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MPs implicated in outreach car hire fraud

SW Radio Africa News Stories for 07 July 2010

By Lance Guma
07 July 2010

The credibility of the current outreach programme to canvass people’s views on a new constitution suffered a body blow this week, following revelations that participating MPs had fraudulently hired out vehicles loaned to them by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.

According to a report by the recently launched News Day newspaper, Constitutional Select Committee (COPAC) co-chairperson Douglas Mwonzora said some of the legislators had hired out vehicles which legally belonged to the central bank, and that this was tantamount to “fraud.”

The paper says the scam was only uncovered when COPAC was processing payment for the vehicles hired out to the committee through the Central Mechanical Equipment Department. A total of 265 vehicles have been hired for the outreach exercise but it’s not yet clear how many of these belong to the central bank.

Under a controversial vehicle scheme the central bank bought vehicles for some MPs with the understanding they would be returned, once an official parliamentary vehicle loan scheme had been approved. News Day reports that the ‘majority’ of MPs did not return these vehicles even when they got their own loans. It is these same vehicles that they are now using to cash in on the outreach exercise.

COPAC is said to be coughing up US$80 per day per vehicle and another 22 cents per kilometer from resources predominantly provided by donors, who include the United Nations Development Programme. Mwonzora has since said any payments for cars that are not owned by the MPs will be sent to the central bank instead.

The latest revelations will give credence to accusations from groups like the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA), who said the process was just another excuse to loot donor funds. In June the NCA charged that COPAC had “spent more time in disagreements over allowances and per diems. This is a clear indication that this group of mercenaries are only in this process to fatten their pockets and not to write the constitution. The process is a circus and heading for a catastrophic ending.”

On Wednesday NCA spokesman Madock Chivasa told Newsreel “we are having people in positions of responsibility like the legislators, manipulating the process so that they get money. So what has happened must not come as a surprise.”

Meanwhile the NCA is already preparing to mount a campaign for people to vote against the draft constitution that will be produced. Chivasa said although they had initially wanted to wait and see what sort of draft will be adopted it was now clear from the chaos, confusion and intimidation of the past few days that the country will not get a people driven constitution.


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New group to seek justice for victims of political violence

SW Radio Africa News Stories for 07 July 2010

Tererai Karimakwenda
7 July 2010

Victims of political violence in Bulawayo announced on Wednesday that they have formed a new organisation, whose aim is to seek justice. Themba Nyathi, secretary of the recently formed Zimbabwe Victims of Organised Violence Trust, said they want to bring perpetrators of violence to account for their actions, because nothing was being done in that regard.

Nyathi described the group as “victim-led, victim-driven and victim centred.” He said perpetrators of violence are determined and organised while victims are scattered and vulnerable.

“We are talking about violence that is sponsored violence. Violence whereby people sit down and agree to sanction some kind of violent action against individuals,” he added.

As a victim of violence himself, Nyathi said he is very familiar with the issues. The group’s chairperson is Patricia Nabanyama, the well-known activist whose husband disappeared many years ago after being abducted by known ZANU PF agents.

Nabanyama, who was an election agent for David Coltart in Bulawayo, has not been seen since. The abductors still roam the streets of Bulawayo freely and were never arrested or interrogated.

Nyathi explained that there has to be a way to deal with such cases.

He said: “We need what we call a Truth and Reconciliation Commission in the framework of the constitution, which has got a mandate, an authority to do something to bring justice for the victims.”

Asked whether the group represented any victims of violence claiming to be ZANU PF members, Nyathi said that this scenario was not possible because the perpetrators are ZANU PF. He also acknowledged that it is going to be very difficult to prosecute supporters of the party that is sponsoring the violence, but concluded: “If we don’t do it then who will?”
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Zimbabwean thrown off train in xenophobic attack in South Africa

SW Radio Africa News Stories for 07 July 2010

By Tichaona Sibanda
7 July 2010

A 27 year-old Zimbabwean man, Reason Wandi is ‘lucky to be alive’ after he was thrown off a train by a group of South Africans on Monday in Cape Town.

Wandi was left hospitalised in the city of Tygerberg following the apparent xenophobic attack. It follows fears that the country faces a renewed outbreak of xenophobic unrest after the 2010 World Cup, which draws to a close this weekend.

The attack on Monday took place when Wandi was travelling from his Khayelitsha home to look for work in central Cape Town. It’s understood he was hoping to apply for a job as a driver when he boarded a train to Bellville.

Speaking to journalists from his hospital bed, Wandi said he heard a group of locals talking about foreigners and how they should “go back to their country.” Travelling in the company of other Zimbabweans, Wandi said they were verbally abused while traveling on the train.

Xenophobic attacks in South Africa are often related to protests against lack of basic services and competition for scarce resources, and these tragically end in loss of life and destruction of property. About three million Zimbabweans alone have fled economic collapse in Zimbabwe to South Africa, the continent’s biggest economy, in the past decade.

According to reports, locals in Cape Town were asking why some foreigners were still around when others were going back to their countries. PASSOP, a community based, grass roots organisation, devoted to fighting for the rights of asylum seekers, refugees and immigrants in Cape Town, reacted with shock and outrage after learning of the attack.

“This is absolutely dreadful and I hope that this will prompt authorities here to deal with xenophobia with the urgency it deserves. There’s no call for this kind of violence and you don’t tend to hear of things like foreigners being pushed off the trains,” said Everisto Kamera from PASSOP.

He said a meeting of NGO’s and civic organizations in Cape Town on Wednesday heard harrowing stories and reports of foreigners fleeing townships to seek safety in other secure places or neighbouring countries.

“The sad part of the story is that South African authorities are not treating these threats seriously. I can tell you right now that reports we are getting say that locals are moving from door to door asking landlords if they’re renting out rooms to foreigners. Where an answer is a yes, they are being told not to accept rentals anymore as the lodgers would be forced out after the World Cup,” Kamera said.

Most immigrants in South Africa, many of them Zimbabweans, dread the end of the World Cup, fearing they will see a repeat of the xenophobic violence of May 2008. The attacks across the country left 62 people dead, more than 100 000 displaced and property worth million of dollars looted or destroyed.

SW Radio Africa has in the last few months reported that South Africa could see a spike in xenophobic violence after the World Cup.

Kamera told us the threats cannot be discounted anymore amid rising xenophobia-related incidents. He said foreign nationals are being openly threatened on the streets and taxi ranks. Some of the immigrants have been fired from restaurants and construction sites after their employers were threatened with repercussions.

A lot other people from Somalia are reportedly selling their shops while from the Musina border post, reports indicate that Zimbabweans are sending their moveable property home at an alarming rate.
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Bail appeal for jailed diamond researcher delayed

SW Radio Africa News Stories for 07 July 2010

By Alex Bell
07 July 2010

A second bail application for jailed diamond researcher Farai Maguwu has been delayed, after the Attorney General’s office said it wasn’t ready for Wednesday’s court hearing.

Lawyers representing Maguwu returned to the Harare High Court on Wednesday to appeal the Court’s decision last week to deny their client bail. Attorney Tinoziva Bere told SW Radio Africa that the appeal will now only be heard on Friday, after representatives from the Attorney General’s office said they needed more time.

Maguwu has now spent more than a month behind bars after his arrest in early June. He is being charged with communicating so-called ‘falsehoods’ deemed prejudicial to the state and if found guilty faces up to 20 years behind bars.

Since his incarceration, Maguwu has raised complaints over the state’s continued deprivation of his rights. According to his lawyers, the rights activist has been denied access to adequate medication and medical examination, been unlawfully moved from Harare Remand Prison to the notorious Matapi Police station in Mbare and complained of attempts by the state to impede on his rights to remain silent and to access legal representation. The Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition said on Tuesday that “the police are deliberately stalling investigations directly impacting on Maguwu’s right to liberty as enshrined in the Zimbabwean constitution and regional and international statutes including the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights.”

“It seems the state, through the courts and police force are deliberately stalling progress in Maguwu’s case to use him as an example of the fate which awaits any citizen who dares to question or seek to expose the looting of diamonds in Chiadzwa and the horrendous human rights abuses attached to it. Maguwu’s crime is not that he ‘communicated or published falsehoods’ but that he dared to challenge the one source of power which ZANU PF still possesses, the Marange diamonds,” the Crisis Coalition said in a statement.

The activist heads the Mutare based Centre for Research and Development (CRD) which has exposed the ongoing abuse and corruption at the Chiadzwa diamond fields. Rights groups have been calling for Zimbabwe’s suspension from international diamond trade over the abuses. But the international trade watchdog, the Kimberley Process, last year decided to allow Zimbabwe more time to fall in line with minimum trade standards.

A set of guidelines were established to reach this goal, including the appointment of an approved monitor, to report back to Kimberley Process members on Zimbabwe’s efforts. That monitor Abbey Chikane, has since recommended that diamonds from Chiadzwa be given the legal certification from the Kimberley Process to allow their sale. This despite evidence given by Maguwu and other human rights groups that abuses are in fact continuing.

Chikane himself has been fingered as the instigator of Maguwu’s arrest, which happened shortly after a confidential meeting between the two men. Maguwu has said Chikane ‘shopped’ him to the police and it is widely believed that Maguwu’s ongoing detention is a deliberate attempt to silence him.

In the mean time, calls for Maguwu’s release have continued to grow. The Crisis Coalition on Tuesday urged the government to unconditionally and immediately release Maguwu, echoing the same call made by rights group, Amnesty International. Another group, Global Witness, which has worked with Maguwu in the past, has also called for Chikane to be suspended as the monitor to Zimbabwe, saying his credibility is compromised.

“Maguwu’s arrest is directly related to the information he handed in confidence to Abbey Chikane,” said Global Witness campaigner Annie Dunnebacke said. “The whole monitoring system should be suspended just as Zimbabwe should be suspended from international trade.”
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Biti appeals for lifting of diamond ban

SW Radio Africa News Stories for 07 July 2010

By Alex Bell
07 July 2010

Finance Minister Tendai Biti has appealed for the global diamond watchdog, the Kimberley Process, to allow Zimbabwe to sell its controversial diamonds, despite widespread calls for the country to be banned from trade.

"The Kimberley Process must allow us to sell our diamonds, but must then come to Zimbabwe to help resolve these issues," Biti said in a newsletter published by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s office.

"It will be very unfortunate if the KP does not allow us to sell the diamonds because they will be punishing the people of Zimbabwe. We can't pay for electricity, we can't pay for civil servants and yet we are sitting on one of the finest find of alluvial diamonds in the history of mankind,” Biti said.

Biti's statement came after a Kimberley Process meeting in Tel Aviv failed to reach a consensus on whether to certify diamonds from the controversial Chiadzwa diamond fields. Such certification is needed for the diamond sales to be legal. However, Mines Minister Obert Mpofu has warned he will sell the diamonds without certification. The Kimberley Process is to resume talks next week in Saint Petersburg.

The diamond body, which was tasked with ending the flow in ‘blood diamonds’, has come under heavy criticism for its handling of the Zimbabwe diamond crisis. Thousands of people from across the world have been voicing their anger and frustration with this failure, by signing an online petition calling for a complete reform of the monitoring body. The petition, started by ethical jewellery group Brilliant Earth, calls on the Kimberley Process to broaden its mandate to sufficiently address human rights abuses in the diamond trade. “Most importantly, it should incorporate worker exploitation, violence, child labour, and environmental destruction,” the petition reads.

“Consumers are outraged that the Kimberley Process is not protecting the basic human rights or dignity of diamond miners. They find the ‘conflict-free’ certification to be misleading, and are appalled that nothing is being done to change the situation in Zimbabwe,” said Beth Gerstein, the founder of Brilliant Earth.
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Calklback, Wednesday Forum etc SW Radio Africa

In the hidden story, MDC-T deputy organising secretary Morgan Komichi tells us how the President of the Chiefs council, chief Fortune Charumbira is abusing his position to try and influence the outcome of the constitutional outreach program. The Chief is allegedly moving around Masvingo province instructing participants how to answer questions that promote ZANU PF views.
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Tonight on Callback Ignatious in Harare says prostitutes are resorting to offering unprotected sex for as little as $4 because of poverty. And Tererai talks to Zvikomborero in Zvishawasha who says people have to resort to doing whatever is necessary to survive.
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Wednesday Forum
Sam and Jeff talk to Irene Petras of Zimbabwe lawyers for Human Rights about he state of human rights and lawyers in Zimbabwe.
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SW Radio Africa (listen on 4880kHz in Southern Africa)
+44 208 3871417
Twitter : Facebook : RSS feed
http://www.swradioafrica.com


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Constitution Outreach: News Round-Up, 2 July - 7 July

Sokwanele - Enough is Enough - Zimbabwe
PROMOTING NON-VIOLENT PRINCIPLES TO ACHIEVE DEMOCRACY


Constitution Outreach: News Round-Up, 2 July – 7 July
Sokwanele : 7 July 2010

These are media extracts featuring news on the constitutional outreach process between 2 July and 7 July. To review previous news items, or follow updates daily, please visit the Constitution Resource page on the Sokwanele website. Please note that links to sources and full articles are also available on the resource page.

2 July 2010 - cont

Zimbabwe's ZANU-PF Says NGOs, West Sabotaging Constitution Rewrite Process

The former ruling ZANU-PF party of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has accused Western governments of trying to sabotage the country's troubled constitutional revision process [...] ZANU-PF spokesman Rugare Gumbo told VOA Studio 7 reporter Blessing Zulu that non-governmental groups are working with Western governments to derail the constitutional revision process. But spokesman Nelson Chamisa of the MDC formation of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai said it is clear that ZANU-PF supporters are responsible for disturbances of outreach meetings. The Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition said that despite widespread confusion, logistical hitches and intimidation, the process must go on so that a new constitution can be drafted [Via VOA News].

Tsvangirai's MDC faces risk losing credibilty: Madhuku

National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) chairman, Lovemore Madhuku, said there were unbridgeable differences over ideas for a new constitution for the country. He said it appeared Tsvangirai had believed that the formation of the unity government would lead to the writing of a new constitution. Drafting a new constitution for the country was one of the key tenets of a power sharing deal agreed by President Mugabe and Tsvangirai after the inconclusive 2008 general elections. However, Madhuku claimed the whole process had since degenerated into a farce. "I have reports from reliable sources that whenever the constitutional consultation team is headed to a particular area, (it) is often completely evacuated. The 700 people involved in the (constitutional reform) exercise have no option but to just sit in a hotel in Harare. I can assure you that no people-driven constitution is being written". Madhuku’s NCA has been campaigning for a new constitution but refused to back the cur rent effort to write a new charter for the country arguing it was not “people-driven” [Via New Zimbabwe].

Outreach: Chiefs up in arms over status

FinGaz reports on divisions between different political groupings, and reflects on the role of traditional leaders in the outreach programme: "The traditional leaders are dismayed that after being excluded from active politics through the Traditional Leaders Act, they are also being shunted out of the constitution-making process. While many interest groups have muscled their way into the various outreach teams, chiefs have been left clutching at straws without any one representing their interests. Why, they ask, are NGOs, whose constituency is never known, being allowed more representation at the expense of traditional leaders who command huge rural constituencies and are very popular? The traditional leaders warn that it is futile for any institution to dream of ending problems of violence without their direct involvement. It is their role, they say, to spearhead peace-building initiatives and national healing, but they are either being sidelined altogether or simply bein g ignored despite their close connection to the perpetrators and victims of violence. They say the problem is that once government appears to ignore them, people in turn treated them with contempt. They are viewed as a cultural relic, hence, the crisis of “values and identity”. Their unanimous position is that elections are not a priority because they will not resolve the country’s problems. The environment is not yet conducive for fresh elections, they say, given their divisive nature. What should be given priority is national healing led by traditional leaders" [Via The Financial Gazette].

NCA on the writing of the new constitution

In a National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) Press release that also outlines the NCA's guiding principles, the organisation makes this statement: "The National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) wishes to re-affirm its position regarding the writing of the new constitution for Zimbabwe. In 1999 we gathered in Chitungwiza at the National Working People’s Convention as well as the first People’s Constitutional Convention . The constitutional making process is also clearly outlined in the Zimbabwe People’s Charter and again re-emphasized in Chitungwiza at the 2nd People’s Constitutional Convention in July of last year. We resolved that there should be an inclusive and broad-based constitution-making process in Zimbabwe; to foster, protect and deepen a culture of human rights and respect for the rule of law in Zimbabwe and to implement, incorporate and protect human rights [...]The NCA, through the Take Charge Campaign have already started the campaign for the rejection of a draft constitution that will emerge from the fraudulent process currently underway and led by selfish greedy politicians from ZANU PF and MDC. We continue to be disappointed by fly by night and aimless civic groups that are aiding this money spinning process but we also understand that they have sold our principles because of their insatiable appetite for gold and silver as well as their disgraceful adore for donor funds. Most of this misguided organizations are busy sending false reports lying that there is progress in the government led confused constitutional making process while events on the grounds have clearly proven that the Mwonzora-Mangwana process is a monumental charade. They are at pains to justify huge amounts of money they got from donors under the false pretence of making a constitution for Zimbabwe [Via National Constitutional Assembly - Press Release].

COPAC bosses face axe over chaos

Heads are set to roll at the Constitution Select Committee (COPAC) as it emerged this week that the Management Committee of the constitution-making process is seething with anger over the chaos characterising the exercise [...] Eric Matinenga, the Minister of Constitutional and Parliamentary Affairs, yesterday said concerns had been raised within COPAC and from the outreach teams over the poor management of the exercise. Douglas Mwonzora, one of the co-chairpersons of COPAC, said the committee responsible for the outreach met on Tuesday to review progress on the consultative process with a view to ringing some changes [Via The Financial Gazette].

