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'We are in a state of war'
17/03/2007 11:10 - (SA)
Harare - President Robert Mugabe's opponents vowed to unite to drive him from office, saying his government already is at "war" with dissidents.
Main opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, who police allegedly beat savagely, went home from hospital on Friday but was suffering dizzy spells, aides said.
"If there is going to be any war, this is the time to declare war," said Arthur Mutambara, head of another Movement for Democratic Change faction.
"We are already in a state of war" anyway coming from one direction, said Mutambara, who was arrested on Sunday along with Tsvangirai and other party leaders and activists while headed to a prayer meeting called by the Save Zimbabwe Campaign, an alliance of opposition, church, student and civic groups.
Mutambara said civil disobedience and protests would continue, despite assaults and violence against activists by police and soldiers.
Mugabe remains defiant
Addressing his party's youth wing on Friday, Mugabe threatened political opponents and Western diplomats, state radio reported.
Mugabe told Western diplomats that if they continued attending opposition meetings, they would be kicked out of the country. He accused them of funding his political opponents.
The octogenarian leader also warned opposition militants against inciting unrest threatening "If they do it again, we will bash them again."
Mugabe said that because of attacks on policemen, all officers, including those responsible for traffic, would now be fully armed, the radio said.
Mugabe's critics accuse him of repression and corruption, and blame him for acute food shortages and the world's highest inflation. Sunday's violence heightened growing tensions in urban strongholds of the opposition, and renewed questions about how long the 83-year-old can maintain his tight grip on power.
"Our core business is to drive Mugabe out of town. There is no going back in working together against Robert Mugabe and his surrogates," Mutambara told reporters and supporters in Harare.
"We are not going to allow a dictator who is sitting on us to determine the means of confrontation against him. We are not asking his approval to be free. I hope Robert Mugabe, a sick and old man, you are listening. We mean business," Mutambara said.
He acknowledged that opposition factions had differences but said recent events had united them.
"We are living under a criminal and brutal dictatorship. Mugabe can go to hell and go hang," Mutambara said. "We are talking about total rebellion and war."
Earlier this week, the South African Foreign Ministry urged the Zimbabwean government to ensure that laws are respected and to work with the opposition toward "a lasting solution to the current challenges faced by the people of Zimbabwe."
South African President Thabo Mbeki has not commented on the recent violence. Mbeki consistently has said South Africa will not meddle in its neighbor's affairs, and that quiet diplomacy is preferable to public condemnation.
- SAPA
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Zimbabwe Special Report
