Zimbabwe: Report Alleges Traditional Leaders Violate Constitutional Obligations

THE Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP) has raised concerns over alleged cases of traditional leaders intimidating villagers, demanding payments, interfering with access to government programmes, and engaging in partisan political mobilisation. In its August monitoring report, the rights watchdog said some traditional leaders were departing from their constitutional obligations to protect the rights of communities under their jurisdiction. Section 281 of the Constitution requires traditional leaders to act in accordance with the Constitution and laws and to treat people equally and fairly. The section also prohibits traditional leaders from engaging in partisan political conduct and violating fundamental rights and freedoms. Keep up with the latest headlines on WhatsApp | LinkedIn The rights watchdog documented cases involving alleged threats, political discrimination, coercion, and disputes over communal land. "In Kagonda, village head Pedzisai Nyamukapa threatened to exclude villagers without ZANU PF cards from government input and claimed authority to punish opposition supporters. The problem extends beyond politics. "In Chiredzi, villagers accused traditional leaders of coercive attempts to transfer ancestral land to third parties, while a 2026 case in Bulilima saw a chief and village heads face allegations of unauthorised land allocations," the report reads. According to ZPP, such practices are particularly concerning in rural communities where traditional leaders exercise significant influence over land, dispute resolution, community resources, and social affairs. The organisation said threats to exclude villagers from government programmes, demands for payments, intimidation over land and pressure to participate in activities against their will could undermine citizens' freedom of choice, equality, dignity and access to public services. "Traditional authority cannot become a licence for coercion, discrimination or arbitrary deprivation," ZPP said. The watchdog said traditional leaders should exercise their authority within constitutional limits and not allow customary institutions to be used to advance political or other interests. Read the original article on New Zimbabwe . AllAfrica publishes around 600 reports a day from more than 90 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals , representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica . To address comments or complaints, please Contact us . AllAfrica is a voice of, by and about Africa - aggregating, producing and distributing 600 news and information items daily from over 90 African news organizations and our own reporters to an African and global public. We operate from Cape Town, Dakar, Abuja, Johannesburg, Nairobi and Washington DC. Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy . We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later.