The World - News from Sept. 23, 1987

Zimbabwe’s Home Affairs Minister Enos Nkala ordered the closure of all offices of the main opposition party, the Zimbabwe African People’s Union. Nkala said the move against Joshua Nkomo’s party was part of a campaign against dissidents and their supporters in response to a new wave of rebel violence. Nkomo responded by accusing Nkala of “trying to be everything from a government minister to a policeman, prosecutor and jailer.” The new violence followed a breakdown in talks between Prime Minister Robert Mugabe and Nkomo early this year that were aimed at merging the opposition with Mugabe’s ruling Zimbabwe African National Union.