Vendor dies in municipal police Mbare clashes

Municipal police

A vendor was killed in Harare yesterday while attempting to resist arrest by municipal police officers who were chasing him

This  prompted some Mbare residents to run amok, stoning municipal and ZRP police officers and passing cars.

The angry residents and vendors turned violent before dumping the body of the man at the council’s department of engineering along Remembrance Drive at around 10:30am.

The vendor, identified as Godfrey Tonde (25), is suspected to have died after falling down while fleeing from municipal police at Shawasha Grounds.

Harare provincial police spokesperson Inspector James Sabau said they would investigate Tonde’s death. He expressed concern at the behaviour of the residents, saying people should not take the law into their hands.

"We don’t condone such behaviour and they should not have become more and more violent when the police had moved in to assist," he said.

He also expressed dismay that children and women had joined in the melee.

Three vehicles and a commuter omnibus had their windscreens shattered as they passed in front of the residents who also included women and children.

Early last month, a Mupedzanhamo stallholder, Mrs Martha Chitambira (70), was killed after being hit by a missile during a demonstration against the proposed re-organisation of Mupedzanhamo Flea Market.

The residents and vendors yesterday blamed the municipal police for Tonde’s death and accused them of being corrupt.

Police had to be deployed to control the situation yesterday afternoon, but had to fight running battles with hundreds of residents near Nenyere Flats.

Two Public Order Vehicles with armed policemen were deployed to the area, particularly along Remembrance Drive, where the residents had blocked the road leading into and out of town.

The residents threw stones, barring all vehicles from passing.When The Herald visited the scene yesterday, Tonde’s body was still at the council offices.

It was later taken to a hospital mortuary under police escort.On seeing this, the residents and some vendors became more violent.Police called on reinforcements as their trucks came under attack.

When it looked like the rioters were not paying heed to the call, the police warned that they would use force to disperse them.

Police, including the Support Unit, then moved in and fired tear smoke canisters to disperse the rioters especially those who were inside the broken security wall at Nenyere Flats, opposite Mupedzanhamo Flea Market.

Some of the residents had blocked the flyover leading to Mbare before setting fire to some cardboard boxes and tyres.

Police managed to calm the situation and extinguished the fire, but the rowdy crowds re-emerged a few minutes later.

Some of the youths could be seen holding wet towels and T-shirts to neutralise the tear smoke. They continued throwing stones at the police, leading to a heavy police deployment around the flats.

By around 3.45pm, the police had managed to bring the situation under control paving way for the free movement of traffic.

The latest incident comes after vendors and touts fought pitched battles with Harare Municipal Police at the Fourth Street bus terminus as they resisted attempts by the city to rid the streets of illegal activities last week.