who had been arrested and tortured in the past few months by police and intelligence officers.47 Promise Mkwanazi told Human Rights Watch that he has been arrested and beaten by police on three separate occasions since he was elected president of the Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU) in May 2006.48 On each occasion the police detained and beat him and then released him without charge. He spoke to Human Rights Watch of a particularly brutal incident on May 29, 2006: In May students around the country were protesting at the increase in tuition fees. Police were everywhere looking for student leaders. I was one of the people they were looking for so I went into hiding. On May 9 the President of University of Zimbabwe students Tinei Mukwewa was arrested by law and order police in Harare Central. He was detained first. I was told they were also looking for me. My colleague Tinei was stripped naked and beaten by the police who kept asking him for my whereabouts. He was then moved to Bindura and also beaten before being released without charge. He was detained for four days. He was so badly beaten that he was hospitalized for a number of days at Parirenyatwa hospital. On May 29 I finally surrendered myself to police at Bindura police station. I was arrested and detained there for five days. During interrogation they beat me with baton sticks, clenched fists and kept kicking me. I was being beaten every night. Every night they would threaten me and say, “We will kill you tonight.” Each night they would come and they would strip me naked and then handcuff me with my hands between my legs so that I would not be able to move while they beat me. Sometimes they would be three people beating me, then two or at times four. I was being accused of trying to facilitate regime change and working for the opposition. Those who beat me up were 47 Human Rights Watch interviews with student activists, Harare, September 27–29, 2006. 48 Human Rights Watch interview with Promise Mkwanazi, September 26, 2006. 17 Human rights watch November 2006