; TEXT-INDENT: 0.5in; TEXT-ALIGN: justify”>17 February 2007

MDC Leadership Defy Police Ban, March To The Public Meeting Venue

The MDC President Professor Arthur Mutambara today defied police ban on the MDC Defiance Campaign meeting which was due to be held at the Bulawayo’s City Hall as a follow up to the party’s launch of the defiance campaign in Harare last week. The President accompanied by senior party leaders that included Vice President Gibson Sibanda, Secretary General Professor Ncube, Treasurer General Fletcher Dulini Ncube, Secretary for Lands Renson Gasela, the Mayor of Bulawayo, Japhet Ndebeni Ncube, The Provincial Chairperson for Bulawayo, Khangilacala Ndlovu, members of Parliament, senators and provincial officers and hundreds of the party supporters marched through the city to the Bulawayo City Hall, the venue for the MDC Defiance Campaign launch. As they defiantly got to the doors of the Hall which were locked, they found the whole City Hall area sealed off by heavily armed riot police. They were however welcomed by thousands of MDC supporters who had come for the meeting.

In a fit of rage the police started to indiscriminately beat up people as they tried to chase them away from the venue. Several innocent people were severely assaulted including one youth who was injured in the police-inspired mayhem.

President Mutambara and his team decided to proceed to the party’s provincial offices where they intended to hold their meeting and as they moved to the offices with a large crowd of people following them, the police started to attack the people in a desperate effort to dissuade them from attending the meeting. The police besieged the provincial office in a desperate effort to cow the supporters, but in spite of all the threats and intimidation, President Mutambara managed to address hundreds of the party supporters at the provincial offices and launched the Defiance Campaign in Bulawayo . More than 10 people including party officials were arrested after the meeting .

We are aware that the initial approval by the police for this public meeting was overturned by Zanu pf, who fear the increasing threat to their illegitimate hold on power as the economy deteriorates to crisis levels. We therefore call on the police to refuse to bow to political interference in their affairs, and to uphold the Constitution of our beloved country which provides for freedom of speech and assembly and the protection of all Zimbabweans.

This Defiance Campaign is only the beginning. As President Mutambara declared at the initial launch in Harare last week, “It is Defiance or Death. We choose to defy and confront.”

No price is too dear to pay for freedom.

MDC Information and Publicity Department