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| author/source:SW Radio Africa |
| published:Mon 16-Jun-2008 |
| posted on this site:Tue 17-Jun-2008 |
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| Article Type : News |
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| Observers were denied permission to see Biti |
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By Tichaona Sibanda
There was wanton destruction of property in Mbare on Sunday after Zanu PF youths reacted angrily to the visit to Matapi police station by a group of observers from the Southern African Development Community. The observers had gone to Mbare on a fact finding mission to investigate the living conditions that Biti was being held under at the now infamous Matapi police station, which the regime uses to lock up its political opponents. The MDC MP elect for Mbare, Piniel Denga said the observers were denied permission to see Biti, who has only been seen once in public since his arrest last week Thursday. He was arrested at the Harare International Airport soon after returning from South Africa where he had been based for the past two months. According to Denga, trouble began the moment observers left the station. Hoards of Zanu PF thugs, who were monitoring the movement of the observers from a safe distance, started attacking residents living near the police station.
“There was mayhem in Mbare. We thought the presence of observers was going to improve the security situation but it has only made things worse. These Zanu PF guys literally told people there was nothing that the observers could do to stop them from re-educating people to vote wisely on 27th June,” Denga said. The Mbare MP said the observers seemed nervous and tense when it became apparent that Zanu PF youths were patrolling the area. The observers took note of the situation and promised to forward their concerns to the head of the observer mission. “I have never witnessed such political harassment and intimidation in my adult life. This has become unprecedented, where they indiscriminately beat up people with the police watching and doing nothing,” Denga added. In Kadoma, hundreds of people were force marched to attend a rally that was to be addressed by Robert Mugabe. Our source told us Zanu PF youths were moving from door-to-door ordering home owners to attend Mugabe’s rally.
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