Myths and Realities of UK Policy Towards Zimbabwe
The Standard - 2009 02 08

 

http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/letters/19690-myths-and-realities-of-uk-policy-towards-zimbabwe.html
Saturday, 07 February 2009 15:46
 
Myth 1: The United Kingdom wants Zimbabwe to collapse to help bring about regime change.
Reality: The United Kingdom is seriously concerned about the deepening humanitarian crisis in Zimbabwe, generated by Zanu (PF) policy, and the suffering this is causing for the Zimbabwean people. The Department for International Development is currently running the United Kingdom’s largest ever aid programme to Zimbabwe, and will spend around £49 million this financial year. British funding has supported the livelihoods of small farmers, helped treat HIV, improved maternal and child health, supplied essential medicines, protected orphans and assisted migrants and internally displaced people. This is in addition to contributions to the World Food Programme’s food aid operations (£9 million this year) and the £10 million package to help fight the current cholera outbreak. The only thing pressing Zimbabwe towards collapse is regime policy.
 
Myth 2: Western economic sanctions are causing suffering and hardship in Zimbabwe.
Reality: The United Kingdom has no unilateral or economic sanctions against Zimbabwe. The current range of European Union targeted measures is directed against those 178 individuals and organisations in Zimbabwe responsible for the worst excesses of the current regime, in terms of human rights abuse, corruption and undermining the rule of law. The measures have no adverse effect on ordinary people or humanitarian assistance to Zimbabwe.
 
Myth 3: Sanctions have denied Zimbabwe access to funding from international financial institutions.
Reality: The World Bank and International Monetary Fund suspended credit to Zimbabwe because the Mugabe government defaulted on its debt servicing payments. Other potential lenders have taken a similar view of the regime’s credit worthiness.
 
Myth 4: The United Kingdom reneged on its commitments to fund land reform in Zimbabwe.
Reality: The UK put substantial funding into land reform in the 1980s and 1990s (£44 million). This stopped when it became apparent that much land was not being given to the landless poor, but to senior members of the regime. Reviving the rural economy will be essential for Zimbabwe’s future prosperity. As in the past, the United Kingdom remains willing to work with others to support a fair and transparent land reform process, which will help the poor. The United Kingdom is willing to consider supporting such a land reform process as part of a wider recovery package for Zimbabwe. But we have never agreed to accept responsibility for compensation for land illegally seized - as articulated in key judgements by Zimbabwe’s Supreme Court, under Zimbabwe’s Constitution as it stood in 2001.
 
Myth 5: The United Kingdom wants military intervention in Zimbabwe.
Reality: Those working for a better Zimbabwe, which respects the rule of law and basic human rights, are not calling for military intervention. They are pursuing their vision by democratic means. Their focus, and ours, is foremost on the humanitarian situation and what can be done to alleviate suffering. The myth of military intervention is generated by the regime to distract attention from its responsibility for the crisis and its inability to resolve it.
 
Myth 6: The United Kingdom planted cholera before independence and is actively spreading the disease to wage biological warfare against the regime.
Reality: The cholera outbreak - on top of a major food crisis - is the direct consequence of regime mismanagement and Zanu (PF)’s catastrophic policies. The outbreak has been caused by the breakdown of basic water and sanitation services, and the collapse of the health system and broader public services. The United Kingdom has been deeply concerned by the worsening humanitarian situation. In November 2008, we made available a £10 million package of responses to the cholera epidemic, including essential medicines and drugs to keep people alive through the crisis.
 
Myth 7: The United Kingdom will not accept any inclusive government.
Reality: It is up to the people of Zimbabwe - and them alone - to decide what government they will accept. But it is clear that at least 60% of the population voted for change in March 2008, and they are yet to see their will respected. It is also clear that long-term donor support will be key to stemming Zimbabwe’s decline. If Zimbabwe is going to attract that support, it requires a durable government that reflects the will of the people and is capable of delivering genuine reform. Given Mugabe’s resistance to change to date, his failed economic policies and his propensity to rail against the outside world, it is unlikely that any government involving Mugabe will inspire donor confidence and attract the support it so badly needs.
 
Myth 8: The United Kingdom has never accepted the Global Political Agreement signed on 15 September 2008 and wants regime change, not power-sharing.
Reality: It is not for the United Kingdom to accept or reject anything. This is a process led by Zimbabweans. We want to see a better future for the people of Zimbabwe. The key for us is how the agreement plays out in practice - will a new administration demonstrate a genuine commitment to change and reform?
But we are sceptical that power-sharing involving Mugabe will work. In principle, we stand ready to support any inclusive government. But the extent and nature of our support will be determined by the actions taken on the ground by any new administration to reverse the political, economic and social decline. In particular, we would want to see full and equal access to humanitarian assistance; commitment to macroeconomic stabilisation; restoration of the rule of law; commitment to the democratic process and respect for internationally accepted standards of human rights.
 
