Mugabe deploys more veterans to boost campaign

Reuters

Wed Jun 11, 2008 6:58pm BST

By Cris Chinaka

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe's party said on
Wednesday it would deploy more war veterans to campaign in some opposition
areas ahead of a presidential election run-off marred by violence.

Opposition Movement for Democratic Change leader (MDC) Morgan Tsvangirai
accuses ZANU-PF of widespread attacks on his supporters ahead of the June 27
vote, but says he is still confident of victory after beating Mugabe in the
first round.

ZANU-PF officials in the southern Masvingo province, where the ruling party
lost several parliamentary seats in rural districts traditionally considered
safe, told Zimbabwe state television they had stepped up their campaign
against "troublesome spots where MDC structures had taken root".

"We are setting up units of war veterans to go to those areas to fan out the
MDC, to campaign for President Mugabe, to confront and talk to some company
managers who are openly supporting these MDC structures," said retired Major
Alex Mudavanhu, ZANU-PF chairman for Masvingo.

"We are going to tell people that ZANU-PF is not going to lose this
election," he said.

Mugabe's guerrilla fighters from the 1970s independence war and ruling party
youth brigades are regularly deployed as political shock troops against the
opposition and have recently been threatening another bush war if Mugabe
loses.

Mugabe's support has been eroded by the economic collapse of the once
prosperous country, which he has ruled since independence from Britain in
1980. On Wednesday, Mugabe's government announced tax cuts for the low paid.

Tsvangirai says Zimbabweans cannot afford Mugabe's rule any further. He
accused ZANU-PF activists on Tuesday of killing 66 opposition supporters to
try to intimidate voters ahead of the run-off.

Mugabe's party denies waging war on its foes and says "MDC thugs" have
killed a number of ZANU-PF activists, including war veterans.

SATELLITE DISHES

On Wednesday, the MDC said the government had launched a campaign forcing
Zimbabweans to pull down home satellite dishes so they could not get foreign
television stations and would have to rely on the state broadcaster. The MDC
says that is biased.

Information Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu rejected the charge.

"What I heard was that a lunatic war veteran was going around telling people
to remove their satellite dishes and we stopped him because the government
is committed to free flow of information," Ndlovu told Reuters.

Tsvangirai, detained twice last week during campaigning, unveiled a
75-seater bus he said would help to win votes.

"We are going to be in every town, in every village to meet the people of
Zimbabwe," the MDC leader told supporters.

The bus bore the words "A new President ready to deliver a new Zimbabwe.
Morgan is the one".

Zimbabweans hope the election will start recovery from economic ruin that
has brought 165,000 percent inflation, 80 percent unemployment, chronic food
and fuel shortages and has sent millions fleeing to neighbouring countries.

South African President Thabo Mbeki, who has come under criticism for his
softly approach in trying to mediate in Zimbabwe's crisis, said his team was
doing everything it could to avoid "major problems" in the run-off.

"We are at one with ... most of the international community that the
incidents of violence and reported disruption of electoral activities of
some of the parties are a cause for serious concern," Mbeki told parliament.

Mugabe, 84, says ZANU-PF cannot lose power to an opposition backed by "white
imperialists." He says Western countries want to oust him over his seizure
of white-owned farms to give to landless blacks.

(Editing by Matthew Tostevin)

(Additional reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe and Nelson Banya; Wendell Roelf
in Cape Town)

Zanu-PF regime launches 'Operation Dzikisai Madhishi'

Sokwanele

The Zimbabwean government has announced the beginning of yet another
operation designed to oppress the people of Zimbabwe.

Under Operation Dzikisai Madhishi (Operation pull down your satellite dish)
the regime is forcing Zimbabweans to pull down their home satellite dishes
through which the majority of Zimbabweans have been able to access eTV,
SABC, Botswana Television as well some DSTV channels. The coverage of the
Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) is generally poor outside of the
main urban areas. The overwhelming propaganda content of this state channel
has seen the proliferation of private satellite dishes in recent years.

This operation is a concerted effort by the regime to close all spaces
through which information can be disseminated, with the objective of
stealing the election.

Zimbabwe has descended into unparalleled levels of media censorship. The
regime is determined to cut off Zimbabweans from the rest of the world by
ensuring that they are unable to receive news from outside Zimbabwe about
what is happening in their own country.

Operation Dzikisai Madhishi comes after the launch of Operation Makavotera
Papi (how did you vote) which has seen the unleashing of horrendous acts of
politically motivated violence against MDC supporters since the March 29th
elections.

After the 2005 elections, the Zimbabwean government launched Operation
Murambatsvina to punish urban dwellers for their continued support for the
MDC and resulted in almost a million citizens being forced from their homes.

Operation Dzikisai Madhishi began in Matabeleland South last week and has
now spread throughout the country. It is being undertaken by elements of the
Central Intelligence Organisation, police, army and youth militia. (via an
MDC Press Release)

This entry was written by Hope on Wednesday, June 11th, 2008 at 10:49 am.
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Comments
  1.. Fish Eagle
  June 11th, 2008 11:11
  1
  This is an obvious extension of the ZPF campaign. The next move will be on
phone and Internet links.

  Those of you in the West should download PSIPHON.
  link http://psiphon.civisec.org/

  send your IP address plus password to trusted friends only.

  2.. Faraway
  June 11th, 2008 12:36
  2
  It's time to disable the propaganda machine. Go for ZBC transmission and
relay stations. Then the State newspaper presses. Be creative.
  What is better; nobody knows what's going on or everybody being falsely
informed?

  3.. Get Busy
  June 11th, 2008 13:23
  3
  This state has turned so rabbidly brutal against its own people. By so
doing they are simply hardening the people, with dire consequences. See what
has happened in Matabeleland, has Zanu ever won a seat there? Once upon a
time the country was purged of political opposition activists who came from
one region and that did not matter, now it is wholesale and it will matter
indeed. They need to be reminded of the fate of KABILA. THEY CAN NOT FOOL
THEMSELVES TO THINK THIS WILL LAST FOREVER. Its a pity that these ZANU
people think they are invinceble. I can sense there being an in house job.

ZANU-PF death threats for WOZA activists

By Tererai Karimakwenda
June 11, 2008

There is deep concern for the welfare of the 14 WOZA activists who were
arrested 2 weeks ago and are being detained at Chikurubi and Harare Remand
Prisons. Lawyer Gift Mpisi, who is representing the WOZA detainees and
Shepherd Ndhlovu of the Men of Zimbabwe Arise (MOZA) were part of a group of
6 WOZA activists who attempted to deliver food to those at Chikurubi but
were blocked by ZANU-PF thugs in an official vehicle.

Ndhlovu said the incident happened at the prison entrance, where the thugs
approached in a twin cab with a ZANU-PF insignia and began accusing the WOZA
members of being MDC supporters. According to Ndhlovu the thugs said the
detained WOZA activists would be dead the next time they see them.
Ndhlovu is concerned because 12 of the 14 in detention were granted bail on
Wednesday but prison officials have not released them yet. Meanwhile
coordinators Jenni Williams and Magodonga Mahlangu were denied bail
Wednesday after the state claimed that they were likely to mobilise people
to demonstrate on the streets and cause violence ahead of the runoff
election.

The thugs ordered Ndhlovu and the others to follow them in their own car, to
Mabvuku Police station. Then they said they were taking them to the ZANU-PF
offices in Harare - a known torture centre where opposition officials and
supporters have been severely assaulted.

Lawyer Gift Mpisi said they had no intention of going to the ZANU-PF
offices, but pretended to comply. The ZANU-PF vehicle ran red lights at some
point and this caused a commotion with other drivers and members of the
public, allowing the WOZA members to escape. They immediately went to Harare
Central police station to report the incident.

There is concern for the WOZA activists because the government this weekend
announced new tougher measures meant to keep activists in detention for
longer periods. Deputy Attorney General Johannes Tomana told the state-run
Herald newspaper that bail would be denied to 'anyone suspected of
committing or inciting unrest.'

The WOZA activists first appeared in court on May 30. They were granted bail
but the state immediately appealed the decision and they were remanded in
custody until June 20, when they will answer to the charges. The bail appeal
hearing had already been postponed twice.

The activists are being charged with conducting activities likely to cause
public disorder. Williams is facing the extra charge of causing disaffection
among the police and with distributing false information.

SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news

Urgent Appeal for Solidarity by Zimbabwean Women to African Women and Women All Over the World

ILO slams Zimbabwe for 'flagrant disregard' of unions' rights

africasia

GENEVA, June 11 (AFP)

The International Labour Organisation on Wednesday criticised the Zimbabwean
government's "flagrant disregard" for the rights of unions and called it to
accept an investigation into the issue.

In a report, an ILO commission slammed the "obstruction" by the Zimbabwean
government which for two consecutive years has refused to appear before the
ILO to be quizzed on whether it has applied international conventions.

During a special sitting on the situation in Zimbabwe held by the ILO's
annual congress, only Cuba's representative spoke out for the Zimbabwean
government, according to Jan Sithole, who is director general of the
federation of unions in Swaziland.

All other representatives from employer, employee and governmental
organisations criticised Harare's regime, said Sithole, who was speaking on
behalf of 11 African countries' unions, representing over 12 million
workers.

In an attempt to escape the judgement of the Commission, Zimbabwe's
government representative even left the conference hall for the public
gallery.

In the report presented on Wednesday, the ILO commission "regretted the
continual recourse made by the government to the Public Order and Security
Act (POSA) and lately to the Criminal Law Act of 2006, in the arrest and
detention of trade unionists for the exercise of their trade union
activities".

The ILO also noted with "deep concern" on the "surge in trade union rights
and human rights violations in the country and the ongoing threats to trade
unionists' physical safety".

In particular, it deplored the recent arrests of two union militants
Lovemore Motombo and Wellington Chibebe and asked all governments with
missions in the country to be present at the trial and "follow closely all
developments in relation to their case".

The UN agency also urged the government to "ensure all these basic civil
liberties, to repeal the Criminal Law Act and to cease abusive recourse to
the POSA".