Mangwana U-turn on Copac violence

Co-Chairperson of the Constitutional Select Committee Paul Munyaradzi Mangwana, the Zanu PF representative in Copac, told journalists yesterday that reports of chaos and violence were a figment of the media’s imagination. Last week, Mangwana confirmed to NewsDay cases of violence that had erupted during constitutional public hearings in Mashonaland West. “I can confirm that in Chinhoyi there was an almost volatile situation when one of the political parties was being suspected of using Copac vehicles to lobby its party members,” Mangwana said. He said Copac experienced problems in Mashonaland West where people thought it was unsafe to participate without police presence. But yesterday he made a U-turn saying: “We have had meetings with the Select Committee where our team leaders have reported that there was no violence.” Numerous incidents of chaos, intimidation and violence were reported around the country and confirmed by civic organisations, politicians and other eyewit nesses [...] Mangwana said civic society was not part of the Copac project and whatever they reported should not be taken seriously [Via NewsDay].

NGOs accused of meddling in Copac outreach programme

Non-governmental organisations, among them the Zimbabwe Election Support Network and Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition, are allegedly meddling in the constitution outreach programme. This has raised fears that they want to influence people to reject the new constitution. The co-team leader for the Midlands outreach team, Cde Joram Gumbo, told Chronicle in an interview yesterday that the smooth running of the outreach programme was being threatened by NGOs who were "invading" areas to be covered by the Copac teams in advance. He said the NGOs, especially ZESN and the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition, were getting into centres for meetings ahead of the Copac teams uninvited, thereby inducing fear in the participants. "They are being dropped by their cars all over the areas that we are to cover ahead of us. These NGOs' presence is intimidating people. They will be taking down some notes and people feel intimidated and they have since expressed their concern over this to us," said Cde Gumbo. "At one such meeting in Chief Sogwala on Thursday last week, the people there demanded that the NGOs be thrown out of the meeting but we told them that we can't do that as these people were Zimbabweans with a right to be anywhere they so wished." Cde Gumbo said the NGOs appear to have an ulterior motive in their actions as they have ignored Copac's outreach teams to wait for their turn to air their views. "They have interpreted any attempt to keep a distance from the Copac meetings as intimidation. They hinted to us that they could influence people to vote ‘No' and reject the new constitution, if ever they are kept away from the outreach work [Via The Chronicle - state controlled media]

Constitution views

The Zimbabwean publishes a selection of constitutional views sent in by its readers: "Here in Shamva, we are being barred from saying out our views and ideas for inclusion in the new constitution. Village heads have told us that they alone shall speak on behalf of everyone during public consultation meetings. Disappointed."; "Let us not be cowed by these Zanu (PF) cowards, let’s defy their intimidation messages and go ahead to write a constitution ine zvido zvedu (that contains our views and wishes). Anonymous"; "I am appealing to all Zimbabweans to push for inclusion in the new constitution the following issues that affect us all: a bill of children and women’s rights, limited presidential powers and a cap on presidential terms to a maximum of two, press freedom, dual citizenship and a review of marriage and inheritance laws. Anonymous" ; "How can we write a people centred constitution when Zanu (PF) has unleashed chaos here? Civic society bodies should monitor the outrea ch exercise and produce a report before the referendum so that we know whether to vote yes or no. Chirandu, Murehwa" [Via The Zimbabwean]

On, off outreach programme, off again

FinGaz comment on the continuing problems with the outreach programme: "The numerous problems dogging the constitution-making process have, to all intents and purposes, put the whole exercise in doubt. Chances are that the next elections could be held without a new constitution, a scenario that might fail to pull the country from its current predicament. The outcomes of previous elections — be they presidential or parliamentary — have been dogged by controversy revolving around issues of legitimacy. The contestation for power beyond the ballot box has therefore resulted in the country being ostracised from the international community with devastating consequences on its economy [...] Zimbabwe Human Rights executive director, Okay Machisa, said the country might end up with a confused constitution should COPAC fail to put its house in order: "However, there is still time for people to unite and understand that this document is not for politicians, youth militia and others w ho would want to wake up and say it should not go ahead, but a document for the people of Zimbabwe. We should act now or risk going to the next elections with the Lancaster House constitution,” he said" [Via The Financial Gazette]

3 July 2010

Villagers snub Copac outreach efforts

The Standard reports on the apathy towards the constitution outreach programme from people in Mashonaland East: "Copac co-chairperson Douglas Mwonzora (MDC-T) yesterday said he had received reports that villagers snubbed meetings in Goromonzi. “We have been advised that there was terrible apathy in Goromonzi [...] Reports are that there was a very low turn-out generally and we don’t know why this is so. We will have to look at that.” The Standard quotes some responses from residents it interviewed: "At Goromonzi shopping centre, a group of women and some youths sitting at a veranda of a shop which had the Copac schedule of meetings to be held in the area pasted on one of its walls, pointed to another distant shop saying that was where they had seen the Copac notice although they did not bother to read it. “We saw their poster pasted on the wall of a shop over there,” one of the women said. “Vane shungu nazvo ndivo vari kuenda (those who care about the meetings are attendi ng).” When The Standard drew the group’s attention to the poster close to them, one of the youths laughed saying, “Uku ndiko kunonzi kugarira constitution yacho, tingadii? (We are sitting on the constitution, what else can we do?). Mwonzora said Copac may have to re-organise the meetings: “If we find out that people were genuinely unaware of the meetings, we will re-do the meetings but if we establish that they knew but consciously decided not to attend, then we are done with that area. I personally suspect that people may be reacting to something — it could be intimidation or being forced to endorse something. The level of apathy in Mashonaland East is terrible and people on the ground have suggested that we review the method of calling for the meetings” [Via The Standard].

Constitution must preserve tradition, says First lady

The state-controlled Herald reports on a speech by Grace Mugabe: "Zimbabweans should take advantage of the constitution-making process to preserve tradition, First Lady Amai Grace Mugabe has said [...] "You heard about the constitution and let us contribute, but do not support the recognition of homosexuals’ so-called rights. It is taboo to our culture and Satan will have defeated us if we accept it. The constitution should be in accordance with our culture and homosexuality is foreign to us. We should not listen to foreigners and their promises. How many of their promises have been fulfilled?" she asked [Via The Herald - state-controlled media].

Safeguard national gains: President

President Mugabe has challenged Zimbabweans to come up with a constitution that safeguards and extends the gains of the liberation struggle. In a briefing with the Zanu-PF Mashonaland West provincial leadership…President Mugabe urged traditional leaders to play a key role in the constitutional outreach programme. "Tochenjerawo zviye zvingade kupinzwa zvogojomora mabolts atakasunga. Hatidi zvokuti pave neconstitution inotidzosera shure. It should be an extension of the gains of our Independence," President Mugabe said. President Mugabe said the new constitution should be a reflection of the people’s wishes [Via The Herald - state-controlled media].

MDC-T fires rapporteur for being ‘inclined’ to Zanu-PF

MDC-T has reportedly fired one of its rapporteurs in the Midlands Province for allegedly capturing views aligned to Zanu-PF during the ongoing constitution outreach programme [...] However, the MDC-T’s Copac outreach co-team leader for the province, Mr Amos Chibaya, yesterday denied that they fired the rapporteur [...] “There is nothing of that nature. Martin was just transferred to Harare upon his request to solve some problems in the capital where he is based. As the supervisor, I had to comply with his request which was genuine [...] I first sought clearance from Mr (Douglas) Mwonzora. We had a vacancy of one rapporteur in Glen View and he has gone to fill that post. I wonder why people want to try and look for some negative things to publicise even when there is no issue.” [...] Sources however told Chronicle that the MDC-T rapporteur was fired from the Midlands Province after the party raised complaints against him for presenting data which they felt was “inclined” to wards Zanu-PF’s interests. “Martin was selected under an MDC-T ticket but some of the party officials were not aware of the fact that he had joined Zanu-PF aligned Youths in Mining organisation,” said the source. The source said after realising that he was not representing the interests of the party, Mr Chibaya and other senior party officials then recalled the rapporteur and showed him the “red card” [Via The Chronicle - state-controlled media].

‘Marital rape should not be included in constitution’

The state-controlled Chronicle reports that villagers in Gwanda said marital rape should not be included in the new constitution, quoting comments from 70 year old Gogo Sizalakho Elizabeth Nyathi: “There is nothing like rape in a marriage. When a woman leaves her parents’ home to go and live with her husband, she should satisfy his needs. There is nothing like rape in a marriage”. The paper also said villagers believe the age of majority should remain at 18yrs old, and that they believed in freedom of the press. On the media, the state-controlled paper reports that "The villagers also said media organisations should be owned by the Government and the country’s citizens only". But in some areas in Gwanda, no one turned up for meetings: "The Copac outreach team arrived at Manama Business Centre at about 1pm, but there were no villagers waiting for them. Some of the prominent parliamentary officials who were part of the team appeared stunned with the development and could be seen moving up and down at the business centre".

5 July 2010

Reforms body wants NGO monitors arrested

Zimbabwe’s constitutional reform commission has called for the arrest of civil society workers monitoring the reforms, accusing them of sowing confusion and spreading falsehoods about a troubled exercise to consult the public on the drafting of a proposed new governance charter [...] But joint chairman of the Constitutional Parliamentary Committee (COPAC) that is leading the reforms, Paul Mangwana, on Sunday accused the three NGOs of a “hidden agenda” and sending out their monitors to spread lies and tarnish the constitutional reform process. Mangwana, a member of ZANU PF, said: “These people from non governmental organisations must be arrested. They are peddling lies about the process …. why should we be monitored? We believe they have a hidden agenda to tarnish the process.” A senior member of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s MDC party and a joint chairman of the COPAC, Douglass Mwonzora, concurred with Mangwana that the civil society monitors were “peddling lies” abou t the outreach exercise. “These monitors are disseminating falsehoods about the process,” said Mwonzora, who however did not call for the civil society workers’ arrest [Via ZimOnline].

ZIMTA engages stakeholders on constitution

The Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association (ZIMTA) will this week hold discussions with over 60 primary and secondary school teachers’ representatives from all over Zimbabwe on the constitution making process. ZIMTA chief executive officer, Mr Sifiso Ndlovu, told Sunday News that the teacher body had taken the initiative to use its members and structures to reach out to Constitutional Parliamentary Committee (COPAC) teams deployed in the country so that they could advance the ideals that teachers yearn for. “This meeting will be in Gweru on 9 and 10 July 2010. ZIMTA is participating as a matter of civic responsibility and as matter of mandate to speak on issues that affect the teaching profession, education in general and governance tenets,’’ he said. The CEO lamented that although teachers were at the centre of community affairs and were opinion leaders in rural areas and townships, they were not respected by politicians who seemed to regard them as crossing the political grains [...] Mr Ndlovu added that it was disappointing that ZIMTA had met “hostile reactions’’ from some political parties’ activists who threatened teachers with violence if they attended COPAC meetings or participate. “While this was reported only in two areas so far, we think the pattern may resemble the ugly scenes of the 2008 elections. This we will be taking up with COPAC leadership and relevant political parties to nip in the bud such undemocratic methods of extending influence,’’ he said [Via The Sunday News].

Outreach Process Monitors face more arrests and threats

More independent monitors of the controversial constitutional outreach programme now face official arrest, after being threatened to keep away from the process by the heads of the programme. [...] According to our correspondent, Simon Muchemwa, a team of monitors were arrested Thursday in Mutare and others previously in Mashonaland West. Three of them were recently reported to have been abducted by ZANU PF supporters and taken to a farm in the Makonde district of Mashonaland West where they were beaten. In most of the cases the police have failed to act to prevent the intimidation and attacks [...] The abuse of these monitors will also not help matters for the Zimbabwean government internationally. A government delegation recently visited Brussels to meet with the European Union on Friday. It is understood they were told to stop harassing human rights activists and stop government-led waves of violence, if they are to move forward. Analysts on Sunday also indicated that co ntroversial developments such as the launch of the constitution-making outreach programme, were causing the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange to continue to decline [SW Radio Africa].

No Plans to Arrest Zimbabwe NGOs Monitoring Constitutional Outreach – Officials

Two of the three co-chairmen of the parliamentary select committee in charge of Zimbabwe's constitutional revision process said Monday that it is not true, as press reports have suggested, that they have called or will call for the arrest of non-governmental organization activists monitoring the ongoing public outreach process [...] Select Committee Co-Chairman Douglas Mwonzora of the Movement for Democratic Change formation of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai told VOA Studio 7 reporter Jonga Kandemiiri that observers are free to participate as long as they identify themselves to the committee and secure accreditation. Co-Chairman Edward Mkhosi of the MDC grouping of Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara said he was not aware that anyone on his committee was calling for the arrest of independent monitors. Mkhosi told VOA that the panel is encouraging wide participation in outreach meetings being held across the country. VOA was unable to reach the ZANU-PF co-chairman of t he committee, Paul Mangwana, who was quoted by the Web news source ZimOnline as saying NGOs have a “hidden agenda” and calling for the arrest of monitors [Via VOA News].

Women urged to turnout in large numbers

The MDC Women’s Assembly secretary, Hon Evelyn Masaiti has urged women to turn out in large numbers in the constitution-making process to fulfill the goal of 50-50 gender representation in key developmental posts. ‘The issue of patriarchy is of high concern where men are placed with great honour and women are inferior in decision making and taking up leadership positions,” said Hon Masaiti. [...] Hon Masaiti condemned incidences of intimidation continuing in Gokwe where MDC members are being threatened with eviction by chiefs and headmen if they stand up and express their opinions when the Copac team reaches their wards. "Zanu PF feels the only way they can keep their position is by threatening people. But you must not cow to their threats, it’s about time the voice of the masses is raised to extricate this country of Mugabe’s despotism. It’s a struggle we have to finish, let us voice up and be heard." The mini-rallies were attended by Provincial women assembly led b y chairlady Ngoma Bessie and other members [Via MDC Today - 5 July 2010].

Man assaulted after speaking at outreach meeting

In Mashonaland East province, an MDC member in Sadza, Chikomba East district, Kemson Chikasha (67) lost his front two teeth after he was assaulted by his brother, who is a Zanu PF apologist and village head. The assault took place during a constitution consultation meeting in Sadza on June 28 when Kemson contributed during the meeting. His brother, the village head, warned him not to speak as spokespersons had already been selected prior to the meeting to speak on behalf of the whole ward. In Matabeleland North province, Zanu PF officials in Umguza area are harassing and intimidating MDC members. Sawmills Headman Jealous Tshakalisa has intimidated and threatened Simon Moyo, the MDC Umguza district youth vice chairperson has been mobilising people to participate in the constitution process [Via MDC Today - 5 July 2010].

Outreach teams chased out of hotels

COPAC outreach teams have been evicted from hotels in Mutare for failing to settle bills with some of the workers having spent more than two days without getting their lunch and dinner owing to the same problem. Sources within the outreach teams in Mutare who are not allowed to talk to the media said COPAC outreach teams staying at Mountview and Wiseowl hotels have been chased out because of COPAC’s failure to settle their hotel bills. They said the team had gone for two days without getting their meals because of the same problem.MDC-T COPAC co-chair Douglas Mwonzora dismissed the allegations as unfounded before referring this reporter to his Mutare based Personal Assistant Ernest Nyamukachi who refused to comment [...] “I have verified your issue with the Mutare people who have said that there is nothing of that nature. There are some people within the society who do not want this thing to move and those are the same people who are peddling lies. We want to deal with rea l issues and we need to demystify them so that real issues are dealt with. You can even contact the said hotel management and verify with them,” he said [Via ZimEye].

21 drivers still await payment from COPAC

Three weeks into the constitution making process outreach programme, it has emerged that 21 drivers in Matabeleland North province are yet to receive their daily allowances, a situation that has compromised mobility of outreach teams. The drivers are supposed to get US$25 dollars per day as per arrangement with the Constitutional Parliamentary Committee (Copac). Speaking to Sunday News on condition of anonymity, one of the drivers alleged they had not been paid since the programme started three weeks ago.He said they were relying on handouts from members of the outreach teams for their meals. “As I speak today, we are still holding on to promises from Copac guys who are telling us that they will give us our daily allowances yet nothing is materialising. It is sad because we are starving and it is not workably. What we have agreed with our colleagues (the 21 drivers), is that if we don’t get our money by Monday next week (tomorrow), we will immediately stop working because we feel we are being taken for granted,’’ said one of the drivers sounding furious [Via The Sunday News].

6 July 2010

Question on Zimbabwe's constitutional process asked in UK Parliament

Gavin Williamson: What action is my right hon. Friend taking with other African nations to ensure that Zimbabwe adopts a new constitution and ends the endemic corruption within the country? Mr Hague: We work closely with our partners around Africa, foremost among which, of course, is South Africa. We support its efforts and those of President Zuma to engage closely with Zimbabwe and to push it towards reform. We-the UK and other donors-also support, through the UN development programme, the implementation of the Zimbabwean constitution. Given the concerns that my hon. Friend and others have raised, I should say that that happens not through direct funding of the Zimbabwean Government, but through that UN programme [Via House of Commons Hansard Debates (UK)]

Zimbabwe Constitutional Panel, NGOs Meet on Monitoring of Outreach Process

Zimbabwe's Parliamentary Select Committee on Constitutional Revision met Tuesday with civil society activists and agreed to set ground rules under which non-governmental organizations can continue to monitor – or observe, as parliamentary officials preferred to say – the ongoing public consultation process. Parliamentary sources said they agreed to draw up a code of conduct governing how independent observers will go about monitoring the process nationwide. Select Committee Co-Chairman Douglas Mwonzora told VOA Studio 7 reporter Jonga Kandemiiri that lawmakers and NGO officials agreed that all independent observers should be accredited with the committee. But Chairwoman Dadirai Chikwengo of the National Association of Non-Governmental Organizations denied that agreement had been reached on the issue of accreditation [Voa VOA News].

