For the next three hours we were beaten up. The soldiers used the butts of their guns to randomly assault us. The victims included a patrons, staff and a dancing group called Malaika. The soldiers wore hoods over their helmets to cover their faces. They accused us of supporting the opposition Movement for Democratic Change and celebrating their victory in the March 29 elections. We were accused of selling the country to the West. Ladies were beaten more than the men. Because they were skimpily dressed the dance group was accused of being in the process of making pornographic material for use to please the whites.87 In addition to the violence and torture perpetrated by the army, the police also embarked on a series of arrests of hundreds of MDC activists and supporters. In the immediate aftermath of the “stay-away” on April 15 police arrested more than 100 MDC activists. Human rights lawyer Tafadzwa Mugabe, who defended many of the accused, told Human Rights Watch: People are being beaten up and taken to the nearest police station on charges of disorderly conduct or public disorder. Some people have been released and fined while known MDC activists have been detained. A bus was burnt on April 15. This is the excuse the police are using for the arrests. Police descended on Warren Park with the assistance of ZANU youth and they picked up MDC officials. They even picked up the relatives if they couldn’t find who they were looking for. All these people have been put together and are now being charged with attempted murder. Our understanding is that the bus is supposed to have developed an electrical fault.88 87 “ZIMRIGHTS Press Statement on Post-Election Violence,” ZIMRIGHTS, April 29, 2008. 88 Human Rights Watch interview with Tafadzwa Mugabe, human rights lawyer, Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, Harare, April 20, 2008. 45 Human Rights Watch 2008