the Complainant alleges he suffered, that made him flee the country for
his life.12
66. Furthermore, the Respondent State has argued that according to Section
24(1) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe (whose content has been verified by
the African Commission), the High Court and Supreme Court Act, the
Complainant need not be physically present in the country to access local
remedies. At this juncture, it is worth noting that in the Mark
Chavhunduka and Ray Choto Case, cited by the Complainant in its
submissions, the applicants applied to the Supreme Court for a
determination under Section 24 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe,13 meaning
that they were not physically present during the time of the application.
67. The Mark Chavhunduka and Ray Choto Case, according to this
Commission, just corroborates the argument raised by the Respondent
State that the Complainant (whether he/she is the Victim or not), can be
represented, without being physically present, in accordance with the
national laws of Zimbabwe.
68. Moreover, in J.E Zitha and P.J.L. Zitha (represented by Prof. Dr. Liesbeth
Zegveld) v Mozambique, the African Commission adopted the same
principle stating that, it has entertained many Communications from
authors on behalf of Victims. The African Commission also noted in that
same Communication that, “Having decided to act on behalf of the victims, it is
incumbent on the author of a Communication to take concrete steps to comply
12
n above.
13
See Zimbabwe: Chavunduka and Choto v. Zimbabwe · Article 19 available at
www.article19.org/.../zimbabwe-chavunduka-and-choto-v.-zimbabwe.
18