Myth 9: The United Kingdom is directing Morgan Tsvangirai’s actions.
Reality: The United Kingdom maintains contact with a wide range of actors in Zimbabwean society, including politicians, so that we can assess how best to help the people of Zimbabwe. Morgan Tsvangirai won the elections in March 2008 and leads the largest party in the House of Assembly. He and the MDC have democratic legitimacy, and only a regime that does not would suggest that he needs any guidance from outsiders.
 
Myth 10: The problems in Zimbabwe stem from a bilateral dispute between the United Kingdom and the Mugabe regime over land.
Reality: Mugabe likes to portray Zimbabwe’s problems in imperialist, often racist, terms to deflect attention from the catastrophe he has created. International opinion, such as that expressed by the Group Of Elders, including former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, is increasingly of the view that a chronic and wilful failure of social and economic policy lies at the heart of Zimbabwe’s crisis. The United Nations has taken a keen interest. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon has called for a fair and sustainable political solution in Zimbabwe as soon as possible. It is also becoming clear that an increasing number of African countries (e.g. Kenya, Botswana, Nigeria) are of the view that Mugabe’s time is coming to an end.
British Embassy
Harare
 
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Journalists join EU sanctions list
Financial Gazette - Harare, Zimbabwe

http://www.fingaz.co.zw/top-stories/378-journalists-join-eu-sanctions-list
Friday, 06 February 2009 13:17
THE European Union (EU) has added seven journalists with the state media on its expanded list of targeted sanctions released last week.
The bloc said the scribes helped to stifle freedom of expression in Zimbabwe, a country whose media laws are deemed repressive.
Among the media practitioners are Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) chief correspondent, Reuben Barwe; diplomatic correspondent, Judith Makwanya and current affairs producer Musorowegomo Mukosi.
Others include ZBC's acting chief executive officer (CEO) Happison Muchechetere, Zimba-bwe Newspapers (CEO) Justin Mutasa, The Herald editor Pikirayi Deketeke, senior assistant editor Caesar Zvayi (The Herald), and The Sunday Mail's political editor, Munyaradzi Huni.
The EU said the journalists whipped up government orchestrated terror campaign before and during the June 2008 presidential run-off and were involved in activities that seriously undermined freedom of expression and the media in Zimbabwe.
In addition, Jongwe Printers, a company owned by ZANU-PF and the political party's mouthpiece The Voice, were also placed on the sanctions list.
This means it would be difficult for the company to access imported spares and raw materials for its operations.
The hierarchy of the state's information department, including former information minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu, his deputy Bright Matonga and permanent secretary George Charamba are on the EU targeted sanctions list including Media and Information Commission chairman Tafataona Mahoso.
The EU list includes companies and individuals placed on the US sanctions roll in December last year for their association with President Robert Mugabe's government.
 
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Winners of Sadc Tribunal Ruling Allege Clampdown
The Standard - 2009 02 08

http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/local/19692-winners-of-sadc-tribunal-ruling-allege-clampdown.html
Saturday, 07 February 2009 17:34
BULAWAYO
Matabeleland North police have allegedly launched a clampdown on farmers who recently won the backing of a regional court to remain on their farms.
Justice Luis Mondlane, the president of the Sadc tribunal ruled that the applicants had a clear legal title to their farms and should receive fair compensation from the government for their properties lost during the violent land reform programme.
Several of these farmers in the province who were involved in the landmark Sadc Tribunal farms test case were reportedly targeted after Edmore Veterai, the Officer Commanding Matabeleland North allegedly ordered their arrest.
Veterai, who denies ordering their arrest, is himself entangled in farm disputes in Matabeleland North and Masvingo with farmers protected by the Sadc ruling.
Christopher Jarret and Garry Godfrey who were forced off their farms as far back as 2002 were arrested in Bulawayo last Thursday on allegations they violated sections of the Consequential Provisions of the Land Acquisition Act.
“The police picked me and Chris Jarret on Thursday afternoon after we were accused of having refused to vacate farms that had been acquired under the law,” Godfrey said.
“We were detained at Donnington Police Station where we were forced to sleep on the floor.
“We were only taken to a prosecutor, a Mr Ndebele the following day who then told the police that we had no case to answer as we had vacated the farms as way back as 2002.”
He said the order for their arrest came from Veterai who led the takeover of Dave Jourbert’s Portwe Estates in Matabeleland North and is also trying to force Digby Nesbitt off his farm in Masvingo.
“These police officers wanted to lock us up and then cook up a case against us,” Godfrey added.
“Unfortunately for them, the prosecutor told them that there was no prima facie case against us and this led to our release.
Veterai however denied that he had caused the arrest of the farmers.
“ For the police to arrest people committing crimes, it does not need me or anyone in the top hierarchy of the police to give instructions that they be arrested,” he said, adding some of the farmers were arrested for vandalising property on farms.
Veterai said the farmers were determined to mislead the public.
The white farmers sought relief at the tribunal after exhausting all legal channels in Zimbabwe.
BY NKULULEKO SIBANDA
 
