Zimbabwean officials lashed out Wednesday against the United States for its criticism of the government’s violent response to an an opposition-led national strike, denying there had been a brutal crackdown against dissent.
Willard Chiwewe, a high ranking foreign ministry official blamed last week’s national strike which prompted the crackdown on British and US-backed industrialists, the state Herald newspaper reported on Wednesday.
”The so-called mass action which the Americans are hailing as successful was a shut out of industries and workers. The workers reported for work but were shut out,” he said.
US State Department representative Richard Boucher on Monday described the strike as ”successful and largely peaceful” and said Washington condemned unprecedented violence sponsored by the government security forces that followed.
The crackdown included the arrests of at least 400 people and injuries of another 250. Boucher said Zimbabwe authorities embarked on what he called a massive retribution campaign against the opposition Movement for Democratic Change.
He said government leaders and their supporters had sharply escalated repression of all forms of dissent since the beginning of the year.
Chiwewe said Boucher’s remarks were ”an intrusion in the internal affairs of small countries” that breached international law, The Herald said.
”It is no secret the United States is already playing its assumed role as the epicenter and police headquarters of the world,” he said.
The opposition Movement for Democratic Change and independent human rights monitors said Tuesday at least 1 000 people were arrested, assaulted and hounded from their homes in the aftermath of the strike.
The Herald, a main government mouthpiece, said police confirmed the arrests of about 200 people and denied allegations of assault and torture.
The newspaper reported youths were paid to stir the unrest.
Court officials, meanwhile, said four opposition activists were ordered held in custody on charges they torched a ruling party office in the provincial town of Chinhoyi, 115 kilometres northwest of Harare last week. Another 20 people were taken into police custody for alleged involvement in public violence in the Harare area during the strike, court officials said. The strike, taken as a stand against political repression and acute shortages of food and gasoline, shut down most of the economy, disrupting transport services and shutting down shops, banks, factories and state post offices.
The opposition gave the government a March 31 ultimatum to either introduce democratic reforms or face further protests.
Two parliamentary by-elections scheduled for this weekend in urban opposition strongholds have increased already seething tensions in the capital. Campaigning has been marred by violence and intimidation. Last week’s strike was the largest protest since Mugabe — brought to power at independence in 1980 — was re-elected for another six-year term in presidential elections contested by Tsvangirai last year.
Observers said those elections were marred by intimidation and vote-rigging. – Sapa-AP