Zimbabwe army deserters tortured

Zim Online

Friday 16 March 2007

By Brian Ncube

BULAWAYO - Zimbabwean army authorities last weekend severely tortured five
army officers who were captured in South African last month after deserting
their jobs to seek better fortunes in the neighbouring country, ZimOnline
has learnt.

Sources at the army headquarters in Harare said the five deserters, were
last Friday moved from their heavily guarded cells at Chikurubi Maximum
Security Prison to the army headquarters in Harare were they were severely
tortured.

The officers, who are members of the army's Mounted Unit, were arrested in
the border town of Mussina on February 16. They were part of a group of 45
officers who dumped their weapons in the bush and crossed over to South
Africa.

The deserters were on patrol duty along the Zimbabwe-South Africa border.
They have been in detention at Chikurubi since their capture last month.

"They were taken out of their cells on Friday afternoon and were taken to
the army headquarters, where they were asked a few questions on the
whereabouts of the other 40 deserters.

"It seems that they refused to co-operate and were later handed over to
three sergeant majors who took turns to severely torture them for the rest
of the day," said a source.

"Three other army officers spent the whole day beating them, making them
roll on the hard surface and pouring water on them, demanding to know the
whereabouts of their colleagues.

"They accused the five of refusing to blow their colleagues' cover and said
they would not stop the torture until they got the truth out of them. But
they later released them at about 5pm and returned them to Chikurubi," said
another source.

A senior police officer who saw the deserters on Monday, a day after they
were returned to Chikurubi, said the deserters were in "extremely bad shape"
as a result of the torture.

The sources said the five deserters had bruises all over their bodies and
could not walk properly as a result of the torture.

Police officers at Chikurubi who spoke to ZimOnline also confirmed that the
deserters were severely tortured.

"They were taken away by an army truck on Friday and when they returned on
Sunday, one could easily tell that they were in deep pain. Army officers
continued beating them up even as they brought them back here on Sunday
calling them sell-outs," said the source.

Defence Minister Sydney Sekeramayi refused to comment on the torture reports
saying the army was right in following its code of conduct.

"What do you want me to do on that? They (deserters) should have known the
consequences of their actions before deserting their jobs.

"The army has a code of conduct to follow and those who breach it should
face the music, so leave me alone," said Sekeramayi.

Morale is said to be at rock bottom in the Zimbabwean army because of poor
pay and working conditions. Hundreds of disgruntled junior soldiers and
police officers have resigned or deserted over the past few years. -
ZimOnline

Police, MDC supporters clash in Bulawayo

Zim Online

Friday 16 March 2007

By Menzi Sibanda and Ntando Moyo

BULAWAYO - Zimbabwean police on Thursday fought running battles with
opposition supporters in the second city of Bulawayo as political tensions
remained high in the southern African country following the brutal assault
of opposition leaders last weekend.

The police blamed the disturbances on opposition Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) party supporters whom they accused of barricading the main
railway line leading into the city with boulders and logs.

The disturbances came a day after police arrested Lovemore Moyo, the MDC
legislator for Matobo and another senior party official Samuel Sipepa Nkomo
on Wednesday night.

Moyo and Nkomo together with 16 other party officials were arrested on
Wednesday for allegedly holding a "secret" meeting in the city that the
police said was meant to plot violence at next weekend's prayer rally in
Bulawayo.

Police spokesperson Wayne Bvudzijena said the police were still to make any
arrests over yesterday's disturbances in Bulawayo.

"The clashes can only be blamed on the MDC thugs. We are aware of their
moves to unleash a reign of terror to make this country ungovernable.

"But the police will not stand by and watch such chaos unfold," said
Bvudzijena.

Bulawayo had remained generally quiet over the past few weeks following
widespread violence between the police and MDC supporters in Harare and
other cities.

"When we arrived, the youths threw stones at us and we retaliated with
teargas. We had to call for reinforcements; that is when they ran away. We
are still hunting for them," said a police officer who was involved in
yesterday's operation.

Political tensions are still high in Zimbabwe following the brutal assault
of Tsvangirai and other opposition officials while in police custody last
weekend. - ZimOnline

116 MDC supporters still detained

Zim Online

Friday 16 March 2007

By Brian Ncube

BULAWAYO - At least 116 Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party
supporters are still detained in Zimbabwe after they were arrested earlier
this week for protesting against the brutal assault of Morgan Tsvangirai and
other opposition leaders.

