Zimbabwe court bails Opp members accused of post-election violence

HARARE: A court in Zimbabwe on Tuesday freed on bail 27 opposition supporters arrested last week on accusations of fomenting violence in the aftermath of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s election victory over Nelson Chamisa.

Six people were killed last week in a post-election army clampdown on protests against the result that were reminiscent of the long rule of Robert Mugabe, who was toppled last November in a de factor military coup and replaced by Mnangagwa. Magistrate Francis Vhitorini granted $50 bail to each of the 27 Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) members, the first to be arrested over last week’s violent protests. “The court has indicated that it did not consider any of them to be a flight risk. The judgment was so brilliant that we are still trying to process it,” MDC lawyer Denford Halimani said.

Chamisa and his lawyers are expected to announce on Tuesday when they will challenge the results in court. He wrote on Twitter he had gone through evidence from polling stations, which showed he won “emphatically.” He said figures released by the election commission were “falsified (and) inflated in favour of the outgoing President. We are ready for the inauguration (and) formation of the next (government).”

The MDC has said security forces were abducting its members in night raids to intimidate the party and stop it challenging Mnangagwa’s win in the presidential vote. The European Union, United States, Canada and Switzerland in a joint statement said they were concerned with post-election violence and intimidation of opposition supporters.