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USAID Provides Malaria Assistance To Zimbabwe

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/138226.php
07 Feb 2009 - 1:00 PST
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) continues to provide assistance to the people of Zimbabwe, who are in the midst of an expanding humanitarian crisis. An ailing economy, food shortages and the cholera epidemic have left the people of Zimbabwe in danger of other health risks.
USAID, through the President's Malaria Initiative, is supporting emergency Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) to shore up gaps in the country's usually strong spraying efforts. While the country retains adequate stocks of malaria drugs, less than half of the usual level of indoor mosquito spraying has occurred. The program will reach 20 districts that would have otherwise gone without this integral malaria protection mechanism. The Ministry of Health in Zimbabwe has stated that this accelerated program will avert 4 million cases and will save 3,000 to 4,000 lives.
The timing of this intervention is vitally important as it will cover a large portion of the population just in time for the season of highest malaria transmittance. Malaria cases in Zimbabwe begin to rise in February and peak in April and May.
Indoor Residual Spraying shortens the lifetime of mosquitoes that carry the malaria parasite. When a mosquito lands in a home that has been sprayed, the mosquito is killed or its life is shortened so that it cannot pass parasites from one person to another.
USAID provided emergency funding of $ 200,000 along with the UK's Department for International Development's (DFID) providing 200,000 pounds Sterling to enable the National Malaria Control Program to launch a two-month "Accelerated IRS" program in February and March, before peak transmission in April and May. The two responded immediately, procuring equipment, mobilizing teams and transport, and disbursing equipment for approximately 821 spray operators.
For more information about USAID's malaria programs visit: http://www.usaid.gov/our_work/global_health/id/malaria/index.html  and http://pmi.gov .
U.S. Agency for International Development
http://www.usaid.gov
 
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Inclusive government to inherit US$ 4,7bn debt

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=18350&Itemid=103
Saturday, 07 February 2009
Zimbabwe’s new inclusive government is inheriting an unprecedented US$ 4,69 billion external debt that has seen the country’s credit rating plummet to very low levels.
From US$ 4,671 billion in 2007, the debt climbed to US$ 4,69 last year because of mounting arrears as the country failed to pay back multilateral creditors, owed 44 percent of the US$ 4,69 billion debt, with bilateral and commercial creditors owed 50 percent and six percent respectively.
The debt kept mounting because of the Zanu (PF) administration was unable to make regular repayments of principal debt, which was US$ 1,3 billion in 2002.
Now the new government between MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai and President Robert Mugabe is inheriting the huge bill and will be required to clear the arrears before accessing new funding from world lenders who are also committing resources to the devastating global financial crunch.
Zimbabwe, mired in the worst economic crisis since independence from Britain in 1980, has experienced dwindling supplies of foreign currency because of strained relations with multilateral lenders and the collapse of its agricultural base, the country’s major hard currency
earner.
The southern African country has been unable to access balance of payments support since 2000 following human rights abuses by Mugabe’s administration.
The IMF in 2007 came very close to expelling Zimbabwe after repeatedly failing to pay back loans advanced to it. The central bank saved the day at the last minute after clearing the arrears.
 
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RBZ needs US$ 500m to sort out cash woes - Gono

http://www.fingaz.co.zw/category-table/352-rbz-needs-us500m-to-sort-out-cash-woes-gono
Friday, 06 February 2009 12:41 Staff Reporter
THE Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) requires US$ 500 million in fresh investment to enable its subsidiary, Fidelity Printers and Refiners, cope with the excessive demand for banknotes.
Gideon Gono, the RBZ governor, revealed this week that printing capacity at Fidelity Printers and Refiners can only run two million pieces per day and growing this capacity to meet the demand for bank notes would require US$ 500 million in investment costs and a minimum lead time of 24 months.
"With the daily fixed two million pieces limit, the growing demand for currency can only be met through increases in the denominations of the notes," said Gono. "The stubborn reality, which is beyond the control of the central bank, has been lost to those in our country who, while they do not want to take responsibility for anything, are nevertheless very quick to blame the governor for the high denominations as if there is any other alternative given the ever growing demand for cash in a hyperinflationary environment," he added.
Zimbabwe has been going through serious cash shortages because of hyperinflation.
In a bid to quench the appetite for cash the central bank has in the past introduced high denomination notes while in some instances the lender of the last resort has had to slash zeros off the country's currency.
This week Gono lopped off 12 zeros from the Zimbabwe dollar and introduced a new family of currency denominations ranging from $ 1 to $ 500.
While the bank is also encouraging the use of the Real Time Gross Settlement system, cheques and the Point of Sale to reduce the demand for bank notes, the retail sector is now rejecting these modes of payment as the currency has lost its role as an acceptable medium of exchange.
The cash shortages became more acute after a German firm unilaterally cut a 50-year-old contract to supply Fidelity Printers and Refiners with currency-printing paper, machinery, spares and inks without notice in July last year.
Gono said if people insist on withdrawing all their money from the banks it will leave the RBZ with no choice but to sacrifice the banking public's convenience by letting them have all their money, but in large denominations because of printing capacity constraints.
"It is both an engineering and a physical challenge which I as governor and my team can do very little about even with the best heart and will in the world.
"As Zimbabweans, we must thus tell each other the truth about what is and what is not possible. It is not possible to have our cake and eat it at the same time.
"It is therefore regrettable that some stakeholders here at home who should know better, have labelled the cash shortages as 'Reserve Bank mischief', and thus, have gone about campaigning for physical harm to come the way of the central bank team and the governor in our personal capacities.
"This demonstrates beyond doubt that some important and yet 'do nothing' elements in our society have sunk to new lows without precedent in the history of false imaginations," said Gono.
 
