Job Sikhala, a Zimbabwean opposition politician who had been in jail for more than a year, was released on Tuesday when the Harare court delayed a heavy sentence. The 51-year-old, known for speaking out and a former lawmaker, faces caes of public violence.
Following the verdict, a small gathering of supporters applauded outside Harare's high-security jail, where Sikhala stated, "This was an act of persecution." He accused jail staff of swiftly leading him into darkness. Sikhala and another opposition member, Godfrey Sithole, were both convicted guilty of inciting public violence after a year-long trial and received a two-year suspended sentence on Tuesday. The judgment spurred a small crowd of supporters to cheer on the courthouse steps. Sikhala, dressed in a white polo shirt, claimed he was immediately taken into the dark by jail authorities. Video footage released by news sources showed him standing by a dimly lighted road, saying, "They absolutely removed me. "I was thrown away from here." His lawyers first announced his release on Wednesday morning, encouraging fans to meet him outside the jail. Sikhala and Sithole were accused of inciting violence to revenge the death of their political ally, Morblesing Ali, who was killed by ruling party activists in May 2022. Sikhala disputed the charges. According to his lawyers, this was not the first court struggle for the outspoken politician, who has been arrested over 60 times during his long political career. His last appearance was in June 2022, at a memorial service for Ali, who had been discovered lifeless in a well a few days before. He has been in jail ever then, having applied for bail more than a dozen times without success.
