But some war veterans who are still supporting Mugabe said the arrested war veterans deserved it and are sell outs. Among them were ousted vice president now opposition leader Joice Mujuru and Zimbabwe’s most prominent opposition politician Morgan Tsvangirai.
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The Aug. 26 demonstrations were the latest and largest in several protests that have shut down Zimbabwe’s cities.
In recent months, pro-democracy campaigners have been rolling out protests nearly on a weekly basis against Mugabe’s clueless administration over worsening economic hardships, rising poverty levels, cash shortages and high unemployment.
The 92-year-old Mugabe, who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence from white minority rule in 1980, has refused to name a successor, insisting he wants to rule until he dies.
Angry protestors are burning tyres and throwing missiles at the police who have opened fire at the demonstrators.
That’s after police stopped opposition supporters from congregating for a protest march in support of electoral reforms that had been sanctioned by the High Court.
“If that was meant to cow us from demonstrating, I want to say the opposite has been the case”. They also called on the government of Zimbabwe to exercise restraint. People’s anger and desperation are real …
Truckloads of anti-riot police have been deployed as well as water cannons, frequently used to break up anti-government protests in the past two months.
“This is a peaceful march, it is not up to the police to choose which demonstration to encourage and which demonstration not to encourage”, opposition spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora told reporters. Even after the court cleared the way for the protest, Riot Police continued to tear gas and chase those trying to gather for their demonstration.
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“Today has been the worst day in my life where I have seen a State breaking its own laws and attack its own people”, said the former cabinet minister and now senior official in the ZimPF party.
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.
Police commander for the Harare Central District, Chief Superintendent Newbert Saunyama, told protest organisers in a letter on Thursday that they could present a petition at the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission without marching, adding that the expected number of participants, 150,000, was too big.
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Government critics want global observers, including the United Nations, to monitor the poll in 2018.
