no known developments in the case of three men, one of whom later was identified as a police officer, who reportedly assaulted Isodore Zindoga, deputy secretary general of the Zimbabwe Confederation of Trade Unions (ZCTU), in 1999 in Harare. There were no developments in the case of Notice Zhakata who reportedly died at Norton Hospital of physical abuse inflicted by police at the Kadoma police station while he was detained in 1999.

A consortium of human rights lawyers and NGO's pursued legal actions in 42 cases on behalf of persons who alleged that they had been injured by members of the security forces during the 1998 food riots. By year's end 2001, only three cases were unresolved and still pending.

Government supporters continued to beat and torture suspected opposition members, commercial farmers, and farm laborers. An international team of experts from the International Center for Rehabilitation of Torture Victims, led by Dr. Inge Gefencke, visited the country during the year 2001 and concluded that there was systematic mass physical and psychological torture perpetrated by government supporters throughout the country. Human rights groups have reported that war veterans and other ruling party supporters set up torture chambers in government-funded offices and police stations to brutalize opposition supporters. The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum reported 2,245 cases of torture during the year 2001 as part of a campaign of political violence. In 2000 the names of MDC M.P. David Coltart and other MDC members and supporters reportedly were included on a death list that was circulated among ZANU-PF supporters. During the year 2001, the death list reportedly continued to be circulated, and additional names were added.

Persons perceived as supporting the opposition, including teachers, civil servants, health workers, and laborers in the manufacturing sector, were singled out for assault or intimidation. In most cases, the national police did not halt acts of political intimidation or violence, arrest the perpetrators, or vigorously investigate political crimes. Some victims who were tortured or beaten died as a result of their injuries.

There were reports that war veterans targeted for abuse ZANU-PF members who were not carrying the new party identification cards during the year 2001.

In the 2 months preceding the July 28-29 by-election in Bindura, ZANU-PF supporters beat and tortured hundreds of opposition supporters.

In June and July, war veterans set up camps at Kitsiyatota, Chiveso, Murembe, Mupandira, and Maizeland Farms in Bindura district where they tortured captured opposition supporters. The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum reported that war veterans also established torture camps at Foothill Farm and Nyawa in Bindura. In July war veterans reportedly kidnaped and tortured 13 MDC supporters at one of the bases in Bindura. There was no further information available on the case by year's end 2001.

On June 30, ZANU-PF supporters abducted from his home and beat Fani Javangwe in the Harare township of Epworth and accused him of being pro-MDC. They forced Javangwe to lie prostrate and beat him all over his body; he sustained multiple injuries to the head, ears, and left leg, and suffered a fracture of his left hand. He also was forced to strip naked and sit very close to a fire. Javangwe reported the attack to the police; however, no action was taken by year's end 2001.

In June Willias Madzimure, the MDC M.P. for the Harare suburb of Kambuzuma, was attacked in his home. His maid sustained injuries to her head, back, hands, and stomach from bricks that were thrown at her as she escaped over the back wall. One residential guard lost an eye in the attack, and a second guard sustained head injuries. Although Madzimure's guards identified six of the perpetrators, no arrests were made by year's end 2001.

On July 22 in Bindura, several hundred ZANU-PF supporters ambushed a motorcade carrying MDC President Tsvangirai and several MDC M.P.'s. The ZANU-PF youths threw stones at the vehicles, seriously injuring five persons, and burnt the car in which the MDC's secretary for health, Dr. Tichaona Mudzingwa, was riding; several persons, including Mudzingwa, were detained after the incident. None of the perpetrators was detained or charged.

On August 6, during a conflict between commercial farmers and farm occupiers near Chinhoyi, at least four persons were injured seriously. On August 7, ZANU-PF youth indiscriminately beat white persons in the area. Following the conflict, 24 white farmers and their relatives, including 5 persons who were making inquiries at police stations, were charged with assault and public violence. All of those arrested were released on bail. Their cases remained pending at year's end 2001.

In early September, Mutandera, an MDC supporter, was forced to attend a ZANU-PF meeting in Chikomba, where he was beaten severely and stabbed in the head, according to the Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN). He was hospitalized at Chivhu General Hospital.

In October in Gokwe district, ZANU-PF supporters reportedly abducted and tortured 10 MDC supporters, including a local MDC official. The abductees were taken to a camp in a local shopping area. One abductee, Elifanos Chamunorwa, was forced to carry a large boulder on his shoulders for a long distance and was burned on the soles of his feet with a hot iron. Police officers intervened to take Chamunorwa to a hospital; however, no arrests were made. Phineas Dimhairo, the MDC chairman for Gokwe Central, reportedly was stoned and whipped with chains. The case was pending at year's end 2001.

On November 7, ZANU-PF supporters beat and whipped numerous farm workers and their families, including a 5-year-old boy, on five farms near the town of Marondera. No arrests were made by year's end 2001.

On November 16, hundreds of war veterans and ZANU-PF supporters attacked shoppers, schoolchildren, and other persons in Bulawayo, causing numerous injuries. No arrests had been made by year's end 2001.

On November 30, 300 war veterans reportedly raided a farm near Chegutu, beat farm workers, and burned 42 houses; 20 persons were hospitalized for serious burns, and more than 100 persons were displaced.

During the year 2001, business managers of urban NGO's and private companies were abducted and taken to ZANU-PF headquarters, where some were beaten and threatened, and others were forced to kiss a portrait of President Mugabe and sing ruling party slogans.

War veterans and ZANU-PF supporters continued to harass, intimidate, and abuse journalists considered to be sympathetic to the opposition during the year 2001.

