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ZIMBABWE-POLITICS-ZAMBIA-COURT-OPPOSITION -LEAD
Top Zimbabwe opponent detained after failed Zambia asylum bid
HARARE, Aug 9, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Western governments and the UN expressed
alarm Thursday as top Zimbabwe opposition figure Tendai Biti was detained
after a failed attempt to flee to neighbouring Zambia and claim asylum.
Biti, a veteran figure in the opposition Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC), made a dash across the border Wednesday, facing allegations of
inciting post-election protests at home.
Zambian authorities rejected his asylum claim and handed him back to
Zimbabwean police — in defiance of a court ruling, according to Biti’s
lawyers.
The UN refugee agency said it was “gravely concerned about reports of the
forced return” of Biti, an internationally-respected finance minister in
Zimbabwe’s 2009-2013 power-sharing government.
“Forcibly returning refugees and asylum-seekers to their country of origin
is a serious violation of international refugee law,” the UNHCR said in a
statement.
It urged Zambia to investigate the incident, which comes after accusations
that Zimbabwe’s authorities are pursuing a heavy crackdown on the opposition
over its claims that last week’s landmark elections were rigged.
Zambian government spokeswoman Dora Siliya said authorities had only
received the ruling blocking his expulsion after it was too late.
“The court order only came after he was handed back to the Zimbabwe
authorities,” she told AFP.
“His asylum was denied on the basis that in his country there is no
breakdown in the rule of law,” she said, adding that Biti himself was
“running away from the due process of the law” as he was wanted by
authorities.
– ‘Deeply disturbed’ –
Western nations said they were “deeply disturbed by continuing reports that
opposition supporters are being targeted by members of the Zimbabwean
security forces”.
In a joint statement, the EU, US, Canadian and Australian missions to
Zimbabwe urged authorities to “guarantee the physical integrity and safety of
Mr Biti, to ensure that his constitutional and human rights are respected,
and that he will be treated in full accordance with the rule of law”.
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, a non-profit organisation, said Biti had
been taken to Harare’s central police station.
MDC leader Nelson Chamisa said he was “extremely concerned” by Biti’s
situation.
Chamisa has repeatedly charged that the July 30 presidential election, the
first since veteran autocrat Robert Mugabe was ousted by the military in
November, was stolen from him.
The MDC will launch its legal challenge against the results later
Thursday, Chamisa said.
Mugabe’s successor President Emmerson Mnangagwa was last week declared the
winner with 50.8 percent of the vote — just enough to avoid a run-off
against Chamisa.
– Inauguration delayed? –
According to Zimbabwe’s state-run Chronicle newspaper, Biti is among nine
suspects sought for inciting protests against alleged rigging which turned
deadly on August 1.
The army opened fire on the protests in Harare, killing six people and
prompting an international outcry.
Mnangagwa, who is seeking to reverse Zimbabwe’s economic isolation and
attract desperately needed foreign investment, had vowed the elections would
turn a page on Mugabe’s repressive 37-year rule.
But the aftermath of the polls has been marred by allegations by rights
groups as well as the MDC of a crackdown on opposition members, including
beatings and arrests.
Biti’s deportation was likely to come up in talks between South African
President Cyril Ramaphosa and his Zambian counterpart Edgar Lungu in Lusaka
on Thursday.
In a statement, the South African presidency also said Ramaphosa would
also fly to Zimbabwe for Mnangagwa’s inauguration on Sunday, but this could
be delayed by Chamisa’s legal challenge.
MDC lawyer Thabani Mpofu said on Wednesday that the election results
“grossly mathematically fail to tally”.
He said the party would reveal “a secret weapon” in court, but analysts
say the challenge is highly unlikely to overturn the declared results.
The Zimbabwe Election Commission — synonymous with fraud under Mugabe —
insists the elections were free and fair this time around.
International monitors praised the conduct of the election itself,
although EU observers said Mnangagwa benefited from an “un-level playing
field” and a degree of voter intimidation.
BSS/AFP/RY/1942 hrs