In addition, it asked the government to halt all arrests, threats and
harrassment of trade unionists, and to drop all charges against them as well
as give them appropriate compensation.

Mbeki finally admits there is a crisis in Zimbabwe

By Tichaona Sibanda
11 June 2008

South African President Thabo Mbeki finally acknowledged there is a crisis
in Zimbabwe, when he told MP's in Johannesburg on Wednesday that violence in
the country was a cause for 'serious concern.'
Mbeki, who is also the SADC bloc's chief mediator on Zimbabwe, has always
downplayed the crisis in the country, even telling journalists in April
following the disputed harmonized elections that 'there was no crisis' in
Zimbabwe.

But on Wednesday, with the increase of political abductions and killings in
the country, Mbeki was forced to admit that the violence and disruption of
electoral activities needed to be addressed urgently.
'At the moment we are doing whatever we can to ensure that we do not
experience major problems in the presidential second-round elections, set
for June 27,' Mbeki said.

Elias Mudzuri, the MDC's organising secretary and MP elect for Warren Park,
welcomed Mbeki statement but believes he could have done more by calling on
Robert Mugabe to order his troops back into the barracks.

Soldiers, with the help of Zanu-PF militias and state security agents, are
being blamed for coordinating the crackdown on the supporters of the MDC.
The Joint Operations Command, a gathering of security and armed forces
chiefs currently in charge of the country, unleashed the armed soldiers
after it emerged that Mugabe and Zanu-PF had lost the March elections.

Speaking about Mbeki's statement, Mudzuri said: 'At this moment in time, we
cannot force him but appeal to his conscience that the person who is
suffering under his mediation is the common man on the street. As a result
of the absence of observers many people have unnecessarily lost their lives.'
He added; 'If he delays by another day to send observers, he's doing more
harm than good to all Zimbabweans because we cannot recover the lives of
people dying, we cannot recover the limbs of those maimed.'

Glen Mpani, regional coordinator for the Cape Town based 'Centre for the
Study of Violence and Reconciliation' said Mbeki should break his bond with
Mugabe and allow the crisis in Zimbabwe to be discussed at the highest
level.

Mpani said Mbeki could no longer pretend all was well in Zimbabwe when the
economic and political situation was deteriorating at an alarming rate. He
accused Mbeki of being complicit in protecting Mugabe throughout his entire
presidency, saying if he had spoken out against Zanu-PF's human rights
abuses years back, the situation could have been different .

'He cannot say violence in Zimbabwe is of serious concern when at the same
time he's playing a leading role in blocking the same issue from being
discussed at the United Nations. When people say Mbeki is in bed with Mugabe
this is what they mean,' Mpani said.

SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news

'Observers must go to Zim now'

IOL

    June 11 2008 at 01:20PM

The extensive deployment of Southern African Developing Community
observers in Zimbabwe is needed immediately, the University of Pretoria said
on Wednesday.

"These observers should not focus primarily on monitoring the polls on
voting day, but should be put in place as soon as possible to cover the
period leading up to the elections and a reasonable period thereafter," said
the university's centre for human rights, housed in its law faculty.

The centre's director Professor Frans Viljoen said whether an election
was free and fair could not be determined by only observing voting day.

It needed to take into account the pre-election period and the period
between voting and the release of results.

"At the moment there are clear indications that the pre-election
conditions are not only making a free and fair election impossible, but are
skewed in favour of the candidacy of President Mugabe."

Reported harassment, arrests, detentions and even the disappearance of
activists and leaders, media restriction, fear and intimidation of the
population and non-governmental organisations all worked against free and
fair elections.

As many observers as possible should be allowed into the country, said
Viljoen. - Sapa

MDC calls for urgent deployment of SADC observers

The Zimbabwean

Wednesday, 11 June 2008 14:01
The MDC said on Tuesday it was perplexed by the absence of SADC
observers on the ground, with just 17 days to go before the crucial
presidential run-off on 27th June.
Despite the SADC bloc promising to send up to 400 observers, only
about 50 have so far arrived in the country.
Botswana became the first country from SADC to send observers, when 25
jetted in on Saturday. Another 25 will fly in on Wednesday. This other group
is from the SADC secretariat. There were 162 SADC observers during the March
29 elections.
A SADC Heads of State Summit held in April in Lusaka, following the
disputed March elections, agreed that the number of observers would need to
be increased for the run-off.  The MDC Secretary for International Affairs,
Professor Elphas Mukonoweshuro, said they had hoped that a heavy presence
would deter Zanu-PF from it's crackdown on MDC activists.
SADC has now blamed financial constraints for the delay in sending
observers, but the United States announced on Monday it had availed US$7
million dollars, to help ensure they travelled to Zimbabwe for the
elections.
US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters in
Washington that the money was 'not only to ensure that there are proper,
sufficient numbers from countries that are going to supply the observers,
but that they have the resources to do their job on the ground.'
Last week South African President Thabo Mbeki, the region's chief
mediator on Zimbabwe, said in a television interview that SADC was
increasing the number of observers 'so that they can cover all parts of
Zimbabwe' adding that 'they need to go in as early as possible.' That
statement was made with less than a month to go to the runoff, so President
Mbeki's understanding of what is 'early' is not necessarily the same as that
of the victims of violence.
The intensity of the state sponsored violence has increased on a daily
basis and Mukonoweshuro said that since the March elections at least 60 MDC
supporters have been killed and over 50 000 displaced, in retributive
attacks by ruling party militias.
The MDC MP elect for Gutu South said Tsvangirai, who claimed he won
the presidential election in March, agreed to participate in the run off on
condition that regional and international observers were allowed in early
and without restrictions.
'Everyone is agreeing observers should come in early, we are having a
crucial election that could decide the destiny of the country and yet there
is no evidence of any electoral observers anyway in the country. Perhaps
they're observing from the comfort of their hotel rooms,' he said.
Mukonoweshuro went on; 'I don't want to be harsh, but one can conclude
perhaps they are waiting for more blood to be shed before they begin to take
note.'
SWRadio Africa

Jails Emptied to Take in Opponents

The Monitor (Kampala)

11 June 2008
Posted to the web 11 June 2008

Kitsepile Nyathi
Harare

Zimbabwe is planning to empty its flooded jails of common criminals to make
way for people arrested for political violence amid fears President Robert
Mugabe's government will step up the persecution of opposition activists
ahead of the June 27 presidential run-off election.

Thousands of people, mainly opposition supporters have been arrested since
Mr Mugabe lost the first round of the election to Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) leader, Mr Morgan Tsvangirai in March on allegations of
violence.

Although the United Nations and NGOs blame ruling Zanu PF supporters and
former fighters of the country's liberation war loyal to Mr Mugabe for the
violence that has killed more than 60 MDC supporters and left thousands
injured, the majority of those arrested are from the opposition.

Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa, told state media on Tuesday that he had
made proposals for the amnesty to create space for those convicted of
political violence.

He said cases of politically motivated violence were on the increase
countrywide with a number of murders, abductions and cases of destruction of
property recorded. "We are proposing amnesty in order to create space for
those convicted of political violence," he said. "We recognise that
incidents of political violence are on the increase and we want to take
measures to stamp them out."

There are an estimated 20 000 people in Zimbabwe's prisons with a carrying
capacity of 18 000. But human rights groups suspect that the population has
swelled dramatically since the elections.

In the run up to the March elections, where Mr Mugabe's Zanu PF lost its
parliamentary majority for the first time since independence in 1980 to the
MDC, the government denied reports that it was emptying jails to make way
for opposition activists.

Journalists, lawyers and MDC parliamentarians have been targeted in the
crackdown, which the opposition says is intended to cripple its campaign. Mr
Mugabe goes into the election as an underdog after losing dismally to Mr
Tsvangirai in the first round.

An official at the Attorney General's office said they had adopted a policy
of refusing bail to those accused of political violence.

UK Parliament Debate on Zimbabwe

Emptying the Food Basket - We Know the Culprits

The New Times (Kigali)

OPINION
11 June 2008
Posted to the web 11 June 2008

Rejoice Ngwenya
Kigali

Follow the spoor of Robert Mugabe's agricultural policies from 1999 onwards
and you appreciate why his recent posturing at the food summit in Rome was
nothing more than grandiose political gimmick.

Seven million of Mugabe's fellow citizens will soon have to face a bloody
and confrontational electoral run off on empty stomachs, yet Mugabe has
managed to expel humanitarian agencies from rural areas to safeguard his
receding political empire.

Poverty, political mileage and food are an inextricable conundrum of
survivalist patronage in Zimbabwe, understood only by those who are
collective victims.

The ageing dictator's self-serving ideological delusions that America,
England and EU are responsible for Zimbabwe's food woes surprisingly ring
tones of sympathy with many so-called anti-globalisation and
anti-neo-liberal converts who conspire to camouflage Mugabe's policy
deficiencies under a collective global banner.

Yet the facts are evident. Before his disastrous 'land reform' of 1999,
Zimbabwe was a net exporter of food. The abused white commercial farmers -
whose human resource policies were not half as demonic as the current
'indigenous' ones - merely paid the price of dabbling in opposition
politics.

If the current 'settlers' are Mugabe's cronies or eternally grateful
perennial praise singers, how different are they from their predecessors in
the context of democratic right of freedom of association?

At a closer look, Zimbabwe's beneficiaries of 'land reform', in US dollar
terms, have received ten times as much in input support than previous farm
owners.

Between 1980 and 1999, farming was considered a business, not part of a
complex web of political philanthropy. Investors went to seek loans from
commercial banks, traded and exported on the open market.

Nowadays, Gideon Gono, Central Bank Governor of Zimbabwe is complicit to a
broader scheme of highly politicised handouts of tractors, fertilisers, seed
and diesel that easily find their way onto the black market.

Meanwhile, this public charade of policy misdemeanours has driven inflation
beyond the two million percent mark and decimated Zimbabwe's food baskets.

