Zimbabwe: The criminalisation of poverty

Harare Central Hospital is refusing to allow 28 mothers with newly born babies to leave the institution until millions of dollars are paid for in maternity fees. The hospital says it recovers 87% of the fees through detaining mothers and babies but almost nothing under an older instalment plan. Some of the women in one of the post-natal wards said that they were ordered to stay in the maternity wing by hospital officials after they had said they had no money. At its height the action taken by the hospital in order to recover its fees can only be described as the 'criminalisaton of poverty in Zimbabwe'. The message from the Hospital Authorities was a clear one, if you are poor don't bother coming here, our services are reserved for those who can afford to buy them.