Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum: Report on political violence in Bulawayo, Harare, Manicaland, Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South and Midlands and said he was a doctor. He actually came and examined my stomach. I recognised him. My brother was there. Afterwards when the doctor came back the CIO went away. My brother asked the doctor about him and he confirmed he’s not a doctor, saying he thought he must have been a friend of ours. He was wearing a blue T-shirt. Case 2: Mufakose Our first incident of harassment occurred sometime in February when, after we had held a successful peaceful rally, we accompanied the elderly and the women as a security strategy to their homes. The unexpected came like a bombshell. Little did we know that although we were many in terms of numbers, some thugs employed by Sabina Thembani, [a Zanu (PF) parliamentary candidate] were watching and monitoring our movements. Just a few hundred metres away from the site of our rally we were attacked by about fifteen people armed with iron bars, axes, hoes and stones. We had not anticipated such violence and as a matter of fact we did not have anything to defend ourselves and everyone that could ran away. Unfortunately five of our members were assaulted, one of them an elderly man of about 76 years old. He was severely assaulted and sustained deep cuts on the back of his head. The whole incident occurred while Mrs Denga, who also failed to run away, watched helplessly. They left the old man, perhaps convinced that he was dead and in a bath of gushing blood from the deep cuts sustained during the assault. Mrs Denga helped the old man to Marimba Police Station, who were extremely uncooperative. They did not even bother to take him to hospital despite his profuse bleeding. The old man was later taken to hospital by a good Samaritan about three hours after the incident. Since that time, Sabina Thembani has employed more thugs. The whole business is a lucrative one to the thugs who are paid a weekly salary of $700, provided with food and beer, paid $500 for any T-shirt taken forcibly from an MDC supporter and a ridiculous $50, 000 for killing an MDC supporter. All prizes are said to be paid instantly on production of proof of such assaults having been made. Incidents of people being systematically assaulted have become the order of the day. Despite the assaults we continued to hold our meetings and Sabina Thembani has launched another phase of her operation. She is now targeting the MDC leadership, which she claims she will exterminate. Two MDC officials were abducted from their homes and taken to Sabina Thembani’s Zanu (PF) offices in Mufakose and severely assaulted. They both fainted during the assaults, were doused with water and as soon as they recovered they were beaten again until Sabina herself claimed she was tired of beating and called off the assault. They were then dragged out of the office premises. A number of other persons were assaulted. (Names supplied). Some of the assaults are not reported. A guard on duty at a local beerhall was fatally assaulted. After massive retaliatory measures were taken by Mufakose youth, Zanu (PF) has now employed the state machinery. A ward youth chairperson whom they failed to assault, was visited by these two CIO operatives at his workplace and at home and firmly told that he was not a hero and would soon face the consequences should he continue with his chairmanship. He was forced to surrender MDC party card and T-shirts and he is being monitored on a daily basis. Case 3: Mufakose My husband is an official in the MDC. Right now my husband is under the blankets at home. I’m afraid they might take my daughter when she boards the bus to school. She is 13 years old. They have already taken a boy away to ask him where his father was. They released him, but imagine if it was a girl. It was the MDC chairman’s son who was taken. They say they have a list and are going door to door following that. That day, after less than 30 minutes, Sabina Thembani’s car came and went away. About 8:00 pm, a government car came and parked by my gate. I saw that car. It waited 10 minutes and it went away. I went to see. Maybe they wanted to see if he was there. Those people are always moving with Sabina, going door to door. They went to the MDC chairman’s house and destroyed that and assaulted his wife. There’s another guy in Aspindale who appeared on the BBC. After that they told him to leave. His wife, family, and boss at work told him to move away to save his life. Most people come to our place, youth, and women. Sabina Thembani is using a gang of thieves and thugs in Mufakose: Amon, Chimombe, Farai, Cobra, David Bachelors, Richard Kaphumbata, Manyebo, Chaplin, Bany Marokora. Case 4: Mufakose On the 16 June, at 1.00 am, four men came and took me from my house. They took me to my gate, where a red Datsun Bluebird arrived to pick me up. I recognised one of the men, who used to be an MDC member, but has since changed sides. 29