Twenty-six opposition supporters were arrested on Sunday as they drove past President Robert Mugabe’s residence in the capital, police and opposition party officials said on Monday.
The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) said the supporters were detained for four hours at the State House and assaulted before being taken to a police station.
”Twenty-six MDC activists… were stopped and force marched into State House yard where they were severely assaulted by members of President Mugabe’s security,” the party said in a statement.
The leading opposition party said the crime allegedly committed by its members was ”putting on MDC regalia while driving past State House”.
However the police said the opposition supporters provoked the soldiers guarding Mugabe’s house and now faced charges of conduct likely to cause a breach of the peace under the country’s security laws. ”I doubt that would be the first time they have used that road, but this time they were abusive and there was a need for them to be arrested because they were actually provoking a situation,” said police representative Wayne Bvudzijena.
The MDC said its members were assaulted by soldiers who used ”logs, booted feet, the butts of their guns”. It said five of the assaulted were severely injured. At the police station the opposition supporters were forced to pay an admission of guilt fine of 5 000 dollars (about 90 US dollars) before being released. – Sapa-AFP