N AT I O N A L I N Q U I R Y R E P O R T ZIMBABWE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION For Human Dignity Commissioners conducted field visits from 16 to 20 December 2019, to marginalised communities to get in-depth understanding of and gather evidence on peculiar challenges faced by these communities in accessing documentation and to assess the impact of lack of documentation on the enjoyment of human rights. A total of nine hundred and eighty-nine (989) community members (454 females, 535 males, and 17 PWDs), were engaged during the field visits which were conducted in the following communities; Communities affected by Gukurahundi disturbances (Matobo, Matabeleland South); Indigenous Minority Communities (San, Matabeleland South); Communities living along Zimbabwe’s borders (Mutasa District, Manicaland Province, bordering Mozambique); Inmates and mentally impaired persons (Khami Prison and Mlondolozi female Prison and Mental Institution, Bulawayo); The refugee community (Tongogara Refugee Camp, Manicaland Province); and Cyclone Idai disaster affected communities (Kopa, Chimanimani, Manicaland Province). Validation meetings were conducted in all the ten provinces from 13 – 21 January 2020, to share preliminary findings of the National Inquiry with stakeholders. A total of four hundred and fifty-five (455), stakeholders participated at the validation meetings. All the provinces validated the preliminary findings as accurate and representative of the national documentation issues pertaining to their communities. Stakeholders also made additional input to the draft provincial reports that were shared. The draft National Inquiry Report findings and recommendations were further availed to the Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage (MoHCH) and the Registrar General’s Department (DRG) for their feedback on accuracy of information in relation to institutional processes and procedures. The Report was then reviewed and adopted by the ZHRC Commissioners in April 2020. Summary of Key Findings The findings of the National Inquiry are addressed in Chapter Three which covers evidence on;   Challenges experienced by the public and special interest groups and The impact of lack of documentation on the enjoyment of human rights. Evidence was gathered on a plethora of challenges that people experienced in accessing the five documents. The National Inquiry established that the biggest challenge people are facing resulted from lack of a birth certificate as a primary document. This finding was consistent with various findings from stakeholders such as, Transparency, Responsiveness, Accountability, and Citizen Engagement (TRACE), Legal Resources Foundation (LRF) and the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Defence, Home Affairs and Security Services, among others. While peculiar challenges were noted in certain provinces, the over-arching challenges were similar across all the Provinces. These included the following:                     Lack of decentralised Department of Registrar General (DRG) services entailing long distances to access services coupled with expensive/unaffordable transport costs; The DRG’s non-standardised application of registration policies among provinces; Lack of birth confirmation records. Cumbersome process for home birth registration. Costs of accessing services and payment modalities. Sporadic mobile registration programmes; Resource constraints at the DRG’s Offices such as lack of equipment, consumables, office infrastructure and staff accommodation which hamper the quality of services provided. Lack of human rights-based service delivery and customer care by the DRG staff which turn away some people because they don’t have all the requirements; Allegations of corruption; Unaffordable citizenship by registration fees of RTGS 5000.00. Procrastination and negligence by parents to register children. Lack of awareness on the importance of registration by some people; Language barriers. Non-acceptance of confirmation letters from Traditional Leaders by some DRG Officers. Demand for completion of lobola payments. Generational non-documentation challenges. Migration and unknown whereabouts of parents. Falsification of documents and registration information . Marginalisation of minority groups such as San, Tonga and Doma communities Challenges experienced by persons with disabilities (PWDs) and other vulnerable groups. xiii xii