The findings of this current report are based on the reports given to the officers of the Human Rights Forum or its member organizations. The overall data available consisted of 783 cases, seen by the Human Rights Forum or its members during April 2008. 10 In many cases, the data was sketchy or incomplete, and only 477 cases were complete enough to consider. However, this report will deal in detail only with the reports given directly to the Public Interest Unit [285 cases]. This report will however examine the general spread of the violence from the larger data set of 478 cases. The Spread of the Violence As was indicated in the May report of the Human Rights Forum, which only dealt with cases that had been reported up to 24 April, a substantial number of the cases [31%] came from the three Mashonaland Provinces and Harare, and this was similarly reported by the Solidarity Peace Trust. 11 Overall, 56% of the cases came from Harare and the three Mashonaland Provinces. However, from all the anecdotal reports in the press and media, the violence has spread over the past two months to many other areas in Zimbabwe. As can be seen from Figure 1 below, the trend towards most violence being seen in the areas mentioned above, which began in March, and intensified during April, with other areas now being affected. No comment can be made about the overall prevalence of violations, since this data is derived only from persons making reports, and many people do not make reports for various reasons. Hence, the national picture can only be inferred and not quantified. In March, violence was only reported from Harare, Manicaland, Mashonaland East, and Mashonaland West, but, by April, has spread to include Bulawayo, Mashonaland Central, and Masvingo. Nonetheless, the data indicates violence in seven of Zimbabwe’s ten Provinces. Furthermore, there was an increase in the number of separate places mentioned in the incidents reported over the months, and especially during April, when 421 different places were named. So, during April, when reports of violence were received in all of the seven Provinces indicated above, this was accompanied by a greater number of places mentioned as well. This strongly supports the allegation that the violence was widespread: it involved many separate places and not merely a large number of incidents at a small number of sites. 10 11 See Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum (2008), Political Violence Report. April 2008. HARARE: ZIMBABWE HUMAN RIGHTS NGO FORUM. See Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum (2008), If you can’t join them, beat them! Post-election violence in Zimbabwe. An alert of the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum & the Research and Advocacy Unit. 5 May 2008. HARARE: ZIMBABWE HUMAN RIGHTS NGO FORUM, & Solidarity Peace Trust (2008), Punishing Dissent, Silencing Citizens: the Zimbabwe Elections 2008. 21 May 2008. JOHANNESBURG: SOLIDARITY PEACE TRUST.