Mugabe’s army causing havoc in Plumtree

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By SARAH NCUBE

Published: July 22, 2009

ZIMBABWE – PLUMTREE – Villagers in the Tshitshi area of Plumtree have accused soldiers based at an army base in the area of harassing them for voting for the opposition MDC during the previous elections.

The soldiers who are based at Matsiloji, the borders between Zimbabwe and Botswana have been causing havoc in the area since June last year.

“During the run-up to last year’s elections the soldiers set up a mini-base at Tshitshi which was used to torture suspected opposition supporters. The base has not been dismantled since that time and the soldiers are still harassing us,” said a villager who refused to be named for fear of victimisation.

Last week the soldiers disrupted a meeting organised by a local non-governmental organisation operating in the area.

“We were having a meeting with community leaders at St Francis Secondary School when the soldiers who were apparently drunk stormed into the meeting and demanded to be included in the programme. These people have really become a problem here,” said a worker of the non-governmental organisation who also refused to be named for fear of victimisation.

The soldiers have also been accused of impregnating school children in the area. The soldiers have been accused of confiscating border jumpers’ goods and exchanging the items with goats and chickens with the local villagers.
“The fact is that most of our husbands and relatives work in Botswana. They occasionally bring us groceries and other things. It is when they are bringing those groceries that the soldiers raid them. In most cases most of the people have evidence to prove that they applied for their passports. Besides that we have got lots of relative across,” said Jane Ncube.

People in the area of Matabeleland particularly Plumtree are still haunted by the Gugurahundi atrocities of the early 90s where most of their people where massacred by the Korean Fifth Brigade assigned by Mugabe to silence his opposition from Zapu.- The Zimbabwe Telegraph.