ZIMBABWE’S main opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai has avoided arrest upon his return to Harare, despite the arrests of three opposition lawmakers and repeated threats from the government to charge him with treason. Tsvangirai said he was afraid that if police arrested him at the airport, the public outcry could run out of control. He has compared Zimbabwe’s political climate to that in Yugoslavia, warning of a possible mass protest to remove Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe from office. Mugabe’s mandate is set to expire in 2002, but his government “no longer has the mandate of the legitimacy of the people,” Tsvangirai said. – AFP
10