Vigilante Justice On The Streets Of Harare

Zimbabweans do not like thieves. Noone likes them actually. In fact I don’t think thieves like thieves. But as for Zimbabweans, they really do not like thieves.

It is not uncommon as you walk about the city centre or some place in Kuwadzana or something, to find a mob that constitutes of well, regular folk, serving instant justice to a some sorry soul.

Today I witnessed one such instance when a woman had stolen from a significantly older woman and tried to make off with whatever she had filched. The crowd, which had been pretty much minding its own business suddenly became interested and chased the girl own the street and gave her a bit of a licking (not that kind of licking, wena). It wasn’t the extent that young men of deviant habits related to long fingers tend to have dished out to them.

Now I am all for justice but I am not sure that justice without structure does the business. Yes, people are upset, generally and would like someone to take it out of. I can imagine a blaz who just got fired coming across a situation and using the bugger as a punchbag to take all his frustration out on. As you can see the ‘punishment’ very often is not commensurate with the crime.

I am not saying the crowd shouldn’t smack mafesi if they try to resist but then going all out and stomping on a cretin doesn’t solve your personal problems does it?

But then again, he shouldn’t be stealing, should he?