Hundreds of people from civil society organizations, churches and political parties gathered in Bulawayo Wednesday for a prayer meeting in support of Roman Catholic Archbishop Pius Ncube, hit with a civil lawsuit alleging his involvement in an adulterous relationship with a local woman that has been intensely covered by state media.
Sources said Saint Mary’s Cathedral in Bulawayo was filled to capacity.
The prayer meeting was organized by a group called the Archbishop Pius Ncube Solidarity Coalition. A spokesman for the organization said it was not disputing the allegations against Ncube, but uniting against what it described as the state-organized humiliation of the cleric for his outspoken opposition to President Robert Mugabe.
Ncube did not attend the prayer meeting though sources in Bulawayo said he was seen outside the cathedral during the event.
Solidarity Coalition National Coordinator Effie Dlela Ncube told Chris Gande of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe that the organization is organizing meetings at which it intends to invite the archbishop to continue his public opposition to the government.
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