BNF supports Tsvangirai withdrawal

LEKOPANYE MOOKETSI
Correspondent | Wednesday June 25, 2008 00:00

 

Tsvangirai who is the president for the popular opposition party, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), decided to quit the race because of escalating violence by President Robert Mugabe and his party, ZANU-PF. The MDC leader announced that it was withdrawing from the run-off over the weekend.

Tsvangirai said it was becoming difficult for his party to campaign due to the violence.  The police have been intimidating opposition leaders, including Tsvangirai himself. MDC secretary general, Tendai Biti has been remanded in custody on treason charges.

Mohwasa said pulling out of the run-off is the only option for Tsvangirai and MDC. He added that the withdrawal will show people how serious the Zimbabwean situation is. The BNF spokesman said ZANU-PF has declared war on the people of Zimbabwe. 'Our position is that you can't have free and fair elections in a war situation.' Mohwasa said prior to the elections, all the parties should campaign in a free atmosphere but this was never the case in Zimbabwe. 

The BNF official said the Zimbabwean situation is regrettable. He said there is need to strengthen democratic institutions in some African countries. He added that in Zimbabwe, there has been violation of human rights since independence in 1980. He accused Mugabe and his security forces of slaughtering thousands in 1983 in Matabeleland during Operation Gukurahundi but the international community did not speak up. He said this was an early indication of the atrocities he (Mugabe) is capable of. 'Let us look at the whole of Africa to make sure we don't have a repeat of what happened to countries like Zimbabwe and Kenya. This should be a wake up call.'

After Mugabe lost the elections on March 29, his party with the support of security forces has embarked on an unprecedented violence which has claimed 70 lives of MDC members. Tsvangirai won the March 29 presidential elections by 47 percent but he fell short of the required majority necessitating the Friday run-off. The violence started in rural areas and spread to towns. On Wednesday, four MDC supporters were killed in Chitungwiza, a working class township outside Harare.

Senior army officials have reportedly been deployed to regions to intimidate people and force them to vote for Mugabe. Zimbabwean media report that the feared commander of the Zimbabwean Air Force, Perence Shiri is in charge of one of the operations. Shiri was in charge of the dreaded Fifth Brigade, which killed thousands in Matebeleland in 1980s. Mugabe once warned that 'some of us have degrees in violence'. He has been threatening that they are going to start another guerilla war if he loses the run-off. The army and police commanders in Zimbabwe have threatened that the country would not be ruled by somebody who never fought in the liberation war; in an apparent reference (referring to Tsvangirai).