LHRC raps Kagasheki orders of `shoot to kill`
6th October 2013
Speaking with The Guardian on Sunday reporter in an exclusive interview yesterday, LHRC executive director Dr Helen Kijo-Bisimba said such statements are part of continuing negligence of public figures, privileging narrow interests in the issues.
She said public figures were supposed to be objective in statements they make, considering the implications of their public positions to society.
Dr Kijo-Bisimba said that in most certain cases public figures are emotionally controlled and make statements out of a furious mood instead of sober comprehension of the law.
On Friday, in remarks concerning an escalating problem of the slaughter of protected wildlife, the Minister for Natural Resource and Tourism, Ambassador Khamis Kagasheki urged game wardens to shoot at poachers seen in the act of illegal hunting or having killed game,
to control the upsurge in elephant poaching.
Kagasheki directed law enforcers to use any available means including shooting to kill to prevent poachers from escaping, and to deter those in the racket of devastating the country’s elephant population, saying the trend was now out of control.
The government intends to amend the relevant law with a view of introducing more stringent punishments on people convicted of poaching and provide teeth to law enforcement to deal with a wave of poaching. Penalties will be increased for whoever is found with government trophies, the minister declared.
“If that is the case, the minister should press the matter to the mandatory authority for necessary action to be taken such as reducing the value of trophies instead of the shooting to kill order by the minister,” the activist cautioned.
Despite the dead beat over the matter, the shoot to kill statement infringes on human rights enshrined in the constitution, which thus violates the principle of the rule of law, she argued.
The statement that law enforcement officials should shoot to kill violates the constitution and such an order, given by high profile public official, is deemed enforceable by law enforcement agencies, she pointed out.
In general understanding, game wardens would take this as a lawful order from their superior and implement it in the form of arbitrary and extrajudicial beating and torture of an otherwise innocent citizen, contrary to the protection such a person deserves as prescribed in the constitution, the director noted.
These remarks pair up with LHRC displeasure with Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda against whom LHRC filed a petition to challenge similar remarks he made in the National Assembly.
On June 20 when exercising his duties as premier, Mr Pinda openly and unconstitutionally gave a directive ordering law enforcement officers to beat up anyone defying police orders.
The filed petition argues that statements made by high profile public officials like Premier Pinda are deemed enforceable by organs like the police.
“It is the fear of the petitioners that security organs might take the statements as a lawful order from their boss and carry it out, resulting extrajudicial beatings and even torture of innocent people, contrary to the Union Constitution,” the petition underlines.
Should that happen, the petitioners believe it would lower human dignity, violate the right to equality before the law, suspend the rule of law altogether and promote rule of force, it further asserts.
They said the statement supports abuse of power by law enforcers contrary to Article 13 of the Constitution which provides for the right to equality before the law, and fair hearing.
SOURCE: GUARDIAN ON SUNDAY
No comments :
Post a Comment