
Zimbabwean police reported the apprehension of 40 individuals associated with the primary opposition party for obstructing traffic and causing disorder during a campaign event on Tuesday, just a week prior to the national elections.
On August 23, the southern African nation is set to hold elections to select the president and legislative representatives. Analysts anticipate a tense atmosphere, characterized by a clampdown on opposition and concerns of electoral manipulation.
The opposition Citizens’ Coalition for Change (CCC) was conducting a campaign in a southwestern suburb of the capital, Harare, when police obstructed supporters, party spokeswoman Fadzayi Mahere said on Tuesday.
Police acknowledged the arrest of 40 CCC activists, asserting that the party had initially informed authorities of its intent to organize a rally but subsequently deviated from the intended location.
The group “went on a car rally procession” in a nearby vicinity and came to a halt at a traffic signal, where they openly obstructed traffic, as reported by the police. The statement added that CCC supporters “started chanting party slogans and singing.”
Videos circulating on social media depicted numerous individuals dressed in the CCC’s distinct yellow attire, with some packed into the rear of a compact truck, gathering at an intersection.
For an extended period, the opposition has voiced grievances over being subjected to unjust treatment by authorities in the lead-up to the election. Members have been detained, and numerous CCC events have been obstructed.
In a report issued this month, Human Rights Watch indicated that the forthcoming election will take place within a “seriously flawed electoral process” that falls short of international norms for freedom and impartiality.
It accused police of “partisan conduct” and of using “intimidation and violence against the opposition”.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa, aged 80, and at the helm of ZANU-PF since the country’s independence in 1980, is pursuing re-election in the upcoming presidential vote scheduled for next week.
His primary contender is Nelson Chamisa, a 45-year-old lawyer and pastor, who leads the CCC.