A friend dies in prison

Life and death in Zimbabwe's horrific jails

My good friend Howard died in Mutimurefu Prison, in Masvingo, Zimbabwe, last week. the victim of abuse, starvation and infection. Many more are suffering similar fates within our places of detention, every day of the week. I am writing this to mark the death of Howard Erika, Prison No. 1141/03.

Mutimurefu is a dreadful place. It is almost literally falling down due to consistent neglect. The sewage system is disfunctional, and human effluent flows through the corridors. It took four months for these conditions to kill Howard.

There is an ironic twist to his death while in the hands of Mugabe's so-called security system. He was no gallant fighter for the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) Quite the reverse. Howard, with a wife and three children to feed, joined one of the Zanu-PF terror squads.

But his conscience troubled him. He made contact with some MDC supporters, and gave them information about action to be taken against them. Suspicions were aroused, and eventually he was arrested on the almost unbelievable charge of beating up MDC people.

The case never came to court. Instead, inside Mutimurefu, he was locked into a two-man cell with up to twenty other men. The only food they received was a bowl of vegetable soup once a day. They fell ill, but requests for medicine were denied. They were beaten, and sexual abuse was rife. The results included tuberculosis, pellagra (caused by diet deficiency) mental illness, and in all likelihood, Aids.

With no washing facilities available, all the prisoners became infested with lice.

I know these details thanks to a sympathetic source from within the prison. He told me that when a prisoner died he was simply dumped into a cell used as a mortuary. The authorities took their time informing relatives, and the corpses decayed. Eventually they were given a pauper's burial.

"You must be very careful, if you have a relative imprisoned here," my source told me. "Unless a prisoner has his own source of food, he will surely die."

The deaths of six other inmates of Mutimurefu were announced along with Howard's. The men were Patrick Bhumera (PN 1594/06), Ceplos Lasani (PN 1656/06), Pedzisai Muvengwa (PN 747/07), Alimony Dzaromba (PN 248/07), Skubekhile Masuku (PN 320/08 and Josephe Mahumbike (PN not known.) R.I.P.

Comments

[Cindy]

This is horrible. I'm so sorry for your loss.

[Living Zimbabwe]

What is one to do, you try and do what is right and you die for all your efforts. How good would it be if people committing all sorts of atrocities had a change in mindset and saw the wrong in the ways?

Just about every single story I read about Zimbabwe get me worked up, and leave me frustrated and hopeless. I fear for the loved ones I still have living in Zimbabwe who don’t want me to worry about them too much and tell me that everything is okay and that they are ‘surviving’.

Is there any hope for a better Zimbabwe in the near future? Whatever the case may be I wish the loss of innocent lives comes to halt right now. I am sorry for the loss of your friend.

[Sandra]

Sometimes I cry but nowadays I just look at this blog and shrug and tell myself that Zimbabweans are too docile and they deserve what is coming at them.

[Alli]

Exe Moze you are back now. This is the staff that we wanna see. We thought the burgars had closed your source of information.

[Jason]

Zimbabwe has reached a point of no return and the sooner all Zimbaweans realise that we are the new Rwanda/Somalia/Ethiopia the better. Mark my word: Nothing will com out the negotiations. Unless there is a mass uprising ZANU will rule forever and will use the gun to do so

[RMacleod]

If there is a failure to remove Mugabe alias Papa Doc soon, the population, or what is left of them will probably be sent to slave for the Zimbabwe's new masters, the Chinese!

[Jilo]

This is truly a good story.

[joyce]

Hi everyone i am back i was in Zimbabwe for 4 days.

We cannot expect people in prison to be treated well by the junta. I had an opportunity to visit Sakubva hospital Mutare general hospital St Joseph and the medical centre. Ladies and gentlemen the situation is horrible. The reports we are reading from the news websites are not enough we need tv channels like the bbc sabc cnn sky and aljazeera to broadcast, the reality about our beloved country. Zanu-pf is finished, yangove bvunurwa renyoka. The Junta has reduced the life of its citizens to nothing. People are dying the conditions in hospitals are worst than a somalian prison. The forbes border post is nolonger what it used to be. You cannot tell how many entry points are there. There is one called pa Kiosk, pipeline, pagomo Kunjanji, Kwarimai, ku Mary mount, kuzvipuka(kumhuka)and etc. It was Mozambicans whom were known to be the main users of these illegal entry points. They used to use them at midnight but today it is used 24/7 not by Moscans as we used to call them but by Zimbabweana and Zimbabweanos as we are called by Mozambicans.The support unit which was meant to patrol the border they're also at the boom area of the official entry and exit points,doing their acts of corruption.Officers of both Zimra and immigration they are number 1 croocks.
Lets not talk about people in prisions and bodies in mortuaries. Lets talk of people in the hospitals. The situation is bad.

