Violence against opposition party office bearers and supporters

Just a few hundred metres away from the site of our rally we were attacked by about fifteen people armed with iron bars, axes, hoes and stones. We had not anticipated such violence and as a matter of fact we did not have anything to defend ourselves and everyone that could ran away. Unfortunately five of our members were assaulted, one of them an elderly man of about 76 years old. He was severely assaulted and sustained deep cuts on the back of his head.

The whole incident occurred while Mrs Denga, who also failed to run away, watched helplessly. They left the old man, perhaps convinced that he was dead and in a bath of gushing blood from the deep cuts sustained during the assault. Mrs Denga helped the old man to Marimba Police Station, who were extremely uncooperative. They did not even bother to take him to hospital despite his profuse bleeding. The old man was later taken to hospital by a good Samaritan about three hours after the incident.

Since that time, Sabina Thembani has employed more thugs. The whole business is a lucrative one to the thugs who are paid a weekly salary of $700, provided with food and beer, paid $500 for any T-shirt taken forcibly from an MDC supporter and a ridiculous $50, 000 for killing an MDC supporter. All prizes are said to be paid instantly on production of proof of such assaults having been made. Incidents of people being systematically assaulted have become the order of the day.

Despite the assaults we continued to hold our meetings and Sabina Thembani has launched another phase of her operation. She is now targeting the MDC leadership, which she claims she will exterminate. Two MDC officials were abducted from their homes and taken to Sabina Thembani’s Zanu (PF) offices in Mufakose and severely assaulted. They both fainted during the assaults, were doused with water and as soon as they recovered they were beaten again until Sabina herself claimed she was tired of beating and called off the assault. They were then dragged out of the office premises.