Influential Chief accused of destabilising outreach program

The MDC-T party on Tuesday strongly accused the influential President of the Chiefs Council, Chief Fortune Charumbira of abusing his position to undermine the outreach program. Senator Morgan Komichi, the MDC-T coordinator of the constitutional making process, reacted furiously to reports that Chief Charumbira was allegedly moving around some districts of Masvingo turning consultative meetings into ZANU PF rallies. Komichi urged the management of the Consitutional Parliamentary Committee (COPAC) to take disciplinary action against those seen as working to “poison or destroy” the program. Charumbira is a senior COPAC delegate meant to be assisting the program. Komichi said they didn’t mind seeing Charumbira working to further ZANU PF interests in the process, as long as he was not an outreach team member using COPAC resources. “He has abandoned his duties as a COPAC delegate and is now playing a deconstructive role in the whole process. Because of his prior knowledge of the program in the province, he is now using it to his advantage to turn COPAC meetings into ZANU PF rallies,” Komichi said [Via Sw Radio Africa].

MDC ward secretary assaulted after speaking at a outreach meeting

In Manicaland province, the MDC secretary for Ward 20 in Mutare South had to be hospitalised after sustaining serious internal injuries when he was assaulted by the village head, Daniel Toopera, with the aid of two Zanu PF brothers, Batsirai and Daniel Makomboti. Blessing Musarandega was assaulted after giving his opinion during a Constitution-making outreach public meeting held on 29 June at Munyarari primary school. This is believed to have infuriated the village head and his Zanu PF colleagues who had drafted a list of people who were meant to speak at the outreach meeting. Recovering at a hospital in Mutare, Musarandega said the assault would not deter him from his basic right to participate in the drafting of a new Constitution. “They want to silence us but they will not succeed. This is a national constitution and not a Zanu PF baby. We are all Zimbabweans; we want our voices to be heard. I will participate again when the outreach team comes back to the area,” said M usarandega. The assailants have been reported to the police but no arrests have been made [Via MDc Today - 6 July 2010]

7 July 2010

AIDS Organisations Threaten No Vote Campaign

Zimbabwe’s HIV and AIDS service organisations have threatened a No vote of the new consttution if it fails to capture their concerns. Participants to a meeting of AIDS service organisations on Tuesday said they wanted rights to access HIV&AIDS treatment and access to health services or they would join the NCA in the no vote campaign [...] The meeting was attended by more than 15 representatives of AIDS services from around the country. “If our issues are not captured by the COPAC we are definitely going to call for a No vote come referendum time. HIV&AIDS issues are being ignored and yet everyone is being affected in one way or the other,” said a member of one of the organisations representing People Living with AIDS [Via RadioVop].

NANGO Welcomes COPAC’s Decision to Involve Civil Society in Observing the Constitutional Outreach Meetings

NANGO welcomes COPAC acceding to the involvement of civil society organisations in observing the constitutional outreach process. On Tuesday 6 July 2010, a meeting was held between civil society and COPAC at the Senate Chambers to engage on the issue of civil society participation in observing the constitutional outreach meetings countrywide. Consequently, COPAC and civil society have agreed on a number of issues to guide the constitutional outreach meetings as outlined below: 1/ Civil Society is free to deploy observers to the constitutional outreach process. 2/ All observers shall be volunteers nominated by a member organisation of NANGO. 3/ All observers will be issued with accreditation cards identifying them – this will be used in the event of enquiry. 4/ Observers and their organisations shall adhere to a comprehensive code of conduct to govern the conduct and ethics of the observers agreed upon by civil society and COPAC. 5/ Civil societ y will have the space to present their observations on the outreach meetings to COPAC, channelling these through NANGO. 6/Weekly briefings will be conducted between civil society and COPAC. 7/ All civil society organisations can conduct civic education programmes freely without hindrance in all areas before outreach meetings are conducted [Via NANGO Press Release].

MPs in Copac car hire scam

Members of Parliament involved in the constitution outreach programme have hired out vehicles loaned to them by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) under a vehicle scheme, in what could turn out to be a fraudulent exercise. Co-chairperson of the Constitutional Select Committee (Copac) Douglas Mwonzora confirmed yesterday that lawmakers who had hired out the vehicles in question were demanding full payment yet the vehicles legally belonged to the RBZ. The scam was uncovered when Copac was processing payment for the vehicles hired out to the committee through the Central Mechanical Equipment Department [Via NewsDay].

Death penalty must stay: villagers

The Chronicle writes about a SAPST report firstly highlighting that villagers in Gwanda in Matabeleland South have called for the retention of the death penalty and devolution of power in the new constitution. Villagers apparently also argued that the new constitution should do away with provincial names that have tribal connotations like Mashonaland, Matabeleland and Manicaland but instead adopt names like southern or central province. Participants also said proceeds from natural resources should benefit the communities from which they are found, in terms of development and employment opportunities: "SAPST said the most dominant view in the two meetings revolved around the issue of devolution of power as the most preferred system of government" [Via The Chronicle].

MDC-T reports interference with the outreach process

In Shamva, also in Mashonaland Central province, Central Intelligence Office agents on Tuesday addressed villagers before the start of the outreach meetings preaching the discredited Kariba draft. They threatened them with disappearance if they did not comply with this directive. The CIO agents were driving unmarked vehicles when they addressed villagers in Shamva at Bradley, Kamudyariwa, Hore, Chidembo and Kasimbi meeting points. The Zanu PF Shamva South MP, Samuel Ziteya, illegally withdrew written submissions that had been handed to the Constitutional Parliamentary Committee (Copac) team at Bradley. In Fairfields, Chirumanzu, Midlands province, a deputy headmaster at Fairfields primary school called for a parents’ meeting and started addressing them about the Kariba draft ahead of Copac public meetings. Meanwhile, there are reports in some provinces that people who want to participate in the meetings are failing to do so as the Copac timetable is incorrect. In Masvingo province, the MDC Chivi South district chairperson, Shelter Chifamba was threatened with death by a self-styled war veteran and Zanu PF Chivi South Ward 24 chairman, Machanja Risco at a funeral in Chivi. Chifamba, who was assaulted and had her house destroyed in 2008, has been warned against mobilising people for the Constitution consultations currently underway [Via MDC Today - 7 July 2010].

Youth leader arrested while mobilising MDC supporters

There is an increased upsurge of intimidation of villagers in the rural areas by State security agents as the Constitution-making process spreads out across the country. Reports from the provinces show a worrying trend of an increase in intimidation, harassment and arrests of people. The MDC Mashonaland Central Youth Assembly deputy provincial chairperson, Brian Pfungweni was arrested in Mt Darwin as he was mobilising MDC supporters to attend the Constitution-making public meetings. Before his arrest he was attacked by Zanu PF supporters in the area. However, instead of arresting the Zanu PF youths, the police arrested Pfungweni. He has since been transferred to Bindura central police station and is expected to appear in court this week [Via MDC Today - 7 July 2010].

 

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A Warning for the so-far Immunized Zanu PF Cades to Consider

=====================================================

 

2010 07 07

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

[ Overdue but needful therapy for Zimbabwe’s criminal hierarchy. Zanu PF cadres look east for moral guidance and their future hopes ]

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Chinese official executed for corruption, rape

 

http://story.zimbabwestar.com/index.php/ct/9/cid/2411cd3571b4f088/id/656419/cs/1/

 

Zimbabwe Star

Wednesday 7th July, 2010

(IANS)

A senior officer of the Chinese justice department was executed Wednesday after being sentenced to death for corruption and rape.

The death sentence awarded to Wen Qiang, 55, former director of Chongqing Municipal Judicial Bureau, by a lower court April 14 was approved by the Chinese Supreme Court.

The Municipal Higher People's Court May 21 rejected the appeal of Wen, who was convicted for accepting bribes, shielding criminal gangs, rape and failing to account for his assets worth 10 million yuan, Xinhua reported.

The lower court convicted Wen of taking bribes of more than 12 million yuan ($ 1.76) by helping companies and businessmen gain illegal profits.

Wen was also found guilty of shielding organised crime gangs and raping a university student in 2007.

 


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Police fail to enforce court decision

 

2010 07 07 -

 

http://www.newsday.co.zw/article/2010-07-07-police-fail-to-enforce-court-decision

 

KELVIN JAKACHIRA

Jul 07 2010 10:22

Police have reportedly failed to enforce a High Court ruling ordering individuals occupying a farm in Chipinge, Manicaland, to vacate the property owned by white commercial farmer, Trevor Gifford.

The police reluctance comes amid allegations that a powerful Zanu PF politician and Cabinet Minister threatened to cause the arrest of any police officer found assisting white commercial farmers to regain control of their invaded farms.

Didymus Mutasa, the Zanu PF politburo secretary for administration and Minister of Presidential Affairs, allegedly threatened with arrest and detention, of any police officer who assisted white commercial farmers regain control of their properties.

Keys to the holding cells (where the police would be detained), Mutasa is alleged to have said, would be handed to Deputy Commissioner General of Police, Godwin Matanga.

By yesterday, police were reportedly dilly-dallying in enforcing the court ruling declaring illegal the occupation of Gifford’s Wolverhampton Farm by invaders.

Gifford spent most of yesterday at the police station in Chipinge seeking assistance to enforce the High Court order.

His lawyer, Trust Maanda, said: “The last time I spoke with Gifford he said the people in occupation were still staying put on the farm in spite of the order of the High Court. He was making efforts to have the police enforce the order but they seemed not keen to take action.”

Wayne Bvudzijena, the police national spokesperson, said he did not have any information on the goings-on in Chipinge. “Call me tomorrow,” he said. High Court judge, Justice George Chiweshe ruled on June 30 that the occupiers “and those acting through or in possession of the applicant’s house on subdivision 17 of Wolverhampton Farm, Chipinge, shall restore possession and occupation of the house to the applicant who is hereby entitled forthwith to resume occupation of the house and continue his farming operations on subdivision 17 of Wolverhampton Farm (measuring 150 hectares) without hindrance, interference or obstruction.”

But despite being in possession of the court order, police were reportedly dragging their feet.

Disclosures that Mutasa allegedly threatened police officers are contained in the court application filed by Gifford.

Mutasa has dismissed Gifford’s accusations as “nonsense”.

 


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Zim diplomat recalled over alleged Iran sex scandal

 

2010 07 07

 

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/africa/-/1066/953686/-/11jpj13z/-/

 

By KITSEPILE NYATHI, NATION Correspondent

Posted Wednesday, July 7 2010 at 15:14

HARARE, Wednesday

Zimbabwe was forced to re-call a senior diplomat based in Tehran after he was drugged by two Iranian women he picked up from the streets.

But Mr Brighton Mugarisanwa, a counsel at the Zimbabwean embassy in Tehran has successfully challenged the re-deployment to Harare after a labour court ruled that he had not been given a fair hearing.

According to the official Herald newspaper, the diplomat was asked to return home in March after the case created a media frenzy in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Zimbabwean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which employees Mr Mugarisanwa said the case which happened in January had embarrassed the government.

He allegedly invited the two women - one of them married - to his apartment in Tehran at night.

One of the women allegedly drugged him before stealing his property including his office keys as he lay unconscious.

In the letter informing him about the redeployment, the government said Mr Mugarisanwa “was failing to cope with the social living conditions in Iran as he was previously counselled on acts if indiscretion involving relations with women,” the Herald reported on Wednesday.

He reportedly submitted a report that one of the two women who drugged him was married.

It is a punishable offence in Iran for a married woman to be alone with a man who is not her husband.

The diplomat argued that the redeployment would see his salary being slashed from US$ 5000 to US$ 126 a month.

The court ruled that he had been recalled on the basis of reports by the media and that of Zimbabwe’s ambassador to Iran Mr Nicholas Kitikiti as well as his own report but no proper disciplinary action had been instituted until he returned to Harare.

The judge said the diplomat had a right to be heard before he could be recalled and that there was no guarantee that he would be found guilty.


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ZANU PF official and businessman in court today - (Temba Mliswa)

 

... …

2010 07 07

http://www.zimonline.co.za/Article.aspx?ArticleId=6188

 

by Patricia Mpofu

Wednesday 07 July 2010

Harare

ZANU PF provincial executive member and businessman Temba Mliswa is expected to appear in court today to answer to a charge of fraud allegedly committed five years ago, in what looks an increasingly dirty fight for wealth and resources between powerful members of President Robert Mugabe’s party.

Mliswa, a close relative of ZANU PF politburo member and Presidential Affairs Minister Didymus Mutasa, has clashed with powerful Police Commissioner General Augustine Chihuri over shares in a white-owned car firm that the police say Mliswa attempted to acquire fraudulently.

He denies the allegations insisting that he legitimately acquired 51 percent stake in Nashio Motors from Hammarskjöld Banda who owned the shares.

Mliswa claims Chihuri is conniving with Peter Westwood, who holds 49 percent in Nashio Motors, to deprive him of his controlling stake in the company.

The fiery-tempered Mliswa last week labeled Chihuri one of the most corrupt men in the country who was using the police to try and intimidate him into giving up his Nashio stake.

Chihuri immediately acted, ordering Mliswa’s arrest along with Mutasa’s son Martin on fraud charges. The two were detained at the notorious Matapi police station known for its filthy cells and where the police usually torture suspects.

The two men were freed on bail on Monday. But Mliswa was able to enjoy only a few hours of freedom before officers from the police criminal investigations department swooped on him, this time over the mystery fraud charge allegedly committed sometime in 2005.

“He (Mliswa) was re-arrested yesterday (Monday) on another alleged fraud charge but the police are yet to give specific details,” said Mliswa’s lawyer, Charles Chinyama. “He is expected to appear in court tomorrow (Wednesday).”

Police spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena was not immediately available to take questions on the matter, while our usually reliable police sources could not say what the fraud charge was about except that it is thought to have been committed in Mashonaland West province where Mliswa sits on the ZANU PF provincial executive.

The sources said there was possibility that Mliswa could also be charged with defaming Chihuri over his claims that the police chief is corrupt.

Reports say despite Mliswa’s claims to have legitimately acquired shareholding in Nashio, the businessman used his political backing and the recently gazetted indigenisation rules to muscle his way into the company that he hopes to eventually takeover.

Under the indigenisation regulations foreign owned companies with assets worth more than US$ 500 000 must sell stake to local blacks.

But the government is yet to announce new thresholds of stakes to be sold off by foreign shareholders after backtracking form an initial requirement that all non-indigenous-owned businesses must cede 51 percent stake to locals by 2015.

It is not clear what Chihuri’s interest in Nashio, if any, is. The police chief, who sits on the Joint Operations Command, a top committee of securocrats that effectively runs Zimbabwe, is a rich businessman with interests spanning across various sectors of the economy.

ZANU PF politicians and top security chiefs often hide behind relatives, vulnerable white businessmen and other allies who they use as fronts to seize control of lucrative businesses.

ZimOnline


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Zimbabwe Diamond Activist Maguwu Due in High Court to Appeal Bail Refusals

 

2010 07 06

http://www1.voanews.com/zimbabwe/news/Zimbabwe-Diamond-Activist-Maguwu-Due-in-High-Court-97875869.html

 

Maguwu has been detained since early June on charges he published or communicated false reports prejudicial to the state in connection with the controversial Marange diamond field

Sandra Nyaira

Washington 06 July 2010

Zimbabwean diamond activist Farai Maguwu is due back in Harare High Court on Wednesday where his lawyers will appeal repeated refusals by a magistrate to release him from police custody pending trial.

Maguwu has been detained since early June on charges he published or communicated false reports prejudicial to the state in connection with the controversial Marange diamond field. His arrest came after he gave Kimberly Process monitor Abbey Chikane official documents said to detail human rights abuses in the Marange zone.

Amnesty international on Tuesday urged Harare to release Maguwu unconditionally.

“Farai Maguwu is being persecuted for carrying out his lawful work of monitoring and documenting alleged human rights violations by security forces at some of Zimbabwe’s richest diamond fields,” said Amnesty International Africa Director Erwin van der Borght.

“We consider Farai Maguwu a prisoner of conscience and call on the authorities to release him immediately and unconditionally," he said in a statement.

Attorney Tinoziva Bere said Maguwu, his client, remained in the Harare Remand Prison hospital where he was recovering from a recent operation to remove his tonsils and severe stomach pains.


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Zanu PF faces imminent split

 

2010 07 0

http://www.thezimbabwemail.com/zimbabwe/5569.html

 

07 July, 2010 03:10:00

Our Correspondent

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A splinter group say their veteran leader and the patron of the war veterans, Robert Mugabe, "is corrupt, arrogant.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Harare

The embattled Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has called for an emergency meeting of the party's Politburo as simmering tensions threaten to tear the party into irreparable damage, The Zimbabwe Mail can reveal.