The demonstrators were arrested between Monday and Wednesday this week after
they marched in the streets demanding the release of Tsvangirai, Arthur
Mutambara and other opposition leaders who were arrested last weekend.

Police sources said at least 80 people were in detention in the eastern city
of Mutare, 10 in Harare, while 26 people were detained in Kwekwe and the
Midlands city of Gweru.

"We are still detaining them here and officers from the Criminal
Investigations Department (CID) Law and Order section are still trying to
find out who organised the protests as well as the party's source of
funding," said a senior police officer in Gweru.

Nelson Chamisa, the spokesperson for the Tsvangirai-led MDC, confirmed the
continued detention of the party's supporters adding that the party was
working flat out to secure their release.

"We are talking to our lawyers to try and find ways of securing their
release. We cannot let those young supporters suffer for expressing their
discontent with the government," said Chamisa.

Police spokesperson Wayne Bvudzijena confimed that the police were still
detaining the demonstrators adding that the police had applied for special
warrants to detain them beyond the 48 hours allowed by the law.

"Yes we have them in our cells because there are some questions that we want
them to answer. I cannot say off hand how many they are but there is quite a
number of them across the country.

"We applied for warrants to further detain those that had been in cells for
more than 48 hours, while those in Gweru were only arrested yesterday
afternoon," said Bvudzijena.

Bvudzijena said the demonstrators were likely to face public violence
charges under the tough Public Order and Security Act. (POSA). - ZimOnline

Beckett vows to punish Mugabe's 'thugs'

The Telegraph

By Peta Thornycroft in Harare and Graeme Baker
Last Updated: 8:38pm GMT 15/03/2007

      Margaret Beckett tonight vowed to punish the "thugs" inside Zimbabwe's
government for their violent crackdown on opposition groups.
      Calling for UN action against human rights abuses and targeted EU
sanctions, the Foreign Secretary said that President Robert Mugabe's regime
should be held directly responsible for the violence aimed at Morgan
Tsvangirai and his supporters.

      Mrs Beckett said: "We want to identify the key people involved and
make sure they are on the list the EU has to make quite clear that if you
are engaged in thuggery it's a problem for you, not just a problem for your
country."

      The EU has already imposed an arms embargo as well as a travel ban and
assets freeze on key members of the Mugabe regime.

      Mrs Beckett's comments came after she was criticised for failing to
comment on the worsening situation in Zimbabwe.

      Mr Mugabe today said his critics in the west should "go hang" and that
the crackdown was "to prevent violence and punish the perpetrators of that
violence".

      The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Mr Tsvangirai is in
hospital with head injuries. His aides say he and several opposition and
civic group leaders were tortured by police on Sunday when they tried to
attend a prayer vigil in a Harare township.

      The government has suggested that Mr Tsvangirai and his group resisted
arrest and today accused opposition supporters of waging a militia-style
campaign of violence to topple Mr Mugabe from power.

      "It's the West as usual. When they criticise the government trying to
prevent violence and punish the perpetrators of that violence, we take the
position that they can go hang," Mr Mugabe said after a meeting with the
Tanzanian president, Jakaya Kikwete.

      Mr Mugabe, 83, who frequently brands the MDC a puppet party sponsored
by the West, was defiant when asked to respond to criticism of his
government's conduct.

      "Here are groups of persons who went out of their way to effect a
campaign of violence and we hear no criticism at all of those actions of
violence, none at all," he said.

Kate Hoey: I pray this is the darkness before a new dawn in Zimbabwe

Kate Hoey with opponents of Robert Mugabe

By Kate Hoey

LAST Sunday morning, I received some ominous text messages from Zimbabwe. As more details flashed up on my mobile phone, I realised that many of my good friends there had been arrested.

They had tried to gather for a prayer meeting called by the Save Zimbabwe Campaign.

Morgan Tsvangirai and Sekai Holland, of the Movement for Democratic Change, Lovemore Madhuku, of the National Constitutional Assembly, Mike Davies, of the Harare Residents' Association; these are people I have visited in their homes over recent months. They are some of the bravest people that I have ever met.

