Zimbabwe's opposition presidential candidate Mr Morgan Tsvangirai was detained for half an hour today for holding what police described as an "illegal gathering".
|
|
Mr Morgan Tsvangirai
|
The arrest comes ten days before the country’s general election and two days after police charged Mr Tsvangirai, leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), with treason for allegedly plotting to kill President Robert Mugabe.
Two other MDC officials also face treason charges in the affair. The MDC has rejected the plot allegations, dismissing them as an attempt to discredit the party ahead of a vote in which Mr Mugabe faces his most serious challenge in 22 years in power.
An MDC spokesman said police declared today's private meeting, attended by fewer than 10 people, to be illegal.
"They said it was an illegal gathering and refused to allow them to go away for 30 minutes" afterward, he said.
The Harare administration has drawn intense international criticism over moves seen as aimed at ensuring Mr Mugabe's re-election, and Canada has said it will lead a push for sanctions at a Commonwealth summit next week.
AFP