Zanu PF’s centre of power - the politburo - will meet in Harare on Friday to deal with a series of urgent issues affecting the former ruling party amid reports of a looming split over Robert Mugabe's succession. Most members in the party are saying Robert Mugabe should step down now and an alternative candidate be put forward for the next general elections.

The Communist style Zanu PF politburo is the party’s supreme decision making body whose members are appointed from loyalists by Mugabe himself.

Sources said the party is caught in a political storm accompanied by threats by some of its senior members to break away and form a splinter movement backed by a majority of disadvantaged liberation war veterans.

Tensions are running high in Zanu PF amid reports that many senior party members have declared their backing for Dydimus Mutasa, the Presidential Affairs Minister who has declared an open war with police Commissioner Augustine Chihuri.

Chihuri is being accused by War Veterans of using members of the police force to disperse meetings of a splinter group of the National War Veterans Association in favours of another faction backed by President Mugabe.

A highly placed source in the party said Mugabe has been forced to intervene by unfolding events as senior members of the party and his warring loyal foot soldiers in the war veterans factions are now calling for a change of guard in the command structures of the army, police, CIO and prison and some are even calling for his heard.

The feud pitting Presidential Affairs Minister Didymus Mutasa against Police Commissioner Augustine Chihuri blew out into the open this week, when Mutasa accused the police force including its chief of employing brutal Rhodesian tactics to settle personal scores.

Mutasa's 47 year old son Martin was arrested alongside notorious ZANU PF activist Themba Mliswa and George Marere last week Monday, after trying to seize shareholding worth US$ 1 million from a company owned by white businessman Paul Westwood.

Mutasa, in the company of new MDC-T co-Home Affairs Minister Theresa Makone, is said to have tried to intimidate police into releasing his son.

Both have since denied the accusations.

In the fall-out between Mutasa and Police Commissioner Augustine Chihuri, Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa, a close confidante of Dydimus Mutasa is reported to have instructed the Attorney General’s office not to prosecute high profile cases brought to the courts by the police.

A senior Zanu PF official told our reporter that President Mugabe for the first time in his 30 year rule, feels insecure as party members and his loyalists declare open revolt on his authority.

It is also reported that Police Commissioner Augustine Chihuri and the Zimbabwe Defence Forces Commander General Costantine Chiwenga are now running parallel structures in the much feared secretive Joint Operation Command center (JOC) as bitter rival Zanu PF factions led by Defence Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa and retired General Solomon Mujuru have intensified their fierce fight to seize power in the hotly contested succession battle.

Within government and Zanu PF, accusations are flying around that President Robert Mugabe and senior members of the security forces are enriching themselves with secret diamond sales and prime land in most Cities across the country looted under the nose of MDC run councils.

Mugabe and his inner circle are also taking over foreign companies using under fire empowerment indigenisation regulations.

A splinter group say their veteran leader and the patron of the war veterans, Robert Mugabe, "is corrupt, arrogant and bent at throwing the country into total chaos and betraying the values of the liberation struggle".

The splinter group which is calling itself Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWA) and led by retired colonel Basten Beta, has embarked on a media blitz that is seen as part of Zanu PF factional wars. A war that threatens to tear the party apart. ZNLWA has in the past two weeks been running controversial adverts in national newspapers.

The group, which in 2008 urged Mugabe not to lose power, said the post-war leadership had promoted corruption, nepotism, tribalism and racism thereby betraying the values of the liberation struggle.

"Post war leadership continues to betray the values of the armed struggle by destroying unity and promoting factionalism, racism, tribalism, regionalism, nepotism, greed and corruption," said the group in the advert.

However, Zanu PF hardliners have reacted angrily and have since started a probe. Zanu PF spokesperson Rugare Gumbo said the party knew the people behind the adverts and was carrying investigations to establish their motive.

"We are studying the advertisements and we will come up with a common position as a party. We understand these advertisements are coming from people like Beta" said Gumbo.

Zanu PF and Mugabe in particular, said one of the sources, thinks Beta wants to brew trouble for him within the rank and file of the former freedom fighters.

Beta is allegedly aligned to a faction in Zanu PF led by retired army general Solomon Mujuru which is fighting against one headed by Defence minister Emerson Mnangagwa to succeed Mugabe. Mujuru’s wife Joyce is Mugabe’s deputy.

The group said the government, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe and state enterprises were now being run as private businesses with ministers and the central bank governor "becoming the richest men in the country."

It also questioned why government ministers and service chiefs, who for the past decade have become Mugabe’s strongest pillar of political survival, have unlimited terms of office.

"We must restore accountability and fight corruption within government… Service chiefs have a fixed term of office. Why then do we have an uninterrupted service for ministers?"

Some of the senior government officials and ministers have been in Mugabe’s administration for the past three decades.

Although war veterans spearheaded the 2000 chaotic land invasions, very few of them benefited, while Mugabe’s cronies in the civil service, army, police and secret service have grabbed the most fertile land.


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Police lock up Mliswa again

 

2010 07 07

 

http://www.newsday.co.zw/article/2010-07-07-police-lock-up-mliswa-again

 

LOUGHTY DUBE AND MOSES MATENGA

Jul 07 2010 10:15

Police in Harare on Monday re-arrested vociferous businessman Temba Mliswa on further charges of fraud hours after he was set free by courts alongside Martin Mutasa and George Marere on another case involving fraud or alternatively, extortion.

Martin is the son of Presidential Affairs minister Didymus Mutasa while Mliswa is former Zanu PF Mashonaland West Secretary for Lands.

Although details of the crimes were still sketchy last night, Mliswa’s lawyer Charles Chinyama said his client was expected to appear in court today facing charges of fraud emanating from two cases in Karoi and Kwekwe.

Chinyama said the police allege that in 2006, Mliswa took farm implements from Dunlop Farm in Kwekwe owned by a resident identified only as Matambanadzo.

“The first case arises out of an incident where Mliswa is alleged to have taken farm implements from Dunlop Farm owned by Matambanadzo, but Mliswa purchased the equipment from the previous white owner of the farm,” Chinyama said yesterday.

He said Mliswa was quizzed over the matter in 2006 by Kwekwe police and released.

Chinyama said police were further alleging that Mliswa fraudulently purchased a service station on a farm he had acquired in Karoi.

The police, Chinyama said, allege that

Mliswa initially rented out the service station to someone before fraudulently selling it to an unidentified individual.

“The police are alleging that the service station Mliswa acquired with the farm did not belong to him and they are charging him with fraud arising from the sale of the service station but I do not have the full details on exactly where the fraud case is coming from,” Chinyama said.

He said he was unaware who the complainants in the alleged cases are. Police spokesperson, Wayne Bvudzijena, confirmed Mliswa’s re-arrest saying: “Mliswa is in police detention facing further fraud charges. He is detained at Rhodesville Police Station and I can not reveal any more details but further details will come out in court today.”

Mliswa is reported to have recently attacked Police Commissioner General Augustine Chihuri describing the top cop as the most corrupt person in the country. Immediately after his scathing attack on Chihuri, Mliswa was arrested for attempting to take over Noshio Investment (Private) Limited.

Court papers say Mliswa claimed he had the blessings of Youth Development, Indigenisation and Empowerment minister Saviour Kasukuwere.

Mliswa, a former Warriors fitness trainer who had an inglorious exit from the national team after players complained about his stringent training regime, further alleged President Robert Mugabe was aware of his intentions to take over the company.

The controversial businessman and his co-accused were last week granted $ 400 bail each by a Harare magistrate but the state invoked Section 121 of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act to keep them in custody pending appeal.

But on Monday, the Attorney General’s office backed-off saying it was no longer interested in challenging the magistrate’s decision.


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Air Zimbabwe Said to Face IATA Suspension IATA Over Past-Due Membership Fees

 

2010 07 06

http://www1.voanews.com/zimbabwe/news/economy/Air-Zimbabwe-Faces-Suspension-From-Air-Transport-Group-97871369.html

 

If the Zimbabwean national carrier were to be suspended from the IATA, the international authority would stop clearing goods and honoring fares for onward flights for Air Zimbabwe passengers

Gibbs Dube

Washington 06 July 2010

Air Zimbabwe is reported to face suspension from the International Air Transport Association if it fails to make at least partial payment of US$ 2 million by the end of this week on US$ 4 million of overdue fees.

If the Zimbabwean national carrier is suspended, the international authority would stop clearing goods and honoring fares for onward flights for Air Zimbabwe passengers, sources said.

Air Zimbabwe Chairman Jonathan Kadzura denied that the carrier owes money to the IATA . But he told VOA that the long-troubled airline intends to pay the association a deposit of more than US$ 2 million.

He said the Zimbabwean Treasury is expected to make the deposit. However, sources said the government has declined to do so, citing its own straitened financial circumstances.

IATA Vice President Lance Brogden would neither confirm nor deny Air Zimbabwe owes US$ 4 million.

The government has targeted Air Zimbabwe for privatization amid indications it could soon collapse due to financial problems. The airline has been posting monthly operating losses of US$ 2 million.

Chairman Kadzura told VOA Studio 7 reporter Gibbs Dube that he is confident the government will come up with the funds necessary to pay IATA fees.

Economic commentator Rejoice Ngwenya said Air Zimbabwe should be privatized so that it does not continue to be a drain on public funds.


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Constitution commission withdraws NGO threats

 

2010 07 07

http://www.zimonline.co.za/Article.aspx?ArticleId=6187

 

by Hendricks Chizhanje

Wednesday 07 July 2010

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

PRESIDENT MUGABE . . . His ZANU PF party is accused of intimidation

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Harare

Zimbabwe’s constitutional reform commission has retracted calls for the arrest of NGO workers monitoring public consultations on the proposed new governance charter, saying it wanted to work with civil society on the reforms.

Leaders of the Constitutional Parliamentary Committee (COPAC) last Sunday accused the monitors of sowing confusion and spreading falsehoods about the public outreach exercise with one of the body’s joint-chairmen calling on the police to arrest the civil society workers.

But the COPAC chiefs, Paul Mangwana and Douglass Mwonzora from President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu (PF) party and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s MDC-T respectively yesterday claimed they had been misquoted in the reports carried by ZimOnline and various other publications including the government-owned newspapers.

“We very much want you to play a role in this process,” Mwonzora told representatives from the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP) and Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) that have together deployed monitors to shadow COPAC teams.

Mangwana yesterday admitted calling for police intervention but claimed he had only meant that the police should arrest “some naughty people” who were disrupting the outreach exercise. He said his was not referring to monitors from NGOs although he did not identify the naughty people that he wanted arrested.

“I used the word arrest myself. There were some naughty people in Mashonaland West (province), who were interfering with the process…. we want our process to be as transparent as possible. It’s your right to participate but let’s make it manageable,” Mangwana said.

The three pro-democracy and human rights groups have dispatched 420 people around the country to monitor the government-led constitution making process in order to be able to evaluate whether the exercise was democratic and the outcome a true reflection of the people’s wishes.

The monitors have issued reports highlighting administrative chaos dogging the constitutional outreach exercise and widespread intimidation, with Zanu (PF) party said to be telling villagers what to say during meetings to gather the public’s views.

It was these adverse reports that appeared to have angered Mwonzora and Mangwana and triggered their outbursts against the NGOs which they now deny.

The exercise to write a new constitution for Zimbabwe to replace the current one drafted by former colonial power Britain is part of a drive by the coalition government of Mugabe and Tsvangirai to democratise the southern African country’s politics ahead of fresh elections.

There had been fears that arrest or removal of civil society monitors from the field would make it nearly impossible to expose the widespread intimidation that has characterised the early days of the outreach programme that has been running for just more than three weeks now.

Soldiers and ZANU PF supporters have been campaigning for the adoption of the controversial Kariba draft constitution as the basis of the proposed new charter and are allegedly instructing villagers to tailor their contributions during outreach meetings to reflect provisions of the controversial draft.

ZANU PF and the two former opposition MDC formations secretly authored the Kariba draft in 2007.

But critics say the Kariba document should be discarded because it leaves untouched the immense presidential powers that analysts say Mugabe has used to stifle opposition to his rule for the past three decades.

ZimOnline


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Copac U-turn on civic observers

 

2010 07 07

 

http://www.newsday.co.zw/article/2010-07-07-copac-uturn-on-civic-observers

 

VENERANDA LANGA

Jul 07 2010 10:16

The Constitutional Select Committee (Copac) has climbed down on its earlier position barring civil society organisations from monitoring the constitutional outreach programme and officially declared them partners in the process.

The latest decision was reached after a meeting between the two squabbling parties at Parliament yesterday.

Until Monday, Copac had had disowned all non-governmental organisations (NGOs) monitoring the constitution-making process saying they were “bogus, illegal, seeking to undermine the constitution reform process and spreading malicious and misleading information”.

The committee had unanimously refused to accredit the NGOs and even threatened to report them to the police.

But in a major U-turn yesterday, Copac co-chairperson Paul Mangwana said civil society organisations would be allowed to observe the outreach programme.

“The three groups will be accredited tomorrow, but the groups will be observing the outreach meetings and not monitoring,” said Mangwana.

“We want to agree on a code of conduct and we have set up a committee made up of two people from Copac and two people from Nango (National Association of Non-Governmental Organisations), which these organisations will now be under.”

The organisations include the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, Zimbabwe Peace Project and Zimbabwe Election Support Network.

Copac yesterday summoned the three organisations under the umbrella of Nango and reached an agreement that they would be allowed to observe the outreach programme. Cephas Zinhumwe, Nango chief executive officer, said civil society groups had approached Copac requesting to be allowed to monitor the programmes. He said they had agreed to be observers instead of monitors. “They have qualms with the word monitoring because they think it makes us as if we are superior to them,” Zinhumwe said.

On Monday Mangwana said members from civic groups were “bogus” and that Copac had instructed the police to turn them away if they pitched up at outreach meetings.

“We went to Kenya and Zambia when they were going through the same process and we did not find any constitutional monitors there,”Mangwana said.


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Jomic warns of land clashes in Matabeleland

 

2010 07 07

 

http://www.newsday.co.zw/article/2010-07-07-jomic-warns-of-land-clashes-in-matabeleland

 

DUMISANI SIBANDA - Jul 07 2010 10:24

Resettling of people from outside Matabeleland at the expense of locals could stir violence of unimaginable proportions if not urgently looked into, the co- Chairperson of the Joint Monitoring and Implementation Committee (Jomic), Welshman Ncube, has warned.

Ncube, who doubles up as the Minister of Industry and Commerce, was commenting on sentiments aired by traditional leaders from Matabeleland North and South provinces at a Jomic-organised meeting.

The traditional leaders complained they had been robbed of their role as custodians of the land.

They charged that land committees established by government were mismanaging the allocation of land resulting in people from outside their areas being resettled at the expense of equally deserving locals.

In some instances, those that had been driven off their land during the colonial era had failed to reclaim their heritage, which was the core purpose of the land reform programme, the chiefs said.

They cited the case of Chief Jahana of Gokwe who was facing problems returning to Debshan in Insiza with his people where they were removed in 1965.

“The land issue is an important issue and if you look at the GPA, you will realise that it takes up quite a chunk of the document. It’s an emotional subject,” Ncube said.

“The Boers took our land, making us leave the graves of our ancestors, and now that the land has been re-claimed under the land reform programme, we should be resettled back on our original land.

"How is it that other people are being taken from elsewhere to come and be resettled here ?.

"We should sort that out. If the issue is not resolved, it will degenarate to the levels of the violence that we saw in the streets of Kenya where neighbours were killing each other with machetes. We should not allow that issue to spiral out of control.” He urged traditional leaders to “speak freely’’ on the matter and to even consider crafting provisions in the constitution that would deal with such anomalies. Recently, there was an uproar in Umguza constituency, Matabeleland North, over the ‘‘invasion’’ of the area by people from as far as Mashonaland.

The traditional leaders led by President of the Chiefs Council Senator Fortune Charumbira called for the disbanding of land committees and that the allocation of land be returned to traditional leaders.

“Land belongs to the Chiefs. That power of the chiefs was taken away from us in a criminal manner during the colonial era. Now that we have had land reform, we should have full power over the land,” Charumbira said.

“Land committees were put in place because it was an issue of crisis management. They should now be disbanded. If there are commercial farms you have to beg for an offer letter from a district administrator or provincial administrator.

“We are in those committees as beggars with no power of influence. Those committees are not chaired by traditional leaders.

"We should be shown respect as traditional leaders by being given back our powers to allocate land.’’

Earlier a member of Jomic from Zanu-PF, Kembo Mohadi, who is also the co-Minister of Home Affairs had told traditional leaders that they were being accused of politicising food distribution and land allocation, allegations they refuted.

Responding to concerns over rampant cases of stock theft in Matabeleland, Mohadi said he had also lost 450 cattle to rustlers.

He said in Matabeleland South there were cattle rustling syndicates which, in some instances, were assisted by unscrupulous police officers and some traditional leaders.


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Zimbabwe Constitutional Panel, NGOs Meet on Monitoring of Outreach Process

 

 

2010 07 06

http://www1.voanews.com/zimbabwe/news/politics/Zimbabwe-Constitutional-Committee-Meets-With-NGOs-on-Outreach-97873149.html

 

Jonga Kandemiiri & Patience Rusere

Washington 06 July 2010

Zimbabwe's Parliamentary Select Committee on Constitutional Revision met Tuesday with civil society activists and agreed to set ground rules under which non-governmental organizations can continue to monitor - or observe, as parliamentary officials preferred to say - the ongoing public consultation process.