If Horace Campbell, the acclaimed Pan-Africanist says "food riots in
Senegal, Ivory Coast, South Africa, Egypt, Somalia and Cameroon are the
outward signs of the stirrings of a new liberation movement where the
peoples of Africa are demanding food, clothing, shelter and access to proper
health care", I argue that in Zimbabwe, just restore the sanctity of
property rights and we will smile all the way to the grain silos!

The uncanny propensity of Africans to seek scapegoats for policy failures
has manifested itself in xenophobic attacks on Zimbabweans by South African
hooligans, bankrolled with COSATU's socialist rhetoric.

Pan Africanist Tajudeen Abdul-Raheem says 'unpatriotic national leaders sell
Africa to anti-people globalisation and neo-liberal policies that continue
to impoverish Africans', but my question is, how can Zimbabwe, with so much
arable land, be poorer than Namibia with so many sand dunes?

I insist that African liberation and nationhood can co-exist with
globalisation, trade and privatisation. Otherwise how else can we fuel
economic growth and self-sufficiency?

Robert Mugabe and his fellow revolutionaries have studied Maoist dogma long
enough to remember that it is easier to control starving masses than an
enlightened well-off middle class.

Zimbabwean NGOs that have been, since 1980, covering up his policy deficits
are now criminalised for supplying food to starving citizens.

Bright Matonga, self-appointed minister for misinformation, alleges that
NGOs use food to buy votes for opposition to ultimately discredit Robert
Mugabe.

But when it comes to Gideon Gono's lavish 'farm mechanization scheme',
government spin doctors call label it 'food security'. Monumental hypocrisy!

Rejoice Ngwenya is a regular columnist for www.AfricanLiberty.org. He is a
Zimbabwean Freemarket Activist and Political Analyst based in Harare.

Diplomatically Quiet on Zimbabwe

 

By Matthew Hennessey, Patrick Bond

   

June 11, 2008

Pro-MDC expatriates in South Africa. Photo by Sokwanele-Zimbabwe (CC).

The disputed election of March 2008 has further eroded the economy of Zimbabwe, a nation once regarded as "the breadbasket of Africa." Millions of refugees, fleeing a nearly decade-long economic collapse, have flooded into neighboring South Africa, where recent outbreaks of violence against foreigners have provoked harsh criticism of president Thabo Mbeki. According to Patrick Bond, director of the Centre for Civil Society at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, Mbeki's policy of "quiet diplomacy" has nurtured the dictatorship of Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe's ruler for nearly thirty years.

Matthew Hennessey of Policy Innovations interviews Bond, author of several books including Zimbabwe's Plunge and Looting Africa: The Economics of Exploitation.

Is land reform at the root of the political crisis in Zimbabwe?

No, I see it as a symptom of the conflict, useful mainly for confusing people. After Mugabe lost the February 2000 constitutional referendum and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) rose to threaten his hold over the state, land politics became a central piece of the ruling party's legitimation strategy. It appears now, however, that cronyism has gone so far that even once-enthusiastic backers of land redistribution via the war veterans and paramilitaries have to acknowledge high levels of corruption, incompetence, and an agricultural crisis. Sorting out agriculture, post-Mugabe, will be exceptionally difficult if there is a relatively close balance of forces between Mugabe's cronies and a new, democratic government. It's easy to see how U.S., British, and other Northern pressure will only make matters worse.

How has the land reform issue been dealt with in South Africa?

Nearly identically to Zimbabwe in its 1980–2000 policy period. The same "willing seller, willing buyer" strategy was adopted. Even the same World Bank staff have been involved. And the results, too, have been the same: practically no land reform in South Africa's first fourteen years of democracy. Around 4 percent of arable land has changed hands, when 30 percent was the target for the first five years. This was based upon a natural turnover in the market of six percent and the expectation that an end to subsidies for white farmers would put even more land on the market. The obvious consequence has been growing social unrest in both urban and rural settings.

Does the crisis in Zimbabwe threaten southern Africa's regional economic stability?

In spite of Zimbabwe's meltdown since late 1997, there have been fairly good gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates in the three neighboring states to the east, south, and west: Mozambique, South Africa, and Botswana. It is plausibly argued, for example by the Financial Times correspondent in Harare, that South African businesses have benefited from Zimbabwe's meltdown thanks to large inflows of desperate and inexpensive labor and takeovers in the domestic market as manufacturers went bankrupt. Remember, Zimbabwe used to have the world's third-largest industrial economy as a percentage of GDP.

The main "risk" is an awareness by business leaders that what happens in Zimbabwe is a harbinger for southern Africa's problems, since so many nations have rather similar appearances. The biggest difference in South Africa, though, is a strong civil society which has contested what's called the "Zanufication" of the African National Congress, with a degree of success.

Do you expect violence in Zimbabwe to worsen prior to the June 27 runoff?

Yes, and it's happening now. Thabo Mbeki's younger brother, Moeletsi, gave one of the most eloquent warnings of how bad things might get on Sky Television last year. Reading this will help you to understand why Thabo has nurtured Mugabe's dictatorship, and why intense violence is the inevitable result.

Should he be elected, what should Morgan Tsvangirai do to address the dire economic conditions inside Zimbabwe?

Hopefully, Tsvangirai keeps his word and strives to win the June election outright rather than agree to a top-down government of national unity which would cement all the worst features of political life in Zimbabwe. As the situation in Kenya shows, there's no guarantee of stability while an Old Guard elite retains partial power. If Tsvangirai were to miraculously win and be appointed president, the first job for any serious government would be to end the crony relationships that are so central to the inflationary surge. Dislodging several thousand parasitic bureaucrats will take enormous effort.

The challenge is greater because of the conditions that lending countries and institutions would likely attach to aid and loan money ($2 billion/year is anticipated). These conditions would include the full liberalization of macroeconomic relations, privatization of parastatal agencies, and decimation of the bloated civil service—actions that would rapidly shrink effective demand and create much more instability.

Repayment of Mugabe's $5 billion in odious debt to the Bretton Woods Institutions and other lenders will be another crucial economic choice: Progressives demand repudiation of this debt in view of the corrupt character and ineffectiveness of Mugabe's prior international financial dealings.

Although the World Bank called his 1990–95 Economic Structural Adjustment Programme "highly satisfactory" (the highest rating), the rest of the society believes it to have been a central structural cause of the subsequent meltdown. There are a few civil society initiatives, such as the Jubilee affiliate and the National People's Convention, which will resist the sort of program that the World Bank and its donors are currently drawing up, partly in association with Movement for Democratic Change economists and the Cato Institute.

Quite a serious class struggle lies immediately ahead in the event Tsvangirai wins and takes power.

Are South Africans satisfied with their government's response to what is happening in Zimbabwe?

Thankfully, no. The disgust most South Africans have for Mbeki's quiet diplomacy approach to Zimbabwe—i.e., nurturing Mugabe's dictatorship—is similar to the disgust for the structural aspects of his rule in South Africa, including AIDS denial and pro-poverty/profit policies.

His economic policies led to such intense inequality—higher even than during apartheid—and also the doubling of unemployment, while the West cheered him on, that grassroots reaction was inevitable. Recently this has turned proto-fascistic with xenophobia, but the reaction is also captured in a more hopeful sign: There are more protests and demonstrations in South Africa than just about anywhere else in the world.

The challenge is to help channel this amazing energy and address the local grievances in a structural manner, so that society can quickly move to both a post-nationalist and post-neoliberal footing. The Zimbabwe situation has such an adverse balance of forces that getting to the first stage will be difficult enough, since Mugabe appears ready to cling to power at all costs—and the second stage may be foiled by the heavy hands of bumbling Western diplomats.

Meanwhile, at least a couple of million Zimbabweans here in South Africa are hunkering down, as it's not safe to go home, and it's sometimes not safe to go outdoors in South Africa either. This is in part because Pretoria has been really slow, stingy, and xenophobic in its own right, when it comes to refugee relief.

Coalition Agreements...

Comment from a correspondent -

AS this country sinks back into war, I re read the two coalition 
agreements which got trashed, the last one on Feb 2. Had the two 
MDC's fought the election together, we would not be in this position 
we are in today.

APRIL 2007 COALITION – PLUS MINUTES OF JULY 07 NATIONAL COUNCIL MEETING REFERRING TO COALITION (PAGE 8),

AND STELLA ALLBERRY’S COMMENT ON FAILED COALITION IN FEB 2008 (page 9)

FEB 2008 COALITION AGREEMENT THAT WAS REJECTED BY TSVANGIRAI – PAGE 11 (PAGE 17 HAS RATIOS OF SEATS BY PROVINCE)

DRAFT Coalition Agreement

___________

Preamble

Recognising that the differences which have arisen within the MDC must be put aside and that the two MDC formations should work together in the national interest;

Believing that meaningful change in Zimbabwe can come only through democratic, free and fair elections in which every Zimbabwean citizen has a vote and a reasonable opportunity to exercise that vote;

Appreciating the strong national sentiment for unity of purpose in confronting the dictatorial governmental structures within Zimbabwe;

Realising that active co-operation between the two MDC formations will greatly enhance the prospects of successfully contesting elections:

Now therefore the two formations enter into this Coalition Agreement:–

Preliminary

1.   Interpretation

(1)  In this Agreement, the following terms have the following meanings¾

“Coalition” means the coalition formed by the two MDC formations in terms of clause 4, acting where appropriate through the structures established under this Agreement;

“Coalition structure” means a structure established in terms of clause 6, 7, 8 or 9;

“MDC formation” or “formation” means the formation led by Morgan Tsvangirai and the formation led by Arthur Mutambara respectively.

(2)  References to clauses and subclauses are to the clauses and subclauses of this Agreement.

2.   Mutual recognition

Each MDC formation fully accepts the independence and equality of the other formation.

3.   Co-operation between formations

The MDC formations agree that the principles enunciated in this Agreement provide a sound foundation for future co-operation between the two formations, and that these principles also constitute a sound basis for dealing with broader national issues.

Formation of coalition, Values, Principles, Goals and objectives

4.   Formation of Coalition

      (1) The MDC formations hereby agree to form a Coalition to be known as the Movement for Democratic Change Coalition.

