Zimbabwe’s government went to the High Court on Tuesday, the second day of opposition-led protests, asking it to alter the bail conditions for MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai and two other high-ranking opposition officials.
The government wants the three, who are on trial for treason, to refrain from making inflammatory statements or inciting violence as long as they are on trial.
South African opposition defence attorney George Bizos said the government’s application amounts to an attempt to obtain ”a gagging order”.
”The purpose of bail is not to gag accused persons from speaking against the policies of a government which they consider wrong,” Bizos argued.
”Bail conditions are not to be used in order to stop political activity in Zimbabwe,” he added.
The trio, which includes Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) secretary general Welshman Ncube, is accused of plotting to assassinate Mugabe ahead of last year’s presidential elections.
They deny the charges, which could carry the death penalty on conviction.
Bizos also argued against having the same judge preside over the treason trial and the state application to tighten the bail conditions, saying it would interfere with his function as the trial judge and ”may lead to a mistrial”. Meanwhile the government threatened to withdraw operating licences from business owners who failed to open on Tuesday, saying its officials would be compiling a list of defiant companies.
That threat led to supermarkets in the low-income suburbs, located on the periphery of the capital, to open for business. Later in the morning, some department stores in central Harare opened for business.
But the MDC, which had called the mass action to force Mugabe to discuss the country’s economic and political problems with them, expressed satisfaction on the first day of the protests.
The party said the protests were a ”victory”, despite the arrest of several of its leader’s supporters on Monday.
Ncube said the party ”would like to congratulate all Zimbabweans for their victory over tyranny and dictatorship… through their unity and courage which has seen business come to a total standstill throughout the country”.
”This is a clear and unambiguous message to the Mugabe regime that the people of Zimbabwe have had enough suffering at the hands of the illegitimate regime,” he said.
MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai, Ncube, six lawmakers and more than 120 MDC supporters were arrested on Monday for defying a High Court order banning the mass action. Tsvangirai and Ncube were later released.
Scores of people, including university students were barred from marching in the streets and assaulted by security forces.
One university lecturer said on Tuesday that 50 students had to be hospitalised due to injuries, ”notably broken bones” after police rampaged through the campus to break up would-be demonstrators on the first day of the protests.
In a statement, MDC said its provincial chairperson for Manicaland, in eastern Zimbabwe and 45 MDC supporters were arrested on Tuesday. – Sapa-AFP