Event Summary
On 30 March 2026, Denford Sithole, a youth member of the Defend the Constitution Platform led by Senator Jameson Timba, and his colleague Keegan Mathew were seized by unknown suspected state operatives following public hearings on Constitutional Amendment Bill (No. 3) at Nketa Hall in Bulawayo. This incident occurred shortly after Sithole had delivered a presentation in which he declared that young people were ready to wage a new liberation struggle and rejected the proposed constitutional amendments.
Furthermore, on 31 March 2026, human rights lawyer Doug Coltart was prevented from expressing his views on Constitutional Amendment Bill No. 3 during public hearings at the Harare City Sports Centre. The session descended into violence when supporters of ZANU–PF stormed the venue, seized Coltart’s phone and disrupted proceedings, thereby denying him the opportunity to participate in the public discourse.
In addition, Monica Mukwada of Mutare, who spoke in opposition to Constitutional, Amendment Bill (No. 3), had a microphone forcibly taken from her by an unidentified man believed to have links to ZANU–PF; another man issued threats against her. These episodes reflect a pattern of intimidation and interference that has characterised many of the public hearings held across the country. Numerous observers and participants have complained of ZANU–PF bussing supporters to attend the hearings en masse. In Harare, at the City Sports Centre, a ZANU–PF jingle was reportedly played shortly before a hearing commenced, underscoring concerns about partisan mobilisation and the undermining of a free and open consultative process.
Taken together, these incidents suggest an environment in which intimidation, coercion and partisan disruption have impeded robust public engagement with proposed constitutional change. The reported abduction of attendees, the obstruction and theft experienced by legal representatives, and the silencing and threatening of dissenting voices all raise serious questions about the integrity and inclusivity of the hearings. Such developments are liable to diminish public confidence in the consultative process and to impede meaningful deliberation on matters of national constitutional importance.