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Chinamasa, Gono Policy Statements Confusing – Experts

http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/business/19681-chinamasa-gono-policy-statements-confusing-experts.html
Saturday, 07 February 2009 14:17
DIFFERENCES in the exchange rate used in preparing the monetary policy and national budget statements will make the two policies unworkable, analysts warned last week.
The two policies give direction on where the country’s economy is going.
Nearly two weeks ago, acting Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa presented a US$ 1.9 billion balanced budget that hinged on 11 deliverables that include reducing inflation and infrastructure rehabilitation among others.
On Monday Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor Gideon Gono said the apex bank would stick to its core business of price stability, exchange rate management and contain money supply growth.
Analysts contend that there were differences on the exchange rate used by both Chinamasa and Gono.
In presenting the 2009 budget, Chinamasa used a United Nations exchange rate of $ 35 billion per US$ .
On Monday Gono proposed an exchange rate of $ 20 trillion per US$ but analysts are wary that such discrepancies will impact on the workability of the policies.
“The budget has an exchange rate of $ 35 billion per US$ , Gono has an exchange rate of $ 20 trillion and one wonders that at the end of the day, which exchange rate are they going to use,” said Daniel Ndlela, an independent economist. “This is a glaring contradiction.”
Ndlela said finally authorities saw light by agreeing to end price controls, quasi-fiscal activities and returning water management to local authorities but it came at a huge cost.
He said the budget and monetary policy statements would be refined by a new administration coming in by the end of the week. “The only thing that the new government will not interfere with is the abolition of 12 zeroes,” he said.
In total Gono has removed 25 zeroes from the currency since assuming the hot seat in 2003. The removal of zeroes, driven by the country’s record-breaking inflation means that savings have been wiped out.
Ndlela says the budget’s success hinges on three conditions: the formation of an inclusive government that will mobilise resources; substantial foreign currency inflows and restoration of macro economic stability.
Analysts say the use of multiple currencies is unworkable as people were shunning the local unit.
Both Chinamasa and Gono said the use of US$ , Rand, Pula, Pound Sterling and Euro alongside the Zimbabwean dollar will give people a wide selection on which currency to use.
But Hawkins disagreed saying: “You can’t have multiple currencies when nobody wants the local currency, that’s the basic weakness of the two policies.
He says the exchange rate used is unrealistic and this means that the policies had been premised on false assumptions.
MDC-T said Chinamasa and Gono’s presentations were addressing the symptoms of the problems. They said only a political solution will restore the country to its former glory.
“Our economy needs open heart surgery and not painkillers,” said Elton Mangoma, the MDC secretary for Economic Affairs, “we need to bite the bullet. Only a political solution will address the challenges facing the country”.
BY OUR STAFF
 
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Archbishop Tutu skeptical of Zimbabwe unity deal