Parliamentary sources said they agreed to draw up a code of conduct governing how independent observers will go about monitoring the process nationwide.

Select Committee Co-Chairman Douglas Mwonzora told VOA Studio 7 reporter Jonga Kandemiiri that lawmakers and NGO officials agreed that all independent observers should be accredited with the committee.

But Chairwoman Dadirai Chikwengo of the National Association of Non-Governmental Organizations denied that agreement had been reached on the issue of accreditation.

Chikwengo said the meeting also took up issues that had emerged in the media regarding the operations of independent monitors. Committee Co-Chairman Paul Mangwana of the ZANU-PF party of President Robert Mugabe was reported to have accused NGO monitors of "peddling lies" and suggested they should be arrested.

Meanwhile, in reports from around the country, the Institute for a Democratic Alternative for Zimbabwe, one of the non-governmental organizations observing the outreach process, said responses to questions often seem to be rehearsed, which it said compromised the program's objective of collecting genuine public opinions.

Democracy Manager Joy Mabenge of the Institute for a Democratic Alternative said his teams have noticed the apparent staging of responses in particular on issues of land ownership and presidential powers.

A number of sources including NGO monitors have said local officials loyal to ZANU-PF, and ZANU-PF militants, have been coaching rural residents under duress on what to say in outreach meetings, and discouraging those known to hold views contrary to those held by ZANU-PF from speaking out in meetings.


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Constitution commission withdraws NGO threats

 

2010 07 07

http://www.zimonline.co.za/Article.aspx?ArticleId=6187

 

by Hendricks Chizhanje

Wednesday 07 July 2010

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

PRESIDENT MUGABE . . . His ZANU PF party is accused of intimidation

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Harare

Zimbabwe’s constitutional reform commission has retracted calls for the arrest of NGO workers monitoring public consultations on the proposed new governance charter, saying it wanted to work with civil society on the reforms.

Leaders of the Constitutional Parliamentary Committee (COPAC) last Sunday accused the monitors of sowing confusion and spreading falsehoods about the public outreach exercise with one of the body’s joint-chairmen calling on the police to arrest the civil society workers.

But the COPAC chiefs, Paul Mangwana and Douglass Mwonzora from President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu (PF) party and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s MDC-T respectively yesterday claimed they had been misquoted in the reports carried by ZimOnline and various other publications including the government-owned newspapers.

“We very much want you to play a role in this process,” Mwonzora told representatives from the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP) and Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) that have together deployed monitors to shadow COPAC teams.

Mangwana yesterday admitted calling for police intervention but claimed he had only meant that the police should arrest “some naughty people” who were disrupting the outreach exercise. He said his was not referring to monitors from NGOs although he did not identify the naughty people that he wanted arrested.

“I used the word arrest myself. There were some naughty people in Mashonaland West (province), who were interfering with the process…. we want our process to be as transparent as possible. It’s your right to participate but let’s make it manageable,” Mangwana said.

The three pro-democracy and human rights groups have dispatched 420 people around the country to monitor the government-led constitution making process in order to be able to evaluate whether the exercise was democratic and the outcome a true reflection of the people’s wishes.

The monitors have issued reports highlighting administrative chaos dogging the constitutional outreach exercise and widespread intimidation, with Zanu (PF) party said to be telling villagers what to say during meetings to gather the public’s views.

It was these adverse reports that appeared to have angered Mwonzora and Mangwana and triggered their outbursts against the NGOs which they now deny.

The exercise to write a new constitution for Zimbabwe to replace the current one drafted by former colonial power Britain is part of a drive by the coalition government of Mugabe and Tsvangirai to democratise the southern African country’s politics ahead of fresh elections.

There had been fears that arrest or removal of civil society monitors from the field would make it nearly impossible to expose the widespread intimidation that has characterised the early days of the outreach programme that has been running for just more than three weeks now.

Soldiers and ZANU PF supporters have been campaigning for the adoption of the controversial Kariba draft constitution as the basis of the proposed new charter and are allegedly instructing villagers to tailor their contributions during outreach meetings to reflect provisions of the controversial draft.

ZANU PF and the two former opposition MDC formations secretly authored the Kariba draft in 2007.

But critics say the Kariba document should be discarded because it leaves untouched the immense presidential powers that analysts say Mugabe has used to stifle opposition to his rule for the past three decades.

ZimOnline


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Rights body to meet on xenophobia as Zimbabweans flee

 

2010 07 07

http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/Content.aspx?id=113939

 

LUPHERT CHILWANE

PUBLISHED: 2010/07/07 06:33:39 AM

THE South African Human Rights Commission (HRC) is planning a high-level meeting with an interministerial committee on xenophobia as an exodus of Zimbabweans was reported yesterday amid threats of violence against foreigners.

Zimbabwean nationals were reported to be leaving Cape Town in large numbers, begging lifts from passersby to Johannesburg so that they could catch connecting buses back to Zimbabwe. The exodus lent weight to speculation that xenophobic violence would flare up after the World Cup final this weekend.

“We have met with Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa , who is chairman of the Cabinet interministerial committee, on Monday to discuss these threats and we are planning an urgent high-level meeting with relevant departments on how they were effecting the commission’s 2008 recommendations,” said the commission’s deputy chairman Pregs Govender last night.

Cape Town’s disaster management said it was not planning to deal with the exodus. “Nothing to date has been reported to us so that we can take action,” said Cape Town disaster management spokesman Wilfred Solomons-Johannes.

However, provincial commissioner Mzwandile Petros had reconvened the city’s safety forum, and had requested civil society groups to help calm people’s fears.

Ms Govender said the HRC had released a report in March calling for all relevant government departments to respond in writing as to how they would institute its recommendations. She hoped they would attend the meeting to “share concretely how they are planning to prevent such violence recurring and respond effectively to it”.

Ms Govender said the HRC “last week sent a letter to the (parliamentary) s peaker asking that the 2008 report be urgently addressed to ensure that its recommendations are implemented”.

The HRC’s chairman Lawrence Mushwana said last week the commission would form a task team to help xenophobia victims get access to legal support and that it would investigate complaints from victims, particularly about mistreatment from the police.

Meanwhile, the United Nations (UN) in SA said its systems were on standby, waiting for government instruction on the kind of assistance needed to help curb possible violence after the World Cup.

“It is difficult to say at this stage that the threats are genuine but our entire UN systems are waiting for the government’s approach,” said UN High Commissioner for Refugees spokeswoman Pumla Rulashe . “It is the primary role of the law enforcement agencies to protect everyone and if people feel that they are being threatened, we will expect them to step in. I just pray it (the 2008 violence) doesn’t happen.”

The Consortium for Refugees and Migrants in SA warned last month that foreigners living in SA would be targeted after the World Cup. Its advocacy officer Duncan Breen said the organisation was on alert. “People are taking these threats very seriously and we are once again calling on various government departments to play a role in preventing possible attacks.”

After the xenophobic attacks in 2008 - in which at least 62 people were killed - the HRC and the government were blamed for their slow and fragmented response. With Sapa

chilwanel@bdfm.co.za


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Some Zimbabweans Leaving South African Homes, Fearing Xenophobic Attacks

 

2010 07 06

http://www1.voanews.com/zimbabwe/news/Zimbabweans-Trekking-Home-For-Fear-Of-Xenophobia-97874429.html

 

South African media reported that Zimbabweans and other Africans are camping at truck stops in a bid to catch rides from the Western Cape and other hot spots to Johannesburg, and from there back to Zimbabwe

Sandra Nyaira

Washington 06 July 2010

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Some Zimbabweans living in South Africa have been leaving troubled parts of the country as threats of xenophobic attacks upon the conclusion of the World Cup of soccer proliferate, spreading fear.

South African media reported that Zimbabweans and other Africans are camping at truck stops in a bid to catch rides from the Western Cape and other hot spots to Johannesburg, eventually hoping to return to Zimbabwe.

Media reports quoted such foreigners as saying local South Africans warned them to pack their bags if they did not want trouble. Landlords were said to have refused to accept July rents, fearing for their premises.

Such accounts prompted Western Cape Premier Helen Zille to urge President Jacob Zuma to to issue a public call for tolerance. Reports said her concerns have been forwarded to an inter-ministerial committee on xenophobia.

Zille's spokeswoman, Tracy Venter, told VOA Studio 7 reporter Sandra Nyaira that the province is working with the United Nations, churches, police and non-governmental organizations to keep threats from leading to following the finals of the World Cup, during which officials have been particularly vigilant against all crime.

In a related development, Grace Machel, wife of former President Nelson Mandela, launched a civil society coalition to fight against xenophobia in the post-World Cup period.

Zimbabwe Exiles Forum Executive Director Gabriel Shumba, present at the launch of the initiative, said a nationwide march against xenophobia is planned among other activities to encourage tolerance.


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MDC Should be a Real Party of “Excellence”

 

2010 07 06

http://www.zimtelegraph.com/?p=7916

 

By BONGI DLODLO

Published: July 6, 2010

The goings-on in the Morgan Tsvangirai led MDC feeds the Afropessimism school of thought. Why should it be typically African and why should it be difficult not to respect one’s own institutional rules, procedures and standards ?.

This is simply vindicating those with the view that it is very typically African to fiddle with the rules, procedures and

standards so that power remains in the same hands of one person or the same group of people.

MDC is a political institution set up with democratic rules, procedures and standards. It has term limits for the office of President.

MDC calls itself a party of excellence. When its leadership does not respect its own rules, procedures and standards, that is not excellence. I urge you to read, http://kufaragwenzi.blogspot.com/2009/11/dealing-with-political-and-generational.html.

As a decent politician, I expect Tsvangirai to issue a statement that the MDC Elective Congress shall be going ahead in 2011 and he is not available for re-election as the President of the Party and that he shall work very hard with the new leadership coming out of the congress to ensure that the values, principles and vision of the party are kept ablaze. There are many leaders of Tories, Libs and Labour in Britain who

did not make it to Number 10 Downing Street and they still command a lot of respect in their respective parties.

When there is term limit and the President of the party disregards it, it is called primitiveness and uncivilized.

The party should ensure the continued relevance of its senior leadership without affecting innovation and policy renewal.

“Save” has done very well and he needs to respect his own Constitution and be a foot-soldier for the one taking over from him so that the one meritably and popularly elected will still have the popular face of Tsvangirai the party campaigning for him/her in general elections of the country. The “founder-syndrome” has killed African institutions including governments, political parties and civil society or citizen-based organizations. MDC should create a new template for Africa for sustainable institutional renewal and innovation.

Kenneth Kaunda in Zambia and Thabo Mbeki in South Africa suffered serious ethical and political embarrassment, Wade in Senegal has fed into the African political archtype - they do not want to rest and renew their political parties and countries. “When, after a conflict, the best balanced leaders who have a stake in the future of all persons, are bypassed, and instead power is seized by the angriest and most grudge-holding, whose greatest stake is in the past… without new consciousness, and without strong reconciling actions, thus erupts a horrible recycling of living out the least of what is human in this world.”- Clarissa Pinkola Estés, “Letter To The Prince on the Anniversary of Kristallnacht.”

Robert Mugabe has overstayed and he cannot deal with generally 3 factions that have been formed as a result of his continued stay - there are those who want him remain, those who want him retire, and those positioning themselves when he goes.

What is being reported about the MDC is too depressing! The party has presented fodder to ZANU PF to have its own internal problems appear as if they are non-existant. The ZANU PF drums of celebration of MDC internal conflict are only to become louder while you pretend that they are fictional.

Why is it that I am not seeing any difference with ZANU PF or Robert Mugabe over transition to the next leader of the party?.

Avoid the route to that typically African political graveyard please.

Its so painful that our own media is not taking Tsvangirai to task about this Afro-pessimist tendency.

Goodwill Mpofu

Harare


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Zimbabwe's MDC Releases Report Naming Perpetrators of violence

 

2010 07 06

Political Violence

 

http://www1.voanews.com/zimbabwe/news/Zimbabwes-MDC-Releases-Report-Naming-Perpetrators-of-Violence-97876909.html

 

The MDC says more than 500 of its members or supporters were murdered by ZANU-PF militants and state security agents from March 2008 to May 2010, a period that includes the 2008 presidential and general elections

Blessing Zulu 06 July 2010

A report issued by Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change says the province of Mashonaland East has more perpetrators of political violence than any other in the country.

The survey by the former opposition party's welfare department, covering the period from March 2008 through May of this year, names individuals it says have committed political violence, identifying 11,248 nationwide.

The MDC says more than 500 of its members or supporters were murdered by ZANU-PF militants and Zimbabwean state security agents during the period, which includes the 2008 presidential and general elections.

According to the MDC report, the largest number of alleged perpetrators was in Mashonaland East with 3,689. The provinces of Manicaland, Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland West and Midlands trailed with between 1,000 and 2,000 alleged perpetrators of political violence apiece.

The report said Harare metropolitan province had 385 alleged perpetrators, while Matabeleland South and North just 21 and 18, respectively.

It said the worst offender in Mashonaland East was Lawrence Katsiru, a ZANU-PF militant in Marondera. Aqualinah Katsande, lawmaker for Mudzi West, Mashonaland East, is alleged to have funded deadly youth militia violence.

The MDC report lists alleged military violations, in particular accusing Zimbabwean Army Col. Morgan Mzilakazi of leading ZANU-PF youth militia in the murder and rape of MDC activists in Buhera district, Manicaland.

MDC Deputy Spokesperson Thabitha Khumalo told VOA Studio 7 reporter Blessing Zulu that violence is escalating as the country moves into the public outreach phase of its constitutional revision process.

Mashonaland Central Governor Martin Dinha of ZANU-PF dismissed the MDC claims as fictitious.

Political analyst Pedzisai Ruhanya said the failure of the Zimbabwe Republic Police to take action on political violence has emboldened its perpetrators


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The MDC Today

 

2010 07 06

 

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=32423:the-mdc-today&catid=31:weekday-top-stories&Itemid=30

 

Written by The Zimbabwean

Tuesday, 06 July 2010 15:36

In Manicaland province, the MDC secretary for Ward 20 in Mutare South had to be hospitalised after sustaining serious internal injuries when he was assaulted by the village head, Daniel Toopera, with the aid of two Zanu PF brothers, Batsirai and Daniel Makomboti.

Blessing Musarandega was assaulted after giving his opinion during a Constitution-making outreach public meeting held on 29 June at Munyarari primary school. This is believed to have infuriated the village head and his Zanu PF colleagues who had drafted a list of people who were meant to speak at the outreach meeting.

Recovering at a hospital in Mutare, Musarandega said the assault would not deter him from his basic right to participate in the drafting of a new Constitution. “They want to silence us but they will not succeed. This is a national constitution and not a Zanu PF baby. We are all Zimbabweans; we want our voices to be heard. I will participate again when the outreach team comes back to the area,” said Musarandega.

The assailants have been reported to the police but no arrests have been made. In Mashonaland Central province, three MDC activists, Last Sihara, Stephen Jambo and Malvern Gumbo, will today appear before a Bindura magistrate on trumped up charges of threatening to murder a Zanu PF thug, Chenai Makaraho, at a rally two weeks ago.


The MDC Today
Wednesday, 7 July 2010

The Mayor of Harare, Muchadeyi Masunda today inspected the city council’s pilot project of solar street lighting in Kuwadzana and Glenview 3 shopping centers. The two street lights, are capable of lighting the entire shopping center using solar energy.

It is an exciting project and we are assessing whether this is a tenable project.  We have one street light at the shopping area and if we have six more we can light the entire community,” said Mayor Masunda. “But for now we are checking if the lights work.”  The solar powered street light cost an estimated US$2 000, and can last for up to 20 years with only the panel and the batteries needing replacement. Mayor Masunda said these lights were a third the size of the electricity operated tower lights. He said that the council was working on energy conservation as the nation grapples with electricity shortages.

Elsewhere, there is an increased upsurge of intimidation of villagers in the rural areas by State security agents as the Constitution-making process spreads out across the country. Reports from the provinces show a worrying trend of an increase in intimidation, harassment and arrests of people.

The MDC Mashonaland Central Youth Assembly deputy provincial chairperson, Brian Pfungweni was arrested in Mt Darwin as he was mobilising MDC supporters to attend  the Constitution-making public meetings. Before his arrest he was attacked by Zanu PF supporters in the area. However, instead of arresting the Zanu PF youths, the police arrested Pfungweni. He has since been transferred to Bindura central police station and is expected to appear in court this week.

In Shamva, also in Mashonaland Central province, Central Intelligence Office agents on Tuesday addressed villagers before the start of the outreach meetings preaching the discredited Kariba draft.  They threatened them with disappearance if they did not comply with this directive. The CIO agents were driving unmarked vehicles when they addressed villagers in Shamva at Bradley, Kamudyariwa, Hore, Chidembo and Kasimbi meeting points.

The Zanu PF Shamva South MP, Samuel Ziteya, illegally withdrew written submissions that had been handed to the Constitutional Parliamentary Committee (Copac) team at Bradley. In Fairfields, Chirumanzu, Midlands province, a deputy headmaster at Fairfields primary school called for a parents’ meeting and started addressing them about the Kariba draft ahead of Copac public meetings. Meanwhile, there are reports in some provinces that people who want to participate in the meetings are failing to do so as the Copac timetable is incorrect.     

In Masvingo province, the MDC Chivi South district chairperson, Shelter Chifamba was threatened with death by a self-styled war veteran and Zanu PF Chivi South Ward 24 chairman, Machanja Risco at a funeral in Chivi.  Chifamba, who was assaulted and had her house destroyed in 2008, has been warned against mobilising people for the Constitution consultations currently underway.

