http://www.iol.co.za/
February 25 2013 at 06:36pm
By
SAPA
Harare - Zimbabwe police vowed Monday to pursue a crackdown on
civic society
organisations, saying some Western-backed groups posed a
“serious security
threat”.
Police have in recent weeks raided leading
human and political rights
non-governmental organisations in what activists
say is calculated
harassment ahead of a constitutional referendum due on
March 16.
“Some of these NGOs really are going to pose a serious security
threat to
our country,” deputy police commissioner general Innocent
Matibhiri told a
parliament committee on defence and home
affairs.
“We have already deployed sufficient intelligence network
through the
country to monitor everyone, political parties and NGOs
included,” he said.
Last week police forcibly entered the offices of a
local poll observer
group, the Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN), by
breaking part of the
perimeter wall and confiscated
documents.
Matibhiri said police had confiscated radios and communication
equipment
being distributed by NGOs in rural areas.
“People are just
distributing them (radios) but they are not telling where
the gadgets came
from and how they got into the country,” he said.
“Under such an
environment, we can only suspect that whoever is doing that
has some
intentions that are not good for the country, and until we get
satisfactory
answers....we will continue to confiscate those gadgets.”
He said Western
nations with a political agenda were behind the NGOs.
“Ninety-nine
percent of the NGOs are Western-sponsored, you can only deduce
the
intentions.”
“We know the history of our country, who we have been
fighting with and who
our friends have been,” he told the
parliamentarians.
“This is why we are saying the NGOs are definitely
under a spotlight ... we
are very clear-minded as to the intentions of most
of the NGOs.”
Zimbabwe votes next month on a new constitution drafted by
the unity
government of President Robert Mugabe and his arch-rival Prime
Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai.
The referendum will be followed by
elections expected later in the year.
Police said last week they had
seized illegal radio receivers, mobile phone
handsets and copies of field
reports from the offices of a rights
organisation in Harare.
National
police spokeswoman Charity Charamba claimed the radio equipment was
from
Western countries and was to be “used for hate speech” and to discredit
the
elections.
Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change party has urged
the police to
stop harassing rights activists and its party
supporters.
Matibhiri rejected suggestions that the police sided with
certain political
parties, and said they were working to ensure the polls
were free of
violence.
“We are police officers, we definitely have
political parties that we
support and no-one can take that away from the
police. But we are guided by
principles,” he said. - Sapa-AFP
http://www.dailynews.co.zw/
Monday, 25 February 2013 10:44
HARARE - At least 10
civil society groups are facing the sword, as police
intensify a crackdown
on non-governmental organisations which has now
attracted global
attention.
The Daily News can reveal that police are combing through
potential evidence
to nail the 10 civil society groups, whose operations
include documenting
cases of human rights abuses and electoral
irregularities.
Under siege NGOs, on the other hand, say they are rushing
to Zimbabwe’s
power-sharing agreement broker, Sadc, for respite after police
bosses gave
the green light for an intensified crackdown.
“We want to
meet President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
and Welshman
Ncube so that this uncouth police behaviour is brought to an
end. We are not
ending there; we are taking the matter up with Sadc because
we believe this
is an uncultured and uncivilised behaviour that security
agents want to
enforce on Zimbabweans,” said Okay Machisa, director of
ZimRights, one of
the organisations under spotlight from police.
“If they (police) want to
ban radios (Elton Microlink radio sets), they
should also ban Chinese
cellphones because we receive news and information
on these gadgets. Where
on earth have you seen a normal police force banning
radio sets? It is
barbaric and an illegal action which we are not going to
condone,” said
Machisa.
Sadc is heavily involved in Zimbabwe’s internal politics after
acting as the
mediator and guarantor of the power sharing Global Political
Agreement,
which saw bitter rivals Mugabe and Tsvangirai turn into uneasy
coalition
government partners.
Sadc has warned against a repeat of
the 2008 violence which broke out after
Mugabe lost to Tsvangirai in first
round voting. A subsequent runoff turned
into a farce after Tsvangirai
pulled out citing gross violence led by the
military, forcing Sadc to
intervene.
The crackdown, which comes ahead of watershed polls to be held
most likely
in June, has raised fears of a violent campaign involving State
agents. And
it appears police are not letting up.
Police sources told
the Daily News that the crackdown on NGOs will continue
until after
elections, with more arrests expected soon.
According to police sources,
the onslaught, which started in Harare, will be
spread to target other NGOs
based in areas where Zanu PF’s popularity is
waning such as Masvingo and
Matabeleland region.
Most of the targeted NGOs are involved in human
rights, democracy and
election related work.
“These groups are no
longer safe. At least 10 are on the radar,” said a
source.
Security
agents are looking at every detail of their operations and very
soon it will
be Armageddon against these groups. If you look closely at
Zimbabwe Peace
Project, that organisation will be scrutinised carefully to
establish what
its agenda is in the coming elections,” said a police source.
NGOs under
surveillance by police include Crisis Coalition in Zimbabwe,
Counselling
Services Unit, ZimRights, ZPP, Zimbabwe Election Support Network
and other
groups perceived to be pro-democracy.
Last week, police spokesperson
Charity Charamba warned NGOs that arrests
were imminent, claiming that some
of the organisations had infiltrated Zanu
PF and were a risk to State
security.
She said ZPP has given naming codes to all political parties in
a bid to
mislead the public.
“ZRP (police) has it on good authority
that certain entities like the
Zimbabwe Peace Project purport to be engaged
in humanitarian work as an NGO
whereas they are an illegal conduit to the
regime change agenda by carrying
out covert political activities tantamount
to causing a threat to State
security and violating the country’s laws,” she
said.
“From evidence gathered so far, arrests will be made but as you
know we
investigate to arrest we don’t just arrest until we have facts and
evidence
at hand,” Charamba said.
Her boss, commissioner-general
Augustine Chihuri, made similar threats at a
pass-out parade on Thursday
saying NGOs working against Zanu PF would be
crushed.
“May I warn
such unscrupulous elements bent on propagating and perpetuating
violence in
a naive agenda of tarnishing the image of the country, that the
police will
maintain a zero tolerance,” he said.
“The long arm of the law shall
descend heavily on these malcontents
irrespective of their status in life,”
he said. - Xolisani Ncube
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona
Sibanda
25 February 2013
Christpower Maisiri, the 12 year-old boy who
died in a suspected arson
attack on Saturday in Headlands is said to have
survived two similar
attacks.
Christpower, the son of MDC-T official
Shepherd Maisiri, is expected to be
buried on Thursday and Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai has indicated he
will attend the burial
ceremony.
MDC-T secretary-general Tendai Biti told journalists in Harare
Monday the
party will approach SADC to deal with the upsurge in violence in
the country
in recent weeks.
The perpetrators of the attack are
believed to be the senior Maisiri’s
political enemies in the area, who
significantly include senior ZANU PF
cabinet member, Didymus
Mutasa.
Shepherd Maisiri told SW Radio Africa on Monday that his son was
born in
hiding “on a mountain” after his wife fled their homestead when it
was burnt
down in 2000. Maisiri is the local deputy organising secretary of
the MDC-T
in Headlands.
He said his wife was heavily pregnant when on
the 2nd of June 2000 the
homestead was attacked and burnt to the ground.
Owing to the trauma of
having to flee during the night, she went into labour
and delivered
Chrispower prematurely.
In 2008 Maisiri’s wife was
raped by Lovemore Manenji, a ZANU PF activist who
during the same incident
broke the boy’s leg. Manenji is serving a 65-year
jail term after he was
convicted for the crime. Maisiri claims it took the
police almost two years
to investigate the case because of Manenji’s
powerful links to ZANU PF
officials, especially to Mutasa.
Almost a year later on 29th September
2009, the hut Christpower was sleeping
in was burnt down. The boy managed to
escape but suffered burns on his back.
On 12th November 2010 he again
received burns to his buttocks after another
hut he was sleeping in was
torched by assailants thought to be ZANU PF
cadres. This time he escaped
before the roof collapsed. After this Maisiri
took his son for counselling
sessions because he had been so traumatised
that he had trouble
communicating.
In this most recent attack on Saturday at midnight, four
of Christpower’s
siblings survived after an elder brother sleeping in
another hut close by
smashed the door open and rescued them.
Maisiri
claims he has been the main target of all the arson attacks. In
total he
said, there have been nine attacks on him and his family since
2000, which
he believes is because of his activities on behalf of the MDC-T
in the
Headlands. Maisiri said: “Mutasa is my greatest enemy and this man
has made
my life miserable here in Headlands. I don’t have any faith in the
police
doing their work properly. I’m a marked man in this place.”
Maisiri went
on to elaborate about the attack that occurred on Saturday
night: “Last
Friday, I was threatened by Gilbert Makura and Isaac Dhogo that
they were
going to finish me off and barely 24 hours later my homestead is
attacked
again and this time my son dies in the inferno. It is clear who the
culprits
are and I’ve told the police all the names.”
At the time his hut was set
ablaze on Saturday, Maisiri had gone to Charenga
in ward 7 of headlands on a
campaign trail. He was alerted to of the
disturbances by one of his family
members. But by the time he returned home,
Christpower had already died in
the blaze.
It took police from the Inyati Mine station 19 hours to attend
to the scene
of crime. Maisiri explained that no arrests have ever been made
in the nine
times that his homestead has been attacked.
Despite the
attacks and fear that Mutasa is behind them, Maisiri is still
intending to
contest against ZANU PF in the forthcoming parliamentary
elections.
Explaining his determination Maisiri says, “My son has
died because of
politics. His death will not be in vain. Those that have
committed this
crime will one day pay but for now I want to give my son a
decent burial and
I’m happy that our party leader Morgan Tsvangirai said he
will attend the
burial on Thursday.”
