News Africa Extended

News Africa Extended

Mugabe warns against further protests in Zim

Posted: 08 Aug 2016 07:50 AM PDT

Zimbabwe's president Robert Mugabe has warned the opposition and civil rights activists against continuing with a wave of protests.

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Harare - Zimbabwe's longtime president has praised his security forces while warning against violent protests, days after the police crushed an anti-government march in the capital, Harare.

President Robert Mugabe spoke Monday at a commemoration event notable for the absence of some of his previously loyal wartime allies.

The commemorations are held annually to honour the southern African country's dead heroes, particularly those who fought in the 1970s independence war.

Leaders of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association, who broke away from the 92-year-old president in July, boycotted the event. Mugabe did not directly address the veterans.

Instead, he warned the opposition and civil rights activists against continuing with a wave of protests that have hit the once prosperous but now economically struggling former British colony. The latest came on Saturday, when demonstrators used a cricket match against New Zealand to speak out. They waved the national flag and sang the national anthem during the 36th over to protest the 36 years that Mugabe has been in power.

“I heard Tsvangirai calling for a coalition as the only way to unseat the government ... protests don't pay because they usually end up being violent. How does it help to go on the streets just to show that you can throw stones, stoning the police?” Mugabe said in the local Shona language.

Morgan Tsvangirai leads the main opposition MDC-T party that has been holding countrywide protests.

Mugabe, who received public backing from commanders of the army in the past week, commended the security forces “for the calm that has been, the peace that has been.”

The president also addressed tensions over delayed payments to civil servants, saying measures to avoid delays were being developed.

AP

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Don't blame state for economic crisis, says Mugabe

Posted: 08 Aug 2016 07:28 AM PDT

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe said citizens should not blame the government for the current economic crisis and hunger that has rocked the country.

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Zimbabwe - Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe said Monday the country's citizens should not blame the government for the current economic crisis and hunger that has rocked the country.

Addressing thousands gathered to commemorate the country's National Heroes Day in Harare, Mugabe said sanctions and the El Niño-induced drought had caused havoc for the Southern African country.

“When we are in a crisis we should know this is our problem together, not for people to point fingers at the government. The government does not make rain. We have tried to improve the lives of our people but the El Niño-induced drought and continued sanctions have caused food shortages in the country,” Mugabe said.

Mugabe said no one in the country, regardless of political affiliation, would starve as the government would continue to import maize to feed the millions who face starvation. “If you have enough food, eat and grow pot bellies, but if you don't get enough, don't blame the government. We try to feed everyone, including those that are not Zanu PF, it is not our culture to discriminate along political lines,” Mugabe said in vernacular.

Mugabe defended the controversial Statutory Instrument 64 which restricts imports, saying it was meant to protect local industries.

“There is no country in the world that does not protect its local industries. We know that the rand is weak and people get things cheaper in South Africa, but that is dumping. We cannot allow dumping of cheap products because they will destroy our industry,” he said.

Mugabe also attacked the Chinese for bringing cheap clothes into the country, saying it did not help local clothing manufacturers grow.

The ageing president also attacked #This Flag Pastor, Evan Mawarire, saying he was after money and not the word of God.

“Some church leaders are now after money and are not seeking God. I did not know this Mawarire until he said people should not be treated like this. But this is our problem together and not a government problem,” he said.

African News Agency

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Dozens killed in Ethiopian protests

Posted: 08 Aug 2016 06:46 AM PDT

Social activists say 25 people have died in clashes between police and protesters demonstrating against the Ethiopian government, a figure disputed by officials.

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Addis Ababa - Protests against the Ethiopian government have left dozens of people dead, activists and witnesses said Monday following a wave of unrest around the country.

The government has only put the death toll at seven.

Demonstrations accusing the government of human rights abuses and of marginalising ethnic communities raged over the weekend in the north-western region of Amhara and in Oromia, Ethiopia's largest region covering parts of the south and west.

The Oromo and Amhara are the largest among Ethiopia's more than 80 ethnic groups, making up an estimated 30 per cent each of the 94-million population.

The government said seven people were killed in Amhara's capital Bahir Dar as protesters clashed with police.

But social media activists and witnesses, who spoke to dpa on condition of anonymity, said clashes in Amhara and Oromia claimed up to 25 lives.

“Social amenities, hotels, banks and individual-owned properties were attacked during the violence” in Bahir Dar, the Amhara region's spokesman, Nigusu Tilhaun, told the state-affiliated Fana Broadcasting Corporate.

Activists and witnesses accused the authorities of a brutal crackdown to silence criticism.

Oromia had previously seen months of protests against plans to extend the boundary of the capital, Addis Ababa, which is located in Oromia, amid concern that it could lead to farmers being displaced.

The protests led to security forces killing more than 400 people, according to Human Rights Watch.

ANA-DPA

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Somali minister survives bomb thrown at car

Posted: 08 Aug 2016 02:16 AM PDT

Somalia's Minister of Youth and Sport has survived an assassination attempt after a hand grenade was thrown at his car.

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Johannesburg - Somalia's Minister of Youth and Sport has survived an assassination attempt after a hand grenade was thrown at his car in the capital Mogadishu.

Mohamed Abdullahi Nassan Noah told the Voice of America (VOA) that the explosive device hit his car at a local market in Maka Al Mukaramah, the capital's busy main street.

"When I got out from the car, a bomb hit and damaged the car, everybody was shocked and ran away from the scene," the minister said.

"A family friend who was travelling with me was hurt, but I was unhurt," he added.

The minister said his bodyguards were not wounded.

Somalia's security minister said in a tweet that two civilians were wounded in the attack, VOA reported.

It has yet to be determined who was behind the attack, although the extremist group Al Shabaab is suspected having carried out numerous attacks against government officials in and around Mogadishu.

In June, Somalia's State Minister for Environment Buri Mohamed Hamza and more than one dozen other people were killed when the militants stormed a hotel in the capital.

Sunday's attack came hours after Somali officials released new poll dates for the 2016 elections, reported VOA.

African News Agency

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