Latest on much-needed former President Mugabe’s remains: Bona, Robert Junior and Chatunga win battle (for now)

The children of the late former President Robert Mugabe – Bona, Robert Jr, and Chatunga – have secured a significant legal victory.

Chinhoyi magistrate Kudzanai Mahaso has barred headman Tinos Manongovere from conducting an inspection of the late leader’s grave. Manongovere’s request was part of a wider legal bid to potentially exhume Mugabe’s remains.

The dispute centres around the location of Mugabe’s burial. The family had chosen to bury him within his homestead in Kutama village, a decision driven by their desire to fortify the grave against any attempts at exhumation. This contrasts with the initial plan to inter him at the National Heroes Acre, a site visited by the court a month prior to the ruling. The court’s visit to the Heroes Acre involved an inspection of the empty mausoleum prepared for Mugabe’s burial.

Manongovere, however, argued that Mugabe’s burial within his home violated Zvimba cultural traditions and customs. He believed that an inspection in loco – a court-ordered inspection of a site – was crucial to resolving this factual dispute. He contended that such an inspection would provide essential real evidence to supplement oral testimony.

Magistrate Mahaso, in his ruling delivered on 20 December last year, outlined the legal arguments presented by both sides. He noted that Mugabe’s children had filed a notice of opposition to Manongovere’s application for an inspection in loco. Manongovere was granted leave to file a response, but failed to do so by the stipulated deadline of 31 December.

The magistrate’s ruling focused heavily on procedural aspects of Manongovere’s application. Mugabe’s children argued that the application was fundamentally flawed, lacking both procedural and substantive compliance. They pointed to the absence of a properly commissioned founding affidavit, a sworn statement outlining the basis for the requested inspection.

Magistrate Mahaso agreed with the children’s assessment. He stated that a founding affidavit is essential for providing sufficient factual support for such applications. The failure to file one, he ruled, is a critical error that could lead to the application being dismissed.

The magistrate further emphasized that an inspection in loco is not an automatic right, but rather at the discretion of the court. He highlighted the fact that Manongovere’s request involved a private residence, requiring the consent of the property owner to avoid trespassing and potential infringement of property rights. He stressed that such an infringement could cause undue prejudice to the Mugabe family.

Furthermore, Magistrate Mahaso noted the existence of alternative means of obtaining evidence, such as witness testimony, to resolve the factual dispute regarding Mugabe’s burial location. He emphasized the importance of respecting the fundamental right to privacy, as enshrined in the Zimbabwean Constitution.

This right, he stated, includes protection against arbitrary interference with one’s home. The magistrate concluded that the right to privacy must be carefully considered when deciding on applications for an inspection in loco. Therefore, he dismissed Manongovere’s application.

The ruling effectively protects the Mugabe family’s right to privacy and prevents the potentially intrusive inspection of the late president’s grave.