• News
  • Sport
  • TV
  • Radio
  • Education
  • TV Licences
  • Contact Us
  • SOUTH AFRICA
  • POLITICS
  • BUSINESS
  • SPORT
  • AFRICA
  • WORLD
  • FEATURES
  • OPINION
No Result
View All Result
1
Home Africa

Zimbabwe opposition to review strategy in face of “political asphyxiation”

20 August 2019, 9:19 PM  |
Reuters Reuters |  @SABCNews
MDC Leader Nelson Chamisa

The MDC said it had decided not to challenge the ban in court even though it had indicated earlier on Tuesday it would.

MDC Leader Nelson Chamisa

Image: SABC News

The MDC said it had decided not to challenge the ban in court even though it had indicated earlier on Tuesday it would.

Zimbabwe police on Tuesday blocked a street protest for the third time in five days, as the main opposition party said hopes were vanishing that the government might become more tolerant of dissent than the one it replaced.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa was elected a year ago, promising a break with the repression that characterised Robert Mugabe’s 37-year rule, and an economic upturn.

But the economy is mired in its worst crisis in a decade, and security forces have snuffed out three attempts by the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) since Friday to hold street demonstrations against shortages of fuel, power, bread and what they say is increasing repression.

Tuesday’s heavy security deployment was in the central city of Gweru, where police – who had banned the march on Monday night – patrolled on foot and in lorries and cordoned off a university, a local journalist told Reuters.

The MDC said it had decided not to challenge the ban in court even though it had indicated earlier on Tuesday it would.

An MDC source said party leaders would meet in Harare on Wednesday to review strategy and expected the police to also ban two more marches planned this week.

“In the past few days, there has not just been a ban on civilian politics, but a de facto state of emergency,” the MDC statement said. “The proscription of the people’s fundamental rights is therefore a crude form of political asphyxiation.”

It echoed comments from MDC spokesman Daniel Molokele, who said: “There is a determined effort by the regime to ensure that there is no more democratic space … It clearly shows that the new government is even worse than that of Robert Mugabe.”

WESTERN CONCERN

The party failed to overturn two previous bans on marches in the capital Harare on Friday – where police rounded up MDC followers and dispersed them with batons and water cannon and tear gas – and in the second city Bulawayo on Monday.

In the days before the planned Harare demonstration, six political activists were abducted from their homes at night and beaten by armed men, rights groups say.

They also say the government has this year levelled subversion charges against at least 24 activists and opposition leaders, the highest number in a single year.

In a joint statement, Western embassies in Harare said they were concerned about human rights violations by the government and called for economic and political reforms and national dialogue to end Zimbabwe’s problems.

The police said they had evidence the protests would turn violent and did not have enough manpower to monitor them.

Bulawayo saw massive looting and destruction of property in January when protests against a steep rise in the price of fuel turned violent, triggering an army crackdown that killed more than a dozen people.

“The move to ban demonstrations predicated on a spurious assertion that the opposition is plotting violent regime change, is not sustainable,” analyst Piers Pigou, Crisis Group’s senior consultant for southern Africa said.

“This is contrary to the precepts of a ‘new administration’ that President Mnangagwa and his team want to sell to the world.”

The president, who served as a Mugabe aide over four decades, is struggling to make good on promises that austerity-driven reforms will revive the economy, as popular anger mounts over triple-digit inflation, rolling power cuts and shortages of U.S. dollars, fuel and bread.

The crisis has revived memories of the hyperinflation of a decade ago that forced Zimbabwe to ditch its currency.

Share article
Tags: President Emmerson MnangagwaNelson ChamisaMovement for Democratic Change (MDC) Alliance
Previous Post

Court judgment on Arms Deal report expected on Wednesday

Next Post

ANC concerned that information about CR17 account has been leaked

Related Posts

FILE PHOTO: Skulls and personal items of victims of the Rwandan genocide are seen as part of a display at the Genocide Memorial in Gisozi in Kigali, Rwanda April 6, 2019.

Soldier guilty in Rwanda’s genocide dies in Niger

10 June 2023, 9:19 PM
Smoke rises above buildings after an aerial bombardment, during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum North

Sudanese capital quiet as 24-hour ceasefire takes hold

10 June 2023, 3:10 PM
FILE PHOTO: A Fulani herdsman walks past grazing cattle in Paiko, Nigeria  November 27, 2018

US urges Nigerian authorities to investigate killing of herders in early 2023

10 June 2023, 9:04 AM
Zimbabwean flag

Professor Mutambara says African continent needs new leadership

9 June 2023, 8:24 PM
Rwandan genocide suspect Fulgence Kayishema appears in the Cape Town Magistrates Court, in Cape Town, South Africa May 26, 2023.

Case of alleged Rwandan genocide postponed again in Cape Town

9 June 2023, 4:20 PM
A man walks while smoke rises above buildings after aerial bombardment, during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum North, Sudan, May 1, 2023. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/File Photo

‘Sudan sides agree to 24-hour ceasefire from Saturday’

9 June 2023, 3:03 PM
Next Post
President Cyril Ramaphosa

ANC concerned that information about CR17 account has been leaked

Most Viewed

  • 24hrs
  • Week
  • Month
  • Decision on Zimbabwean Exemption Permits causing confusion: TASA
  • Orlando Pirates player Thembinkosi Lorch found guilty of assault
  • [Editorial Update] Unisa suspends registrar for various breaches of policy
  • Female student stabbed to death at NMU residence
  • Tina Joemat-Pettersson has passed away
  • Dr Nandipha’s looks during court appearances under the spotlight
  • Decision on Zimbabwean Exemption Permits causing confusion: TASA
  • Deadline for Zimbabwean Exemption Permits draws near
  • Reserve Bank expected to increase repo rate on Thursday
  • Zimbabwe receives 18 helicopters from Russian Federation
  • Former Bafana Bafana coach Clive Barker passes on
  • ‘Incorrectly wired solar panels prolong outages’
  • Kempton Village residents call for government’s intervention after evictions
  • Arrests imminent in AKA murder: General Masemola
  • Nine-year-old boy among injured in Parow shooting

LATEST

Man City's Erling Haaland holding the UEFA Champions League trophy
  • Sport

Man City hang tough to beat Inter and complete the treble


Nigeria's Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele briefis the media during the MPC meeting in Abuja, Nigeria January 24, 2020. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde
  • Business

Nigeria’s security agency detains suspended central bank governor


FILE PHOTO: Skulls and personal items of victims of the Rwandan genocide are seen as part of a display at the Genocide Memorial in Gisozi in Kigali, Rwanda April 6, 2019.
  • Africa

Soldier guilty in Rwanda’s genocide dies in Niger


China's President Xi Jinping walks with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa before their meeting in Pretoria, South Africa, July 24 2018.
  • World

President Ramaphosa briefs Xi Jinping on efforts to end Russia-Ukraine conflict


Graphic of a murder crime scene
  • South Africa

Limpopo family seeks answers after their son died in police custody


Runners taking part in the Comrades Marathon on August 28, 2022.
  • Sport

Over 18 000 athletes expected to take part in Comrades Marathon


Weather

  • About the SABC
  • Contact Us
  • Jobs
  • Advertise
  • Disclaimer
  • Site Map

SABC © 2023

No Result
View All Result
  • SOUTH AFRICA
  • POLITICS
  • BUSINESS
  • SPORT
  • AFRICA
  • WORLD
  • FEATURES
  • OPINION

© 2023

Previous Judge Court judgment on Arms Deal report expected on Wednesday
Next President Cyril Ramaphosa ANC concerned that information about CR17 account has been leaked