meeting. On January 23, 2005, the MP held a private strategic planning workshop with ward members from her constituency at her restaurant in Bulawayo. As the meeting progressed, plain-clothes policemen approached Khupe and enquired whether she had police permission to hold the meeting. She informed the policemen that she did not require permission to hold a private meeting. Half-way through the meeting, up to fifty riot police entered the restaurant and arrested sixty-two MDC members including Khupe. Khupe was detained overnight at Bulawayo Central police station, presented in court the following day and then released on bail.97 On March 3, 2005, in an interview from Harare with the London-based SW Radio Africa, independent candidate for Harare Central constituency, Margaret Dongo complained that police had denied her permission to hold four meetings because meetings at shopping centers were prohibited. However, she pointed out that ZANU PF candidates were able to hold rallies at shopping centers. Dongo observed, “They (the police) are only doing it to the opposition. I don’t know why. It is not happening to ZANU.”98 A ZANU PF member in Murehwa confirmed the contrast between the holding of ZANU PF rallies and those of MDC rallies: “ZANU is free to hold meetings when they choose, but that’s not the case for the MDC. They have to ask for permission from the police but we don’t. We just hold our meetings. I don’t know why it is different.”99 POSA has also been used to intimidate and harass civil society activists perceived to be critical of the government. For example, on February 8, 2005, one NGO youth activist told Human Rights Watch: Two weeks ago in Bulawayo after a workshop, I was in my hotel room when management informed me that there were guys from CID (Criminal Investigation Department) and CIO coming and I had to throw away all the materials on me. They came and asked me “Who are you? Why have you come to Bulawayo from Harare?” When I explained that I work for the churches they asked to search my bags and found a couple of books. They then took me to the police station outside Bulawayo where they questioned me further and told me that their primaries had been poorly attended by the youth and “we strongly 97 Human Rights Watch interview, Thokozani Khupe, MDC MP for Makokoba, Harare, February 9, 2005 98 SW Radio Africa interview with Margaret Dongo, March 2, 2005 99 Human Rights Watch interview, Murehwa, February 14, 2005 22