http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2009Feb07/0,4670,AFZimbabwe,00.html
Saturday, February 07, 2009
By DONNA BRYSON, Associated Press Writer
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa
Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu said Saturday he doubts that Zimbabwe's unity government deal can work and insisted the solution to the country's crisis is the departure of its longtime leader, Robert Mugabe.
Tutu has called on the international community to use the threat of force if necessary to get Mugabe to step down.
"I haven't changed," he told reporters Saturday. "He's had an innings. It was a good innings and then he messed up. Let him step down."
Mugabe, in power since independence from Britain in 1980, is accused of destroying the southern African nation's once-vibrant economy through corruption and mismanagement, and of trampling on the human rights of its people.
Zimbabwe's main opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, is to be prime minister and Mugabe is to remain president in a unity government expected to be inaugurated next week.
Tsvangirai, under pressure from regional leaders and eager to address Zimbabwe's growing humanitarian crisis, agreed to join the coalition despite the continued jailing and harassment of dissidents and deep reservations about Mugabe's willingness to share power.
Tutu, the retired Anglican archbishop of Cape Town, said the deal should be given a chance, "but many are not particularly hopeful." He said Mugabe would have to be closely monitored to ensure the coalition does not turn out to be a "charade."
Tutu spoke seated next to Kumi Naidoo, an international anti-poverty advocate in the 18th day of a hunger strike that aimed to put pressure on Mugabe. Naidoo also expressed reservations about the unity government's prospects for success, but said "now we need to trust the judgment of the people on the ground in Zimbabwe."
Naidoo called on Mugabe to release political prisoners, allow humanitarian organizations to work freely, and repeal restrictions on free speech and assembly.
In Zimbabwe's capital Saturday, human rights groups said several prisoners linked to Tsvangirai's opposition party were at risk of dying in jail. At least three, including a 72-year-old man, were in critical condition, according to doctors who examined them in their cells Friday.
Police are accused of torturing the detainees and have ignored several court orders demanding that the prisoners be sent to private medical facilities.
"We might end up with losing lives. We are very concerned. These people are very sick," said Dr. Douglas Gwatidzo, director of the Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights.
On Friday, a judge ended the treason trial of a top Tsvangirai aide, which was seen as a sign that Mugabe's party wants the coalition to work. Still, scores of opposition members and human rights activists remain jailed in what observers in and outside Zimbabwe say was a crackdown on dissidents as power-sharing negotiations faltered.
Tsvangirai reluctantly agreed Jan. 30 to move forward on a unity government deal without having resolved disputes over Cabinet posts and the treatment of dissidents. The agreement has been stalled since September.
Tsvangirai won more votes than Mugabe in the opening round of presidential balloting last March, but pulled out of a June runoff because of violence against opposition supporters. International observers have called the June runoff a sham.
The standoff since the March vote has kept the country's leaders from addressing the country's devastating economic and social collapse. A cholera epidemic has killed more than 3,300 people and infected 60,000 since August and the world's highest inflation rate has left millions of Zimbabweans dependent on international food aid to survive.
___
Associated Press Writer Angus Shaw in Harare, Zimbabwe contributed to this report.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
 
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'Mugabe had an innings, then he messed up'

http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/Zimbabwe/0,,2-11-1662_2466114,00.html
07/02/2009 22:52 - (SA)
JOHANNESBURG
Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu said Saturday he doubts that Zimbabwe's unity government deal can work and insisted the solution to the country's crisis is the departure of its longtime leader, Robert Mugabe.
Tutu has called on the international community to use the threat of force if necessary to get Mugabe to step down.
"I haven't changed," he told reporters Saturday. "He's had an innings. It was a good innings and then he messed up. Let him step down."
Mugabe, in power since independence from Britain in 1980, is accused of destroying the southern African nation's once-vibrant economy through corruption and mismanagement, and of trampling on the human rights of its people.
Zimbabwe's main opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, is to be prime minister and Mugabe is to remain president in a unity government expected to be inaugurated next week.
Tsvangirai, under pressure from regional leaders and eager to address Zimbabwe's growing humanitarian crisis, agreed to join the coalition despite the continued jailing and harassment of dissidents and deep reservations about Mugabe's willingness to share power.
Police torturing detainees
Tutu, the retired Anglican archbishop of Cape Town, said the deal should be given a chance, "but many are not particularly hopeful." He said Mugabe would have to be closely monitored to ensure the coalition does not turn out to be a "charade".
Tutu spoke seated next to Kumi Naidoo, an international anti-poverty advocate in the 18th day of a hunger strike that aimed to put pressure on Mugabe. Naidoo also expressed reservations about the unity government's prospects for success, but said "now we need to trust the judgment of the people on the ground in Zimbabwe".
Naidoo called on Mugabe to release political prisoners, allow humanitarian organizations to work freely, and repeal restrictions on free speech and assembly.
In Zimbabwe's capital on Saturday, human rights groups said several prisoners linked to Tsvangirai's opposition party were at risk of dying in jail. At least three, including a 72-year-old man, were in critical condition, according to doctors who examined them in their cells Friday.
Police are accused of torturing the detainees and have ignored several court orders demanding that the prisoners be sent to private medical facilities.
"We might end up with losing lives. We are very concerned. These people are very sick," said Dr Douglas Gwatidzo, director of the Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights.
Associated Press Writer Angus Shaw in Harare, Zimbabwe contributed to this report.
- SAPA
 
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Will unity government hold?

