The situation in the Zimbabwean capital is beginning to normalise. This follows three days of violent protests after a steep fuel price hike.
Church leader and activist Evan Mawarire appeared in court in Harare to face charges of inciting public violence on Friday. He will appear again in court on the 31st of January after being accused of inciting violence on social media.
Mawarire first gained fame as the leader of the “This Flag” movement. He remains in custody in Harare.
Authorities cracked down on anti-government protests in which doctors say 68 people were shot and wounded.
Zimbabwe’s inflation has risen to 40% – the highest rate since hyperinflation wrecked the economy 10 years ago.
Harare resident, James Vambe says “Things are beginning to normalise now. So, going to work is the only option. Otherwise our families will suffer more.”
Another resident from Harare Andrew Bashaike says, “I think things are becoming normal as of now, because people are starting to trickle in the city. I think it’s starting to normalise.”
However, people are still angry about the radical fuel price hikes. Angry resident Richard Texas says,”The transport charges are still too high, imagine paying $3 for a one-way journey when you used to pay $0.50c so nothing has changed at all.”
Scores of civilians were reportedly beaten following a heavy crackdown by security forces.
The Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights said its members had treated more than 100 people in various hospitals, some with dog bites, when the protests erupted in Harare and Bulawayo.
The uprising poses a major challenge for President Emmerson Mnangagwa who is still out of the country. He promised to revive the economy after taking over from Robert Mugabe in a defacto coup in 2017.
Meanwhile, The Right2Know campaign has called on Mnangagwa to stop his government from killing the Zimbabwean people during their protests against political and economic repression.
The group held a picket outside the Zimbabwean Embassy in Pretoria earlier on Friday. Right2Know is also demanding that Mnangagwa ends the internet shutdown.
It alleges the shutdown is aimed at cutting communication between families as a way of silencing the voices of the Zimbabweans.
The organisation is urging the South African government to support the Zimbabwean people and to apply political pressure on Mnangagwa and his government.
Outreach Organiser Bongani Xwezi says, “Seeing what is currently happening in Zimbabwe undermines the right to protest. So, as Right2Know Campaign, we are here to say this should stop. People of Zimbabwe should be able to exercise their right to protest without being violated. The violence in Zimbabwe is really out of order. It’s undermining the world democracy that we expect should be happening in Zimbabwe.”
