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March 15, 2013

Zimbabwean police are interrogating young children (aged 4-6) at school about whether their parents have radios. The police are confiscating wind up radios in night time raids


The illegal seizure of wind-up radios reached new levels this week with reports that the police are now using primary school pupils to source information about the receivers.
Villagers in Lupane revealed that the police have been visiting schools and asking little children in Grade 0 and Grade 1(aged between 4 and 6 years) whether their parents own or listen to any radios.

This follows reports that suspected state security agents on Tuesday raided several homesteads at Mpofu village in the Gwampa area and confiscated the wind-up radios.
Speaking to SW Radio Africa one villager who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals, said the police have been going to schools, writing down names, and then visiting those suspected of owning the radios by night.

She said although the agents will be wearing civilian clothes, the villagers know it is the police since they have been announcing their ban on radios.
Our source said she suspects the police are aware of the popularity of shortwave radios in the area, hence they are now confiscating them.
“The police have been announcing that villagers should not be in possession of these radios. Their reason is that we listen to news broadcasts from outside the country which criticise ZANU PF.

“Such harassment by the state security agents normally escalates during election time, which indicates that we are not free to exercise our individual choices if we can’t even listen to different views offered by these shortwave radio stations,” she added.
On Tuesday an MDC official from Mpofu Village, Cosmas Phiri, told the NewsDay newspaper that MDC members were raided shortly before midnight on Monday.
Phiri, who was with some of the affected villagers, told NewsDay that a group of state security agents confiscated at least 10 radios from more than 10 people.
The night raids have stirred up fear within the community, following threats that those who refused to surrender their radio receivers will be abducted and “made to disappear” invoking memories of Gukurahundi.

Since the announcement of the constitutional referendum date on February 15th, Zimbabwean police have embarked on a nationwide campaign targeting civic society organisations and individuals.
On February 19th the police announced a ban on ‘specially designed’ radios, which they argued will be used to promote hate speech ahead of the polls.
Following the ban several organisations have been raided, including community radio initiative Radio Dialogue where police seized more than 180 wind-up radio sets and arrested its managing editor.

Last month, officers ransacked the offices of poll observers ZESN as well as those of violence monitoring group the Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP), in search of the so-called “illegal” radios.
The police have since arrested ZPP head Jestina Mukoko and charged her with, among other things, illegally importing short wave radios.

7 comments:

  1. If the people were armed, opps they aren't toooo bad

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  2. Wait until it starts happening here with guns.

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  3. As NOT reported on the corporate media (per the first two pages of a zimbabwe+shortwave-radios web search).

    Ditto for the chronic hyperinflation, systematic mass murdering of white farmers, and a general pattern of governmental oppression far, far in excess of anything occurring within Syria.

    I guess Mugabe is in the pockets of the IMF gang? There must be a reason beyond mere political correctness for this double standard on part of the media.

    One thing is for sure, things are far worse in present day Zimbabwe than it ever was under the Rhodesian regime.

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    1. Zimbabwe got exactly what it wanted, and Rhodesia is no more.

      Don't see a problem, really. Could Zimbabwe not be happy with the monster it has become?

      Well, tough.

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  4. They're getting ready to do something really bad in Africa I suspect. But what? Damn....

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  5. they way to kill off thw world population to 2 billion total per Agenda 21

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  6. well maybe they should get guns and quit being pu ssies

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