BP Riot police intimidate voters in Bikita

By Brilliant Pongo
29 March, 2008

The opposition polling agents in Bikita had to flee from Nyika growth point on Friday night, as riot police in the area unleash a violent campaign in efforts to intimidate voters.

The police blocked roads around the growth point on the eve of election day. Sources that spoke to newsreel confirmed that roads had been blocked and this resulted in the opposition polling agents who had fled from the police led attacks in the area failing to be at their posts when voting started this morning. Members of the public have been wantonly attacked and several people have been subjected to random beatings.

Meanwhile the 10 youths who were arrested in Bikita on Thursday are still, in police custody and the police have denied their friends and families access to them and have refused to get food to them.

Willington Zindove, a member of the Youth forum said “the police are claiming that they are short staffed at the police stations and are refusing to let us bring food to our members, so they have not had any food since they were taken in.”

However, people in Bikita are clear in their resolve to have a say in this vote and have braved the attempts by the police to scare them, by getting out in large numbers to cast their vote.