Statement by the United States Embassy on the death of
Christpower Maisiri, son of MDC-T Headlands district deputy organizing
secretary, on February 23
Harare, February 25, 2013: The U.S. Embassy extends
its condolences to the Maisiri family in Headlands on the February 23 death of
their 12-year-old son, Christpower Simbarashe Maisiri, in a terrible fire that
is currently under investigation. Christpower’s father is a Manicaland local
official of the MDC-T party, and his home and family have been the target of
political violence on multiple occasions over the past decade.
This tragic death presents an opportunity to the Government
of Zimbabwe and the Joint Monitoring and Implementation Committee (JOMIC), which
are responsible in part for creating and promoting
an atmosphere of mutual trust and understanding between the political parties,
to demonstrate their commitment to justice by swiftly and professionally
investigating the circumstances that led to the death of this child.
If this was a case of arson, particularly if it was
politically motivated, swift professional law enforcement work to bring the
perpetrators to justice is vital to reassuring Zimbabweans that their political
leaders sincerely want, and will insist on, peace and peaceful elections in
2013. We call on the Zimbabwe Republic Police to conduct a thorough
investigation of this case and, it if is determined to be arson, to hold all
responsible for this atrocity to account.
As Zimbabwe brings its Global Political Agreement to an end,
non-partisan, efficient, and professional law enforcement is critical to gaining
the confidence of the Zimbabwean people, neighboring countries, and the
international community. Respect for the rule of law and apolitical policing
are also essential for creating the conditions for credible and non-violent
Zimbabwean elections later this year.
#
# #
Comments and queries should be addressed to Sharon
Hudson-Dean, Counselor for Public Affairs. E-mail: hararepas@state.gov Tel. +263 4 758800-1,
Fax: 758802.
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http://www.thezimbabwemail.com
Staff Reporter 10 hours
28 minutes ago
A 12-year-old son of an MDC-T parliamentary
aspirant in Headlands was burnt
to ashes on Saturday night when a house he
was sleeping in was allegedly
petrol- bombed by suspected Zanu PF
supporters.
The charred remains of Christpowers Maisiri, who was in Grade
Four at Ruura
Primary School, were still in the burnt hut when NewsDay
arrived yesterday
afternoon.
The MDC-T official, Sherpherd Maisiri, said
the family was waiting for the
police to take the body away.
Police at
the scene declined to comment referring questions to head office.
Police
spokesperson for Manicaland Province, Asssistant Inspector Luxson
Chananda
said last night that he was not aware of the incident. He promised
to check
with the Headlands station today.
MDC-T spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora
confirmed the incident: “The MDC-T is
extremely saddened by the loss of a
young life at the hands of cold blooded
murderers who are obviously working
on behalf of Zanu PF.”
He added: “The callous murder unquestionably bears the
signature of Zanu PF.
It’s high timepeople put an end to Zanu PF hegemony by
voting them out of
power.”
When NewsDay arrived at the Maisiri home,
scores of MDC-T supporters were
present.
Neighbours said they suspected a
petrol bomb was used. Christpowers and his
three brothers were sleeping in
the house when disaster struck. The brothers
escaped with minor
burns.
One of the brothers, James Maisiri, who rescued his two siblings, said
the
roof of the hut collapsed before he could save Christpowers.
“A blast
awakened me and when I went out to investigate, the hut was already
in
flames,” James said.
Maisiri told NewsDay he was not at home at the time of
the tragedy, but said
he strongly suspected local Zanu PF members (names
supplied) were
responsible for the inferno. They had verbally threatened him
previously on
several occasions, he said.
“This is the ninth time they
have burnt my house down. My son who died today
survived another such attack
in June 2008. He already had burn marks on his
back from the previous
fires,” Maisiri said, showing NewsDay numerous scars
on his own body,
allegedly sustained from earlier Zanu PF attacks.
Maisiri said local Zanu PF
activists had been threatening to “deal” with him
for causing the
incarceration of their leader Lovemore Manenji, a Zanu PF
2008 torture base
commander who was convicted for various counts of
politically-motivated
violence, including rape.
He was sentenced in 2009 to 52 years and is
presently in jail.
“Since the MDC was formed, these mountains have been my
home. They have
burnt my houses nine times since 2000. I lost two children
to the cold
weather while I was hiding in the mountains. In 2003, they
stabbed my
younger brother to death after mistaking him for me. They have
also been
attempting to take away my fields,” Maisiri said amidst
sobs.
Zanu PF secretary for administration, Didymus Mutasa, is the current MP
for
Headlands.
MDC-T secretary-general Tendai Biti confirmed the
incident.
“Our deputy organising secretary for Headlands, Shepherd Maisiri,
had his
house burnt today (yesterday) and his son who was 12 years, died in
the
incident. The boy was born in the bushes in the year 2000 after his
parents
were attacked and fled their home.”
He said this while addressing
thousands of supporters at a rally in
Chitungwiza yesterday.
Biti
revealed there was a plot to assassinate the MDC-T leadership by Zanu
PF as
the country moved towards elections.
He said he had been briefed of the plot
by a sympathetic Zanu PF official.
“I was with one of the big bosses today
(yesterday) and he was telling me
that they want to kill us. They want to
carry out assassinations,” Biti
said.
He said those targeted were people
like him who usually move around
unprotected.
Meanwhile Biti urged the
MDC-T to vote “Yes” at the referendum as the draft
constitution was a “baby”
of the MDC-T.
“This constitution is the baby of the MDC. The constitution we
are going to
vote for on 16 March came from the sweat of the children of
MDC. It’s a
constitution which came from the graves of the MDC-T. It is a
constitution
which came from the beatings of the MDC.
“So this is our
baby. The constitution is a byproduct of the people’s
struggle for
democratic change of Zimbabwe,” Biti said. - NewDay
http://www.politicsweb.co.za
25 February
2013
MDC President says 12yr old boy Christpowers Simbarashe Maisiri
murdered
over weekend
Zanu PF in a state of panic and on full scale
violence
The MDC is extremely enraged at the increase of politically
motivated
incidents of violence taking place throughout the country at the
instigation
of the chaos faction of Zanu PF.
At the weekend a 12 year
old boy Christpowers Simbarashe Maisiri, the son of
the MDC Headlands
district deputy organising secretary, Shepherd Maisiri was
callously
murdered on Saturday by Zanu PF thugs.
The police from Inyati Mine Police
Station were informed about the incident
at around 12 midnight but said they
could not attend the scene because they
had no fuel.
They only
arrived at the scene 7 hours later.
This is the ninth time Maisiri's
house has been attacked by Zanu PF
gendarmes but typicaly no arrests have
ever been made.
In Gutu Central Constituency, 50 year old Albert Musvosvo
an MDC branch
chairman in ward 17 was severely assaulted by a mob of Zanu PF
supporters at
last weekend and sustained horrible injuries. Again no arrests
have been
made.
In another incident, barely a month ago, William
Sibanda, an MDC youth
supporter was abducted by a known agent from the CIO
at gun-point at
Nyamandlovu bus terminus in Matabeleland North province. The
CIO operative
is only known as Chibango and operates from Lupane Police
Station but he has
not been arrested.
As if to compliment these acts
of barbarism by Zanu PF, the Police have
embarked on a crusade against the
people in particular carrying out raids
against MDC leadership. Just a week
ago they raided the home of Hon Reggie
Moyo in Bulawayo looking for what
they called subversive material.
For the MDC this harassment of
pro-democracy institutions by the state is
totally unacceptable.
The
partisan and unprofessional conduct being displayed by the police and
army
is totally unacceptable. We note with displeasure the incessant attacks
on
nongovernmental organisations and other voices of dissent.
The
confiscation of radios, continued police raids and arrests of
pro-democracy
activists at: Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights),
the National
Youth Development Trust (NYDT) and of late at the Zimbabwe
Peace Project
(ZPP) and Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) points to a
serious
indictment of a free democratic environment which we envisage as we
approach
the election period this year.
In Matebeleland the police have also been
harassing civic organizations and
people perceived to be aligned to the MDC.
Recently the Habbakuk Trust and
National Youth Development Trust offices
were ransacked by security
personnel looking for what they called subversive
material.
The intimidation tactics are not new as Zanu PF always employs
the same
tactics before national elections.
In January, ZimRights
director Okay Machisa was arrested and charged by the
police in Harare for
allegedly conspiring to ‘commit voter registration
fraud and publishing or
communicating falsehoods.'
Machisa becomes the fifth to face similar
charges after Leo Chamahwinya,
Dorcas Shereni, Tanaka Chinaka and Farai
Bhani were arrested last year and
are still being held in remand
prison.
The MDC's position is that the resurgence and obvious
perpetuation of a
culture of impunity that has permeated the Zimbabwe body
politic lately, is
totally unacceptable and should be stopped forthwith if
this nation is to
move forward.
It is even more ridiculous that such
unpleasant developments are happening
at the backdrop of Zanu PF leader;
Robert Mugabe's repeated calls for peace
and the need for violence free
elections.
As much as Mugabe has been declaring such good intentions, the
behaviour of
State institutions and some of his party stalwarts points
towards some very
disturbing irony.
The clear selective application
of the law and continued raids by the
Zimbabwe Republic Police is ridiculous
and puts paid to our call for serious
reforms of institutions, including the
security sector realignment before
holding of the next elections.
It
is in light of such unacceptable developments that the MDC reiterates its
call for a realignment of all institutions of the State which have a direct
bearing on the holding of free, fair and peaceful elections.
Our
benchmarks in Conditions for a Sustainable Election in Zimbabwe (COSEZ)
remain as follows;
1. The adoption and implementation of an agreed
new Constitution for
Zimbabwe.
2. Reform of legislative requirements
for the elections:
a) Adoption of a new Electoral Act which incorporates,
regional and
international standards governing the conduct of
elections.
b) Media reforms that include the issuing of community radio
licences to
impartial and non partisan organisations.
c) Repeal of all
legislation that restricts the freedom of movement and
association in
Zimbabwe including POSA, AIPPA, the Broadcasting Services Act
and the
Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act.
d) No member of the uniformed
forces and intelligence service should
participate in any way in
electioneering on behalf of any political party,
individuals or any other
organisation.
