Six unarmed civilians were killed on August 1, 2018. Eight years later, the families of Silvia Maphosa, Brian Zhuwawo, Challenge Tauro, Gavin Charles Dean, Ishmail Kumire and Jealous Chakandira still await justice.
The violence left six people dead, 35 injured and dozens of properties damaged. The six became the first victims of the second republic, an administration that came to power promising a decisive break from the violence and impunity associated with its predecessor.
Following the killings after soldiers were deployed to quell unrest triggered by delays in announcing presidential election results, President Emmerson Mnangagwa appointed a commission of inquiry chaired by former South African president Kgalema Motlanthe.
After hearing public testimony and receiving written submissions, the commission produced a comprehensive 128-page report detailing what happened and recommending measures to deliver justice, accountability and national healing.
In his foreword, Motlanthe said the commission was established to help heal the nation following the deeply regrettable deaths, injuries and destruction of property. He said it was intended not only to establish the truth about the post-election violence but also to advance reconciliation by ensuring accountability.
To its credit, the government made the report public, breaking with the tradition of shelving such inquiries and leaving them to gather dust. At the time, the move appeared to signal a genuine commitment to transparency and reform.
The commission found that all six victims died from hypovolaemic shock caused by gunshot wounds. It recommended compensation for every victim of the violence and for the dependants of those killed. It further urged that children left behind by the deceased receive urgent assistance with school fees and welfare support. It called for a special committee to assess compensation on a case-by-case basis and for the establishment of a dedicated victims' fund.
Yet eight years later, the recommendations remain largely unimplemented. Compensation was only paid to victims who successfully pursued legal action. The families of those who lost their lives are still waiting for the justice the commission recommended.
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The commission also urged police to complete investigations so that those responsible for the crimes committed on August 1 can be prosecuted. It recommended that members of the security services found to have breached their professional mandates be identified without delay, subjected to disciplinary proceedings and held accountable. It further stressed that victims and their families should play a central role in determining compensation.
While the commission concluded that firing warning shots into the air to disperse violent protesters was proportionate in the circumstances, it was unequivocal in condemning the use of live ammunition against civilians, particularly those fleeing.
Eight years on, accountability remains elusive. No one has been held criminally responsible for the deaths of the six civilians or for the injuries suffered by dozens of others. The commission's recommendations, once presented as the foundation for justice and reconciliation, have largely been ignored.
The obvious question is: what became of the government's commitment to accountability? How did an administration that promised a new era of openness and respect for the rule of law allow such a landmark report to languish without implementation?
With every passing year, it becomes increasingly difficult to avoid the conclusion that the commission served more as a public relations exercise than a genuine effort to ensure justice. At a time when the international community was welcoming the end of the Robert Mugabe era and embracing Zimbabwe's promise of a "new dispensation", the inquiry projected an image of transparency. But transparency without action is little more than theatre.
Time cannot erase the events of August 1, 2018. Government may hope that memories fade, but families who buried their loved ones cannot simply move on. Nor can a nation that claims to uphold the rule of law while failing to enforce its own commission's recommendations.
Every year of inaction further erodes public confidence in commissions of inquiry and reinforces the perception that they exist to defuse public outrage rather than deliver justice.
The government should honour the commitments it made to the nation. It must fully implement the Motlanthe Commission's recommendations, compensate every victim, prosecute those responsible and finally provide the accountability that has been elusive for far too long.
Until that happens, the wounds of August 1, 2018, will remain open and the promise made by Zimbabwe's "new dispensation" will continue to ring hollow.
