SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news

By Tichaona Sibanda
27 June 2005

The government has withdrawn firearm licences with immediate effect, raising suspicion that it is already working on countering an armed revolt.

Police spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena on Sunday urged people with automatic weapons at their homes to surrender them at the nearest police stations.

These weapons include all types of rifles and an assortment of pistols. Tension has been high in Zimbabwe since the start of operation Murambatsvina, which has seen over a million people being made homeless by a senseless exercise orchestrated by Zanu (PF).

But retired army Colonel Bernard Matongo said although government has a right to withdraw the licences, the timing of the exercise raises suspicion that there is a threat to national security in the country.

Police have recently been fighting running battles with residents who were resisting the forced evictions and demolition of their homes. War veteran and singer Dick Chingaira, otherwise known as Cde Chinx, recently fired shots into the air to try and scare off police details who had gone to demolish his mansion.

This did not deter the police who reportedly asked the singer to put down the weapon before giving him a thorough beating. A source said such incidents where residents can pull out guns against the police can lead to a full-scale revolt against the armed forces.