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More than 300 cases of election-linked violence in January
Cuthbert Nzou, ZimOnline
March 19, 2008

http://www.zimonline.co.za/Article.aspx?ArticleId=2890

Harare - More than 300 cases of politically motivated human rights violations directly linked to Zimbabwe's month-end elections and largely blamed on state agents were recorded in the month of January alone, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have said.

The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum said a wave of violence, intolerance and abuse of power by state security agents last year persisted into the new year with the freedoms of assembly and association the most violated as elections draw nearer.

The Forum, bringing together local groups involved in promoting human rights and supporting victims of violence, criticised what it said was the police's "selective application of the law and criminalization of lawful political activities when dealing with opposition political parties."

"This trend (of abuse) was carried forward into the year 2008 with January recording a total of 336 politically motivated human rights violations," the Forum said in a report released on Tuesday documenting abuses directly linked to elections.

"Notable in the month of January was the heightened profile given to the preparations for the March plebiscite and the intensity of politically motivated human rights violations that came with it," it said, adding that there was also an increase in violence between supporters of the ruling ZANU PF party and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party.

However, President Robert Mugabe's government immediately rejected as "nonsensical" the claims by NGOs that human rights abuses persist in Zimbabwe and that state agents committed rights violations.

"We expect to see more of those reports before the elections. They are nonsensical and we see that it is the work of our enemies to damage our government's reputation," Deputy Information Minister Bright Matonga told ZimOnline.

Politically motivated violence and human rights abuses have accompanied Zimbabwe's elections since the emergence in 1999 of the MDC as the first potent threat to Mugabe and ZANU PF's stranglehold on power.

Zimbabwe elects a new president, parliament and local councils on March 29, in elections that analysts expect to be won by Mugabe's government because of what they say is a political climate of fear pervading the country and uneven playing field that disadvantages the opposition.

Giving a breakdown of some of the cases of violence and abuse, the Forum said there were three kidnappings, 56 cases of assault, 94 cases of freedom of assembly and expression violations, 102 cases of unlawful arrest and detention recorded in January.

Some of the cases of politically motivated violence cited in the report include the case of five MDC supporters who were severely assaulted by ZANU PF activists in the Harare suburb of Mbare after they were caught putting up campaign posters of their party.

The Forum report highlighted attempts by the police to ban an MDC rally and public march in Harare on January 23, even after the High Court had allowed the opposition rally.

It said: "The MDC appealed to the High Court against the bans on the march and the rally, which led to the rally being allowed to go ahead.

"(However) MDC supporters, who were carrying placards moving to the venue of the rally, were tear gassed, arrested and assaulted by the police when they got close to the ZANU (PF) headquarters."

In another case, members of a human rights group called Restoration of Human Rights Zimbabwe were arrested, assaulted and detained by the police after a peaceful demonstration in Harare city centre against the deteriorating human rights situation in Zimbabwe.

The Forum strongly condemned the frequent arrest, assault and sometimes torture of state university and other tertiary school students who protest against worsening conditions at state colleges.

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