Chilonga leaders in Zambia live in fear after resisting the goverment’s decision to forcibly evict them from their ancestral lands to pave way for commercial production of lucerne grass
Hay
Zambia
Published Mar 9, 2021
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Source: Chilonga leaders living in fear | The Standard By Tatenda Chitagu CHILONGA community leaders who are at the forefront of resisting goverment’s decision to forcibly evict them from their ancestral lands to pave way for commercial production of lucerne grass say they are being harassed by suspected state security agents that visit their homes and send them threatening messages on a daily basis.
Original content
Villagers in Chilonga, Chiredzi, have over the past week made global headlines for resisting a forcible take-over of their land by a Kwekwe-based diary company, Dendairy, which is seeking to establish a massive lucerne grass estate in their area. Some of them said they now fear for their lives and safety of their families and have since gone into hiding to dodge the unwelcome visitations. Some of the villagers said their relief was shortlived as spooks were calling them on their phones threatening them with unspecified action. “We are getting threatening calls, they are saying we are doing politics and accuse us of being members of the opposition parties. “But ours is not a political cause, we believe it is a just cause. “They are playing the divide-and-rule tactic and as I am speaking, I am in hiding in the jungle,” one community leader, who claimed to be speaking from a hiding place over the phone, said. Another villager said the government wants to cow them into submission. ...
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