3. The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to be in charge of all
electoral
processes including:
a) The Appointment of non partisan and
impartial staff to manage the affairs
of the commission.
b) Preparing of
a new voter's roll.
c) Provide voter's education on a national
basis.
4. Official election observers and monitors to be in place six
months before
and six months after the election to:
a) Ensure the
eradication of state sponsored violence and intimidation.
b) Guarantee the
secrecy, security and integrity of the vote and the voter.
The MDC wishes
to point out that it is also aware of the fact that scores of
soldiers and
their spouses are registering to vote in the coming national
elections in
suspicious circumstances that are believed to be part of a Zanu
PF ploy to
rig in the next elections. The soldiers are registering at the
Tredgold
Building in Office 16 in Bulawayo, which office is responsible for
the army
led Maguta Programme.
The voter registration exercise for the public was
halted in Bulawayo last
month amid speculations that the Registrar General's
office only allows
people aligned to Zanu PF party to register to vote.
Scores of people are
being sent away from registration centres while police
and army personnel
are being allowed to register to vote.
A visit to
the Tredgold building revealed that ordinary people are not being
allowed to
register to vote. This trend is now widespread with about 40
people being
arrested in Lupane a fortnight ago while trying to exercise
their right to
vote in the coming local and national elections.
The MDC condemns the
selective registration process of people which targets
security personnel
and people aligned to Zanu PF. The exercise is flawed and
reminiscent of the
rogue processes employed by the drowning party towards
democratic
elections.
The MDC remains steadfast in the march towards a new
democratic
dispensation, which recognizes and respects the rights of every
Zimbabwean.
The time has come for every Zimbabwean young and old to define
your future
through your vote.
Statement issued by Morgan Tsvangirai,
Zimbabwean Prime Minister and
President of the MDC, February 25 2013
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Alex
Bell
25 February 2013
South Africa’s government has been warned that
it risks being complicit in
potential violence during Zimbabwe’s next
elections, if it donates military
equipment there.
A donation of a
fleet of helicopters and spare parts has been put on hold on
this basis,
with a South Africa civil rights group warning that incidents of
violence
and intimidation are on the rise across the border.
The group, AfriForum,
last month applied for an urgent interdict to stop the
donation planned by
the South Africa National Defence Force (SANDF) to the
Zimbabwe Defence
Force. That interim interdict was granted last month to
allow time for the
main application to be finalised.
The interim order was then confirmed
last Friday, and will stand until the
finalised application is heard in the
High Court on March 27th. South Africa’s
defence minister meanwhile has
until February 28th to deliver to the court a
full record of how it came to
its decision to donate the helicopters.
The entire fleet of French built
Alouette III helicopters and spare parts
was set aside as a ‘donation’ by
the SANDF. But AfriForum is seeking to stop
this happening, arguing that
Zimbabwe’s human rights record, and the role
that the country’s military has
played in previous elections, support fears
of future violence during the
next poll.
AfriForum’s legal representatives had written to the South
Africa Minister
of Defence, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula as well as Justice
Minister Jeff Radebe,
(who chairs the National Conventional Arms Control
Committee, the NCACC)
about speculation that the SANDF had decided to donate
its Alouette fleet to
Zimbabwe.
The ministers were given seven days
to respond to the letter, but AfriForum
did not receive any answer or
explanation. Instead spokespeople for both
ministers confirmed to the Mail
& Guardian newspaper that the donation was
finalised and that delivery
of the helicopters was imminent.
According to AfriForum’s legal
representative, Willie Spies, they are trying
to prevent the donation
because South Africa risks being complicit in any
future violence in
Zimbabwe.
“We’ve read reports of new incidents of violence, torture and
murder. If
that is the way in which ZANU PF conducts the polls, then South
Africa
cannot be complicit to that,” Spies said.
http://www.herald.co.zw
Monday, 25 February 2013
00:00
The ZRP has warned the public of armed robbers on
the loose
Crime Reporter
CASES of armed robberies have increased
in and around Harare with at least
five people losing cars, cash, cellphones
and valuables at gunpoint over the
weekend in separate incidences. Police
confirmed and said no one was shot or
injured. This comes in the wake that
at least 2 000 criminal suspects are
roaming the streets free after being
released on bail pending appeal.
In one of the cases, last
Friday, a woman in Borrowdale lost a Honda Ballade
worth US$13 000, US$700
cash and gold necklaces to a lone armed robber who
broke into her house
while she was asleep.
The woman who was in her bedroom tried to scream
but the armed robber
produced a pistol threatening to shoot her.
He
then demanded cash and was given US$700 cash before threatening to rape
the
victim alleging that he was HIV positive.
The victim surrendered car keys
and was later force marched to the vehicle
which was parked outside before
being bundled into the car.
She later managed to jump out of the vehicle
and the robber sped off. A
report was made to the police.
A Harare
man lost a Toyota Raum to armed robbers he had offered a lift at a
service
station in the city to Kuwadzana.
It is reported that on approaching the
Tynwald flyover one of the robbers
produced a pistol and forced the man to
comply with his orders.
They then searched him and took US$140 and a
Samsung cellphone before
pushing him out of the moving vehicle.
The
robbers sped off.
Four armed robbers who were travelling in a blue Mazda
Familia got away with
US$25 and a Nokia cellphone after robbing a woman they
had offered a lift in
Newlands to the city centre.
The woman was
traveling alone when the incident occurred at around 4.30am on
Saturday.
One of the robbers produced a pistol and threatened to
shoot the woman
before ordering her to surrender cash and
valuables.
She complied and the robbers later dumped her before driving
off.
Another group of robbers pounced at Sunridge Service station early
Sunday
morning and got away with US$36 and a cellphone belonging to a petrol
attendant.
The robbers, traveling in a Fun Cargo arrived at the
service station and
approached one of the fuel attendants alleging that they
wanted US$5 petrol.
It is alleged that one of the armed robbers jumped
out of the vehicle
holding a rifle ordering the attendant to surrender all
the money but he
refused.
The attendant was manhandled and ordered to
lie down while the robbers were
searching him and they took the cash and the
cellphone.
Police said the attendant pressed a panic button which was in
his pocket and
the robbers jumped into their vehicle and sped
off.
Another man lost a Nokia cellphone to two armed robbers who waylaid
him near
the Kopje area in the city.
The man who was on his way to
the area had disembarked a kombi at
Copacabanna when the incident
occurred.
He was later approached by the two robbers and one of them was
armed with a
pistol which they pointed to the complainant before searching
him.
Police said no arrests have since been made and investigations are
still in
progress.
Members of the public have been urged to be wary
of these criminals and it
is suspected that they are armed and
dangerous.
This year, at least 2000 criminal suspects are roaming the
streets free as
their appeals could not be dealt with timeously due to
shortage of
transcribers and poor recording equipment, a development that
was
compromising the justice delivery system.
The protracted delays
have resulted in the suspects, among them carjackers,
rapists, armed robbers
and fraudsters, continuing with their criminal
activities while others have
since breached their bail conditions and
disappeared.
Judicial
Service Commission deputy secretary, Mr Rex Shana, recently said
the High
Court was sitting on 2000 appeal cases while the Supreme Court had
122
cases.
He lamented the huge backlog citing combination of
factors.
Last year, police confirmed that hardcore criminals released
from Harare
jails were believed to be committing armed robberies and
carjackings.
Some of these criminals were reportedly released on bail,
bail pending
appeal and others were said to have completed their sentences.
http://www.dailynews.co.zw
Monday, 25 February 2013
11:10
HARARE - Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s MDC claims to have
unearthed a
plot by Zanu PF to assassinate its leadership ahead of watershed
elections
expected this year.
The sensational claims were made
yesterday by party secretary-general Tendai
Biti while addressing over 2 000
supporters in Chitungwiza town, 30 km south
east of the capital
Harare.
Biti, who is also Finance minister in the shaky coalition
government, said
his party had information that Zanu PF would not resort to
open violence
against his party supporters as was the case with the
controversial 2008
presidential run-off but will use systematic elimination
of the party’s
leadership through assassinations.
He said Zanu PF was
afraid of losing the right to host the United Nations
World Tourism
Organisation general assembly set for August and would thus
change
tactics.
“I have been informed today by our friends in the security
forces that they
have a plot to assassinate our leadership to instil fear
into our
supporters. They cannot win any elections without using violence
but we are
not afraid of anyone,” said Biti. - Mugove Tafirenyika
http://www.newzimbabwe.com
25/02/2013 00:00:00
by
Staff Reporters
ZANU PF has dismissed as “pathetic lies” allegations
by MDC-T secretary
general Tendai Biti of a security services plot to
assassinate party leaders
ahead of elections expected later this
year.
Biti, who is also Finance Minister, told supporters at a weekend
rally in
Chitungwiza that the party had been alerted to a Central
Intelligence
Organisation (CIO) plot to assassinate its leaders ahead of the
new polls.
“Very reliable sources within the security forces (CIO) have
informed us
that they are going to make attempts on the lives of the leaders
of the
party,” he said.
“What we want to tell you is that you may
kill one person thinking that you
have thwarted the process of emancipation,
but you will never kill an idea.”
He said the MDC-T was taking the
threats seriously since party leaders have
previously been attacked by
suspected security services agents and hooligans
linked to Zanu
PF.
But Zanu PF spokesman Rugare Gumbo dismissed the allegations as a
pathetic
attempt by the MDC-T to appeal for financial support from the
party’s
Western backers.
“These are all, but pathetic efforts by the
MDC- T to appeal for sponsorship
from their foreign funders on the basis
that there is politically motivated
violence in the country,” said
Gumbo.
“It is disturbing to note that towards elections, when we have
agreed that
we are going to create a conducive environment for free and fair
elections,
the MDC- T is still orchestrating plans to discredit other
political parties
in the race.
