http://www.radiovop.com
Harare, December 20, 2009 - Supreme Court Judge
Justice Wilson Sandura will
on Monday hear an appeal filed by the Attorney
General (AG) Office opposing
bail granted to incarcerated Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC) transport
manager, Pasco Gwezere.
AG
law officer Tawanda Zvekare invoked Section 121 of the Criminal Procedure
and Evidence Act (CPEA) to suspend Gwezere's bail order granted by High
Court Judge, Justice Charles Hungwe in November.
In a notice
of hearing addressed to Alec Muchadehama, who is representing
Gwezere and
the AG's Office, the Supreme Court Registrar advised that the
State's appeal
against the granting of bail to Gwezere would be heard in
Justice Sandura's
chambers on Monday morning.
"Take notice that the above application
will be heard in chambers before
Sandura JA on Monday the 21st day of
December 2009 at 9:30 am or so soon
thereafter as counsel may be heard,"
read part of the notice of hearing sent
to both counsel on
Thursday.
Gwezere, who is facing charges of stealing firearms
from Pomona Army
Barracks One Engineers Support Regiment Armoury
respectively, on 20 October
2009 together with a lady only identified as
Getrude and several army
officers to steal 20 AK-47 rifles and a shotgun,
which they took to an
unknown destination was abducted by state security
agents from his home in
Mufakose in October.
The second
charge of undergoing military training at Soroti Camp in Uganda
as part of a
plot to topple President Robert Mugabe's government was
dismissed by a
Harare Magistrate court for lack of evidence.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written by Staff
Reporter
Friday, 18 December 2009 16:36
MARONDERA -- The world-renowned
Mitchell and Mitchell horticulture project,
which once made daily deliveries
of produce to London, is no more.
Zanu (PF) hardliners invaded part of
Rakodzi farm and grabbed a 51 percent
stake in the flourishing project. And
the fall-out from the collapse of the
business has touched thousands of
people in the area. The company had to
lay off 90 per cent of the workforce
to worsen joblessness in a Mashonaland
East province.
Mitchell drew its
workers from Marondera town, Murehwa, Svosve, Seke,
Goromonzi and Macheke
communal lands, and their redundancy has affected all
these communities.
Children have dropped out of school, opportunistic
illnesses such as
tuberculosis and Kwashiorkor have taken their toll on
vulnerable families
and vices such as prositution and robbery are on the
rise.
Settlers
surrounding the farm and new farmers have looted the horticulture
infrastructure. Irrigation pipes, sprinklers, green- house nets and other
items have been stolen - some of them reappearing for sale in
Mozambique.
During the past decade of economic disaster, Mitchell and
Mitchell was one
of the few surviving foreign currency earners in the failed
state.
High-ranking Zanu (PF) politicians, including some in the presidium,
have
been accused of grabbing shares in the business, which employed more
than 4
000 workers at its peak.
After threatening the farm owner, a Zanu
(PF) supporter believed to be a
manager at the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe
(RBZ) in Harare, allegedly grabbed
part of the Mitchell project after
invading Sanzara farm. He then seized 51
percent shares in the remaining
portion of the enterprise.
Following the ceding of majority shareholding to
the central bank worker,
the export business began to run at a loss and a
partnership with Rolex
South Africa began to crumble. Rolex had transported
some of the produce to
South Africa for packaging and labelling before
exporting to Western
markets.
The horticulture venture based on the
growing and exporting of runner beans,
tender-stem peas, carrots and other
vegetables was forced to close down. The
red and white articulated Rolex
trucks that used to arrive daily are nowhere
to be seen.
It seems Zanu
(PF) has killed the goose that laid the golden egg. Mitchell
has had no
option but to quit horticulture and venture into tobacco growing,
which
requires less labour. The hijacked farm, now operating as Mitchell and
Dhiziri, has prepared 80 hectares for the golden leaf. The project is funded
by a loan from Northern Tobacco Company.
One of the workers who was there
at the start of the original horticulture
project, Susan Mbarame (85), looks
back in sorrow. "It pains me to learn
that the Mitchells' efforts are going
to waste," she said.
"What will become of the parents and schoolchildren
whose lives depended on
the generosity and hard work of the Mitchells. We do
not have anywhere to
go." Most farm children have dropped out of school.
http://www.zimeye.org/?p=11328
By John-Chimunhu
Published:
December 20, 2009
Harare Zimbabwean lawyers have demanded
government protection in the face
of increased attacks by state officials
linked to President Robert Mugabe,
including Attorney-General Johannes
Tomana and his nephew Michael Mugabe.
Their petition was presented to
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, the
Supreme Court, Parliament Speaker
Lovemore Moyo and Senate President Edna
Madzongwe.
"Lawyers in
private practice have been victimized after being identified
with the causes
of their clients. They have, during the last year (as in
previous years),
frequently been arbitrarily arrested, detained and
maliciously prosecuted on
allegations of 'obstructing or defeating the
course of justice'. No such
prosecution has resulted in a conviction,
reinforcing the perception that
lawyers are being persecuted rather than
being prosecuted," the petition
said.
The lawyers said the continued attacks had impacted negatively on
the rights
of their clients, including access to legal representatives of
their choice.
Other complaints included:
* Denial of access to
clients;
* Verbal and physical attacks on lawyers at police stations, in
their
practices,
through the state-controlled media and in the
courtroom;
· Human rights lawyers in particular often endured
physical and
psychological attacks such as assaults, death threats, stalking
and
attempted abductions;
· Being denied prompt and
unrestricted access to clients by law
enforcement and intelligence agents
and judicial officers;
· Criminal charges being brought against
lawyers in the public sector
and judicial support staff who exhibited
impartiality in their work.
The lawyers complained that denial of access
rights to their clients placed
the individuals at risk of 'disappearances,
torture and other cruel,
inhuman and degrading treatment or
punishment'.
The lawyers called on the executive to uphold the rule of
law, observe and
respect court orders, fight against impunity, ensure the
constitutional
guarantee of an independent judiciary, respect the principle
of separation
of powers and guarantee freedom from interference in the work
of lawyers.
They also called for the amendment of the Rules of Procedure
to ensure
unhindered access to all courts , the speedy handling of chamber
applications and speedy determination of contempt of court proceedings of
defiance of court orders by members of the executive and other errant
litigants.
To the legislature, they appealed for the establishment of
an independent
parliamentary committee to investigate attacks on the legal
profession and
continued use of the controversial Criminal Law (Codification
and Reform)
Act to continue holding successful bail applicants. Pic:Lawyers
gather in
protest of government enginnered persecution {Credits-Privilege
Musvanhiri]
http://www.zimeye.org/?p=11322
By John-Chimunhu
Published:
December 20, 2009
Goromonzi Auxillia Chonyera breaks down in
tears as she relates the dire
state of affairs at Mbuya Nehanda orphanage,
set up by the late Sally Mugabe
in 1997.
Chonyera, the assistant
matron of the orphanage, relates vividly the horrors
she and more than 100
children faced in 2008 after the government failed to
provide assistance as
expected. The orphanage degenerated into a
Dickens-style homeless centre
where the children would go for days without
food and many died due to
nutrition-related complications and other
diseases.
"There was no
food and we used to fight a lot. Some of the bigger boys would
beat you and
take the little food that you were given and you would go to
bed hungry,"
said one of the children.
Chonyera said, "Sometimes a well-wisher would
provide some vegetables but
there was no mealie meal and the children would
go to bed on that. It was
heart-rending."
She said many of the
children coming to Nehanda had already been weakened by
living on the
streets, which is why they succumbed to diseases. Many were
emotionally
unstable after suffering sexual and other forms of abuse on the
streets. A
lot of them did not trust or respect authority and were sure they
had been
brought here to be starved to death as punishment for their crime
of
'vagrancy' and begging on the streets of Harare. Nehanda became a
prison -
no less than a concentration camp - and many of the children fled
back onto
the dirty streets to scavenge for scraps of food, even if that
meant losing
a roof over their heads.
Controversy and Condemnation
Hastily set
up as a children's home some 35 kilometres east of Harare in
1997 by
President Mugabe's late wife Sally and former Harare mayor Solomon
Tawengwa
to rid the streets of homeless children ahead of an international
conference, the orphanage initially received widespread condemnation from
rights groups.
