zimfinalpush
Catholic bishops turn their anger on Mugabe
By Byron Dziva in Harare
Last Updated: 12:47am BST 10/04/2007
| Catholic bishops in Zimbabwe have turned against President Robert Mugabe, accusing him of running a bad and corrupt government and calling for radical political reforms to avoid a mass uprising in the country. In a pastoral letter posted on church notice boards on Sunday as worshippers gathered to celebrate Easter, the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops' Conference said that Mr Mugabe's misrule had left the country "in extreme danger". "The reasons for the anger are many, among them bad governance and corruption," they said in their strongest attack on Mr Mugabe's ruling Zanu-PF party in years. advertisement "In order to avoid further bloodshed and avert a mass uprising, the nation needs a new people-driven constitution that will guide a democratic leadership chosen in free and fair elections," they said. The Catholic Church is the biggest Christian denomination in Zimbabwe with the 83-year-old leader himself a Catholic and a regular church goer. The clergy's outspoken criticism is the latest rebuke to the veteran leader, who has become increasingly isolated in recent weeks after his regime carried out violent crackdown on opposition activists. In their letter, the bishops condemned the police brutality, which forced Morgan Tsvangirai, the country's main opposition leader, and others to seek medical treatment after they were beaten in police custody. Mr Tsvangirai, the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, was detained for trying to attend a prayer meeting which the regime had deemed an illegal gathering. Over the Easter weekend, two opposition supporters were abducted and tortured and a number of families were forced to flee their homes at a farm outside Harare. Opposition groups claimed that Settlement Chacha, 31, was abducted on Good Friday by state agents from his home in Kwekwe, about 60 miles south of Harare. He was tortured and left for dead the next day along Harare highway. They claimed that five men abducted Mr Chacha in front of his family as they prepared for the Easter services. Mr Chacha is an MDC activist and state agents accused him throughout his ordeal of masterminding petrol bombings. In their letter, the Catholic leaders said that black Zimbabweans were fighting for political rights in almost the same way as during British colonial rule and accused President Mugabe of adopting unjust and oppressive laws inherited at independence in 1980. Zanu-PF has already endorsed Mr Mugabe as its presidential candidate in elections expected to be held next year. Opponents fear that it will be a repeat of past polls, which they say were rigged to ensure a Mugabe victory. A once prosperous southern African nation, Zimbabwe is mired in a deep economic crisis, marked by inflation of more than 1,700 per cent, unemployment of about 80 per cent, increasing poverty and chronic shortages of food, fuel and foreign currency. The president's critics blame the crisis on mismanagement, including a controversial programme to seize white-owned farms for redistribution to landless blacks. President Mugabe blames the problems on sabotage by Western nations, including Britain. |
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