In a number of rural areas, war veterans and other ZANU-PF supporters conducted "pungwes" (forced nightly political gatherings). Hundreds of villagers were rounded up, driven to remote areas, and forced to chant ZANU-PF slogans or denounce the opposition until the next morning.

Government supporters raped suspected opposition supporters. The attacks targeted female farm workers and health workers.

In October 2000, President Mugabe issued a presidential decree granting a general amnesty for politically motivated crimes that occurred between January 1 and July 31, 2000. The amnesty protects nearly all the agents of the political violence campaign and effectively prevents any criminal prosecutions against them.

In July 2000, the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA), an umbrella organization of approximately 100 NGO's, called for an inquiry into the political violence, and a number of other human rights organizations released reports on the political violence associated with the June parliamentary elections during the year 2001.

There were confirmed reports that in Budiriro, a suburb of Harare, war veteran groups frequently used a medical clinic belonging to former National Liberation War Veterans Association leader and M.P., Dr. Chenjerai Hunzvi, to torture members of the MDC before the 2000 parliamentary elections. At least one person, Chipunza, died from injuries sustained during torture there, and another six testified to a human rights group that they were tortured at this clinic. Authorities arrested 46 war veterans, but they were released on bail, and they are unlikely to be tried because of the amnesty.

The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum reported that in 2000, ZANU-PF supporters in Mberengwa district abducted a local nurse and a teacher at night and forced them to a remote camp where other opposition members were being held. The two were stripped and forced to climb trees and jump from a height of three meters. They were beaten with electrical cords and sticks and threatened with firearms. Authorities arrested four suspects and held them on charges of malicious damage to property, public violence, kidnaping, and murder. As a result of the presidential amnesty, charges against three of the suspects were dropped, but the other suspect remained in custody for murder at year's end 2001.

In 2000 a group of ZANU-PF supporters allegedly tortured MDC members in Bulawayo before the start of a rally addressed by President Mugabe. In August police arrested two war veterans suspected of participating in the torture; however, charges against them were dropped as a result of the amnesty.

No action was taken by year's end 2001 against the police who used tear gas to disperse violent clashes between MDC and ruling party supporters or against the ZANU-PF supporters and war veterans who beat and threw stones at unarmed opposition members and bystanders in 2000.

There was no known action taken against the ZANU-PF supporters or war veterans responsible for torturing, beating, or otherwise abusing the persons in the following cases from 2000: The August sexual abuse of 10 school children; the July beating of The Standard journalist Cengetayi Zvanya; the June beating of several journalists; the June beating of an MDC ward chairman; the May beating to death of an opposition supporter and his son; the May beating of Eomonn Oliver; the May beating to death of an army sergeant; the April beating and killing of a commercial farmer; and the April beating and killing of several MDC supporters.

No action was taken against the ruling party supporters who conducted 200 reported attacks on schools in June 2000. Teachers were dragged from classrooms, beaten, and stripped naked in front of their students. Health care workers also were targeted for assault, and nurses were raped. During the year 2001, ruling party supporters continued to target teachers who they suspected of supporting the opposition; however, there were fewer attacks than in 2000.

During the year 2001, 11 persons were injured by landmine explosions along the Mozambique border. During 2000 two persons were killed and two were injured by landmine explosions.

On November 25, an unidentified assailant shot a farmer three times at close range in the Macheke area; the farmer was hospitalized for his injuries. Two suspects reportedly were arrested. No further action was taken by year's end 2001.

The Constitution prohibits these abuses; however, security forces searched homes and offices without warrants, and the Government is believed to monitor some private correspondence and telephones, particularly international communications. In 2000 Parliament passed the Postal and Telecommunications Act that permits the Government to monitor and intercept e-mails entering and leaving the country.

In February security force officers reportedly threatened British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) correspondent Joseph Winter while they conducted a midnight search of his home.

In early July, police entered a Harare office of the MDC without a warrant and detained several officials for 4 hours, but they did not disclose the purpose of their visit.

On September 3, the MDC parliamentary candidate for the Bindura by-election, Elliot Pfebve, accused the CIO of repeatedly breaking into his business office and stealing documents related to the MDC's electoral strategies.

In 2000 police raided MDC party headquarters, detained some MDC officials, and removed documents. The High Court ruled that the search of the offices and seizure of documents was illegal, and the police returned the seized documents.

Police periodically conducted house-to-house searches in the suburbs of Harare and Bulawayo during the year 2001.

Unlike in the previous year, police did not search the MDC party headquarters; however, war veterans attempted without success to enter forcibly the building on one occasion.

ZANU-PF supporters and war veterans also attacked and destroyed the homes of opposition supporters and commercial farmers. For example, in June Willias Madzimure, the MDC M.P. for the Harare suburb of Kambuzuma, was attacked in his home on two occasions. On June 21, a group of ZANU-PF youths threw stones at his house. On June 23, approximately 200 persons, many of them wearing ZANU-PF shirts, destroyed his house and its contents; several persons were injured.

After fighting broke out on August 6 between commercial farmers and land occupiers near Chinhoyi, hundreds of ZANU-PF supporters embarked on a campaign of looting and burning farmhouses, destroying crops, livestock, and farming equipment, and forced 60 farmers and their families--approximately 300 persons--to flee the area. Many of the farmhouses were uninhabitable after the roofs were destroyed and door and window frames were removed. Many farmers who refused to assist the looters were beaten. There were credible reports of police involvement in the looting. Most of the farmers returned to their homes, but some chose to remain in Harare.

