Nation Drops Treason Charges of Egypt Activists

Kitsepile Nyathi

19 July 2011

Harare — Zimbabwe’s prosecutors have dropped treason charges against a former opposition MP and five others who were arrested in February on suspicion that they were planning Egypt style protests.

Former Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) MP Munyaradzi Gwisai and activists Antonater Choto, Tatenda Mombeyarara, Edson Chakuma, Hopewell Gumbo as well as Welcome Zimuto were told that they now face lesser charges of conspiracy to commit violence when they appeared in court on Monday.

Prosecutors also announced that they were dropping a case against Energy and Power Development Minister Elton Mangoma who was facing corruption charges.

Mr Mangoma, a close ally of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai was accused of breaching tender regulations after he cancelled bids for the supply of electricity meters to the country’s power utility.

Last month, the High Court cleared him of another charge of breaching tender regulations after he authorised the purchase of five million litres of diesel from a South African company in 2010.

Like the prosecution of the six activists, the minister’s trial was described as persecution by President Robert Mugabe’s loyalists eager to see the collapse of the unity government.

The activists who were found watching a video of the protests that ended former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s long rule were accused of planning to topple President Mugabe.

Charges against 39 other activists were dropped less than a month after their arrest.

“The state has no case. We have a very clear case of persecution and not prosecution,” the activists lawyer Mr Alec Muchadehama said after the announcement that the charges had been dropped.

The case has been postponed to August 22 after Harare

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