We have come together as comrades in the struggle against the brutal dictatorship of Robert Mugabe. Sharing danger during several undercover visits I've made into Zimbabwe over recent years, our bonds of friendship and solidarity have grown strong.

Inquisitive visitors from the outside world are not welcome in Zimbabwe. Taking pictures on the street is enough to attract the unwelcome attention of the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO), Mugabe's secret police.

As an MP and former British minister, I'm not welcomed by the regime; the Minister for State Security, Didymus Mutasa, has promised to lock me up in jail for 20 years if he catches me in the country again – and to "humiliate" me.

I have often warned that everything in Zimbabwe can appear deceptively normal to casual visitors. But scratch the surface, and you will find the deep-seated fear of a police state everywhere. The regime has agents and informers in every community who are willing to betray those involved in the struggle for freedom.

This week, Zimbabwe has been shown in its true colours for all to see, or for all who want to see. It is a fully fledged police state. Make no mistake; Mugabe is up there with General Pinochet, of Chile, and Idi Amin of Uganda. And what makes me angry is that he has been propped up by Thabo Mbeki, the President of South Africa, and others in the region who should be ashamed of themselves.

Mugabe's propaganda story to a gullible world is that he is battling against British imperialism and that his political opponents are agents of a plot to recolonise Zimbabwe. If the fallout from his vainglorious posturing was not so tragic, this could be dismissed as just another daft story.

Sadly, many people in the developing world, and many African leaders who should know a lot better, buy his version of events. One reason Zimbabweans have until now been reluctant to protest on the streets and face up to the regime head on is that they are now surrounded by countries that are either cheerleaders for Mugabe's dictatorship, or that choose to turn a cowardly blind eye to the atrocities he metes out to anyone who challenge his rule and his vanity.

President Mbeki, of South Africa, receives a regular invitation to attend the "big boys' club", the G8 Summit. Why? Because in his New Partnership for Africa's Development, he promised that he and his fellow African leaders would deliver good governance and respect for human rights in exchange for increased aid and international debt relief.

Faced with the most glaring example of bad governance and human rights outrages right on his doorstep, Mbeki's mantra is that "it is an internal matter for the people of Zimbabwe".

Leaders of South Africa's ANC government, who spent their exile in the United Kingdom, now pour scorn on Zimbabweans who have fled to London to seek refuge from the brutality and desperation of life under Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF regime.

South Africa's Foreign Minister, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, was dismissive when young Zimbabweans challenged her recently for supporting the Mugabe regime. She told the audience, at the London School of Economics, that Zimbabweans should all go home if there was a crisis there, conveniently overlooking the fact that both she and Thabo Mbeki fought their own struggle for freedom from exile in the South of England.

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), who I visited in Johannesburg two weeks ago, denounced the South African government's reaction to events in Zimbabwe since Sunday as "shamefully weak".

They said: "Such a response is disgraceful, in the face of such massive attacks on democracy and human rights, especially coming from those who owed so much to international solidarity when South Africans were fighting for democracy and human rights against the apartheid regime."

Getting rid of South Africa's old regime was quite properly seen as the business of the world; but South Africa's leaders now dismiss Zimbabwe's crisis as an internal matter to be dealt with by the people of Zimbabwe.

Events of the past few days show the people of Zimbabwe have now decided to deal with it. They tried to vote out Mugabe's Zanu-PF party in parliamentary elections. They tried to vote out Mugabe himself in presidential elections. As one mild-mannered Zimbabwean told me in South Africa: "I feel like screaming sometimes. I wish I could just meet President Mbeki and ask him: Don't you see? We've tried to deal with it, we've voted in our millions, UN food aid has been diverted to bribe voters, voters lists manipulated, citizens deprived of the right to vote, the dead resurrected to place phantom marks on the ballot paper and yet, Mr Mbeki, you have given these sham elections your seal of approval. What do you mean: Deal with it ourselves?"

The people of Zimbabwe, under brave leaders who are prepared to risk all in the cause of freedom, have now decided to take on the regime and the struggle has entered a new darker phase. I hope and pray that it is the darkness before a new dawn.

Kate Hoey is the Labour MP for Vauxhall.