The Government claims that white farmers occupy 70 percent of the country's most productive land. The Commercial Farmers Union disputes that figure, contending that members of the white minority own only 20 percent of the country's best farmland, while the Government owns most of the remainder. There is widespread public support for land reform; however, there are problems with implementation of the Land Acquisition Act (Land Act). Under the Land Act, farmers whose lands have been designated for acquisition and redistribution by the Government may appeal only the amount of compensation, not the initial decision to acquire their farms. Shortly after the 2000 referendum that defeated the proposed constitution that would have permitted land seizures, war veterans, with government support, began occupying commercial farms and assaulted and intimidated farm workers and the predominately white farm owners.

In April 2000, Parliament passed a constitutional amendment permitting the seizure of land without compensation. In May 2000, President Mugabe, using extraordinary presidential powers, amended the Land Act to bring it into conformity with this amendment. In June 2000, the Government designated 841 farms for compulsory acquisition, giving those farm owners 1 month to appeal. After the 2000 elections, the Government began a fast-track resettlement program in an ostensible effort to settle historical inequities in land ownership quickly. All or portions of 1,250 commercial farms remained occupied by war veterans, ZANU-PF supporters, and other squatters who built homes and planted crops on the land. Intimidation and work stoppages occurred daily for commercial farmers and farm workers. In November 2000, the Supreme Court ruled that the land occupations violated constitutional private property rights and protection from arbitrary search and entry and issued a consent decree whereby the Government and the CFU agreed that the Government would halt its land resettlement activities and evict squatters from occupied land; however, the Government had not complied with the agreement by year's end 2001.

On November 30, President Mugabe amended the Land Act by decree to permit the immediate government seizure of all commercial farming land. The decree requires all farm owners who have received government acquisition notices to halt farming activities immediately and leave their homes within 90 days. Approximately 1,000 of the 4,000 commercial farmers in the country had received such notices by year's end 2001. The December 2 Supreme Court ruling effectively removed legal recourses available to commercial farmers. In December there were reports that government ministers, ZANU-PF members, and civil servants, including the national Police Commissioner, forced families to leave their homes and seized their farming properties.

On December 28, the High Court ruled that Guy Watson-Smith, a farmer, was allowed to retrieve machinery, animals, and other personal property from his farm, which reportedly was seized in December by former army chief Solomon Mujuru and local civil servants.

ZANU-PF members forcibly evicted farm workers from their houses. For example, in July and August, war veterans and farm occupiers evicted 14 farmers and approximately 3,000 farm workers and their families in the Hwedza district of Mashonaland East province; many of the evicted farm workers remained displaced at year's end 2001.

The Constitution prohibits arbitrary arrest and detention; however, some laws effectively weaken this prohibition, and security forces arbitrarily arrested and detained persons repeatedly.

The law requires that police inform an arrested person of the charges against him before he is taken into custody. Warrants of arrest issued by the courts are required except in cases of serious crimes or where there is the risk of evidence disappearing. There is a growing problem, especially in rural areas, in which victims or witnesses of crimes who report to the police are themselves charged with the crimes of the perpetrators. Although a preliminary hearing before a magistrate is required within 48 hours of an arrest (or 96 hours over a weekend), the law often is disregarded if a person does not have legal representation. A 1992 amendment to the Criminal Procedures and Evidence Act substantially reduced the power of magistrates to grant bail without the consent of the Attorney General or his agents. However, in practice a circular issued by the Attorney General giving a general authority to grant bail has lessened the negative effect of the rule. High Court judges grant bail independently.

Detainees generally are not allowed prompt or regular access to their lawyers. Authorities often inform lawyers who attempt to visit their clients that detainees are "not available." Family members generally are denied access unless accompanied by an attorney. Detainees, especially those from rural areas without legal representation, routinely are held incommunicado. Family members and attorneys often are not able to verify that an person has been detained until the detainee appears in court.

The Official Secrets Act and the Law and Order Maintenance Act (LOMA) grant the Government a wide range of legal powers. The LOMA gives extensive powers to the police, the Minister of Home Affairs, and the President to prosecute persons for political and security crimes that are not defined clearly.

In December a revised Public Order and Security Bill (POSB), which the Government proposed to replace the LOMA, was submitted to Parliament for debate; however, it was not passed by year's end 2001.

Prolonged pretrial detention remained a problem. Detainees spend an average of 6 months incarcerated before their trials because of a critical shortage of magistrates and court interpreters.

On January 8, four CIO agents abducted Eide Javachava, a messenger working for former MDC parliamentary candidate Elliot Pfebve, in Harare. The agents detained Javachava for 2 nights, continually beat him, and questioned him about Pfebve, who filed a lawsuit against President Mugabe in a foreign country for sponsoring political violence. Pfebve's brother was killed during the violent campaign that preceded the 2000 parliamentary elections. No further information was available on the case by year's end 2001.

On July 3, police officers in Harare's Budiriro township reportedly took Richard Jachi and his wife to Budiriro police station, where they were beaten and charged with public violence. No further information was available on the case by year's end 2001.

During the July national strike, police raided an MDC office and arrested 33 youths it claimed were responsible for attacks on ZANU-PF supporters in Bindura. The MDC stated that the police ostensibly were looking for "hostages" that did not exist. On July 3, police arrested three journalists for reportedly photographing the police beating of workers who were participating in the 2-day national strike. On July 4, the three journalists were released because the Attorney General did not press charges.

