of S v J. Mukoko27where the judiciary reiterated that no person
should be subjected to physical or psychological torture, or to
cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment.
5.10 In its concluding observations, the Commission passed a
recommendation for Zimbabwe to repeal laws that sanction the
application of corporal punishment:28 the High Court of Zimbabwe
declared that corporal punishment is unconstitutional in the case
of S v Chokuramba, HH 718/14. This decision has since been
confirmed by the Constitutional Court which has held that judicial
corporal punishment is by its nature an inhuman and degrading
punishment as contemplated in section 53 of the Constitution. The
court further underscored that corporal punishment inflicted on
juveniles in schools and in homes by their parents, legal guardians
or persons in loco parentis is unconstitutional. This locus classicus
case thus effectively outlaws any form of corporal punishment on
juveniles in Zimbabwe.
6. Article 6: The Right to Liberty and Security of the Person
Constitutional and Legislative Measures
6.1. The Constitution guarantees every person the right to personal
liberty, including the right not to be detained without trial,
deprived of their liberty arbitrarily or without just cause and being
imprisoned merely on the ground of inability to fulfil a contractual
obligation. Furthermore, the right to bodily and psychological
integrity, which includes the right to freedom from all forms of
violence from public or private sources; the right to make
decisions concerning reproduction and not to be subjected to
medical or scientific experiments; or to the extraction or use of
27
28
2009 ZLR 93
Recommendation (l) (Concluding Observations)
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