Zimbabwe’s Crackdown Escalates With Arrest of Opposition Politician

Tendai Biti was arrested by police in Zimbabwe on Thursday and charged with inciting public violence and announcing unofficial election results. PHOTO: JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES

Tendai Biti was deported from Zambia, where he had sought asylum

By Gabriele Steinhauser

Updated Aug. 9, 2018 6:35 p.m. ET

WSJ

A senior opposition politician was charged Thursday with inciting public violence and announcing unofficial election results, marking the latest escalation in a government crackdown following last week’s election.

Tendai Biti, a fast-talking and combative lawyer who was finance minister during a national-unity government from 2009 to 2013, was arrested after being deported from neighboring Zambia, where he had sought asylum. He was released on $5,000 bail and forced to surrender his passport after appearing in court in the capital of Harare.

The 52-year-old is the most prominent opposition member to be arrested since Zimbabwe held its first elections following the November ouster of longtime strongman Robert Mugabe. Mr. Biti and Nelson Chamisa, the leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, have accused the country’s electoral commission of rigging the vote in favor of President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his ruling ZANU-PF party.

Zimbabwean authorities allege that Mr. Biti instigated an Aug. 1 protest that was violently broken up by soldiers toting automatic weapons and bayonets, leaving six civilians dead. He was also charged with breaking Zimbabwean law when he declared Mr. Chamisa the winner of the election days before the release of the official result, which put Mr. Mnangagwa first. If convicted, he could face up to a decade in jail.

Zimbabweans Vote in First Post-Mugabe Election

Voters went to the polls in the country’s first election after the ouster of strongman leader Robert Mugabe last year

A man casts his ballot in a polling station in Zimbabwe's capital, Harare, on Monday. Voters went to the polls in the country’s first election after the ouster of strongman leader Robert Mugabe last year.LUIS TATO/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES

Rights organizations and Western governments, including the U.S. and the European Union, have condemned the violent crackdown on opposition supporters following the elections—including allegations of beatings, abductions and torture by members of the military and police. Several ambassadors in Harare attended Mr. Biti’s court hearing on Thursday and urged the government to guarantee his safety and rights.

The U.S. State Department also said it was reviewing some aspects of its relationship with Zambia over Mr. Biti’s swift deportation, which left him no time to appeal the rejection of his asylum claim.

In a series of tweets, Mr. Mnangagwa said he intervened to secure Mr. Biti’s release. “At such a crucial time in the history of the new Zimbabwe, nothing is more important than unity, peace and dialogue,” he said.