Many suspected the children were being taken to a
labour farm similar to
those set up in the Soviet Union during the days of
communism. A lot of the
children rounded up in December 1996 fled soon after
being deposited at the
farm previously used by demobilized female combatants
of the 1970s
independence war.
The official version of events, still
touted to this day, is that out of
compassion, the then First Lady decided
to host a 'Christmas Party' for the
children. It is claimed that many of the
children who attended the 'party'
decided to stay on at the farm as they had
nowhere else to go.
That is far from the truth. The correct version,
verified by experts at the
time, is that the government was nervous about
the 'ugly' state of Harare as
it prepared to host an international
conference. Officials were worried that
foreign dignitaries would be exposed
to beggars, thieves and vagrants,
giving a 'bad' impression of the Mugabe
government. Tawengwa then
master-minded a 'clean-up' of the capital's
streets. This resulted in dozens
of children being arrested in a joint city
council-police operation.
However, following protests that the children's
rights had been violated as
they had been removed to a place far from their
original location, churches
were allowed to take part in running the
institution. They provided food,
counseling and education, but most of that
is gone now.
Twenty-five children were the first to be admitted when the
centre was
registered as a children's home in
1997.
Looting
According to a recent UN World Food Programme
report, the orphanage was able
then to sustain itself through farming
operations.
In a section entitled, "Justification for WFP Intervention"
the UN report
says, "From the time the institution started operating as a
children's home
in 1997, it was self-sufficient, operating lucrative
piggery, poultry and
cattle-rearing."
"Crop production was also a
major source of food and income since the
institution is sitting on a
12-hectare farm that was donated to the First
Lady at the time by a white
commercial farmer. Proceeds from the farm's
diversified activities were
enough to cover all the requirements for the
institution, from salaries for
employees to food, fees and clothes for the
inmates amongst other costs,"
adds the report.
The situation changed drastically in 2000 after the
government initiated its
controversial land reform
programme.
"Activities took a downturn after the departure of the
British-born farm
manager during 2000 land seizures made by war veterans
under Joseph
Chinotimba, (pictured). Production ceased, farming equipment
and animals
were stolen and vandalized and considerable donations stopped
since the farm
manager was also instrumental in sourcing funding from
donors. On the other
hand, contributions from central government were eroded
by inflation," the
report says.
WFP adds that unfavourable weather
conditions in combination with lack of
technical farming skills, shortage of
agricultural inputs worsened the
situation as crop yields were drastically
reduced.
The home had to rely on a market riddled with shortages for
supplies. When
the food supply situation improved they still faced shortages
of hard
currency to buy food.
"The home survived on begging from
local farmers, churches and well-wishers
but donations were not enough to
feed over 100 people housed in the home
whilst employees went for months
without salaries. As a result, food
security at the home continued to
deteriorate, justifying the intervention
by WFP through its co-operating
partner Help Age Zimbabwe," the report said.
WFP says institutions in
need of assistance are now identified through Help
Age, which used to cater
for the elderly but has widened the scope of its
work to include orphans and
vulnerable children. Each of the 115 children at
Nehanda receives a monthly
ration of cereals, pulses, vegetable oil and corn
soya blend, an enriched
flour used to make nutritious porridge.
Although food shortages now
appear to be a thing of the past at the centre,
the home is still saddled
with numerous problems. Deaths and illness remain
the biggest concern. On
October 9 a child died and another was taken out in
a critical
condition.
"Many of the children are sick when they come here. You know
how it is on
the street. Some are living with HIV/AIDS. Two boys who died
here had been
sodomized and they were very sick when they came," Chonyera
said.
Only 49 of the centre's residents are registered with the
Department of
Social Welfare due to bureaucratic inefficiencies. Those who
attend
secondary school have to walk 26 kilometres a day to and from
school.
"We'd like to help but we can't. Some boys return to the streets
to guard
cars. Many kids just disappear. We can't even track them," said the
assistant matron.
Help Age's Adonis Faifi said the children,
especially girls, lacked things
that could make their lives more
comfortable, such as clothes and sanitary
pads which food donors could not
provide, but which were essential for life.
Rodwell Chitewe, a worker at
the farm for 19 years and now employed by the
orphanage showed this
correspondent the horrific carnage caused by war
veterans and senior Zanu PF
officials. He would not name them but sources
said they were to blame for
the deterioration of what had become a model
children's home.
"We
used to grow maize, beans and vegetables for our own consumption and for
sale. In 2002 we used to have 38 cattle, mostly dairy cows. We could sell
the milk and buy vaccines and other supplies. Today we are left with four
cows producing only 10 litres a day. Many of our calves die because we can't
afford vaccines," Chitewe said.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/
Written by STAFF REPORTER
Friday, 18 December 2009
11:13
HARARE - Zimbabwe's registry office is sitting on a backlog of more
than 200
000 unissued passports as an acute shortage of foreign currency
continues to
cripple vital state departments and enterprises, The Zimbabwean
On Sunday
learnt last week.
The backlog was contributing to the problem
of irregular migration by
undocumented Zimbabweans who are deported each
month from South Africa and
Botswana, according to a document circulated
among potential donors by the
International Organisation for Migration
(IOM). "Due to inadequate capacity,
the Registrar General's Office has a
backlog of over 200 000 travel
documents in its issuance system," said the
IOM which is at the forefront of
efforts to stem illegal travel across the
country's borders by undocumented
Zimbabweans.
The RGl's Office has faced
severe financial constraints over the past few
years which have seen it at
one time stopping the issuing of identification
cards, passports and other
crucial documents to citizens because there was
no hard cash to pay foreign
suppliers of the special ink and films used to
produce the documents.
Zimbabwe has grappled with a severe foreign currency
crisis since 1999 and
itself the result of an unprecedented economic
meltdown described by the
World Bank as the worst in the world outside a war
zone. Registrar-General
Tobaiwa Mudede could not be reached for comment last
week.
The department
is the government's documentation nerve centre and also
provides materials
such as ballot papers during elections. IOM said a survey
it conducted in
2007 had revealed that on six percent of Zimbabwean youths
had valid
passports yet these were among the largest groups of people trying
to leave
the country in search greener pastures across the Limpopo or in
Botswana. An
estimated two million Zimbabweans are living in South Africa
the majority of
them illegally, after fleeing their home country because of
hunger,
political violence and economic hardships. The South African
Department of
Home Affairs introduced a new visa system in April under which
it undertook
to allow Zimbabweans to stay for up to 90 days without a visa.
"However, even
with the new visa dispensation, without proper documentation,
irregular
Zimbabwean migrants are vulnerable to exploitation, physical,
sexual abuse,
and gender based violence during their journey and in host
countries, with
little or no access to medical care or legal assistance,"
observed the
migration organisation. Human rights groups say thousands of
Zimbabwean
asylum seekers are routinely denied medical treatment by South
African
health officials. Zimbabweans are subjected to harsh treatment by
South
African health staff in the public services and often told to go back
home
for medical treatment or alternatively charged exorbitant fees to
access
public facilities despite policies to the contrary.
Thousands of Zimbabweans
cross the border into South Africa daily, many
risking their lives to flee
economic meltdown, political turmoil and a
critical lack of access to health
care in their homeland.
In the past several years, the crisis in Zimbabwe has
given rise to food
insecurity, an unprecedented cholera epidemic, political
violence, rampant
unemployment, an escalating HIV crisis and the near-total
collapse of the
health system. Upon arrival, many Zimbabweans endure further
suffering in
South Africa, without access to proper health care, shelter or
safety.
During their journey to and within South Africa, they are subjected
to
violence, physical and verbal abuse, police harassment, inhumane living
conditions and xenophobic attacks.
According to the IOM documents, the
organisation plans to assist the RG's
Office through a technical assessment
of the travel document and identity
document issuing system, support to
department's planned decentralization of
document issuance including
identification of critical gaps, IT upgrades,
trainings and support in
provision of documents.
