A prominent Zimbabwean rights activist caught up in a terrorism case widely denounced as a sham has been taken back to prison after prosecutors formally laid charges.

Jestina Mukoko appeared stunned as she heard that her bail was being revoked, standing wordlessly in the dock staring at Harare Magistrate Catherine Chimanda, as her supporters burst into tears. Fifteen others accused in the case also had their bail rescinded.

Ms Chimanda said today that she was ordering them back to prison because a formal indictment had been filed a day earlier. The indictment accuses Ms Mukoko and the 15 others of sabotage, terrorism and banditry.

The activists, who also include several opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) members, say they were abducted by state security agents from their homes in a series of raids that began last October and held incommunicado in secret locations for weeks.

They were not charged, but say they were beaten on the feet, subjected to simulated drownings, locked in freezers and hung by their wrists to extract false confessions that they had trained as terrorists to overthrow Mr Mugabe.

Supporters had originally feared for Ms Mukoko's life and were relieved when she appeared in court on Christmas Eve, three weeks after she was taken from her home in her nightdress. Zimbabwean police disobeyed the magistrate's order to release her.

Her fate and that of the other detainees has become symbolic of the battle for the heart and soul of the country between Mr Mugabe, who has ruled for 28 years, and Morgan Tsvangirai, the MDC leader whom he was forced to accept as Prime Minister after last year's general election and political stalemate.

Ms Mukoko's Zimbabwe Peace Project recorded incidents of alleged political violence by the Mugabe regime. Between January and September last year, it catalogued 20,143 incidents, including 202 murders, 463 abductions, 41 rapes, 411 cases of torture and 3,942 assaults.

On his first day in office in February, the Prime Minister used his new powers to enter the Chikurubi maximum security prison in Harare to see Ms Mukoko and the other detainees, in a move meant to assert his authority and rebut the perception that he is subordinate to Mr Mugabe.

The suspects were eventually freed on bail at the beginning of March, still without charges having been filed against them.

Defence lawyers today pledged to appeal against the loss of bail.

“We were surprised by the magistrate’s decision as we were making prior arrangements with the state. She just said the matter was now outside her jurisdiction and remanded them in custody,” Alec Muchadehama, one of the defence lawyers, said.

He added that the detainees had been indicted for a trial which starts next month. Lawyers were preparing to apply for bail at Zimbabwe’s High Court later on today.

Mr Tsvangirai's political party expressed its concern. “As the MDC we are very concerned with this matter as it adds to a long litany of breaches to the Global Political Agreement (signed by Mugabe and Tsvangirai on September 15),” said an MDC official.

Sharp differences still remain between Mr Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai and their factions over issues such as the review of the posts of central bank governor and attorney general.

Mr Mugabe has yet to swear in Roy Bennett, a senior white MDC member, as deputy Agriculture Minister. Mr Bennett was locked up in prison for a month in February on charges of plotting terrorism.

Western donors, who have demanded that the unity government carry out wider political and media reforms and called for the release of all political prisoners before committing funding, are likely to raise concern.

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