Bulawayo Ward 22 Councillor Bruce Moyo was remanded in custody until August 30 by a magistrate on Friday, August 16.
Bulawayo Mayor David Coltart attended the court proceedings in support of Moyo. He revealed that the lawyers representing the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) have filed a bail application with the High Court, which they hope will be addressed urgently.
In a post on X, Coltart claimed he was prevented from speaking with Moyo by an individual in plain clothes, likely a State operative, as law enforcement and prison officials did not intervene. Wrote Coltart:
At the end of the proceedings, I was denied the right to speak to Clr Moyo with his legal counsel by a person in plain clothes who refused to say who he was.
Despite pointing out that I am an officer of the Court and am entitled to speak to Clr Moyo in that capacity if he wishes to seek advice from me, the person, who presumably is a State operative (because his conduct was not opposed by policemen and prison officials present), aggressively insisted that I should not speak to Clr Moyo.
Not wanting to compromise Clr Moyo, or affect his opportunity to seek advice from his legal counsel, I left the Court.
In my 41 years of legal practice, I have never witnessed such paranoia from State agents. Clr Moyo at worst is accused of participating in an illegal demonstration. He is not charged with murder, treason or theft of millions.
One questions why basic rights like this are being denied by the Harare regime. One questions why such extreme conduct is being exercised by State agents against a person facing such a trivial offence.
At the very height of Gukurahundi, when I was representing ZAPU Central Committee members such as Sydney Malunga, I never experienced or witnessed such brazen breaches of prisoners’ rights to seek advice of legal counsel, or even solace from a political colleague.
The conduct of the State this morning is reprehensible and is another brazen breach of fundamental Constitutional rights.
Moyo is among scores of opposition activists and rights defenders who have been seized on different occasions since June this year by police ahead of the 44th SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government to be held in Harare on 17 August.
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