http://www.fingaz.co.zw/top-stories/373-will-unity-government-hold
Financial Gazette - Harare, Zimbabwe
Friday, 06 February 2009 13:09
MOVEMENT for Democratic Change (MDC-T) leader Morgan Tsvangirai’s announcement last Friday that his party’s national council had resolved to join the long awaited all-inclusive government was greeted with deafening jubilation outside the party’s Harvest House headquarters in Harare.
The decision relayed in the afternoon to thousands of MDC-T supporters who had been waiting anxiously since morning, was immediately welcomed by continental and global leaders who gave the unity pact the thumbs up.
Tsvangirai, who since signing the September 15 Global Political Agreement (GPA) had been holding back on the power-sharing deal citing outstanding issues, said he would write to regional leaders, the guarantors of the deal, restating his position on the equitable and fair distribution of ministerial portfolios, stressing the need for the issue to be resolved before his envisaged swearing in as Prime Minister on February 11.
Tsvangirai said the national council had resolved that all political prisoners, including Jestina Mukoko, the director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project currently languishing in Chikurubi Maximum Prison on charges of banditry, be released before he is sworn in.
Political analysts this week expressed guarded optimism on whether the unity government would hold, in view of Tsvangirai’s ultimatum.
The analysts said while the ultimatum seems reasonable and justified, it carries the risk of hardening the entrenched positions of ZANU-PF and MDC-M which they said wanted a Government of National Unity (GNU) in place “like yesterday.”
They agreed that while some of the issues raised by Tsvangirai and his party could be sorted out by the Joint Monitoring and Implementation Committee (JOMIC), launched by the three main political parties with the assistance of the Southern African Development Community (SADC)’s facilitation team on January 30, it was highly unlikely the prime minister-designate's deadline would be met.
This could throw spanners in the works.
JOMIC, which comprises 12 senior officials from ZANU-PF, MDC-T and MDC-M, was to meet in South Africa on Tuesday this week to resolve the outstanding issues raised by Tsvangirai.
Apart from the fair distribution of ministries and release of political prisoners, Tsvangirai is demanding the reversal of the unilateral appointments by President Robert Mugabe of provincial governors, Attorney-General Johannes Tomana, Central Bank Governor Gideon Gono and the composition and constitution of the National Security Council.
“The demands by the MDC-T articulated after its national council resolved to enter into the government put the whole arrangement to test,” Ernest Mudzengi, the director of the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) said.
“What happens if these demands are not met by the date prescribed by MDC-T?
We might be back to square one with the MDC-T again refusing to join the so-called unity government.”
He said unlike ZANU-PF and MDC-M which appeared content with the power-sharing agreement, the MDC-T was moving with caution as it was still suspicious of the intentions of the other two parties in the deal.
“The issue of security could be another threat to the GNU. What guarantees do we have that abductions will cease when the unity government is operational considering that MDC-T supporters were made to disappear when the parties were in negotiations,” Mudzengi said.
He said the co-sharing of the Ministry of Home Affairs would prove to be the litmus test for the GNU.
“It has never been successfully applied anywhere in the world. It was disastrous during the internal settlement. Zimbabwe needs effective and impartial policing, but we have a problem in the current person in charge of police, who is sympathetic to one of the parties in this agreement.”
Useni Sibanda, the coordinator of the Christian Alliance of Zimbabwe, said the church welcomed the optimism of the signatories to the GPA.
“Our position as Christian Alliance is that we welcome the finalisation of the talks as they have taken too long to be concluded,” Sibanda said.
“But we are cautiously optimistic until we have seen the first 100 days of the GNU.”
Sibanda said the churches’ priority was national healing after eight years of polarisation and political rivalry especially between ZANU-PF and MDC-T.
“We will be advocating a legal framework to be set up for the national healing process,” he added. “It is the Christian Alliance position that this national healing process must come up from the communities, not prescribed by politicians.
“It should come from a national debate and consultations so that we arrive at transitional justice.”
Officials close to Tsvangirai said the MDC-T leader was optimistic the GNU would stick.
On Monday he held briefings with civic society and church leaders and told them he was confident all his demands would be met by February 11.
“He asked us to organise a service for his inauguration,” said a church leader, speaking strictly on condition he is not named.
Tsvangirai met with civic society representatives, including the NCA, the Crisis Coalition, the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights and ZimRights to share views on the way forward.
 
