Zimbabwean white farmers in court

Tensions have been rising in Chinhoyi for three weeks

Twenty-three white farmers have appeared in court in the town of Chinhoyi, Zimbabwe, charged with public violence and assault following clashes with a group of self-styled war veterans who had been occupying a farm.

Tension and violence between white farmers and government supporters has been mounting in the town 100 kilometres (60 miles) from the capital Harare for the past three weeks.

The court appearance was highly-charged and a group of about 200 government supporters chased away reporters from the foreign and private press.

If the whites start fighting us, then we have to retaliate

Patrick Nyaruwata, war veterans association

One told a white journalist: "We have grievances against the whites. Don't stand here because we will beat you up."

The group milling around outside Chinhoyi magistrates court had also threatened to attack the farmers, if they were granted bail.

A British diplomat was present to check on reports that some of the farmers had dual British-Zimbabwean nationality, which has been declared illegal by President Robert Mugabe's government.

Adjourned

One of the men, 71 year-old Gert Pretorious, collapsed in the courtroom and is being treated at Chinhoyi hospital.

The court has now adjourned until Thursday and so the farmers will spend another night in police cells.

As part of Mr Mugabe's policy of redistributing land, groups of war veterans and poor black farmers have been encouraged to settle on land forcibly taken from white owners by the Zimbabwean Government.

Following 80 years of colonial rule, whites own about 60% of Zimbabwe's most fertile agricultural land.

So far, nine white farmers have been killed in incidents linked to the land invasions. Two black people - a policeman and a settler - have also been killed.

Ralph Corbett, aged 76, became the latest victim on Monday when he succumbed to the wounds he sustained after being attacked by unknown assailants on 3 August.

In July, a white farmer allegedly killed a black settler by repeatedly driving over him in his truck.

Defenceless

Patrick Nyaruwata, acting chairman of the war veterans association, said: "If the whites start fighting us, then we have to retaliate."

The farmers are accused of ganging up and brutally attacking defenceless resettled farmers at a farm on Monday, said the government newspaper, The Herald.

But the farmers say that war veterans tried to attack one of them.

Two other farmers in the area reportedly came to his aid, and they too were set upon and left with broken ribs and head injuries.

Then about 20 other farmers in the vicinity came to the scene and a fight broke out between the farmers and the war veterans.

Many settlers have been living in the open for 18 months, waiting for the land promised by Robert Mugabe

Five war veterans sustained injuries during the fighting.

When the police arrived, all of them were questioned, but only the farmers were arrested.

Peter Chanetsa, Governor of Mashonaland West province - of which Chinhoyi is the capital - told state television that the farmers who were in custody should know that they had definitely lost all of their land.

The land invasions are widely seen as a ploy by Mr Mugabe to overcome the threat of the new opposition Movement for Democratic Change, MDC.

At least 30 black MDC supporters have been killed in political clashes before and after the June 2000 parliamentary elections, in which Mr Mugabe's Zanu-PF narrowly defeated the MDC.

Much of the violence was orchestrated by Zanu-PF supporters based on occupied white-owned farms around the country.

Presidential elections due in April 2002 are expected to be the most keenly contested - and violent - in Zimbabwe's 21-year history.