Former Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front politburo member Dumiso Dabengwa, now leader of the Zimbabwe African People’s Union, was the biggest loser from the violence that erupted in Bulawayo in November 2001 and saw the offices of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change being razed in a fire and his colleague Sikhanyiso Ndlovu’s college being gutted by fire.
The director of Zimrights in Bulawayo Tamsanqa Mlilo told United States public affairs officer Bruce Wharton that Dabengwa who was regarded heir apparent to ZAPU leader Joshua Nkomo was expected to defend Matabeleland’s interests but his leadership of the violent attacks which was in essence a ZANU-PF assault on Bulawayo had lost him any respect that the people in the city may have had for him.
Dabengwa, ZANU-PF political commissar Sikhanyiso Ndlovu and war veterans leader Jabulani Sibanda were said to have incited party supporters to start the violence which was said to be in retaliation of ZANU-PF’s loss of the Bulawayo mayoral elections which were won by the MDC.
Full cable:
Viewing cable 01HARARE3550, BULAWAYO AFTER NOVEMBER 16 – A CHANGED CITY
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
270708Z Nov 01
CONFIDENTIAL PTO1979
PAGE 01 HARARE 03550 271142Z
ACTION AF-00
INFO LOG-00 NP-00 ACQ-00 CIAE-00 DODE-00 WHA-00 DS-00
EAP-00 EUR-00 VC-00 TEDE-00 INR-00 VCE-00 NSAE-00
USIE-00 EPAE-00 DSCC-00 DRL-02 NFAT-00 SAS-00 /002W
——————43947A 271142Z /40
FM AMEMBASSY HARARE
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0381
INFO NSCWASHDC PRIORITY
SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMNT COMMUNITY
AMEMBASSY NAIROBI
AMEMBASSY OSLO
AMEMBASSY STOCKHOL
AMEMBASSY CANBERRA
AMMBASSY OTTAWA 0084
AMEMBASSY KINGSTON 003
C O N F I D E N T I A L HARARE 003550
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR AF/S, AF, AF/PD, NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA
DIRECTOR JENDAYI FRAZER
BRSSELS ALSO FOR USEU
LONDON FOR GURNEY
PARIS FO NEARY
NAROBI FOR PFLAUMER
E.O. 12958: DECL. 1/23/11
SUBJECT: BULAWAYO AFTER NOVEMBER 16 – A CHANGED CITY
LASSIFIED BY PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICER BRUCE WHARTON.
REASON: 1.5 (B) AND (D).
¶1. ( C ) SUMMARY: MBOFF VISITED ZIMBABWE’S SECOND
CITY ON NOVEMBER21 TO GAUGE THE SITUATION IN THE WAKE
OF THE NOVEBER 16 VIOLENCE AND TO MEET WITH AMERICAN
CITIZES TO DISCUSS THEIR SAFETY. ON THE SURFACE, THE
ITY APPEARS TO BE FUNCTIONING NORMALLY, BUT THERE S A
NEW AND WIDESPREAD SENSE OF TENSION AND FEAR THE
CONSENSUS AMONG THE PEOPLE WITH WHOM EMBOFFMET WAS THAT
THE 11/16 VIOLENCE WAS ORGANIZED AN INSTIGATED BY THE
GOVERNMENT OF ZIMBABWE (GOZ) ND THE RULING ZANU-PF
PARTY. CONSENSUS ALSO HEL THAT THE ZIMBABWE REPUBLIC
POLICE (ZRP) KNOWINGY PERMITTED VIOLENT ACTS BY GOZ
SUPPORTERS, AND OLY INTERVENED WHEN OPPOSITION PARTY
SUPPORTERS BGAN TO FIGHT BACK. AMERICAN CITIZENS IN
THE CIT, SOME OF WHO HAVE BEEN IN ZIMBABWE FOR NEARLY
2 YEARS, SAID THAT THE NOVEMBER 16 VIOLENCE IN BULAAYO
CHANGED THE CITY. THEY ALL REMARKED THAT THEVIOLENCE
WAS ANOMALOUS FOR THE NORMALLY LAID-BAC PEOPLC OF
BULAWAYO, AND THAT THEIR OWN SENSE OFSAFETY IN THE CITY
HAD BEEN DEEPLY SHAKEN BY THEEVENTS OF 11/16. TWO
AMCITS WERE IN THE CENTER F TOWN DURING THC VIOLENCE
AND PROVIDED FIRST-HAN ACCOUNTS OF VIOLENCC AND
INTIMIDATION CARRIED OT BY GOZ SUPPORTERS IN FRONT OF
PASSIVE POLICE OFICERS. NO AMERICANS WERE HURT IN THE
VIOLENCE,BUT ONE ENDURED FRIGHTENING, RACIALLY
MOTIVATED ERBAL ABUSE BY MEN ATTEMPTING TO ENTER HER
CAR. ND SUMMARY.
