Mugabe threatens Zimbabwe opposition with arrest over unrest

"Sooner rather than later we are going to accuse the MDC and the party leadership of being liable and responsible for those crimes of violence," he said, a reference to the opposition Movement for Democratic Change.

Mugabe, addressing a rally in Kadoma, south of Harare, added: "We are telling them we will arrest you in broad daylight."

Of the violence, he said: "There is now a pattern across the country that has to stop."

The MDC immediately dismissed Mugabe's threats.

"He knows very well we have nothing to do with the violence," said MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa.

"He is the one who has gone about threatening to go back to war if he loses. So while he is accusing us of violence, he is responsible."

The claims marked a further escalation in rhetoric ahead of the presidential run-off vote, with Mugabe warning over the weekend that he was ready to fight to prevent the opposition from coming to power.

While Mugabe blames the opposition for the upsurge in violence, the UN has said the president's supporters are responsible for the bulk of it.

The opposition has said that the violence has so far claimed the lives of more than 60 of their supporters since the first round of the presidential election in March.

MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai, who faces Mugabe in the run-off, has claimed Zimbabwe is now run by what is essentially a "military junta" that has unleashed a campaign of violence and intimidation throughout the country.

Besides the violence, the opposition has faced major obstacles in their campaign.

Police have detained Tsvangirai five times over the last couple of weeks and two MDC campaign buses have been seized, though one has since been returned.

Earlier Monday, police searched the home and computer of opposition number two Tendai Biti, who is facing a treason charge following his arrest last week minutes after returning home from a long stay in South Africa.

Police are allowed to hold suspects for up to 48 hours, and Biti is already beyond that limit following his arrest on Thursday.

Mugabe's regime has come under intense criticism from the West over what they have denounced as a crackdown ahead of the vote.

On Monday, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called Mugabe's regime "desperate and criminal" and said he must not be allowed to "steal" the election. Brown said the Zimbabwe leader's recent behaviour was "totally unacceptable".

Mugabe has ruled Zimbabwe since independence from Britain in 1980.

Vocabulary

to threaten, v: to say that you will punish somebody if they do something you don't want them to do

run-off, n: deciding competition after a competition that had no clear winner

liable, adj: responsible by law; legally responsible

rally, n: get-together of people who have the same interest or think the same

rhetoric, n: use of language that is unnecessarily strong or aggressive

to blame, v: to say that somebody is responsible for something bad that has happened

to unleash, v: to start something that is not controlled or controllable

intimidation, n: act of making somebody so afraid that they stop doing a certain action

to seize, v: to take away from somebody by force because you have the right to do so

to denounce, v: to publicly say that something is bad or wrong

Questions

1. In what country are these events happening?

a. Eritrea

b. Angola

c. Ethiopia

d. Zimbabwe

2. How long has Mugabe been in office?

a. 48 hours

b. 28 years

c. 60 years

d. 80 years

3. What does MDC stand for?

a. Military Dictatorship Council

b. Militant Democracy Community

c. Movement for Democratic Change

d. Mugabe's Dastardly Companionship

4. What is Mugabe worried about?

a. losing the election

b. being invaded by America

c. being arrested in broad daylight

d. being turned into a British colony

5. Who are the victims of the violence?

a. civil servants

b. innocent bystanders

c. government soldiers

d. opposition supporters

Synonyms

Which of the following words or phrases replace the ones from the passage best?

1. arrest

a. ban

b. exile

c. shoot

d. imprison

2. mount

a. remove

b. increase

c. suppress

d. advocate

3. escalation

a. increase

b. confusion

c. distraction

d. intensification

4. upsurge

a. control

b. increase

c. cessation

d. prevention

5. bulk

a. origin

b. majority

c. strategy

d. restriction

KEY

Questions              1.  d, 2. b, 3. c, 4. a, 5. d

Synonyms              1. d, 2.  b, 3. d, 4. b, 5. b

By Ajarn Horst Baelz