the “outside” of camps and barracks were under the most pressure through repeated exposure to propaganda songs; intimidation of voters who are told that there are cameras in voting booths to see who they voted for; voting as villages, with the Sabhuku (village Head) leading the queue; and the threats that it can be established during vote counting who they voted for. They threaten people saying there will be a camera in the booth. Other discussants highlighted the door-to-door campaign methods as threatening, and claimed that citizens are threatened during these door-to-door campaigns that “we know you”. This places them under pressure on voting day. This is coupled by the knowledge that the area is a stronghold for party “X” or party “Y”. Thus, freedom to choose who to vote for with being pressured is dependent on the place. If the area is a ZANU-PF stronghold, it is difficult for people freely choose to vote for MDC, and vice versa. If you are beaten up, it is you who is injured and your family pays the medical bills not the party; It will backfire for me and my family: injury, death and my children will suffer; At the end of the day if anything bad happens you are alone in it. You suffer alone The underlying reason for people’s risk taking or risk aversion is the personalisation of the consequences of going against the tide. While support for any party, including expression of one’s views is necessary, and can lead to collective benefits, but there are risks. It is the reality that you will suffer alone with no one to help, which makes citizens more careful about what they say in public, less keen to join protests, participate in demonstrations, and even less keen to join any political party of their choice and to vote for any candidate they desire without feeling pressured. 3.9 The risk takers While the majority of discussants identified themselves as risk averse, there were a few who indicated they were risk takers. One discussant highlighted how she was inspired by a WOZA demonstration. Through the success of the WOZA demonstration, she began to appreciate the need for her to be engaged in citizen action. When asked to explain how and why they were risk takers, other discussants explained: Because my future lies within my hands and a lot can change; I’m already at risk; I was raised in a family of risk takers; Being in the (this) FGD shows I take risks. I took a half day off (from work by) lying to my bosses that I needed to go to the doctor; I think of the benefits and not the fear; I only fight for a cause when I see wrong things happening, at least my message would have been passed through; I am a risk taker because by being here as a civil servant and the nature of my job and because of what I have been saying here; I always think of the benefit after the fear. If there is a benefit I will. 11