Last Updated: 15 March 2007

Tanzania leader to meet Mugabe amid world outrage

Reuters

      Thu Mar 15, 2007 10:58 AM GMT

DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) - Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete flew to meet
Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe on Thursday amid global outrage over a
government crackdown that left the opposition leader with a suspected
fractured skull.

"President Jakaya Kikwete has left this morning to go to Harare, Zimbabwe on
a one-day working visit. While there, he will hold talks with his host,
President Robert Mugabe," said a statement from State House, which gave no
further details.

Tanzania is currently one of a troika of nations in Southern Africa's
regional bloc SADC charged with dealing with Zimbabwe's political crisis.
The other members are Namibia and Lesotho.

Images of beaten opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai going to court after
his arrest on Sunday prompted condemnation from several countries, including
the United States which has said it was looking at what other sanctions it
might impose on Harare.

Despite the criticism, the government has vowed to silence dissent amid
rising tensions stemming from plans by 83-year-old Mugabe to further extend
his almost three-decade rule and a deepening economic crisis.

Mugabe's government accuses Tsvangirai, the head of the Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC), and his supporters of inciting violence to
overthrow the administration.

African Union Chairman John Kufuor said the continent's leaders were
embarrassed by the situation in Zimbabwe, but efforts to help had met with
resistance from Harare.

Zimbabwe's Mugabe tells West 'go hang'

Reuters

Thu Mar 15, 2007 5:20PM GMT
 By Cris Chinaka

HARARE, March 15 (Reuters) - President Robert Mugabe on Thursday told
Western countries to "go hang" after a barrage of international criticism
over charges his government assaulted Zimbabwe's main opposition leader
while in police detention.

Opposition officials say police tortured Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai and several opposition and civic group
leaders on Sunday when they tried to attend a prayer vigil in a Harare
township.

But the government has suggested Tsvangirai and his group resisted arrest
and on Thursday upped the ante, accusing opposition supporters of waging a
militia-style campaign of violence to topple Mugabe from power.

"It's the West as usual ... when they criticise the government trying to
prevent violence and punish the perpetrators of that violence, we take the
position that they can go hang," Mugabe said after a meeting with Tanzanian
President Jakaya Kikwete.

The 83-year-old Mugabe, in power since independence from Britain in 1980 and
who frequently brands the MDC a puppet party sponsored by the West, was
defiant alongside Kikwete.

"Here are groups of persons who went out of their way to effect a campaign
of violence and we hear no criticism at all of those actions of violence,
none at all," Mugabe said when asked to respond to criticism of his
government's conduct.

Police said three officers were badly hurt late on Tuesday when suspected
opposition supporters petrol bombed a police station in a Harare suburb,
leaving their house in flames adding that the MDC's "orgy of violence was
spreading" in the country.

"We believe that the attacks are assuming a militia-type of form," police
spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena said as state television showed the badly burnt
officers in hospital.

MDC DENIES ACCUSATIONS

The MDC denied the charges and said they were part of an effort by Mugabe to
deflect growing outrage that followed a crackdown on the anti-government
rally on Sunday.

MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa said 12 officials were arrested on Thursday in
Zimbabwe's second largest city Bulawayo for trying to organise a protest
march against the assault of the opposition leaders.

Police were not immediately available for comment.

MDC officials said Tsvangirai, who has received glowing international praise
since being filmed on Tuesday walking into a hospital battered and bruised,
suffered a suspected fractured skull as a result of police brutality.

Tsvangirai's spokesman William Bango told Reuters the MDC leader might be
discharged from hospital on Friday, but said his doctors had not released
details of his condition.

"I think for them, it's a medical ethics issue ... but Mr Tsvangirai may be
discharged tomorrow but continue to receive treatment from home," he said.

Earlier on Thursday, Chamisa said after being released from a hospital where
he was treated that claims that opposition supporters had launched a violent
campaign against Mugabe's 27-year rule were meant to justify the "madness
and brutality" of the government and soil the reputation of its opponents.
The United States is among those that have sharply condemned the arrests,
threatening to tighten sanctions on Mugabe and other top officials. United
Nations and European Union officials warned against sanctions that hurt
citizens more than leaders.

Australia has demanded that African countries, who have been roundly
criticised for turning a blind eye to Mugabe's controversial rule, support
tougher action against Zimbabwe.

