MUTARE – A regional magistrate here has sentenced Shuah Mudiwa, the MDC Member of Parliament for Mutare West, to seven years in jail after finding him guilty of kidnapping a 12-year old girl.

Hlekani Mwayera suspended two and half years from the sentence. The judgment was passed today (Saturday) His lawyer, Douglas Mwonzora, said he would appeal against both conviction and sentence. The appeal papers will be filed on Monday, Mwonzora said. Mudiwa sat motionless as the sentence was being put to him and his co-accused.

The court was packed with his relatives and supporters of the MDC.

The MP and his co-accused were convicted and sentenced amid protests from his defence team that the governor and resident minister for Manicaland, Christopher Mushowe influenced the process.

Mushowe lost the Mutare West seat to Mudiwa in the watershed March 29, 2008, polls.

Hlekani Mwayera convicted Mudiwa together with his brother, Takudzwa and Patricia Chikide Mwashuna.

The trio had pleaded not guilty to the charges but Mwayera ruled that the state had proved a prima facie case against them.

She also dismissed arguments by the defence that Mushowe had used his political muscle to influence the investigations and judgment.

Charges against Mudiwa and his co-accused arose from an incident that occurred in November 2007 in Marange.

The court heard that on November 7 Mudiwa, Takudzwa and Mwashuna waylaid the 12 – year old girl who lives in Muchisi Village in Marange and kidnapped her.

The court was further told that the trio took the girl to Mwashuna’s house and locked her inside.

Mudiwa becomes the third MDC MP from Manicaland Province to be convicted of a criminal offence. Two other MPs Lynette Karenyi (Chimanimani) and Mathias Matewu Mlambo (Chipinge Central) have been convicted for forgery and inciting public violence respectively.

Human rights campaigners have said the law was being applied selectively in a deliberate tactic to reduce the number of MDC MPs in Parliament. But Zanu-PF denies the suggestions.

Zimbabwe Times contributed to this report

By Staff reporter and agencies