On July 11, police arrested Wellington Chibebe, the ZCTU's Secretary General, and questioned him about the ZCTU-sponsored strike on July 3 and 4 and the ZCTU's association with foreign labor organizations. He was released later that day.

In August 24 white farmers and their relatives, including 5 persons who were making inquiries at police stations, were charged with assault and public violence. All of those arrested were released on bail. Observers considered the bail conditions to be excessive; although bail amounts rarely exceed $33 (Z$10,000), the presiding judge in these cases required bail payments of $330 (Z$100,000). In addition the judge required that those released not return to their homes for 10 days for "their own safety," that they surrender their travel documents, and that they report to a police station on a regular basis. Their cases remained pending at year's end 2001.

Police arrested numerous members of the opposition during the year 2001; MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai was arrested and detained twice during the year 2001. On July 22, police and charged with public violence the MDC's secretary for health, Dr. Tichaona Mudzingwa, and several MDC youths who had been riding in a convoy that was attacked by ZANU-PF supporters. Mudzingwa was released on bail after spending 1 night in detention. He was charged with public violence; however, in August a magistrate dismissed the charges for lack of evidence. On September 8 in Bulawayo, police arrested three bodyguards of MDC M.P. David Coltart during a mayoral election and confiscated their video camera and radios. The three were held for 2 days for possessing an "unlicensed two-way radio." Police raided their homes and confiscated their guns--although all of them were registered legally--and accused the three of possessing weapons of war. The MDC accused the police of arresting the three for trying to film ZANU-PF attempts to manipulate the election.

In November police arrested approximately 30 MDC members in connection with the killing of Bulawayo War Veterans Chairman Cain Nkala; some of them were detained for weeks, and the bail hearings for several of the detainees repeatedly were delayed. Two detainees were charged with murder and remained in custody at year's end 2001, six were released on bail after being charged as accessories to murder, and the remaining detainees were released without charge. The detainees included Fletcher Dulini-Ncube, M.P. and MDC Treasurer, who was arrested on November 19. A High Court judge, who was considered a supporter of the ruling party, repeatedly postponed bail hearings for Dulini-Ncube. On December 7, after 3 weeks in detention, Dulini-Ncube was denied bail and charged with conspiracy to commit murder. Dulini-Ncube appealed his case to the Supreme Court; on December 18, he was released on bail after almost 1 month of detention in a maximum security prison.

On December 14, police detained Tsvangirai and questioned him for 4 hours about a two-way radio found at his residence in a police raid the previous day. On December 15, police again detained, questioned, and charged Tsvangirai with violating the Posts and Telecommunications Act for possessing an unlicensed radio. Tsvangirai was released, and no further action on the case was reported by year's end 2001.

Police also arrested several journalists during the year 2001.

After forcibly dispersing protests, police arrested numerous protestors. Some were charged with violence under the LOMA.

During food riots in October 2000, police detained at least 70 persons. No further information was available on their cases by year's end 2001.

In May 2000, police arrested 20 MDC supporters who were preparing for a political rally. No further information was available on the case by year's end 2001.

At the end of 1999, the Government reportedly was holding approximately 80 foreigners in Harare Remand Prison who had been there for between 2 months and 1 year without having been charged formally. Many of these detainees reportedly were persons from the DRC, who claimed to fear persecution by the Government of the DRC. The Government of Zimbabwe was supporting militarily the DRC against insurgent forces. No further information was available at year's end 2001.

In 1999 military and civilian police detained and physically abused two journalists from The Standard and charged them with violating Section 50 of the LOMA. In a 2000 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that the section of the LOMA under which the journalists were arrested was unconstitutional. However, at year's end 2001, the journalists' suit for their alleged mistreatment was pending.

The Constitution prohibits forced exile, and the Government does not use forced exile; however, a number of persons left the country to escape repression and remained in self-imposed exile at year's end 2001. For example, during the year 2001, Nkosana Moyo, former Minister of Industry and International Trade, sent his family outside the country before submitting his resignation in May; he also promptly departed to take a position outside the country.

Legal system is a mixture of Roman-Dutch and English common law.

The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary, and in practice the judiciary remained largely independent despite government attempts to dilute its independence; however, the Government repeatedly refused to abide by judicial decisions. In addition numerous government officials, including the Justice Minister and the Minister for Information and Publicity, repeatedly called for the resignation of justices whose rulings were not consistent with the policies of the executive branch, and officials criticized the judiciary for these rulings. During the year 2001, the Chief Justice was coerced into retiring early, and a number of High Court judges resigned or retired early after being subjected to intensive government pressure and intimidation. In March the International Bar Association conducted an investigative visit to the country; in its subsequent report, it criticized the intimidation of judges and the forced retirement of the Chief Justice.

The law provides for a unitary court system, consisting of headmen's courts, chiefs' courts, magistrates' courts, the High Court, and the Supreme Court. Civil and customary law cases may be heard at all levels of the judiciary, including the Supreme Court.

Judges are appointed to serve until the age of 65 and may extend their terms until the age of 70 if they remain in good physical and mental health. The Constitution provides that they may be removed from the bench only for gross misconduct, and that they cannot be discharged or transferred for political reasons; however, during the year 2001, judges were coerced or threatened by the Government into resigning. In March Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa announced after meeting with Chief Justice Anthony Gubbay that Gubbay would retire early on June 30, 9 months before he reached the mandatory retirement age of 70. The meeting with Chinamasa followed a January 22 conversation between Gubbay and Vice-President Muzenda during which Gubbay threatened to resign after Muzenda dismissed the Chief Justice's request for protection against threats by suspected war veterans and ZANU-PF supporters. Chinamasa subsequently informed Gubbay in their meeting that he had been sent to accept Gubbay's resignation. In May High Court Judge James Devittie unexpectedly announced his resignation shortly after ruling against ZANU-PF in three out of four election petitions submitted by the MDC. Judge Ismael Chatikobo, who in 2000 had ordered the Government to return seized equipment belonging to a fledgling independent radio station, resigned in June, and Judge Michael Gillespie resigned in August. On December 31, Judge David Bartlett also unexpectedly resigned from the High Court.