      (2) The MDC Coalition will be bound by and strive for the fulfilment of the values and principles set out in clause 5.

      (3) The MDC Coalition will strive to achieve the goals and objectives set out in clause 6.

5.  Values and Principles

(1) The MDC Coalition will at all times be bound by the following general principles and values:

a)      respect for the equality of all persons without regard to race, ethnicity, gender, language, religion, political opinion and place of birth or origin;

b)      respect for the inherent dignity of each and every person and in particular the right to life and bodily safety;

c)      respect for human rights and in particular freedom of expression, assembly, movement and the right to liberty and protection of the law;

d)      respect for democratic principles and democratic discourse;

e)      adherence to the principle of non-violence in the conduct of all political activity, including interaction between the two formations;

f)       the pursuit of meaningful political change in Zimbabwe through democratic, peaceful, free and fair elections.

6.   Goals and objectives of Coalition

The MDC formations commit themselves to working together and supporting each other in the Coalition, in accordance with its values and principles, to achieve the following goals and objectives through the use of non-violent, legitimate means¾

       (a)   the replacement of tyrannical governmental and political structures in Zimbabwe by a new democratic order which creates a non-racist, non-tribalist, non-sexist and tolerant society which respects equally and fairly different ethnic, religious, cultural and political groups;

       (b)   the formulation, adoption and implementation of a new democratic constitution which has been agreed to through an inclusive and transparent process involving all the main political and civil society organisations in Zimbabwe;

       (c)   the formulation, adoption and implementation of a new electoral order in Zimbabwe which complies with democratic principles and international electoral standards.

Structures of Coalition

7.   National Coalition Council

(1)  The MDC formations agree to establish forthwith a National Coalition Council composed of the national executive committee of each formation.

(2)  Meetings of the National Coalition Council will be chaired on an alternate basis by the National Chairpersons of each formation.

(3)  The National Coalition Council must meet at least twice a year.

(4)   Meetings of the National Coalition Council will be called or convened at the request of the Coalition Executive Committee.

(5)  The National Coalition Council will have power and authority, in furtherance of the Coalition’s objectives¾

       (a)   to give broad policy direction to the Coalition structures;  and

       (b)   to assign or delegate functions to Coalition structures to enable them fully to implement this Agreement.

8.   Coalition Executive Committee

(1)  There will be a committee of the National Coalition Council, to be known as the Coalition Executive Committee consisting of the following persons from the formations¾

       (a)   the Presidents and the Vice Presidents;  

        (b)   the National Chairpersons and Vice-National Chairpersons;

       (c)   the Secretary-Generals and the Vice Secretary-Generals;

       (d)   the Treasurer-Generals and Vice-Treasurer Generals;

        (f)  the National Directors of Elections.

(2)  The Coalition Executive Committee will be responsible for devising effective joint political strategies, including strategies in relation to elections, to further the objectives of the Coalition.

(3)  The President of each formation will preside as chairperson at alternate meetings of the Coalition Executive Committee, and will be regarded as chairperson of the committee from the commencement of the meeting at which he or she presides until immediately before the commencement of the next meeting.

(4)  The Coalition Executive Committee may give directions to the Coalition Task Force regarding the implementation of strategies it has devised.

(5)  The Coalition Executive Committee, through its chairperson, must keep the National Coalition Council regularly informed of its decisions and their implementation.

9.   Coalition Task Force

(1)  There will be a committee of the National Coalition Executive Committee to be known as the Coalition Task Force and consisting of the following persons from the formations¾

(a)          the Secretary-Generals and Deputy Secretary-Generals;

(b)          the Treasurer-Generals and Deputy Treasurer-Generals;

(c)          the National Directors of Elections;

(d)          the National Organising Secretaries;

(e)          the Information and Publicity Secretaries; .

(f)           the National Chairpersons of the Women’s and Youth Assemblies and

(g)          the Women and Youth Secretary-Generals or National Secretaries.

(2)  The Coalition Task Force will be responsible for¾

       (a)   effectively implementing the policies and strategies of the Coalition;  and

       (b)   fund raising to support Coalition activities, including voter education and the organisation of MDC election campaigns.

(3)  In consultation with each other, the Secretaries-General of the formations will be responsible for setting up a secretariat to support the work of the Coalition Executive Committee.

(4)  The publicity functions relating to the Coalition’s activities will be performed by jointly by the Secretaries-General of the formations.

10. Provincial, district and ward structures

(1)  There will be Coalition Task Forces at Provincial, District and Ward levels which will consist at each level of the following persons from the formations:

(a)          Chairpersons;

(b)          Secretaries;

(c)          Treasurers;

(d)          Organising Secretaries;

(e)          Election Directors;

(f)           Information and Publicity Secretaries; and

(g)          Chairpersons for Women and Youth.

(3)  If the boundaries of a province, district or ward, as recognised by one formation, differ from the boundaries recognised by the other formation, the Coalition Task Force will determine which boundaries should be recognised for the purpose of this Agreement.

(4)  The functions of the Coalition Committees will be to ensure that this Agreement, and the policies and strategies devised by the National Coalition Council and the Coalition Executive Committee, are fully implemented within their respective provinces, districts and wards.

11. Convening of meetings of Coalition structures

(1)  Coalition structures, in consultation with each other, will meet at such times and places as they may decide from time to time.

(2)  The chairperson of a Coalition structure¾

       (a)   may convene a special meeting of the structure at any time;

       (b)   must convene a special meeting of the structure on the written request of not fewer than of one-third of its members, which meeting must be convened for a date not sooner than seven days and not later than thirty days after the chairperson’s receipt of the request.

(3)  No business may be discussed at a special meeting convened in terms of paragraph (b) of subclause (2) except the business specified in the request for the meeting.

(4)  The Secretary-Generals must ensure that every member of the structure is given at least forty-eight hours’ notice of every meeting of the structure, and the notice must specify the business to be transacted at the meeting:

Provided that where it is urgently necessary to do so, a Coalition structure may hold a special meeting even if its members have been given less than forty-eight hours’ notice of the meeting, but the reasons for doing so must be fully recorded in the minutes of the meeting;

12. Procedure at meetings of Coalition structures

(1)  If for any reason the chairperson of a Coalition structure is not present within fifteen minutes after a meeting of the structure was due to commence, the other joint chairperson will chair the meeting, and if that other chairperson is also absent for any reason, the members present must elect one of their number to preside at the meeting as acting chairperson.

(2)  A majority of the total membership of a Coalition structure will form a quorum at any meeting of the structure.

(3)  Decisions of Coalition structures must be reached on the basis of consensus, and if a structure is unable to reach consensus on any issue, the issue must be referred to a higher structure for decision.

(4)  Subject to this clause, the procedure to be adopted at meetings of a Coalition structure is to be determined by the structure itself, except where a higher structure has specified the procedure to be adopted.

Selection of Candidates

13. Presidential elections

              (1)  The MDC formations agree that if the Coalition decides to contest the next Presidential election, the Coalition will put forward a single candidate to contest it, and that candidate will be chosen by the formation led by Morgan Tsvangirai.

      (2)  If the candidate referred to in subclause (1) wins the Presidential election, he or she will appoint as one of the Vice-President a person nominated by the formation led by Arthur Mutambara.

14. Elections to the House of Assembly

 (1) If the Coalition decides to contest the next general election on the basis of the current constitutional provisions (that is one hundred and twenty elected seats), the question of which formation should put forward a candidate to contest a seat will be decided as follows¾

       (a)   where a member of one of the formations holds a seat, or held it immediately before it became vacant, that formation will put forward a candidate, after consultation with appropriate organs of the other formation, to contest the seat;

       (b)   where a seat was not held by a member of either formation, each of the formations must, within the prescribed period of time, hold primary election to select a candidate for this seat. An Electoral College with thereafter be established to decide on which of the two candidates will be selected to contest that seat. The Electoral College will consist of 30 persons from each of the formations. The Electoral College may, as part of the process of selection, interview each of the candidates.  In the event that the Electoral College is unable to reach a consensus on which of the two candidates to select, the matter will be referred to the Coalition Executive Committee. The Coalition Executive Committee will, by consensus, decide which of the two candidates to select. Its decision will be final and binding.

        (c)  in selecting candidates for the next general election in respect of whom clause 14(1)(b) applies the Coalition must ensure that each formation will have fifty per cent of the candidates.

(2)  If a by-election for a seat in the House of Assembly is to be held before the next general election, the decision to contest it will be reached by the Coalition after a process of consultation, and if it is decided to contest the seat, the allocation of the seat between the formations will be determined in accordance with subclause (1).

(3)  In the selection of candidates for a general election, the Coalition must try to ensure that 50 per cent of the chosen candidates for seats in the House of Assembly are women, but if that target is not possible it must ensure that at least 30 per cent of the candidates are women.

15. Elections to the Senate

(1)  If the Coalition decides to contest the next general election on the basis of the current constitutional provisions (that is fifty elected seats), each formation will be allocated fifty per cent of the Senate seats available.

(2)  In the selection of candidates for a general election, the Coalition must ensure that 50 per cent of the chosen candidates for seats in the Senate are women.

16. Local authority elections

 (1) If the Coalition decides to contest a local authority election, the question of which formation should put forward a candidate to contest a seat will be decided as follows¾

       (a)   where a member of one of the formations holds a seat, or held it immediately before it became vacant, that formation will put forward a candidate, after consultation with appropriate organs of the other formation, to contest the seat;

       (b)   where a seat was not held by a member of either formation, the Coalition will agree upon an equitable formula for deciding which formation should put forward a candidate to contest the seat, taking into account such considerations as the prospect of winning the seat in question.  The formation which is allocated the seat will put forward a candidate, after consultation with the appropriate organs of the other formation, to contest the seat.

(3)  In the selection of candidates for local authority elections, the Coalition must try to ensure that 50 per cent of the chosen candidates are women but if that target is not possible it must ensure that at least 30 per cent of the candidates are women.

