Zimbabwe court allows opposition rallies

HARARE, Zimbabwe (CNN) -- A Zimbabwean court ruled Saturday that the opposition party can stage its planned rallies, even though police had said the day before that all such gatherings were banned.

The opposition Movement for Democratic Change received approval from the court to stage four rallies, one Saturday and three Sunday, said Alec Muchandehama, attorney for the MDC.

Morgan Tsvangirai, the MDC opposition leader, had been detained by police on Friday and was told by police that demonstrations by the group were banned, his spokesman said.

But Muchandehama said the police prohibit or approve rallies as they see fit and politicians can challenge bans in court. Lawyers sued to have the four weekend rallies allowed.

Tsvangirai on Saturday addressed a rally in the rural district of Nkayi, about 125 miles west of Bulawayo, said his spokesman, George Sibotshiwe. About 4,000 attended and there were no incidents involving police. Watch how international outrage is growing »

Sibotshiwe said the main messages at the rally were "We need to finish what we have started" and "The people of Matabeleland have suffered for 20 years and have been marginalized as a community. Our enemy has divided us and now is the time to finish him off."

Nkayi district is located in the country's Matabeleland province.

After the Saturday rally, Tsvangirai was en route to another rally in Nkayi district, but the MDC did not request approval from the court for that event.

The movement said it is not going to request a court OK for every rally it holds because such permission could enable the government to control the MDC's campaigning efforts.

Tsvangirai has been campaigning hard for president against incumbent President Robert Mugabe. The March 29 elections resulted in a bitter standoff between the rivals, and a runoff election has been set for June 27.

Tsvangirai and others have been the objects of a government crackdown on dissenters and Mugabe opponents in Zimbabwe.

Police briefly detained Tsvangirai twice this week. And on Saturday, police raided the home of Eric Matinenga, an opposition lawmaker, said Nelson Chamisa, an MDC spokesman.

"They have taken him to his constituency [Buhera West]," Chamisa said. "This is just calculated and systematic harassment by the regime."

Assistant Commissioner Wayne Bvudzijena, a spokesman for the police chief, confirmed Matinenga's arrest and said he was assisting police with investigations.

"He is facing charges of inciting violence and he is likely to appear in court today or on Monday in Mutare," Bvudzijena said. Mutare is the provincial capital of Manicaland, which also covers Buhera West.

Matinenga was acquitted of the same charge last week. Some analysts said he is being targeted for successfully securing an interim order from the High Court in May forcing the army to withdraw soldiers from rural areas where they have allegedly committed violence and human rights abuses.

Police had arrested him as he went to serve soldiers with the High Court order that they should leave the area to avoid militarization of the rural areas ahead of the June 27 presidential runoff.

Mugabe's government this week suspended the work of aid agencies in Zimbabwe, saying they were supporting the opposition -- a charge the agencies deny.

The United Nations' top humanitarian coordinator in Zimbabwe, Agostinho Zacarias, asked the government Friday to rescind the order and met with church leaders to ponder aid alternatives in the meantime.

Bright Matonga, deputy information minister for Zimbabwe, said several nongovernmental organizations had become involved in political activities, and that some had told people they wouldn't receive aid unless they voted for Tsvangirai.

Agencies must re-register with the government and state their purpose clearly to continue working in Zimbabwe, he said, and the government hopes that happens soon.

U.S. Ambassador to Zimbabwe James McGee said Friday that Zimbabwean authorities are using food as a weapon to intimidate the population and hold on to power. The European Union condemned the suspension of aid agency work.

The EU also condemned Tsvangirai's detention, as well as the detention of several U.S. and British diplomats driving in the country Thursday. The diplomats were forced off the road and detained by Zimbabwe security forces; their car tires were slashed and a local employee was badly beaten, U.S. and British officials said.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called the incident "outrageous behavior in the treatment of diplomats" and the EU echoed the condemnation.

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