Tanzania is one of a "troika" of countries in the Southern African
Development Community charged with seeking to resolve Zimbabwe's
long-running political and economic crisis. Kikwete said he had briefed
Mugabe, but declined to give details.

Mugabe has further fuelled tensions in the nation by suggesting he may seek
to stay on as president beyond the scheduled end of his current term in
2008.

Opposition denies role in police bombings

HARARE, 15 March 2007 (IRIN) - Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) has distanced itself from the bombing of a police camp in the
capital, Harare, on Tuesday, while some rights activists are suggesting that
unrest is mounting.

Three female police officers were injured and their property burnt at the
Marimba police camp, which consists of a police station and residential
quarters, in the populous suburb of Mufakose, an MDC stronghold. State
television and the official daily newspaper, The Herald, reported that
assailants cut the boundary fence before throwing teargas canisters and
petrol bombs into the lodgings.

Police spokesman Assistant Commissioner Wayne Bvudzijena told IRIN that the
attack was the work of "militant youth" of the MDC's "democratic resistance
committees".

Spokesmen for both factions of the MDC scoffed at the claims. "We wonder
where they got that kind of information from. There is no evidence at all
that the perpetrators of the violence were members of the opposition. Where
would ordinary people get teargas from, unless they are suggesting that some
members of the police and army are MDC?" said Job Sikhala, a member of
parliament, and defence and security secretary of one MDC faction.

"MDC members will not perpetrate such acts of violence," said Nelson
Chamisa, a spokesman for the other faction.

Jacob Mafume, a coordinator at Crisis in Zimbabwe, a coalition of more than
300 civil society organisations, said the attack on the police station meant
that people's patience with the government was running out.

"Violence translates into the gross abuse of human rights, and this is what
we have been seeing in the past weeks as the police moved in to thwart
gatherings by legitimate citizens of this country, arresting and torturing
them. They are becoming disillusioned with the police force, which is
supposed to protect them, and the swelling tide of anger is evident," Mafume
told IRIN.

He urged the police to desist from using excessive force against the people,
saying this would only lead to more violence.

In the past few weeks Zimbabwe has witnessed running battles between the
police and MDC supporters. In the third day of unrest on Tuesday, another
bombing of a police station was reported in Gweru, 200km north of Zimbabwe's
second city, Bulawayo.

Besides the two bombings, The Herald reported that four other suspected
opposition supporters were arrested in Masvingo, in the southeast, the
country's oldest town, for allegedly beating up street vendors and a
soldier.

Earlier in the week, an opposition leader was shot dead by the police and
scores of MDC leaders and supporters arrested, drawing worldwide
condemnation. On Thursday, the parliament of the regional powerhouse, South
Africa, passed a motion expressing concern over the situation in Zimbabwe.

Tension has been mounting in Zimbabwe for the past two months: NGOs, church
groups, labour and students have all staged sporadic demonstrations around
the country as Zimbabweans battled with annual inflation now running at more
than 1,700 percent, compounded by shortages of foreign currency, food, fuel,
electricity and medicines.

Police officers have been living in fear since the Marimba attack. An
officer attached to the intelligence gathering internal security department
at Marimba police station, who did not wish to be named, told IRIN that the
authorities were working out the logistics to ensure the security of members
of the Zimbabwe Republic Police.

"There is a lot of anxiety, as we don't know who will be the next target.
People are growing increasingly angry with the police and army, as they say
we are being used by the government to beat them up, yet we will simply be
carrying out orders," said the officer.

He said police patrols had been advised not to move around alone and to
avoid bars in areas known to be volatile. There has been speculation in the
media that a state of emergency might be imposed.

However, Bvudzijena dismissed the reports. "The situation in the country is
calm and does not warrant the imposition of emergency. People are going
about their daily business."

'Perfect storm' that threatens his power

The Times
March 16, 2007

Special correspondent
After 27 years in power, President Mugabe faces a "perfect storm" of
troubles that poses the most serious threat yet to his rule.

Dissent within his party, economic meltdown, a revitalised Opposition and
disgruntled security forces are raising the possibility of a spontaneous
popular uprising.