The aid agency also plans to offer assistance to the
RG's ongoing mobile
birth registration efforts in rural areas and mobile and
vulnerable
population communities. It would also facilitate the creation of
document
application desks at the reception and support centres it runs in
Beitbridge
and Plumtree to enable illegal immigrants to immediately apply
for documents
upon
their return to Zimbabwe.
http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=26014
December 20, 2009
By Our
Correspondent
Harare - Pressure continues to mount on the new Zimbabwe
Union of
Journalists (ZUJ) leadership to resign immediately and make way for
new
elections to usher in a new executive more acceptable to the majority of
journalists.
Disgruntled journalists in Harare have instituted plans
to call for a
stakeholders' conference that shall seek to pronounce the
death of the new
executive elected early this month and garner support for
the installation
of an interim one that shall lead to the holding of fresh
elections.
Meanwhile, dozens of journalists converged at Quill Club on
Friday to review
the ZUJ congress with some calling for a radical approach
to oust the new
executive, headed by Dumisani Sibanda, news editor for the
state-controlled
Chronicle newspaper in Bulawayo.
Journalists feel a
court process that has just been instituted by four
independent journalists
will take long to resolve the impasse while the
rights of journalists
continue to be trampled upon by the state and
employers.
"We are
planning a stakeholders' conference of ZUJ members where we expect
more than
200 delegates to attend," said Stanley Gama, chairperson of the
national
Press Club (Quill) who has taken the initiative to steer the
process.
"This conference will pass a vote of no confidence in the
new executive as
well as garner the necessary support for the making of
amendments to the ZUJ
constitution to make it more democratic and user
friendly."
Gama says there were multiple inconsistencies in the ZUJ
elections in an
alleged plot by the former executive led by Matthew Takaona
who allegedly
handpicked his own people and indirectly retains control of
the union.
According to Gama, the stakeholders' conference to be held
soon is expected
to reflect on the state of both the union and the general
media environment,
amend the constitution and pass a vote of no confidence
in the new
executive.
Journalists feel Takaona wants the troubled
union to remain in the hands of
people he can easily manipulate and benefit
from non-action amid an
envisaged probe into the affairs of his former
executive which they claim
was no longer accountable to
members.
During Friday's discussions, two senior journalists called for a
more
aggressive approach to the ZUJ crisis.
Former ZUJ secretary
general Luke Tamborinyoka and Dumisani Muleya,
secretary general of the
Zimbabwe Journalists for Human Rights called on
journalists to pull the rug
from under the feet of Sibanda and his executive
if it continues to refuse
to step down in pave way for fresh and more
transparent
elections.
Muleya is the news editor of the Zimbabwe Independent. He said
journalists
risked losing the moral high ground to discharge their duties in
monitoring
the operations of the state and other organisations if they do
not
decisively confront issues relating to their own union.
"We are
not going to do it if journalists are going to be disinterested," he
said.
"Journalists must take this fight into their own hands and push it
forward.
"Journalists should strangle the executive financially or
otherwise. Talking
to them does not help.
"We have got to undercut
them. We have got to outflank them in this fight to
reclaim the union. Don't
talk to them if they are not interested."
Muleya said the former
executive headed by Takaona concentrated on spending
the finances of the
union at the expense of the affairs of journalists.
"If George Charamba
was here he would laugh his lungs out that we are
hopeless and not able to
ensure there is a proper election in our own union
and yet we are calling
for a proper election at a Zanu-PF congress and a
proper national
election.
"We need ZUJ radically reformed as an organization that
represents the
interest of journalists and deals with the welfare issues of
journalists."
Tamborinyoka is the former secretary general of ZUJ. He
also called for
journalists to confront the new executive. Tamborinyoka is
now the director
for information in the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC)
led by Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, while
"The How Mine debacle
that can now be referred to as journalism's June 27
emanates from the
privatization of the constitution, venue and the electoral
college."
"We now have the president and the two vice presidents from
state media at a
time when we need vocal people who will advocate for media
freedom. We can't
expect a (ZUJ) president from ,The Chronicle a vice
president from the ZBC
and from the Herald to advocate for media plurality.
They will be fired the
following day.
"So what those people who went
to How Mine did was to gag their own union at
a time when we should be
calling out for vocal people, strong people who
should be advocating for
media freedom.
"The solution does not lie in the courts we are going to
encounter appeal
and counter appeals and this union and this fraternity are
going to be
moribund for a year or two. What is now needed is to call the
owners of this
union who are journalists to call for an extra-ordinary
meeting so that they
make a statement vis-à-vis the future of my beloved
profession."
Also among the panelists were Zimbabwe National Editors'
Forum chairman Iden
Wetherall and Andy Moyse, director of the Media
Monitoring Project of
Zimbabwe (MMPAZ).
Controversy marred the ZUJ
elections this month with some candidates
aspiring for positions in the new
executive being allegedly denied an
opportunity to stand for
election.
Questions were also raised as to the venue of the congress
which, after
remaining secret until the day of the election, was switched to
How Mine, a
remote location outside the city of Bulawayo.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written by Staff Reporter
Friday, 18 December 2009
18:10
HARARE - Zimbabwe's public media acted as "active accomplices" in the
theft
of the nation's democratic rights by cheering electoral malpractices
and
hate speech by Zanu (PF), says a new report launched last week by a
media
rights watchdog.
The report by Media Monitoring Project Zimbabwe
(MMPZ) said the state media,
comprising the Zimbabwe Broadcasting
Corporation and newspaper titles under
the Zimbabwe Newspaper Group
(ZIMPAPERS) banner, were the backbone of Zanu
(PF)'s campaign in the 2008
elections.
MMPZ said the public media has been abused to become the arena of
maligning
and vilifying Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's MDC-T, its
leadership and
members at the expense of covering pertinent issues affecting
the ordinary
man and woman.
The report said the ZBC and ZIMPAPERS were
used - and continue to be used -
to exploit the myth propagated by President
Robert Mugabe's party that
Zimbabwe is a victim of neo-Western imperialist
interests to recolonise the
country and reverse the "gains of the liberation
struggle" using the MDC-T.
"These media wholly instrumental in marketing the
(former) ruling party's
campaign rhetoric branding the MDC as Western
puppets plotting to unseat
President Mugabe's government outside the
democratic framework," said the
152-page report, titled "The Propaganda War
on Electoral Democracy".
This successfully fed an assertion that members of
the MDC-T did not deserve
to have their democratic rights protected under
the law. This was
exemplified by the Zanu (PF) leadership's accusations
against the MDC-T
leadership and its threats of a return to war if
Tsvangirai won the second
round of the presidential poll against
Mugabe.
Public media publications such as The Herald and The Sunday Mail
allegedly
played a major role in creating the hostile environment that
characterised
the June 2008 presidential run-off between Mugabe and
Tsvangirai, the report
said.
"These media also played a crucial role in
fanning the flames of hatred and
intolerance against the MDC, a legitimate
political movement, at a time when
mobs of mostly Zanu (PF) militia under
military instruction roamed the
countryside conducting a campaign of violent
retribution against suspected
opposition supporters," said the report, which
was launched by political
scientist John Makumbe in Harare last
Thursday.
The ZBC was initially conceived as a public broadcaster but has
been tightly
controlled by Mugabe's Zanu (PF) administration, which has the
final say on
senior editorial and managerial appointments.
In addition to
controlling the airwaves, Mugabe's party also runs the
country's largest
newspaper empire after closing down four independent
papers including the
Daily News that was Zimbabwe's largest circulating
paper when it was shut
down in 2003.
Zimbabwe's power-sharing government early this year undertook
to open up the
media to more players, agreeing to reform the country's
restrictive media
regulatory environment so as to ensure press
freedom.
Article 19 of a power-sharing agreement signed in September by
Zimbabwe's
major political parties acknowledges the need for a free and
diverse media
environment.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 19
December 2009 16:16
BULAWAYO - The inclusive government is trying to
persuade the European Union
(EU) to suspend sanctions on some of the 40
companies that were linked to
President Robert Mugabe's regime, a cabinet
minister said last week. The EU
imposed restrictive measures on more than
240 individuals closely associated
with President Robert Mugabe as part of
efforts to push for democratic
reforms in Zimbabwe and end the abuse of
human rights.
Companies that were targeted include some parastatals
such as the Zimbabwe
Iron and Steel Company (Zisco), the Zimbabwe Mining
Development Corporation
(ZMDC) and the Zimbabwe Defence
Industries.