“These are manufactured lies and they
are only meant to win the hearts of
their sponsors. We are not even moved by
their lies and what they should
know is that we are not going to eliminate
anyone from the race that way. We
will eliminate them
democratically.
Vice President Joyce Mujuru appealed for peaceful
election campaigns at the
weekend, warning that any violence would attract
unhelpful international
attention on the country.
“No parent wants to
see his or her children fight each other, let alone kill
or maim each other.
As a mother and a grandmother, I feel strongly about
this,” Mujuru told
mourners attending the burial of war hero John Mayowe,
who was Zimbabwe’s
Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
However, the MDC-T claims
attacks continue against its supporters across the
country.
“The MDC is
extremely enraged at the increase of politically motivated
incidents of
violence taking place throughout the country at the instigation
of … Zanu
PF,” the party said in a statement Monday.
“The MDC is extremely
enraged at the increase of politically motivated
incidents of violence
taking place throughout the country at the instigation
of the chaos faction
of Zanu PF.”
Zimbabwe will hold a constitutional referendum on March 16
with elections to
choose a substantive government expected later in the
year.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Alex Bell
25
February 2013
Finance Minister Tendai Biti and Justice Minister Patrick
Chinamasa on
Monday denied that the millions of dollars needed for the
upcoming
constitutional referendum have been secured.
Chinamasa was
quoted by the Sunday Mail on the weekend as saying the poll,
just three
weeks away, “will not be stopped because of lack of money,” and
that some
US$85 million was “sourced locally” from commercial and business
interests.
These comments were made two days after Biti announced
that the government
had failed to source external funding for the
referendum.
But Chinamasa on Monday refuted the Sunday Mail report,
insisting he was
“misquoted.”
SW Radio Africa’s Harare correspondent
Simon Muchemwa spoke to Chinamasa on
Monday and he insisted the money has
not been secured.
“He said that the government was likely to raise the
money from within the
country, but that had not happened yet,” Muchemwa
said.
Minister Biti on Monday also denied that the money had been
secured,
reiterating during a press conference that the government was still
planning
to source the funds from local firms.
“Both ministers have
reiterated there is no money yet,” Muchemwa said.
However, Chinamasa then
called Muchemwa late Monday afternoon to once again
retract what he had
previously said. He said the money HAS been secured, but
SW Radio Africa
still needs to confirm this new statement.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona
Sibanda
25 February 2013
Judge President Justice George Chiweshe will
on Wednesday deliver his ruling
on an urgent chamber application filed by
the National Constitutional
Assembly (NCA), which is seeking to stop the
referendum set for March 16th.
NCA spokesman Blessing Vava told SW Radio
Africa the Judge will look at the
merits and de-merits of the application,
which President Robert Mugabe has
said should be dismissed by the High
Court.
The state controlled Herald said Mugabe had, through Justice and
Legal
Affairs Minister Patrick Chinamasa, filed an opposing affidavit
arguing that
in terms of the Referendums Act, the publication of the
referendum date was
the prerogative of the President.
Mugabe said it
was up to the people of Zimbabwe and not pressure groups like
the NCA to
decide whether or not to approve the draft constitution, adding
that those
against the holding of the referendum or the draft constitution
were at
liberty to campaign for a ‘No Vote’ rather than stopping the
process.
COPAC has meanwhile launched its countrywide campaign to
familiarise the
people with the draft Constitution ahead of the referendum.
SW Radio Africa
correspondent Simon Muchemwa said translated versions of the
draft are also
being distributed to all the districts in the
country.
He said COPAC officials will address various public meetings
targeted at
main centres in urban and rural areas.
‘There is also an
advocacy program being done by the Civil Society
Organisations on behalf of
COPAC to do so. The NGO’s signed a Memorandum of
Understanding with COPAC in
Harare last week setting the conditions under
which they are going to
operate and the material they are going to use,’
Muchemwa
said.
Members of Parliament have also started carrying out publicity
campaigns in
their respective constituencies.
http://www.thezimbabwemail.com
Staff Reporter 31
minutes ago
HARARE - There was drama at the High Court of
Zimbabwe as lawyers
representing President Robert Mugabe and National
Constitutional Assembly
(NCA) Chairperson, Professor Lovemore Madhuku
engaged in a legal duel to
outwit each other regarding the date of the
referendum.
The referendum case spilled into courts after Professor Madhuku
filed to the
High Court, challenging President Mugabe’s proclamation for the
referendum
to be held on the 16th of March.
Professor Madhuku argues
that 16 March is too soon a date for Zimbabweans to
have acquainted
themselves with the draft constitution which has just been
availed to
them.
In the court chambers, Alec Muchadehama, representing Professor
Madhuku
insisted that President Mugabe’s proclamation for the holding of the
referendum on the 16th of March was arbitrary as it is a matter which
affects the position of private citizens.
He argued that the
proclamation by the President should be set aside pending
the outcome of the
matter, an argument which was rebutted by Deputy Attorney
General, Advocate
Prince Machaya.
Advocate Machaya said it is not competent for the court
to grant an order
which sets aside an enactment as this violates the
intentions of the
legislature.
Advocate Machaya further argued that
the court had no jurisdiction on the
matter as section 37 k, subsection 1
paragraphs (a) to (d) of the
constitution mandates the President to use his
own discretion with no
preconditions which he must follow when proclaiming a
referendum.
He added that Section 3 of the Referendums Act (chapter 2:10)
accorded the
President a specific statutory power which makes his
proclamation not
justifiable.
In a counter argument, Muchadehama said
any exercise of power by the
President is reviewable by the courts unless
the court’s jurisdiction is
specifically ousted by the constitution’s
specific provision.
He also said in proclaiming the dates, the President
did not take into
account the interests of the citizens as the 20 working
day period is not
enough to deal with issues at hand.
Judge President
George Chiweshe reserved his ruling on the application by
Professor Madhuku,
saying he will proceed to address the preliminary issues
argued by both
parties to the civil dispute before proceeding to deal with
the
merits.
He postponed the matter to Wednesday the 27th of February.
http://www.herald.co.zw
Monday, 25 February 2013
18:41
Herald Reporter
The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission has
started taking applications from
individuals and organisations who want to
observe the forthcoming referendum
next month. This comes at a time the
electoral body has also begun training
voter education supervisors and
district election officers who will monitor
voter education exercises
countrywide.
The country will hold a constitutional referendum on March
16.
Acting Zec chairperson Mrs Joyce Kazembe said all applications,
foreign or
local, would be considered by the Commission's Observer
Accreditation
Committee.
The committee would then recommend to Zec
the persons or organisations to be
approved for
accreditation.
"According to the electoral law the committee is chaired
by the Zec
chairperson and the deputy chairperson is also a member together
with a
Commissioner," she said.
"Other members will include
representatives from the Ministries of Justice
and Legal Affairs, Foreign
Affairs, Home Affairs mainly the immigration
department. This is the
committee which looks at all the applications and
makes
recommendations."
Zec chief elections officer Mr Lovemore Sekeremayi said
applications to be
considered for accreditation include those from
individuals representing
foreign countries or international organisations
and foreign eminent persons
who would have applied to be accepted as
observers.
"Individuals representing local organisations and eminent
persons from
within Zimbabwe who have applied to be accepted as observers
will have their
applications considered," he said.
"Also for
consideration are applications from individuals representing
bodies that
exercise functions similar to those of the Commission and that
have been
invited by the Commission to observe an election."
Mr Sekeramayi said
applications would also include those of people
representing foreign
countries and international organisations and foreign
eminent persons who
would have been invited by the Minister of Foreign
Affairs to observe an
election.
He said local organisations and eminent persons from within
Zimbabwe who
would have been invited by the Ministry of Justice and Legal
Affairs would
also be considered for accreditation.
"An application
for the accreditation as an observer must be made to the
chief election
officer by the individual or eminent person who wishes to be
accredited or
the organisation that wishes its representatives to be
accredited or the
Minister responsible for Justice and Legal Affairs or the
Minister
responsible for Foreign Affairs in respect of individuals whom the
Minister
concerned has invited to observe the referendum," Mr Sekeramayi
said.
"An application for the accreditation must state the names of
individuals
whom the organisation or Minister wishes to have
accredited."
On the training of voter education supervisors and district
election
officers, Mr Sekeramayi said it would be done in all the 10
provinces in
preparation for the referendum and subsequently
elections.
Training covers various aspects of the referendum, methods of
disseminating
voter information, communication and code of conduct for voter
educators,"
he said.
He said the training was being conducted by Zec
provincial election officers
and staff.
"The next level of training
will involve the voter educators at all district
centres before immediate
deployment in all wards across the country in a few
days' time," he
said.
The referendum next month will bring to finality the constitution
making
process that began four years ago and gobbled over US$50
million.
The process took long because of bickering among the political
parties who
have since agreed to campaign for a ‘Yes’ Vote.
Copac, a
Parliament Committee, which spearheaded the drafting of the new
constitution, is holding campaigns countrywide to familiarise the people
with the new supreme law.
After the referendum, harmonised elections
would follow to end the
inclusive government formed in 2009 following an
inconclusive poll the
previous year.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw
February 25, 2013 in
Politics
WHILE government is searching for money to finance the
constitutional
referendum and general elections, political parties are also
secretly
hunting for funds to bankroll their electoral
campaigns.
Staff Writer
Official sources say Zanu PF and the two
MDC parties are currently looking
for money at home and abroad to fund their
campaigns despite the law
prohibiting foreign funding.
Zanu PF, which
benefited from the largesse of the late British tycoon Tony
Rowland, accuses
the two MDC parties of being foreign-funded, while its
rivals also say it is
secretly getting money from outside.
The Zimbabwe Independent recently
reported Meikles group mogul John Moxon
donated vehicles to Zanu PF last
year to boost President Robert Mugabe and
Zanu PF’s bid to remain in
power.
