He
has
recounted
the
harrowing
experience
of
being
mauled
by
six
police
dogs.
The
27-year-old,
from
Gwitshi
village
in
Nkayi,
is
currently
receiving
treatment
for
his
injuries
alongside
17-year-old
Sabelo
Dube
at
a
local
health
facility
in
Bulawayo.
Hleza,
who
the
Zimbabwe
Lawyers
for
Human
Rights
(ZLHR)
represented,
described
the
ordeal,
which
occurred
when
police
were
deployed
to
disperse
illegal
miners
after
reports
of
a
gold
discovery
in
the
area.
He
recalled
the
horror
of
being
attacked
by
six
dogs
and
later
taken
to
a
prison
in
Bulawayo.
“The
police
arrived
in
their
vehicle.
We
were
just
a
crowd
of
people,
and
I
was
standing
by
the
road.
When
people
saw
the
police,
they
started
running,
but
I
delayed
reacting.
The
police
unleashed
their
dogs,
and
two
of
them
caught
up
with
me,
biting
at
my
trousers.
I
had
to
sit
down,
but
the
police
commanded
the
dogs
to
keep
attacking
me,”
he
said.
Hleza
detailed
how
the
attack
escalated:
“The
two
dogs
tore
through
my
trousers.
One
bit
my
chest,
another
attacked
my
hand,
and
a
third
sank
its
teeth
into
my
leg.
There
were
six
dogs
in
total.
The
police
kept
ordering
them
to
bite
me,
telling
me
to
‘chuma’—stay
still—even
as
the
dogs
continued
to
bite.
I
had
no
choice
but
to
obey
until
another
officer
finally
pulled
them
off
me.”
Hleza
and
several
others
were
then
forced
into
a
police
vehicle.
“They
instructed
me
to
board
the
police
vehicle,
and
we
were
taken
to
a
police
truck
filled
with
other
people.
They
kept
praising
their
dogs,
saying,
‘Leyi
vele
umuntu
ihle
imwise
phansi’—this
one
is
good,
it
brings
people
down
easily.
We
were
held
at
a
police
base
in
Kenilworth
until
sunset
as
they
seized
the
ore
they
had
confiscated
from
some
people.
They
disappeared
for
a
while
before
returning
to
transport
us
to
Inyathi
police
station.”
Hleza
said
that
when
they
arrived
at
Inyathi,
he
and
the
other
dog
attack
victim
were
taken
to
a
clinic,
where
their
wounds
were
treated
with
betadine.
However,
they
were
sent
back
to
the
police
station
and
spent
the
night
in
custody.
“The
following
day,
we
were
transferred
to
Bulawayo
prison,
accused
of
stealing
gold
ore
from
a
mine
owned
by
Dumisani,”
Hleza
explained.
Both
injured
men
were
released
from
Bulawayo
prison
on
Wednesday
after
being
cleared
of
the
charges.
“We
were
told
that
those
of
us
who
weren’t
at
the
mine
were
being
released,
while
those
found
with
ore
had
to
pay
a
fine,”
he
said.