Maravi

Threats of violence

Threats of violence
By Editor
Fri 22 Jan. 2010, 04:00 CAT

IT is very difficult to understand how the Inspector General of Police can fail to realise that threatening violence is a crime. It is embarrassing to our entire law enforcement system that the Inspector General of Police can say that threatening violence is not a crime he can arrest someone for. Was he saying this out of ignorance?

Or had he forgotten what the law is on threatening violence? We don’t think the Inspector General of Police is ignorant about what the law is on threatening violence. We also don’t think he had forgotten what the law is on threatening violence. We think this was simply a case of trying to protect ruling MMD cadres from being arrested and prosecuted for threatening to gang-rape Edith Nawakwi over her statements on governance issues. This is a case of selective justice.
The rule of law is breaking down in our country.

We say this because there can be no rule of law without the right to equality before the law, or equal protection of the law. Whether political ally of those in power, of the leadership of the ruling MMD or opponent, all should be entitled to equal protection before the law.

It is interesting to contrast the way the police reacted to the alleged threat of violence against two former University of Zambia student union leaders who now speak for those in government and the ruling party. The police was very quick to react to alleged threats of violence on these two young men by members of the opposition Patriotic Front.

The position quickly changed from that of threatening violence not being an offence to it being an offence simply because those on the receiving end were allies or agents of those in power and the alleged offending parties are their political opponents.

This is not the way to run our law enforcement system, our police. This is not the way to run a country. We know that no one can guarantee that life will treat everyone equally, and no one has the responsibility to do so. However, under no circumstances should the state and its agents impose additional inequalities on our people; they should be required to deal evenly and equally with all our people. No one should be above the law.

It is sad to see MMD cadres go around committing crimes with impunity. Chris Chalwe, Lusaka Province MMD youth chairman, has gotten away with a lot of violent actions against opponents of the MMD leadership.

It had to take a lot of pressure and concerted efforts to get Chalwe in court over violence against a Post reporter and his colleague from the Times of Zambia. Chris is still in court over violence and today he has continued threatening with violence innocent citizens trying to exercise their freedom of expression and speech. Why is Chris behaving this way? Is Chris an unrepentant criminal using the cover of politics to commit crimes with impunity? We don’t think so.

We actually think Chris is a nice guy, a friendly person. But he has turned to this brutish behaviour because he is being rewarded for it; he is earning a living from harassing and being cruel, inhuman to the political opponents of those in power, of the MMD leadership. As long as it continues to be rewarding to commit crimes in defence or in support of those in power, Chris and other young people will always hire themselves out to do such evil things.

It is also equally rewarding for the Inspector General of Police to turn a blind eye to the criminal acts of people like Chris because they have the support of his ‘employers’, the appointing authorities. Actually, Chris himself is part of the leadership of the ruling MMD. And the Inspector General of Police needs to be in good terms with him to survive in his office or soon he himself will become a victim of Chris’ violence. If he goes for Chris, he risks losing his job as Inspector General of Police.

This also explains why the same police that has declared threatening violence not to be a criminal offence is making a big issue out of allegations of threatening violence by members of the Patriotic Front. It benefits the Inspector General of Police to go for opposition members because that is in line with the interests of those in power.

What we are seeing is not new or strange. In every society throughout history, those who administer criminal justice systems hold power with the potential for abuse and tyranny. But no democratic society can tolerate such abuses.

The state must have the power to maintain order and punish criminal acts, but the rules and procedures by which the state enforces its laws must not be arbitrary or subject to political manipulation by the state.

There should be no dispensing power vested in anyone that would relieve a person from the duties and processes of the law. There is hardly a more powerful weapon which can be abused in the hands of a corrupt government than that of letting its supporters who commit crimes go without being arrested or being prosecuted. It is also common for this government to abuse the prosecution process by harassing their political opponents through unjustifiable arrests and prosecutions. This should not be tolerated.

And it shouldn’t be forgotten that our criminal justice system will only be effective to the degree that its administration is judged by our people to be fair and protective of individual rights, as well as of the public interest.
As for Chris, he shouldn’t cheat himself that he will get away forever with crimes against the political opponents of his masters.

One day his handlers will have to leave government and he will be left to face those he harassed, those he abused without the protection of the state. The life he is living is dangerous and its time he changed his ways and started respecting the rights of his fellow citizens. There is need for civility in politics. Politics, after all, is not supposed to be seen as a fight for survival, but a competition to serve one’s people. It’s understandable, for Chris and his masters, being in government is a means of survival. They are not there to serve the people but to be served. They can’t see life away from government.

Political competitors don’t necessarily have to like each other, but they must tolerate one another and acknowledge that each has a legitimate and important role to play. Moreover, the ground rules of our politics must encourage tolerance and civility in all that we do; in all our campaigns. We should all cooperate in solving the common problems of our country regardless of who is in power. But this is not possible when a corrupt clique seizes state apparatus and starts to use it to enrich itself at the exclusion of others.

Chris and his masters should know that violence of any form is not only a crime but it is also dangerous because it can breed counter-violence. People who live by violence are no better than animals. We can only hope that one day Chris and those he works for will reach a stage when they realise that the use of violence of any form against anyone is something that puts them next to animals. Chris should target his anger at the problems that the great majority of our people today face: the lack of daily sustenance.

Politics is an area of great importance for promoting justice, peace, development and community among all and as such, it should not be left to the impulses of emotion and passion. Politics need people with very high credibility and not people with criminal minds who see political differences as opportunities for engaging in violent actions. We appeal to Chris to change his ways and start to see political differences as opportunities for more and more discourse and not for exchanging blows and threats of gang-raping.

Labels: CADRES, EDITH NAWAKWI, FRANCIS KABONDE, INSPECTOR GENERAL, MMD, POLITICAL VIOLENCE

posted by MrK @ 7:09 PM