The Human Rights Commission (HRC) has condemned the mob killing of suspected criminals by members of the public.
HRC Director Enoch Mulembe has urged the general public to desist from participating in mob killings as every individual is deemed innocent until proven guilty by the court of law.
Mr. Mulembe, in a statement released to ZANIS in Lusaka today, said the constitution of Zambia guarantees everyone the right to life as well as the presumption of innocence until proven guilty.
He pointed out that such killings are against the law and amount to murder.
Mr. Mulembe said while it is regrettable that criminals are on the rampage and killing innocent law abiding citizens, it is important for the public not to bring themselves to the same level as the criminals by engaging in such killings.
He said the culture of mob killings puts innocent people at risk with no opportunity to prove their innocence in an event where they are mistakenly identified.
Mr. Mulembe added that each person no matter how heinous the crime is entitled to a day in court to ensure that the due process of the law takes its course.
He has therefore called upon the Zambia Police Service to increase patrols in areas perceived to be infested with criminals and such acts of killings.
In another development, Mr. Mulembe reports that a woman of Kalulushi Township in the copperbelt has met a gruesome death at the hands of her spouse.
He said while the commission supports morality and faithfulness in marriage, couples are advised to resolve marital disputes in a non-violent manner to avoid loss of life.
can the HRC be guarding us then! Mutengo wa matako what do you have to say?
It is normally a traditional, cultural belief that when a person dies, repents or is born again, his old ways or that spirit that was dictating his character will wander about, looking for refuge in another person who will revive and live to the dictates of the evil spirit. I have a feeling Lucifer’s spirit is in Maimbolwa. Fuseki.
Bwana LT administrator , i would like to find out why you did not give us a thread on Shakafuswe.
Life is so precious to lose like a dog!
#3 Bcoz it was useless, not worthy debating!
3. Msana wa ndalama: Its because Shakafuswa is the LT administrator!
#5 To you HIV/AIDS and government property being turned into brothels is non issue.
Indeed life is precious Mr. Anonymous, so why should we allow a few bad seeds to corrupt the whole community? Sodomites, child-defilers, murderers and the rest…if the HRC can’t keep them away from our children, then the mob will show them how to deal with crime!
I was once mistaken for some,hard core criminal! I remember working along chax2 road when this plain cloth police officer stopd me en invited me to town centre police post in 2004!I complied and when we reached the post,this officer changed colours, he grabbed a gun from his colleague opened a safty cut ready to fire bt his friend managed to stop him! before I knew it the post was crowded!they called for flying squared! thats how I was taken to central police,reaching there,I managed to show them my I.D and I shown the photo of the criminal they mistook me with!
I had to call my uncle who is a senior officer to my rescue! imagine th crowd en the officr if had a gun at the time he stoped me.
Had the crowd been informed of me been a hard core criminal,I dont think I would be writting this today! Its true ,let not take the law into our own hands,coz once you kill somebody there’s no return, then what happend when you discover that you killed the wrong person?
So Lets the law take its course! As you aware that we stil have a death penaulty in our country,so let the judge do their work!
I saw the brutal killing (that prompted this article) on Muvi TV. It was probably the worst thing I have seen on TV. Huge cement building blocks were being trown onto the heads of the two suspected thieves with great force! They (the suspects) were not even armed. This is a bad way of handling suspects. If you have already apprehended the suspect, take him/her to the police. The stage our society has reached is very alarming. Imagine you are walking in one of the compounds and some guy who doesn’t like you shouts: “Kawalala” (thief)! You are a dead man despite being innocent.
People have the right to protect themselves and their property. if police can not come to their aid, then let vigilant justice prevail.
How can you let a man who attacks you in your own house like what they did to my Uncle in Chawama,shooting and stealing property worth millions.Just do the same to him.Save your life.BY an axe ,lino,munsi and the like,otherwise he might win the case and come kill you.Anyway we need to increase the number of Police men and provide enough cars and motor bike with improved alarm systems.
Zambia is so strange coz security guards are not affilated to the police service and don’t even go for special training.I think the gov shud do something.In China a security guard can even be found driving a police car and obtains the same respect as a police man.
Could we please be responsible. Killing these thugs like dogs only corrupts the innocent minds of those who are tortured with the grusome pictures. Let us learn to value our lives and strive to make a difference. Spread love to those trapped in the shakels of sin and death and you will see that even this problem we are battling with, will come to an end.After all, Zambia is a Christian nation.
With increased corruption and the long process in the courts of law I think mob justice is the alternative.
The killing of those innocent souls in Misisi raises a lot of issues that need to be addressed in this country. Let us not run away from the fact that its all because of poverty that such things are occuring. Crime rates are high because of lack of goodwill by our politicians who have failed to manage the Zambian economy up to an extent were every able bodied Zambian would be able to work for some decent pay at the end of the day. The Misisi saga prooves one point that a lot of zambians have notyhing to do and are too angry at the whole system of things such that they would like to protect the little that they have acquired.
# 12 and 13; wait until it is your young brother who is mistaken for a thief and stoned to death for a crime he didnt commit. Then you will know that mob justice has no place in modern society.
How I wish #2 Prof Mutengo Wamatako could be mistaken for a thug so that he could be taught a lesson and keep his foul mouth shut
Iwe chi msana wa nsala, you dont know that, it is top State secret and it is only for ears of those few in the house of Madyalelo Pamushi (MPs).
Ba HRC justice must be served if the starving police men are too slow. The courts are slow and corrupt b.a.f.i.k.a.l.a. Viva mob justice. Guilty until proven dead.
#1 Ba Maimbolwa mwaisa na masele maybe you are Maimbo ma bolo?
#2 Mutengo waminga, from UNZA roof tops I know you. But your contributions to LT are good. Washuka.
#3 Msana wa ndalama, mwaisa nobuloshi. You yourself give the thread on Shakafuswe.
#9 Ba Ernest Mukelabai mwali shuka sana.
#16 Ba Undertaker you don’t know that mob justice will give you more for your undertaker job?
What’s so nice about this foul vocabulary some of you are proud to exercise? Don’t you have enough word power to back your opinnions? This is not the true picture of Zambian behavior you’re portraying, we Zambians are generally polite and full of respect in our speech, if you learnt those bad ways by overstaying in the white man’s country, emancipate your minds, you prodigal Sons!!!
#21 ka Nine Chale ninshi ukuponta? Emancipate yourself and join us in the new Zambia where we are enjoying the freedom of speech. Kuponona iwe.
Ba LT is working to enable us air our thoughts on important issues.
Which man gave his brother life for him to take it away!!