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PAGE 03 HARARE 03550 271142Z
¶2. ( C ) THE EMBASSY’S PUBLIC AFFARS OFFICER SPENT
11/21 IN BULAWAYO MEETING WITH WIDE RANGE OF CITY
RESIDENTS. THE PURPOSE OF TE VISIT WAS TO GAIN FIRST-
HAND KNOWLEDGE OF THEVIOLENCE THAT OCCURRED IN THE CITY
ON NOVEMBER 16AND TO ASSESS THE SITUATION IN BULAWAYO
IN TERMSOF THE SAFETY OF AMERICAN CITIZENS RESIDENT IN
TE CITY.
¶3. ( C ) THE TROUBLE ON NOVEMBER 16 BEAN WITH A
“MEETING” HELD IN A CITY PARK ABOUT ON MILE NORTHEAST
OF DOWNTOWN BULAWAYO. A GROUP OFBETWEEN 600 AND 1,000
SO- CALLED “WAR VETS” AND OZ SUPPORTCRS HEARD SPEECHES
FROM ZANU PF OFFICIALS INCLUDING FORMER MINISTER OF HOME
AFFAJRS AND ZANU-PP POLITBURO MEMBER DUMISO DABENGWA,
ACTING ZANU-PF POLITICAL COMMISSAR SIKHANYISO NDLOVU,
AND THE HEAD OF THE ZIMBABWE WAR VETERANS ASSOCIATION IN
MATEBELELAND MR. JABULANI SIBANDA. THE SPEECHES ENDED
AT ABOUT NOON AND THE CROWD, LED BY DABENGWA, NDLOVU AND
SIBANDA, MARCHED INTO DOWNTOWN BULAWAYO. UNIFORMED
POLICE ESCORTED THE CROWD. UPON ARRIVING IN THE
DOWNTOWN AREA, SOME OF THE MARCHERS BEGAN UNPROVOKED
ATTACKS ON OFFICES, PROPERTY AND INDIVIDUALS. ALTHOUGH
THERE WERE CLEARLY A NUMBER OF RACIALLY MOTIVATED
ATTACKS ON PEOPLE OF EUROPEAN ANCESTRY, BLACK
ZIMBABWEANS WERE ALSO ASSAULTED. AN ICE CREAM VENDOR,
PEOPLE SELLING FRUITS AND VEGETABLES IN A SIDEWALK
MARKET, AND NEWSPAPER VENDORS WERE ATTACKED, BEATEN AND
ROBBED. OFFICES OF ORGANIZATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THE
OPPOSITION WERE RANSACKED. OPPOSITION-ORIENTED
NEWSPAPERS WERE BURNED AND SHREDDED. CARS BCLONGING TO
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PAGE 04 HARARE 03550 271142Z
WHITES WERE VANDALIZED. THE CROWD MARCHED TO THE
OFFICES OF THE OPPOSITION MDC PARTY AND, USING GASOLINE,
SET THE BUILDING ON FIRE. FORTUNATELY, MDC STAFF HAD
BEN WARNED OF THE APPROACHING MOB AND ESCAPED THE
BUILDING UNHARMED BEFORE IT WAS ATTACKED. THE CROD
BROKE UP INTO SMALLER GROUPS THAT RAGED THROUGHDOWNTOWN
BULAWAYO FOR ANOTHER 30 TO 45 MINUTES
ASSAULTING ANYONE
OR ANYTHING THAT MIGHT BE PERCEIVED AS LESS THAN 100
PERCENT LOYAL TO THE RULING PARTY. THROUGHOUT ALL OF
THESE ACTIVITIES, THE POLICE WERE PASSIVE. AT ABOUT
1330, A GROUP OF MDC SUPPORTERS COALESCED AND ATTEMPTED
TO MARCH TO ZANU-PP HEADQUARTERS. UPON BEING BLOCKED BY