Other affected companies were those controlled by Zanu PF
and its
associates.
But Gorden Moyo, the Minister of State in the
Prime Minister's office said
it was time the sanctions were reviewed in line
with the new political
dispensation.
Moyo said one of the reasons
some of the parastatals were included on the
list was because they were used
by the previous administration to fund
repression but their operations had
changed with the formation of the unity
government.
"We are
engaging the European Union as the government of Zimbabwe. Our
engagements
are in many facets including that of the lifting of sanctions
imposed on
about 40 companies prior to the establishment of this
government," Moyo
told a meeting organised by Bulawayo Agenda to review the
performance of the
coalition formed in February.
"All we are saying is that while we
appreciate that these companies played a
bigger role in sustaining Mugabe's
government, there is need now to review
the situation and see what can be
done to help save these companies from
imminent collapse."
Zisco
is courting foreign investors to resuscitate its operations weighed
down by
years of economic collapse, while ZMDC is overseeing diamond mining
in the
Chiadzwa area of Manicaland.
Moyo said they were trying to impress
upon the EU bloc to understand that
some of the companies were simply taking
orders from the government of the
day.
He said if the campaign
succeeds, the government will put in place measures
to ensure that
state-owned enterprises were not abused by politicians again.
"We
have in place various strategies that we want to put in place to ensure
that
these companies play a leading role in the resuscitation of the
economy,"
Moyo said.
"We are advocating for the lifting of the sanctions so
that these companies
can play that role that we all expect them to play in
the development of the
economy."
However, the minister bemoaned
the slow pace of economic reforms saying it
was affecting the revival of
Zimbabwe's once vibrant economy.
Moyo said despite a promising start
during the first half of the year the
economic turnaround had slowed down
due to unending disputes in the unity
government.
BY
NKULULEKO SIBANDA
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 19 December 2009 16:11
WHO
would have imagined last year that by the end of 2009, shops would be
brimming with all kinds of consumer goods? Or that cars would fill tanks at
service stations and queues would indeed be "a thing of the
past"?
Probably only those endowed with supernatural powers knew
that. For the
majority of Zimbabweans, 2009 looked likely to be yet another
agonizing year
characterised by unprecedented economic hardships and
political violence.
But thanks to the efforts of the Southern African
Development Community
(Sadc) early this year it seemed like a miracle when
sworn political
enemies - President Robert Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai, and
Arthur
Mutambara - formed an inclusive government.
The political
marriage, which has its fair share of problems, was all that
was needed to
ensure a change in the fortunes of Zimbabweans.
Boosted by the use of
multiple currencies or dollarisation there was price
stability.
In a short space of time, the so-called Zimbabwe's
number one enemy -
inflation was tamed.
Even economists were left
with egg on their faces as their forecasts that
the economy will shape up
after 23 years, proved way off the mark.
It meant that the Central
Statistical Office, overwhelmed by last year's
hyperinflation, could provide
data which is useful to investors. With
month-on-month inflation at 0.8% as
of October, it means that the 5.1%
target set in the 2010 national budget is
within reach.
Indeed it was a year of wonders for businesses, moreso
when the notorious
National Incomes and Pricing Commission was confined to
comparing local
prices with those that obtain in the region.
The
Goodwills Masimirembwa outfit had become the face of Mugabe's previous
administration's futile attempts to police prices.
The use of
foreign currency meant that companies had the hard currencies
needed to
import raw materials.
It was a relief, but for some they need
recapitalisation to replace ageing
and obsolete equipment, which had driven
production costs upwards meaning
that products were not competitive in the
region.
Econet became the first and only company to declare an eight
cents per share
dividend in a dollarised economy.
It was a near
miracle that subscribers could in 2009 migrate from one
operator to another
as sim cards were readily available, thanks to the use
of multiple
currencies. The Sim cards' price went down from a US$150 to less
than
US$10.
This was a departure from the past five years when sim cards
became the most
prized possession to the extent that owning one became an
investment.
The use of multiple currencies gave operators the much
needed foreign
currency for expansion and they expanded in style: "fighting"
each other
through advertising.
And for the first time in more
than 10 years, the Postal and
Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of
Zimbabwe availed US$5 million
from the operators' contribution to cater for
expansion in undeveloped
areas.
The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange
reopened on February 19 after it closed for
three
months.
Interest on the bourse by locals is picking up despite the
liquidity
challenges.
However, foreign investors' are snapping up
shares at will as they are
cheap.
There was also something to
cheer about for the tourism sector. The
stabilisation of the political
environment is a positive itself to an
industry driven by
perceptions.
Government offered some fiscal incentives to revive the
tourism industry
that has suffered from under investment during the past
decade.
Under Statutory Instrument 46 of 2009 government allowed
registered
operators to import specified motor vehicles, duty
free.
Statutory Instrument 60 gave the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority
mandate to grant
registered operators rebate on new capital
equipment.
The fiscal incentives began on March 1 and run up to
February 28, 2011.
Last month, Zimbabwe signed the Bilateral
Investment Promotion and
Protection Agreement with South Africa signaling
government's intentions to
attract investors.
In another plus,
government said it had covered more ground in the creation
of a One- Stop
Shop to simplify investment procedures.
Premier Finance Group (PFG),
the parent company of Premier Banking
Corporation and Premier Asset
Management lured African Development
Corporation with a 54% sweetener for
US$6 million.
The new shareholder together with a consortium of local
investors led by
George Manyere and Doug Mamvura now has an unassailable 82%
shareholding in
PFG.
Yet 2009 had its moments of madness: there
were fights.
If it was not Tendai Biti against Gideon Gono, it was
Nigel Chanakira and
John Moxon at each other's throats.
Gono and
Biti are two individuals with big egoes and when they fight, it won't
be a
small fight.
In the run up to last year's election, Biti equated Gono
to an Al Qaeda who
should face the firing squad.
And so when Biti
embarked on his proposed reforms of the central bank, Gono
saw this as a
personal attack.
Biti won round one after the House of Assembly
approved the amendments to
the Reserve Bank Act. The Bill now awaits
approval from the Zanu
PF-dominated Senate.
Biti and Gono also
squared off over the US$510 million "windfall" from the
International
Monetary Fund meant to bolster reserves of Fund members.
The
Chanakira-Moxon bout started last year but got uglier in 2009 as
irreconcilable differences between the two led to the demerger of
KML.
It got nastier in January when Moxon was specified alongside TM
Supermarkets
and five other investment vehicles.
TM was let off
the hook in September, the same month government struck again
by specifying
KML, Tanganda and Thomas Meikles Centre.
An EGM in June resolved that
KML should demerge as it was clear that the
Moxon-Chanakira fight had eroded
the reputation of the conglomerate.
As part of the demerger Moxon's
appointees on the KFHL board were to resign
while Chanakira, Callisto
Jokonya and Sibusisiwe Bango were to resign from
the KML
board.
Moxon's appointees quit the KFHL board but the trio of
Chanakira, Jokonya
and Bango dug in their heels.
An EGM was called in
September to expel the trio. Chanakira obtained a High
Court order stopping
the EGM on the grounds that he was ill. Another EGM to
evict the trio was
set for October 16.
On the eve of the EGM, Chanakira and Moxon reached a
landmark deal in which
Chanakira, Jokonya and Bango agreed to leave the KML
board.
It was the intervention of brokers that ensured that the
parties would talk
amicably.
BY NDAMU SANDU
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 12 December 2009 15:47
THE European Union
(EU) is in the process of implementing a 110 million euro
commitment to
support Zimbabwe’s Short Term Emergency Recovery Programme
(STERP), a top
diplomat said on Thursday.
Xavier Marchal, the EU head of delegation to
Zimbabwe told participants at
the two-day seminar on Economic Partnership
Agreements (EPAs) that Brussels
has been supportive of the county despite
the 2002 suspension of government
to government
cooperation.
“The EU has also committed to implement a 110
million euros Short Term
Strategy, in line with government priorities of the
STERP. This commitment
is now being fulfilled,” he said.
STERP
was launched in March as a stabilisation measure and will be succeeded
by a
medium term plan.
