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against the Government's ongoing campaign of violent intimidation against opposition supporters. Church leaders and members who criticized the Government faced arrest and detention. The generally amicable relations between the various |
religious communities contributed to religious freedom. The U.S. Government discusses religious freedom issues with the Government in the context of its overall dialog and policy of promoting human rights. Section |
I. Religious Demography The country has a total area of 240,122 square miles, and its population is estimated at 11.6 million. Between 60 and 70 percent of the population belong |
to the mainstream Christian denominations, with between 17 and 27 percent of the population identifying themselves as Roman Catholic. There are no reliable statistics on the exact number of Christian |
churches or religious movements in the country. The evangelical denominations, mostly Pentecostal churches, and Apostolic groups are the fastest growing religious groups in the country. They appeal to large numbers |
of disillusioned members from the established churches who reportedly are attracted by promises of miracles and messages of hope at a time of political, social and economic instability. The country's |
small Muslim population is estimated at 1 percent. The remainder of the population consists of practitioners of Greek Orthodoxy, Judaism, and traditional indigenous religions and indigenous syncretistic religions that mix |
Christianity and traditional African culture and beliefs; there also are small numbers of Hindus, Buddhists, Baha'is, and atheists. The dominance of Christianity dates to the early contact of Portuguese traders |
and Jesuit priests with Africans in the region in the late 1500s. The Jesuits established churches and educational institutions in the Zambezi Valley at that time. Several centuries later, Catholic, |
Methodist, Anglican, Dutch Reformed, and Salvation Army missionaries began to compete aggressively for territorial and spiritual monopolies throughout the country, resulting in "areas of interest" for each of these churches. |
As a result, many persons identify with the Christian denomination that has had the longest historical connection to their area. President Robert Mugabe is a Roman Catholic who professes to |
practice his faith actively, and many of those who make up the elite of society tend to be associated with one of the established Christian churches, especially the Anglican and |
Methodist churches. Due to the country's colonial and apartheid-like history, the vast majority of the country's black population was prevented from attending government schools, which were restricted to white students. |
Christian mission schools taught the few blacks who were able to obtain a formal education. Consequently the vast majority of the country's liberation war leadership, who later became the Government's |
senior officials, were instructed by Christian educators. The Muslim community consists primarily of South Asian immigrants (Indian and Pakistani), migrants from other southern and eastern African countries (Mozambique and Malawi), |
and a very small number of North African and Middle Eastern immigrants. There are mosques located in nearly all of the larger towns, and there are a number of mosques |
in rural areas. There are 18 mosques in the capital Harare and 8 in Bulawayo. The Muslim community generally has been somewhat insular; however, in the past several years, the |
Islamic community has expanded its outreach efforts, and is having increasing success proselytizing among the majority black indigenous population. A variety of indigenous churches and groups have emerged from the |
mainstream Christian churches over the years. Some, such as the Zimbabwe Assembly of God (ZAOG), continue to adhere strictly to Christian beliefs; in fact, they oppose the espousal of traditional |
religions. Other indigenous groups, such as the Seven Apostles, combine elements of established Christian beliefs with some beliefs based on traditional African culture and religion. These latter groups tend to |
be centered on a prophetic figure, with members of the congregation identifying themselves as "apostles." These church members wear long white robes and head coverings. Many of these churches date |
from the early 1920s, when there was widespread racial and religious segregation. Many of the founders of African indigenous churches broke away from Christian missionary churches, and some of their |
teachings incorporate what has become known as "black consciousness." To a large extent, these churches grew out of the Christian churches' failure to adapt to traditional African culture and religion. |
These indigenous churches have proliferated as a result of splits among the followers of the different "prophets." Many persons continue to believe, in varying degrees, in traditional indigenous religions. These |
persons may worship in a westernized Christian church on Sundays but consult with traditional healers during the week. Belief in traditional healers spans both the rural and urban areas. Traditional |