POLICE, THE MDC CROWD WENT TO THE PRIVATE COLLEGE OWNED
BY SIKHANYISO NDLOVU AND SET IT ON FIRE. AT ABOUT 1500
ZANU-PF SUPPORTERS TRIED TO MARCH TO THE HIGH DENSITY
NEIGHBORHOODS ON THE WEST SIDE OF BULAWAYO. MDC
SUPPORTERS MET THE ZANU-PF CROWD AT THE EDGE OF THE
WESTERN SUBURBS AND CHASED THEM AWAY, EFFECTIVELY ENDING
THE DAY’S VIOLENCE.+
¶4. ( C ) MAYOR JAPHET NDABENI-NCUBE, AN MDC ACTIVIST
ELECTED IN SEPTEMBER 2001, RELATED BEING CHASED FROM HIS
OFFICE BY A GROUP OF 8 ZANU-PF SUPPORTERS. THE MAYOR
WAS TIPPED BY JUNIOR STAFF ONLY A FEW MINUTES BEFORE THE
ATTACK AND WAS ABLE TO ESCAPE, BUT HIS OFFICE WAS
RANSACKED AND GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS SCATTERED THROUGHOUT
CITY HALL AND THE BUILDING’S GROUNDS. THE MAYOR
REPORTED THE INCIDENT, AND THE THEFT OF PERSONAL ITEMS,
TO THE POLICE ON 11/16. AS OF 11/21, NO POLICE HAD COME
CONFIDENTIAL
PAGE 05 HARARE 03550 271142Z
TO INVESTIGATE. THE MAYOR HAS NO POLICE PROTECTION, BUT
SAID THAT HE WAS WORKING WITH MDC OFFICIALS TO ARRANGE
PERSONAL SECURITY. MAYOR NDABENI-NCUBE SAID THAT THE
VIOLENCE ENDED ON NOV. 16 AFTER MDC SUPPORTERS MOBILIZED
AND RESISTED THE ZANU-PF SUPPORTERS.
¶5. ( C ) THE MAYOR WENT ON TO SAY THAT ZANU-PP WAS
INSTIGATING THE VIOLENCE AND PROMOTING ANTI-WHITE
SENTIMENT. HE EXPECTS VIOLCNCE TO CONTINUE AS ELECTIONS
APPROACH. HE WAS ESPECIALLY CONCERNED ABOUT THE
POSSIBILITY THAT ZANU-PP WOULD ABDUCT AND KILL ITS OWN
PEOPLE AND THEN BLAME MDC FOR THE CRIMES. HE
SPECIFICALLY MENTIONED FORMER MINISTCR OF HOME AFFAIRS
DUMISO DABENGWA AS SOME ONE WHO WAS “EXPENDABLE” TO
ZANU-PF.
¶6. ( C ) BULAWAYO PUBLIC LIBRARY DIRECTOR ROBIN DOUST,
WHO WAS ATTACKED DURING THE VIOLENCE, TOLD EMBOFF HE
BELIEVES MANY OF THE ZANU-PF SUPPORTERS WHO TOOK PART IN
THE VIOLENCE ON NOV 16 WERE BROUGHT INTO THE CITY BY BUS
OR TRAIN. HE SAID THAT A MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE IN
BULAWAYO BELIEVE THE EVENTS OF 11/16 WERE ORCHESTRATED
BY THE GOVERNMENT IN AN ATTEMPT TO PUNISH THE CITY FOR
ITS SUPPORT OF MDC IN THE SEPTEMBER CITY COUNCIL AND
MAYORAL LECTIONS AND TO INTIMIDATE THE CITIZENS AWAY
FROM FURTHER SUPPORT OF THE OPPOSITION. DOUST BELIEVES
THE SITUATION IN BULAWAYO WILL GET WORSE IN THE RUN-UP
TO THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS.