17. Changes to structure of parliament or electoral system

In the event that before the next election:

(a)    there are changes to the law relating to the structure of parliament so as to increase the number of seats in the House of Assembly or Senate; and/or

(b)    there are changes to the electoral system so as to introduce a system of proportional representation based on a party list system;

the Coalition Executive Committee must meet to devise upon an equitable formula for the distribution of seats that is consistent with the principles set out in this agreement. The Coalition Executive Committee will transmit this formula to the National Coalition Council for its approval.

Post-Election Procedures

18. Allocation of Government posts by President

(1)  Subject to the Constitution, if the Coalition wins the presidential and parliamentary elections, the President will allocate Cabinet posts in consultation with the Vice President and the National Executive Council, taking into account the need for equitable distribution of posts between the two formations, regard being had to the importance of those posts:

Provided that the President may allocate not more than three of the Cabinet posts in his or her sole discretion.

(2)  Subject to the Constitution and any other law, the President will make appointments to other Government offices in consultation with the Vice President and the National Coalition Executive Committee, taking into account the need for equitable distribution of posts between the two formations paying due regard to the principle of equality of the two formations and the need for equal representation.

19. Priorities following election victory

If the Coalition wins the presidential and parliamentary elections and no new national Constitution has been brought into operation, the MDC Government commits itself to making the process of Constitutional reform its main priority, and in this regard it is agreed that¾

       (a)   the MDC Government will consider itself to be a transitional administration tasked with formulating and implementing a new democratic Constitution after thorough consultation with the people of Zimbabwe;

       (b)   the constitutional reform process will last no more than two years from the date on which the winning Coalition Presidential candidate takes office, and will culminate in fresh elections conducted in terms of the new Constitution which will be held not later than five years from that date.

20. Failure to win the election

If the Coalition loses the presidential and parliamentary elections, the National Coalition Council will meet to discuss the future of the Coalition.

Miscellaneous Provisions

21. Expenses of Coalition

Any expenses incurred in carrying out this Agreement, or in operating the Coalition structures, will be divided in equal shares between the two formations:

Provided that the Coalition Task Force may decide that any particular expenses will be shared in different proportions or will be borne by one or other of the formations.

22. Changes in Constitution or in electoral procedures

(1)  If any amendment to the national Constitution or to the electoral law should render any provisions of this Agreement inappropriate, the National Coalition Council must meet without delay in order to decide what modifications should be made to those provisions in order to meet the changed situation brought about by the constitutional or statutory amendments.

(2)  Any modifications agreed upon by the National Coalition Council in terms of subclause (1) will have effect as if they had been incorporated into this Agreement.

23. Further co-operation between formations

The MDC formations undertake to extend the co-operation between them with a view, if possible, to ultimate reconciliation and reunification.

From MDC MUTAMBARA National Council Meeting Minutes July 2007.

Coalition Agreement

·        The National Council noted that as a party we have consistently called for unity of purpose among all democratic forces, particularly the need to adopt the single candidate principle announced by the President of our Party on the 16th March 2007.

·        The National Council further noted that over the last ten months both formations of the MDC have been engaged in private internal negotiations which have in recent months focused on how to bring to fruition the single candidate philosophy. These negotiations culminated in a draft Coalition Agreement which seeks to give Zimbabweans an opportunity for a concerted effort to dislodge ZANU-PF.  Today we official make this agreement public

·        The National Council resolved to formally adopt the Coalition Agreement as is, i.e., as initially adopted by the two negotiating teams

·        The National Council noted that the Tsvangirai formation has rejected this Coalition agreement.  Fellow Zimbabweans, it is with a heavy heart that we announce that our colleagues have rejected a united front of all democratic forces that would have increased the opportunity for us to defeat the criminal regime of Robert Mugabe.  Unity of purpose and action is essential to energise and mobilise the people of Zimbabwe in their pursuit of change, more so when it is clear that the conditions of our elections will be neither free nor fair. If Morgan Tsvangirai does not understand the strategic value of unity in our struggle against Mugabe, Council wonders whether he is fit to be the President of Zimbabwe.  If Morgan Tsvangirai is such a weak and indecisive leader who cannot embrace what ordinary Zimbabweans are demanding (unity of action and purpose), is he worthy of the presidency of this country? Zimbabweans deserve better leadership.

·        Consequently, the National Council resolved to proceed on its own in preparation for any future elections. We will be fielding our own Presidential candidate against both Robert Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai. We are here to present strategic vision and decisive leadership. The people of Zimbabwe demand nothing less.

·        The National Council further resolved that the Party still believes in the need for democratic forces to wok together. Unity of purpose and action in the opposition is still a core and central organising principle of the Party.  However, the Party will only participate in a process that gives life to the united front inspired by single candidate philosophy where there is mutual respect and trust for all parties.

Failed reunification, my account of what I experienced that tragic weekend

Stella Allberry,  National Executive -Secretary for Health, MDC (Mutambara)
7 February 2008

When our National Council ( MDC Arthur Mutambara ) was requested to attend an extraordinary National Council Meeting for the reunification process, there were mixed emotions as we travelled to Harare. Many of us had been deeply hurt in the last couple of years, and quite frankly were proud to be part of a sincere and principled group that were of one heart and vision, working tirelessly for the betterment of our country. We all  knew that for the sake of all our beloved Zimbabweans we had to do all that was in our power to have a united front against Mugabe to free the people of Zimbabwe. We were secure that we would make the right decision.

Ten of our top leadership had been working again on some type of agreement (the last one a coalition agreement had been rejected by the Tsvangirai formation in April last year). This was a reunification agreement.

On Saturday morning we were presented with a document that the top ten from both parties had agreed upon. They told of endless debates being held until the early hours of many mornings, saying they faced the hardest negotiations of their lives. The document they showed us a fully comprehensive one and I attach it here so you may see for yourself what it is all about. The reunification process seemed fair and just in every way and culminating in a reunification congress shortly after elections dissolving both parties and making one reunited MDC. We debated vigorously but sensibly.  Our concerns though were few and not too major. Our unity was incredibly evident, with our desire for freedom and an end to the suffering of our nation being our focus.

The new seats allocation between the two formations was a little disappointing for our side, effectively giving the Tsvangirai formation approximately  70% in 6 provinces, 50% in 1 province and 30% in the 3 Matabeleland provinces, but we recognised that all agreements require a considerable amount of compromise and tolerance. By 12 midday we had adopted the agreement and were ready to meet with the other team and sign it into being. I even had a romantic notion of the two leaders holding clasped hands up in the air to a roar of Chinja Maitiro ......

Instead we waited for four hours while the Tsvangirai formation debated. Eventually our top ten were called back into negotiations. The Tsvangirai formation's National Council had been debating at the same time as us and  could not accept what their top ten had negotiated for them. From 4pm until 8 30 pm we waited and were then told that the Tsvangirai formation were sticking over the point of wanting to have two more seats in Bulawayo. We had already compromised in other areas- for example we had agreed to only have 28% of seats in Harare, even though we were entitled in terms of our agreement to at least 33%. Arthur had asked them to please make a decision one way or the other by the next morning, as we just could not debate further. The Tsvangirai formation's Bulawayo contingency were, it seemed, really fighting the process, and I couldn't help but cry in my heart: " Please, please remember the bigger picture for the people."

Sunday morning our leadership called us in and we heard that the Tsvangirai Formation had brought an entirely new and different demand to the table. Funnily enough the Sunday Mail newspaper heard before us. We were told that the Tsvangirai formation wanted 50 % of all the Matabeleland and Bulawayo seats, including those where our MPs were already sitting and further  they would not guarantee not  fielding in the other 50%!  Taking 26 and then halving the voters in the other half!  Where was the good will towards a uniting MDC?

We were blown away! A few of us women cried and I even had an opportunity of saying with a broken heart "Do we give it to them to stop the suffering of the people?" But even as I said it, I thought what will we be doing for the people of Zimbabwe? If we give them greedy MPs who think only of themselves anyway, are we not betraying them more? Arthur and Welshman ( our Secretary General ) both looked me directly in my face and asked if I had an idea of what to do and said they had tried their absolute hardest......

The press conference was given and we are going alone. I see that Eddie Cross has written of the gloom in our camp. Yes, that is true, but not because we cried for ourselves. There is no doubt that our gloom was shared by millions of patriotic Zimbabweans who hoped that people would put personal interests aside for National interest- something that the Tsvangirai formation has failed to do. Eddie also has written that the decision not to form a united front was" received favourably across the nation.." Whilst I have no doubt it was received favourably in State House and by Zanu PF throughout the nation, I think the truth is that most reasonable Zimbabweans were deeply disappointed.  Yes Eddie, we are very very sad, but not for ourselves.  In fact, to stand with principled people is the greatest honour of my life.

I will never stop fighting this regime as long as I have breath in my body and I have no feeling of guilt or shame in the choices we have made because we gave it our best shot. We must now take on the brutal Zanu Pf regime divided - but we will do so with courage and determination

TRANSITIONAL REUNIFICATION AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE MDC FORMATIONS: FEB 2008

1. PREAMBLE

Recalling that the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) was founded on 12 September 1999 on the values of solidarity, justice, equality, freedom, transparency, humble and obedient leadership and accountability, with the broad objective of obtaining the mandate of the people of Zimbabwe to govern democratically.

Recognising that from 12 October 2005, differences emerged in the united MDC, resulting in the creation of two formations which culminated in one having a Congress in Bulawayo in February 2006 and the other in Harare in March 2006.

Fully aware of the issues that separated us on the 12th of October 2005 but nonetheless regretting the separation, the acrimony and disharmony that characterised the aftermath of the separation.

Greatly Pained by the continuing severe suffering of our people and the continued reduction in the quality of their lives.

Appreciating the strong national sentiment for the unity of democratic forces in confronting the violent and dictatorial ZANU PF government.

Acknowledging the cooperation and work we have done together in recent times.

Determined that the differences which divided us must be resolved and put aside so that we can work together in the national interest.

Now we the leaders of the MDC enter into this agreement.

