(HERALD) Police handle over 75 political violence cases
Police handle over 75 political violence casesBy Mabasa Sasa and Freeman Razemba
POLICE have so far handled over 75 cases of politically-related violence involving suspected MDC-T supporters while the opposition party is alleging that Zanu-PF supporters were involved in 27 instances of violence that left hundreds of their supporters injured.
This comes as 25 suspected MDC-T activists who were arrested on various allegations including setting ablaze a Mandaza Bus Service coach last week, barricading roads, stoning vehicles and circulating inciting messages yesterday lost their bid for freedom at the Harare Magistrates’ Courts.
The suspects were remanded in custody to May 5.
In a document prepared by MDC-T chronicling alleged cases of politically-motivated violence from March 29 to April 13, no deaths are reported, contrary to claims by the opposition that 10 of its supporters had been murdered.
An MDC-T official yesterday admitted compiling the document which he said was being distributed to the media.
According to official police records, CID Law and Order Section has dealt with 33 cases of violence, most of them stemming from the failed stayaway called for by MDC-T last week.
So far, eight people have appeared in court with one of the cases having already been finalised.
Eleven of these have since paid admission of guilt fines while 13 are still under investigation.
Apart from these, a further 53 accused persons have paid fines for various offences related to political violence.
Six vehicles, according to police records, have been damaged while three others were reduced to shells during the flopped stayaway while a house was stoned.
For instance, according to police, in Masvingo Province, the Zanu-PF candidate for Bikita South, Cde Wilson Makonya, was assaulted by about 50 MDC-T youths, who accused him of having caused the recount of ballots in that constituency.
Cde Makonya, who was in the company of his son, Givemore (19), and another Zanu-PF youth, were driving along Ngorima-Mashoko Road when the incident occurred.
Police said the opposition youths set up a "roadblock" by digging a trench, which they covered with tree branches in a bid to stop the vehicle.
Cde Makonya's two passengers managed to escape, but the Zanu-PF candidate was attacked and sustained serious injuries. Police have so far arrested five MDC-T youths in connection with the case.
In Gutu, MDC-T youths petrol-bombed the district council offices on the eve of Independence Day before disappearing from the scene after police officers on patrol spotted them.
"The intelligence gathered so far suggests that MDC-T activists were instigated by some party leaders like Paul Gorekore, who organised youths to block roads. This Paul Gorekore is still on the run. It also appears that the activists are using cellphones in their communication as evidenced by some messages retrieved from cellphones recovered from arrested activists," the police said.
Most of the cases of reported violence have occurred in Harare and Bulawayo, where the majority of the suspects have since appeared in court.
In its document, MDC-T alleges that hundreds of its supporters in Masvingo North, Mudzi and Mutoko were during the weekend of April 12 and 13 admitted at the Avenues Clinic in Harare after "receiving serious injuries".
The party claims that some villagers fled their homes, which were burnt by Zanu-PF supporters and that some members of the Zimbabwe National Amry were intimidating police officers in the area from interfering.
Responding to MDC-T’s claims that 10 of its supporters have so far been murdered in the post-election violence by Zanu-PF, chief police spokesperson Asst Comm Wayne Bvudzijena on Monday said their investigations had revealed that the names of the purported dead people were fictitious.
Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Cde Patrick Chinamasa also challenged MDC-T to substantiate its claims which the document being circulated on allegations of violence does not do.
Interestingly, in the document the opposition party fails to substantiate its claims and often resorts to using qualifiers like "allegedly", "suspected" and "reportedly" thereby demonstrating that it too cannot verify the violence allegations being raised.
In some of the allegations MDC-T totally fails to specify the places and times at which the offences are said to have occurred.
They allege that "hundreds of its supporters have received serious injuries" while "villagers have fled their homes after they were burnt down and property looted by Zanu-PF militias".
Dismissing bail applications by 25 suspected MDC-T activists yesterday, magistrates Ms Olivia Mariga and Ms Gloria Takundwa separately ruled that it was risky to release them at the time when the political climate in the country was volatile.
The magistrates said it was not in the interest of justice to grant the suspects bail, adding that it was the duty of the courts to ensure a violence-free post-election period.
They ruled that the courts had discretion to deny bail on any other reasons, apart from the usual reasons for denial of bail at law, if they felt it necessary.
Among those accused of burning the bus are two journalists — Frank Chikowore (28) and Luke Tamborinyoka (36), who works in the information department at the MDC-T Harvest House headquarters in Harare.
Court papers indicate that Chikowore is employed by the Media Institute for Southern Africa, but MISA yesterday issued a statement denying that he was their employee.
The two journalists are jointly charged with five others believed to be party activists — Kudakwashe Matibiri (35), Fortune Gwaze (26), Severino Machiwana (27), Stewart Chininga (24) and Admire Matsenhura (32) — for alleged public violence.
Prosecutor Mr Austin Muzivi alleges that on April 14 at around 10am, the seven held a political meet-
ing in Warren Park to strategise a planned stayaway, which was to be held the following day.
According to the State papers, the stayaway was to force the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to release the pending presidential election results.
It is alleged that on April 15, the seven, together with others still at large, waylaid public transport at the Warren Park roundabout armed with stones, sticks, inflammable liquids and old vehicle tyres.
While at the roundabout, it is the State’s case that the two lobbed a burning tyre under the Mandaza bus that was on its way from Plumtree and it caught fire.
Passengers and the bus crew escaped but their goods and the bus valued at $10 trillion were burnt.
Agrippa Mutasa (68), an MDC-T committee member in Mbare, is also being accused of inciting violence after addressing opposition supporters at a meeting to block roads in pursuance of the stayaway.
MDC-T chairperson for Kuwadzana Edith Mpofu, Tawanda Kalonga — an employee of Itachi Plastics in Willowvale — also appeared before magistrate Ms Gloria Takundwa for allegedly sending obscenities and messages to incite violence on their mobile phones.
In one of the text messages by Mpofu, she allegedly incited a colleague to burn a police or an army bus on the day of the planned strike.
Vasco Njala (29), Tinashe Mukombwe (20), Tinashe Masvaure (29) and Joseph Sekenhamo (21) — all of Epworth — were arrested for allegedly endangering the free movement of people and traffic in the suburb by blocking Garan’anga Road with stones.
Three Lobels Bread workers — Tinashe Takudzwa Kashiri (22), Arnold Chikomo (26) and Comfort Kahari (26) — were arrested on allegations of damaging a Toyota Hiace commuter omnibus in Highfield after it had stopped to pick up a passenger.
In the same suburb, three people employed by Apuut Coffin Manufacturers — Wellington Ajita (24), Awardy Kamiyano (26) and a 16-year-old colleague — were arrested for allegedly damaging a Kingdom Bank Mitsubishi staff bus on April 15.
Harare lawyers Mr Alec Muchadehama, Mr Harrison Nkomo and Mr Charles Kwaramba represented the 25 in two separate courts, while Mr Austin Muzivi and Mr Alois Gakata appeared for the State.
Labels: ELECTIONS, MDC, ZANU-PF, ZIMBABWE
posted by MrK @ 9:37 PM
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