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Political violence report - January 2008
Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum
March 11, 2008

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Overview
The year 2007 saw the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum (The Human Rights Forum), recording the highest number of violations since its inception, after a year characterised by violence, intolerance and the abuse of power by state security agents and other organised groups aligned to the ZANU PF government. This trend was carried forward into the year 2008 with January recording a total of 336 politically motivated human rights violations. As the Forum marks ten years of existence, it is alarming to note that the political intolerance, violence, torture and impunity that it set out to eliminate 10 years ago continues to be on the rise.

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. As has been the trend in previous elections, there was marked inter - party violence, especially between ZANU PF and MDC supporters. This report documents the assault of 5 MDC activists by ZANU PF supporters in Mbare for putting up posters for an MDC rally that was planned for 12 January 2008. The intimidation of opposition candidates in the coming elections by their ZANU PF opponents is another disturbing trend that has been carried forward from previous elections. This report documents the assault of Ezekiel Mpande by the supporters of his opponent Mr Nyanhongo, a ZANU (PF) candidate who is also the Deputy Minister of Transport and Energy.

The selective application of the law and criminalisation of lawful political activities by the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) when dealing with opposition political parties continues to be a worrying trend as Zimbabwe approaches the 29 March elections. For instance, the police purportedly banned the "Freedom March" a pro democratic reform protest as well as a rally at the Glamis Stadium in Harare planned by the MDC Tsvangirai faction for 23 January 2008 after having sanctioned it a few days earlier. 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. 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.

The Human Rights Forum deplores the heavy handedness in which the police dealt with the MDC supporters who were on their way to the said rally as on 30 November 2007 they had even escorted war veterans and ZANU PF supporters who had embarked on a "million man march" from Harare city centre to Highfield in support of President Mugabe's nomination as the ZANU (PF) Presidential candidate in the forthcoming elections.

The freedoms of assembly and association were the most violated rights in the month of January. A total of 93 violations were recorded in this category. Furthermore, 56 violations of assault and 67 violations of intimidation and political discrimination were also recorded. In January, 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 the Harare city centre against the deteriorating human rights situation in Zimbabwe.

As in the previous year, which saw a high number of student leaders in tertiary institutions being assaulted, arrested and detained by the police, the month of January saw the arrest, detention and subsequent torture of two student leaders from the Midlands State University (MSU) for carrying out a 2 man demonstration in the city of Gweru. The Human Rights Forum calls upon the GoZ to address the grievances of students in tertiary institutions and the police to desist from the use of unnecessary brut force and torture when dealing with students.

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