May 13, 2008, 21:15
The US condemned Zimbabwe's government for its "harassment" of the US ambassador and other diplomats questioned by police after visiting post-election violence victims at a hospital.
State Department spokesperson Sean McCormack said US ambassador James McGee and diplomats from Britain, the European Union, Japan, the Netherlands and Tanzania, were questioned for about 45 minutes at a roadblock outside of the capital Harare today.
"I guess it is harassment," said McCormack of the questioning of the diplomats. "If on two occasions you're held up for nearly two hours and questioned about what you're doing, by security officials, then, yeah, that's harassment. Sure," he added.
The diplomats were on their way back from visiting a rural hospital to see victims of post-election violence. They were also held up at the hospital and questioned by security officials over their reasons for being there, said McCormack.
No diplomats were physically harmed
While they were questioned, McCormack said none of the diplomats were physically harmed and nothing had been confiscated by the security officials.
British ambassador to Zimbabwe Andrew Pocock when asked about reports that Western ambassadors had been detained during their tour of the hospital, said: "We are having a little chat with the police. We have not been detained."
The US has had harsh words for Zimbabwe's government, accusing it of harassing and attacking the opposition following the disputed March 29 poll which will likely result in a run-off between President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai.
Washington has asked Zimbabwe's government to provide security guarantees for Tsvangirai, who left Zimbabwe shortly after the March 29 poll and has been visiting the region to garner support for his cause.
Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change accuses the ruling Zanu-PF of using violence and intimidation against its supporters ahead of the runoff, which could unseat Mugabe after nearly 30 years in power.
The US has also accused the Zimbabwean government of a campaign of "state-sponsored violence" against the opposition. The Zimbabwean government rejects these allegations. – Reuters
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