During the year 2001, President Mugabe appointed three additional Supreme Court judges, bringing the total number to eight. The Government stated that the additional appointments were necessary to handle an increase in workload; however, some members of the legal community criticized the action as an attempt by Mugabe to pack the court. Magistrates, who are part of the civil service rather than the judiciary, hear the vast majority of cases and sometimes are subject to political pressure. Military courts deal with disciplinary or court-martial proceedings. Police courts, which can sentence a police officer to confinement in a camp or demotion, handle disciplinary and misconduct cases. Trials in both these latter courts generally meet internationally accepted standards for fair trials. Defendants in these courts have the right to appeal to the Supreme Court. All levels of the judiciary often make rulings disliked by the Government.

The Constitution provides for the right to a fair trial, and the judiciary rigorously enforces this right. Every defendant has the right to a lawyer of his choosing; however, well over 90 percent of defendants in magistrates' courts do not have legal representation. In criminal cases, an indigent defendant may apply to have the Government provide an attorney, but this is done rarely and granted rarely. However, in capital cases, the Government provides an attorney for all defendants unable to afford one. Litigants in civil cases can request legal assistance from the NGO Legal Resources Foundation. All litigants are represented in the High Court. The Supreme Court has instructed magistrates to ensure that unrepresented defendants fully understand their rights and to weigh any mitigating circumstances in criminal cases, whether or not the accused presents them as part of his defense.

The right to appeal exists in all cases and is automatic in cases in which the death penalty is imposed. Trials are open to the public except in certain security cases. Defendants enjoy a presumption of innocence, the right to present witnesses, and the right to question witnesses against them. Defendants and their attorneys generally have access to government-held evidence relevant to their cases. The legal system generally does not discriminate against women or minorities. However, some High Court judges imposed lenient sentences in some cases of rape and child sexual abuse, and local women's and legal organizations challenged these decisions.

The Government continued routinely to delay payment of court costs or judgments awarded against it.

Members of the ruling party and the Government increasingly were dissatisfied with the judiciary, which often ruled against the ZANU-PF and the Government. On January 31, the Supreme Court overturned as unconstitutional President Mugabe's decree prohibiting the nullification of the election of any M.P. The ruling allows the High Court to hear challenges to the results in 38 constituencies--all but 2 of them submitted by the MDC--in the 2000 parliamentary elections.

In November 2000, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the Government's land resettlement policy violated constitutional rights to property and protection from arbitrary search and entry and ordered a halt to the occupations. In November 2000, the Justice Minister warned the courts not to oppose the Government's land program. In December 2000, the Supreme Court ruled in a case filed by the Commercial Farmers Union that commercial farmers and their workers had been denied protection of the law and that the Government's fast-track land acquisition program infringed upon their rights and was unconstitutional. The ruling gave the Government until July 1 to establish a legal land reform program. War veterans raided the Supreme Court building to protest the Court's rulings against the Government's land resettlement policies. In December 2000, war veterans threatened to attack justices in their homes if they did not resign within 2 weeks; no such attacks occurred.

On October 2, a newly constituted Supreme Court, with justices considered more sympathetic to the ruling party, granted the Government an interim relief order that allowed it to proceed with its controversial land acquisition program. Between 85 and 90 percent of white-owned large-scale commercial farms were designated by the Government for compulsory acquisition, and approximately 1,250 farms of an estimated total of 4,000 remained occupied at year's end 2001, with most of those facing serious work disruptions or stoppages. On December 2, in a widely criticized four to one ruling, the Supreme Court ruled that the Government's land acquisition and reform program was constitutional and was being implemented legally.

During the year 2001, the Government and police again routinely failed to abide by court decisions ordering the removal of war veterans and other squatters residing on commercial farms. In April and May, the Government failed to abide by two High Court rulings requiring that police officials remove war veterans and other squatters trespassing on commercial farms. In May 2000, the High Court ordered an end to the occupation of 500 farms by war veterans and other ZANU-PF supporters; however, the order was not implemented. The High Court also brought contempt of court proceedings against National Liberation War Veterans Association leader Chenjerai Hunzvi for failing to remove his followers from occupied farm properties. Hunzvi, along with the Government, had been ordered to remove thousands of squatters from 1,000 occupied farms. Hunzvi was found guilty of contempt of court and received a commuted 3-month prison sentence. In August and September 2000, police removed approximately 100 squatters and war veterans from farms near Harare; however, the Government stopped the expulsions after the police actions were publicized.

In October 2000, President Mugabe issued a presidential decree granting a general amnesty for politically motivated crimes that occurred between January 1 and July 31, 2000. The pardon excluded the offenses of murder, robbery, rape, sexual assault, theft, and possession of arms, but did not exclude the charges of common assault and assault with the intent to commit grievous bodily harm. The pardon permitted the immediate release of prisoners convicted of the latter two offenses. The amnesty protects nearly all the agents of the political violence campaign that preceded the 2000 parliamentary elections and effectively prevents any criminal prosecutions against them. The amnesty was criticized widely by domestic and international human rights groups. Amnesty International expressed concern that it would encourage further violence in the run-up to the presidential elections in 2002.