An official source said yesterday the main contributor to Mugabe’s
secretive
and controversial US$20 million presidential well-wishers
agricultural input
scheme was Equatorial Guinea leader Teodoro Obiang Nguema
Mbasogo.
“That money came from Equatorial Guinea,” the source said.
“While it accuses
the MDC of receiving foreign funding, Zanu PF also does
the same. The party
covertly gets money from local and international
sources. Party funding is
murky everywhere, including in Zimbabwe.
Politicians campaign using dirty
funds.”
Mugabe is currently in
Equatorial Guinea for the Africa-South America
summit. Sources say he may
request for further funding from his ally Nguema
who has previously supplied
government with fuel after Harare helped to
thwart a coup plot by a group of
mercenaries led by former British Special
Air Services officer Simon Mann in
2004.
Even if they are bitter rivals, it seems Zanu PF and the two MDC
parties
agree on one thing: refusing to declare sources of their secret
funds.
Analysts say there is need for clear funding laws, rules and
regulations to
minimise chequebook politics destroying the right of voters
to choose their
leaders freely and eroding democracy.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/
25.02.13
by Nelson
Sibanda
The Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Security on Monday
took Police
Deputy Commissioner General, Innocent Matibiri, to task over the
Zimbabwe
Republic Police’s failure to arrest suspected perpetrators of
political
violence.
The committee asked Matibiri why suspected
perpetrators of violence who were
fingered in murder cases of MDC activists
such as Talent Mabika, Tichaona
Chiminya and Tonderai Ndira among others
remained immune to prosecution.
Matibiri said there were no facts to
prosecute in the MDC murder complaints.
“Police deals with cases which
are supported by facts, not hearsay.
The problem with some of the
complaints is that people tend to politicise
incidents which would otherwise
be purely domestic. Some people are killed
because they would have taken
away someone’s wife among other petty reasons.
“I would want to make it
clear that some of these cases are as a result of
media imaginations. There
is nothing to incriminate anyone in this regard,”
said
Matibiri.
Matibiri’s comments almost raised emotions in the house as MDC
legislators
among them Committee Chairperson Paul Madzore, Silobela Member
of Parliament
Anadi Anold Sululu and Musikavanhu constituency Member of
Parliament Prosper
Chapfiwa Mutseyami asked police to clarify what they
meant by ‘there is no
evidence to link anyone to the indicated murder
cases.’
“It boggles the mind to hear police say there is nothing
suggesting that
Mabika and Chiminya were petrol bombed by some identified
people.
Remember these atrocities were committed in broad day light, in
full view of
people but all the same police remained inactive,” said
Mutseyami.
Contributing to the session legislator Sululu told Matibiri
that traditional
leaderships such as headmen and others were the major
perpetrators of
violence.
“Partisan headmen and some other
traditional leadership are at the
fore-front of perpetration of violence but
police are not taking action in
this respect. This has resulted in people
losing confidence in police as in
some cases MDC complainants have been
turned into accused.
“Grassroots no longer approach police for assistance
and protection against
perpetrators of violence since they have lost all
faith in the law
enforcement agency,” Sululu told Matibiri.
He also
sought police justification for its continued disruption of indoor
political
party meetings under the Public Order Security Act.
“Police reasons for
disrupting indoor meetings and failure to arrest due to
lack of evidence,
stinks. Your excuses as police for not arresting
perpetrators of violence
are sort of sickening,” said Sululu.
The parliamentary committee had
invited the police to reflect on its
preparedness to help ensure coming
elections are conducted in a peaceful
environment.
The committee will
visit police provincial and district establishments for
the police election
preparedness probe.
Police says it is prepared for the election task
provided ZEC approves its
over $190 million budget. The exercise would need
some 50, 000 police
officers to man the 10 000 polling stations across the
country.
Each polling station would be manned by at least five police
officers.
http://www.newzimbabwe.com
25/02/2013 00:00:00
by Staff
Reporter
MDC-T leader and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
has urged the
international community to remain engaged with the country
ahead of fresh
polls this year warning that risks remained of a relapse to
the instability
of the last decade.
Addressing an international peace
conference in Seoul, South Korea, at the
weekend, Tsvangirai said elections
expected later this year would be
critical in helping the country shake off
the effects of the political and
economic crisis experienced between 2000
and 2009.
“Zimbabwe is today standing at the crossroad. Your solidarity
with us as we
pull down the years of inequity and injustice will help us to
achieve real
sustainable peace,” the MDC-T leader told the conference which
was attended
hundreds and delegates including by current and past leaders of
several
countries.
“The year 2013 offers us, SADC and Africa a
defining moment for Zimbabwe.
Having avoided a total collapse of Zimbabwe,
our priorities are clear. We
must build strong institutions and other
political ‘firewalls’ to circumvent
a relapse.
“We must accept the
imperative and manage the final stretch with care and
maturity in order to
insulate our people from decades of political
uncertainty.”
Zimbabwe
will next month hold a referendum on a new constitution, a
precursor to
elections that will choose a substantive government to replace
the coalition
administration between Tsvangirai and President Robert Mugabe
which came
into office after the violent 2008 elections.
The European Union (EU) has
already relaxed some of its sanctions against
the country to reward progress
made in the constitutional reforms.
Tsvangirai however said the
international community must continue to watch
developments in the
country.
“As we prepare for an election, the world must continue to nudge us
to be
open about this transformative process; to be accountable to humanity;
to
embrace tolerance; and to allow the will of the people to prevail,” he
said.
“What confronts us requires global attention if Zimbabwe is to move
away
from dinner-table discussions, where it has been dominant, clearly for
wrong
reasons, for the past few years.”
Tsvangirai edged Mugabe in
the first round of the presidential ballot in
2008 but pulled out of the
run-off, accusing the Zanu PF leader of
brutalising his
supporters.
And as he faces another electoral showdown with the
veteran 89-year-old, the
MDC-T leader could not resist a dig at his
long-term rival.
“Granted, our founding fathers played a key role in
setting the stage for
freedom,” he said.
“But, alas, this “greying”
generation must accept its inability to cope with
the pace, demands and
choices of today’s hyper-active and well-networked
children.”
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Nomalanga Moyo
25
February 2013
The long-suffering residents of Harare have expressed
dismay at the failure
by the local authority to provide them with clean
water.
All the suburbs in the city had no water over the weekend after
the Harare
City Council shut down supplies, citing leakages on the
transmission mains
from Morton Jaffray to Warren Control Pump
Station.
Council spokesperson Leslie Gwindi indicated that services had
been restored
to most areas by Monday afternoon, although he could not
disclose which
suburbs were yet to be connected.
He said he does not give
interviews to radio stations.
While welcoming the restoration of services
to some areas, representatives
of Harare residents said they are not holding
their breaths regarding
consistent water supply. They accused the council of
lacking a clear
strategy of addressing the city’s perennial water
problems.
Simbarashe Moyo, chairman of the Combined Harare Residents
Association, said
he was deeply concerned about the inconsistent and
inefficient manner in
which the local authority was handling water
provision.
He also criticised the council’s poor communication, saying
residents are
not notified in time about impending disconnections to enable
them to
prepare.
“We only get to know we have been disconnected when
we no longer have
water,” he said.
Moyo said this was placing a huge
burden on residents, particularly on women
who have to endure walking long
distances and standing in long queues in
search of water. Some of them often
resort to fetching water from
unprotected sources.
“This is a health
hazard for residents. We talk about outbreaks of diseases
such as cholera,
dysentery and typhoid, but these a result of the challenges
that we are
facing, which are that the service provider is failing to
provide adequate
water to rate payers,” Moyo said.
In 2012, at least five people were
confirmed to have died from typhoid in
Harare’s Glen View suburb. In 2010,
more than 4,000 people died following a
countrywide cholera outbreak. Both
health crises were blamed on a lack of
clean water and the collapse of
Zimbabwe’s sanitation system.
Harare Residents’ Trust director Precious
Shumba expressed similar concerns,
adding that the recurrent problems show
that the council does not have any
long-term strategy of addressing the
water crisis in Harare.
Shumba also revealed that some residents,
particularly in the northern
suburbs, who have at times gone for more than a
month without water, have
been shocked to receive huge bills even for
periods when they had no
supplies.
http://www.herald.co.zw
Monday, 25 February 2013 18:53
The
wreckage of a commuter omnibus that was involved in a head on collision
with
a haulage truck that ended up being on top of the commuter omnibus
killing
seven people and injuring 23.
Herald Reporter
SEVEN people died on the
spot while 23 others were injured at the
intersection of Joshua Nkomo
(Airport Road) and Dieppe Road in a
four-vehicle collision this afternoon.
Police spokesperson Superintendent
Andrew Phiri confirmed the
accident.
"We can confirm that a fatal road accident occurred at the
intersection of
Dieppe road and Joshua Nkomo. A Jumbo transport haulage
truck which was
going to the east along Dieppe Road was involved in a
three-vehicle
collission.
"The haulage truck first hit a land cruiser
it was facing at its back then
the two commuter omnibuses. "All commuter
omnibuses were coming from the
east facing the haulage truck.
Seven
passengers who died were in the commuter omnibus which was in front
while
eight of its passengers were injured. The two
commuter omnibuses were
carrying 15 passengers each. "Of the deceased there
are four adult females,
one male adult and two
minors. In the other commuter omnibus all the 15
passengers were injured and
were ferried to Parirenyatwa and Harare
Hospitals.
The deceased were ferried to Parirenyatwa mortuary. "As police
we want to
urge motorists to respect traffic signals at
intersections. An
amber light indicates that a motorist must prepare to
stop.
There is
nothing like a late amber," he said. A witness who only identified
himself
as Peter said the haulage truck encroached into the lane of traffic
coming
from the opposite direction.
"The truck was nearly involved in a head-on
collision with a San Frontiers
land cruiser which it later hit at the back.
He lost control and failed to
stop and ended up landing on top of the
commuter omnibus which was coming
from the east.
