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 

Zimbabwean police arrest anti-Mugabe protesters.

• AFRICA
• Friday 10 June 2016 - 1:13pm

HARARE, Zimbabwe - Zimbabwean police arrested 15 people, including a journalist and the brother of a missing political activist, during a public protest against President Robert Mugabe, a lawyer said Friday.

Opposition is mounting against the 92-year-old Mugabe, whose decades in office have been marked by economic decline, repression of dissent, claims of vote-rigging, mass unemployment and emigration.

"Some were arrested last night. Some, earlier," lawyer Obey Shava told AFP.

"The charges are robbery and obstructing or defeating the course of justice."

Shava said police rounded up the activists while they were holding a vigil in Africa Unity Square in central Harare calling upon Mugabe, in power since 1980, to step down.

The police claimed the protesters had robbed a woman passing by.

 Follow

The square has been the venue of a series of protests over the disappearance of political activist Itai Dzamara who was abducted in March last year, allegedly by military intelligence agents.

His brother Patson, who was among those arrested, last week released a picture he said showed the missing man being held at an undisclosed location.

The army has denied responsibility for Dzamara’s abduction.

The journalist arrested at the protest was Paidamoyo Muzulu of NewsDay.

A group of churches, including the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance, the Prayer Network of Zimbabwe and the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace, on Thursday joined a chorus of demands that Mugabe should quit.

"There is a clear indication and consensus that President Robert Mugabe has failed us. We feel very strongly that he too old to continue," the convenor of the meeting, Pastor Ancelimo Magaya, told local media.

AFP

Police arrest 15 Africa Unity Square activists

June 10, 2016 in National, News

POLICE yesterday arrested 15 activists camped at Africa Unity Square since last week protesting against government’s alleged misrule, NewsDay has learnt.

BY OBEY MANAYITI

Five of the activists, including Partson Dzamara, the brother of missing activist Itai Dzamara, were arrested in the early hours yesterday morning, while 10 others were picked up later in the afternoon.

The activists had vowed to spend 16 days and nights at the square under the #16DayOccupation symbolism against bad governance.

Their lawyer Obey Shava confirmed the development, saying five of them had been charged with robbery and obstructing the course of justice, while the other were yet to be charged.

“Five of them have been charged with robbery and obstructing or defeating the course of justice. They will appear in court tomorrow (today). The other 10 were arrested this afternoon and I am still waiting to get instructions, but they are yet to be charged,” he said.

Last week, suspected State security agents reportedly attacked the demonstrators while sleeping in the park.

However, several organisations have condemned the arrest, describing it as politically motivated.

“It is unfortunate that the growing trend in the country is that government, through the security institutions, is responding to citizens’ lawful dissent such as demonstrations, sit-ins, and petitions through harassment,” ZimRights said in a statement.

Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) said it was alarmed by the behaviour of the police who had arbitrarily arrested peaceful demonstrators occupying Africa Unity Square.

“The arrested persons are unarmed, peaceful and raising genuine issues that must be addressed by the State. We condemn this disrespect of the rights of our comrades because they have the constitutional rights to express themselves,” CiZC said.

The MDC-T youth assembly said it stood in solidarity with the arrested activists.

                           SECURITY ALERT FROM THE OCCUPY AFRICA UNITY SQUARE

Urgent alert on the threat to personal security of the occupants at Africa unity square in Harare. Yesterday evening the occupants were subjected again to state engineered harassment when unknown assailants tried again to storm the camp but the occupants with reinforcements from the student movement who arrived in time bravely fought back and made noises which made the attackers to retreat. Today one of the coordinators of the Occupy movement' Tatenda Mombeyarara was stalked by some of the state agents who are on constant surveillance at Africa Unity square on his way home to wash and change clothes. As a result he had to rush back to the square in fear of his life and he was later warned by a neighbour at home not to come as there were men looking for him in suspicious looking vehicles.

16 Days of occupying Africa Unity Square in Pictures

ZAA, ZWIPA in 16 days and nights demo against gvt
JUN 01, 2016by SHORAI MURWIRAin NEWS DSC_9944
Zimbabwe Activists Alliance,(ZAA) and Zimbabwe Women In Politics Alliance, (ZWIPA) have joined hands in what they refer to as ‘16 days and 16 nights of occupying Africa Unit square’ demanding social justice from the government.

ZAA and ZWIPA are Zimbabwean human rights activists groups which advocate for the rights of the people.

Founder and National coordinator of ZAA, Linnet Mudewe said during the 16 days and nights they will be raising issues which are affecting the country

“We are occupying Africa Unit Square for 16 days and 16 nights to tell the government that we need good governance,” she said adding that they will keep on raising their concerns until government responds to plights that the country is facing.

Mudewe said they have 16 grievances and each day they will be tackling one grievance until their plights are heard.

“We are going to give our demands each day, like the issue of bond notes which was introduced to us without consultation,” said Mudewe.

Mudewe also said some of the demands include the need to act upon the country’s deteriorating health issue, food shortages which is starting to soar in supermarkets as well as the issue of continues citizens abduction.

Similarly , another ZAA member, Davis Mukushwa said that the fear to speak out and stand is the reason why Zimbabweans are suffering.

“There comes a time when silence is tantamount to betrayal, we cannot watch as the country head to the end because of the fear to speak out,” said Mukushwa while urging Zimbabweans to stand up and air their grievances.

Echoing the above sentiments, ZWIPA founder and National coordinator Linda Tsungirirai Musariri also said that the government must respond to the 16 days and nights of occupying Africa Unit square because the situation in the country has reached an alarming point.

“The situation in the country now needs an immediate response, government must respond to our call because people are suffering,” she said

Musariri also said that they will not leave the place until government responds to their call and start addressing some of the challenges the country is facing.

Through the demonstration, the two pressure groups are calling justice in the country.

"16 Day day and night Vigil" in pictures!!