By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Zimbabwe on Monday commenced release of nearly 4,000 inmates who were granted presidential amnesty in a bid to ease overcrowding in prisons.
The cabinet announced the amnesty in February, same same day it approved constitutional amendment as part of a plan to extend 83-year-old President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s term till 2030.
“The nation should note that the release of the 3,978 beneficiaries begins today,” Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi told a press conference in the capital Harare.
Zimbabwe’s prisons held just over 24,000 inmates in the second quarter of 2025, according to recent available national data.
A total of 4,305, including 223 women, will eventually be released, Ziyambi said, with the scheme “focusing on vulnerable groups and those who have demonstrated significant progress in their rehabilitation”.
Among those freed include 23‑year‑old Tendai Chitsika, who had been serving a six‑month sentence for theft and was only two months away from completing it.
“It was a learning curve for me. I’m a changed person and I promise to do good out there,” he told AFP at Harare Central Prison, adding: “I want to thank the president for this opportunity.”
The presidential amnesty “reflects a profound commitment to restorative justice, national compassion and the strategic decongestion of correctional facilities”, Ziyambi said.
The scheme did not include prisoners convicted of severe crimes such as murder, robbery, rape or “contravention of the Maintenance of Peace and Order Act” — a charge that has been used in the past against protesters and political opposition.
