IV. Background Organized Political Violence In response to challenges from other political forces, the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union–Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) and its political allies have commonly used violence as a tool since the country gained independence in 1980. The main perpetrators have been ZANU-PF supporters, so called “war veterans,”1 youth militia2 and state security forces, including the police and the army. For example, state security forces were involved in systematic and widespread atrocities in Matabeleland and Midlands provinces in the 1980s, aimed at destroying support for the Zimbabwe African People’s Union (ZAPU) led by Joshua Nkomo, the most significant political alternative to ZANU in the war of liberation and immediately post-independence. In the 1997 report "Breaking the Silence, Building True Peace—A Report on the Disturbances in Matabeleland and the Midlands, 1980 to 1988,"3 the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace and the Legal Resources Foundation estimated that there had been more than 3,000 extrajudicial executions, hundreds of "disappearances," more than 7,000 beatings or cases of torture and more than 10,000 arbitrary detentions in Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, and Midlands provinces in that period.4 The report presented evidence indicating that most killings and "disappearances" were committed by government forces, most notably the army's Fifth Brigade. Since 1999, when the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) emerged as a strong political contender to ZANU-PF, violence around elections has intensified. The 1 Many of the “war veterans” implicated in recent abuses are believed to be individuals hired by the government to commit abuses under the guise of “war veterans.” Many are too young to be genuine war veterans or have fought during Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle in the 1970s. However, Human Rights Watch’s evidence indicates that these fake “war veterans” are being led by genuine war veterans who fought during the struggle for independence. 2 The youth militia, also known in Zimbabwe as “green bombers” because they often wear olive green military fatigues, are part of a government-run National Youth Service Program. According to the government, the program is aimed at training youths to be good citizens and to take part in community services initiatives. See Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace and the Legal Resources Foundation, Breaking the Silence, Building True Peace: A Report on the Disturbances in Matabeleland and the Midlands, 1980 to 1988 (Harare: Catholic Commission for Justice 3 and Peace and the Legal Resources Foundation, 1997). 4 Ibid. “Bullets for Each of You” 10