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'This time next year Mugabe will be gone' - Madzore

http://www.zimdiaspora.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=673:this-time-next-year-mugabe-will-be-gone-madzore&catid=67:art&Itemid=171
Business, Education & Opinion
By Peta Thornycroft
A Zimbabwean judge ended the treason trial of a top opposition leader this week, another indication that President Robert Mugabe's party wants a proposed coalition government to work.
Magistrate Olivia Mariga ruled that Movement for Democratic Change secretary-general Tendai Biti had been improperly arrested on charges of plotting to overthrow Mugabe's government.
The MDC had accused the government of basing the treason case against Biti on a forged document.
Ending the Biti case removed a major irritant between the MDC and Mugabe's Zanu-PF party and raised hopes for the power-sharing government due to be formed next week.
Mugabe is understood to have signed Constitutional Amendment 19 after it sailed through parliament and the Senate on Thursday.
It provides the legislative foundation for a unity government, heralding what many Zimbabweans hope will be the beginning of the end of Mugabe's era.
Front benchers of both Zanu-PF and members of on both sides of the house burst into song as they left the House of Assembly after adopting the bill: "We are now in agreement," they sang, in a refrain used by both parties at political rallies.
Abdenico Bhebe, MP for Nkayi, one of the driest and poorest areas of south-western Zimbabwe, said: "Every fight must come to an end, and this is evidence that people are willing to try and work together to resolve the problems bedevilling the country."
Paul Madzore, MP for a western Harare township where cholera is raging, said: "At least people in Zanu-PF have now come to the realisation that they are the main problem in Zimbabwe, and this time next year, Mugabe will be gone."
Only two Western diplomats - one British - were in the speakers' gallery during the 110-minute debate to push the amendment through a mutilated set of standing orders, which had earlier been fast-tracked through parliamentary processes to enable Mugabe to seize white farms.
Several African diplomats shook hands and grinned when the amendment was adopted by 184 legislators in the 210-seat parliament, which has several vacancies following the deaths of MPs since the March 2008 elections.
The amendment also passed easily through the upper house, the Senate, shortly afterwards.
"I am cautiously optimistic but I am not under any illusions of the problems ahead," said MDC Senator David Coltart.
"This is the second time we have been given a chance as a nation," he said, referring to the British-designed talks at Lancaster House in London which ended the civil war and white rule in 1980.
"Lancaster House failed because the draconian legislation of the Rhodesia Front was not amended, We didn't renounce violence and we placed too much emphasis on the letter of the law instead of the spirit of the law."
Amendment 19 came before parliament despite MDC statements the day before that it would be delayed because of Zanu-PF foot-dragging.
MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai rushed to Cape Town to consult President Kgalema Motlanthe, and this may have kick-started the process back on track.
At a Southern African Development Community summit last week, regional leaders had set the Zimbabweans a timetable to form a new government, including passage of Constitutional Amendment 19 by February 4.
The passing of the bill now means Tsvangirai could still be sworn in as prime minister - and Arthur Mutambara, leader of another MDC faction, as deputy prime minister - by February 11, as the SADC timetable requires.
Then cabinet ministers could be sworn in by the scheduled date of February 13, and the unity government could then be under way.
But while MDC legislators were putting their names to what they hope is the start of a new, more democratic era in Zimbabwe, Zanu-PF supporters, army and police and militia were still evicting white farmers off their land and detaining them.
Chris Jarret, who was kicked off his farm six years ago, was arrested this week in Bulawayo because police said he had failed to pick up his personal property when he was kicked off his land.
Two others, Gary Godfrey, who had managed to survive on a small piece of his original farm, was picked up by police 60km north of Bulawayo.
In a nearby district, Paul Rogers, who also continued to farm nine years after the land grab began because his property was never listed for "acquisition", was also arrested.
"Police arrived with an eviction order, but had the wrong name of the farm, but took him anyway," according to the men's spokesperson in Bulawayo, Mac Crawford.
"These guys had been to the SADC Tribunal in November, which granted an order protecting them from any interference from the state."
Another three white farmers have been in detention for three weeks, accused of training terrorists. The three ran outdoor adventure courses for school children about 50km south-east of Harare.
Four smallholding owners on the northern outskirts of Harare have been evicted in the past week, and on Thursday, well-known mining consultant John Holloway and his wife Sue, a teacher, were under siege on their plot in the Christon Bank suburb, west of Harare.
Every day, more farmers who have survived Mugabe's land seizures are being summonsed to court to defend accusations that they are illegally remaining on their properties.
"This sudden rush appears to be connected with the establishment of a unity government. In other words, some people feel that time is running out for taking farms, so they have stepped up pressure to get in before it happens," said one farmer, who asked not to be named. - Sapa-AFP
 
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Mukoko - Court throws out latest application

