other hand, councillors and headmen are taking advantage of the hunger affecting people by
first demanding that they pay council rates and taxes to access any government initiated aid.
The demand has caught communities flat footed putting them between a rock and hard
surface. They are in dire need of food assistance yet they cannot raise the required council
taxes at such a time as this when money is hard to come by.
Highlights:
In a case of political intolerance, on 14 February 2016, at a bottle store in Ward 32
Headlands, a war veteran and Zanu-PF member allegedly assaulted an MDC-T
member while they were drinking beer. The perpetrator was infuriated when the
victim was singing and listening to MDC-T music from his phone. Without any
warning, the perpetrator reportedly hit the victim on the right leg using a walking
stick. The leg bled and got swollen. The perpetrator charged that the constituency was
a no go area for opposition party politics. The matter was reported to the police who
are yet to act on the case. The victim has however received treatment from a local
clinic and is recuperating at home.
Mashonaland Central
The province saw the First Lady Grace Mugabe addressing a rally in Mazowe and
distributing food and clothing. Although at this particular event there were no marked reports
of political bias in the distribution, partisan distribution of food and agricultural inputs still
continues in some areas with reports that some of the food and aid is being distributed at
night so at to ensure that MDC-T supporters do not benefit (see more in our Food and Other
Violations section).
Highlights:
On 12 February 2016, Peter Muswaka, Zanu-PF district party chairperson, Chinyoka,
Ward 15 councillor and a group of about 20 Zanu-PF youth members forced all stall
owners and shop owners at Dandamera Shopping Centre to go to Kanyemba rally
which was addressed by the First Lady Grace Mugabe. They had a register which they
used to make sure all the targeted people boarded the lorry.
On the same day, 12 February 2016, in Mazowe Central at Kanyemba Primary School
after First Lady Grace Mugabe’s rally there was distribution of food and clothing. At
the time of going to print, ZPP was still investigating a case of a woman who is
reported to have been killed in the stampede for the food and clothing distribution
after the First Lady’s rally.
In Guruve North on 13 February 2016, Stewart Kunatsa the Zanu-PF party
chairperson for Ward 19, Mupfuya Village gave people updates from the Zanu-PF
conference that was held in December. He threatened to deal with all those who did
not support the ruling party.
On 14 February 2016, Norman Ngoza of Zanu-PF met a John Tizo (not real name)
who was wearing an MDC-T T-shirt. They exchanged harsh words over the T-shirt
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