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 HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) - An outspoken Catholic archbishop urged Zimbabweans to fill the streets to protest a surge in state-orchestrated violence, saying Thursday he was willing to lead a campaign of peaceful resistance to force President Robert Mugabe out of office.
Mugabe's opponents reported that a hospitalized activist had died of injuries suffered when police fired tear gas, live ammunition and water cannons to stop a March 11 prayer meeting protesting his rule. Police did not confirm the death of Itai Manyeruki, who would be the second activist to die as a result of violence. Gift Tandare, 31, was fatally shot as the meeting was dispersed.
Archbishop Pius Ncube told a gathering of clerics, pro-democracy activists and mostly Western diplomats in Harare on Thursday that, "We must be ready to stand, even in front of blazing guns."
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