Zimbabwe: Police Crackdown on Opposition Rallies

Zimbabwe: Police Crackdown on Opposition Rallies

We condemn the actions of the Government of Zimbabwe over this past weekend in suppressing peaceful opposition political activity. In disregard for a court order, riot police in Harare broke up a rally where the leader of one of the factions of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), Morgan Tsvangirai, had planned to announce his candidacy for the country's 2008 presidential election. Scores were injured and arrested for attempting to assemble peacefully and exercise their political rights.

The police also suppressed a rally in Zimbabwe's second city, Bulawayo, by the MDC's other faction over the weekend, injuring and arresting many MDC members.

We call on the Government of Zimbabwe to respect the country's judicial decisions and the rule of law and allow the people of Zimbabwe to exercise their political rights. Zimbabwe's political and economic crises can only be resolved through dialogue with the political opposition, with Zimbabwe's civil society and with the people of Zimbabwe, who have made clear their desire for democratic change.

2007/119, Released on February 21, 2007, Press Statement, Tom Casey, Deputy Spokesman, Washington, DC. February 21, 2007

The UK annexed Southern Rhodesia from the [British] South Africa Company in 1923. A 1961 constitution was formulated that favored whites in power. In 1965 the government unilaterally declared its independence,

but the UK did not recognize the act and demanded more complete voting rights for the black African majority in the country (then called Rhodesia). UN sanctions and a guerrilla uprising finally led to free elections in 1979 and independence (as Zimbabwe) in 1980. Robert MUGABE, the nation's first prime minister, has been the country's only ruler (as president since 1987) and has dominated the country's political system since independence.

His chaotic land redistribution campaign, which began in 2000, caused an exodus of white farmers, crippled the economy, and ushered in widespread shortages of basic commodities. Ignoring international condemnation, MUGABE rigged the 2002 presidential election to ensure his reelection. Opposition and labor strikes in 2003 were unsuccessful in pressuring MUGABE to retire early; security forces continued their brutal repression of regime opponents.

The ruling ZANU-PF party used fraud and intimidation to win a two-thirds majority in the March 2005 parliamentary election, allowing it to amend the constitution at will and recreate the Senate, which had been abolished in the late 1980s. In April 2005, Harare embarked on Operation Restore Order, ostensibly an urban rationalization program, which resulted in the destruction of the homes or businesses of 700,000 mostly poor supporters of the opposition, according to UN estimates. ZANU-PF announced in December 2006 that they would combine presidential and parliamentary elections in 2010 to ensure MUGABE remains in office. CIA Factbook

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Tony Snow, David Gregory on Blogs 02/20/07

02/20/07, 8PM ET. Trading Places with Tony Snow, White House Press Secretary Tony Snow changes places with the White House Press Corps. FULL STREAMING VIDEO, (File is Real Media format, running time is 1:04:21) During this National Press Club Newsmaker program, the former Fox news commentator poses questions to six journalists, including David Gregory, NBC News, Terry Hunt, AP, and others. Bob Schieffer, CBS News, introduces him.

White House correspondent for NBC News David Gregory:

david: i think that uh i think there's utility and i also think there is a down side and i alluded to this a moment ago. I think that politics and political coverage has become so polarized in this country, and in part because everybody,

McCurry worried about cable news with the cameras that was that seems like a hundred years ago…because it’s the internet and the blogs that have really used this White House press conferences to somehow support positions out in America, political views and they , and they ah they will clip and digitize portions of these briefings to fit into their particular argument. i think that people try to divine motives of the questioners and, and certainly draw conclusions about the uh answers or non answers ah based on their, their their own political views.

White House Press Secretary Tony Snow:

you know you raised, i'm glad you raised the blog issue. because i think there'll be a kind of generational divide, ah do either of you guys look at blogs much?

third party: i write a few but i don't look at em much

tony: and my guess is this side of the room is much more of blogs, you look at blogs right?

third party: i look at blogs, i'm all for blogs, i'm all for the first amendment, i think that people should be empowered.

tony: yeah well i think what's happened is, is we've, we've got this new democratic age of the media but you're right it. actually i'll occasionally punch it up and it's amazing. you’ve got this wonderful, imaginative hateful stuff that comes flying out. I think one of the the the maybe one of the most most important takeaways is — it’s the classical line, not only should you not believe your own press, you probably shouldn’t believe your opposition blogs either.” what do you think richard.

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