Zimbabwe’s main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has vowed to win next month’s election run-off despite escalated violence targeting its partisans. This comes after one of its treasury secretaries and others were found dead after they were reportedly abducted at gunpoint. The opposition party described the deaths as a sad day in the life of the party and vowed to end the 28-year rule of incumbent President Robert Mugabe in the presidential run-off despite the ongoing violence. The party is calling on the international community to bring in peacekeepers to end the violence ahead of the run-off to ensure the government does not maintain its grip on power. From the capital, Harare MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa tells reporter Peter Clottey that the MDC is sure of total victory in the run-off.
“The security situation in the country is very disturbing in the sense that we are beginning to see a new phenomenon a new trend of attacks and assaults. People are being kidnapped at night. People are being abducted, and then they are found a couple of days later dead or in a very bad state by way of losing some organs of their bodies. So, the situation is really dire, especially after we found three of our activists’ dead. We also just today we received information that our provincial treasurer for Mashonaland East was abducted at gunpoint and has been found dead. We have a lot of other members who have been abducted across the whole country and we cannot account for their whereabouts,” Chamisa pointed out.
He concurs that the ruling ZANU-PF party intends destroying the opposition party ahead of the election run-off.
“This is carnage of the worst kind. That is what the president (Morgan Tsvangirai) was suggesting that the situation is so dire in terms of consequences and in terms of cost on human lives. We as politicians are not so special as to as why they want to eliminate us. We don’t deserve that. And politics should not be about the destruction of life. It has to be about preservation and construction of life. That is what the civilized life is about. And that is why we are calling for peacekeepers from the region, from the AU (African Union) and the international community to come in and make sure this run-off is a peaceful run-off,” he said.
Chamisa insisted the MDC is ready to end President Mugabe’s 28-year rule in the run-off.
“We are going to win this election run-off. Any other outcome that does not concern the MDC victory does not reflect the wish of the people. The people have spoken. We have won the election, and we are going to win the election again to let the government know that our victory was not a fluke at all. In fact it was the consummation of the sentiments in the country,” Chamisa noted.
On Sunday at a campaign rally in Harare, President Mugabe reportedly accused U.S. ambassador James McGee of political interference and threatened to expel him from his country. Opposition spokesman Chamisa says the threat is ridiculous and smacks the face of modern diplomacy.
“Mugabe is very desperate, and he has also lost control of his tracts, and I also suppose his mind. There is no coordination in his government, and what he says is something that is out of sync with modern diplomatic process and how it is handled. Clearly Mugabe is not speaking on behalf of Zimbabwe; he is speaking as a desperate tyrant. That is the last kick of a dying horse,” he said.