"The bulldozer which
is grading the airport road is the one that helped in
lifting the haulage
truck which had landed on top of the commuter omnibus so
that people could
be retrieved," he said.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/
GEOFFREY YORK
JOHANNESBURG — The Globe and Mail
Published Monday,
Feb. 25 2013, 3:00 AM EST
In a ground-breaking move, South African
prosecutors will investigate
President Robert Mugabe’s political party for
crimes against humanity for an
alleged campaign of mass rapes in Zimbabwe’s
last election.
The decision, following a request by Canadian activist
Stephen Lewis and
others, marks the first time an African government has
used domestic laws to
investigate another African country under the emerging
doctrine of
“universal jurisdiction.”
It’s also believed to be the
first time that authorities have invoked
“universal jurisdiction” in a rape
investigation – a sign of the growing
resistance to the use of rape as an
organized political tactic.
Mr. Lewis and his organization, AIDS-Free
World, plan to announce the South
African decision at a press conference in
Johannesburg this week.
Its legal teams have gathered hundreds of hours
of testimony from 84 rape
survivors in Zimbabwe who identified more than 200
perpetrators and
orchestrators in the alleged rape campaign.
In an
earlier report, AIDS-Free World concluded that thousands of opposition
supporters were raped by members of the ruling ZANU-PF party “as a tool of
terror and intimidation” during the 2008 election campaign.
Many of
the rapists wore the party’s shirts, sang its songs, chanted its
slogans, or
made political statements showing they were party members, it
said. “Each
woman, on average, was raped five times, although these numbers
may be
underestimated because many women fell unconscious during the violent
rapes
and therefore lost count of the number of rapists and rapes at some
point.”
Many victims were taken to the party’s “base camps” used for
rape and
torture, which still exist today and could be reactivated in
elections this
year, AIDS-Free World said.
With Zimbabwe scheduled to
hold a constitutional referendum and national
election over the next few
months, the decision by South Africa’s
prosecutors to investigate the rapes
could be crucial in deterring further
attacks and ending the impunity of Mr.
Mugabe’s supporters, Mr. Lewis said.
“This puts Mugabe on notice that the
world is watching,” said Mr. Lewis, the
former Canadian ambassador to the
United Nations and the former UN
ambassador on AIDS in Africa.
Mr.
Lewis and his organization have been working for more than four years to
find a way to prosecute the perpetrators of the Zimbabwe rapes, none of whom
have been charged. Zimbabwean police officials told the group that they
could not investigate “political” cases because Mr. Mugabe’s supporters are
still dominant, despite the coalition government that has ruled since
2009.
Zimbabwe has also refused to ratify the Rome Statute, which created
the
International Criminal Court, so the ICC cannot investigate crimes in
Zimbabwe unless it receives a referral from the United Nations Security
Council, where Zimbabwe is protected by its ally, China.
South Africa
has ratified the Rome Statute and incorporated it into its own
domestic
laws, allowing it to prosecute. And because Zimbabweans often
travel to
South Africa for work or business, anyone convicted by South
African courts
could be vulnerable to arrest here.
After being stymied on every other
avenue, Mr. Lewis and his organization
submitted their request to South
Africa’s national police force and
prosecuting agency in December. Some
experts warned them that South African
officials were unlikely to accept the
request, since they had already
rejected a similar request by a coalition of
Zimbabwean and South African
rights activists on allegations of torture
during the 2008 election.
Even when a South African court ruled last year
that the authorities had an
international legal obligation to investigate
the torture allegations, the
government had chosen to appeal the decision,
rather than accept it.
But to the amazement of the activists, within a
few weeks of receiving the
dossier of evidence from AIDS-Free World, the
South African prosecutors and
police agreed to investigate the rape charges,
confirming the decision in a
Feb. 4 letter to the group.
“It sends a
message to ZANU-PF leaders, and to raping regimes everywhere,
that
orchestrating sexual violence of this nature and scale is an
international
crime for which they will be prosecuted,” said a statement by
AIDS-Free
World.
The group predicts that Mr. Mugabe and his supporters will try to
portray
the rape investigation as “Western imperialism” and “racism” because
it was
advanced by a foreign-based organization. In reality, the group said,
many
Zimbabweans helped gather the evidence for the rape investigation, but
they
are unwilling to be identified now for fear of retribution. Many civil
society leaders have been arrested or assaulted in recent weeks as the
elections approach.
http://nehandaradio.com
on February 25, 2013 at 5:17
pm
By Tatenda Mabasa
CHINHOYI – Zanu PF aspiring
candidates who are campaigning clandestinely for
support are in breach of
party rules regarding the use of money to get
grassroots
support.
Robert Mugabe addressing Zanu-PF 13th Annual National
People’s Conference
Party sources in Karoi town say those within the
influential positions are
demanding a “talking fee” so that they can work
for any preferred candidate.
A youth member said:
“Our camp is well
known here and aspiring candidates must pay us to feed our
families as we
are unemployed. Gone are days when we could get beer and be
violent. Our
demands are simple as we want money” said the youth member who
declined to
be named.
He admitted that what they are doing is against what President
Robert Mugabe
is preaching against especially the “use of money to get
votes”. Another
provincial member of the women league said:
“The
party has no money and those who want positions must pay in cash if
they
want our support they must pay whenever we want to meet”, she
added.
However some men are into mobile money requests. “Who can buy me
airtime if
an aspiring candidates is organising an outreach meeting? He has
to give
airtime money that I am can communicate with in those outlaying
areas. From
that money I will leave for my family. Those without money will
not get our
support.” he added.
Party sources say the move on “money
game” will dent the party ahead of
primaries. An aspiring candidate
confirmed that they are paying from their
pockets but defended vote buying
allegations saying, “I need support and
those who can support me get a small
token if they request.”
However most of the aspiring candidates confirmed
the indirect demands by
traditional leaders especially chiefs whenever they
go to launch campaigns.
“Traditionally you have to inform the traditional
chief that you will be in
their area and need their support. You buy
groceries and a token fee as well
as some beads, black and white clothes
among other issues” said the
candidate who said it was premature to release
his name.
Unofficial Zanu PF candidates in Hurungwe Central covering
Karoi town are
youth provincial member Anyway Chisaka, farmer Tsikira,
sitting MP Godfrey
Beremauro, Sister Pellergia Mapfumo, Doubt Ndiweni and
others.
http://nehandaradio.com
on February 25, 2013 at 8:51
am
Zanu PF MP for Hurungwe East Sarah Mahoka was admitted at
Chinhoyi
Provincial Hospital after being attacked by a violent mob of Zanu
PF youths
who disrupted her address Zimonja business centre in
Zvipani.
According to a Nehanda Radio correspondent in the area,
about 13 youths
attacked Mahoka and deflated three tyres on her vehicle.
They then abducted
Mahoka’s driver before dumping him eight kilometres away
from the scene.
Mahoka sustained injuries all over the body. Police
reportedly impounded a
vehicle that was used by the youths. Police
provincial spokesperson,
Inspector Clemence Mabgweazara said police were
investigating the matter.
“We are still in the process of getting details
of what happened. Its
information that we got but the details are still
sketchy,” Mabgweazara
said.
The Zanu-PF Mashonaland West provincial
chairperson said the party
leadership will meet today to discuss the
attack.
“We are still receiving information pertaining to the matter but
yes as a
party we can confirm that there were skirmishes in Hurungwe,” he
said.
The youths reportedly arrived in a vehicle pretending to be Zanu-PF
supporters waiting to be addressed by the legislator. They allegedly
questioned Mahoka on why she was addressing a meeting outside her
constituency.
The youths also accused the legislator of holding a
meeting without
consulting the area’s elders. Sources told Nehanda Radio the
skirmishes were
related to factional fights in the party. Mahoka’s phone was
unreachable for
comment.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw
February 25, 2013 in
News
NEWLY-resettled A2 farmers in Mvurwi, Mashonaland Central province
are
living on the edge after AgriBank issued final letters of demand urging
them
to settle outstanding debts or their properties lodged as collateral
would
be auctioned, the Zimbabwe Independent has established.
Many A2
farmers have been struggling to access new loans to finance their
production
after failing to settle previous debts. The farmers failed to
settle the
debts for a variety of reasons, among them failure to receive
payment from
the Grain Marketing Board on time or poor harvests.
Two weeks ago,
Phillip Kunaka, a resettled farmer, committed suicide at his
Pembi Chase
farm over a US$130 000 debt to Agribank.
Sources close to him said Kunaka
left a suicide note in which he claimed
Agribank was threatening to auction
the house he had lodged as collateral
for failure to settle the
debt.
Kunaka had lodged his brother-in-law’s house as collateral and had
failed to
settle the debt for the past two seasons leading to the final
letter of
demand.
Mazowe North MP Cairo Mhandu confirmed the
development.
“Kunaka committed suicide over some debt with Agribank,”
Mhandu said. “He
left a note that said Agribank was about to auction a house
he had lodged as
collateral but unfortunately it belonged to his brother in
law.”
Agribank is reeling under bad debts as farmers fail to repay their
loans. An
Agribank Mvurwi branch official acknowledged that some farmers
were finding
it difficult to repay loans but refused to give further
details.
“I am not at liberty to discuss the bank’s loan book. For that
information
you can check with our head office,” said the
official.
Finance minister Tendai Biti is on record telling parliament
that government
is trying to restore land value by giving tradable 99-year
leases to new
farmers that can be used as collateral at
banks.
However, government is still to complete a comprehensive land
audit and
survey of the new farms before it can offer the new 99 year
leases.
Lands and Resettlement minister Herbert Murerwa says the survey
has been
delayed by a shortage of surveyors in the country.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
February 24, 2013 in Environment
It
was the best maize crop I had seen in a while in Zimbabwe and Pioneer
Seed
Company could not help notice a great marketing opportunity, flaunting
the
crop with its company logos.
