Almost 20 civil society organisations have planned a demonstration calling for reform ahead of the 2018 elections.
Advertisement
More than 200 supporters, mostly youths, of the main opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), took to the streets to protest against police brutality. The country is experiencing serious shortages especially the United States dollar. “What is distinctly different is the medium of communication and mobilisation where social media is the new development”, said Masunungure a political scientist at the University of Zimbabwe.
A Zimbabwean judge has ordered police not to interfere with an anti-government demonstration in the capital Friday.
The siren of a water cannon vehicle was wailing as Zimbabwean police tried to break up a protest calling for the resignation of President Robert Mugabe.
Despite those concerns, police officer commanding Harare Central district, Chief Superintendent Newbert Saunyama, said the parties could go ahead with their move to hand over the petition to ZEC.
Home Affairs Minister Ignatius Chombo labelled opposition leaders “foreign agents” using protests to cause chaos in order to justify worldwide intervention in Zimbabwe’s affairs.
“2018 is far away, and elections are not only the way of removing a democratically-elected government or president from power in a democracy”, explains Chidziva.
Earlier, a senior member of Mujuru’s ZimPF party Didymus Mutasa, who is also former state security minister in Mugabe’s government, told reporters that apart from electoral reforms, the opposition parties also wanted the electoral body to announce a clear road map for the next elections.
Douglas Mwonzora, the MDC secretary general and legal secretary for National Electoral Reform Agenda, the organisers of the march, said the opposition would go to court later on Thursday to ensure the police would not disturb Friday’s event and that they provide adequate security.
Mugabe, 92, who plans to contest the vote, has chided the opposition for seeking his downfall through protests, saying his opponents are afraid of defeat at the ballot box.
Advertisement
Western nations have long condemned Mugabe for allegedly rigging elections, suppressing the opposition and driving Zimbabwe’s economy into the ground with his policies.
