Victory and Going to Top Gears - Itai Dzamara

Victory and Going to Top Gears

Day 3 of our occupation of Africa Unity Square was unique and typical in several ways, which have a lot of meaning to how our programme has quickly evolved.

Yet again, the state showed us clear signs of paranoia and fear for our occupation of the Africa Unity Square.

That is not what we want, or are looking for, to reiterate. We want the state to allow us to combine our numbers for staging our protest until President Mugabe responds to our demands.

Although there were considerably fewer numbers of police teams yesterday, they nevertheless became alerted and nervous when our group gathered in the square.

They, around 10:00 hrs, started their now common routines, of chasing away people from the park, with specific targeting of a group spearheading our mission and which they can now easily identify.

We took advantage of their few numbers to continuously move around the park and along its edges when they tried to push us away.

We spent more than an hour doing that, and with the police team shepherding us around.
Their plan was to frustrate us away from the park.

Eventually, they grew tired and left us to occupy the square. As the day progressed more people came into the square and joined us, with over 150 having eventually filled the park in the afternoon.

The group of police members had also joined in our protest by relaxing in the park or lying on the lawn.
We celebrate yesterday's developments and victory. We anticipated from the beginning, that the first phase would be about establishing our programme and battling the state until we get our way.

Mainly, we are encouraged by the fact that the state finally acquisced to our insistence and commitment towards exercising our rights of occupying the square.
We had a torrid time on Wednesday, as the police went to terrible levels in trying to violate our rights and programme of occupying the square - including attempts at using violent attack at a targeted group of our mission.

We are encouraged and spurred by our determination and victory of yesterday, although we still wait for President Robert Mugabe's response.

We shall continue waiting in the square today, for the response, and hoping that the state conducts itself yet again in a civilised and peaceful manner like the police did yesterday.

We have come to a point of increasing the dimension of our mission, which keeps getting more support and solidarity from many Zimbabweans.

We shall introduce more ways of making our voices heard, spreading the message and involving many numbers.

There is no doubt at all about the fact that the protest has obtained a lot of support and backing.
It now has to continue growing and making the required impact.

The many Zimbabweans that have joined in backing our demands to Mugabe, have a consensus about the urgency of the national crisis and need for solving it.

We are not compromising nor going back on our demands until Mugabe responds.

We therefore will not pretend to hide the fact that we are intensifying the campaign and widening our strategies as well as approach.

We urge you to come and join us today at the square, as we prove yet again that we are determined to make our voices heard in a civil, peaceful and resolute manner.

We now have no doubt at all, that this mission shall make a difference, because;

We are the people!
We are the numbers!
Let's go!

Itai Dzamara