Zimbabwean member of parliament, Trevor JI Saruwaka was
denied entry into his work place because his outfit
supposedly flouted house rules. The lawmaker turned up to
work dressed in a multicolour suit after the colours of the
national flag. There's more to the story however. In recent
times, anti-government members in politics, media and the
mass populace have adopted the #ThisFlag campaign as a
form of protest against president Mugabe's party, Zanu-PF
which has ruled the country for decades.
The government hit back by reviving legislation that makes it
a crime to "abuse" the national flag.
As lawyers have pointed out, it's been left up to the
government to define what constitutes abuse. Higher
Education Minister Jonathan Moyo said in a tweet that
Saruwaka being denied entry "was for being inappropriately
dressed. Even bush lawyers & fools know that Parliament
has a dress code. It's in the standing orders!"
