The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) has petitioned the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) to carry out prison inspections focused on the treatment of deaf, mute and hard-of-hearing inmates, arguing that the correctional system is failing prisoners who cannot communicate fully with the officials holding them.
In a letter dated 17 September 2026, lawyers Obey Shava and Obey Chitowamombe asked the commission to use its constitutional powers to visit and inspect all prisons and related detention facilities. The request centres on how people with hearing and speech disabilities are treated while in the custody of the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS).
What the lawyers want the ZHRC to examine
The petition asks the commission to assess whether deaf, mute and hard-of-hearing inmates have meaningful access to communication and information, personal safety mechanisms, health care, rehabilitation programmes and other essential services. The lawyers argue that an inspection would fulfil the commission’s obligations under Section 243(1)(k) of the Constitution, which empowers the ZHRC to visit prisons, places of detention and related facilities to establish the conditions under which people are kept, and to recommend remedies to the minister responsible for those institutions.
The case that prompted the petition
The intervention follows the prosecution of Fanuel Masora, a deaf and mute man whose only means of communication is Zimbabwe Sign Language. Masora was convicted by the High Court on 4 March 2026 of culpable homicide under Section 49 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act, after initially being charged with murder. He received a three-year prison term wholly suspended for five years, along with an order to complete 420 hours of community service at the Deaf Zimbabwe Trust.
In passing sentence, High Court judge Justice Emilia Muchawa recognised Masora as belonging to a special category of persons with disabilities who have endured significant social isolation and barriers to taking part in ordinary social interactions. The judge also weighed the particular obstacles he faced while in detention, including whether he would be able to cope with and comply with a custodial sentence.
Communication barriers behind bars
According to Shava and Chitowamombe, the Masora matter exposes the vulnerabilities that deaf people face throughout Zimbabwe’s criminal justice and correctional systems. They point out that where contact with prison officers, access to information, protection from harm and participation in rehabilitation all depend on effective communication, an inmate who uses sign language can be left isolated and exposed.
ZLHR wants the commission to visit and inspect correctional and remand facilities operated by ZPCS specifically to establish the conditions under which deaf, mute and hard-of-hearing people are held, and to make recommendations to the minister for correcting any deficiencies identified.
The lawyers have also asked the ZHRC to consider directing an investigation under Section 243(1)(f) of the Constitution into whether the rights of deaf and mute persons in ZPCS custody have been or are being violated. They want Masora to be advised in writing of the steps the commission proposes to take in response to the request and of the outcome of any inspection conducted.
Why the petition matters
The move places the treatment of prisoners with disabilities squarely within the ZHRC’s oversight role. Zimbabwe’s Constitution guarantees equality and non-discrimination, and the commission’s inspection powers are one of the few formal mechanisms available to test whether those guarantees hold inside the country’s overcrowded and under-resourced prison system.
Advocates have long argued that disability inclusion in the justice chain extends well beyond courtroom accommodations. Interpreting services, accessible information about rights and prison rules, protection from abuse and equal access to health care and rehabilitation are all part of the standard, and the ZLHR petition effectively asks the commission to verify whether those standards are being met.
The ZHRC has not yet publicly indicated whether it will act on the request. Should it agree to inspect, the findings could shape recommendations to the minister and set a precedent for how correctional facilities handle inmates who rely on sign language or other forms of assisted communication.
For families of deaf and mute prisoners, the petition highlights a question that rarely reaches public debate: what happens to a person who cannot hear an order, cannot call for help and cannot explain a medical emergency in a system built around spoken communication.
