“We have families to look after, so the protests that you are seeing here setting Harare alight have involved some of us”, said a soldier.
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The coalition said in a statement it would demand that Mugabe’s government be held accountable for failing to deal with multiple economic crises.
The MDC’s leader Morgan Tsvangirai and former vice president Joice Mujuru are expected to lead Friday’s march. However, anti-Mugabe leaders warned that this would be the first of a series of protests.
Violent protests against his rule are a regular occurrence, with demonstrators uniting around #ThisFlag on social media to condemn high unemployment, acute cash shortages and corruption.
Supporters of 92-year-old Mugabe, who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence from white minority rule in 1980, say he should rule until he dies.
VEHICLES were burnt, shops looted and police brutality on display as Zimbabwe’s capital Harare was beset by yet another skirmishes of civilians demanding President Mugabe and his administration vacate office.
Even after a high court judge authorised the protest, police continued to disperse the opposition members violently.
“While we hear those embassies gleefully rubbing their hands at the chaos, we did not hear them condemning the violence being perpetrated by these elements”, said political analyst and lawyer, Mr Terrence Hussein.
“We join many Zimbabweans in their deep concern over reports of violence during some of the protests”. Mujuru said 50 people were injured and hospitalised.
More than a hundred police officers in riot gear, backed up by water cannon and armoured trucks, occupied the venue that opposition parties planned to use for their march.
“The police have responded by firing tear gas and water cannons at them”.
Police spokeswoman Charity Charamba said she could not comment because she was in a meeting.
The former prime minister in the government of national unity also defended the Nera leadership saying they had done their best to comply with the law in organising Friday’s demonstration which he said had seen some participants being “kidnapped and detained” at the Zanu PF headquarters.
“It was unbelievable to see and so humbling to see Zimbabweans come to a place where they were bold enough to say to a government that is known to be harsh, “Enough is enough and we won’t let you treat citizens the way that you are treating them.’ That added to the momentum of the citizens” movement that we now have on our hands”.
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Foreign diplomatic missions based in Harare called on the authorities to ensure that basic human rights and freedoms are respected during policing.