Under STERP, government targeted to lift industry’s
capacity utilisation to
60% from as low as 10%. Some industries such as
beverages are operating at
80% capacity while others are below the forecast,
according to Finance
Minister Tendai Biti.
Brussels’ move to
honour the commitment on STERP is expected to speed up the
normalisation of
relations with Harare based on Article 8 of the Cotonou
Agreement.
The EU has also thrown its weight behind the inclusive
government but says
Zimbabwe has to fully implement the Global Political
Agreement (GPA).
This will see the 27-member bloc responding by its
own roadmap of
progressive normalisation of ties with Zimbabwe, Marchal
said.
Zimbabwe’s bid to normalise relations with Brussels culminated
in the
launching of a dialogue in June between a delegation led by Prime
Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai and the EU ministerial troika.
Marchal
said trade relations were not a subject of restrictions from the EU.
Zimbabwe has benefited from preferences under the African Caribbean and
Pacific (ACP) and EU relations under the Cotonou Partnership agreement,
Marchal said.
“She (Zimbabwe) can meet the existing beef export
quota, and if she has not
met it, it is due to the Foot and Mouth Disease
and not sanctions.
“As a sugar protocol country, she is significantly
benefiting from financial
support for an adaptation strategy for the sugar
industry,” he said.
Zimbabwe is a member of the Eastern and Southern
Africa (ESA) that is
negotiating for EPAs with the EU.
The government
signed an interim EPA with the EU to secure the continuation
of free access
to EU markets for the country as a non-least developed ACP
country.
ACP countries used to enjoy unilateral trade preferences
from the EU but
that honeymoon ended in December 2007 as the two blocs
complied with the
world trading rules that allow for reciprocity in trade
agreements.
The full EPA provides for duty and quota free market
access on 100% ESA
exportable products into the EU.
It also
provides for duty free and quota free market access on 80% of EU
exportable
products into the ESA region by 2022.
Goods excluded from
liberalisation include products of animal origin.
Cereals, beverages,
paper, plastics and rubber and textiles and clothing.
Footwear, glass
and ceramics, consumer electronics and vehicles are also
excluded from
liberalisation.
But analysts say the level of development in ESA
countries is different and
the opening up should also cater for the stages
of development.
“If non-LDC countries are doing it in 15 years, LDCs
are looking for a
longer period.
“The one-size-fits-all ends up
being a problem,” said Moses Tekere, a trade
expert with the Common Market
for Eastern and Southern Africa.
Statistics show that in 2007, total
EU imports from the 11-member ESA bloc
were a mere 0.38% (Euro 3.17 billion)
of all imports.
He says some countries are prepared to open up their
markets up to 75%.
If Zimbabwe had not signed the interim EPA, it
would have paid 14.9% duty on
tobacco to the EU.
However, EU
exports to ESA raked in 3.96 billion euros.
Figures show that 61% of
exports to the EU covered only eight products and
only 10 contributed
provided the bulk of the exports.
BY NDAMU SANDU
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written
by FR. OSKAR WERMTER SJ
Thursday, 17 December 2009 17:26
In a chiefdom or
kingdom of old there was no constitution. The ruler and his
‘house’
(dynasty) gave stability to the country. If he (in rare cases: she!)
was
wise and just, the community lived a good life. If he was selfish and
foolish all people suffered.
But even in those days there were certain
rules which the chief/king had to
be aware of and respect: “Ishe vanhu” (The
chief/king is the people). He
depended on the goodwill and support of the
community. The collective memory
told chief and people what their respective
duties were.
Wise chiefs/kings did not strive for unlimited power and
authority. Wise
rulers accepted advice and warnings from their councillors
and any wise
person.
Much of this wisdom has been lost. Our society today
is much bigger than the
communities of those days. We face more difficult
questions. We need more
brains, more dialogue and consultation to run a
modern industrial,
technological society. It is wise today to agree on a
body of basic rules
and laws written down. Just one ruler or one little
group cannot cope with a
complex modern society.
Rules for our
Rulers
Power left in the hands of only one man is a bad idea. One-man states
and
one-party states end in disaster. The experience of fifty years of
Independent Africa has shown this. We need many people for running the
country, playing their different roles and complementing each other and also
respecting each other, men and women.
But these people – lawmakers,
administrators, ministers, judges and
magistrates – do not own the country,
and we are not their property. Quite
the opposite: we are the owners of the
land and we give them their
authority.
Since they work for us, the
people, we, the people, also have to work out
these rules and laws for them
(“Rules for our Rulers”). ?These basic rules
and laws together are called
our Fundamental Law or our Constitution. We all
of us have to agree on this
basic law. If people do not respect it there
will be chaos and
confusion.
You can compare it to playing sports. The players on a soccer
field know the
rules. They accept the decisions of the referee. If they
don’t there is no
play. If we have no rules for running the country there
will be war and
violence. All will suffer.
The common good
The
people working on the Constitution must have the good of the whole
nation,
the ‘common good’, in mind. ?That is missing at the moment. Many
groups and
individuals involved in the process think only of themselves how
they can
frame a constitution that will favour them and their party: how can
we
retain power and influence and continue enjoying the ‘fat of the land’?
They
want power and they want all of it.
Wise people do not give all power to one
man or one party, not even to their
own party. ?Wise people know that too
much power is like eating too much
good food: you get sick, very sick; you
vomit and lose all your energy and
strength. No one is to have limitless
power and to rule forever.
Power must be shared among different players: a
football team has eleven
players, no one does everything, but the ball must
be passed from player to
player. A selfish player who keeps the ball to
himself all the time is a bad
player. His team will lose.
It is foolish
to give all power to just one person and his friends and
supporters.
Powerful people will look down upon the majority, despise them
and treat
them like dirt. The leaders must respect you, the people, who have
voted
them into power and can also vote them again out of power.
That is why
ordinary people – organised in trade unions, associations,
churches,
parties, movements – must play their part in making these basic
rules which
form the Constitution. These rules limit the power of the
leaders. If the
people are not interested in these rules and do not craft
them carefully,
they must not be surprised if leaders come to power who
abuse and oppress
them.
Look what happened when all the power was given to the Executive
President,
and Parliament was left powerless. If you do not want that to
happen again
raise your voice, speak up!
Make sure they include a Bill of
Rights: respect for the people must be
guaranteed, their life and dignity
recognized in the Constitution.
Human dignity
As Christians we say
that we were “created in the image of God”. That is the
root cause of our
dignity, our importance, our value as human persons, men,
women and
children, ‘from the moment of conception until natural death’. We
must make
sure that this human dignity is recognised as the corner stone and
foundation of our Constitution. Laws that harm people must be thrown out.
?
We want leaders who respect us at all times, not just at election time when
they compete for our votes, while despising us at all other times as the
“masses”. If we give them too much power we no longer have any control over
them. We need, for instance, free media to tell them what we do not like
about them. Even on radio or TV we must be able to say: ‘Our children have
no schools, our sick no medicines, what are you going to do about it, Mr.
President?’
Christians must not say: “We do not care about this
constitution-making
business; that is politics we do not want to get our
hands dirty with. We
are happy as long as the Church is respected and can
run good schools for
our children, and we can sing and pray. We leave
politics to the
politicians.”
Talking like that is very foolish. You are
handing the country and its
people over to people who hunger for wealth and
luxury, but do not care
about you. You are handing the country over to wild
dogs and hyenas. They
will eat you. Especially the poor will suffer.
But
even the not so poor will have the little they have destroyed if they
tolerate leaders without respect for the people they rule. ?You must get
involved. You must accept responsibility and leadership if chosen to do so.
Not for your own advantage and profit, but for the good and the benefit of
your brothers and sisters, your children and grandchildren.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written by CHIPO
NYAMWENA
Thursday, 17 December 2009 17:34
The current Minister of Finance
in Zimbabwe, Tendai Biti (pictured), has
projected the economy of Zimbabwe
to grow by a least 7 per cent. Also, the
IMF predicted a positive economic
growth with a GDP of around 3 per cent to
3, 5 per cent.