The Government repeatedly has amended the Constitution in response to judicial rulings protective of human rights. Amendments to the Constitution are not ratified by the public but are subject only to the ZANU-PF-dominated Parliament's approval.

There were no reports of political prisoners held for sustained periods, although opposition leaders and supporters were detained frequently for several days at a time.

Prison conditions remained harsh and life threatening. Extreme overcrowding, shortages of clothing, and poor sanitary conditions persist. Overcrowding and poor sanitation aggravated outbreaks of cholera, diarrhea, and HIV/AIDS-related illnesses among the 21,133 prisoners. Government prison service authorities have determined that exposure to HIV/AIDS was a major cause of a large number of deaths in detention, and prison authorities called for more research to address this growing problem; some authorities argued for the early release of such terminally ill prisoners. Fletcher Dulini-Ncube, an MDC M.P. who was arrested for the killing of Cain Nkala and held in Khami Maximum Security Prison for more than 1 month, reportedly was denied regular access to medications for diabetes and hypertension.

The Government established a successful community service sentencing program to try to alleviate prison overcrowding. The Legal Resources Foundation, in cooperation with the prison service, has established a human rights training program for prison officials. Officials who mistreat prisoners are punished routinely. There has been a significant increase in the number of women incarcerated, primarily due to harsh economic conditions. Female prisoners are held in separate cellblocks from male prisoners. There are an estimated 2,000 women in prison, increasingly for crimes of prostitution, embezzlement, fraud, petty theft, and abandonment of infants. Many incarcerated women are obliged to raise their very young children in prison if they have no one to care for them while they are detained. Juveniles generally are held separately from adults; however, a local NGO reported that occasionally juveniles, particularly juveniles between the ages of 16 and 18 years, are held with adult prisoners for brief periods of time.

Pretrial detainees generally are held in individual cells until their bail hearings. If detainees are charged and remanded into custody, they routinely are held with the general prison population until trial.

The Government permits international human rights monitors to visit prisons; however, government procedures and requirements make it very difficult to do so. Permission is required from the Commissioner of Prisons and the Minister of Justice, which sometimes can take a month or longer to obtain or may not be granted. A local NGO that deals with prisoners' issues was granted access on a number of occasions during the year 2001.

Domestic violence against women, especially wife beating, is common and crosses all racial and economic lines. It occurs throughout the country and sometimes results in death. The Musasa Project, a leading women's rights organization, reported that the number of incidents of domestic violence increased during the year 2001 due to the deteriorating economy and higher unemployment among men. The organization addressed approximately 2,400 cases during the year 2001. Musasa reported that 54 percent of the women counseled for domestic violence had sexually transmitted diseases, including many with HIV/AIDS.

There continued to be reports of rape, incest, and sexual abuse of women. Musasa handled 22 cases of rape in the first 8 months of the year; many cases were not reported because of the social stigma attached to the crime and wives' fear that husbands may disown them. Approximately 1,000 rapes were reported in Harare during the first 10 months of the year--a rate that reportedly was higher than the previous year. Six cases of politically motivated rape were documented during the year 2001; human rights groups estimate that the actual number of politically motivated rapes may number in the hundreds. There were instances of gang rapes of young girls and elderly women and rapes of female farm workers and health care workers during the preelection period in 2000. Women face many obstacles in filing reports of rape; for example, many police stations are not prepared to handle properly the investigation of such cases. In addition women are reluctant to file reports because of the social stigma of rape. When cases go to court, lengthy sentences for rape and wife beating generally are imposed. However, a "binding over" order (an order to appear in court to respond to an accusation of violent behavior) is issued based only on actual physical abuse and not on threats of violence. Courts also do not have the power to oust an abusive spouse from a couple's home. Systemic problems and lack of education often mean that police do not respond to women's reports or requests for assistance.

In August the Sexual Offenses Act was enacted, which improved the legal recourses available to women. The Act enhances the protection of women by making nonconsensual sex among married partners a crime. The Act provides penalties for up to 10 years in prison for sexual crimes. It also expanded the definition of sexual offenses to include rape, sodomy, incest, indecent assault, or an immoral or indecent act with a child or person with mental disabilities.

Female genital mutilation (FGM), which is condemned widely by international health experts as damaging to both physical and psychological health, rarely is performed in the country. However, according to press reports, the initiation rites practiced by the small Remba ethnic group in Midlands Province include infibulation, the most extreme form of FGM.

There were reports that women were trafficked from the country to South Africa for prostitution and forced labor.

In April Save the Children Norway sponsored a conference in Harare to raise awareness about women's and children's issues, including how to combat child abuse and the trafficking of persons.

Since independence the Government has enacted laws aimed at enhancing women's rights and countering certain traditional practices that discriminate against women. However, women remain disadvantaged in society. Illiteracy, economic dependency, and prevailing social norms prevent rural women in particular from combating societal discrimination. Despite legal prohibitions, women still are vulnerable to entrenched customary practices, including the practice of pledging a young woman to marriage with a partner not of her choosing and the custom of forcing a widow to marry her late husband's brother.

The law recognizes women's right to own property independently of their husbands or fathers. Although unmarried women may own property in their own names, women married under customary law are not allowed to own property jointly with their husbands. The Administration of Estates Amendment Act makes inheritance laws more favorable to widows. However, in 2000 the Supreme Court upheld a magistrate court decision that, under customary ethnic law, a man's claim to family inheritance takes precedence over a woman's, regardless of the woman's age or seniority in the family. The Court cited Section 23 of the Constitution, which allows discrimination against women under customary law. Divorce and maintenance laws are favorable to women, but women generally lack awareness of their rights under the law.

