SW Radio Africa (London)
Violet Gonda
6 November 2009
column
Pascal Gwezere, the MDC Transport Manager who was abducted at gunpoint from his house in Harare last Tuesday, has made another appearance in court. He first appeared in court last Saturday, four days after he went missing. He is being accused of undergoing military training in Uganda and stealing firearms from Pomona Army Barracks in Harare. He denies all the allegations.
At his first court appearance he was denied legal representation and was remanded in custody to 13th November.
Gwezere had been threatened and because of this only hinted in court that he had been tortured by state security agents. Although clearly injured he was still denied medical treatment by the prison authorities, despite an order by the court. Lawyer Alex Muchadehama tried to have the matter heard again in court on Thursday so his client could place on record complaints against his abductors and apply for refusal of remand. But prison officials claimed they had no fuel to transport the prisoner.
Finally on Friday Gwezere was taken to court, under heavy guard. Kumbirai Mafunda, Communications Officer for Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), said there was heavy security at the Magistrate's Court and journalists were prevented from taking pictures of the MDC employee. Muchadehama was supposed to make an application for refusal of remand but the matter was postponed to Monday because of time constraints, caused by the magistrate arriving late.
However, Muchadehama was able to complain against the prison authorities' treatment of Gwezere, who was transferred from Harare Remand Prison to Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison. Muchadehama told the court that the transport manager was still being denied medical treatment and that the prison doctors who had been ordered by the court to examine him, had not done so. The lawyer then asked the court to allow his client to be seen by private doctors of his choice. The Harare magistrate consented but at the time of going to air it was not clear if this had yet happened.
Gwezere is said to have sustained serious injuries after he was tortured in detention, including being blindfolded, beaten under the feet and an indecent assaulted. Mafunda said it was clear from his appearance that he was in a lot of pain and had problems with his legs.
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