Amnesty International Zimbabwe has condemned Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) officers’ conduct during a demonstration by St Faith High School learners on Wednesday, 14 February.
At least 800 learners from St Faith’s Mission School marched for close to 13km to the Rusape Education District Office demonstrating against their school’s responsible authority the Anglican Diocese of Manicaland.
One of the police officers who was deployed to control the situation then unleashed a dog on the learners, sending the children scampering for safety.
In a post on X, Amnesty International Zimbabwe highlighted that peaceful protest is a human right and urged authorities to respect, facilitate and protect this right. It said:
We strongly condemn [Zimbabwe Republic Police] conduct at St Faith High in Rusape today, where a police officer set a dog on learners who were protesting against a US$600 fee hike. Peaceful protest is a human right. Authorities must respect, facilitate and protect this right.
The protest by learners followed a stand-off between the church, the school authorities and parents over the payment of a US$600 mission fund.
After holding an interactive session with Makoni District Acting Schools Inspector, Mr Tambama and Mr Mukorera from the Public Service Commission, the St Faith’s High learners were then addressed by their school head Arnold Makamba at Makoni District Education offices in Rusape.
It is not yet clear why police details unleashed dogs on schoolchildren and also the extent of the injuries suffered by the learners.
The ZRP has since released a statement saying it is conducting a full inquiry into the incident and that full details about the incident will be released once investigations are completed.
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