"It's too early to say it's the end, but it's another sign the regime is
cracking," Trudy Stevenson, an opposition MP, said. Eldred Masunungure, a
political science professor at the University of Zimbabwe, said: "It's like
[Mr Mugabe's] Waterloo, and it's doubtful he's going to weather the storm."

Inflation is 1,700 per cent and rising, Zimbabwe has the world's
fastest-contracting economy and four fifths of Zimbabweans live on less than
$2 a day with nearly 40 per cent suffering from malnutrition. John
Robertson, a respected economic consultant, forecasts worse to come. Maize
is Zimbabwe's staple. This year's crop will be poor, South Africa will
produce too little to sell any to Zimbabwe and America's drive to convert
maize into ethanol is driving up the worldwide price at a time when Zimbabwe
has no foreign currency.

Mr Mugabe has also succeeded in rupturing his own Zanu (PF) party. There had
been a growing consensus among senior party figures, whose own business
interests are suffering, that he should go after completing his term next
March. When he sought to extend his term to 2010, Zanu (PF) split. Those
vying to succeed him are now "gladiating (sic) for power and control of the
party", Dr Masunungure said.

The stronger faction is led by Solomon Mujuru, a former army chief, who is
promoting his wife, Joice, a woman who earned the sobriquet "Spill Blood" as
a guerrilla in Zimbabwe's war of independence in the 1970s. At December's
party conference the Mujuru faction blocked Mr Mugabe's efforts to extend
his term, and Mr Mugabe has since denounced Mrs Mujuru.

Their chief rival is Emmerson Mnangagwa, 65, a former national security
minister, who has a history of emnity with Mr Mujuru dating back to the war.
Mr Mnangagwa also enraged Mr Mugabe by manoeuvring to stop him making Mrs
Mujuru his vice-president in 2004.

There appears to be growing support within Zanu (PF) for a compromise,
backed by the Mujuru faction, that would allow Mr Mugabe to remain as a
ceremonial head of state while real power passes to the newly-created office
of Prime Minister.

Zimbabwe says opposition escalating violence

Reuters

Thu Mar 15, 2007 11:04 AM GMT

By MacDonald Dzirutwe

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe on Thursday accused opposition supporters of
stepping up violence against the government, amid rising world condemnation
of President Robert Mugabe's latest political crackdown.

Police officials said three officers had been badly hurt in a petrol bomb
attack late on Tuesday, telling state media the opposition's "orgy of
violence was spreading."

"These actions are synchronised by people with resources and are happening
throughout the country," police spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena told Reuters.

"We believe that the attacks are assuming a militia type of form," he added.
State television showed pictures of badly burnt officers receiving medical
care in hospital after their house at a police post went up in flames.

Officials of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) said party
chief Morgan Tsvangirai remained in hospital with head wounds sustained
following his arrest on Sunday for participating in a banned political
rally.

"Tsvangirai is still in a critical situation but he is recovering," MDC
spokesman Nelson Chamisa said from a private hospital at which he,
Tsvangirai and other political figures were receiving treatment.

MDC officials say Tsvangirai suffered from a suspected fractured skull after
being severely beaten by police.

Images of a battered Tsvangirai going to court have drawn a chorus of
international condemnation, with the United States saying it was considering
tougher sanctions against Mugabe's government.

Zimbabwe's information minister has warned the MDC it would "pay a heavy
price" for inciting violence and seeking to topple the 83-year old leader.

DIPLOMATIC INITIATIVE

In the first concrete diplomatic initiative following this week's clashes,
Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete was expected in Harare on Thursday for
consultations with Mugabe likely to focus on the latest political
developments but officials refused to discuss details of his visit.

Tanzania is one of a "troika" of countries in the Southern African
Development Community (SADC) charged with seeking to resolve Zimbabwe's
long-running political and economic crisis.

Zimbabwe, once the region's economic star, now suffers with inflation at
more than 1,700 percent, rising unemployment and poverty levels and
shortages of foreign currency, food and fuel.

Western countries have sharply condemned this week's violence, with the
United States saying it would consider toughening sanctions on Mugabe's
government.

Australia, meanwhile, demanded African countries support tougher moves
against Zimbabwe.

"The fact is the situation in Zimbabwe is going from awful to catastrophic,"
Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer told Australian radio.

