PPRESIDENT-ELECT Emmerson Mnangagwa has sensationally
claimed that none of his lieutenants gave orders for the fatal shooting of
seven civilians, where soldiers opened fired into groups of protesters in
Harare on August 1 to quell protests by opposition MDC Alliance activists.
The picture of a soldier in kneeling position while
shooting at fleeing civilians, while a colleague rushes to stop him during MDC
Alliance protests that turned violent in the capital on August 1
In a recent interview with Independent Foreign Service,
Mnangagwa said he regretted the killings, but insisted that no one among his
lieutenants gave soldiers the order to shoot indiscriminately into the crowded
city streets, killing seven people and injuring at least 14 others.
“No one gave orders … there is this perception and it is
disjointed. I explained, the army has a strict command structure, I am the
commander-in-chief and matters are handled according to the process,” he said.
“I consulted the commissioner-general of police (Godwin
Matanga) and he indicated to me that in terms of the law, the commissioner of
police can contact his counterpart who commands the local unit to give him
immediate support while the process is ongoing,” Mnangagwa told Independent
Foreign Service journalist Peta Thorncroft.
“The entire country was in a jovial mood. No one expected
the violence that happened so suddenly. The police were taken by surprise. They
were deployed countrywide, covering the election process. So suddenly, the
small unit (left in Harare) could not control what was happening: In terms of
the law, police are allowed to summon assistance to bring order.”
The matter has received international condemnation with
human rights groups and victims’ families calling for trial of the killer
soldiers and their commanders.
The Zanu PF leader, whose recent electoral victory is being
challenged at the Constitutional Court by his rival MDC Alliance leader Nelson
Chamisa, said he had identified British and South African experts to help
investigate the shooting incident.
“We regret what happened thereafter and since then. This
should not happen again. We are instituting a commission of inquiry and to give
it more flavour and transparency we are bringing people in from abroad,” he
said.
“I have one name from South Africa, one from the United
Kingdom to consider with three names to join us to look at the matter. The
inquiry will begin immediately after the inauguration.”
Mnangagwa claimed he had not yet seen a photograph shown in
the media of a soldier shooting at fleeing protesters in kneeling position and
another stepping forward to stop him on August 1.
“I have not seen that picture. Orders have been given about
all those people who took the law into their own hands, whether it was police
or others who take the law into their own hands. I also don’t want to pre-empt
the outcomes of the commission I am instituting.”
The Zanu PF leader dismissed reports of opposition
activists brutally assaulted by ‘rogue soldiers’ in post-election retributive
attacks.
“Let me assure you, the best thing to do is get the list of
150 cases and pass it onto us. This is fake news and it’s flying left, right
and centre. We were told (of these cases) by Philippe van Damme, the EU
ambassador here, and we took him to task and said let’s go around all the
hospitals in Harare and see if there is any record of people in hospitals. He
had to later apologise as this was not true,” he said.
“Be wary of Zimbabwe human rights groups. They have an
agenda. They have always been against the government. They have not changed
their minds, they have not shifted their mindset to become democratic but that
will take time. We must deal with facts and not any speculation. Whatever you
hear try to check and I think the police will be able to assist you in checking.”
Mnangagwa also dismissed reports that citizens were now
afraid of the military and police following the post-election crackdown on
opposition leaders and their supporters.
“I have not received information from my party or from the
general public or from any citizen saying I am fearful. Never, never. You will
see the police walking in uniform. It is legitimate, it’s allowed by the law.
You will see soldiers in their trucks. They are not on a mission to
intimidate,” he said.
“Our police and our army they are very friendly, we have
defence forces week, where they go around building clinics, building schools to
show the army and the public are in good relations. So this fake news about our
people … that they are afraid of the army.”
He also disclosed that former President Robert Mugabe would
be stripped of all his farms and left with one.
“It’s not a question of voluntary giving up, but about
complying with the policy. I am still receiving evidence of what the (former)
First Family had. When that process is complete they will select one farm and
the rest will be given elsewhere,” Mnangagwa said.
“We have the land commission, and this is one of the
matters they are seized with attending to. It’s not on the basis of the family,
(one family, one farm). It is on the basis of government policy. There are so
many others families who have more than one farm. It must all be governed by
the size of the farm,” he said. Independent Foreign Service
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