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June 8, 2008

Zimbabwe Opposition Plans Rallies After Court Overturns Police Ban 
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Officials with Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change say
party will hold two rallies Sunday following High Court ruling that
overturned police ban on selected MDC events 

Morgan Tsvangirai, President of Zimbabwe's Movement For Democratic
Change, addresses displaced victims of political violence at the party
headquarters in Harare, 27 May 2008

Officials with Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change say
the party will hold two rallies Sunday following the country's High
Court ruling that overturned a police ban on selected MDC events.

Saturday's ruling came in response to an MDC petition that challenged
the ban on rallies scheduled for Saturday and Sunday in Harare. MDC
spokesman Nelson Chamisa says the court's action has limited impact,
since it does not affect a ban on opposition campaign events nationwide.

The ruling was issued too late to allow rallies planned for Saturday in
crowded urban townships.

Mr. Tsvangirai, who is facing a June 27 presidential runoff election
against President Robert Mugabe, was arrested and released twice in the
last week while campaigning. He has been ordered to stop campaign
activities, and is not expected to appear at today's rallies. 

Zimbabwean police detained another opposition lawmaker Saturday as the
government continues to crack down on political activity ahead of the
runoff vote.

Members of the MDC say Mr. Mugabe's supporters have killed dozens of
opposition members and attacked hundreds of others in a bid to
intimidate supporters of Mr. Tsvangirai, who is trying to unseat
President Mugabe after 28 years as the country's leader.

Mr. Tsvangirai defeated Mr. Mugabe in the first round of presidential
voting. But the government's official election results, which were
released weeks after the vote, said Mr. Tsvangirai did not receive
enough votes to avoid a runoff with President Mugabe.

Some information for this report was provided by AFPand Reuters.


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