The Unleashing of Violence:
A report on violence against peaceful protestors in
Harare

Contents

Endnotes

  1. For an analysis of the biased displayed by the state media in relation to political violence see Africa Watch report no 9 March 2000 entitled "The 2000 Elections Making and Breaking the Rules." In a covering letter to President Mugabe Africa Watch called on members of government to publicly and collectively condemn all behaviour which is violent, threatening or intended to intimidate."
  2. The Herald 8 April
  3. Dr Hunzvi is facing criminal charges of fraud in which he is alleged to have defrauded the War Victims Compensation Fund of $361 620. He has also appeared in court on a charge of defrauding war veterans companies of $3 million. Recently police said they were keen to interview him in connection with allegations of fraud at one of the ex-combatants’ companies, Zexcom.
  4. Jerry Grant, vice-president of the Commercial Farmers' Union (CFU) said "I'm shell-shocked. I just can't believe a government can behave in this manner." The Commercial Farmers' Union (CFU) represents most of Zimbabwe's commercial farmers. Grant told AFP that the invasions were orchestrated by the government, which has blamed whites for its referendum defeat. "The word is out that this is punishment for the whites for rejecting the constitution," he said. "It is orchestrated at the highest level. There are government and party vehicles involved in delivering (the invaders)." Grant said white farmers had been subjected to "serious intimidation". "The police are aware of this and they're still doing nothing about it. They've had an instruction from the top not to interfere." But Information Minister Chen Chimutengwende described as "absolute rubbish" allegations that the war veterans' actions were incited by the government. He said "those who voted 'no' (in the referendum) complicated the matter. It's now leading to these invasions and I can only see more of the invasions." Mail and Guardian 2 March 2000.
  5. Mr Andrew Ndlovu is a rehabilitated former anti-government dissident who fought to destabilise Zimbabwe during the mid- 1980s. He operated as a dissident in Matabeleland until he received a government amnesty in 1987. He is alleged to have been involved in the kidnapping and murder of four tourists. He is also alleged to have been involved in a number of murders of DDF workers and a number of rapes.
  6. Daily News 16 March 2000; The Herald 16 March 2000.
  7. Daily News 17 March 2000.
  8. Daily News 29 March 2000.
  9. The Herald 8 April 2000.
  10. The Herald 29 February 2000.
  11. Speaking in a CNN interview he said "We did not order the war veterans to occupy land. They did it entirely on their own, but we can talk to them and we can advise them. As long as the occupation is peaceful and there is no really seizure of any property on the land or any violence, it amounts to a mere demonstration and to the extent that it is a mere peaceful demonstration, we will not intervene. The government has not intervened and if that is encouragement, well let it be, but we haven't actually organised it in that physical sense." The interview was published by the Sunday Mail and broadcast by ZBC.
  12. The High Court also ordered that in taking action to evict the illegal occupiers, the Police Commissioner and his officers are to disregard any executive instruction if that instruction prevented the police from effecting the evictions. The executive has deliberately misinterpreted it to mean that they could not intercede to assist in the process of ending these illegal farm occupations.
  13. The Herald 1 March 2000.
  14. The Minister of Information, Chen Chimutengwende is quoted as saying "I don't know what the police will do on this issue, it is a very political matter. Chen yesterday. He questioned whether the courts could give orders to Mr Mugabe and the police commissioner, Augustine Chihuri.
  15. See, for instance, Daily News 10 April 2000.
  16. The official spokesperson for the NCA, Mr Brian Kagoro, supplied this information.
  17. Verbal report from Mr B Kagoro.
  18. In its report on 2 April 2000 the Sunday Mail tried to make out that there had been clashes and fighting between the attackers and the marchers. However, the headline for the article reads "NCA marchers chased by war veterans."
  19. The Sunday Mail reported on 2 April 2000 that the musician had his box guitar destroyed by riotous youths suspected to be members of the NCA. This is entirely false.
  20. Sunday Mail 2 April 2000.
  21. Report from person who heard this address.
  22. The Herald 5 April 2000.
  23. Interview with BBC broadcast on programme Focus on Africa on 3 April 2000.
  24. Broadcast on the 8 p.m. news bulletin on 6 April 2000. TOP