In Mashonaland Central province, the MDC information secretary for Muzarabani North district, Wilbert Zenya has been threatened with unspecified action after the soccer World Cup. Zenya of Ward 27 Maseredza village has been especially targeted because he has a satellite dish at his house where people are watching the World cup. “They told me I bought the satellite dish so that I watch news that supports the MDC,” Zenya said.

In Manicaland province, four Mutare law and order policemen went to the MDC MP for Makoni South Hon Pishayi Muchauraya’s house, and instructed that the MP report to the Mutare Central police station without fail.

--
MDC Information & Publicity Department
Harvest House
44 Nelson Mandela Ave
Harare
Zimbabwe
Tel: 00263 4 793 250

--
Together to the end, marching to a new Zimbabwe
 
The Changing Times is the official mouthpiece of the Movement for Democratic Change.


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Tsvangirai In All Out war Against Tendai Biti

 

2010 07 04

 

http://www.zimbio.com/Zimbabwe/articles/Ye19uZkdIkk/Tsvangirai+Out+war+Against+Tendai+Biti

 

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Written by muchando on Jul-4-10 7:03pm

From: denfordmagora.blogspot.com

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Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, seen here holding hands with President Mugabe after the swearing-in of new MDC-T Ministers to replace those fired by Tsvangirai in his struggle to contain infighting within the opposition party has now gone ahead and fired

Harare, Zimbabwe, 04 July 2010

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, who is also president of the MDC with a surname (the MDC-T), has taken gloves off and taken the fight to Secretary General Tendai Biti (also Zimbabwe's Finance Minister in the coalition government).

Tsvangirai last week fired high level officials at Harvest House, the MDC-T's Head Office in Harare, Zimbabwe. Among those to go were the Finance Director of the party and members of the Secretariat, which Tsvangirai is accusing of being in service of Tendai Biti in his alleged bid to unseat Tsvangirai at the next Congress of the MDC-T.

This is coming after Tsvangirai fired several ministers and demoted others in a recent reshuffle of his ineffective rump of the Coalition Government.

The amputation of what are seen as Biti's limbs in the party comes just a couple of weeks after the Prime Minister called a meeting of senior officials of his party to confront them with a report he said had been compiled by the MDC-T's Security Department and which alleged, amongst other things, that Biti and his allies were mobilising membership behind their bid to take over the party while badmouthing the Prime Minister all over the country.

Biti denied everything, pointing out that he had not even met some of the officials he was said to be plotting with.

But Tsvangirai has faith in the reports from his cohorts, people like Gandhi Mudzingwa, who are clear that the Prime Minister is in imminent danger of being toppled by the Biti faction and replaced either with Biti himself or with Strive Masiyiwa, the founder of Econet Wireless International and Econet Wireless Zimbabwe.

The Prime Minister is extremely jittery just now, hence this decimation of the Secretariat at the MDC-T Head Office.

The ostensible reasons for the firings include incompetence but those fired, including one Rumbi, who was in the Finance Department of the party, say that this is pure victimisation for taking orders from the Secretary General, Tendai Biti.

They argue, however, that the SG is like the CEO of the party and, the nature of his position is that he controls and directs events at the office.

Tsvangirai is having none of it, apparently.

Still considering Biti too powerful and too popular to sack from wither government or party, the Prime Minister and MDC-T leader has now decided to maroon Biti in office, cutting off "the limbs" that were doing doing his biding at the party HQ.

There is a mood of uncertainty that has gripped Harvest House.

This does not bode well for the opposition party led by the Prime Minister, with elections having been agreed between Mugabe and Tsvangirai as due in March 2011 or May of the same year at the latest.

It means that the opposition party goes into the elections with a disenchanted support base, split from all the infighting and unable to present a united front to ZANU PF or Simba Makoni's MKD.

What should be more worrying for Tsvangirai is the fact that MKD offices are now being besieged by the disgruntled people who are leaving the MDC-T. Makoni's party membership cards are reported to have run out, with most of those expressing interest now simply paying their one dollar subscription fee to be put on a waiting list for when cards are available again.

Further to this, the rural areas of Zimbabwe remain a no-go area for the MDC-Tsvangirai, with NGOs reporting that camps from the Presidential election run-off of 2008 are being revived. Currently these are said to be used purely for intimidating people on the Constitutional outreach program underway.

The fight is over whether there should actually be Congress at all this year or early next year.

Tsvangirai is against a Congress before the next elections because he fears that he will lose his position at that Congress and, with that loss will also evaporate his chance of being president of Zimbabwe should the MDC-T win.

Biti and others want a Congress in order to "clean house" and get rid of Morgan Tsvangirai, who has proved incapable of dislodging Mugabe no matter how well the opposition does in elections.

By getting rid of those seen to be rebelling against him, Tsvangirai hopes to rally the remaining people behind him at HQ through fear.

The more things change, I say, the more they stay the same.


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The Unmaking of The Movement for Democratic Change

 

2010 07 01

 

http://www.sundaystandard.info/article.php?NewsID=8133&GroupID=5

 

by Reginald Gola

01-07-2010

We saw it coming! We said it!

The MDC steeping dip into cheap arrogance!

And no one dared listen.

Robert Mugabe is not a school boy but the most shrewd and remorseless political schemer!

Neither was ZANU PF a fly-by-night party, but a treacherous greed-driven organization manned by ruthless and ever hungry vultures. This was informative enough to guide whoever dared wage a contest with this institution not to take eyes off the ball! De-trenching ZANU PF from institutionalized looting grounds is no piece-meal task, but a job that requires seasoned, well-guided, cerebral and alert pedigree bull terriers.

To fight and win Mugabe and ZANU PF one needs both eyes and hands on! Engaging in multiple internal wars despairs party loyalists and impairs the sense of purpose.

The MDC does not seem to understand its vibrancy, its massive size and the aspirations of its followers, sympathizers, friends and partners. Hence Morgan Tsvangirai’s grossly misguided firing of ministers deemed to be corrupt. Morgan Tsvangirai has accused and promptly axed loyal party cadres for what he calls “poor performance”. He calls them “dead wood”. Fidelis Mhashu is deadwood, Elias Mudzuri, Thamsanqa Mahlangu and Amai Masaiti are poor performers he says. Morgan conveniently neglects giving his audience (the citizenry) the yardstick that measures performance in poorly resourced institutions like the government of Zimbabwe!

In the public’s view, no one is a full performer in the GNU due to the conditions under which the cabinet works, especially the MDC-T.

Morgan Tsvangirai is worst affected and therefore, the worst of the performers. The government that he heads has continuously harassed his Movement for Democratic Change supporters and human rights activists. The same government has failed to arrest corruption barons and probe the “Duke of Chiadzwa” who also amassed immeasurable wealth during Zimbabwe’s most desperate moment through squeezing the former white property owners for false protection against state terrorism in exchange for property, and, in some cases, window-dressing property transfers to him. Tsvangirai allowed Mugabe to “silo” his {MDC} ministers with ZANU PF activists ranging from, in some cases, the co-minister, minister or deputy, the permanent secretary and his deputy and senior directors and still expected the incumbent MDC ministers to perform ivo vakasungwa mbira dzakondo vakomana.

ZANU PF has successfully subordinated Morgan Tsvangirai in the GNU and that alone is a performance issue on Morgan Tsvangirai warranting his urgent recall from government by the party. When the Zimbabwean citizenry found itself severely humiliated by the white Rhodesian government, it rose and fought for its rightful place and got ZANU PF into power only to discover that Mugabe’s humiliation would be second to none.

The citizenry protestantly summoned enough courage and energy and chorused for Mugabe departure through the Movement for Democratic Change least expecting further embarrassment of the cadres of the revolution; the revolutionaries who nurtured, grew, sacrificed and lived for the MDC. It is really sad that the once vibrant revolutionary movement has opted to emulate Mugabe’s ZANU PF.

“Firing” has unfortunately become the most prominent word in the Tsvangirai dictionary. Morgan must start learning about communication, consultation, mutuality, diversity management, succession planning, organizational renewal, citizenry engagement, good governance, management of change and truants rehabilitation. Morgan’s approach sets a grave precedence. A leader must be both a lion and fox, but more of a fox than a lion! One would not be very wrong to assume that this set-up would see more people unjustifiable going to the gallows if Morgan gets into power. Who is Morgan hoping to please by humiliating the law abiding citizenry of Zimbabwe and the purge of fellow revolutionaries from the party that they have so much slaved for ?.

If Morgan was a good leader and if he had surrounded himself with men and women of mantle, the party would have come up with a most comprehensive induction programme for all its staff at Harvest House and the provinces, local authority, parliamentary and cabinet nominees which would have clearly specified their roles in their respective portfolios and both the party and citizenry expectations in a most measurable way with agreed and tested yard-sticks. Remember that the party suffers a leadership vacuum having most of its office bearers coming from the street. No sensible leader would, at any one time and level, expect miracles from a hungry, ignorant, poorly groomed and desperate cadre. Morgan Tsvangirai has displayed a severe lack of leadership.

Please note that Mugabe remains ruthless to his opponents and really protective to party loyal criminals and dead wood. When the criminals loot they lean heavily on the party ZANU PF and they get guaranteed immunity from police probes and the judiciary. This is a good strategy but extremely bad for governance.

Tsvangirai must also be clearly appraised that the MDC would never operate like a family tuck shop because it is too big and diverse. Tsvangirai’s biggest challenge is to make the best out of the wealth of diversity that thrives within the ranks of the movement rather than fear it. He must also be groomed, as a matter of urgency, not to be scared of relinquishing power to someone else because that must surely happen without fail at the right time. Morgan and entourage must be groomed to embrace change and debate and stop holding the nation hostage! The man is not of presidential material that’s what drives so much suspicion and fear against people of substance around him. Zimbabweans can’t all be trade unionists, neither can they all be political idiots nor geniuses. Morgan Tsvangirai proved himself, without reservation, to be a brave, consistent and effective fire fighter with a gross handicap in vision, strategy and tact and is a person who despises good counsel.

Morgan and entourage have failed to strategically exploit ZANU PF multi-fractured survival and to assume a government-in-waiting status. They have made a poorly informed option of crippling the soldiers of the revolution within the MDC! No! No! No! Ladies and gentlemen, this is stupid! Very stupid!

Xolela Mangcu, in a well researched article published by The Sunday Times of South Africa, of April 25 2010, page 24, quotes United States president Barrack Obama speaking in Accra, Ghana, last year, as urging Africa to eschew reliance on “strongmen” in favour of durable institutions: “…in the 21st century capable, reliable and transparent institutions are the key to success: strong parliaments, honest police forces, independent judges, and independent press, a private sector, a civil society … that is what matters in people’s everyday lives … Africa doesn’t need strong men, it needs strong institutions.” This applies to the Tsvangirai in a big way!

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* - Reginald Thabani Gola is a Zimbabwean political analyst, a civil society and human rights activist and an independent journalist

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Biti - let Zim diamonds shine

 

2010 07 07

 

http://www.timeslive.co.za/africa/article537770.ece/Biti--let-Zim-diamonds-shine

 

Jul 7, 2010 11:37 AM

By Sapa-AFP

Zimbabwe Finance Minister Tendai Biti urged the diamond watchdog Kimberley Process to clear the country to sell its diamonds, saying the government desperately needed the income.

TENDAI BITI

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We can't pay for electricity, we can't pay for civil servants and yet we are sitting on one of the finest find of alluvial diamonds in the history of mankind

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Kimberley blocked Zimbabwe's international sales after documenting gross military abuses against civilians in the eastern Marange diamond fields, including forced labour and beatings of workers.

A monitor tasked with evaluating the situation has given his all-clear, but rights groups say abuses are continuing and a top activist in Marange has been arrested.

"The Kimberley Process must allow us to sell our diamonds, but must then come to Zimbabwe to help resolve these issues," Biti said in a newsletter published by the prime minister's office.

"It will be very unfortunate if the KP does not allow us to sell the diamonds because they will be punishing the people of Zimbabwe. We can't pay for electricity, we can't pay for civil servants and yet we are sitting on one of the finest find of alluvial diamonds in the history of mankind."

Biti's statement came after a Kimberley meeting in Tel Aviv failed to reach a consensus on Zimbabwe. Talks are set to resume next week in Saint Petersburg.

He said ordinary people were paying the price for the stalemate between Zimbabwe's government and Kimberley.

"If you have issues with an elite political leadership, allow diamonds to be sold, but rein in on the political elite because they will still sell diamonds outside the KP at the expense of the poor," he said.

Currently Zimbabwe has 4.5 million carats of diamonds in its stocks.

The Kimberley Process gathers governments, industry and civil society to stem the flow of "blood diamonds" used to finance wars.

 

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RELATED ARTICLES

Amnesty demands release of Zimbabwe diamond field rights activist

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Internet project suspended - (Communication Technology Minister Nelson Chamisa)

 

2010 07 06

 

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=32387:internet-project-suspended&catid=72:thursday-issue

 

Written by Natasha Hove

Tuesday, 06 July 2010 11:02

Harare

The commissioning of the Harare-Beira fibre optic cable which will link Zimbabwe to the undersea high-speed cable in Mozambique has been postponed to November, a Cabinet minister has said.

Information and Communication Technology Minister Nelson Chamisa said the commissioning of the fibre optic had been rescheduled because of “logistical and administrative issues”. “Originally we had targeted to commission the fibre optic cable this month but because of some administrative and logistical issues within the government, we have changed this to November. Funding for the project is not an issue as resources are available,” he said.

Finance Minister Tendai Biti in April allocated US$ 6,2 million to the ICT ministry to implement the fibre optic link project. Minister Chamisa said work was in progress as Government had engaged a contractor to undertake the project. “Work is in progress with the trenching for the optic cable having already begun. We have two teams, one from Harare and the other from Mutare, who are working on the trenches and hopefully very soon they will be done with the trenching exercise,” he said. Minister Chamisa said efforts were being made to ensure that the country was also linked to key neighbouring countries, adding that Zimbabwe had recently been connected to Botswana.

“We are also making efforts to link with our key neighbours in the region and plans are in the pipeline to connect the country with South Africa through another fibre optic project in Beitbridge. “Already Zimbabwe is linked with Botswana through a Powertel optic cable.” In his 2010 national budget presentation, Minister Biti said ICTs were the backbone of the economy hence the need for the country to be connected to the undersea cable. It is hoped that the undersea cable along Africa’s east coast would improve Zimbabwe’s Internet connectivity once connected.


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Amnesty demands release of Zimbabwe diamond activist

 

2010 07 07

 

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jlgh2F9E2AChjh8U2iBvABtLp-wQ

 

(AFP)

Johannesburg

Amnesty International called Tuesday for the release of an activist charged with endangering Zimbabwe's economic interests by highlighting abuses at diamond mines.

Farai Maguwu, head of the Centre for Research and Development, was arrested last month following a meeting with a Kimberley Process representative who was probing whether Zimbabwe met human rights standards for the diamond trade.

He remains in custody after he was denied bail Friday.

Maguwu's group regularly provided information about abuses in the eastern Marange mines to the Kimberley Process, which documented gross military abuses against civilians.

"Maguwu is being persecuted for carrying out his lawful work of monitoring and documenting alleged human rights violations by security forces at some of Zimbabwe's richest diamond fields," said Amnesty's Africa director, Erwin van der Borght.

"We consider Maguwu a prisoner of conscience and call on the authorities to release him immediately and unconditionally."

Right groups say Zimbabwe has failed to keep a promise to halt abuse of diamond miners and should have its international certification frozen.

Kimberley monitor Abbey Chikane said President Robert Mugabe's government had met the global diamond regulator's criteria.

But Kimberley failed last month to agree on whether to allow Zimbabwe to resume trade. The matter will be discussed again next week in Saint Petersburg.

Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reserved


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Gay Activist Pleads Not Guilty to Violating Censorship Laws

 

2010 07 06

http://www.zimbio.com/Morgan+Tsvangirai/articles/in1HvbUM9La/Zimbabwe+Gay+Activist+Pleads+Not+Guilty+Violating

 

Written by rodmccullom on Jul-6-10 6:56pm

From: rodonline.typepad.com

Updating the case of the two Zimbabwe gay activists that were arrested and tortured in May. Ignatius Muhambi has plead "not guilty" to breaching censorship laws and possessing "pornography", reports News24.

"Ignatius Muhambi, an accountant for Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe ... formally entered a plea of 'not guilty' in court on Thursday. Prosecutor Memory Mugabe said police found pornographic material during the raid on the office. 'A search was done in the office and one pornographic DVD and pornographic booklet was recovered from the office being used by the accused,' Mugabe told the court. Mugabe said both contained graphic images of men having sex. At the time of their arrest, the two also had been accused of insulting President Robert Mugabe, but that charge was not read out in court."

After displaying a letter from former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown criticizing Zimbabwe's anti-gay regime, Muhambi and office administrator Ellen Chademana were arrested in a police raid at the association's offices on May 6. They were charged with "undermining the authority" of President Robert Mugabe. After six days in police custody and subjected to torture, both are free on bail.

GALZ is also involved in HIV/AIDS prevention. It is not known if the "pornographic" material cited were safe sex materials.

Muhambi's trial continues and Chademana's case will begin on Wednesday. Chademana has been prevented from traveling to the United States.


