Online Reporter
Mukudzei Chingwere-Senior Reporter
Cabinet has approved the 2026 General Amnesty in a move aimed at accelerating the rehabilitation and reintegration of offenders, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister, Dr Jenfan Muswere, has said.
He was speaking in Harare after yesterday’s Cabinet meeting.
Dr Muswere said President Mnangagwa is set to exercise his constitutional power of mercy to grant pardons to convicted individuals.
This, he explained, aligns with the mandate of the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Service (ZPCS), which seeks to facilitate the smooth reintegration of inmates into society.
Under the 2026 General Amnesty, inmates who have displayed good behaviour and readiness for reintegration will be eligible for clemency, providing a lifeline before the parole system is implemented.
The amnesty is expected to help decongest the prison population, promoting a healthier and safer environment for the remaining inmates.
“Cabinet considered and approved the 2026 General Amnesty as proposed by the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs,” said Dr Muswere.
“Cabinet advises that His Excellency the President, Dr Mnangagwa, will, in terms of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, exercise his power of mercy to grant pardon to any person concerned in or convicted of an offence against the law.
“Inmates who have demonstrated good behaviour and readiness to be reintegrated into society will benefit through the 2026 General Amnesty before the parole system comes into effect. The Presidential clemency will decongest the prison population, creating a healthy and secure environment for the remaining prisoners.”
Categories of prisoners that will benefit under the 2026 General Amnesty include all convicted female prisoners, juveniles, prisoners serving an effective period of 48 months and below, and inmates certified as terminally ill.
Dr Muswere said other beneficiaries also include prisoners at open prisons, all prisoners aged 60 and above, prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment provided they have served 20 years, prisoners with disabilities, and an additional one-quarter remission of the effective term of imprisonment for those sentenced to more than 48 months.
“The General Amnesty will exclude any prisoner who was previously released on amnesty, any person serving a sentence imposed by a court martial, any person with a record of escaping from lawful custody, and any inmate convicted of specified offences,” said Dr Muswere.
“The specified offences include murder, treason, rape or sexual offences, carjacking, robbery, armed robbery, public violence, human trafficking, unlawful possession of a firearm, contravention of the Electricity Act, the Postal and Telecommunications Act, the Public Order and Security Act/the Maintenance of Peace and Order Act, the Railway Act, and the Copper Act.”
