Tsvangirai expected back in Harare today following his car crash

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai is expected to return to Harare on 9 March 2009 after receiving treatment in a Botswana hospital for injuries sustained during a car accident three days earlier. Tsvangirai sustained serious head and neck injuries and his wife Susan was killed when their vehicle collided with a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) aid truck on the Harare-Masvingo highway on 6 March. Tsvangirai, his wife and two aides were en route to his rural home in Buhero to hold a weekend rally when the accident occurred near Beatrice at approximately 1600 local time. Although some Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party officials suspect that the incident was politically motivated, Tsvangirai has stated that he believes that no foul play was involved. The authorities, however, are conducting a full investigation into the incident. The driver of the truck will appear in court on 9 March on charges of culpable homicide. Meanwhile, funeral arrangements for Susan Tsvangirai are scheduled for 11 March. Her body will be transferred from a local hospital to the Tsvangirai home in Strathaven on 9 March before being taken to Glamis stadium for a solemn vigil on 10 March. The body will then be taken to the family's rural home in Buhera for burial on 11 March. There have already been reports of large gatherings outside the Strathaven home as people seek to pay their respects; large crowds are also expected at the upcoming events.