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Zimbabweans wash dirty US dollars with soap, water

 

2010 07 07

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hnbaJNBDvTLSRXEUdQWGerEQnU2gD9GPJMT80

 

By ANGUS SHAW (AP)

HARARE

Zimbabwe

The washing machine cycle takes about 45 minutes - and George Washington comes out much cleaner in the Zimbabwe-style laundering of dirty money.

Low-denomination U.S bank notes change hands until they fall apart here in Africa, and the bills are routinely carried in underwear and shoes through crime-ridden slums.

Some have become almost too smelly to handle, so Zimbabweans have taken to putting their $ 1 bills through the spin cycle and hanging them up to dry with clothes pins alongside sheets and items of clothing.

It's the best solution - apart from rubber gloves or disinfectant wipes - in a continent where the U.S. dollar has long been the currency of choice and where the lifespan of a dollar far exceeds what the U.S. Federal Reserve intends.

Zimbabwe's coalition government officially declared the U.S. dollar legal tender last year to eradicate world record inflation of billions of percent in the local Zimbabwe dollar as the economy collapsed.

The U.S. Federal Reserve destroys about 7,000 tons of worn-out money every year. It says the average $ 1 bill circulates in the United States for about 20 months - nowhere near its African life span of many years.

Larger denominations coming in through banks and formal import and export trade are less soiled.

But among Africa's poor, the $ 1, $ 2, $ 5 and $ 10 bills are the most sought after. Dirty $ 1 bills can remain in circulation at rural markets, bus parks and beer halls almost indefinitely, or at least until they finally disintegrate.

Still, banks and most businesses in Zimbabwe do not accept torn, Scotch-taped, scorched, defaced, exceptionally dirty or otherwise damaged U.S. notes.

Zimbabweans say the U.S. notes do best with gentle hand-washing in warm water. But at a laundry and dry cleaner in eastern Harare, a machine cycle does little harm either to the cotton-weave type of paper. Locals say chemical "dry cleaning" is not recommended - it fades the color of the famed greenback.

Laundry worker Alex Mupondi said customers asked him to try machine-washing a selection of bills and the result impressed him.

But storekeeper Jackie Dube hasn't yet taken up advice of friends to cleanse the often damp and stinking U.S. dollars she receives for the garments and cheap Chinese consumer goods she sells in Harare. It's time-consuming, she says, adding that stinky, unhygienic bills are a problem.

"I get rid of the worst of the notes as soon as I can in change," she said.

Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.


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Africa needs foreign investment to tackle infrastructure deficit

 

2010 07 06

http://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/africa-needs-foreign-investment-to-tackle-infrastructure-deficit-2010-07-06

 

INFRASTRUCTURE

By: Keith Campbell

6th July 2010

The infrastructure deficit in Africa currently amounts, in monetary terms, to $ 1,5-trillion, African Development Bank vice-president and Chief Economist Prof Mthuli Ncube told Engineering News Online on Tuesday. And the continent probably can’t afford to finance all the required development from its own resources.

“A lot of money needs to come from abroad in foreign direct investment,” he highlighted.

“There’s a need to develop roads through quasi-market initiatives such as public-private partnerships. Railway development is very important for Africa. In the 1960s and 70s one could travel from the Cape a lot of the way to Cairo by train, but political conflicts did a lot of damage to railways.”

Rail is the cheapest way to move freight from the interior to the coast, but many ports also need development or refurbishment, particularly in West Africa.

“We also need to develop the airline industry. We need to be able to travel across Africa by air, both passengers and cargo,” he added. “It is very difficult to fly between African countries. For example, to fly from South Africa to Tunisia, you have to go via Paris or Dubai.”

Nor is this all. There is also the need to develop the entire power generation sector. Oil infrastructure has to be expanded, and gas infrastructure developed. There is a need for more dams, for water supply and hydropower.

For example, he cited the Inga project in the western part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). “If it was developed it would be a wonderful project. It would benefit the whole region. The DRC couldn’t possibly use all that electricity.”

Then there is the issue of affordable housing. “One way for people to move into the middle class is to become home owners,” he pointed out.

There are, of course, areas in Africa with concentrations of high-quality infrastructure, such as Southern Africa, in particular South Africa, and North Africa, especially Egypt and Tunisia. “But all regions of Africa need more infrastructure,” he affirmed.

Edited by: Creamer Media Reporter


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Trio accused of stealing tobacco worth $ 450 000

 

2010 07 06

 

http://www.newsday.co.zw/article/2010-07-06-trio-accused-of-stealing-tobacco-worth-450-000

 

CHARLES LAITON

Jul 06 2010 12:17

Two employees with the Tobacco Processors Zimbabwe (TPZ) and a Zambian national have been taken to court on allegations of stealing 1 446 bales of tobacco valued at nearly $ 450 000 from their employers.

They allegely sold their loot to Tombwe Processing Company of Zambia.

Ndinewe Marebesa (36), Peterson Chumakunetsa (32) and Fanuel Gwenzi (34) appeared before regional magistrate Morgan Nemadire yesterday on fraud charges.

Prosecutor Michael Reza alleged that between April 2009 and August the same year, the trio together with Kandaipasi Marebesa Paul from Zambia and George Makonza an employee at Bak Storage, hatched a plan to steal the tobacco.

Chumakunetsa who was a data capturing clerk with TPZ at the time, allegedly stole vouchers from the factory and used them to withdraw 1 446 bales of tobacco from Bak Willowvale. He purported that the tobacco was destined for processing at TPZ.

The trio allegedly hired trucks from Devotion Enterprises T/A Taroan Transport in Msasa to transport the tobacco to Tombwe Processing Company in Lusaka, Zambia.

Assistant leaf accounting manager at TPZ Richard Fombe discovered the discrepancies while going through the actual inventory figures for Tianze Tobacco where 168 bales were discovered to be missing.

This prompted him to carry out investigations which led to the discovery of the missing tobacco.

The matter was reported to the police leading to the arrest of Marebesa, Chumakunetsa and Gwenzi.

Paul and Makonza are on the run.

Investigations revealed that Marebesa, Chumakunetsa and Gwenzi allegedly loaded bales of tobacco on steel pallets into hired trucks and offloaded them at Patmarsh Services (Private) Limited where they were temporarily stored before being transported to Zambia.

In an effort to avoid detection Marebesa allegedly hired welders Patrick Zata and Munashe Dandajena to destroy the steel pallets.

The state alleged that on August 20, Marebesa was deceived into believing that the welders had finished destroying the pallets and were waiting for their payment.

He was arrested upon arrival at Patmarsh Services and implicated Chumakunetsa and Gwenzi.

TPZ has a contract to handle and process tobacco on behalf of its shareholders and third parties.


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The Vatican will not silence me - Pius Ncube

 

2010 07 07

 

http://www.newsday.co.zw/article/2010-07-06-the-vatican-will-not-silence-me-ncube

 

NKULULEKO SIBANDA

Jul 06 2010 12:16

Former archbishop of the Roman Catholic Church in Bulawayo, Pius Ncube, has crawled out of his shell. Ncube, who had been hibernating since 2007 said he would not be silenced by his superiors in Rome and vowed to continue speaking out against misrule.

Ncube has been unusually quiet since his fall from grace after he was caught in a compromising position with a follower from his church.

The disgraced Ncube was ultimately censored from talking to the press by the Vatican after the embarrassing incident.

Ncube was videotaped indulging in sex with a woman, in an expoŚe he believes was a sting operation against him by the state. The two are said to have become involved when the woman was working at the Roman Catholic Church’s headquarters in Bulawayo.

Following the scandal, Ncube - a fierce critic of President Robert Mugabe’s style of governance - retreated into his shell.

But last Saturday, Ncube made a rare public appearance since the sex scandal pitching up at a belated commemoration of the 11th anniversary of the death of Father Zimbabwe, Joshua Nkomo, at Amakhosi Township Square in Bulawayo.

Speaking to this newspaper, a defiant Ncube said he may be down but was not yet out.

He said the experience had made him stronger.

“There are people who are trying to use other means to get me to stop criticising this (inclusive) government for what it is,” Ncube said.

“This goes to even a point where those at the Vatican have requested me not to speak out about these injustices. I would like to point out that I am not finished yet. I will not be silenced and very soon, I will show the world that I am still the person who speaks his mind and criticises bad things happening in government.”

Ncube said after his ordeal, he was invited to Rome, Italy, where the Pope’s “lieutenants” pleaded with him not to be too critical of President Mugabe and his previous government.

“I did not agree to their proposal,” Ncube claimed. “I told them I was working with the people and acceding to their (Vatican’s) request would be betraying the people.

I will not keep quiet when people are subjected to injustices. I will speak out against all the evil things that I see because that is what I believe I should do.”

The formerly outspoken church leader said he was even offered accommodation in Italy and Australia where he was expected to stay and the offer included moving his family there.

“I told them that I am looking after my mother.

I told them my family is here (in Zimbabwe) and moving to Italy would mean I am away from my family. I want to remain here,” said Ncube.

The request by Vatican leaders, Ncube said, gave him time to reflect on his past. He said given that he was now being viewed with another eye by the public, he would pray to be guided accordingly.

“I will talk to my master, who is God, to ask for his guidance. I will talk to him to plead with him to give me the power to face all my persecutors as well as take on those that have messed up the lives of the people,” Ncube said.

“I know God will bear with me since I believe I am on a mission that he set for me to try and save the people of Zimbabwe from this regime.

At one time, I nearly gave up hope that I was going to recover from this thing. But I believe that I am firm and I gathered all the guts.” He said he was willing to face the consequences of his actions.


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Zapu demands return of properties

 

2010 07 07

 

http://www.newsday.co.zw/article/2010-07-07-zapu-demands-return-of-properties

 

DUMISANI SIBANDA

Jul 07 2010 10:23

Bulawayo

An MDC-T deputy minister, Moses Mzila Ndlovu, who is a former freedom fighter has added his voice to the growing calls for the return of Zapu properties confiscated at the height of the Gukurahundi era by Zanu-PF.

Ndlovu was speaking at a belated commemoration of the 11th anniversary of the death of Father Zimbabwe Joshua Nkomo, organised by a local pressure group Ibhetshu Likazulu at Amakhosi Township Square last Saturday where he was the only government official present.

“As Zapu we invested in properties to secure our own future but they were taken away from us. We should demand our properties back. We should be able to use those properties for our benefit and the benefit of our children because that was our sweat,’’ he said.

The former Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army (Zipra) fighter who was in a combative mood said the properties were bought using their demobilisation payouts.

He said failure to return the assets as well as the continued marginalisation of the Matabeleland region were a sign that “Gukurahundi is still in force’’.

Commenting on the sentiments by Ndlovu, the Zapu spokesperson, Methuseli Moyo, said Ndlovu’s ideas were noble and the matter of Zapu properties should be followed up.

“We appreciate the sentiments by Ndlovu,” Moyo said. “He is an ex-Zipra fighter who knows where he is coming from and where he will end. We encourage him to lobby his friends in Zanu PF and the two MDC formations to do what is right - to hand over those properties to Zapu where they rightfully belong. Zapu has been revived and there is no need to fight over this.’’

“As Zapu we consider this to be a serious outstanding issue (on the Global Political Agreement) more serious than the issue of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor, Gideon Gono or Attorney General (Johannes) Tomana or(Roy) Bennett(Deputy Minister of Agriculture designate).Zapu properties that are still under the control of the government include Magnet House in Bulawayo, which houses the regional headquarters of the state security agency, the Central Intelligence Organisation, and Castle Arms Motel, also in Bulawayo. In Harare there is Snake Park, among others. Some of the Zapu properties are run through a company, Nitram Holdings, which represents the interests of Zipra cadres.After the Unity Accord in 1987, the Zanu PF government refused to hand over the properties seized in 1982 at the height of Gukurahundi in Matabeleland and Midlands.


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Assaulted For Giving Constitutional Opinion

 

2010 07 06

….

 

http://changezimbabwe.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2983&Itemid=2

 

Written by Changing Times Team

Tuesday, 06 July 2010

In Manicaland province, the MDC secretary for Ward 20 in Mutare South had to be hospitalised after sustaining serious internal injuries when he was assaulted by the village head, Daniel Toopera, with the aid of two Zanu PF brothers, Batsirai and Daniel Makomboti.

Blessing Musarandega was assaulted after giving his opinion during a Constitution-making outreach public meeting held on 29 June at Munyarari primary school.

This is believed to have infuriated the village head and his Zanu PF colleagues who had drafted a list of people who were meant to speak at the outreach meeting.

Recovering at a hospital in Mutare, Musarandega said the assault would not deter him from his basic right to participate in the drafting of a new Constitution.

“They want to silence us but they will not succeed. This is a national constitution and not a Zanu PF baby. We are all Zimbabweans; we want our voices to be heard. I will participate again when the outreach team comes back to the area,” said Musarandega.

The assailants have been reported to the police but no arrests have been made.

In Mashonaland Central province, three MDC activists, Last Sihara, Stephen Jambo and Malvern Gumbo, will today appear before a Bindura magistrate on trumped up charges of threatening to murder a Zanu PF thug, Chenai Makaraho, at a rally two weeks ago. See changingtimes

Last Updated ( Tuesday, 06 July 2010 )


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Joshua Nkomo supporters insulted by plans to put up his statue in Harare

 

 

2010 07 06

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/06/zimbabwe-nkomo-statue-zapu-matabeland

 

Proposed site has links with massacres by Mugabe's men, say supporters of Zimbabwe liberation struggle leader

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

David Smith in Johannesburg

guardian.co.uk,

Tuesday 6 July 2010 17.03 BST

Article history

Joshua Nkomo, left, with Robert Mugabe announcing agreement on the Rhodesia ceasefire in London in 1979. Photograph: Popperfoto

Plans for a statue of a leader of the liberation struggle in Zimbabwe have been branded an insult to the victims of massacres ordered by president Robert Mugabe.

Joshua Nkomo fought alongside Mugabe to overthrow white minority rule in Rhodesia, but after independence the pair fell out. Thousands of people were killed by government forces in Nkomo's political base, Matabeleland (pdf).

Supporters of Nkomo, dubbed "Father Zimbabwe", have long claimed that his part in the struggle is marginalised in histories written by Mugabe's Zanu-PF.

One remedy seemed to be a statue of Nkomo, who led the Zapu party and died in 1999. But friends and allies object to its proposed location at the Karigamombe centre in the capital, Harare, and have threatened to tear it down.

They say the name Karigamombe, meaning one who takes the bull by the horns, has associations with the Mugabe family. One objector told the Guardian that the building, formerly the Piccadilly centre, was used to run operations during the Matabeleland massacres, or "Gukurahundi", in the 1980s, when Mugabe's men attacked Nkomo's Zapu supporters.

"The massacres were directed from this building," said Max Mkandla, of the Liberators Peace Initiative, whose father was among the dead. "The orders were originating from meetings there and it is associated with Robert Mugabe and his family. It is not a befitting place for a statue of Nkomo.

"Joshua Nkomo would feel bad if he knew his statue was there. He originated in Matabeleland and the statue must be kept in Matabeleland."

Zimbabwe's government sparked protests earlier this year when it invited the North Korean football team to Matabeleland before the World Cup in neighbouring South Africa. North Korea trained the notorious Fifth Brigade, which helped to perpetrate Gukurahundi. The footballers' visit was eventually scrapped.

Nkomo's family has also criticised the plans for a statue. His nephew Dumisani Nkomo told Zimbabwe's NewsDay newspaper: "The decision would be interpreted as an insult to the family, especially when one looks at the history of what Karigamombe stands for."

Dumiso Dabengwa, interim president of Zapu, added that the idea had been dragging on for years. "Nkomo's statue was supposed to be erected a long time ago in Bulawayo and Harare," he told NewsDay. "In Bulawayo a street was identified but the previous Zanu-PF government did not act on the resolutions made. These delays are trivialising the sacrifice Nkomo made for the liberation of Zimbabwe."

Dabengwa also complained about a lack of events to mark the anniversary of Nkomo's death on 1 July. "The fact that they did not even hold a gala for Nkomo reflects the disrespect that the government has for Nkomo. He was a great man and he deserves to be treated much better than this."

George Mlala, a Zanu-PF official in Bulawayo, disputed the claims. "The country does remember Joshua Nkomo but the economy does not permit major commemorations," he said. "The government was aware of it but there is not enough money to hire bands and organise a gala."

The battle for the former vice-president's legacy continues 11 years after his death. The Standard reported that his son has called for his father's remains to be dug up from National Heroes' Acre in Harare for reburial in his family's home village.

Sibangilizwe Nkomo claimed that in his final days Joshua Nkomo complained bitterly about the direction the country was taking. "My father said he had tried to mould him [Mugabe] into a proper leader but he feared that his efforts were to no avail," he said.


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Zapu demands return of properties

 

2010 07 07

 

http://www.newsday.co.zw/article/2010-07-07-zapu-demands-return-of-properties

 

DUMISANI SIBANDA

Jul 07 2010 10:23

Bulawayo- An MDC-T deputy minister, Moses Mzila Ndlovu, who is a former freedom fighter has added his voice to the growing calls for the return of Zapu properties confiscated at the height of the Gukurahundi era by Zanu-PF.

Ndlovu was speaking at a belated commemoration of the 11th anniversary of the death of Father Zimbabwe Joshua Nkomo, organised by a local pressure group Ibhetshu Likazulu at Amakhosi Township Square last Saturday where he was the only government official present.

“As Zapu we invested in properties to secure our own future but they were taken away from us. We should demand our properties back. We should be able to use those properties for our benefit and the benefit of our children because that was our sweat,’’ he said.

