By Staff Reporter
Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) interim leader Jameson Timba (pictured) and 64 other activists were denied bail for the third time on Monday by Harare Magistrate Collet Ncube.
The group was arrested on June 16 for participating in an unsanctioned gathering and disorderly conduct. Despite being detained for 100 days, they have been unable to secure bail.
Earlier this month, 12 of the activists were granted bail after being acquitted of the disorderly conduct charge. However, the remaining 52 individuals have continued to be held in custody.
Their lawyer, Webster Jiti, has expressed disappointment with the court’s decision and stated that they will appeal the ruling. Jiti argued that the significant amount of time spent in detention and the acquittal of the disorderly conduct charge warranted bail.
“We had come through for the determination on the application for change we had made on behalf of the 65 accused. The basis of the application was the lapse of considerable time since the accused persons were put behind bars. Bearing in mind that we have at least 65 witnesses for the defense case, it will take us several months to complete.
“Additionally, all the accused persons were facing two charges when they first appeared in court, and they are now facing one, having been acquitted of the other. We thought there was a better chance of getting bail. The court did not agree with us; it dismissed the bail based on changed circumstances. We are going to challenge the correctness of the magistrate’s decision in the High Court, and we will also try to expedite the defense case,” Jiti said.
