Zimbabwe: Excessive Force Used Against Protesters

(Johannesburg, March 12, 2019) – Zimbabwe security forces used excessive lethal force to crush nationwide protests in mid-January 2019, Human Rights Watch said today. President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s sudden announcement of a fuel price increase of 150 percent resulted in three days of demonstrations throughout Zimbabwe in which security forces fired live ammunition, killing 17 people, and raped at least 17 women. Zimbabwe authorities should halt ongoing abuses, release those detained arbitrarily, and appropriately prosecute those responsible, Human Rights Watch said.