there were nonetheless many allegations that the elections were rigged.3 Additionally, after these elections there were several reports of reprisals against opposition MDC supporters. In May 2005, soon after these elections, the police conducted Operation Murambatsvina. This operation wreaked havoc with the lives of the urban poor, who are predominantly supporters of the opposition, leaving at least 700 000 urban dwellers around the country without shelter or means of support. The most plausible explanation for this campaign of massive destruction was that it was a pre-emptive strike against disgruntled urban people by a government that feared a mass uprising.4 This campaign against the urban poor has continued sporadically since May 2005. As economic conditions have worsened, so attempts to mount demonstrations to protest about the situation have increased. However, many of these attempted demonstrations have been brutally broken up by the police. In 2006, as noted by Human Rights Watch,5 the involvement of state agents in the alleged perpetration of gross human rights violations has greatly increased, with the torture of members of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions [ZCTU] being perhaps the most egregious recent example. There has been a marked increase in the attention given to Zimbabwe by international human rights groups, as evidenced by the plethora of reports that have been issued since 2003,6 and Zimbabwe has also received a number of adverse judgments from the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Regrettably, the African Union has yet to make any comment upon these determinations by its own human rights body. 3 4 5 6 See The 2005 Parliamentary Election. Flawed, Unfree and Unfair! April 2005, a report by the National Consitutional Assembly; Reeler, A.P., & Chitsike, K.C Trick or Treat? The effects of the pre-election climate on the poll in the 2005 Zimbabwe Parliamentary Elections. (IDASA. June 2005. Pretoria) See Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum, Political Repression disguised as Civic Mindedness. Operation Murambatsvina one year later. ( Harare, November 2006). See Human Rights Watch “You Will Be Thoroughly Beaten”. The Brutal Suppression of Dissent in Zimbabwe, November 2006. (Volume 18, No. 10(A), New York). See Redress Trust Zimbabwe. Tortuous Patterns Destined to Repeat themselves in upcoming election campaign. Preliminary Study of Trends and Associations in the Pattern of Torture and Organised Violence in Zimbabwe, July 2001 - December 2003, (2004 London). This report details the enormous increase in reports on Zimbabwe over the past 5 years. Who guards the guards? Violations by the Zimbabwe Republic Police, 2000 to 2006