Zimbabwe counts cost of election protests
Zimbabwe on Thursday awaited the outcome of presidential elections that have plunged the country into bloodshed and protest, stirring memories of a traumatic past.
A day after six people were killed in an army crackdown during demonstrations against alleged electoral fraud, the capital Harare – its centre cleared by troops – braced for the announcement of the results.
Zimbabwean tourism minister Prisca Mupfumira has confirmed that her aunt was killed when she was caught in the crossfire during clashes between the military and MDC Alliance supporters.
“She was innocently coming from work. Imagine finding out through social media, and identifying her body through the dress she was wearing,” Mupfumira said via a WhatsApp message sent to her colleagues.
The MDC said the army had opened fire on Wednesday “for no apparent reason,” killing unarmed civilians.
“The presidential election results will start to be announced around 10pm,” Zimbabwe Election Commission (ZEC) commissioner Qhubani Moyo told reporters. “We are hopeful that all of them will be announced today.”
The vote on Monday – the first since Robert Mugabe was ousted last year – was meant to turn the page on years of brutal repression.
But anger flared over alleged vote-rigging, and troops used live rounds on protesters.
Police spokeswoman Charity Charamba told a press conference the death toll had risen from three to six after some protesters succumbed to their injuries. The government accused the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) main opposition party of inciting the unrest and vowed to enforce a security clampdown.
But President Emmerson Mnangagwa tweeted he wanted an independent investigation into the killings, and that he sought to settle differences “peacefully”. The presidential race has pitted Mnangagwa, 75 – Mugabe’s former ally in the ruling Zanu-PF party – 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.
He had promised a free and fair vote after the military ushered him to power when Mugabe was forced to resign.
Of 210 parliamentary seats, 207 have been counted with Zanu-PF winning 144 and the MDC 61. –