Whatever the
case, economists have predicted that the Zimbabwean economy is
poised to
change for the better especially in the coming year (2010),
provided that
the Government of National Unity (GNU) remains intact. An
increase in
agricultural production and a good harvest for the 2009/2010
season will
boost the economy. It is a well known fact that Agriculture in
Zimbabwe is
the pillar/engine that drives the economy.
Furthermore, the agricultural
sector is a multi-agent sector with a complex
chain of inputs,
intermediates, outputs and markets that are highly
regulated. It is
important, therefore, that we have working agricultural
institutions in
place to support agricultural production. The central issue
of economic
history and development is to account for the evolution of
political and
economic institutions which create an economic environment
that induces
increasing productivity.
Functional institutions
Institutions are
defined as a set of constraints which govern the
behavioural relations among
individuals or groups. Formal organisations such
as labour unions and
employers organisations are institutions because they
provide sets of rules
governing relationships both among their members and
between members and non
members.
If the country does not have functional institutions which act as
glue
within the state, then even the formation of the government of national
unity will not stabilize the economy, but instead create more complex
problems. For instance, the issue of the Reserve bank of Zimbabwe dealing
with the governor. What is more important is the strengthening of the
institution.
It is critical to assess the quality of institutions within
the agricultural
sector; that is the relationship between farmers, input
suppliers, creditors
and the market, and other institutions be they legal,
social or political,
existing in Zimbabwe. Needless to say institutions play
a vital role in
agriculture economic development.
With the introduction
of new players in the sugar cane industry, the newly
resettled farmers have
signed purchase and milling agreements with Hippo and
Triangle. Through
these agreements the farmers are supplied with inputs
(fertilizers, seeds
and chemicals), transportation of their produce to the
millers who will
deduct money for these services rendered from the total
income earned from
their produce.
Banks make life hard
Despite the clear rules set out
perceptions of unfairness exist with regard
to this exchange relationship
between cane growers' and millers. This kind
of negative perception that
exists between the newly resettled farmers and
the millers may be a result
of the political perceptions. Banks which are
suppose to provide credit to
the newly resettled farmers make life difficult
for them as they do not
poses the title deeds which are essential for
collateral purposes. The issue
of land invasions and displacements of
commercial farmers coupled with lack
of the judicial system to enforce
property rights also show the importance
of functional institutions.
The Zimbabwean agricultural sector in the past 10
years has been
characterized by opportunistic buyers of produce. This has
led to higher
transaction costs and poor coordination, hence the
justification of properly
placed institution for agricultural economic
development. As far as the
importance and effect of institutions on
Agriculture is concerned they are
important for collecting, analyzing and
disseminating information to small
scale farmers which will enable farmers
to make a difference regarding what
to produce, when to harvest and where to
sell their produce.
I would like to recommend that for institutions to work
there is need to for
developmental societies to promote research and
development and the need to
translate research into action. Lack of properly
installed institutions has
weakened the ability to provide clear and
consistent policies also limiting
the capacity to mobilize resources in
pursuit of agriculture development.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written by Editor
Friday, 18 December 2009
17:41
A refreshingly new sense of hope pervades Zimbabwe. After a long spell
characterised by empty shelves, shops are fully stocked with basic
commodities, from salt to cooking oil.
This time last year one would have
had to travel several hundreds of
kilometers to South Africa or Botswana
just to buy something as simple as a
packet of salt. Alternatively, one
could buy from the black-market where
goods were readily available but at
extortionate prices.
There is little doubt that the economic situation and
the general living
conditions have improved following last February's
formation of a
power-sharing government by President Robert Mugabe, Prime
Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai and Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara.
Indeed Christmas is
back, after so many years!
Yet scratch the surface a
little bit and you will find that this hour of
optimism masks a nation under
siege, wrecked to the core by a horrible
anxiety over what tomorrow might
yield.
A collective fear of the future grips a nation that knows only too
well that
the authors of its economic ruin and humiliation still wield the
real
power - notwithstanding whatever is written in the global political
agreement (GPA).
The gangs of farm invaders, torturers and rapists still
roam the
countryside. And the modest progress of the past 11 months cannot
be
sustained until and unless all outstanding issues arising from the GPA
have
been resolved.
And if there be any among us too excited about the
peace and quite of today
then Mugabe's words to his Zanu (PF) party's
congress a few weeks ago should
be a reminder of how fragile the gains of
the past months remain.
"Let's begin to work for the party and to organise it
strongly. Elections
are not very far off," Mugabe told the Zanu (PF)
congress. We presume no
Zimbabwean needs reminding about Zanu (PF)'s methods
and tactics of fighting
an election.
Yet future generations will spit on
our graves in disgust should we allow
our fear of Zanu (PF)'s forces of
violence to extinguish the optimism of
today and to deny us the right to
hope for a better tomorrow.
Dear Zimbabweans, as the New Year beckons so must
a new era of hope and
freedom. The time has come to break free from the
prison of fear. Zimbabwe
does not belong to Zanu (PF), the CIO, army or
police. It belongs to you the
people. Stand up and reclaim your country --
now!
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written by NICKY OPPENHEIMER
Friday, 18 December 2009
15:41
The world's largest diamond producer, De Beers, would have preferred
Zimbabwe's suspension from the Kimberley Process (KP) at the diamond
industry regulator's Namibia meeting last November writes influential
chairman Nick Oppenheimer:
In November 2002, a unique alliance of 50
countries, the United Nations, a
number of leading NGOs and the diamond
industry came together to tackle the
scourge of conflict diamonds.
The
clear focus and determination of these players led to the creation of
the
Kimberley Process -- an agreement of unparalleled scope in the natural
resources sector.
Importers, exporters and the diamond industry
accomplished something many
thought impossible -- we virtually eliminated
conflict diamonds from the
global supply chain, and to this day, 99,8% of
all diamonds come from
conflict-free sources.
Whether you personally like
diamonds or not, few would dispute that they
hold special meaning for
millions of people around the world. Unlike the
latest flat-screen TV or
designer handbag, the diamond has an enduring value
that transcends
generations and geographies.
In uncertain times, diamonds not only hold their
financial value, but they
also hold an emotional relevance to those that
give and receive them --
often marking new love or old memories. Providing
confidence about where
these special symbols that mark moments in our lives
come from is integral
to their enduring value.
Deeply
concerned
For those that recover, cut, polish and sell them, our ability to
live up to
diamonds is an inherent part of their value, which is why we are
deeply
concerned by the situation at the Marange diamond fields in
Zimbabwe.
Over the past year, a number of reports from courageous
journalists, NGOs
and the Kimberley Process itself have detailed a
distressing situation in
which the diamond deposits in the Marange region
were commandeered by the
Zimbabwe military.
While this occurred before
the new government of national unity was formed,
it has nonetheless drawn
the attention of the international community. The
Kimberley Process ensures
that every diamond exported from a
diamond-producing country and imported
into a diamond-manufacturing country
is accompanied by a certificate
verifying that the diamond hasn't been used
by a rebel force to fund
conflict, and that it is fully compliant with the
Kimberley Process's
requirements.
While the details about the situation in Zimbabwe may be less
than clear,
the country's responsibility to live up to diamonds is perfectly
clear. De
Beers supports the Kimberley Process's recent decision to place
diamonds
from Marange under an intensive 12-month monitoring and auditing
programme.
While De Beers would have preferred more decisive action --
including
temporary suspension from the Kimberley Process, which would have
effectively halted the country's export of diamonds until the issues in
question were fully addressed -- we also recognise the unique framework of
governments, civil society and industry that the Kimberley Process
represents, and the commitment by Zimbabwe not to export any diamonds from
Marange until the monitoring programme is in place.
De Beers
watching
While we do no business in Zimbabwe, and while it is true that the
diamonds
originating from Marange represent only a tiny fraction of global
supply, De
Beers, along with the rest of the world, will nevertheless be
watching the
monitoring programme closely.
We will provide any expertise
that is asked of us, and we fully expect the
Kimberley Process to take the
further action it itself stipulated should no
change in the situation on the
ground be forthcoming by the end of the
12-month programme.
In the end,
diamonds, or any natural resource for that matter, can be a
country's
greatest source of prosperity or paucity. It is the leaders who
must choose
the path, which is why good governance is a key factor in
turning natural
resources into shared national wealth.
