Police block Bulawayo meeting as Harare venue torched

A press conference on Zimbabwe’s constitutional future was blocked in Bulawayo on Tuesday, while a venue hosting a similar event in Harare was firebombed overnight, in what civic groups have described as a coordinated clampdown on dissent.

The Bulawayo gathering, titled“Constitutional Crossroads: Citizens Respond to Zimbabwe’s Constitutional Crisis”was shut down when police officers, Zanu PF supporters and hired bouncers stationed themselves at the entrance of the Bulawayo Club, preventing journalists and invited guests from entering. Police vehicles were also seen parked outside the venue.

The meeting had been expected to feature prominent political and civic figures, among them ZAPU leader Sibangilizwe Nkomo, war veterans’ representative Ethan Mathibela, opposition politicians Prince Dubeko Sibanda and Lovemore Moyo, Mfulongatshi Mpofu of the Mthwakazi Republic Party, Patrick Tayiya of the Democratic Official Party, and activists Mbuso Fuzwayo, Thando Gwinji, Samkeliso Tshuma, Benon Ncube and Silenkosi Moyo.

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