07/01/2025
On the 31st of December 2024 the President of Zimbabwe signed the Death Penalty Abolition Bill into law. The Bill was passed by the Senate on the 12th of December 2024. (If you are not familiar with the law-making process, kindly look into earlier articles where I summarised the process!)
The Death Penalty Abolition Act No. 4 of 2024 amends various laws in Zimbabwe including the Criminal Procedure of Evidence Act [Chapter 9:07], section 4 of the Genocide Act [Chapter 9:20], the Criminal Law Codification and Reform) Act [Chapter 9:23] and section 3 of the Geneva Conventions Act [ Chapter 11:06].
In terms of this law:
1. No Court shall impose a sentence of death upon a person for any offence whenever committed but instead shall impose whatever other competent sentence appropriate in the circumstances of the case.
2. The Supreme Court shall not confirm a sentence of death imposed upon an appellant, (an appellant is referred to as a person who has appealed his or her sentence) but instead shall substitute whatever other competent sentence is appropriate in the circumstances
3. No sentence of death, whenever imposed shall be carried out.
Essentially in summary we are now saying as a matter of law in Zimbabwe, no court can give the sentence of death or confirm such a sentence. The Zimbabwean courts must give any other sentence that is appropriate given the nature of the case. Further, those who were previously sentenced to death before this new law, are no longer on death row as it was called. The sentence cannot be carried out.
Prior to this, section 48 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe allowed the death penalty however it could not be given to:
a. A person who was less than 21 when they committed the crime
b. A person more than 70 years old
c. A woman.
Zimbabwe has now joined other African countries who have removed this penalty such as:
South Africa (1995)
Rwanda (2007)
Burundi and Togo (2009
Gabon (2010)
Benin (2012)
Congo and Madagascar (2015)
Guinea (2016 for ordinary crimes and 2017 for military crimes)
Burkina faso 2018)
Chad (2020)
Sierra Leone (2021)
Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea and Zambia (2022)
Panashe Sagwete-Bwoni
Attorney in Charge
Masawi & Partners
