AFRICA/ZIMBABWE - "May the abolition of the death penalty be a first step towards promoting the culture of life in prisons"

Harare (Agenzia Fides) - With the abolition of the death penalty, Zimbabwe has taken a fundamental step towards aligning its laws with the fundamental Christian principle of "love your neighbour as yourself" (Mark 12:31), said the Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace in Zimbabwe in a comment on the abolition of the death penalty ratified at the end of 2024.
On December 31, President Emmerson Mnangagwa signed the law abolishing the death penalty, which the Senate passed on December 12. The last execution in Zimbabwe took place in 2005, while according to Amnesty International, at the end of 2023 there were still about 60 people on death row in Zimbabwean prisons. The sentence for these people will now be commuted to life imprisonment.
"The abolition of the death penalty in Zimbabwe is the result of cooperation and partnership between the Church, the government and civil society," the Justice and Peace Commission underlines in the statement sent to Fides.
"We recognize that the abolition of the death penalty is not an end in itself, but a means to an end: the promotion of a culture of life, dignity and respect for all people," the statement says. According to the Bishops' Conference, this also means that living conditions in prisons must be improved.
The Bishops' Commission recommends that "there should be cooperation in rehabilitation programs." "We propose as a Church," the statement says, "that the government work with cooperatives, educational institutions, hospitals, civil society organizations and the Church to set up rehabilitation programs for prisoners, former death row inmates and those released so that they can reintegrate into society." The families of the victims must also be supported together: "We recommend that the Church and the government work together to offer support and counseling services to the families of the victims. This is in line with the conviction that we must hate sin, but not the sinner". In this sense, it is also proposed that the Church and the government work together "to promote practices of restorative justice that focus on healing and reparation rather than punishment and retribution".
Finally, extrajudicial killings must be prevented, which "remain a cause of great concern in Zimbabwe". (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 25/2/2025)

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