Activist and cleric Evan Mawarire — who is facing treason charges — has been further remanded to Tuesday while a High Court judge goes through bail application arguments.
Mawarire was arrested last week on Wednesday on subversion charges in the wake of violent anti-government protests that were sparked by a fuel price hike.
Justice Tawanda Chitapi yesterday deferred bail application judgment to next week. This was after the State opposed Mawarire’s bail application on the grounds that if released he is likely to incite more violence once granted bail.
“There is a likelihood that the accused person might commit a similar offence if granted bail considering that in one of his videos he said after the three days of the stay away he was going to make another call on what should be done next if government does not meet the Zimbabweans’ demands,” prosecutor Mirirai Shumba said.
Shumba also said Mawarire’s application should be thrown out as he might also abscond and skip trial considering that if found guilty he faces a long term prison term for his crime.
Mawarire through his Lawyer Tonderai Bhatasara, however, has offered to surrender his passport and title deeds as assurance that he will not run away.
“My client is also willing to deposit an amount of $500 or any amount that the court considers sufficient and adequate for his bail. He is also willing to report to Avondale police station every Friday if granted bail,” Bhatsarara said.
Justice Chitapi, however, said he will deliver the judgment next Tuesday, saying he needs time to deliberate on it considering its seriousness.
Mawarire is in detention at Chikurubi Maximum Prison in Harare. His charges centre around a video he flighted calling for a national stay-away which erupted into violent protests.
In 2017, the #ThisFlag leader also coordinated a shutdown and was arrested for the same offence as the one he is alleged to have committed now.
Mawarire was, however, acquitted of attempting to overthrow the then president Robert Mugabe-led government.