For example, just next door to
Zimbabwe is Botswana. Since its independence
from Britain in 1966, Botswana
has enjoyed good, democratic leadership and
has prudently managed its
diamond resources -- Botswana is the world's
leading diamond producer -- to
move from one of the world's poorest
countries to a middle-income country
with consistent economic growth, sound
infrastructure and little
corruption.
Diamonds are the lifeblood of Botswana's economy and this
Christmas
consumers will buy more diamonds from Botswana than from any other
source on
Earth. In today's diamond industry, Botswana is not the exception,
Zimbabwe
is. We hope, for the people of Zimbabwe, that its leaders embrace
this
chance to live up to diamonds.
Editor's Note: Nicky Oppenheimer is
the chairman of De Beers which is the
world's largest diamond producer.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 19 December
2009 16:03
AFTER months and years of brutal pressure from Robert Mugabe
and Zanu (PF),
Joshua Nkomo and PF Zapu were at last forced into an
Agreement of Unity,
signed on 22 December 1987. It consisted of ten points
that left no
breathing space for any democratic values in
Zimbabwe.
1. Zanu (PF) and PF Zapu were irrevocably united under one
political party.
2. Unity was to be achieved under the name Zimbabwe African
National Union
(Patriotic Front) in short, Zanu (PF).
3. Comrade Robert
Gabriel Mugabe would be the first secretary and president
of Zanu
(PF).
4. Zanu (PF) would have two second secretaries and vice-presidents, who
would be appointed by the first secretary and president.
5. Zanu (PF)
would seek to establish a socialist society in Zimbabwe on the
guidance of
Marxist-Leninist principles.
6. Zanu (PF) would seek to establish a one-party
state.
7. Zanu (PF) would abide by the leadership code.
8. The present
leadership of PF Zapu would take immediate steps to end
insecurity and
violence prevalent in Matabeleland.
9. Zanu (PF) and PF Zapu would convene
respective conferences to give effect
to the agreement.
10. Comrade
Robert Gabriel Mugabe was vested with full powers to prepare for
the
implementation of the agreement and to act in the name and authority of
Zanu
(PF).
The signing took place at State House, one of the last
occasions hosted by
the joyful midwife, President Canaan Banana. Amendments
were then presented
to and accepted by parliament under which Mugabe became
executive president.
The office of prime minister was
abolished.
Mugabe appointed Nkomo chief minister in the president’s
office, ranked in
status just behind Mugabe’s deputy, Simon Muzenda, and
gave him the task of
overseeing local government and rural and urban
development.
The Unity Congress was held in Harare from 18 to 22
December. All Zimbabwe’s
high commissioners and ambassadors and their wives
had been summoned back
for the occasion including Stan Mudenge, known by his
subordinates as
“Jehovah”, from the United Nations, and Arthur Chadzingwa
from Algeria.
Arthur was rapidly making arrangements to get married to a
lady from
Lesotho. When, a few months earlier, he was appointed an
ambassador by
Mugabe as one of the few fruits of unity offered to PF Zapu,
Mugabe asked if
Arthur was married.
“Not yet,” replied
Arthur.
Mugabe said this situation would have to be remedied as it
was difficult to
be a diplomat without a spouse.
“Remind me to do
something about this,” Mugabe said to an aide as Arthur was
leaving.
When
Arthur, an esteemed friend, told me, I laughed and said that Mugabe
might be
thinking of the large and boisterous Shuvai Mahofa who was
currently
available for marriage. Arthur, appalled, could see I was only
half
joking.
Mrs Mahofa, Deputy Minister of State for Political Affairs had,
despite her
office, been charged with ordering two men, one a former
bodyguard, to burn
down the house of Abigail Huni, who had been vying with
Mrs Mahofa for the
favours of Phillip Chatikobo.
While she was
acquitted, members of her Gutu constituency made their
disaffection with her
very vocal indeed, and Mugabe had little choice but to
ask for her
resignation from government although, to assuage her patron
Simon Muzenda,
she was permitted to keep her parliamentary seat.
Other Zimbabweans
passionate about local politics, such as Edgar Moyo from
London, managed to
make their own way back to be in Harare at this time.
Dumiso Dabengwa was
one of the organisers of the conference, and I asked him
to get me a ticket
to what was being hailed as a “historic occasion”, but he
hadn’t
managed.
In the nick of time, before the climax of unity on the
morning of Friday
December 22, the high commissioner to Nigeria and Ghana,
Dr Isaac Nyathi,
telephoned to say he had a ticket for me.
I sped to
the Sheraton Hotel, part of the international conference centre
complex, and
met him and others in his room.
As he, like Arthur Chadzingwa, didn’t
have a wife with him, he had acquired
a ticket with the obligatory security
name tag for a friend, Elizabeth
Siziba. But she hadn’t been able to get off
work, so I took her place. I put
the bold name tag on my lapel and was
rushing past security into the
conference centre with Dumiso and Isaac when
Edgar Moyo stepped forward and
said loudly “You aren’t Elizabeth
Siziba!”
“How can you tell?” I responded and proceeded apace while,
thankfully,
security scrutinised Edgar rather than me.
Edgar, on
leave from his job in London, had managed to plant himself
temporarily in
the Kumalo Zanu (PF) Bulawayo branch, from where he had
helped despatch
himself to Harare as a delegate.
You would have had to be a very
small human being to enjoy being squashed
into the tiny purple seats of the
vaulting conference centre, and I left as
soon as decently possible after
President Mugabe’s address.
He was spilling over with excitement and
pleasure, welcoming all present
but, most especially, the fraternal
delegation from Romania. He said how
sorry he was that “our good friends”
Nicolae and Elena Ceausescu had not
been able to attend this conference, but
that a state visit to Zimbabwe was
being planned for them early the next
year. I sensed a tiny shock throughout
the assembly.
“Doesn’t he
listen to the news?” I murmured sideways to Isaac Nyathi. That
very morning
it had been reported on the BBC that Romania’s President
Nicolae Ceausescu
and his wife Elena, the esteemed friends of Robert Mugabe,
were attempting
to flee their country by helicopter. Later we learned that
they had been
captured by their own armed forces that had belatedly turned
against them
and whom they were trying to escape.
I wasn’t there when the deputy
Chinese prime minister made a speech in
support of unity between PF Zapu and
Zanu (PF) but Edgar Moyo was and
reported later that throughout the speech
delegates, despite themselves, had
laughed uncontrollably and increasingly
loudly. Edgar thought that this was
not necessarily because of the content,
relayed by an interpreter with a
broad American accent, but because the
language patterns were so unfamiliar.
Edgar was also present at
another outburst of hilarity. It seemed as though
that whole conference had
verged on hysteria throughout. Edgar was chatting
to a member of President
Quett Masire’s delegation from Botswana outside the
conference centre, when
the limousine carrying the president and Mrs Sally
Mugabe pulled
up.
As they got out, surrounding members of the Zanu PF Women’s League
fell on
their knees. The President of Botswana then turned to the man Edgar
was
talking to and said “M’na, if you boys ever want a revolution in
Botswana,
just ask the basadi (women) of Botswana to do this every time I
turn up at a
meeting!” At which, said Edgar, the whole delegation from
Botswana teetered
on the verge of collapse with helpless
laughter.
*Excerpt from Through the Darkness...A Life in Zimbabwe by
Judith Todd
published by Zebra Press 2007.
BY JUDITH TODD
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 19 December 2009
16:01
THE government should not be spending money on building an official
residence for Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai because it would be too
expensive for an arrangement that is only temporary. The Minister of
National Housing and Social Amenities, Fidelis Mhashu, said recently that
President Robert Mugabe had refused to vacate one of the two state
residences so Tsvangirai could move in.
When the late Canaan
Banana was President and Mugabe Prime Minister, Banana
lived at State House
while Mugabe occupied Zimbabwe House across the road.
But nearly a year
after being sworn in, Tsvangirai still occupies his modest
family home in
Strathaven.
There are several choices: The first is that Tsvangirai
can continue to live
where he is; (the neighbours have not complained about
being
inconvenienced): secondly the government could ask for the unoccupied
mayoral mansion in Gunhill; and thirdly he could bide his time because the
next elections could see the MDC-T registering a convincing victory and
therefore Tsvangirai marching triumphantly into State House.