PRELIMINARY
1. Interpretation

(1) In this agreement the following terms have the following meanings
“MDC formation” or “formation” means the formation led by Morgan Tsvangirai and the formation led by Arthur Mutambara.

(2) “New Seat” means any seat not presently held by any of the MDC formations.

2. OBJECTIVES OF THIS AGREEMENT

2.1 The MDC formations hereby set themselves the ultimate goal of reunification and accordingly hereby agree to reunite and to embark on a process that is defined in this agreement which will lead to reunification under and in terms of this agreement.

2.2 The MDC formations recognise that reunification will only be complete and final after the Reunification Congress described below.

2.3 The MDC formations recognise that pending the Reunification Congress this agreement will bind the parties during the transitional period from the signing of this agreement to the date of the Reunification Congress.

3. VALUES AND PRINCIPLES

During the transition and thereafter the new MDC will at all times be bound by the following general principles and values:

a) respect for the equality of all persons without regard to race, ethnicity, gender, language, religion, political opinion and place of birth or origin;

b) respect for the inherent dignity of each and every person and in particular the right to life and bodily and mental safety free of all forms of violence and intimidation;

c) respect for human rights and in particular freedoms of expression, assembly, movement and the right to liberty and protection of the law;

d) respect for democratic principles and democratic discourse;

e) adherence to the principle of non-violence in the conduct of all political activity, including interaction between the two formations;

f) the pursuit of meaningful political change in Zimbabwe through democratic and peaceful, mass mobilisation and open, free and fair elections.

4. GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The MDC formations commit themselves to the goal of reunification and working together and supporting each other in accordance with the above values and principles to achieve the following objectives through the use of democratic and legitimate means –

(a) the replacement of tyrannical governmental and political structures in Zimbabwe by a new democratic order which creates a non-racist, non-tribalist, non-sexist and tolerant society which respects equally and fairly different ethnic, religious, cultural and political groups;

(b) the formulation, adoption and implementation of a new democratic constitution which should be agreed to through a consultative and transparent process;

(c) the formulation, adoption and implementation of a new electoral order in Zimbabwe which complies with democratic principles and international electoral standards on free and fair elections.

(d) the implementation of economic programmes that will address the national economic crisis which is characterised by high level of poverty and the collapse of the country’s social and infrastructure.

5. THE TRANSITIONAL NATIONAL REUNIFICATION STRUCTURES

5.1 Transitional National Reunification Conference

5.1.1 There shall be a Transitional National Reunification Conference made up of the National Councils of both formations.

5.1.2 Meetings of the Transitional Reunification National Conference (TRNC) shall be chaired on an alternate basis by the National Chairpersons of the formations.

5.1.3 The Transitional Reunification National Conference (TRNC) shall meet once to adopt this agreement and to launch the new MDC, thereafter the TRNC may meet at the discretion of the Transitional Reunification National Standing/ Working Committee (TRNSWC) and in any event must meet at least once before the Reunification Congress.

5.2 Transitional Reunification National Executive

5.2.1 There shall be a Transitional Reunification National Executive (TRNE) composed of the National Executive Committees of the formations.

5.2.2 Meetings of the Transitional Reunification National Executive shall be chaired on alternate basis by National Chairpersons of the formations.

5.2.3 The Transitional Reunification National Executive shall meet at least twice year.

5.2.4 Meetings of the TRNE will be called or convened upon a resolution of the TRNSWC.

5.3 Transitional Reunification National Standing/Working Committee (TRNSWC)

5.3.1 There shall be a Transitional Reunification National Standing/Working Committee (TRNSWC) consisting of the National Standing Committee and the National Working/Strategy Committee of the two formations respectively.

5.3.2 The TRNSWC will be responsible for devising effective joint programmes, operations and joint political strategies.

5.3.3 Meetings of the TRNSWC shall be chaired on an alternate basis by the Presidents of the two formations.

5.3.4 The TNRSWC may give directions to the Coordinating Committee and any other committee and structure of the new MDC.

5.4 Sub Committees of the TRNSWC

5.4.1 The Coordination Committee

5.4.1.1 There shall be a committee of the TRNSWC to be known as the Coordinating Committee which shall consist of the following

(a)The Presidents and Vice Presidents

(b) The National Chairpersons

(c) The Secretary Generals and the Deputy Secretary Generals

(d) The Treasurer Generals and the Deputy Treasurer Generals

5.4.1.2 The Coordinating Committee shall be responsible for supervising the execution and implementation of all programmes and directions of the TRNE.

5.4.1.3 The Coordinating Committee shall be chaired by the Presidents on alternate basis.

5.4.2 The Organising Committee

5.4.2.1 There shall be an Organising Sub Committee which shall consist of:

(a) The National Organising Secretaries and their Deputies;

(b) The Chairpersons of the Women and Youth Assemblies;

(c) The National Organising Secretaries of the Assemblies of Youth and Women;

(d) Other members not exceeding four appointed by the TRNSWC.

5.4.2.2 The function of the Organising Sub Committee shall be to supervise structures, conduct the integration or election of the structures of the new MDC and implement the outreach programmes of the new MDC as directed by the TRNSWC.

5.4.2.3 The Organising Committee shall be chaired by the Organising Secretaries on an alternate basis.

5.4.3 The Election Sub Committee

5.4.3.1 There shall be an Elections Sub Committee which shall consist of:

(a) The National Secretary of Elections and Director of Elections and their Deputies;

(b) The National Organising Secretaries and their Deputies;

(c) The National Organising Secretaries of the National Assemblies of Youth and Women;

(d) The Secretaries responsible for Policy and Research.

5.4.3.2 The functions of the Elections Sub Committee will be to devise effective strategies for elections and to supervise and deal with all technical issues connected with the elections including the recruitment and training of election agents.

5.4.3.3 The Sub Committee shall be chaired by the National Secretary and Director of Elections on an alternate basis.

5.4.4 The Finance and Fundraising Sub Committee

5.4.4.1 There shall be a Finance and Fundraising Committee that shall consist of the following:

(a) The Treasurer Generals and the Deputy Treasurer Generals;

(b) The Secretary Generals and the Deputy Secretary Generals;

5.4.4.2 The functions of the Finance and Fundraising Committee shall be to fundraise and to handle the funds of the new MDC and carry out all fundraising activities of the new MDC.

5.4.4.3 The Finance and Fundraising Committee shall be chaired on an alternate basis by the Treasurer Generals of the formations or in their absence their deputies.

5.4.5 Information and Publicity Sub Committee

5.4.5.1 There shall be an Information and Publicity Sub Committee that shall consist of:

(a) The National Secretaries for Information and Publicity and their Deputies;

(b) The National Secretaries of Information and Publicity of the National Assemblies of Women and Youth.

5.4.5.2 The Information and Publicity Sub Committee shall subject to the directions of TRNSWC deal with matters of the Media, Information and Publicity and branding of the new MDC.

5.4.5.3 The Sub Committee shall be chaired by the Secretaries for Information and Publicity on an alternate basis.

5.4.6 The Legal Sub Committee

5.4.6.1 There shall be a Legal Sub Committee that shall consist of:

(a) The National Secretaries of Legal Affairs and their Deputies;

(b) The National Secretaries for Legal Affairs of the Women and Youth National Assemblies.

5.4.6.2 The functions of the Legal Sub Committee shall be to deal with all Legal matters and in particular to draft the constitution of the reunited MDC under the guidance and supervision of the TRNSWC.

5.4.7 Secretariat

5.4.7.1 There shall be a Transitional Secretariat of the new MDC which shall be structured as directed by the Coordinating Committee under the supervision of the TRNSWC.

5.4.8 Provincial, District and Ward Structures

5.4.8.1 There shall be Transitional Reunification Taskforces at Provincial, District, Ward and Branch levels which shall consist at each level of the following persons from the two formations:

(a) Chairpersons

(b) Secretaries

(c) Treasurers

(d) Organising Secretaries

(e) Election Directors/Secretaries

(f) Information and Publicity Secretaries; and

(g) Chairpersons of the Youth and Women.

5.4.8.2 If the boundaries of a province, district or ward, as recognised by one formation, differ from the boundaries recognised by the other formation, the TRNE will determine which boundaries should be recognised for purposes of this Agreement.

5.4.8.3 The functions of the Transitional Reunification Taskforces shall be to ensure that this Agreement, and the policies and strategies devised by the TRNSWC and the TRNE, are fully and effectively implemented within their respective provinces, districts, wards and branches as the case may be.

5.4.8.4 Meetings of Provincial, District, Ward and Branch Taskforces shall be chaired by the chairpersons at each level on an alternate basis.

6 GENERAL PROVISIONS ON CONVENING OF MEETINGS OF TRANSITIONAL REUNIFICATION STRUCTURES

6.1 Transitional Reunification structures shall meet at such times and places as they may decide from time to time.

6.2 The Chairpersons of a Transitional Reunification structure –

(a) may in consultation with each other and with the Secretary Generals or Secretaries convene a special meeting of the structure at any time;

(b) must convene a special meeting of the structure on the written request of not fewer than of one-third of its members, which meeting must be convened for a date not sooner than five days and not later than twenty one days after the chairperson’s receipt of the request.

6.3 No business may be discussed at a special meeting convened in terms of paragraph (b) of sub clause (2) except the business specified in the request for the meeting.

6.4 The Secretary Generals or Secretaries at the relevant level must ensure that every member of the structure is given at seventy two hours notice of every meeting of the structure, and the notice must specify the business to be transacted at the meeting.

Provided that where it is urgently necessary to do so, a Transitional Reunification structure may hold a special meeting even it its members have been given less than seventy two hours notice of the meeting, but the reasons for doing so must be fully recorded in the minutes of the meeting.

7 Procedure at meetings of Transitional Reunification Structures

7.1 If for any reason the chairperson of a Transitional Reunification Structure is not present within fifteen minutes after a meeting of the structure was due to commence, the other joint chairperson will chair the meeting, or if that other chairperson is also absent for any reason, the members present must elect one of their number to preside at the meeting as acting chairperson.

