The attacks began after a large group of soldiers went on the rampage
at a bank on Thursday. Bank tellers had been unable to pay them the
full amounts they wanted to withdraw, after they had spent a full day
in the queue. These long queues outside banks have become a common
feature because of the serious shortage of currency, as well as the
restrictive limit on cash withdrawals. It’s understood the group ran
amok and vented their anger on the staff of Zimbabwe Allied Banking
Group along Samora Machel Avenue in Harare, after the bank ran out of
cash by the end of the day.
The group of an estimated 60 to 70 men had queued to make cash
withdrawals until closing time on Thursday afternoon. Banks in Harare
are now required to serve all customers already in the banking hall at
closing time. But roughly an hour after the doors were shut, bank
officials announced there was no more money to pay out – causing outcry
among the uniformed group. The men assaulted bank staff and broke
windows before pouring out onto the streets, blocking traffic and
intimidating passersby.
SW Radio Africa’s Harare correspondent, Simon Muchemwa explained that
forex traders were the next victims of the soldiers’ rampage on
Thursday. But he said that Friday also turned into a nightmare when the
soldiers returned to take out their frustrations on the public..
"On Friday afternoon they returned and started ransacking all the banks
and shops," Muchwema explained. "Lots of shops were looted and the
soldiers were beating everyone in sight."
The Military police were eventually called in to try and calm the
situation, and Muchemwa described the scene as ‘chaos’ as military
police tried to control and arrest the uniformed soldiers. "Every shop
and bank has been closed and people are so afraid," Muchemwa said.
"Everyone knew that the situation in the country would one day come to
an end, and this civil unrest is the beginning of that end."
Muchemwa said there were also concerns that the soldiers were planning
on conducting door to door raids from Friday night, to continue venting
their anger – despite the attacks being grossly misguided. Muchemwa
said it was ‘unfortunate’ that the public is bearing the brunt of the
total collapse of the country, by becoming victims of violence, because
of problems directly caused by the government.
Independent economic analyst John Robertson, had previously told
Newsreel that public unrest was ‘foreseeable’ because of the tension
caused by the central bank’s decision to restrictively limit cash
withdrawals. On Friday he expressed a lack of surprise at the news that
soldiers went on the rampage, but added that "it is surprising that
there hasn’t been an outbreak of serious violence before this, because
there have been obvious signs of impatience."
It is yet unclear however if the cash crisis and the general
frustration over the cash withdrawal limits is the only reason for the
violent outburst by the soldiers. It has been suggested by some sources
that the attacks have been orchestrated and possibly motivated by the
ongoing political stalemate between ZANU PF and the MDC. There are
fears soldiers are clamping down on the public in an effort to
intimidate them – in the event that the MDC should pull out of the
talks for a unity government.
Meanwhile a meeting convened by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions
in Masvingo on Monday called on Zimbabweans to converge on banks next
Wednesday and stage demonstrations if they fail to withdraw their funds
from the banks. Robertson argued on Friday that targeting and blaming
the banks for a situation that has been created by the government and
echoed by the Reserve Bank, was unfair, saying the banks "are victims
of the exact same problem."
SWRadio Africa