The former Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army (Zipra) fighter who was in a combative mood said the properties were bought using their demobilisation payouts.

He said failure to return the assets as well as the continued marginalisation of the Matabeleland region were a sign that “Gukurahundi is still in force’’.

Commenting on the sentiments by Ndlovu, the Zapu spokesperson, Methuseli Moyo, said Ndlovu’s ideas were noble and the matter of Zapu properties should be followed up.

“We appreciate the sentiments by Ndlovu,” Moyo said. “He is an ex-Zipra fighter who knows where he is coming from and where he will end. We encourage him to lobby his friends in Zanu PF and the two MDC formations to do what is right - to hand over those properties to Zapu where they rightfully belong. Zapu has been revived and there is no need to fight over this.’’

“As Zapu we consider this to be a serious outstanding issue (on the Global Political Agreement) more serious than the issue of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor, Gideon Gono or Attorney General (Johannes) Tomana or(Roy) Bennett(Deputy Minister of Agriculture designate).Zapu properties that are still under the control of the government include Magnet House in Bulawayo, which houses the regional headquarters of the state security agency, the Central Intelligence Organisation, and Castle Arms Motel, also in Bulawayo. In Harare there is Snake Park, among others. Some of the Zapu properties are run through a company, Nitram Holdings, which represents the interests of Zipra cadres.After the Unity Accord in 1987, the Zanu PF government refused to hand over the properties seized in 1982 at the height of Gukurahundi in Matabeleland and Midlands.


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AIDS Organisations Threaten No Vote Campaign

 

2010 07 07

 

http://news.radiovop.com/index.php/national-news/4158.html

 

07/07/2010 09:07:00 Millie Phiri

Harare, July 07, 2010

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Zimbabwe’s HIV and AIDS service organisations have threatened a No vote of the new constitution if it fails to capture their concerns.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Participants to a meeting of AIDS service organisations on Tuesday said they wanted rights to access HIV&AIDS treatment and access to health services or they would join the NCA in the no vote campaign.

A parliamentary led constitutional process (COPAC) is currently gathering views from the public on what the people want to be included in the new constitution. The process, which started last week is expected to take 83 days before the draft constitution is taken for a referendum.

The meeting was attended by more than 15 representatives of AIDS services from around the country.

“If our issues are not captured by the COPAC we are definitely going to call for a No vote come referendum time. HIV&AIDS issues are being ignored and yet everyone is being affected in one way or the other,” said a member of one of the organisations representing People Living with AIDS.

Community Working Group on Health Programme manager Caroline Mubaira told the gathering: “We are waiting for such time when the COPAC team finishes gathering people’s views and see if HIV&AIDS as well as health issues are well captured. If they are not well articulated in the document, us as a membership organisation we will go back to our constituency and consult for the way forward because we know that health issues are national issues, which need not to be excluded in the new constitution.”

Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights’ HIV&AIDS Human rights programmes officer Bekizela Mapanda said they were closely monitoring the of HIV and AIDS issues by COPAC outreach teams.

“Our duty at the moment is that of monitoring the process and see whether there is democracy in terms of the inclusion of rights to health on behalf of people living with the pandemic. When the drafting of the actual constitution comes we will engage with our stakeholders and they will decide on the action to take depending on the outcome of the draft constitution."

Meanwhiule chaos continued to characterise COPAC outreach teams with reports that co-chairpersons had ordered outreach teams to look for alternative accommodation after most of the teams had been evicted from Harare and Mutare hotels for failing to settle bills.

The two COPAC chairpersons Paul Mangwana of Zanu (PF) and Douglas Mwonzora of MDC-T admitted on Tuesday to journalists that outreach teams in Mutare and Harare were being chased away from hotels as a result of COPAC’s failure to pay hotel bills.

The teams were also not getting food from the hotels.

“We have instructed our teams to look for alternative accommodation which is cheaper because most of the hotels like Jameson and Crown Plaza which they are currently using are charging above US$ 60, which is beyond our budget,” said Mangwana.

Mwonzora said“The reason why we have accommodated those teams operating in Mashonaland central in Harare is that we could not find suitable accommodation for them in that area, and at some point we were told that some of the suitable hotels were booked up to September and we had no choice but to accommodate them in Harare”.


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New Dawn unfazed by govt threats

 

2010 07 07

 

http://www.newzimbabwe.com/business-2793-New+Dawn+unfazed+by+threats/business.aspx

 

07/07/2010 00:00:00

by Business Reporter

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Unfazed ... New Dawn ignores govt threats

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

NEW Dawn Mining Corp was said to be mulling an offer to buy out financially troubled Central African Gold (CAG) even as the Zimbabwe government says the deal violates the country’s empowerment laws.

The Canada-based junior resources firm recently surprised the market with the acquisition of a controlling 89 percent interest in the London AIM listed CAG.

But the deal immediately attracted criticism from the government with presidential affairs minister Didymus Mutasa telling local media the transaction would be investigated as it threatened the country’s security and economic interests.

Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Didymus Mutasa, told a local daily that New Dawn's transaction did not comply with empowerment regulations and threatened Zimbabwe's security and economic interests.

This was despite the fact that the transaction was an offshore acquisition, and did not necessarily involve the take-over of CAG's businesses in Zimbabwe at the asset level.

Again New Dawn had not said they would not seek to comply with the country’s empowerment legislation post-acquisition.

Meanwhile sources indicated that New Dawn had remained focused and was planning to offer to buy out CAG minorities after buying an 89 percent stake in CAG.

The deal had triggered a storm as the two remaining directors of CAG had not been informed of the transaction by a group of three key shareholders who negotiated the sell of their combined stake in CAG to New Dawn without their involvement.

The development highlighted the deteriorating crisis within the group, which has seen two directors, including the board chairman, leaving in a huff between December and April this year.

CAG's three major shareholders, ECP Africa Fund II PCC, HBD Zim Investments Limited and Investec Asset Management (Pty) Limited , had sold the entirety of their respective shareholdings in CAG, representing in aggregate approximately 88,7 percent of the issued ordinary share capital of the company, to New Dawn in exchange for New Dawn shares.

CAG owns the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange-listed Falcon Gold and the unlisted Olympus Gold Mines. The two Zimbabwean mining companies produced 21 031 oz in the year to end-September 2006, just before CAG's acquisition.

The mines were shut down by CAG in 2008 due to a gold pricing regime that made gold mining unviable in Zimbabwe, despite a rise in international gold prices.

New Dawn said its targeted objective was to reach consolidated annualised gold production of 50 000 to 60 000 ounces within 18 to 24 months, and 100,000 ounces within 4 to 5 years.

"(The) ultimate goal is to reach 200 000 to 250 000 ounces of annualised gold production and become a mid-tier gold producer," said New Dawn in its announcement.


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Ireland footballer faces deportation after asylum seeker bid fails

 

2010 07 06

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/06/ireland-asylum-seeker-footballer-deportation

 

Oscar Sibanda, a Zimbabwean player for Shelbourne FC, fears persecution if he is forced to return to homeland

Henry McDonald in Mosney

guardian.co.uk

Tuesday 6 July 2010 16.46 BST

Article history

Oscar Sibanda has fought a three-year battle to seek asylum in Ireland. Photograph: Kim Haughton

Every time Oscar Sibanda puts on his Shelbourne football shirt he knows that this could be his last match or training session for the League of Ireland side.

The 22-year-old Zimbabwean could be deported from Ireland at any time after a three-year battle to seek asylum.

On a bright summer morning Sibanda trains on the beach close to the Mosney asylum centre - a former Butlins camp that is home to 800 asylum seekers, including many young families.

Sibanda fled Zimbabwe to join his mother and siblings in Ireland. They had left Zimbabwe because their mother was a member of the opposition party, Movement for Democratic Change, and feared persecution at the hands of Robert Mugabe's regime.

"My problems here in Ireland are to do with a translator," said Sibanda. "I come from Matabeleland and the translator thought I spoke the same language as they do across the border in South Africa. He put me down on the asylum form as South African and the authorities in Dublin decided I didn't face persecution. I got out of Zimbabwe through South Africa but I left my passport behind. I had no proof I came from Zimbabwe and that my family were under threat from Mugabe's regime."

Although he has signed this season for semi-professional side Shelbourne FC, Sibanda cannot be paid by the club. Like all asylum seekers he is only entitled to €19.10 (£16) a week. "I have to pay about €10 for transport to matches and training. The other players are getting part-time wages, but I am not legally entitled to them. All I want to do is use my skills as a footballer to earn a living while I am still in my 20s, pay my taxes and be a good citizen."

Sibanda has also worked as a volunteer for Sport Against Racism Ireland and runs a team made up of immigrants named after Albert Johanneson, one of the first black players in English football. He has also been on the books of two other League of Ireland teams, Shamrock Rovers and Drogheda United. A number of former players and managers have signed a petition urging the authorities to grant Sibanda asylum. So far their pleas have failed.

While he can visit his mother, two sisters and one brother who all live legally in Drogheda, Sibanda lives on his own in Mosney. Last week he received a letter from the Department of Justice saying that he was one of more than 100 to be relocated from Mosney to Dublin.

"I will be even further away from my mother and siblings," Sibanda said. "I am in the last phase now and I know that anything can happen because the authorities can do what they like with me."

He added: "It's funny, but my dream as a footballer when I came here was that one day I might be good enough to play for Ireland. That's why I still wear the kit."


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Kenya drawn into US-Russia spy saga

 

2010 07 06

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/Kenya%20drawn%20into%20US%20Russia%20spy%20saga%20%20/-/1056/953374/-/vi5ialz/-/

 

SHARE BOOKMARKPRINTEMAILRATING

New York newspapers are on display featuring personal photos of suspected Russian spies Anna Chapman (L) and Richard and Cynthia Murphy at a news stand in New York, June 30, 2010. Russia and the United States sought to cool a heated scandal sparked by the arrest of 11 suspected Kremlin spies, amid fears the Cold War-style furore could harm improving ties. PHOTO/AFP

By PETER LEFTIE

Posted Tuesday, July 6 2010 at 21:00

IN SUMMARY

Father of woman held on claims of espionage was a diplomat here

The father of a Russian woman arrested in the United States on allegations of espionage worked in Kenya in the early 90s.

Ms Anna Chapman, 28, who was seized last week is believed to have been part of a KGB spying ring.

Now Kenya has been dragged into the controversy after it emerged that her father worked at the Russian embassy in Nairobi.

The international media was on Tuesday abuzz with reports that Mr Vasily Kuschenko, was also suspected of being an undercover agent when he was in Kenya.

According to the reports, Mr Kuschenko ran a sky diving school in Kenya during his tour of duty, raising suspicion that he could have been on a secret mission.

The Foreign Affairs Ministry has promised to issue a statement on the matter on Wednesday.

“Let me check out all the facts about the matter then I can speak tomorrow,” Foreign Affairs Minister Moses Wetang’ula said on Tuesday.

Right wing British tabloid Daily Mail described Ms Chapman as a “practised deceiver” whose father, 53-year-old Kuschenko, worked in Kenya when she was a teenager.

According to the reports, the Russian Foreign ministry has refused to discussion about Mr Kuschenko or his career.

British papers report that much of Mr Kuschenko’s work was undercover. He and his wife Irina, 51, live in Moscow flats set aside for diplomats.

Also dragged into the saga is Zimbabwe following revelations that Ms Chapman had links with a Harare tycoon.

Her former husband, Briton Alex Chapman, reportedly told British intelligence that she set up a company, Southern Union with Mr Ken Sharpe, a Zimbabwean businessman.

The company, which has charitable status was set up to enable Zimbabwean expatriates send money back home at competitive exchange rates.

Zimbabwe’s state-owned Herald newspaper on Tuesday reported that Mr Sharpe was recently involved in brokering a deal between the Harare City Council and a Ukrainian company for the construction of a major road in the capital.

British media report that Ms Chapman moved millions of US dollars between Zimbabwe and the UK using Southern Union.

The money was allegedly laundered for espionage purposes.

There have also been claims that her father, was a KGB agent in Zimbabwe at the time.


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William Hague Waffles Through Zimbabwe Questions - (UK Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs)

 

2010 07 06

http://changezimbabwe.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2984&Itemid=2

 

Written by Makusha Mugabe

Tuesday, 06 July 2010

If proof were needed that the new ConDem government in the UK has put Zimbabwe on the back-burner, yesterday's House of Commons question-and-answer with Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, William Hague, provided it.

Asked by his own backbenchers, Laura Sandys (South Thanet), Jessica Lee (Erewash) and Gavin Williamson (South Staffordshire) what his most recent assessment is of the state of UK-Zimbabwe relations was, Hague had little to say.

He waffled about wanting to support the aspirations of the Zimbabwean people for a peaceful, prosperous and democratic Zimbabwe and working with reformers in Zimbabwe and the region to achieve reforms necessary for free and fair elections.

This is despite Zanu (PF) unleashing violence all over the country and forcing meetings of the Parliamentary Constitutional Committee, which is supposed to produce the necessary constitutional changes, to be rescheduled amid reported chaos.

Even on what he could do for British nationals who were born in Zimbabwe, but whose property has been expropriated, some of whom live in Laura Sandys constituency of South Thanet, Hague could only say the British Government condemns illegal farm and property seizures.

“We should make that very clear. Economic regeneration in Zimbabwe depends on respect for the rule of law, and we urge the Zimbabwean Government to respect the rule of law and to end such seizures,” were the hollow words.

Jessica Lee pressed him further on the Kimberley Process, asking what the UK was now going to do to ensure that conflict diamonds (from Zimbabwe) did not make their way into the UK, Hague again was tongue-tied, saying only that the European Union, including the United Kingdom, had called for efforts to reach agreement through the Kimberley Process so that all diamond mining in the in Zimbabwe becomes subject to it.

The recent KP meeting in Israel failed to conclude on this issue and Zimbabwe has threatened to start selling diamonds outside the KP process, and in fact has reportedly already built a runaway in the diamond mining area in readiness to export to China and other countries that have no qualms about conflict diamonds.

While the Zimbabwean government would like its diamonds to be excluded from description as “conflict diamonds” - there is a lot of conflict surrounding them including the Chiadzwa people who are being forced to make way for the diamond mining without any provision having been made for them to benefit from the resource found in their traditional area, one of the least developed in Zimbabwe.

There is also conflict in the ownership of the claims, which were illegally allocated to crony companies of the Zanu (PF) and the military leadership in flagrant disregard of a High Court order.

There is continued smuggling by soldiers who are supposed to be guarding the diamond field, and investigations by a Parliamentary Committee with oversight on mining issues has been thwarted by the Minister of Mines.

Worst of all the director of the only local non-governmental organisation recognised by the Kimberly Process, who is in poor health, has been detained in inhuman conditions after being pulled from a hospital bed by prison guards only a day after an operation on his throat.

But Hague could not even find words of comfort for him, nor words to condemn is malicious prosecution which is clearly intended to silence dissenting voices which interfere with Zanu (PF) leaders' exploitation of the resources of the country for their own use.

On what action he was taking with other African nations to ensure that Zimbabwe adopts a new constitution and ends the endemic corruption within the country, David Cameron's foreign secretary only said the UK would work closely with its partners in Africa, especially South Africa.

SA has been tasked by the AU to mediate, but she has actually used the opportunity to gerrymander the negotiating process to the benefit of Robert Mugabe and his cabal. Neither the African Union, nor the SADC, even if they wanted to, can take any action on Zimbabwe because the South African mediator, Jacob Zuma, keeps saying he has not finished his process - just as his predecessor Thabo Mbeki did, thus buying time for Mugabe to steady himself after his shock electoral defeat a year and half ago.

“We support its (SA's) efforts and those of President Zuma to engage closely with Zimbabwe and to push it towards reform. We - the UK and other donors - also support, through the UN development programme, the implementation of the Zimbabwean constitution,” were more hollow words which did not placate Labour's Kate Hoey, an ardent supporter of Zimbabwe.

She reminded the Minister that the MDC had been promised by the African Union and SADC that the two bodies would honour the global political agreement (GNU) and ensure that it worked.

“But clearly they have not done so. Can we do anything more to put pressure on the AU and SADC, without which we will never get the free and fair elections that will make Zimbabwe once again a flourishing nation,” she asked.

Hague agreed that more diplomatic pressure could be put to leverage the situation, but again nothing concrete, and, he added, “we cannot guarantee it on our own.”

Labour's David Hanson (Delyn) piled on the pressure, reminding the Minister that Baroness Ashton, as the EU foreign affairs chief, recently met Government of National Unity Ministers and promised them a €20 million grant, despite no concrete progress being made on political issues.

“Does the Secretary of State have any idea what concrete progress means in reality,” he asked in mockery.

Admitting, Hague said, ”I think we can fairly say that concrete progress would be a great deal more than anything that is happening at the moment. There have been no noticeable improvements in the human rights situation in Zimbabwe, and we are deeply concerned about harassment and politically inspired detentions, which continue in that country. Concrete progress means a lot more than anything we have seen so far.”

But he repeated, “it is not within the UK’s power alone to deal with Mugabe’s regime,” and his mantra which had also become the last government's “working with South Africa and other partners in Africa”, to support the implementation of the constitution through the Department for International Development, and promising to review the situation.

He even admitted himself that it was a case of continuing all those things to try to help the situation in Zimbabwe rather than introducing one bold new initiative.

Last Updated ( Tuesday, 06 July 2010 )

 

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