http://www.fingaz.co.zw/top-stories/374-mukoko-court-throws-out-latest-application
Financial Gazette - Harare, Zimbabwe
Friday, 06 February 2009 13:10
HUMAN rights monitor and director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project, Jestina Mukoko, has for the umpteenth time lost her bid for freedom after High Court Judge, Alfias Chitakunye, rejected her request to be set free.
Chitakunye dismissed Mukoko's application on the grounds that the former news anchor had not undergone formal remand hearing proceedings in the Magistrates' Court.
Mukoko has been languishing in Chikurubi Maximum Prison since last year on allegations she hired and trained insurgents in Botswana to forcibly remove President Robert Mugabe and his government from power.
Botswana has since denied accusations that the country was being used as a training ground to cause commotion in Zimbabwe
Harare lawyer, Harrison Nkomo, said Chitakunye dismissed his application seeking leave to appeal to the Supreme Court, but added he would appeal directly anyway.
"Judge Chitakunye dismissed Mukoko's bail application and then dismissed my appeal to seek leave in the Supreme Court," Nkomo said. "However, this does not stop me from seeking leave of appeal directly to the Supreme Court of which I am going to do."
Asked how he thought the High Court Judge came to that decision seeing that the charges were already leveled against Mukoko, Nkomo said: "I do not what to be seen to be disrespectful to judges."
Normally, charges against accused persons emanate from police stations and are either altered or rejected in Set Down offices of the Magistrates' Court before they are presented and read out to the alleged culprit on initial remand.
Mukoko, who was abducted from her home in Norton by state security agents on December 3 and held incommunicado until December 22 when she was officially handed over to the police, has been challenging her continued incarceration arguing she was unlawfully denied her liberty from the time she was kidnapped.
However, her plea has fallen on deaf ears as evidenced by her continued stay in prison.
Mukoko, whom the Attorney General, Johannes Tomana, said was a security risk, is now sceptical of a fair trial after the government's top lawyer openly declared he was ZANU-PF.
She first appeared in court on December 24 last year alongside several MDC-T activists facing banditry charges and allegations of terrorist bombings, which they have denied.
Mukoko claims she was tortured during her 19 days of detention to admit to the crime prompting the courts to direct that she be medically examined to prove her accusations.
 
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Zimbabwe rights groups flay opposition detentions

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gQv6je8QdN2Rcpmjy2olPS63mYTQ
2009 02 07
HARARE (AFP)
Zimbabwean rights groups Saturday flayed the government for detaining opposition activists on terrorism-related charges for more than three months despite court rulings that the action was illegal.
Irene Petras, director of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, told a news conference that more than 30 Movement for Democratic Change party members including 72-year-old Fidelis Chiramba remained in custody.
"He (Chiramba) is the most extreme case amongst all political prisoners who remain incarcerated whilst politicians congratulate themselves about progress made in moving towards the establishment of an inclusive government," Petras said.
President Robert Mugabe's long ruling ZANU-PF party and the MDC on Thursday agreed to a power sharing deal which would see Tsvangirai being sworn in as prime minister this month after disputed elections last year.
"We believe that the manner in which Mr Chiramba and his fellow political prisoners are being treated is a reflection of the lack of sincerity of politicians in ensuring that the security of all persons in Zimbabwe remains paramount."
The detainees include Ghandi Mudzingwa - a former personal assistant of opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai. They were rounded up by the secret services on allegations of bombing various police stations, bridges and committing acts of terror.
Chiramba was arrested on October 31 along other several others, Petras said adding that the septuagenarian had been incarcerated for 100 days and had not received medical attention despite court rulings.
Douglas Gwatidzo, chairman of the Zimbabwe Doctors of Human Rights also condemned the continued detentions, saying the activists had been severely tortured.
"Mr Chiramba continues to be denied access to adequate medical treatment," Gwatidzo said.
"He (Chiramba) was taken to the Avenues clinic for treatment. He exhibited evidence of congestive cardiac failure secondary to severe hypertension. He still exhibits evidence of soft tissue injuries secondary to his assault."
Gwatidzo said other activists were also "in danger and need adequate attention and care in a functional hospital."
 
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Abductees Denied Treatment

http://www.thezimbabwestandard.com/local/19701-abductees-denied-treatment.html
Saturday, 07 February 2009 21:51
EIGHT MDC-T supporters and human rights activists abducted by state security agents last year were on Friday denied access to treatment at a Harare private clinic despite recommendations by doctors that they needed urgent hospitalisation.
The prisoners, who include opposition activists and civil rights leaders, are being held at Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison on charges of sabotage, banditry and terrorism.
They were taken to the Avenues Clinic under heavy guard from prison officers, and medical staff recommended that the prisoners should be admitted to the hospital so that their conditions could be closely monitored.
Dr Douglas Gwatidzo of Zimbabwe Doctors for Human Rights (Zdhr) said the eight who suffered from different ailments were in a “grave condition.”
But the prison officers who said they had been instructed to take the abductees back to Chikurubi ignored the advice. Zdhr doctors were also not allowed access to their patients.
“We were denied access to examine their medical condition and they were only brought to the Avenues Clinic and quickly taken away by prison officers despite the fact that medical authorities had recommended their admission,” Gwatidzo told a press conference yesterday.
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (Zlhr) says there are 32 political prisoners at Chikurubi and the conditions of 11 of them could not be ascertained.
Gwatidzo said of particular concern was the condition of MDC-T district chairperson for Zvimba South Fidelis Chiramba who was abducted on October 31.
BY EDGAR GWESHE
 
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