The
mayoral mansion is a less expensive option, which would be helpful for
the
Harare City Council as it would receive a rental from the government.
Ideally the property should have been disposed of to embassies or
international organisations operating in the country because it is ideal for
a head office.
The reported refusal by President Mugabe to
relinquish one of the two state
properties to Tsvangirai demonstrates the
grudging chasm between what
President Mugabe says and what he does in how he
relates to the Prime
Minister and the MDC-T.
The disconnect underlies
the fragile nature of the coalition government. The
state properties are
maintained by state resources - meaning by taxpayers.
Zanu PF should not
behave as if these were built by President Mugabe's
party.
But
the outcome of the next elections could render irrelevant the current
inclusive arrangement and President Mugabe would have no legitimate claim to
remaining in the properties along Borrowdale Road because the people would
have spoken unequivocally.
The Prime Minister has already spent
nearly a year at his family residence,
a similar period could only raise his
standing among the voters as someone
who is mindful of overburdening the
electorate and is desirous of living
among those he leads.
Zanu PF
has never allowed anything to get in the way of its lavish spending.
That is
how the mayoral mansion came to be constructed even though
ratepayers
opposed the decision. Allowing the Prime Minister to use the
mansion might
be acceptable, if there are still genuine security
considerations.
But it is a major source of concern that the
Ministry of National Housing
and Social Amenities could entertain requesting
land from the Harare City
Council to construct a new residence for the Prime
Minister when the
property is only likely to be ready by the time the next
elections are held.
It is important that ministers from the MDC
formations demonstrate that
their presence in government has made a
difference and that their decisions
are in the greater interests of the
people.
We can't see how construction of a new residence for the Prime
Minister is
going to impact positively on the condition of the majority of
the people
who are struggling to make ends meet at a time when essential
services such
as health and education are under-funded.
There are
also government projects that have gone for years uncompleted. The
abandoned
Harare Polytechnic building along Samora Machel Avenue is an
example.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 19 December 2009
15:57
AFTER watching the signing ceremony during the tripartite agreement
now
known as the Global Political Agreement, it might be worth our while to
reflect on the importance or non-importance of signatures in Zimbabwean
society. The whole world witnessed the pomp and ceremony of the whole affair
while the immaculately-dressed signatories smiled and shook hands. Fine and
good for our country, and promises of ‘security’ for the people. Gentlemen
of honour, some of us thought hesitantly.
As I watched the drama,
I could not resist thinking of how Zimbabweans deal
with signatures and
official documents. At the back of my mind, I was
worried about issues of
trust and confidence.
Many years ago, quite a sizeable number of my
relatives would fail Standard
VI or Grade VII examinations.
When
parents realised the disaster of their children, especially the first
born,
not going to the next ladder of education, they simply went and took a
new
birth certificate, with a new name for the candidate.
Back to class, the
student came for another year, with a new name somewhat
unrelated to the
original one except for the surname. If you were James
Hove, you reappeared
in front of the same teachers as Peter Hove. Or if you
were Michael
Mudzingi, you sometimes re-incarnated yourself as Misheck
Mudzingisi.
No problem! Many such stories thrive in Zimbabwe, all
over the country in
its storyscape.
One of my relatives had his
son failing dismally the Grade VII examinations.
He changed name and went
back to school in the capital, Harare.
At the second attempt, he did
slightly better but not good enough to qualify
to enter secondary school.
When he went to personally apply for a place, the
headmaster asked him for
his birth certificate.
The boy, not knowing the implications, asked the
headmaster: “Which one?”
while showing the school head both the current one
and the previous one. The
boy had two birth certificates and he did not
think it was legally binding
to have been born only once. To be born twice
had its joys, and not too many
sorrows.
For those who were born
under the careful hands of a traditional midwife in
a traditional hut, no
records were ever made. You got your birth certificate
to suit your school
age requirements.
All you knew was that you were born the year the
railway line construction
passed through your village. You had to figure out
whether it was 1954 or
1956 since the railway construction took quite some
time. For me, 1956
suited the age requirements of the school
papers.
So, on paper I was born in 1956, and in reality, somewhere around
1954, in
the late summer season, at the time when groundnuts were beginning
to
mature. Oh, this obsession with proper documentation in Europe makes a
mockery of things back home.
I know many senior government
officials and managers of state-owned
companies who would change their names
in order to avoid being reduced to a
pensioner.
They still desired to
enjoy their huge salaries and perks which would end
once they go home to
spend their pension. I suspect they simply went and
paid a few dollars to
registrar-general, Tobaiwa Mudede’s officials and
walked out with a new
birth certificate.
On many occasions, I travelled with some of my
friends to their home areas.
My shock was that the name they are known by in
the city is not the same
they have at their birthplace. I know some men who
actually confiscated
their friends’ papers, went on to study for higher
education under the dead
friends’ names. Many such stories exist in many
parts of our country.
A birth certificate is a legal document and
should not be altered
willy-nilly just like that. I stick to my officially
documented date of
birth, to avoid confusion.
Now, the issue is:
do Zimbabweans really believe in the signatures they put
on paper? Or,
indeed, do Africans respect their signatures in all these
international
organisations which our governments join for various reasons?
I think
not.
Sometimes I have a feeling that the president, of whatever
African country,
only signs the papers for the sake of the glamour that is
involved. The
obligations of his signature are far beyond his imagination,
and he does not
care.
Zimbabwe is a signatory to many
international conventions: the Sadc , the
universal human rights convention,
the children’s rights convention, the
women’s rights convention, the African
People’s Rights Charter, everything.
The children’s rights convention
is clear about one thing: children must all
go to school, at least for basic
education (primary school). But then when
we see “street kids” all over our
cities, someone must remind the government
that it is in breach of its
signature.
The same with human rights abuses like political violence and
all that.
Someone must have the legal muscle to take the government to court
as a
matter of breach of international law.
I have come to think
that signatures, especially those of African
politicians, are meaningless.
President Robert Mugabe, as president of his
party, signed an extremely
important agreement called the Global Political
Agreement.
The same
man stands recently at his party congress to denounce the same
things he
publicly signed for. Mugabe and his party do not seem to care a
hoot about
respecting the things they signed for. The pomp and ceremony were
good for
the cameras, nothing else.
The saga has been repeated all over the
place on our over-trusting
continent. The people clap hands and celebrate,
in absolute trust, but the
leaders go home and flush away the signed papers
down the toilet.
Was it not justice minister, Patrick Chinamasa, who was
busy with papers
regarding the GPA as well as the constitutional amendment
which brought
about the Government of National Unity? Chinamasa did not
feel anything
scratching his conscience when he argued that the mishap was
simply a “typo”.
Chinamasa did not have anything pricking his conscience
when he sent the
constitutional amendment to the President with incomplete
pages. That
probably invalidates the whole document since all legal
documents have to be
penciled on every page.
In other parts of
the world, an agreement, even a verbal one, is a contract
between those who
agree. It does not always have to be written down. It is a
question of
honour for one to respect their word.
What are Zimbabweans to make of
President Mugabe’s signatures all over the
place? I, for one, do not believe
that he and his officials really bother to
read the contents of the
agreements they sign.
In our present and messy political situation,
President Mugabe does not
believe a word of what he signed for. I think the
Prime Minister still
believes in his signature. But President Mugabe went in
more for the glory
of the pomp than a national commitment to a peaceful
democracy.
The big question is: Are we people of honour or not? Are
we proud to steal
other people’s passports and certificates, call them our
own, travel the
whole way to the UK or elsewhere and claim to be what we are
not? Are we so
desperate that we can just shift our identities as if they
were
under-clothes? Does anyone dare to trust a Zimbabwean’s signature or
word?
Maybe deep in our hearts as Zimbabweans, we are just an
untrustworthy nation
which does not respect its own signatures all over the
place. Maybe our
political system has imbued in us this belief of dishonesty
and social
chicanery at every corner.
Our current identity is that we
are known for mischievous ways of doing
things, at every level, business and
politics. Anybody who trusts us does so
at their own risk. That is our new
identity, in this time of crises of
identities.
BY CHENJERAI
HOVE