Tsvangirai's acquittal "defuses tension"

The acquittal on Friday of Zimbabwe's opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, has helped to "defuse tension" but should not be read as a sign that the country's judiciary has become "independent", analysts told IRIN. Tsvangirai, head of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), had been accused of plotting to assassinate President Robert Mugabe in December 2001. The subsequent trial, which lasted 12 months, ended in February this year. A guilty verdict would have resulted in a death sentence. Speaking to IRIN, Tsvangirai said, "I am very happy with the judgment. I am obviously relieved, but I feel vindicated because I have always maintained that I was innocent. But this does not mean we should relax; we need to move ahead and fight for democracy and ensure that Zimbabweans enjoy political freedoms that are enjoyed by other nations." The National Director of the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association, Bidi Munyaradzi, said the country had been "anxiously" awaiting the outcome of the treason trial, and hailed the judgment as a positive development in maintaining peace and harmony in the run-up to the 2005 general elections. A "negative" outcome would have sparked violence, he said. Political analyst John Makumbe said the acquittal should be treated with "caution", as it was not a sign that normalcy had returned to Zimbabwe. "It is actually a sign that the Zimbabwe government is under pressure, after having been criticised by the African Union for bad governance practices, and is now attempting to project itself as a clean administration with an independent judiciary," he alleged. Samora Machel Avenue, the busiest street in the capital, Harare, ground to a halt on Friday morning as thousands of people made their way to the court. Local and international journalists, the MDC leadership and members of the public started queuing outside the high court as early as 7.00 a.m., where they were joined by as many as 5,000 MDC supporters. In a one and a half hour judgment, Judge President Paddington Garwe said the state's chief witness, Ari Ben Menashe, a Canada-based political consultant, was not a credible witness, as he was on the payroll of the Zimbabwean government. Garwe also ruled that the audio- and videotapes recorded when Tsvangirai met Menashe, which were the basis of the government's case, were not audible.