Police assault Masvingo students as Hlatshwayo is further remanded

By Henry Makiwa
16 October 2007

Two students are in a critical condition after police in Masvingo assaulted students at the city’s Polytechnic College, as they met Monday evening to discuss the case of detained student leader Edison Hlatshwayo.

The students, whose names are yet to be released, reportedly suffered severe head injuries when armed riot police stormed into their meeting assaulting them indiscriminately. Eleven students were arrested on charges of “criminal nuisance”.

The Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU) legal secretary, Milward Makwenjere, bemoaned the “deliberate targeting” of students by state security agents.

He said: “All signs show a purposeful strategy to frustrate students and its evident with these arrests and beatings of our members. We are also frustrated by the continued detention of Edison and we have lost faith in the lawyer (one Mr. Hwacha) because he did not show up to fight our case today when our friend has been suffering in prison for three weeks. We have now sought alternative legal advice in Mr. Tongai Matutu.”

The trial of Edison Hlatswayo, who has now spent 20 days in detention, was postponed to Wednesday after the magistrate, the prosecutor and Hwacha agreed to move it.

He was tortured whilst in custody and his health is deteriorating due to the squalid conditions in the police cells.