Two Chinhoyi University Students Abducted, Tortured And Dumped In Shamva
Source: Two Chinhoyi University Students Abducted, Tortured And Dumped In Shamva ⋆ Pindula News Two Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT) students, who were reportedly kidnapped on Monday night during campaigns for the Student Representative Council (SRC) elections, were found on Tuesday in the Bhutsu area near Shamva. They had been dumped there after being […]
Two Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT) students, who were reportedly kidnapped on Monday night during campaigns for the Student Representative Council (SRC) elections, were found on Tuesday in the Bhutsu area near Shamva. They had been dumped there after being beaten and injured.
According to the Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU), the students—Lindon Zanga and Marlvin Saint Madanda—were violently abducted at Mzimba Shopping Centre in Chinhoyi.
The union said the pair was taken by unidentified people in an unmarked grey Isuzu, a vehicle that had been seen on campus distributing campaign materials for their rivals, the Zimbabwe Congress of Students’ Union (ZICOSU).
Zanga and Madanda were allegedly tortured, threatened, and beaten for more than 12 hours before being dumped. They were taken to Chinhoyi Police Station and later to a local hospital for treatment.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, 11 November, before the students were found, ZINASU president Emmanuel Sitima alleged that the abductions were part of a broader attempt to intimidate students and silence dissenting voices on campus. The statement reads:
“It is of greater concern that, as the Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU), we wake up today to sing the same script of abduction, terror and danger for student leaders who are doing nothing more than just campaigning in an SRC election.
“The two student leaders were snatched away in front of dozens of witnesses in a brazen act of banditry that has not only instilled fear but also a clear exposure of the modus operandi of the rogue regime that is seemingly scared of an open contestation of ideas.
“The presence of the Zanu-PF Youth League in Chinhoyi, especially the notorious presence of the Youth League Political Commissar TauraiKandishaya, who has a sordid history of doing everything necessary and unnecessary to please his bosses, should not be cast aside.
“He is notorious for threats and exposing innocent citizens who dare to think differently from the Zanu-PF script; his hand is ever more visible in this situation, and he is the main source of this conflict.
“An SRC election is a pure and representative form of student politics that is supposed to give young people a glimpse into leadership, but the rogue elements in power use state resources to silence any dissenting voices against their autocratic and archaic form of governance.
“Zimbabwe does not require thugs in leadership who are ready to sacrifice young people to win a university election.
“Many people who have been abducted by this regime have disappeared forever; the likes of ItaiDzamara are forever gone, but his disappearance was treated as a non-event.
“This comes as a panic reaction from both the opposing student union ZICOSU, which is directly sponsored by the oppressive ruling regime ZANU PF, and a strong indication of attempts to silence the students’ voice.
“It’s another reality that students have ceased to be seen as beacons of academic excellence, but in the eyes of a jittery regime, they are terrorists that seek to defy an oppressive agenda.
“The Desperation of this administration has now reached a boiling point, and as the bona fide students’ Union of Zimbabwe, we have now drawn a line in the sand where we say that enough is enough and business can no longer continue as usual under such circumstances.
“NOT when the parents of the two Comrades do not know where their children are, when other students live in perennial fear of exercising their Constitutionally guaranteed rights due to a system so paranoid of its own children.
“The Authorities at CUT, in cahoots with the regime, portray themselves as a saintly administration when it does Satanic rituals behind the scenes.
“Zanu-PF brought a list of washed-up celebrities to sing for the suffering students of Chinhoyi, but whilst they sang, their masters were mooting behind the scenes to bring fear and untoward suffering to the general populace.
“When students’ rights matter, the government has looked the other way. This is an action that should be condemned as outrageous, archaic, and anathema to progressive democracy.
“Campuses should be safe havens where students seek accountability, defy oppression, and call for academic freedom.
“As Zinasu, we have vowed to respond with the language they understand the most until our Comrades are safely returned.
“We are giving those responsible to act in a jiffy and return our Cdes. Zimbabwe is not for them but for all of Us.
“As we utilise other legal avenues, we believe this issue is supreme, the liberty of students is at risk, and the detects of the Constitution should be adhered to.”
