Kuwadzana under siege following attack on Chamisa

By Tichaona Sibanda
19 March 2007

Harare’s high density suburb of Kuwadzana has been placed under heavy security ahead of a government anticipated showdown between MDC supporters and the police over the brutal attack on opposition legislator Nelson Chamisa.

Morgan Femai, the MDC chairman for Harare province said Kuwadzana has been besieged since Sunday by police who are preventing people from even walking in pairs. When reports started filtering through that Chamisa had been brutally assaulted by security agents at Harare International Airport, police quickly mobilised troops to the constituency and sealed it off.

The firebrand Kuwadzana legislator who is also the MDC national spokesman was brutally attacked on Sunday at Harare airport en route to Brussels to attend the Bureau meeting of the African, Caribbean and Pacific/European Union Joint Parliamentary Assembly.

‘Police were expecting the MDC to retaliate but we are not a violent party. The regime is taking a tough line for nothing because vehicles are only allowed through after a thorough screening,’ Femai said.

The roads, alleyways and shops are teeming with security personnel, searching for MDC activists who may cause trouble. Security forces are reportedly taking up temporary positions along roads leading into Kuwadzana.

‘They have been pouring in since Sunday. We suspect they will send in their militias posing as MDC youths to start trouble. This is how they have been operating since last week. They send their green bombers to come and wreak havoc and blame it on the MDC,’ said Femai who said he was in hiding from security agents.