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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs |
ZIMBABWE: "Armed struggle" warning from new opposition group
JOHANNESBURG, 13 November 2003 (IRIN) - The Zimbabwe government on Thursday dismissed a threat made by a previously unknown opposition organisation that it would use military action to topple President Robert Mugabe.
A group calling itself Zimbabe Freedom Movement (ZFM) released a statement in London saying that "since we have not achieved democracy by peaceful means, despite the best efforts of the only viable opposition party in Zimbabwe, it is necessary to place the illegitimate president and government of Zimbabwe on notice that they are about to be removed by the judicious use of appropriate force".
Government spokesman Steyn Berejena told IRIN there was "no room for talk of an armed struggle" in Zimbabwe.
Adding that the government needed to read the statement properly before giving a further response, Berejena said: "This is a democratically elected government. Zimbabwe is a democracy, and the process when you want to get into power is not through armed struggle."
The ZFM describes itself on its website (www.zfm.cc) as a "non-political movement consisting primarily of serving members in the Zimbabwe security/defence forces, but also with a strong following from the civilian sector".
"Members of the ZFM cover the complete range, from commissioned officers to private/constable, across the whole range of brigades, regiments, units or sections and, similarly, among the irregulars include people from different occupations, backgrounds, income levels and levels of education. All of the above are united for one sole purpose," the ZFM said.
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) quoted Peter Tatchell, who released the ZFM statement, as saying that "all opportunities and possibilities for peaceful democratic change have been closed down".
A gay rights activist who twice attempted to place Mugabe under citizen's arrest, Tachell said he was not a member of the ZFM but merely releasing the statement and a video recording on their behalf, the BBC reported.
The ZFM website contains images of the Zimbabwean flag draped over various arms and ammunition, while the BBC website showed a still image, presumably from the video footage released by Tachell, showing two balaclava-wearing men in camouflage uniforms seated before the country's flag. The BBC said the video and images shown by Tatchell could have been recorded anywhere, and no evidence was given that this movement really existed.
Berejena told IRIN that he was not sure "if they are Zimbabweans or some people [linked] to the British government".
The ZFM statement said Mugabe "and his government are illegitimately ruling our Zimbabwe". They "have not addressed the land issue correctly and, after many years of their incompetence and corruption, they have destroyed the agricultural backbone of our nation and, as a natural result of this destruction, are in the process of destroying our whole economic future".
The organisation demanded that "Robert Mugabe step down immediately as president, and the present government be dissolved in its entirety". They dubbed their struggle the fourth "Chimurenga" (liberation war) to free Zimbabwe's people.
Berejena rejected this, saying "we have a constitution, and for the past 23 years we have engaged in elections and that's the process we stick to."
"There's no room for talk of an armed struggle as far as our constitution is concerned. Zimbabwe is a democracy and any serious Zimbabwean knows there's a democratic process if you want to get into power," he added.
Theme(s): (IRIN) Conflict, (IRIN) Governance
[ENDS]
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