Story by Fairstars Mukungurutse
ZIMBABWE is moving to establish a modern and credible coroner system to strengthen death investigations, marking a shift from the outdated Inquests Act of 1951.
The development was highlighted at the Coroner’s Mission and Vision Alignment Workshop held in Harare this Monday.
Traditionally, death investigations have been conducted under the inquest system, but authorities say the framework is no longer adequate to address the complexities of contemporary cases, prompting the transition to a more robust and transparent coroner model.
Acting Coroner General, Dr Innocent Zimbwa said the new system is aimed at enhancing professionalism, accountability and public confidence.
“Today marks a very important day where the coroner’s office brings stakeholders from different ministries and different institutions that are responsible for investigating death. Zimbabwe adopted this trajectory of introducing the coroner system late last year, and today marks the first day for us to bring all stakeholders to forge our way forward.
“We are aligning ourselves with modern death investigation systems. The purpose is to make the system very transparent with integrity so that the public is satisfied with what would have happened to their beloved ones,” he said.
The Coroner’s Office, established under the Coroner’s Office Act (Chapter 7:21), is mandated to independently investigate unnatural or suspicious deaths to determine their cause and circumstances.
Such investigations often involve forensic examinations, forming a critical component of efforts to modernise the country’s justice and public health systems.
