Zimbabwe police on Wednesday fired tear gas and water cannons to break up anti-government protests in the capital, Harare, as frustrations grow over a rapidly deteriorating economy.
Zimbabwe police officers clash with protestors and journalists, in Harare, Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2016. Zimbabwe police have fired tear gas and water cannons to break up anti-government protests in the capital, Harare. Police beat up several journalists covering the protests Wednesday, smashing a video camera and attacking a journalist’s car, breaking windows and taking a laptop. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)
Police beat up several journalists covering the protests, smashing a video camera and attacking a journalist’s car, breaking windows and taking a laptop.
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Zimbabwe police officers clash with protestors and journalists, in Harare, Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2016. Zimbabwe police have fired tear gas and water cannons to break up anti-government protests in the capital, Harare. Police beat up several journalists covering the protests Wednesday, smashing a video camera and attacking a journalist’s car, breaking windows and taking a laptop. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)
Baton-wielding police moved in as hundreds of activists gathered outside the finance minister’s office demanding that he abandons plans to introduce bond notes that will be used alongside the United States dollar. Zimbabwe abandoned its currency in 2009 following hyperinflation, adopting a multi-currency system dominated by the dollar.
A cameraman is hit by the police during demonstrations in Harare, Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2016. Zimbabwe police have fired tear gas and water cannons to break up anti-government protests in the capital, Harare. Police beat up several journalists covering the protests Wednesday, smashing a video camera and attacking a journalist’s car, breaking windows and taking a laptop. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)
Another group of protesters, calling themselves unemployed university graduates, were marching to Parliament wearing their graduation gowns. Police maintained a heavy presence downtown.
Street protests have become a near-daily occurrence in the southern African country, which also faces massive unemployment and accusations of corruption. President Robert Mugabe, who has been in power since 1980, last month said people unhappy with the situation should leave.
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A cameraman is hit by the police during demonstrations in Harare, Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2016. Zimbabwe police have fired tear gas and water cannons to break up anti-government protests in the capital, Harare. Police beat up several journalists covering the protests Wednesday, smashing a video camera and attacking a journalist’s car, breaking windows and taking a laptop. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)
“We don’t hate you Mr. President, we just love our country,” one protester’s placard read.
Other marchers carried wooden crosses, singing and chanting slogans against alleged corruption, human rights abuses and economic decline. Some wore the national flag, which has become a symbol of anti-government sentiment in recent months. AP
Police in Zimbabwe say they have arrested 95 demonstrators on charges of promoting "public violence" and for "breaches of peace", after they took part in Monday's protests demanding that President Emmerson Mnangagwa resign.
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