THE Commonwealth Lawyers Association (CLA) has raised concern over the violation of the Constitution by the Judiciary and pleaded with the authorities to uphold the rule of law. The CLA statement came after a Harare magistrate last week barred prominent human rights lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa from representing her client, investigative journalist Hopewell Chin’ono, who is accused of inciting public violence after exposing corruption in government. BY DESMOND CHINGARANDE The CLA said lawyers should be allowed to perform their professional duties without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference. “The CLA notes that on 18th August 2020, Mtetwa was ordered by magistrate Ngoni Nduna to stand down from representing her client, the journalist Hopewell Chin’ono,” part of the statement read. “The CLA recalls that the Basic Principles of the Role of Lawyers (Basic Principles) were adopted by the Eighth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, Havana, Cuba, 27th August to 7th September 1990 and state at paragraph 16 that governments shall ensure that lawyers are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference.” The Commonwealth lawyers said no court or administrative authority before whom the right to counsel is recognised should refuse to recognise the right of a lawyer to appear before it for his or her client unless that lawyer has been disqualified in accordance with national law and practice and in conformity with UN congress principles. “CLA expresses very serious concern that Beatrice Mtetwa has been prevented from representing her client in court by the direction of the magistrate in Zimbabwe and expresses very serious concern that the court, which should uphold the Constitution, has not permitted the defendant in this case to be represented by a legal practitioner of his choosing. The CLA encourages the rule of law to be upheld.” Several local, regional and international law organisations have raised similar concerns.
