56 Zim activists arrested
2008-05-11 14:20
Harare - The authorities in Zimbabwe have arrested 56 opposition activists in a farming town northeast of the capital Harare on charges of public violence, police said on Sunday.
"Fifty-eight MDC (Movement for Democratic Change) activists have been arrested in relation to the violence that broke out in Shamva," police spokesperson Nixon Kasosa told state television.
The report said seven injured people had been taken to hospital, adding that four houses and a tractor belonging to activists for the ruling Zanu-PF party had been burnt.
An opposition lawyer had earlier revealed the arrests took place on Thursday and the activists were still in police custody.
Violence has flared in Zimbabwe since parliamentary and presidential elections on March 29.
Zimbabwean doctors, trade unions and teachers have described beatings and intimidation of MDC supporters by government-backed militias and the authorities have rounded up a number of high-profile opponents.
The government has in turn accused MDC activists of fomenting violence and carrying out arson attacks.
- AFP