Counsel Magazine

THE Chairmen of the Bar Council of England and Wales and of the Bar Human Rights Committee of England and Wales expressed their deep concern in a press release on 13 March 2009 at reports of the arrest and detention of magistrate Livingstone Chipadze in Mutare, Zimbabwe. The press release raised the following concerns, although the situation may have changed since.

Mr Chipadze was reported to be accused of criminal abuse of office, apparently on the basis that on Tuesday 3 March he allowed lawyers for Roy Bennett MP to post bail of $2,000. Mr Bennett is the MDC’s nominee for agriculture minister in the Zimbabwean Unity Government. However, he has not been sworn in to that post, having been detained on terrorism charges in February.