Zimbabwe Opposition Leader Arrested Over Publication
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JOHANNESBURG, South Africa — Zimbabwean police have arrested the leader of a faction of the country’s opposition Movement for Democratic Change, Arthur Mutambara, for writing a derogatory article about President Mugabe, his lawyer, Harrison Nkomo, said.
“He was arrested at his home this morning and charged with publishing falsehoods and for contempt of court in relation to a newspaper article he wrote in April,” Mr. Nkomo said in a telephone interview from the capital, Harare, yesterday. “I don’t expect he will appear in court before June 3.”
In an article published by Zimbabwe’s privately-owned Standard newspaper last month, Mr. Mutambara accused Mr. Mugabe of destroying the country’s economy and linked the security forces to human rights abuses. The newspaper’s editor was subsequently arrested and charged with publishing falsehoods, in a trial that has yet to be concluded.
A police spokesman, Wayne Bvudzijena, didn’t answer calls to his office or mobile phone yesterday.
A political ally of Mr. Mutambara, Trudy Stevenson, confirmed the arrest in Harare yesterday in a separate telephone interview.
Mr. Mutambara last month committed his faction of the MDC to backing Morgan Tsvangirai’s bid to win a rerun of Zimbabwe’s presidential election on June 27. Mr. Mutambara led a breakaway from the main MDC party, led by Mr. Tsvangirai, in 2005 after they disagreed on whether to participate in a senate ballot.