7.2 A majority of the total membership of a Transitional Reunification Structure shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of the structure.

7.3 Decisions of Transitional Reunification structures must be reached on the basis of consensus, and if a structure is unable to reach consensus on any issue, the issue must be referred to a higher structure for decision.

7.4 Subject to this clause, the procedure to be adopted at meetings of a Transitional Reunification structure is to be determined by the structure itself, except where a higher structure has specified the procedure to be adopted.

7.5 All business of any structure shall be conducted on the basis of mutual respect and tolerance.

7.6 All decisions shall be arrived at by way of open debate and consensus.

7.7 All decisions of the new MDC shall be debated and made only in the formal structures as defined in this agreement

8 2008 NATIONAL ELECTIONS

8.1 General Principles

8.1.1 The MDC formations hereby agree to be bound and guided by the single candidate principle.

8.2 Presidential Election

8.2.1 The MDC formations agree they will put forward a single candidate to contest the Presidential election and that candidate will be endorsed by the Transitional Reunification National Conference at its first meeting under and in terms of this agreement.

8.3 Parliamentary Elections

8.3.1 Having regard to the premature termination of the terms of office of the current Members of Parliament, it is hereby agreed that all sitting Members of Parliament will be candidates in the 2008 elections, unless at least 50% of the relevant District Executive Committees or District Council of the formation to which the MP belongs petitions otherwise in the case of an unconfirmed MP.

8.3.2 Each sitting Member of Parliament will choose which constituency he or she wishes to be a candidate in, having regard to the new delimitation of constituencies provided that such selection shall be of a constituency which contains a part of his or her previous constituency.

8.3.3 In the event that two or more sitting members choose the same constituency and they fail to resolve the matter by consensus, the formations shall organise a primary election in that constituency. The primary election shall have an equal number of elected officials in the District and Ward Executive Committees of each formation in that constituency. Voting shall be by secret ballot. The winning candidate in shall be the candidate in that constituency and the losing candidate/s shall be candidate in the other part of his or her old constituency.

8.3.4 In the event of an equality of votes the matter shall be determined by the casting of lots.

8.3.5 Where a seat was not held by a member of either formation, the formations hereby agree that the formations which will put forward a candidate to contest the seat shall be determined taking into account the following factors:

(a) the respective strengths of each formation’s structures;

(b) the respective presence of each formation in the province and constituency;

(c) the prospect of winning the seat;

(d) the obligation to ensure that at least a third of the candidates are women;

(e) the need to ensure a presence of each formation in all provinces;

(f) the need to adhere to the principle that no formation shall have less than a third of the new seats in each province.

8.3.5 Pursuant to the above the parties have agreed that the provincial allocation of parliamentary seats be as provided in ‘Annexure A’ attached hereto.

8.4 Local Government Elections

8.4.1 The formation which currently holds a council seat shall put forward a candidate to contest that council seat.

8.4.2 Where a council seat is not currently held by any of the formations, the formations hereby agree that the council seats in each provinces shall be allocated to each formation in accordance with the following formula:

8.4.3 Where, for any reason a formation is unable to fully take up its allocation of seats the other formation shall be advised expeditiously so that that formation put forward candidates in those seats.

9. POST ELECTION PROCEDURES

9.1 Allocation of Government Posts by President

9.1.1 If the MDC wins the Presidential election, the elected President shall appoint as Vice President a person nominated by the other formation.

9.1.2 If the MDC wins the presidential election, the President shall allocate Cabinet posts in consultation with the Vice President and the TRNSWC, taking into account the need for equitable distribution of posts between the two formations, regard being made to the importance of those posts.

9.1.3 Subject to the Constitution and any other law, the President will make appointments to other Government offices in consultation with the Vice President and the TRNSWC, taking into account the need for equitable distribution of posts between the two formations paying due regard to the principle of equality of the two formations and the need for equal representation.

10. PRIORITIES FOLLOWING ELECTION VICTORY

10.1 If the MDC wins the presidential and parliamentary elections, the MDC Government commits itself to making the process of Constitutional reform its main priority.

11. REUNIFICATION PROCESSES

11.1 Within a month after the 2008 elections each formation shall submit to the TRNSWC a list containing the names of each office holder in each structure for every Branch, Ward, District and Province.

11.2 The TRNSWC shall prepare a consolidated list for each formation from the lists so submitted by each formation.

11.3 Thereinafter the Organising Sub Committee shall seat as a verification committee and for this purpose its functions shall include:

(a) the verification of each formation’s structures as indicated in the formation lists referred to in Clause 11.1 above.

(b) agreeing on and preparing final lists of structures for each formation; and

(c) doing any other things and carrying out any other tasks as assigned by the TRNSWC.

11.4 Within three months after the 2008 National Elections, the Legal Sub Committee shall produce an agreed draft of the reunified party which draft shall be debated by the TRNSWC and referred to the TRNE for debate and further referral to the TRNC for endorsement and adoption.

11.5 After the adoption of the draft new Constitution by the TRNC, the Organising Sub Committee shall organise the election of the new MDC structures from branch level to Provincial level.

11.6 No later that four months form the last Provincial Congress of the new MDC, the TRNE shall agree and set a date for the Reunification Congress, which as far as possible shall not be later than 12 months from the date of the election.

11.7 The Organising Sub Committee shall verify the names and structures of all persons attending the Dissolution Congresses and thereinafter shall prepare the Reunification Congress List.

11.8 The first day of the Reunification Congress shall be set aside for the holding of separate dissolution Congresses of the formations, in accordance with such rules as shall be agreed to by the TRNE.

11.9 The subsequent days of the Congress shall deal with the business of endorsing the new constitution and the election of office bearers as defined by the new constitution.

11.10 The Coordinating Committee shall be responsible for dealing with all logistics of the Congress including the issues of transport, accommodation and catering.

11.11 Once a new leadership has been elected and the Congress has concluded its business, this agreement shall expire and the united party shall be run on the basis of the new Constitution.

12. DISPUTE RESOLUTION

12.1 Each formation undertakes unequivocally to abide by the letter and spirit of the agreement and no party shall have the right of unilaterally resiling from or repudiating this agreement.

12.2 In the event of a dispute between and in any lower structures or between individual members the same shall be referred to the TRNSWC for conciliation, mediation and arbitration. The decision of the TRNE on arbitration shall be final and binding.

12.3 In the event of a dispute between the formations emanating in the TRNE or any other superior structures, the parties shall attempt to resolve the same through dialogue and where such dialogue fails, either of the parties shall have the right to refer the same to conciliation, mediation or arbitration before any agreed retired judge, retired or serving Head of State or Government or any other prominent international person agreed by the parties.

12.4 Where the parties are unable to agree on the choice of an arbitrator then the Commercial Arbitration Centre in Harare at the request of either of the parties shall make the appointment.

12.5 The arbitration proceedings referred to in this paragraph shall be governed by the Arbitration Laws of Zimbabwe.

Thus Done and Signed on Harare on this ……………………….day of February 2008.

…………………………………………..
Morgan Tsvangirai President

……………………………………………
Arthur Mutambara President

In witness thereof

……………………………………….
Tendai Biti Secretary General

…………………………………………….
Welshman Ncube Secretary General

Zimbabwe police swoop on Christian groups in Harare

Ecumenical News International

10 June 2008 | 08-0456 |

Harare (ENI). Zimbabwe police and security forces have raided the Harare
offices of several Christian groups, arresting the general secretary of the
Student Christian Movement of Zimbabwe and other officers and staff.

The student Christian group accused the government of President Robert
Mugabe of "declaring war against its own people", in a statement following
the 9 June raid in which its general secretary Prosper Munatsi was taken in
by police.

In the 10 June statement, it said heavily armed members of the police,
central intelligence and military units had swooped on the Ecumenical Centre
in Harare, which houses the offices of several Christian organizations,
including the SCMZ and the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance.

"In the process police ransacked the SCMZ offices and confiscated computers,
laptops, digital cameras, and a minibus," it stated. Those arrested from the
SCMZ, besides Munatsi, were Sandra Dzvete, an office intern; Langelihle
Manyani, the group's vice-chairperson; Matsiliso Moyo, the gender secretary,
and her seven month old baby; and Precious Chinanda, the finance and
administration officer. Four staff of the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance were
also reported to have been taken in by police, as was a member of the
Ecumenical Support Services.

"The movement sees this as a move to incapacitate the movement since it has
been fully geared towards sensitising Christian students and youth on their
rights and responsibilities in the face of a break or make presidential
runoff pencilled in for 27 June 2008," stated the SCMZ, which is a national
section of the Geneva-based World Student Christian Federation.

The June runoff election is being held after President Robert Mugabe was
beaten in the first round of voting by opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai
who officially won 48 percent of the presidential vote, while Mugabe got 43
percent. Zimbabwe's election law stipulates 50 percent plus one vote is
required to avoid a runoff but the opposition Movement for Democratic Change
party says it won the presidential poll outright and that it garnered 50.3
percent of the vote.

Both the SCMZ and the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance have been prominent in
promoting peaceful and democratic change in the southern African country,
which has been led by Mugabe since its independence from Britain in 1980.

Munatsi had been due to arrive in Geneva on 10 June to take part in a side
event at the UN Human Rights Council on the role of young people and human
rights in post-election situations.

Commenting on the raid on the offices of the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance,
Useni Sibanda, the alliance's national coordinator, said, "This is pure
harassment of church organisations. We are just doing our usual work and we
don't understand why we should be attacked by riot police like this."

One alliance staff member was reported to have been injured in the police
operation.

The SCMZ said it condemned "such acts of intimidation directed to civil
society players by the state security agents. The government has abdicated
its duties by declaring war on its own people and creating an atmosphere of
general insecurity among the populace." It added, "To members of the
ecumenical family the time has come for us not only to speak but also to act
against injustice, oppression and corruption according to the standard of
the word of God."

Meanwhile, women from various Christian denominations gathered at six venue
across the country to launch a series of prayer rallies to seek divine
intervention to stem post-election violence, in which at least 60 people are
reported to have died.

