SI 142/2019. Following a hasty reintroduction of the
Zimbabwe dollar last year, prices of goods and
commodities continued to increase and inflation
impacted heavily on people’s general income. A loaf of
bread increased on average three times during the
course of the month of March. As at 31 March a loaf of
bread was going for ZWL30.00 up from ZWL18.00 at the
end of February. Mealie-meal, which was being sold at a
subsidised ZWL70.00, remained scarce with queues still
being witnessed despite the call for people to practice
social distancing in order to prevent COVID-19. The
announcement of the Lockdown resulted in some
retailers exorbitantly hiking prices of goods and Figure 1: People queue for LPG gas in Mbare. This was the trend
across the country
commodities. The cost of acquiring protective clothing
and hand sanitisers remained out of reach for many. A survey of pharmacies around Harare revealed that some
retailers are driven by an appetite to profiteer during the crisis. A litre bottle of hand and surface sanitizer cost
USD 20.00 at a local pharmacy with a 100mls bottle of sanitizer costing USD 4.00. Disposable face masks were
charged from US$ 0.50, US$1.00 and US$5.00 each in most pharmacies around Harare. This situation has left
many citizens unable to purchase protective clothing, which exposes them to the Corona virus.
Cases of harassment and intimidation were recorded in different communities in the reporting period.
In some cases, Zanu PF activists demanded financial contributions for the upcoming Independence Day despite
the President’s announcement that Independence Celebrations had been postponed. These demands are an
indication of a system that has normalised exploiting citizens of their hard-earned cash.
Politics of patronage also continued unabated as reports of Zanu PF supporters being given first preference in
allocation of food and other resources were recorded. This goes against the tenets of good governance that
encourage equity and inclusiveness and defies internationally recognised humanitarian standards of distribution.
During the month under review ZPP recorded a total of 145 cases of human rights violations with the highest
number of violations being recorded in Mashonaland Central province, followed by Mashonaland East. The most
prominent forms of violations were harassment and intimidation cases and discrimination.
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