Although labor legislation prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of gender, women are concentrated in the lower echelons of the work force and commonly face sexual harassment in the workplace. One in three working women at all levels was subjected to sexual harassment in the workplace.

In 2000 the Government promised to grant a quota of 20 percent of resettled land to women, although they comprise nearly 80 percent of the rural population. During the year 2001, very little land was granted to women under the fast-track resettlement scheme.

During a 2000 cabinet restructuring, the cabinet level position of Minister of State for Gender Affairs in the Office of the President was eliminated. The Government created a new Ministry of Youth Development, Gender, and Employment, but it does little to advance the cause of women. The Government gives qualified women access to training in the military and national service. Although there have been recent advances for women, they continue to occupy mainly administrative positions.

Several active women's rights groups, including Women in Law and Development in Africa (WILDAF), the Musasa Project, the Zimbabwe Women Lawyers' Association, the Women's Action Group, and the Zimbabwe Women's Resource Center and Network concentrate on improving women's knowledge of their legal rights, increasing their economic power, and combating domestic violence. Groups that focus on the problems of protection of women against domestic violence and sexual transmission of HIV/AIDS included the Women and AIDS Support Network and the Musasa Project.

The Government continued to demonstrate a commitment to children's rights and welfare through a system of primary health care and education overseen by the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare. The Children's Protection and Adoption Act, the Guardianship of Minors Act, the Deceased Person's Maintenance Act, and Sexual Offenses Act were passed in August, to protect the legal rights of minor children, and the Government increasingly enforced these acts. While there is no compulsory education and schooling is not free, the country has made considerable progress in providing education for children, and overall primary school attendance has increased by more than 4,000 percent since independence. Approximately 93 percent of children reached grade 5. However, because of increased school fees in urban schools and rural secondary schools, enrollment has declined. School fees have risen sharply due to high inflation, resulting in the inability of many families to afford to send all of their children to school. In most regions of the country, fewer girls than boys attend secondary schools. If a family is unable to pay tuition costs, it is most often female children who leave school. The literacy rate for women and girls over the age of 15 is estimated to be 80 percent, while the male rate is approximately 90 percent. However, budget cuts and the lack of adequate attention to HIV/AIDS prevention eroded the Government's capacity to address children's needs in these areas.

International experts estimated that HIV/AIDS infects nearly one-third of the adult population and kills approximately 2,000 persons every week. Deaths from HIV/AIDS have created hundreds of thousands of orphans, a number expected to rise to 1 million by 2005. This rapidly growing problem is expected to put a tremendous strain on both formal and traditional social systems. At the household level, there is an increased burden on the extended family, which has traditional responsibility for caring for orphans. Many grandparents are left to care for the young, and in some cases, children or adolescents are heading families. Many orphans are sent to foster homes, where they often become victims of sexual abuse. At the provincial and national levels, the governments are saddled with increasing demands for community orphan projects, orphanages, health care, and school fees.

The number of street children, and the related problems of theft, street violence, drug use, and violent death, increased significantly. There were an estimated 12,000 homeless street children in the country in 1999, and the number was estimated to be at least twice that number during the year 2001. The number of incidents of child abuse, including incest (long a taboo), infanticide, child abandonment, and rape increased during the year 2001. It is not known whether the statistics reflect the fact that more cases are occurring or only that more are being reported. The Parents and Family Support Network, a local NGO, reported that one in three children in the country is at risk of physical or emotional abuse. There was a large volume of rape cases in the Harare victim-friendly courts (VFC), which consist of individual magistrates designated to try family cases. The large volume led to calls by children's rights' advocates to establish additional courts in surrounding areas. Children are at increasing risk of HIV/AIDS infection as a result of the rising rate of sexual abuse cases. However, the Sexual Offenses Act makes it a crime to knowingly infect anyone, including children, with HIV/AIDS. The criminal justice system has special provisions for dealing with juvenile offenders.

In April a gardener sodomized his employers' 4-year-old son and reportedly infected him with HIV/AIDS. The case had not reached the courts by year's end 2001.

The 2000 case in which war veterans abducted and sexually abused 10 schoolchildren reportedly was under investigation; however, there was no further information available at year's end 2001.

FGM is performed rarely on girls.

The traditional practice of offering a young girl as compensatory payment in interfamily disputes continued during the year 2001.

Indigenous African churches that combine elements of established Christian beliefs with some beliefs based on traditional African culture and religion generally accept polygyny and the marriage of girls at young ages; they also generally approve of healing only through prayer and oppose science-based medicine including the vaccination of children.

There were continuing reports that children were killed for body parts by persons practicing healing rituals associated with traditional religions. Body parts from children and teenagers reportedly were considered the most efficacious for some such purposes. In January the High Court sentenced Naison Ndlovu to death for killing a 3-year-old girl in 1999 and draining her blood into a bottle for ritual purposes.

There are reports of child labor, including reports of an increasing number of girls engaged in prostitution. In April Save the Children Norway sponsored a conference in Harare to raise awareness about women's and children's issues, including how to combat child abuse and the trafficking of persons.

There were reports that children were trafficked from the country to South Africa for prostitution and forced labor.

