FUNERAL MARCH DELAYED TO LET LEADERS RECOVER,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 HARARE 000213 SIPDIS SIPDIS AF/S FOR S. HILL NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR B. PITTMAN ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU ADDIS ABABA FOR ACSS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/15/2017 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL ASEC ZI SUBJECT: FUNERAL MARCH DELAYED TO LET LEADERS RECOVER, COUNTRY REMAINS TENSE REF: REFTEL: HARARE 204 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: Ambassador Christopher W. Dell under Section 1.4 b/d -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) MDC leaders have been forced to postpone the wake and funerary march for the MDC activist killed by police to allow Morgan Tsvangirai to participate and resolve logistical issues. They hope to finalize plans tomorrow. Tsvangirai remains at Avenues Hospital, where the Ambassador visited him and other injured activists today; doctors expect to discharge him tomorrow. Continuing police violence has sparked spontaneous protests throughout the country. End Summary. -------------- Activist's Funeral Delayed -------------- ¶2. (C) MDC sources originally told us the funeral for slain MDC activist Gift Tandare was scheduled for March 17, but Tsvangirai's continued treatment in hospital, efforts to SIPDIS locate a pathologist to examine the deceased's body, and other logistical issues will likely push back this timeline. These sources told us opposition leaders intend to meet tomorrow to finalize the schedule. ¶3. (C) The Ambassador and DCM visited Tsvangirai and the others remaining in hospital March 15 to wish them well. Pro-Senate MDC leader Arthur Mutambara, who was also visiting Tsvangirai, told the Ambassador that the MDC factions planned SIPDIS to hold a joint press conference on March 16. Mutambara noted that the shared suffering had brought the two factions closer together and that they were now working together "in the trenches." -------------- Injured Making Steady Progress -------------- ¶4. (SBU) The Ambassador spent five minutes with Tsvangirai whom he found a bit groggy, but recovering from his injuries and in good spirits. Tsvangirai said his doctors had decided to keep him under observation for another 24 hours but expected to release him tomorrow. The Ambassador also greeted National Constitutional Assembly chairman Lovemore Madhuku as he was released from hospital to nurse a broken arm and deep gashes on his head at home. Madhuku, who was received by a throng of NCA members, was also in good spirits. In the afternoon, MDC Secretary General Tendai Biti and MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa were released, leaving eight at the hospital recovering. ¶5. (SBU) Representatives from Counseling Services Unit, which is providing legal and medical care for the MDC members, told us the most seriously injured activist was anti-Senate MDC MP Sekai Holland. Hospital officials told us that the 64-year old underwent surgery as the result of multiple fractures today and was recovering well. Also in serious condition were MDC deputy secretary for foreign affairs Grace Kwinjeh, who was beaten over much of her body and whose ear was nearly severed, and MDC deputy treasurer Elton Mangoma, whose leg was badly damaged. -------------- HARARE 00000213 002 OF 003 Urban Centers Flaring Up -------------- ¶6. (SBU) The savage treatment of the opposition leaders at the hands of police has triggered seemingly spontaneous demonstrations in several cities. On March 12, MDC activists marched from party headquarters in Mutare to protest the ill-treatment of their leaders in Harare, according to human rights lawyer Trust Manda. Manda told us that police arrested 62 demonstrators who were subsequently granted bail on March 14. ¶7. (SBU) Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) lawyer Tafadzwa Mugabe told us that late last night police in Bulawayo arrested Sam Sipepa Nkomo, the former editor of the banned Daily News, on suspicion of organizing a march. According to Mugabe, on March 13, eight opposition supporters, including MDC MP Amos Chibaya, were arrested in Gweru for gathering at the MP's house. He also informed us that some MDC supporters were arrested in Kwekwe on March 14. Mugabe noted that details of demonstrations and arrests throughout the country were sketchy, but he believed protests taking place outside of Harare were spontaneous as all of the opposition leadership was either in hospital or attending to those in hospital. ¶8. (SBU) Further fueling popular discontent, police have been beating and in some cases arresting small groups of people gathered together, apparently to forestall possible demonstrations. Lawyer Manda told us, for example, that 16 people were arrested in Mutare on Monday walking to work with friends. In Harare, police have entered bars in the high-density suburbs at night, beat and arbitrarily arrested patrons, and then closed down the bars. ¶9. (U) Meanwhile, the state-controlled Herald newspaper on March 15 reported that a police station in Harare and one in Gweru had been firebombed on the night of March 13. They portrayed the attacks as evidence of MDC violence and splashed graphic photos of the alleged victims across the front page of the Herald. ¶10. (SBU) A British Embassy security officer who was formerly an officer in the Zimbabwe Republic Police told us that off duty police officers are now afraid to wear their uniforms in their neighborhoods for fear of being attacked, especially at night. He added that the discontent and unease among his former colleagues, especially the long-term professionals, was on the rise. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶11. (C) The decision to postpone for now Tandare's funeral may give things a chance to calm down over the coming weekend. Still, neither side appears ready to back down and the funeral could still prove a flash point. We plan to assemble as many diplomats as possible at the event to try to forestall police violence. The reports of spontaneous demonstrations around the country are evidence that the government may be starting to lose control of the situation. They have neither the manpower nor the resources needed to suppress all of these demonstrations. The fact that violence may now be directed at the police themselves is regrettable but not necessarily surprising. The people are fighting back and the police are the nearest government representatives at hand. HARARE 00000213 003 OF 003 DELL