healers are very common and are licensed and regulated by the Zimbabwe National African Traditional Healers' Association (ZINATHA). Foreign missionaries operate in the country, including members of the Roman Catholic |
Church and the Anglican Church. Section II. Status of Religious Freedom The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the Government generally respects this right in practice; however, a law |
that criminalizes both purporting to practice witchcraft and accusing persons of practicing witchcraft reportedly was viewed as restrictive by some practitioners of indigenous religions. There is no state religion. The |
Government generally recognizes all religions. The Government does not require religious institutions to be registered. Religious organizations that operate schools or medical facilities are required to register those specific institutions |
with the appropriate ministry regulating those areas. Similarly, religious institutions may apply for tax-exempt status and duty-free privileges with the Customs Department, which generally grants such requests. The Government permits |
religious education in private schools. There are Islamic and Hebrew primary and secondary schools in the major urban areas, primarily Harare and Bulawayo. The country has had a long history |
of Catholic, Anglican, and Methodist primary and secondary schools. Since independence there also has been a proliferation of evangelical basic education schools. The Christian schools constitute one-third of the schools |
in the country, with the Catholic Church having the majority. In addition there are several institutions of higher education that include religious studies as a core component of the curriculum. |
Christian missions provided the first hospitals to care for black citizens. There are 126 hospitals and clinics in the country that fall under the Zimbabwe Association of Church Related Hospitals |
(ZACH), an association that consists largely of mainstream Christian churches. The individual churches are the predominant source of funding for maintaining these hospitals because of the Government's increasing inability to |
provide essential services. The Government does provide small subsidies to cover some hospital staff salaries, but these make up only a small percentage of the hospitals' operating budgets. Restrictions on |
Religious Freedom Witchcraft--widely understood to encompass attempts to harm others not only by magic but also by covert means of established efficacy such as poisons--traditionally has been a common explanation |
for diseases of which the causes were unknown. Although traditional indigenous religions generally include or accommodate belief in the efficacy of witchcraft, they generally approve of harmful witchcraft only for |
defensive or retaliatory purposes and purport to offer protection against it. In the past several years, interest in healing through traditional religion and through prayer reportedly has increased as HIV/AIDS |
has infected an estimated one-third of the adult population, and affordable science-based medicines effective in treating HIV/AIDS have remained unavailable. The Witchcraft Suppression Act (WSA) criminalizes purporting to practice witchcraft, |
accusing persons of practicing witchcraft, hunting witches, and soliciting persons to name witches; penalties include imprisonment for up to 7 years. The law defines witchcraft as "the use of charms |
and any other means or devices adopted in the practice of sorcery," and provides punishments for intending to cause disease or injury to any person or animal through the use |
of witchcraft. Since 1997 ZINATHA has proposed amendments to the law that would redefine witchcraft only as the practice of sorcery with the intent to cause harm, including illness, injury, |
or death; however, mainstream Christian churches reportedly have opposed such legislation. Human rights groups also generally supported the existing WSA; the Act has been used since independence primarily to protect |
persons, primarily women, who have been accused falsely of causing harm to persons or crops in rural areas where traditional religious practices are strong. In March 2002, the Traditional Medical |
Practitioners Council, formed from members of ZINATHA to oversee traditional healers, called for amendments to the WSA that would authenticate the existence of witches and wizards and remove penalties for |
accusing persons of practicing witchcraft. There is some tension between the Government and some indigenous African churches because of the latter's preference for prayer over science-based medical practices that result |
in the reduction of avoidable childhood diseases and deaths in those communities. Some members of the indigenous churches and groups believe in healing through prayer only and refuse to have |
their children vaccinated. The Ministry of Health has had limited success in vaccinating children against communicable childhood diseases in these religious communities. Human rights activists also have criticized these indigenous |
churches for their sanctioning of marriages of underage girls. President Mugabe has expressed skepticism about the increasing membership in evangelical and indigenous churches and has indicated that he believes that |
