grace mugabe zimbabwe coup

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Grace Mugabe judgment: former first lady’s diplomatic immunity unconstitutional

Grace Mugabe will not be protected by the Diplomatic Immunities and Privileges Act anymore. Looks like she will have to account for her actions…

grace mugabe zimbabwe coup

Gallo file photo

The judgment has been made on the state of Grace Mugabe’s diplomatic immunity. On Monday, the South Gauteng High Court ruled that Mugabe’s diplomatic immunity is unconstitutional.

What is the judgment on Mugabe’s immunity?

The presiding judge of the South Gauteng High Court has slammed the decision of Maite Nkoane-Mashabane to grant Grace diplomatic immunity. He has ordered Maite to fork out the costs of the proceedings.

Afriforum’s legal team have expressed their satisfaction with the judgment. They state that the ball now is in the National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA) court on the decision of whether they will pursue charges on Grace.

Afriforum has also warned that should the NPA decide to not apply for an extradition the former first lady of Zimbabwe, there are other legal measures that they will take to ensure that justice is served for Gabrielle.

This, according to the DA and Afriforum, is a message to the global community that no one is above the law in South Africa.

What happened to Gabriella Engels?

In August 2017, news broke out that Zimbabwe’s former first lady had been accused of assaulting a model named Gabriella Engels, at a hotel in Sandton, Johannesburg.

According to the accounts of Gabriella, who shared her story on Twitter, Grace found her in the presence of her two sons and immediately attacked her with an extension cord.

Grace Mugabe’s diplomatic immunity

The fact that Grace was allowed to leave South Africa without prosecution was deemed to be an illegal and unconstitutional act.

The DA and Afriforum have been at the forefront of challenging the government’s decision to not prosecute Grace.

Her diplomatic immunity has been the blanket of protection. It was granted to her by the government.

Maite Nkoane-Mashabane, who is the International Relations and Cooperation Minister, confirmed that the former first lady was protected by the powers vested in her by the Diplomatic Immunities and Privileges Act.