¶7. ( C ) TAMSANQA MLILO, DIRECTOR OF THE ZIMRIGHTS
HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANIZATION IN BULAWAYO, SAID THAT THE
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PAGE 06 HARARE 03550 271142Z
POLICE DELIBERATELY IGNORED THE VIOLENT ACTS OF ZANU-PF
SUPPORTERS ON 11/16. HE ALSO ACCUSED THE GOVERNMENT-
OWNED MEDIA OF DISTORTED COVERAGE OF THE EVENTS SUCH AS
EMPHASIZING MDC SUPPORTERS’ ATTACK ON NDLOVU’S PROPERTY,
BUT COMPLETELY IGNORING ZANU-PP ATTACKS ON THE MAYOR’S
OFFICE. MLILO ALSO BELIEVED THAT ZANU-PP WAS TRYING TO
PROMOTE VIOLENCE AGAINST WHITES AND THAT THE PARTY WAS
LIKELY TO USE MORE VIOLENCE IN THE FUTURE AS IT HAS LOST
MOST POPULAR SUPPORT IN MATEBELELAND. HE SAID THAT THE
BIGGEST LOSER IN THE EVENTS OF 11/16 WAS DUMISO
DABENGWA. DABENGWA, AN ETHNIC NDEBELE, WAS AN ALLY OF
JOSHUA NKOMO AND EXPECTED TO DEFEND MATEBELELAND’S
INTERESTS. HIS LEADERSHIP OF THE EVENTS OF 11/16, IN
ESSENCE A ZANU-PF ASSAULT ON BULAWAYO, ENDED ANY RESPECT
THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY MAY HAVE HAD FOR HIM. MLILO SAID
THAT ZANU-PP WAS TORN BETWEEN WANTING TO STAY IN POWER
AND WANTING LEGITIMACY AND RESPECT. THIS CAUSED THE
PARTY TO “DO TERRIBLE THINGS HALF-HEARTEDLY.”
¶8. ( C ) BUSANI BAFANA, THE BULAWAYO BUREAU CHIEF FOR
THE ZIMBABWE INDEPENDENT, WAS CLEARLY TRAUMATIZED BY THE
EVENTS OF 11/16. AS A RESULT OF THE VIOLENCE AND
THREATS AGAINST HIM, HE IS ACTIVELY CONSIDERING LEAVING
JOURNALISM AND ZIMBABWE. HE ALSO CLAIMED THAT THE
POLICE SIMPLY STOOD AND WATCHED AS ZANU-PP SUPPORTERS
RAN AMOK AND SAID HE HAD LOST ALL FAITH IN THE ZRP.S
COMMITMENT TO NON
-PARTISAN LAW ENFORCEMENT. HE
DESCRIBED VISITING THE POLICE STATION ON THE AFTERNOON
OF 11/16 TO REPORT THE THEFT OF HIS CELLPHONE AND SAID
“IT WAS LIKE GIVING MY ADDRESS TO THE WAR VETS.” BAFANA
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PAGE 07 HARARE 03550 271142Z
ALSO REPORTED SEEING POLICE VEHICLES USED TO TRANSPORT
ZANU-PP SUPPORTERS, AND REPEATED THE ASSERTION THAT MANY
OF THE RIOTERS WERE “IMPORTED” FROM OUTSIDE OF BULAWAYO.
HE SAID HE DID NOT BELIEVE THERE WAS ANY ANTI-AMERICAN
SENTIMENT AT PLAY ON 11/16, BUT ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THERE
WAS A GREAT DEAL OF ANTI-WHITE VIOLENCE THAT COULD
EASILY AFFECT SOME AMCITS. BAFANA LIKENED THE
GOVERNMENT-OWNED NEWSPAPERS IN BULAWAYO TO “HATE RADIO”
IN RWANDA. HE SAID THERE WAS “SO MUCH HATRED, YOU CAN
FEEL IT.” BAFANA ANTICIPATES MORE POLITICAL VIOLENCE IN
BULAWAYO IN THE COMING MONTHS.
¶9. ( C ) PAUL DAMASANI, BULAWAYO HEAD OF THE
EVANGELICAL FELLOWSHIP OF ZIMBABWE, SAID THAT THE
VIOLENCE OF 11/16 WAS NO SURPRISE. DAMASANI SAID THAT
EVERYTHING WAS FINE IN BULAWAYO UNTIL THE EARLY NOVEMBER
ABDUCTION AND MURDER OF WAR VETERAN CAIN NKALA.
DAMASANI WAS LESS CATEGORICAL THAN OTHERS ABOUT WHETHER
ZANU-PP SUPPORTERS WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE VIOLENCE.
HE RAISED THE POSSIBILITY THAT MDC SUPPORTERS MAY HAVE
BURNED THEIR OWN BUILDING IN ORDER TO DESTROY EVIDENCE
OF THEIR COMPLICITY IN THE NKALA MURDER., A CLAIM ALSO
MADE IN THE GOVERNMENT-CONTROLLED MEDIA. DAMASANI ALSO
DEFENDED ZRP ACTIONS ON NOVEMBER 16, SAYING THAT THEY
WERE UNDERMANNED AND COULD NOT HAVE SEEN SPECIFIC
INCIDENTS OF VIOLENCE. HE ALSO SAID THAT THE VIOLENCE
STOPPED WHEN THE PROVINCIAL LEADER OF ZANU-PP, MR.
