ZimEye.org  |  My ZimEye  |  Profile  |  Register  |  Forgot Password?

Soldiers incite public looting in Harare

By Blessing Chapwati
for ZimEye.org

Published: December 1, 2008

commentComment        

By Blessing Chapwati

Harare(ZimEye)Soldiers ran riot in central Harare Monday afternoon inciting a wave of public looting in shops.

 

The soldiers who at first confiscated ice cream and cash from parallel market foreign currency dealers incited the public who started following them wherever they were going and later started looting shops.

Most affected shops are from the Harare’s Kopje area where most small businesses are owned by Nigerian nationals. By Monday evening most of the shops were being guarded by armed policeman.

 

One shop owner, a Nigerian national, Justice Okwenu said soldiers came into his shop accusing him of contributing to the melt down of the economy by illegally trading in foreign currency.

 

“They came into my shop and started accusing me of trading in foreign currency. Thereafter a crowd gathered around and started looting. I have lost everything I had in the shop,” Okwenu said.

 

Most of the targeted shops sale imported goods that require foreign currency that most shop owners have to source on the parallel market. Ximex mall in central Harare was also affected and most shops are now empty.

 

Police were not immediately available for comment.

 

Fears are that the situation could worsen to levels of the June 2007 price blitz which left shops empty. The price blitz was carried out at the blessing of Mugabe’s government which claimed that it was cracking down on economic saboteurs.

 

Observers say if the situation obtaining in Harare continues it could degenerate into anarchy. Tensions are rising over cash, food, and water shortages. Harare has been without running water since Thursday when the water purification plant was shut down.

 

President Mugabe’s government has blamed the deteriorating social services on “illegal” sanctions imposed by the west while the west blame Mugabe’s failed economic policies.

 

Zimbabwe is going through its worst economic and humanitarian crisis since independence from Britain 28 years ago. The monthly Inflation rate has gone over the 300 million percent but independent analysts say it has gone over a one trillion percent.

 

To date UN agencies have reported that more than 400 people have succumbed to the cholera epidemic and the crisis has affected neighbouring countries such as South Africa and Botswana where hundreds of Zimbabweans are trooping in search of treatment and better living conditions. [ZimEye, Zimbabwe]

 

 

 

Tagged with: Add new tag, Soldiers incite public looting in Harare


WPSN comments

Comments are closed.

ZimEye Latest