[Majays]

Sandra !! I really can not believe what I read, how possible could you say that, my sister? Where is your conciouce That was really very rude of you !!!!!

[Doctor]

Sandra is right. Why let Tsvangirai do this alone? Why cant people rise and sacrifice their lives for a better generation

[RMacleod]

When similar situations occur in Europe or some other parts of the world, evil rulers like of Mugabe are done,dusted and buried in a very short period of time by the population that has been effected. Unfortunately in Africa and as mentioned by
Sandra and Doctor about Zimbabwe docility , African populations also tend to be docile in these circumstances and it appears the majority will always follow the most savage politician with the biggest stick.
As mentioned as mentioned above, the Chinese as the new masters, these people are well aware of this flaw and will use it to their advantage.

[Ange de la Lune]

I totally agree with RMacleod. I have been saying for ages that I felt absolute horror for the African people when I heard about the alliance with the Chinese re arms etc. This was post 1994. How naive are the African people in general. How weak her leaders that they are so easily seduced by material wealth and so easily corrupted by their own greed for power. How tragic that the beautiful side of the African person, in general, is totally exploited by the few. Leaders, elders of tribes used to meet and have indabas - ensuring that their tribal land occupiers were fairly dealt with and laws observed. This old custom has remained entrenched within the African psyche - and it had huge benefits for a people who were essentially ruled by a single 'patriarchal' figure the Chief. Nowadays, mainly male, Africans of any age assume the same role in the society of indigenous Black Africans by virtue solely not of the wisdom and grooming (such as in the Western World of a young man who is the next King and who, if considered not ready for the role, has to wait for the position e.g. Prince Charles)but by an essentially corrupt hold on power obtained by devious dealings and acquisition of immense wealth. It seems that they think nothing of building mansions in their states and of hoarding trillions in offshore accounts whilst the poor people they are supposed to be protecting and securing a future for, starve to death and are beaten and abused at the slightest hint of independent intelligent thought which would lead them away from absolute domination by a tyrannical despot. They live their lives totally impervious to the pain and suffering their greed and intense egocentric self glorification have created. It is noteworthy that, generally speaking, it is the most educated sector of society that opposes such leaders. Clearly these educated Africans have the intellectual ability to foresee the consequences of actions and are not immediately disempowered by those whose intellect and vanity are likened to the 'Kings who wore no clothes'. I love the African people, their spirit of ubuntu and the many other amazing and constructive parts of their culture, but the one that destroys them is their tradition of looking and listening and being guided by any man who poses and struts taking on the form of a leader whilst whilst doing the devils work for him by using that very position to obliterate them the general populus. The sooner the vast majority of Africans learn to think independently and seek to acquire knowledge from the lessons of history and the consequences of ill judged actions in the past, the sooner they will be free to live and enjoy the fruits of the cultures they so aspire to i.e. personal wealth, health and the ability to determine WHO sits in the seat of government. The Western man has much to answer for to in that their is disproportionate financial wealth at the top of almost all corporates. Men who think nothing of flying to the other side of the world and taking an entire entourage with them of 10 - 20 family members, to watch a son play a rugby match, but who baulk at paying the staff they employ a salary or wage which is in ratio and proportion realistic and fair. They have absolutely no conscience it would seem. They are the ones who create the need for security systems, high walls and fear. The fact is that a middle income person used to be able to afford to employ a person of lesser ability or educational level to work as a gardener, domestic worker etc and this existed all over the world not just in Africa, but now the middle income person is hard pressed to come out. The result is that mothers have to work, whether they think it wise or not, so we have children without suitable guidance. We have spiralling unemployment at the lower socio economic level and we have financial pressure on young middle income married couples such as never before which further fracture society and the stability of the child as this results in divorce.

You power hungry men and women take note you are losing the battle even if you think that by the acquisition of vast capital wealth you are winning the war.

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