they could be subversive. According to press reports, he has refused to meet with bishops from indigenous churches since 1997. The Government maintains a monopoly on television broadcasting through the |
Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC), despite a broadcasting law passed in 2001 that permits one independent television broadcaster but imposes stringent licensing requirements. The Government permits limited religious broadcasting on ZBC |
and advertising in the government-controlled press by the older, established Christian churches, as well as new evangelical churches and institutions, such as The 700 Club and World Vision. Programming produced |
by the U.S.-based Christian Broadcasting Network is shown on ZBC. The Government generally follows the recommendations of the Religious Advisory Board, an umbrella grouping of Christian denominations, on appropriate religious |
material to broadcast. Muslims, who are not represented on the board, have approached the advisory board about obtaining access to airtime. The chairman of the Religious Advisory Board believes that |
Muslims represent too small of a percentage of society to take up minimal religious airtime or to merit membership on the advisory board. Other evangelical church groups are more hostile |
to Islam and are unlikely to support the inclusion of Islamic programming in the already limited religious broadcasting block. However, during the period covered by this report, Muslims occasionally were |
allowed to conduct the daily opening prayer on ZBC. In the last few years, due to inadequate resources, the Government has returned several former church schools that it had taken |
over at independence to their respective churches. The Government has returned nearly all of the secondary schools and a few of the primary schools that it seized from the churches |
after independence. Most former church schools remaining under Government control are used as primary schools in the rural areas. Abuses of Religious Freedom The Government and government supporters targeted some |
clergymen because they strongly criticized the state-sanctioned, politically motivated crimes and violence during the period prior to the 2000 parliamentary elections and the March 2002 presidential election and urged the |
Government to restore peace in the country (see Section III). Church leaders and members who criticize the Government continue to face arrest, detention, and possible deportation. On February 28, police |
harassed, arrested and detained 21 pastors as they attempted to deliver a petition against the misuse of police power to Police Commissioner Augustine Chihuri. On February 14, police arrested and |
detained a blind Roman Catholic nun in Harare along with thirty-nine other women for participating in a Valentine's Day March for Peace sponsored by Women of Zimbabwe Arise! (WOZA). Police |
also beat and arrested a priest, Fr. Nigel Johnson, for filming a similar march on the same day in Bulawayo. On February 13, police prevented a public meeting at the |
Northside Community Church in Harare, which was supposed to address churches' role in the country's political crisis. Police arrested the president of the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe (EFZ), Bishop Trevor |
Manhanga, along with seven other people and detained them for several hours. In late May 2002, local government minister Ignatius Chombo prompted war veterans in Binga district, Matabeleland North province, |
to close down the food distribution efforts of the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP), which was the only source of food for many rural residents in the Binga |
district. Chombo criticized the CCJP for establishing local structures parallel to the Government's structures. War veterans continued to block the food from leaving CCJP's warehouse at the end of the |
period covered by this report, preventing food deliveries to hospital patients and school children. In February 2002, police arrested Father Kevin O'Doherty and eight others participating in a prayer processional |
to police headquarters in Bulawayo. They were charged with contravening the newly-passed Public Order and Security Act, but the charges later were dropped. During the 2002 presidential election campaign, the |
state-controlled daily newspaper in Bulawayo printed false accusations against Archbishop Pius Ncube, including that he distributed sexually explicit material to prisoners, following his remarks criticizing the Government's violent campaign tactics. |
At a campaign rally in February 2002, President Mugabe claimed Ncube had "political tentacles" and supported the opposition after the Archbishop resisted government attempts to take over the Catholic-run St. |
Luke's hospital. During the period covered by this report, Ncube reportedly received anonymous death threats, and intimidating visits by suspected officers from the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO). In August 2001, |
Gabriel McGuire, an Irish Catholic priest in Harare, was declared a prohibited person and deported. No official reason was given; however, church members speculated that the Government took exception to |
