Senate candidates accuse MDC leader of fuelling violence

By Tererai Karimakwenda & Violet Gonda
25 October 2005

Elections in Zimbabwe seem to always bring an escalation of violence, and it is usually ZANU-PF supporters and state agents attacking opposition candidates. But the senate elections due next month have brought allegations of a different type of violence. MDC officials who have decided to contest the election say they have received threatening telephone calls and we have reports that some of them went into hiding on Monday after receiving the threats. All sides of the senate argument believe however that the violence issue is not being addressed by the top leadership.

Journalist Peta Thornycroft who wrote an article for the Daily Telegraph newspaper said failure by the executive to deal with several incidents over the last few months is at the core of the slow disintegration of the opposition. She said the attempted murder of Guhu and assaults against other officials in May are issues that are still unresolved. Thornycroft said those in favour of participating in the senate race and those against it are both distressed by the violence. But she believes they are all concerned about the lack of action to resolve it.

MDC youth have been blamed for some of the violence and even national youth chairman, Kuwadzana MP Nelson Chamisa, has been accused of involvement. Some reports say he has been phoning candidates and making threats should they insist on running. But describing himself as a complete and competent apostle of non-violence Chamisa denied these allegations. He told us Tuesday that he believes in using persuasion to sway the opinions of his opponents and that he never made any threats. Asked whether those running for senate seats would be safe in Harare and other urban areas, Chamisa said he cannot guarantee their safety because he is not a God and because many people are angry.

Chamisa named Shakespeare Maya, who is running for the Chitungwiza seat, and Chamunorwa and Mudzingwa who are after seats in Harare, as candidates that people are upset with. He said the anger is because they were not chosen by any electorate to represent those areas and they breached the constitution. “If I were to guarantee their safety,” he said “I would be exaggerating my generosity”.

Thornycroft says there is a strong belief that the violence is being coordinated in Harare. There are also serious allegations that someone is sponsoring it financially because it is well organised. She told us that violence threatens to bring an end to the MDC that was formed in September 1999.