Zimbabwe: Hangman Position Remains Vacant Since 2006 Despite High Unemployment Rate

Despite the high level of unemployment in Zimbabwe which has seen citizens scramble for any kind of job available, no one seems interested in applying for the position of executioner - a position that has remained vacant since the country's last hangman retired in 2006.

No one has been officially executed in the country since 2005, according to reports in the African nation, leaving 81 unsure when they will be hanged. 

Dozens of criminals are languishing on Death Row in Zimbabwe unsure when they will die - because the country has no executioner.

According to the Zimbabwean Death Penalty Database , the official method of executing prisoners is hanging.

A recent report in New Zimbabwe reveals that the Justice Ministry have continued to advertise for the post, but no executioner has been appointed.

However, there has been increased calls on the issue as both local and international advocates continue to mount pressure on the Zimbabwean government to abolished death penalty in the country.

Critics fear that the inmates on death row are living in unspeakable conditions which is as a result of the fact that they are 'already dead' as far as the government is concerned; a claim that was vehemently denied by the Prisons Deputy Commissioner -  Human Resources; Ms. Fadzayi Mupure say that Death Row inmates live in the same conditions as other prisoners.

Earlier this year President Emmerson Mnangagwa commuted the sentences of 16 inmates.

He has been a vocal opponent of the death penalty, and a report published in The Conversation found that 80% of people said they would accept it if the government abolished the death penalty.

Nursery paedophile Vanessa George's ex-husband fears what she'll do next if she wins parole next month.

Zimbabwean law states that women, and people aged under 21 and over 70 cannot be hanged.

Earlier this year Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for Southern Africa, Muleya Mwananyanda, said: “President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s has taken a very progressive step in deciding to spare the prisoners from the hangman’s noose.

"His action is commendable, but he must build on this positive momentum by ensuring that Zimbabwe abolishes the death penalty completely.

“Countries around the world, including in sub-Saharan Africa, are moving away from using the death penalty.

"There is no credible evidence that the death penalty has a greater deterrent effect on crime than imprisonment."

Photo Credit: (President Emmerson Mnangagwa during his inauguration) aa.com.tr