Former Zimbabwean opposition youth leader Makomborero Haruzivishe is currently studying law at Kent University in United Kingdom.
Haruzivishe who fled Zimbabwe after suffering extended imprisonment and threats to his life due to clashes with law enforcement agents in his home country has also been granted refugee status.
Samuel Townend, Chair of the Bar Council of England and Wales, shared the news on LinkedIn, highlighting the challenges Haruzivishe faced in Zimbabwe.
“A privilege to attend the 30-year commemoration of a democratic South Africa at Westminster Abbey today. I was also lucky to meet Makomborero Haruzivishe, a law student at the University of Kent, having been a law student and the National Student Union leader in Zimbabwe, persecuted, life threatened, and chased out by government forces there before successfully obtaining asylum here in the UK. Well done on your end-of-year exams Mako, and go well!” Townend posted.
In response, Haruzivishe expressed his gratitude on Facebook. “A privilege to attend the 30-year commemoration of a democratic South Africa at Westminster Abbey. I was also lucky to meet Samuel Townend KC, the Chair of the Bar Council of England and Wales.
“He is a legal giant and accomplished leader known for being ‘a great strategist and fantastic in cross-examination’ and ‘very clear, logical, and persuasive’ (Chambers UK) and also described by the Legal 500 as ‘a first-class advocate with the tenacity of a pitbull and manners of an English gentleman’.”
The former University of Zimbabwe student was sentenced to 14 months in prison for allegedly inciting public violence during a 2020 protest in Harare. The charges stemmed from his participation in a demonstration where he whistled at the busy Copa Cabana terminus, purportedly to rally protestors against the police.
He was accused of participating in public demonstrations with the intent to incite violence. He was subsequently convicted of inciting violence and resisting lawful arrest, for which he was sentenced on April 6, 2021, to 36 months in prison. At the time of his sentencing, Haruzivishe faced three other charges, all connected to his activism.
Although he appealed the sentence and was granted bail by a High Court judge in July 2021, Haruzivishe remained in prison after a magistrate ruled to revoke it until he had been tried for the other three offenses. After 10 months in detention, Haruzivishe was eventually granted bail on January 7, 2022, for the outstanding charges and released from prison the following day.
During his detention, British Embassy, commented on the arrest and detention, stating, “The British Embassy in Harare is in touch with Makomborero Haruzivishe’s lawyers as we await the outcome of his appeal. The UK regularly urges the Zimbabwean government to meet its international and domestic obligations by respecting the rule of law and the freedoms and rights enshrined in the Zimbabwean Constitution, safeguarding human rights, and committing to genuine political and economic reform for the benefit of all Zimbabweans.”
Now a Kent University Law student, Haruzivishe’s asylum status in England means the 30-year-old cannot return to Zimbabwe unless there are substantial changes to the threats that prompted his initial flight.
Under UK asylum regulations, individuals are typically prohibited from returning to their home countries while their asylum status is active, which could last for several years.