NDLOVU, TOLD MARCHERS TO GO HOME. ASKED ABOUT THE
SAFETY OF AMERICAN CITIZENS IN BULAWAYO, DAMASANI SAID
THAT THERE WAS NO ANTI-AMERICAN SENTIMENT IN THE CITY,
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PAGE 08 HARARE 03550 271142Z
BUT THAT AMERICANS SHOULD REFRAIN FROM DISCUSSING
POLITICS OR ECONOMICS IN PUBLIC TO AVOID GIVING THE
IMPRESSION THAT THEY WERE CRITICAL OF THE GOVERNMENT.
DAMASANI SAID THAT THERE WAS A STRONG POTENTIAL FOR
FURTHER VIOLENCE AND THAT THE TRIALS OF MDC SUPPORTERS
ACCUSED IN THE NKALA CASE COULD BE THE TRIGGER FOR MORE
VIOLENCE. MAYOR NDABENI-NCUBE TOLD EMBOFF THAT DAMASANI
WAS AN AGENT FOR ZIMBABWE’S CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE
ORGANIZATION.
¶10. (SBU) ALTHOUGH THEY HAD AGREED TO MEET EMBOFF, THE
EDITORS OF THE TWO STATE-OWNED NEWSPAPERS IN BULAWAYO
WERE EITHER “NOT AVAILABLE” OR NON-COMMUNICATIVE. “IF
YOU WANT TO KNOW WHAT WE THINK,” SAID THE EDITOR OF THE
SUNDAY WEEKLY, “READ OUR NEWSPAPERS.”
¶11. (SBU) EMBOFF ALSO MET WITH ASSISTANT INSPECTOR
MACHINGURA AT PROVINCIAL POLICE HEADQUARTERS.
MACHINGURA, WHO IDENTIFIED HIMSELF AS THE PROVINCIAL
INTELLIGENCE COORDINATOR, WAS FRIENDLY AND PLAYED DOWN
THE PROBLEM OF POLITICAL VIOLENCE IN BULAWAYO. HE SAID
THAT MEDIA REPORTS OF THE VIOLENCE WERE “GREATLY
EXAGGERATED” AND THAT EVERYTHING WAS NOW CALM. HE SAID
HE DID NOT EXPECT ANY MORE VIOLENCE IN THE CITY. WHEN
ASKED ABOUT THE SAFETY OF AMCITS, MACHINGURA SAID THERE
WAS NO DANGER TO AMERICANS IN BULAWAYO, AND SAID THAT HE
AND HIS OFFICE WOULD RESPOND QUICKLY TO ANY PROBLEMS OR
CONCERNS THE EMBASSY HAD ABOUT AMERICANS’ SAFETY.
¶12. ( C ) LAWRENCE CHIKUVIRA, CHIEF OF THE INDEPENDENT
“DAILY NEWS” BUREAU IN BULAWAYO, WAS CATEGORICAL ABOUT
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PAGE 09 HARARE 03550 271142Z
GOZ INSTIGATION OF THE VIOLENCE ON 11/16. HE SUPPORTED
THE VIEW THAT SOME OF THE SO-CALLED WAR VETS HAD BEEN
BROUGHT INTO THE CITY TO PARTICIPATE IN THE VIOLENCE.
CHIKUVIRA DESCRIBED A SPLIT BETWEEN WAR VETS IN
MATEBELELAND (PRIMARILY FORMER ZIPRA/ZAPU COMBATANTS)
AND WAR VETS IN THE REST OF THE COUNTRY (PRIMARILY
ZANLA/ZANU COMBATANTS). CHIKUVIRA SAID THAT WEAKENING
SUPPORT FOR THE RULING PARTY AMONG WAR VETS IN BULAWAYO
CREATED THE NEED TO BRING IN “TRUE BELIEVERS” FROM
HARARE. CHIKUVIRA ACCUSED THE POLICE OF ALLOWING
VIOLENCE TO TAKE PLACE “UNDER THEIR NOSES,” AND CREDITED
MDC SUPPORTERS’ WILLINGNESS TO FIGHT BACK FOR ENDING THE
VIOLENCE ON 11/16. HE SAID THAT THERE WERE “NO LIMITS
ON THE GOVERNMENT’S SHAME AND WILLINGNESS TO
DO WHATEVER
IS NECESSARY TO REMAIN IN POWER.” CHIKUVIRA BELIEVES
THAT ZANU-PP WILL ONLY INCREASE ITS USE OF VIOLENCE IN
THE COMING MONTHS.
