Several dead in militia raids

from SWRAdioAfrica

38 year old Reuben Muteke who was abducted and severely tortured soon after the controversial one-man election run off, has died from his injuries. A relative of the deceased, Thomas Mapfumo (not the musician), said Muteke was abducted from his home four days after the run-off in Buhera’s Chief Nyashanu area and brutally tortured at Bedza torture base, by armed ZANU PF militias.

Mapfumo said his uncle was bludgeoned with axes and iron bars by the militia, led by a councillor called Patrick Chimbare. Many villagers were assaulted in the area during the run-off election. ....


The MDC say the official figure of activists who died as a result of political violence is over 115, but in reality could be more than 500. The party’s organizing secretary, Elias Mudzuri, said recently; ‘They simply abducted people, tortured them, killed them and disposed of the bodies either in shallow graves or just left them in the bush. The government knows better the number of people it has killed, but it’s unfortunate they might not disclose the figures.”
....
The Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition reported that the ZIMCET director and NANGO Midlands province representative Peter Muchengeti was also arrested during the raid on the ZIMCET offices. The Coalition said documentation relating to victims and perpetrators of political violence was confiscated at both offices.

Meanwhile, the situation in Gokwe is still tense. It’s reported state security agents were still manning Gokwe General hospital and denying medical treatment to injured MDC activists.