Grace Mugabe solidarity march slammed

War veterans and opposition parties yesterday poured scorn on the planned solidarity march with  First Lady Grace Mugabe scheduled for Harare today, after she whipped a South African model with an electric cord who was waiting with two friends in a luxury hotel suite to meet one of her adult sons.

Today's demonstration, organised by a faction of war veterans under the leadership of Manicaland Provincial Affairs minister Mandi Chimene, comes after police on Tuesday banned an opposition demo against Grace, aimed at protesting the South African government's decision to grant her diplomatic immunity. Opposition youths had planned to picket the South African Embassy in Harare but the march was proscribed by police.

Efforts to get comment from police spokesperson Charity Charamba yesterday whether today's march had been sanctioned were futile as she was not answering her mobile phone, but the demonstrators said the action had been okayed by police.

A rival war veterans group said it was foolish for anyone to organise a rally in support of a criminal.

"I don't know if this is of any value to long-suffering Zimbabwe. You are talking about a person who has done something wrong but I don't want to talk about that," Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA) secretary-general Victor Matemadanda said.

"People like Mandi and (her deputy George) Mlala should remember that there is a court order that bars them from representing war veterans. This is a bogus group that has no membership. The membership of the Mandi group is just made of family as the real representatives of war veterans we have no reason to have a solidarity meeting or march.

"I can tell from experience that the money they are using comes from government and not the party. They are abusing taxpayers money," fumed Matemadanda.

The Chimene group have said they will converge at Zanu-PF national headquarters today for the controversial solidarity meeting with Grace.

According to Mlala, the march will see Zanu-PF supporters from across the country meeting in Harare.

Obert Gutu, spokesperson of the Morgan Tsvangirai-led MDC, said instead of organising a so-called solidarity rally in support of Grace, Chimene and others of her ilk should actually be organising a demonstration against violence meted by Grace against a girl child.

"Where, in the decent and normal world, would you get a solidarity march being organised in support of a violent and aggressive bully?

"Chimene doesn't sound like she is in control of her faculties. She must be smoking something very hazardous to her brain," Gutu said, blasting the police for okaying the march.

"Of course, the ZRP has been reduced into a partisan and thoroughly unprofessional appendage of Zanu-PF. It boggles the mind why the ZRP refused the opposition permission to organise a march against Grace Mugabe's violent tantrums and savage beating of Gabriella Engels. Zimbabwe is now a full-fledged banana republic that is run by an old despot whose wife has got an explosive and irrational temperament," said Gutu.

Nera publicity director and Progressive Democrats of Zimbabwe policy secretary Davis Mukushwa said justice should be served for all who have been abused by Grace under the guise of diplomatic immunity.

"When Nera youth leaders were summoned by the police after requesting permission to demonstrate against Grace, they were interrogated and mocked for two hours. They were even advised to never attempt to march against her. If nobody gets to demand justice for her actions while outside the country, who will even demand the same justice for the farmers of Manzou (farm seized by Grace)?" he asked rhetorically.