Zimbabwe warns of crackdown after protests

Soldiers are on the streets of the capital for a second day. Pic/AFP

Zimbabwe's government has vowed to crack down on opposition dissent after three people were killed when protests against alleged electoral fraud were met by live ammunition, denting hopes of a new era for the country.

Soldiers fired on demonstrators during opposition MDC party protests in Harare yesterday, with one man shot dead in the stomach. Monday's polls - the first since autocratic president Robert Mugabe was forced out by a brief military takeover in November - had been meant to turn the page on years of violence-marred elections and brutal repression of dissent.

But the mood quickly descended into anger and chaos as supporters of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) opposition declared they were being cheated in the election count.

Britain, US express concern
Britain's minister for Africa, Harriett Baldwin, says she is "deeply concerned" about the deadly violence in Harare and she calls on political leaders to ensure calm and restraint. The US statement says, "the political situation in Zimbabwe remains uncertain."

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