Humphrey Fellow Named Zimbabwean Human Rights Lawyer of the Year
Marufu Mandevere, a 2015-16 Humphrey fellow at American University Washington College of Law, has been selected the recipient of the Zimbabwe Human Rights Lawyer of the Year Award for his outstanding contributions to the protection and promotion of human rights in the country.
With his partner, Kudzayi Kadzere, Mandevere developed the case challenging section 121 of Zimbabwe’s Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act, a provision that has long been a source of conflict and notoriety for human rights defenders in Zimbabwe.
In its application, the provision allows an individual, who has been granted bail, to be held for an extra seven days to give the prosecution time to appeal the bail ruling. Thanks to the work of Mandevere and his colleagues, the Constitutional Court of Zimbabwe ruled to strike down the provision, bringing relief to human rights defenders in their work ahead.