Human Rights Watch called upon the government of Zimbabwe to refrain from using excessive force against protesters in Harare.
On Tuesday January 20, President Mugabe announced that he had ordered army troops into Harare in order to quell the unrest which were initially sparked by rising food prices. Minister of Home Affairs Dumiso Dabenga was quoted on International Television News (ITN) as saying: "The deployed army personnel have not been trained to use batons like the police, and they will be carrying arms and live ammunition and will not hesitate to shoot any people who are likely trouble-causers." Other sources in Harare interviewed by Human Rights Watch stated that police and army had beaten people in the street as well as after taking them into custody.
Witnesses in Harare told Human Rights Watch that military helicopters were used to indiscriminately dispense teargas in black townships in an apparent effort to quell protests. Sources in Harare also claimed that the police had used live ammunition on protesters.
The current public unrest follows closely on the heels of similar major protests last month. On December 9, 1997, violence erupted in Harare during a labor demonstration attended by tens of thousands of protesters. According to media reports, military helicopters, tear gas, and police clubs were used to disperse the demonstrators. Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) Secretary-General Morgan Tsvangirai, one of the main organizers of the labor protest, was reportedly beaten in his office two days after the protest by unknown assailants.
Source: Human Rights Watch