Report by Chipo Masara
There is just
one catch however; this crop is not on some A1 or A2 farm, it
is on a field
in Mbare, along Simon Mazorodze Road.
With an estimated 10% of land in
Harare being used for urban agriculture
(UA), a 2009 report from Agritex
showed that urban and peri-urban areas had
the highest maize yields in the
country.
Urban agriculture has however been a contentious issue in
Zimbabwe, which
has seen a number of altercations erupting between residents
and their city
councils.
The case that would sooner come to mind is
one that transpired two years ago
when hundreds of Harare residents invaded
Harare City Council (HCC) premises
in protest against the cutting down of
their mostly ripe crops.
The conduct by HCC angered many, who blamed the
public institution for being
an albatross to people’s efforts to earn a
decent livelihood.
With the unemployment rate in Zimbabwe being well over
80%, many people are
struggling to put food on the table. This is more so in
urban areas, where
the cost of living tends to be high.
Agriculture
presents many a chance to feed their families, while some have
claimed to
have put their children through school from money obtained after
selling
their products. Children from families that consistently practise UA
have
been observed by health officials to be better nourished than those
from
families that do not.
Besides serving as a food security measure, UA
offers environmental
benefits. The most significant benefit would have to be
adding to the urban
areas’ greenery, in the process reducing pollution as
the plants help by
absorbing dangerous gases like carbon dioxide and others
emitted into the
air we breathe every day.
In that same vein, urban
crops serve as a significant climate change
mitigation measure in the urban
setup.
Considering all the above mentioned benefits from UA at both
household and
national level, it has made no sense for many people that the
responsible
authorities would criminalise the activity. That is why it was
necessary to
try and find out Zimbabwe’s current stance on
UA.
Banarbas Mawire, the country director for Environment Africa had this
to
say: “We support what we are calling sustainable urban agriculture. It is
now a reality the world over that cities have to produce food for
themselves. The problem we have in Zimbabwe is that urban agriculture is not
regulated and that is why it ends up being done on sensitive areas like
wetlands. There should be zoning, so that correct things are done on
appropriate areas.”
Asked on his organisation’s stance on UA, Steady
Kangata, publicity officer
for the Environmental Management Agency said:
“Agriculture gives us a form
of livelihood, regardless of where you are, as
long as it is done in
acceptable areas.
“If agriculture in the urban
setting is done at designated points, there is
nothing wrong with that. What
is not acceptable is farming on
ecologically-sensitive areas like
wetlands.”
An official with a local seed company, who preferred
anonymity, said it is
important to zone out land for UA and make sure that
the farming does not
harm the environment.
“I don’t see why people
cannot be allowed to plant on open ground. People
just need to be made aware
they cannot plant on wetlands, hills, etc, as
that will cause environmental
degradation,” the official said.
There have been reports of some urban
farmers preferring to plant on
wetlands, where they would not need to worry
about weather conditions, as
the ecologically-sensitive areas have an
abundance of water stored in them.
An attempt to get more insight on
HCC’s UA policy proved futile as Leslie
Gwindi, the council spokesperson
asked for questions in writing, to which a
response did not come. Gwindi’s
cellphone was continuously unavailable
thereafter.
Wetlands under
threat
However, urban agriculture on vleis has been observed to act as a
hindrance
to the function of wetlands, thereby threatening the cities’ water
sources.
There has been growing concern in the country over the abuse of
wetlands and
equally concerted efforts from various stakeholders to put a
stop to it. The
Water Act and The Natural Resources Act ban cultivation in
these areas.
But besides those that have decided to carry out their
agricultural ventures
on unsuitable areas like wetlands, there are still
many more people that
plant on open ground.
These are the people many
of those that have spoken in support of UA would
have in mind.
For
feedback, email; cmasara@standard.co.zw
http://www.forbes.com/
Mfonobong
Nsehe, Contributor
Over two decades ago, Strive Masiyiwa took the
Zimbabwean government to
court in a grueling five-year legal battle.
Masiyiwa had been planning to
launch his own mobile telecoms company, but
the government, which claimed it
held an exclusive monopoly to manage and
operate telecommunications in
Zimbabwe,was desperately trying to thwart his
ambitions. After the High
Court ruled in favor of Masiyiwa, the Zimbabwean
tycoon went on to build
Econet Wireless, a leading Pan-African mobile
telecoms company with
operations across Africa, the U.K and New
Zealand.
Today, Econet Wireless is an investor’s delight. It is easily
Zimbabwe’s
most successful corporation. It is Zimbabwe’s largest mobile
telecoms firm,
with a subscriber base of over 6 million. Its profits for the
year ended
February 2011 stood at over $145 million and the
Johannesburg-headquartered
company has operations in Burundi, Lesotho,
Kenya, Nigeria, Botswana and
Rwanda. Econet has a market capitalization in
the region of $600 million.
Strive Masiyiwa, the unassuming and
soft-spoken founder of the telecoms
giant, is the richest person to emerge
from Zimbabwe.
You can glean important business and life lessons by
taking a close look at
what made Strive Masiyiwa a successful billionaire
telecoms tycoon.
1. Identify A Human Need And Reach Out To Meet
It
According to Masiyiwa, this is the most sure-fire way to succeed in
business.
In 1994, 70% of Africans had never heard a Telephone ring.
People all across
Africa desperately needed a reliable and cost-effective
means of reaching
out to their loved ones and associates wherever they were
in the world. That
was a human need. Masiyiwa, as a young engineer set out
to change that. He
had the technology to do it and access to substantial
resources. “We didn’t
wake up and say we wanted to make billions of dollars;
we said we wanted to
extend telecommunications to all the people of Africa,”
Masiyiwa stated
during last year’s commencement address to graduating
students of Morehouse
College. If you reach out to meet the needs of the
people around you, you
will wear the crown.
2. Be Patient And
Relentless; Never Give Up
Few people are as patient and as relentless as
Masiyiwa. In 1993, when
Masiyiwa set out to establish Zimbabwe’s first
independent mobile telecoms
network, he encountered stiff opposition from
the Zimbabwean government. The
Zimbabwean Post & Telecommunications
Corporation (PTC) – a government-owned
entity held a monopoly over the
telecommunications business in the country
and the corporation was
vehemently opposed to granting Masiyiwa a mobile
operating license. The
Government threatened to prosecute him if he dared to
proceed with his
venture. Masiyiwa took the battle to court, and the case
lingered for close
to five years. It was a slow and long process, but
Masiyiwa never gave in.
Of course the government tried to subdue and
frustrate him, but Masiyiwa was
resolute. He was determined to challenge the
government’s monopoly of
telecommunications services in the country and was
keen to launch his own
mobile telecoms network. His persistence paid off. By
1997, the court ruled
in his favour and Masiyiwa was able to launch Econet
wireless. Develop a
tough skin; be relentless, and be patient. Success
hardly occurs in a split
second; you need to learn to wait for your moment
3. Work Hard And Stay
Focused
This is a no-brainer. Nothing good in this world comes easily,
least of all,
success. You may have identified a need and possess the most
brilliant
business ideas. You may even have the praying spirit of Jesus; but
if you
are lazy you’re doomed to fail. Success requires hard work. Masiyiwa
works
long hours every day and has cultivated the requisite discipline to be
focused. Work Hard And Stay Focused!
4. Pray Hard
“God will
do nothing except you pray; and you have to be clear what you
want”- Strive
Masiyiwa
This might sound like illogical business advice particularly if
you’re an
atheist. But according to Masiyiwa, a devout Christian, prayers
are
essential for success in business. Masiyiwa has stated countless times
that
when he was battling the Zimbabwean government in court for the right
to
operate a mobile Telecoms license, he prayed fervently. While the court
case
lingered, Masiyiwa prayed for victory. Even though it took four years,
Masiyiwa’s prayers were eventually answered. Employees at Econet and people
close to Masiyiwa confirm that the tycoon never takes any important business
decision before first going on his knees. Judging by Econet’s raving
success, Masiyiwa’s prayers actually work. Prayers may work for you as
well.
5. Give Back
What you give comes back to you ten-fold.
Masiyiwa is Zimbabwe’s biggest
philanthropist. Along with his wife, Tsitsi,
Masiyiwa is a co-founder of the
Capernaum Trust, a Zimbabwe-registered
privately funded Christian charity
which sponsors the education of over
28,000 Zimbabwean orphans. Apart from
providing scholarships to these
children, the organization also provides
food packs and healthcare for them.
Masiyiwa funds the trust from his own
personal resources with support from
Econet Wireless. The Universe seems to
have rewarded his generosity with
brilliant success and a $600 million
fortune.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
February 22, 2013 in Opinion
NOW that the
electoral season is in full gear, Zimbabwean security forces
are at it again
spearheading renewed repression and terror.
Human rights activists are
coming under growing pressure as police
dramatically escalate a crackdown on
dissent casting doubt on the country’s
readiness to hold a credible
constitutional referendum and general elections
this year.
The wave
of arbitrary arrests of civil society activists on all sort of
charges, that
do not constitute crimes in civilised and democratic
societies, seem to
signal the resurgence of political repression last seen
in the run-up to the
bloody June 2008 presidential election run-off.
In Zimbabwe today you put
yourself at risk if you do anything that might
fall outside the increasingly
narrow confines of the police state and what
authorities deem
acceptable.
Anything from setting up a pressure group, joining a
non-governmental
organisation (NGO), expressing dissent or even joking about
President Robert
Mugabe can land you in prison. In the ongoing crackdown,
the Zimbabwe Peace
Project and Zimbabwe Election Support Network offices
were raided by police
on accusations of subversion and possessing
unauthorised recording equipment
and voter education display materials as
well as conducting illegal voter
registration.
Anti-riot police also
tear-gased, beat up and arrested Women of Zimbabwe
Arise (Woza) marchers
during a Valentine’s Day march for peace and
tolerance. A pastor and
community campaigners were arrested after a meeting
in Chegutu for
encouraging unregistered adults to register as voters.
