Towards A Zimbabwe where
there is Peace, Justice, Dignity,
and Development for All
ZPP is a Non-Governmental Organisation that was
founded in 2000 by a group of faith-based and
human rights NGOs working and interested in human
rights and peace-building initiatives. ZPP has become
a vehicle for civic interventions in times of political
crisis.
INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PEACE
ZPP joined the world in commemorating the
International Day of Peace. The 21st of September is
designated as the International Day of Peace. The
United Nations unanimously adopted Resolution 1367
which led to the establishment of the International
Day of Peace in 1981. This day serves as a global
platform for all people to pledge to put peace above
all other considerations and to work towards fostering
a culture of peace.
ZPP believes that fostering peace is the responsibility
of everyone so as to leave behind peaceful,
developing communities for future generations. The
organization continues to make efforts to develop
long-lasting and transformative peace initiatives in
the communities it works in. ZPP uses the human
rights approach to advance sustainable peace in the
country. In line with the global theme for this year’s
International Day of Peace ‘Actions for Peace: Our
Ambition for the #Global Goals.’ ZPP adopted the
theme ‘Citizens’ call, peace is everyone’s
responsibility’ to encourage people to take action and
combat threats of peace in their communities. This
year, regrettably, the day was commemorated with
various human rights violations documented during
the pre and post-electoral period.
Zimbabweans continue to live under circumstances
that prevent the enjoyment of their social, political,
economic, cultural, and civil rights. The uncertain
political and economic climate has led to leaders
taking advantage of citizens in communities in
exchange for economic favours. The majority of the
population in Harare, which has over 1,500,000
residents according to the 2022 census, still lacks
access to clean drinking water. An individual may
spend more than two hours in a queue for water
due to the scarcity of running water and the lengthy
travel times needed to reach boreholes. As a result,
conflicts over boreholes have arisen, and young
girls are sexually exploited to gain access to water
more quickly. Section 75 of the Zimbabwe
Constitution states, ‘every citizen and permanent
resident of Zimbabwe has a right to – (a) basic
State-funded education, including adult basic
education’. However, Zimbabwe has done much but
not enough to realize the goal of providing basic
state-funded education. Even though the
Constitution of Zimbabwe guarantees free basic
education, parents seem to be under increased
pressure to pay for school levies and extra lessons
in foreign currency. Since January 2023, ZPP
documented numerous cases in different
communities,
including
Silobela,
Dangamvura/Chikanga, and Hurungwe West, in
which children were denied access to the
classroom due to non-payment of tuition and levy
fees. Despite all this, it is disheartening to note that
citizens are reluctant to speak against the
infringement of their rights and take action to
promote peace.
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