A sex offender freed in Zimbabwe’s amnesty gains social media fame. His victim’s family is dismayed

HARARE, Zimbabwe — When Zimbabwe released more than 4,000 prisoners in May in a nationwide amnesty, one man with a white beard and without front teeth stood out among those vigorously celebrating as they walked out of a jail. That impact has been aggravated by the fact that Makaza’s face appears to be everywhere on social media in Zimbabwe, with videos of him boisterously celebrating his release and praising the president going viral on TikTok and Twitter, and his “honey” and “sweet” description of Mnangagwa becoming a kind of catchphrase. “What this shows about our society is that we have lost our moral compass when we consider cases of sexual violence against young girls as a joke.” After his release, a television crew also followed Makaza back to his home village — where his victim, who is now 15, still lives — and interviewed him and recorded him saying “life is sweet” and punching the air in delight. “The release of perpetrators of rape on amnesty undermines the state’s obligation to punish and eradicate all forms of violence against women,” said Tinashe Chinopfukutwa, a lawyer from Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights and one of those representing the family. Chinopfukutwa said that victims only learned of the release of the sex offenders through media reports, and there was no concern given to “the victim’s right to equal benefit and protection” under the law.