Shepherd Mushonga – MDC MP for Mazowe Central Constituency Shepherd Mushonga won his seat in Mazowe Central constituency in Mashonaland Central, a predominantly ZANU-PF area. His constituency has seen some of the highest levels of government-perpetrated violence since March 29. At the time he spoke with Human Rights Watch, Mushonga was wanted by the police on charges of causing political violence and was in hiding. He told Human Rights Watch: The attacks are particularly brutal in Mashonaland Central. After my victory all hell broke loose. The most gruesome murders and beatings took place in my constituency. At Nzvimbo Growth Point there is a very big and notorious base where abducted people are kept. Armed ZANUPF thugs are patrolling and terrorizing people. The police are part of the state machinery deployed by ZANU-PF to destroy the MDC so they cannot help us. I have to live in hiding and at the same time try to help people in my constituency who look up to me.30 Pineal Denga – MDC MP for Mbare Constituency, Harare Pineal Denga is wanted by the police on charges of political violence. At the time he talked with Human Rights Watch, he was in hiding. He spoke about the continued harassment that he and other MDC MPs have faced since March 29: Harassment of MDC MPs has not abated. ZANU-PF’s objective is to reduce the MDC’s majority in parliament by any means necessary. Firstly by election petitions challenging MDC victories in court, but also by creating conditions for by-elections in as many constituencies that the MDC has won as possible, either through arrests or even killings of elected MDC MPs. Only last Friday on July 4, police stormed an MDC national council meeting at Mandel Training Centre in Harare. They told those manning the reception that they were aware that an MDC meeting was going on and they wanted to arrest me and Mashonaland East Provincial Youth Chairperson Samuel Kamundarira. We were warned and had to scale the fence at the back of the complex to make 30 Human Rights Watch interview with Shepherd Mushonga, Harare, July 1, 2008. “They Beat Me Like a Dog” 16