Search
  1. Home
  2. Southern Africa
  3. Zimbabwe

Opposition warns of escalating violence ahead of polls

    JOHANNESBURG

    Zimbabwe’s opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), warned on Thursday that “government-sponsored” violence would escalate in coming weeks ahead of next month’s parliamentary elections.

    “Violence is going to increase,” MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai told a press conference in Harare. “Because of the fraudulent nature of the process anyone knows that, before we even go to the elections, it is not going to be free and fair,” Tsvangirai said.

    On the MDC’s legal challenge the election, Tsvangirai said: “The intention of our legal action is not to delay or to adjust a date for elections. If anything at all, we want this election to take place.” The party was due to submit a request to the high court Thursday to postpone the sitting of the nomination court, he noted.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

    Share this article

    Our ability to deliver compelling, field-based reporting on humanitarian crises rests on a few key principles: deep expertise, an unwavering commitment to amplifying affected voices, and a belief in the power of independent journalism to drive real change.

    We need your help to sustain and expand our work. Your donation will support our unique approach to journalism, helping fund everything from field-based investigations to the innovative storytelling that ensures marginalised voices are heard.

    Please consider joining our membership programme. Together, we can continue to make a meaningful impact on how the world responds to crises.

    Become a member of The New Humanitarian

    Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

    Join