A South African model who has said she was whipped with an electric cord by Zimbabwe's First Lady Grace Mugabe has filed court papers challenging the government's decision to grant her diplomatic immunity. Police had placed border posts on "red alert" to prevent Grace from leaving but South Africa's international relations minister said she had granted diplomatic immunity to the wife of Zimbabwe's 93-year-old President Robert Mugabe. Advocacy group Afriforum has given legal backing to Gabriella Engels, the 20-year-old woman behind the assault allegation, and is working on the case with Gerrie Nel. Read: Grace Mugabe: Why diplomatic immunity isn’t always ‘out of jail’ ticketGrace returned home from South Africa early on Sunday, but her immunity was widely-criticised in South Africa, where August has been designated Women's Month to highlight concerns around gender violence and abuse. Harare has made no official comment on the issue and requests for comment from Zimbabwean government officials have gone unanswered.

Source: The Star August 24, 2017 15:56 UTC