Press Statement

06 /10/2016

State Security intensifies operations to thwart Unity Square Occupants

….as five of the 15 Activists arrested get a shocking $1000

Today the arrested  5 “16 Day Occupy Africa Unity Square  Activists” arrested were granted a shocking $1000 bail each and remanded in custody on cooked  up charges of robbery and obstructing the cause of justice . The occupants view $1000 bail condition as another away of tactically silencing the voice dissent.

The other 10 are still detained at Harare police station and up to now no substantial charges have been played against them which are a clear signs that this only a desperate ploy to destabilize the protest. 

We would want to make it clear that from the onset of the occupation the state security agents have been openly making moves to stop the occupants from continuing.

The occupants will never be stopped or be deterred by these intimidators moves until demands are met even after the sixteen days lapse, Zimbabweans are tired of being treated as stooges in their country while only a few political elites plunder the country`s resources at the expenses of the suffering of the masses.

The following is a statement produced chronicling events that led to the arrest:

Security alert from the square

Posted: Yesterday at 1:46am

At exactly 23:30h 3 ZRP officers tried to disperse us and we told them they had no constitutional right to disperse us. After 20minutes of heated argument with the police officers they walked away. At exactly midnight two women showed up walking towards us from the CNR third and Jason Moyo Avenue. As they approached us I noticed that they were wearing the same hats black and white striped hats, carrying tshangani bags. They passed us and stopped 10m away and inquired where 4th street was purporting to have disembarked a combi from Murehwa. I told them to go where they were going as we were aware of their intentions.

As they got to the fountain in the center of the park instead of going the direction we had told them they crossed with two other guys, I alerted the guys that something sinister was happening, Tatenda Mombeyarara noticed that there were men standing behind the toilets. The two women came back running screaming mbavha mbavha!  (thieves’ thieves). We just watched them as they ran past us. Instead of going straight to Jason Moyo they cut across the park into the dark and we saw the three policemen jumping from the hedge.

 The women accused Patson Dzamara and Makomborero Haruzivishe as the men who followed them and took their filthy, torn tshangani bags. As they were running, one of the two women dropped her bag where we were seated and the other one dropped it in the park.

When the police got to us they just picked up Mako and Patson. Four male protesters tried to reason with police and they didn't listen. Makomborero was beaten up here in the square and a white Santana emerged from the blue and the accused and the witnesses refused to embark in the car. They walked to Harare Central Police Station where Patson and Makomborero are detained. Brian Kansuzuma stood his ground fighting for justice. Special thanks to Takavingwa Komboni and Dirk Frey who swiftly responded in coming to strengthen security after our male counterparts had been arrested.

This whose drama was stage managed and is a mockery to our intelligence. The dirty, torn and smelly bags made out of sack are still in the square. Why did the police leave the evidence? Brian Kansuzuma has made his way back to the square and informed us that they handcuffed Mako and Patson and along the way they were tightening and pulling the handcuffs digging into their flesh. Price Mukono was beaten with one police officers elbow and fell down.

Ten minutes after the incident, two police officers came pretending not to know what transpired claiming they had received a call from Harare central police station. We narrated the whole incidence to them and ironically they left the bags as well.

We are not stupid. We will not be abused. We are sick and tired of a partisan police force that serves the interest of ZANU PF. These stage managed shows show that this government has ran out of ideas. Zimbabwe is our country and we will fight viciously for the rule of law to be restored.

“United in our diversity for the restoration of Zimbabwe”

Linda T. Masarira
Occupation Spokesperson

The occupants of the African Unity Square who have spent the last chilling 10 nights camping at the park protesting against the government of Zimbabwe on several issues and demands note with concern efforts by State Security Agents to unconstitutionally demoralize , destabilize and stop the protesters from completing the 16 days of Occupying the Africa Unity Square.

The occupants are well aware of the ploy by the state security agents to stop the occupation through