MAZOWE villagers yesterday chickened out of a demonstration
against President Robert Mugabe, First Lady Grace and the Zimbabwe Republic
Police (ZRP) over the continued harassment they are being subjected as a way to
force them out of Arnold Farm.
Scores of villagers had gathered at an assembly point early
in the morning, planning to stage a mini demonstration in Mazowe before heading
to Harare, where they intended to picket at Mugabe’s offices.
“We woke up early and met at our usual point to embark on
our demonstration. However, we were told that today (Wednesday) was not the
best day and that our legal practitioners didn’t want us to be confrontational.
We have rescheduled for the weekend, likely Friday or Saturday,” one of the
villagers said.
“We were going to demonstrate at the farm before going to
Harare. In Harare, we wanted to go to the President’s office. We are facing too
many challenges, among them daily harassment by law enforcement agents, who
have erected boom gates, where they conduct strict vetting before letting
people in.
“They have ordered us not to construct new structures after
they destroyed our houses. We are facing the rainy season and we cannot
continue sleeping in the open. There were rains on Monday and you can imagine
what happened. That must stop.”
Others said the whole community was likely to join in
because vehicles, including villagers’ and well-wishers’, were being blocked
from entering the disputed farm.
However, Moses Nkomo, from the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human
Rights, who is representing the villagers, said they were free to express
themselves in the manner they wished.
“As a legal practitioner, I cannot recommend to be
confrontational, neither can I prevent them from being confrontational because
it is a decision outside my mandate. It is their call to make. On our part, we
are pursuing legal remedies,” he said.
“There is a matter of contempt of court that is before the
court and we have written several correspondences to the relevant minister and
others. We actually got some slightly positive response from the police.
“They are saying if these villagers are disturbed or
harassed in any way, they should report at Mazowe Police Station and if they
refuse to accept their concerns, they should go to the Officer-in-Charge, who
is under instructions to deal with the matter.” Newsday
0 comments:
Post a Comment