These events
appear to be a calculated state-sponsored terror campaign to
instill fear in
NGOs doing election-related work as polling approach.
Besides, the timing of
these arrests shows conditions are not yet conducive
for free, fair and
credible elections.
Police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Charity
Charamba acknowledged
what we have always been saying that the force is
highly partisan when she
revealed they would arrest and detain NGO activists
that disseminate “false”
information which discredits Zanu PF ahead of
elections.
Charamba denied the arbitrary arrests and detentions were an
onslaught on
civil society, claiming they were lawful searches that had
“unearthed
criminal activities”.
“Certain NGOs are engaging in
political processes to the detriment of state
security and the stability of
this country,” charged Charamba.
At least we now know from Charamba’s
comments that discrediting Zanu PF is a
crime, but what about her threadbare
claims that NGOs are deploying monitors
to gather information at Zanu PF
rallies?
What useful information from a Zanu PF rally and how can attending
these
soporific gatherings be detrimental to state security and stability of
the
country?
If anything, it is when security forces curtail people’s
constitutionally
entrenched civil and political liberties that they
themselves actually
become a threat to national peace and
stability.
The break up and prevention of public gatherings and arrests
of Zanu PF
political opponents is actually detrimental to the stability of
the nation.
The Research and Advocacy Unit and IDASA, have created a 'Constitution Scorecard':
This scorecard is a snapshot view, to allow readers a quick analysis on the progress the Constitutional Select Committee (COPAC) draft constitution has made on critical issues that will shape Zimbabwe's transition. The Constitution is graded according to its proximity to a democratic ideal. The analysis also indicates whether the final version is an improvement on a) the Lancaster House Constitution and b) the July COPAC draft.
It's interesting to see that fifteen out of the nineteen sections (including the Preamble) are considered an improvement on the Lancaster House Constitution. But - significantly - only three out of the nineteen sections are considered an improvement on the draft COPAC released in July last year. Somehow, between then and now, the proposed constitution become much less democratic. Overall, the scorecard is thought provoking and makes you want to find out more. You can download a copy of the scorecard here.
BILL
WATCH 8/2013
[25th
February 2013]
Both
Houses of Parliament will sit again on Tuesday 26th February
Zimbabwe Youth Council (General) Regulations [SI 4/2013]:
Update
Parliamentary Legal Committee [PLC] adverse report The PLC’s adverse report on
these regulations has not yet been presented to the Senate, but this is expected
to be done soon. As explained in Bill
Watch 7/2013 of 19th February an adverse report, if approved by the Senate, may
result in the regulations being annulled by the President without anyone having
to go to court for them to be declared ultra vires and invalid. [Report is not
available until tabled in the Senate.]
POSA Amendment Bill
On Tuesday 19th February Mr Gonese, the MP who introduced the POSA
[Public Order and Security Act] Amendment
Bill, tried valiantly, with the help of MDC Senators, to persuade the Senate to
vote for his motion to revive the lapsed motion from the previous session
seeking the Bill’s restoration to the Senate Order Paper. The ZANU-PF Senators who spoke opposed the
motion, claiming Mr Gonese had withdrawn the Bill when he agreed to the POSA
issue being dealt with at GPA Principals level.
The facts, according to Hansard, were: in August 2011
Senators had asked for more time to examine the Bill, and Minister Chinamasa had
objected to the Bill on the ground that the POSA issue was under consideration
by the GPA negotiators as part of the Roadmap to Elections; but Mr Gonese did
not withdraw the Bill and the Roadmap negotiations did not result in agreed
amendment or replacement of POSA. After
over an hour of debate a vote was taken and Mr Gonese’s motion was rejected by
28 votes to 17. The vote illustrates
ZANU-PF’s domination of the Senate; the Chiefs who voted followed the ZANU-PF
lead.
This is not necessarily the end of the Bill. The other route open to Mr Gonese is to table
a motion in the House of Assembly asking that the Bill, as passed by the House
in December 2009, be sent to the President for assent, despite the Senate’s
rejection of his motion. This is
permitted by the Constitution, Schedule 4, paragraph 3, which sets out what can
be done by the House when the Senate either rejects a Bill passed by the House
or has not passed it within 90 days of its introduction into the
Senate. Mr Gonese’s Bill qualifies on
both counts – not only was it rejected by the Senate last week, but, as it was
introduced in the Senate in December 2010, the 90-day period was completed long
ago. [Bill
as passed by the House available from veritas@mango.zw]
Parliament’s Role in Filling Vacancies in ZEC and ZHRC Chairs
It was announced by Prime Minister Tsvangirai that at their meeting
on Monday 18th February the President, the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime
Minister Mutambara had selected two persons to fill the positions of chairperson
on the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission [ZEC] and the Zimbabwe Human Rights
Commission [ZHRC], which had both fallen vacant. The selection was later corroborated by the
Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs, under whose Ministry these Commissions
fall. The persons selected are Justice
Rita Makarau as the new chairperson of ZEC and Mr Jacob Mudenda as the new
chairperson of ZHRC. The President
cannot legally make either appointment until both the Judicial Service
Commission [JSC] and the Parliamentary Committee on Standing Rules and Orders
[CSRO] have been consulted. The JSC met
last week. The CSRO has not met yet, but
is expected to do so towards the end of the coming week. Until due process has taken place and the
nominees have accepted the appointments and
been sworn in, these appointments will not be legally effective.
In Parliament Last Week
Both Houses took it easy last week, sitting on Tuesday and Wednesday
only, before adjourning until Tuesday 26th February.
House of Assembly
Bills [all
available from veritas@mango.zw]
Income Tax Bill and Securities Amendment
Bill Non-adverse reports were
received from the Parliamentary
Legal Committee [PLC], clearing the way for both
Bills to move on to the Second Reading stage.
Microfinance Bill There was no movement on
this Bill, which had previously received a non-adverse report from the PLC.
Motions
Debate started on:
· the condolence motion for the late Vice-President Nkomo, who died on
17th January
· the motion on the report on Zimbabwe soccer administration and the
Asiagate match-fixing scandal presented by the Portfolio Committee on Education, Sport and Culture.
Senate
Bills There were no Bills for
consideration. No Bills were transmitted
from the House.
Motions Most of Tuesday afternoon was taken up by the debate on Mr Gonese’s
motion on his Private Member’s POSA Amendment Bill [see above]. The rest of the Senate’s sitting time was occupied by further
contributions to the debates on the Vice-President Nkomo condolence motion and
the motion to thank the President for his speech opening the
Session.
Question Time did not take place because the Senate did not sit on
Thursday.
In Parliament This Coming Week
House of Assembly
Bills The three Bills introduced by Minister of Finance Tendai
Biti [all
available from veritas@mango.zw]
are listed for the Second Reading stage on Tuesday, in the following
order:
· Microfinance Bill
· Securities Amendment Bill
· Income Tax Bill.
Motions Debate will continue on
motions carried over from last week, including the debate on soccer
and the Asiagate match-fixing scandal.
New motions listed for presentation include:
· a motion by Co-Minister of Home Affairs Kembo Mohadi, in terms of
section 111B of the Constitution, seeking the House’s approval of Zimbabwe’s
accession to the United Nations Convention for the Suppression of the
Financing of Terrorism. This is high
on the agenda for Tuesday. [Text
of Convention available from veritas@mango.zw]
· a condolence motion following the death of the Deputy Minister of
Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development, Seiso Moyo, who died on
20th December
· motions to take note of Portfolio Committee reports on:
o the management of dam projects by the Zimbabwe National Water
Authority;
o access to financial resources by small and medium enterprises;
o and local authorities [reports not yet available].
Question Time on Wednesday The 16 questions listed for
Ministerial reply on 27th February include: questions previously on the list but
carried forward as they had not been answered; for instance, questions for the
Minister of Public Service about a Commission of Inquiry into the War Victims
Compensation Fund and the payment of pensions for “exaggerated disabilities”; and one
asking the Minister of Industry and Commerce to name authorised bottled water
suppliers and to justify bottled water being sold at the same price as diesel
fuel. There is still a problem of
Ministers not turning up to answer questions.
Newer questions include: two for the co-Ministers of Home Affairs on the
Ministry’s policy on the display of ZRP force numbers on police uniforms, and on
the revenue generated by police roadblocks, the custodians of that revenue and
how it is managed; and one for the Minister of Health and Child Welfare on the
availability of ARV drugs.
Senate
Bills The Senate is still waiting
for Bills to be passed by the House of Assembly and transmitted for its
consideration.
Motions No new motions are listed on
the Order Paper, which lists only the continuing debates on the vote of thanks
to the President for his speech at the opening of the Session, and the
Vice-President Nkomo condolence motion.
Question Time on Thursday
Only one question, carried forward from last week, is listed. It asks the Minister of Mines and Mining Development: for information
on haphazard illegal mining activities at Benson Mine in Mudzi district.
Government Gazettes of 22nd February
Statutory Instruments [SIs] [NOT
available from Veritas]
Pension funds administrators SI 20/2013 lays down new minimum requirements for pension fund
administrators – they must be companies with the prescribed minimum capital and
be registered as insurers under the Insurance Act.
Insurance
business SI 21/2013 fixes new figures for the minimum
equity capital of insurers, and for approved investments and compulsory
professional indemnity cover to be held by insurance
brokers.
Collective
bargaining agreement SI 22/2013 sets out full conditions of service, including wages and
gratuities, for the Baking Industry.
General Notice
GN 45/2013, made by the Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs,
designates the 1st March 2013 as the date of commencement of section 4(2) of the
Legal Practitioners (General) Regulations.
This means that from 1st March a legal practitioner may not commence
practice as a principal, whether on his or her own or in partnership or as an
associate, unless he or she first satisfies the Council for Legal Education that
he or she has attended a full course of Council seminars on, and passed
examinations in, the several subjects listed in section
4(2).
Veritas
makes every effort to ensure reliable information, but cannot take legal
responsibility for information supplied