¶13. (C) EMBOFF ALSO MET WITH ABOUT 10 AMERICAN CITIZENS
RESIDENT IN BULAWAYO, MOST OF WHOM ARE MISSIONARIES WITH
NEARLY 20 YEARS EXPERIENCE IN ZIMBABWE. THE AMCITS
CONFIRMED THE GENERAL SENSE THAT THE RULING PARTY
DELIBERATELY ORGANIZED THE VIOLENCE, THAT WHITES WERE
TARGETED, AND THAT THE SITUATION IS LIKELY TO GET WORSE
AS THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS APPROACH. THE AMCITS WERE
SHOCKED BY THE VIOLENCE, SAYING THAT IT WAS VERY MUCH
OUT OF CHARACTER FOR BULAWAYO. THEY ALL BELIEVED THAT
OUTSIDERS HAD BEEN BROUGHT TO THE CITY TO PROMOTE AND
EXECUTE THE VIOLENCE. TWO AMCITS WITNESSED SOME OF THE
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PAGE 10 HARARE 03550 271142Z
VIOLENCE AND CONFIRMED POLICE PASSIVITY AS LONG AS THE
VIOLENCE WAS AGAINST OPPOSITION TARGETS. ONE AMCIT SAID
THAT AFTER 11/16, “ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE,” CLEARLY
INDICATING THAT THE SENSE OF SAFETY HE ENJOYED IN
BULAWAYO HAD BEEN SHATTERED. ALL OF THE AMERICANS
INDICATED THAT THEY EITHER HAD PLANS, OR WERE
CONSIDERING OPTIONS, FOR DEPARTURE FROM ZIMBABWE.
¶14. ( C ) COMMENT: BENEATH A FACADE OF NORMALCY,
BULAWAYO IS TRAUMATIZED. PEOPLE SPOKE WITH SHOCK, AND
SOME DEGREE OF EMBARRASSMENT, ABOUT THE EVENTS OF 11/16.
IT IS CLEAR THAT ONLY PEOPLE DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO THE
GOVERNMENT (CIO, POLICE AND GOVERNMENT-EMPLOYED
JOURNALISTS) BELIEVE WHAT GOZ LEADERS OR MEDIA SAY ABOUT
THE CAIN NKALA CASE OR THE VIOLENCE OF 11/16. WE
BELIEVE THAT THE EVIDENCE POINTS COMPELLINGLY TO
GOVERNMENT AND RULING PARTY SPONSORSHIP AND ORGANIZATION
OF THE VIOLENCE IN BULAWAYO ON NOVEMBER 16. FURTHER, WE
BELIEVE IS CLEAR THAT THE ZRP SIMPLY STOOD AND WATCHED
AS PEOPLE AND INSTITUTIONS PERCEIVED TO SUPPORT THE
OPPOSITION WERE ATTACKED. THE POLICE ONLY BEGAN TO ACT
WHEN MDC SUPPORTERS RESPONDED TO THE VIOLENCE INSTIGATED
BY THE RULING PARTY. WHILE WE DO NOT BELIEVE THAT
AMERICAN CITIZENS ARE TARGETS OF POLITICAL VIOLENCE,
WHITE AMERICANS COULD EASILY BECOME VICTIMIZED BY THE
ANTI-WHITE SENTIMENT BEING PROMOTED BY THE GOZ. WE TAKE
SERIOUSLY THE CONSENSUS THAT MORE VIOLENCE IS LIKELY AND
THE GOVERNMENT/RULING PARTY WILL TAKE ANY STEPS
NECESSARY TO MAINTAIN POWER. PINALLY, THE POSSIBILITY
OF ZANU-PP ABDUCTING OR KILLING ONE OF ITS OWN
SUPPORTERS IN ORDER TO BLAME THE MDC FOR “TERRORISM”
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PAGE 11 HARARE 03550 271142Z
CANNOT BE DISMISSED. END COMMENT.
SULLIVAN
CONFIDENTIAL
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