his sermons in which he made generic statements about citizens' "right to have a voice." Paul Andrianatos, a Greek Orthodox priest with South African citizenship who was ordered to leave |
the country in March 2001, remained outside the country at the end of the period covered by this report. There were no reports of religious prisoners or detainees. Forced Religious |
Conversion There were no reports of forced religious conversion, including of minor U.S. citizens who had been abducted or illegally removed from the United States, or of the refusal to |
allow such citizens to be returned to the United States. Section III. Societal Attitudes The generally amicable relations between the various religious communities contributed to religious freedom. The Muslim, Jewish, |
Hindu, Baha'i, and Buddhist religious communities are relatively small and generally are not in competition with Christian denominations for converts. Catholic Church officials say that they welcome interfaith dialog with |
Muslims. There are at least four umbrella religious organizations primarily focused on interdenominational dialog among Christians and other inter-religious activities. Muslims are not represented in any of these organizations, and |
there is no vehicle for formal Christian-Muslim dialog; however, informal dialog occurs from time to time. A few Muslims have complained of discrimination by private employers who refuse to allow |
them sufficient time to worship at their mosques on Fridays. The Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC) is an umbrella organization of all non-Catholic ecumenical Christian missionary churches except for evangelical |
organizations. It maintains a secretariat in Harare, conducts development programs, has a Justice and Peace desk, and collaborates with the much older CCJP. The Catholic Church and the Zimbabwe Catholic |
Bishops' Conference have observer status within the ZCC, and relations generally are cooperative. Some members of the Christian community are hesitant to support Catholics joining the ZCC because of memories |
of the inability of religious leaders to work together during the liberation war era, and they fear a repeat of that experience. The ZCC also has worked with other church |
groups and civil society organizations on social issues. The ZCC traditionally was supportive of President Mugabe, but it has become more critical as a result of the Government's politicization of |
food distribution and campaign of violent intimidation against opposition supporters. The Heads of Denominations (HOD) is a pragmatic association of Catholic and other Christian denominations that has no spiritual or |
theological emphasis. It was created to enable collaboration among Christian groups and the Government in the operation of religious schools and hospitals. The HOD provides a vehicle for Christian churches |
to speak to the Government with a common voice on policy issues and includes the Catholic Church, which operates a significant number of the rural hospitals and schools in the |
country. The HOD has a loose structure and no office. The HOD's secretarial support is provided by the general secretariat of the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops' Conference (ZCBC), and its secretary |
general holds the same position in the ZCBC. The education secretaries of the various churches work together under the HOD, as does the religious advisory board to the ZBC. This |
broad grouping of churches under the HOD also collaborates on a wide range of social issues including HIV/AIDS education, and, in conjunction with the ZCC, the Christian churches have addressed |
the declining economic conditions affecting their members across the country. The HOD continues to deliberate over the role religious institutions should play in combating the HIV/AIDS crisis. Many churches already |
operate programs designed to help the victims of HIV/AIDS; for example, the Catholic Church and other religious and lay persons operate a center for persons infected with HIV/AIDS called "Mashambanzou" |
in Harare. The Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe (EFZ) is an umbrella organization of loosely affiliated evangelical churches that was established in the early 1980s. The fellowship has observer status with |
the HOD but in general does not work closely with either the ZCC or Catholic Church. However, the evangelical and Catholic churches do collaborate in the broadcasting of religious programs. |
During the period covered by this report, the ZCC, ZCBC and EFZ issued public statements strongly critical of the Government for its campaign of violent intimidation against opposition supporters, campaign |
to politicize food distribution, corruption, and failure to guide Zimbabwe out of crisis, also calling for leadership and a spirit of tolerance and reconciliation. Privately the leaders of those organizations |
lamented that the Government prevented them from using existing regional church structures to import and distribute food aid in the midst of a famine. Several key church leaders and organizations |
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