Although there are no laws that specifically address trafficking in persons, common law prohibits abduction and forced labor, and the Sexual Offenses Act makes it a crime to transport persons across the border for sex. Trafficking of persons was a growing problem in the country. There continued to be reports that persons were trafficked, particularly women and children, from the country to South Africa for prostitution and forced labor. The Government took no actions to address the problem of trafficking in persons.

The country is primarily a source for the trafficking of men, women, and children to South Africa, but it also is a transit point for the trafficking of persons from Asia, Mozambique, and Malawi to South Africa. Most persons who are trafficked through the country to South Africa entered the country via its border with Botswana, which is more porous than its other borders. In a smaller number of cases, it is a destination point for trafficked persons from Mozambique, Malawi, and other poorer countries in southern and central Africa. There are no figures available from the Government or NGO's on the numbers trafficked to, from, or through the country. Although both men and women of every age group were trafficked, young women under 25 years of age appeared to be targeted specifically for trafficking to South Africa.

Most trafficking victims in the country appear to be targeted because they are young, unemployed, or dispossessed. Traffickers were known to enter nightclubs or other youth gathering places to look for recruits. Most trafficking victims were promised higher paying jobs in industry or commerce, few of which exist in South Africa. Some were forced to sign fraudulent contracts. Other persons, such as the unemployed and homeless, were recruited off the streets. Many young women were forced into the sex trade, and victims often were held against their wills and denied pay. Nearly all victims were transported by truck, especially in containerized cargo trucks. Typically, truck drivers would leave the trafficked persons near border posts, where they would cross the border on foot and be met on the other side.

There were reports that Taiwanese crime syndicates were involved in trafficking Chinese through Mozambique and Zimbabwe to South Africa. However, most trafficking from or through the country appeared to involve loose organizations of independent truck drivers and recruiters, most of whom did not have connections to overseas crime groups.

Trafficked persons in the country were denied access to food, water, and sanitation facilities while being transported. In some cases, victims were beaten.

In August Parliament passed and signed into law the Sexual Offenses Act, which makes it a crime to transport persons across the country's borders for the sex industry. Traffickers also can be prosecuted under other legislation, such as immigration and abduction laws, but the specified punishments generally are minor. The ZRP is the primary government authority involved in combating trafficking.

The Government generally does not acknowledge the problem of trafficking in persons. In cases where trafficking is discovered, the ZRP usually focused on the illegal immigration status of the victims rather than the activities of the traffickers. Most discovered victims of foreign nationality were detained and then deported. For citizens who were victims of trafficking, the Government does not provide medical or financial assistance. A trafficked person has the option to take his or her case before the VFC , but no cases were filed during the year 2001.

In April members of the ZRP, government officials, and NGO's attended a regional conference on women's and children's issues in Harare on the problem of trafficking in southern Africa. The conference recommended that all regional governments pass legislation outlawing the trafficking of persons; however, the Government did not take any action by year's end 2001.

Zimbabwe is not a major producer or consumer of illegal drugs, nor is it a major center for money laundering. Cannabis, cocaine and heroin are the drugs of choice in Zimbabwe, with cocaine rising in popularity. Zimbabwe continues to be a transit point for narcotics from the Subcontinent destined for the South African and European market. The government has yet to finalize the master drug plan that it initiated over one year ago. Severe economic hardship, lack of financing for the program and an increase in street crime and theft have taken the focus away from strategic planning to combat illegal drugs. At the end of last year there were signs that the battle against drugs would move to the forefront. A meeting to discuss the establishment of a counternarcotics master plan was held, but since then little has been accomplished in this area. Zimbabwe is a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention.

With the increase of flights from major European cities directly to Harare, and daily flights from many regional locations, Zimbabwe continues to be a transit point for drug transshipments. This, coupled with a well-developed road system and a porous border, have made Zimbabwe a logical choice for drug traffickers in this region, and there is evidence that they are taking advantage of the situation. The South African market continues to grow and, as demand increases, illegal narcotics flow south through Zimbabwe to reach that market, and the flow is likely to increase in the future. Thus, the most significant flow of drugs through Zimbabwe is a north to south overland movement of marijuana and ecstasy, and now cocaine.

Police have seen an increase in the amount of cocaine consumed in Zimbabwe. They advised it is primarily used by affluent whites, as it is far too expensive for most black Zimbabweans to purchase. Crack cocaine has arrived in Zimbabwe, though not yet in significant amounts: The police fear this will be the drug of choice for the less affluent members of the Zimbabwe population, and could have the biggest adverse impact on society should it become readily available. A small yet highly motivated drug squad of the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) continues to work diligently in the war against drugs. Members of the squad have complained about the lack of transportation and other resources needed to support this effort. The ZRP is also not able to provide its drug officers with field training since it lacks funding.

Seizures have also been affected by the economic downturn in Zimbabwe. There is little effort being made to detect how the narcotics are traversing Zimbabwe en route to South Africa, primarily since the officers do not have the appropriate resources to do the job. Zimbabwe is a party to three UN drug agreements, including the 1988 UN Drug Convention. An extradition treaty between the U.S. and Zimbabwe was approved by the U.S. Senate in October 1998, and awaits reatification of both governments.Little official effort is made to curb cultivation of marijuana, the only domestically produced drug in Zimbabwe. The local crop is generally found on small plots in communal lands where it has grown for generations. The quality is less desirable than cannabis from neighboring countries. Although attempts have been made by local dealers to get small farmers to produce the crop, police advise this has not been successful. They say most farmers tend to utilize their own crops for personal use, and do not want to get involved in the trade of cannabis.

Internet research assisted by Laurel Conly and Carmen Perez