The opposition MDC said three of its supporters were shot dead while four
went missing when suspected ruling party militants raided a party office in
Zaka, south of the capital, where party activists had sought shelter after
fleeing from violence.

The deaths of the opposition activists came days after two local officials
of Mugabe's ruling Zanu-PF party were shot dead in separate incidents blamed
on opposition supporters.

"As we pray there are some who are hiding in mountains afraid to come down
fearing that they may be surrounded and attacked," Tawona Mtshiya,
vice-chairperson of the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, told worshippers
at a prayer meeting in Harare on 31 May.

Pastor Vicky Mpofu, co-ordinator of Zimbabwe women's national prayer
taskforce, told worshippers, "This runoff will not help. What we want is for
these people [Mugabe and Tsvangirai] to come to the table and talk."

Mennonites call for prayer and solidarity over Zimbabwe vote

Ekklesia. UK

By agency reporter
11 Jun 2008
Mennonite World Conference (MWC), which brings together 1.2 million
Anabaptists within the Mennonite family, is sending two deacons to Zimbabwe
and calling for two days of global prayer and fasting to coincide with the
election run-off.

The presidential contest in the troubled country has caused international
controversy and protest. The Mennonite-led days for reflection and
solidarity will be on 26 and 27 June - the second of which is the day of the
electoral contest.

Ferne Burkhardt writes: MWC has also appealed to the heads of the Southern
African Development Community (SADC), the African Union (AU) and the United
Nations (UN) to intervene in the troubled country.

"Zimbabwe is at a highly volatile time of crisis, and the threat of
long-standing violence looms over the run-off and its aftermath," says
Mennonite World Conference president Nancy Heisey in requesting intercession
from the global Anabaptist faith family.

"The Brethren in Christ Church in Zimbabwe (BICCZ), led by Bishop Danisa
Ndlovu (who is also MWC president-elect) is urging sisters and brothers
around the world to support them at this time by praying and fasting on the
day before and the day of the run-off election, June 26-27," said Heisey.

Dan Nighswander and Yvonne Snider-Nighswander, Mennonite Church Canada
Witness workers in South Africa, will go to Zimbabwe for two weeks,
beginning around 18 June. MC Canada has released them to serve as deacons of
the MWC community to provide encouragement to Bishop Ndlovu's family,
pastors and others under stress. They will also watch for and report
additional ways for the global Anabaptist family to stand in communion with
Zimbabwe's churches.

"We consider this invitation a sacred call and we cannot refuse it," said
Dan. "In our previous visits we have seen their [BICCZ] great courage and
faith, their hope and the difficulty of their circumstances.... By
representing the concern and prayerful support of the global communion of
Anabaptist churches, we trust we can make a difference."

The Nighswanders expect to accompany the Ndlovus as they go about their
business and will help however they can in response to advice from the
Ndlovus and other church leaders.

"Our hope is that by walking alongside, the persons to whom we relate will
experience the MWC practice of demonstrating solidarity," said Yvonne.

"This visit is not about programs or activities but about relationships,"
explained Dan. He acknowledged that there are some risks, as there are
everywhere, but those risks are "less compelling than the urgency of the
call for support from our sisters and brothers who have become our friends."

He said they were motivated by Galatians 6:2, 10: "Bear one another's
burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.. So then,
whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and
especially for those of the family of faith."

The Nighswanders were part of an MWC Koinonia (deacon) delegation to
Zimbabwe last August and attended the global assembly in Bulawayo in 2003.

Their Mennonite Mission Network colleague in South Africa, Phil Lindell
Detweiler, offered his blessing for their short-term mission.

"Zimbabwe is constantly on our hearts and in our prayers as the unrest and
violence in our own country is so closely tied to the situation there," said
Detweiler. "Our prayer is that the Lord will make a way for transition,
healing and restoration that brings hope to the country instead of more
pain."

A 3 June 2008 letter sent to H.E. Levy P. Mwanawasa, Chair of the SADC, H.E
Jakaya Kikwete, Chair of the AU and to H.E. Ban Ki-moon, UN
Secretary-General cites the distress and concern of international churches
over the deepening crisis and rising violence in Zimbabwe.

It calls for an international peace force to be present during the June 27
run-off, for international (SADC, AU, UN) election observers with freedom to
circulate, that persons displaced due to fear and violence be protected and
brought back to vote, and that election results be quickly and independently
confirmed.

The March 29 election results, withheld for more than one month, were never
independently verified. The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission declared that
incumbent President Robert Mugabe received 43.2 % of votes cast and his
challenger Morgan Tsvangirai, the MDC candidate, 47.9 percent, short of the
50% plus one vote required to win. The MDC has claimed that the run-off is
inappropriate, since according to their count, Tsvangirai won a majority of
50.3%.

The letter also calls for the ruling and opposition parties, representatives
of the military, security forces, churches and civil society to come to a
negotiating table to map out future directions for the country. Signed by
Larry Miller, MWC general secretary, it was co-signed by the general
secretaries of the Reformed Ecumenical Council and the World Evangelical
Alliance. The complete text of the letter is posted on the MWC web site
(www.mwc-cmm.org)

"MWC's initiatives serve to let our sisters and brothers in Zimbabwe know
they are not forgotten, and remind us that when the church suffers anywhere,
we all suffer," said Heisey.

Officials from BIC North American headquarters reported that Bishop Ndlovu
will attend the Brethren in Christ General Conference in Toronto, June
27-30. He is scheduled to preach at the service on Sunday, June 29, which
will be dedicated to the Zimbabwe BIC Church. The service will include a
time of focused prayer for Zimbabwean brothers and sisters and a special
offering for the Zimbabwe BIC Church.

Mennonite Central Committee spokesman Bruce Campbell-Janz said that MCC will
continue to provide some funds for Habbukuk Trust, a Christian
non-government agency in Zimbabwe that trains and directs election monitors,
and does civic education on elections. MCC has suspended a school feeding
program around Bulawayo, conducted in partnership with the BICCZ, since
Mugabe has ordered humanitarian groups to quit working in the country.

Zimbabwean Catholic says church groups in danger 'at any time'

Jun-11-2008

By Bronwen Dachs
Catholic News Service

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (CNS) -- Zimbabwean church groups are "in danger of
police interference at any time," a Catholic official said after the
Ecumenical Center in the capital, Harare, was raided June 9.

"No one is immune to these raids," Alouis Chaumba, head of Zimbabwe's
Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace, said in a June 10 telephone
interview from Harare.

Chaumba said he is "afraid of what may happen to me and my family and my
friends," noting that he knows many people who have been injured or had
their property destroyed in the violence that followed late-March elections.

Harare's Ecumenical Center houses a variety of groups, including the Student
Christian Movement of Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance.

"Heavily armed members of the police, central intelligence and military
personnel" raided the center and arrested five staffers, including the
Student Christian Movement general secretary, Prosper Munatsi, the movement
said in a June 10 statement.

Offices in the center were ransacked and computers, digital cameras and a
minibus were confiscated, the statement said.

Also June 9, police "raided an organization that looks after orphans and the
homeless and said it must close shop," Chaumba said.

Police are visible all over Zimbabwe, he said, noting that there are
"roadblocks everywhere" with some rural areas impossible to reach. Police
officers "make you get out of your vehicle and take everything out before
they start searching, which can take hours," he said.

The Student Christian Movement of Zimbabwe is the national office of the
Geneva-based World Student Christian Federation. The Zimbabwe Christian
Alliance was formed in 2005 to help the estimated 700,000 Zimbabweans who
lost their homes and livelihoods in a government campaign in which riot
police demolished homes and vendors' stalls in shantytowns around major
cities.

The Student Christian Movement statement said the arrests and raid were
aimed at hindering its work, which is "fully geared toward sensitizing
Christian students and youth on their rights and responsibilities in the
face of a break-or-make presidential runoff" election scheduled for June 27.

In the March elections, opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai garnered 47.9
percent of the vote, leading President Robert Mugabe, who has led Zimbabwe
since 1980 and is widely blamed for the country's economic crisis. The
runoff was scheduled because a minimum of 50 percent plus one vote was
needed to win the presidency in the first round.

A report on postelection violence in Zimbabwe by the Solidarity Peace Trust,
an ecumenical group of church organizations from Zimbabwe and South Africa,
said, "There needs to be a general recognition that Zimbabwe is sinking fast
into the conditions of a civil war, propelled largely by the increasing
reliance on violence by the ruling party to stay in power, and the rapidly
shrinking spaces for any form of peaceful political intervention."

The report, released in Johannesburg, South Africa, May 21, contained about
50 eyewitness accounts of orchestrated beatings, torture and the destruction
of homes and shops.

The Student Christian Movement of Zimbabwe said it viewed the June 9
"arrests and detentions as part of the broader campaign of intimidation
orchestrated against defenseless citizens," noting that the government "has
abdicated its duties by declaring war on its own people and creating an
atmosphere of general insecurity among the populace."

It is "our sacred duty as civil society and opposition forces to continue
fighting for the opening up of democratic space and justice in Zimbabwe,"
the statement said, noting that the time has come for church groups "not
only to speak but also to act against injustice, oppression and corruption."

Zimbabwe has the world's highest inflation rate -- more than 100,000
percent -- an unemployment rate of more than 80 percent and severe shortages
of basic foods and fuel.

Chaumba also said that Anglicans in Zimbabwe "are being beaten up in their
churches and are bearing the brunt of the lack of freedom of worship" in the
country.

Anglican bishops from Botswana, Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe said in an early
June pastoral letter that members of the Harare Diocese are being barred
from praying in their churches, which "mirrors the persecution of Christians
of the early church, and in this context we remind the perpetrators that
then, as now, God still triumphs over evil."

The people of Zimbabwe are living in "an environment devoid of any
resemblance of justice and peace," the bishops said.

They called on perpetrators of "the immoral and criminal activities" to
respect the rule of law which safeguards and preserves human life and
dignity, noting reports that "people are being maimed, killed, and denied
decent burials."