In a chilling display of power, heavily armed Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) operatives stormed a Harare bar on Wednesday, demanding the whereabouts of a prominent human rights activist.
The incident, which unfolded at the Sherwood Golf Club in Mabelreign, saw the agents, wielding AK47 assault rifles, terrorise patrons and staff, leaving a trail of shock and fear in their wake, Zimlive has reported.
The target of the CIO’s aggressive pursuit was Briggs Bomba, the programmes director for Trust Africa, a good governance advocacy organisation headquartered in Dakar, Senegal. Bomba is a regular patron at the Sherwood Golf Club, and the CIO’s brazen raid sent shockwaves through the establishment.
Among the patrons caught in the crosshairs of the CIO’s operation was retired Lieutenant General Engelbert Rugeje, a prominent Zanu PF politburo member. General Rugeje, who was reportedly enjoying a drink at the bar, watched in apparent shock as up to 15 CIO agents, driving in unmarked Toyota Fortuner vehicles, descended upon the leisure centre.
The agents, described as aggressive and intimidating, shouted “Where is Briggs Bomba?!” as they harassed bar staff. A witness reported that the CIO operatives looted the bar, making off with expensive whisky before leaving the scene.
The incident comes just days before a summit of regional leaders, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), is scheduled to take place in Harare on August 17. President Emmerson Mnangagwa has deployed a heavy security presence across the country, including police, soldiers, CIO operatives, and even prison officers, in a bid to suppress any potential protests during the summit.
In Bulawayo, soldiers were seen jogging on Masiyephambili Drive, which runs through several neighbourhoods, while in Harare, police and soldiers patrolled the city streets together, even venturing into crowded high-density areas. Roadblocks have been erected across the country, with regular police officers shadowed by military police.
Despite the heightened security presence, police spokesman Commissioner Paul Nyathi insists that the deployments are “normal.”
The CIO’s raid on the Sherwood Golf Club is a stark reminder of the increasingly repressive environment in Zimbabwe. Over 120 government critics are currently being held without bail in prisons, as Mnangagwa’s government seeks to quell any dissent ahead of the upcoming SADC summit.
The brutal crackdown on opposition and civil society activists has drawn international condemnation. South Africa’s ruling coalition party, the Democratic Alliance, has called on SADC to move the summit from Zimbabwe in response to Mnangagwa’s actions. However, it remains unlikely that the summit will be relocated.
Zimbabwe is set to assume the rotating chairmanship of SADC at the summit, a position that has been met with skepticism given the country’s deteriorating human rights record.
