Fears rise with violence in Zimbabwe
In a possible sign of a preelection government crackdown, opposition activists are beaten and arrested, and mobs try to drive white farmers off their land.
HARARE, ZIMBABWE — Militant war veterans allied with Zimbabwe's ruler threatened to evict white farmers Sunday, and about a dozen opposition activists were beaten and arrested by police over the weekend. The attacks raised fears that President Robert Mugabe's government was launching a violent campaign to assure his victory in an expected presidential runoff election.
Eighteen farmers were threatened and several were forced to flee their properties as they were besieged by chanting, drum-beating mobs. Representatives of the farmers said there was no police response even as the situation worsened late Sunday.
"I'm feeling a bit speechless and a bit gutted at the moment, to be honest," said one of the farmers, who asked that his name not be used for fear of inflaming a volatile situation. He, his wife and three children moved out for safety, after hearing 50 people were approaching the farm to evict him.
"I'm still afraid. You don't know what the future holds, do you?" he said.
Hendrik Olivier, director of the Commercial Farmers' Union, said, "This thing can get very quickly out of control if it's not dealt with. We can only go to the police, and it's regrettable that we're not getting assistance from the police."
Mugabe has encouraged the seizure of land from white farmers in the past as part of his land reform program, with the property being turned over to his supporters.
Earlier, the government demanded a full recount of results in last month's parliamentary elections, according to the state-owned Sunday Mail. The balloting saw Mugabe's party lose its majority for the first time in 28 years.
The regime also called for the release of presidential results to be deferred, citing "revelations of errors and miscalculations in the compilation of the poll result," the newspaper said.
The paper said that an examination of "anomalies" indicated that Mugabe's vote had been understated, and it reported that some Zimbabwe Election Commission officials had been arrested.
The pressure comes after warnings from Mugabe's hard-line security minister, Didymus Mutasa, that the commission would be purged.
The election commission has not released the results of the three-way presidential race, which opposition candidate Morgan Tsvangirai maintains he has won outright. Despite his claim, it is widely expected that a second-round election between him and Mugabe will be declared.
