HARARE (PANA)�In an unprecedented move, Zimbabwean lawyers and human rights groups have accused the country�s superior court judges of racism and corruption.

They chronicled a number of cases in which both High Court and Supreme Court judges had allegedly taken sides influenced by racism or corruption and made judgments that were in favor of whites against the majority Blacks.

The lawyers, who were attending a workshop on the "Nature and Depth of Judicial Injustices in Zimbabwe," said the problem stemmed from the fact that no major changes had been made in the way the judiciary operated since the country gained independence in 1980 from Britain and changed the name from Rhodesia.

"The problem we have in this country is that our judiciary is still full of elements of the Rhodesian era. The abuses that you see today in the judiciary are just a continuity of the Rhodesian judiciary. These people have taken the war from the bush to the courts," lawyer Lesley Paterson said.

The lawyers and human rights activists said cases of miscarriage of justice had became alarmingly common in Zimbabwe, but stopped short of naming the culprits.

"Allegations of racism have been leveled against our courts. Allegations are that one should stand a better chance of being treated with dignity if they are white than when they are Black," Nick Ndebele, ZimRights chairman, said.

Participants, for example, cited a case in which a Black businessman was allegedly made to pay additional interest to a bank on a loan he had already repaid in full.

In another case, a Black businessman lost his property worth millions of dollars to a white person after the courts auctioned it for failure to repay his bank loan.

It later turned out that the Black businessman had repaid the loan.

The lawyers and human rights groups proposed an overhaul of the country�s judiciary, including holding public hearings on superior court judges before they are appointed.