Deadly unrest
Landmark elections turn bloody as Zimbabwe awaits results
Zimbabwe election panel begs for patience over the release of results after three people were killed when troops opened fire on demonstrations against alleged vote rigging.
Harare: Soldiers and police cleared the streets of central Harare a day after a deadly crackdown on protesters as the Zimbabwean authorities begged for patience over the release of the results from landmark presidential elections.
The elections – the first since autocrat Robert Mugabe was ousted last year – turned bloody on Wednesday when troops opened fire on demonstrations against alleged electoral fraud, leaving three dead and prompting an international outcry.
The government accused the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) opposition party of inciting the unrest and vowed to enforce a security clampdown.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa yesterday said he wanted an independent investigation into the killings, and that he sought to settle differences “peacefully”.
Yesterday, soldiers were on guard outside the headquarters of the ruling ZANU-PF party, while armoured personnel carriers, water cannon trucks and police anti-riot vans took position outside the MDC headquarters.
Soldiers brandishing assault rifles and police shouted at pedestrians and traders to leave central Harare.
“I wasn’t sure whether it’s safe to come to work. We had to consult among ourselves,” said one worker who declined to give his name.
In a late-night press conference on Wednesday, Home Affairs Minister Obert Mpofu warned further protests would not be tolerated.
“The opposition ... are testing our resolve and I think they are making a big mistake,” he said.
The MDC said the army had opened fire “for no apparent reason”, killing unarmed civilians.
The presidential election race has pitted 75-year-old Mnangagwa, Mugabe’s former ally in ZANU-PF, against the MDC’s leader, Nelson Chamisa, 35 years his junior.
In official results from the parliamentary election, also held on Monday, ZANU-PF won easily – suggesting Mnangagwa would be on course to retain the presidency.
But the MDC has said it won the elections outright and accused the government and Zimbabwe Election Commission (ZEC) of rigging the count.
ZEC said the final results of the presidential race may not be known until tomorrow.
Monday’s polls had been meant to turn the page on years of violence-marred elections and brutal repression of dissent after Mugabe’s 37-year rule was ended by a brief military takeover in November.
But the mood spiralled into anger as MDC supporters rallied in the city, chanting against the government and burning tyres in the streets.
“It’s disappointing – the government’s reaction only made things worse. It was heavy-handed,” trader Timie Manuwere, 37, said.
“But I didn’t expect things to really change much. It was highly unlikely these guys would just give up power after eight months.” — AFP