• • • • geographical north of Harare. Mashonaland East was the worst affected rural province in April, although current indications are that Mashonaland Central has been very badly affected in May. This is in sharp contrast to the violence exactly a year ago, when 85% of violations took place in Harare, with less than 5% in rural Mashonaland. 74 During April this year, 38% of violations were in Harare. This means that 84% of reported cases have taken place in Harare and in the surrounding provinces. The remaining six provinces account for the balance of 16% of violations, indicating a clear focus on violence in the north of the country compared to other areas. It must be noted that there have been reports of extreme violence in Gokwe Nembudziya, which is in the north Midlands: twenty serious assaults and fifteen homesteads destroyed have been confirmed to a small and limited civics outreach group in early May. Three people in need of urgent medical attention were rescued. Furthermore, one death by beating was also confirmed there in the second week of May, as were further beatings and the destruction of businesses. However, the information came in too late from Gokwe to be included in these statistics, although photographs of victims are included. Anecdotal reports from Manicaland and Masvingo would indicate that violence has occurred there, as have displacements, that have not been documented by the current authors. As information from all areas continues to be incomplete, the above proportions of violations may change with time as more victims file reports. In early May, the violence shifted gear particularly in Mashonaland Central, with several extremely brutal incidents resulting in multiple deaths by beatings and very severe injuries. D. The Strategy 1. Mashonaland: the strategy Mashonaland has traditionally always been the stronghold of ZANU PF. However in this election, there was a swing towards the MDC, which won twelve out of sixty House of Assembly seats in the three Mashonaland provinces, with considerable numbers of MDC votes in some of the constituencies they lost. 75 The violence in Mashonaland can thus be seen to both retributive – no betrayal is greater than the betrayal of your own previously most loyal constituency - and as an attempt to reverse the flow – to cut out the cancer before it spreads. It is therefore understandable why the worst violence has in fact occurred not in the constituencies won by MDC, but in the constituencies won by ZANU PF. The violence began in Mudzi and Mutoko – where ZANU PF won all seats – and has spread from there to Wedza, Maramba Pfungwe, Murehwa North, Marondera East and West – all constituencies won by ZANU PF. Similarly, in Mashonaland Central, the worst violence has been in Mazowe North, Shamva, Mt Darwin, Bindura and Guruve, and in Mashonaland West the violence has focused on Hurungwe and Magunje, with isolated incidents elsewhere. 76 In all these areas the violence has been highly structured and coordinated, with JOC in charge, and areas where pockets of MDC supporters voted against ZANU PF have been targeted. The polling station returns have made it easy to identify the “dissident areas”. As described in the next section, the MDC leadership in these constituencies has been decimated, and their key supporters largely displaced. Those that remain are living under siege. They are doing it in waves. It’s a well orchestrated thing. They will send in a team of 3 mostly military guys calling to round up villagers, address them, this time you are not going to make a mistake to vote where you voted, then they will show them firearms - that the war we warned 74 See SPT, Destructive Engagement: violence, mediation and politics, 10 July 2007. MDC won 2 out of 16 seats in Mash Central, 4 out of 23 in Mash East and 6 out of 21 in Mash West. 76 See maps, appendix one, for distribution of seats and names of constituencies nationwide. 75 36