HARARE: Three men carting a fridge as they are leaving Harare which was deserted in the aftermath of violent protests over the increase in the price of fuel on Monday — AFP HARARE, Jan 16 (Agencies): An uneasy calm returned to Zimbabwe's main cities but businesses and schools remained closed and mobile networks enforced a government internet shutdown on the final day of a national strike triggered by a steep rise in fuel prices.
In central Harare, shops, banks, fast-food chains, and some government offices were closed on Wednesday with little traffic on the roads.
There was no public transport and some people could be seen walking from townships into the city centre.
Workers' trade unions called for a three-day nationwide shutdown to protest the government's decision to more than double the price of fuel.
The action comes shortly after junior doctors ended a 40-day strike demanding salaries in US dollars and better working conditions.
"Ours is all about fuel. Ours is all about the skyrocketing prices of basic needs from fuel, health and food," said Kumbirai Magorimbo, while reading newspaper headlines in central Harare.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe police armed with AK-47 rifles arrested Evan Mawarire, an activist and pastor, from his home in the capital, Harare, on Wednesday morning as a crackdown grew over protests against dramatic fuel price hikes in the economically shattered country. He was clutching a Bible when police bundled him into their car.
Mawarire organised what became nationwide anti-government protests in 2016 against government mismanagement and then-President Robert Mugabe's long stay in power.
"They are alleging that he incited violence through Twitter and other forms of social media in the central business district," said Beatrice Mtetwa, Mawarire's lawyer.
There were widespread reports of violence as the country faced a third day of protests over what has become the world's most expensive gasoline.
Zimbabwe's largest telecom company, Econet, sent text messages to customers saying it had been forced by the government to shut down internet service.
"The matter is beyond our control," it said.
Other arrests were reported. A spokesman for the main opposition MDC party, Nkululeko Sibanda, said in a Twitter post that "party leadership" had been detained. "This is only deepening the political crisis in the country," he said.
As President Emmerson Mnangagwa makes an extended overseas trip that will include a stop at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to plead for more foreign investment, former military commander and Vice President Constantino Chiwenga, a hardliner, is in charge at home.
Eight people were killed on Monday when police and military fired on crowds, according to Amnesty International. Human Rights Watch reported 25 people wounded.
But Zimbabwe's government said three people were killed, including a policeman who was stoned to death by an angry crowd.
The anti-government demonstrations amounted to "terrorism," Information Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said on state television Tuesday night. The protests were "well-coordinated" by Zimbabwe's opposition, she said.
International concern has been rising over Zimbabwe after a burst of optimism when Mugabe stepped down in late 2017 under military pressure.
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