Mugabe has further fuelled political tension by suggesting he may seek to
stay on as president beyond the scheduled end of his current term in 2008.

MDC dismiss violence allegations

By Lance Guma
15 March 2007

Accusations by Zimbabwean authorities that the MDC has set up militia groups
and is firebombing police stations around the country have been dismissed as
an attempt to deflect attention from the police brutality dominating
headlines around the world. State radio reported that 3 female police
officers were injured, two of them seriously, when a house located inside a
police camp was firebombed Tuesday evening. The reports say 2 of them are
battling for their lives at Parirenyatwa Hospital. Its alleged the
assailants cut a perimeter fence in Marimba Park and threw the bomb through
an open window at one of the houses there. A police post in Mkoba, Gweru was
allegedly bombed on the same night and five people arrested.
Nelson Chamisa, the spokesman for the Tsvangirai MDC recovering from
injuries sustained from beatings in police custody, told Newsreel the
government has a long history of creating situations to try and blame its
opponents. He says the regime employed the same strategy over the murder of
Bulawayo war veteran's leader Cain Nkala and arrested several MDC activists
who were later acquitted by the courts. Chamisa said another example of this
strategy was the way the state planted an arms cache at the farm of former
Chimanimani MP Roy Bennet who is now exiled in South Africa. 'Every time the
regime is cornered they resort to these sort of tactics,' Chamisa said and
he added that it was designed to divert international attention from the
regimes brutality.

Meanwhile Newsreel spoke to the wife of Sam Sipepa Nkomo, the Chairman of
Associated Newspapers of Zimbabwe, publishers of the banned Daily News.
Nkomo was arrested on Wednesday alongside 17 other MDC officials including
Lovemore Moyo, the party's Vice National chairperson. The group was arrested
during a protest against police brutality organised by the Save Zimbabwe
Campaign in Bulawayo. Amidst the commotion the whereabouts of Nkomo were not
known on Wednesday, fueling concerns over his safety.

Mrs Nkomo however explained to Newsreel that her husband was picked up from
his office in the city. She says he was escorted by over 8 police officers
and that two police trucks were needed to transport all the others arrested.
Nkomo was taken to Bulawayo Central police station before being moved to
Queens Park station close to the airport in the city on Thursday. Mrs Nkomo
has been allowed to bring him food and says he shows no sign of being
assaulted. By late Thursday Nkomo had been moved back to the central station
in the city. The entire group remained locked up at the time Newsreel went
on air.

..

SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news

Biti says Mugabe desperate old man resisting peaceful transition

By Violet Gonda
15 March 2007

The opposition party has said the regime may have physically beaten them on
Sunday as they attempted to gather in Highfields but in so doing actually
watered their spirits for change. Tendai Biti the Secretary General for the
Tsvangirai MDC said what happened on Sunday was unbelievable and an
unmitigated orgy of barbaric violence.

Biti warned: "The regime is on its way out. Mugabe knows it. ZANU PF knows
it. The question really is what will be the nature of transition and how
peaceful or violent will it be. That is the critical question that faces
 us."

In spite of worldwide condemnation the despotic regime of Robert Mugabe has
vowed to crush voices of dissent. The information Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu
issued a statement saying: "Those who incite violence, or actually cause and
participate in unleashing it, are set to pay a very heavy price, regardless
of who they are."

Human rights groups and the opposition say the Mugabe regime are the real
perpetrators of violence. Biti believes Zimbabwe will see more innocent
civilians getting assaulted and arrested. "I think the old man is desperate
and unfortunately as with all dictators and all mad people, the more
desperate they become the more vicious they will be."

The events of the last few days have shown a more barbaric security force
with no respect for the dead. This week, for two days in a row, police have
been disturbing and firing at mourners gathered at the wake of Gift Tandare,
the MDC & NCA activist who was shot dead by police on Sunday.

Biti said once a state begins to do this to an unarmed civilian population
it is a reflection that is has lost the moral legitimacy to govern and to
reproduce itself as a state "and there is only one thing that will happen.
The state and those who are controlling it are on their way out."

Describing their ordeal at the hands of the police Biti said there was an
element of military training and military precision in the manner in which
they were beaten. He said the assailants used baton sticks and iron bars to
attack them. "Then there was this thing that I have never seen until then.
It's a baton stick but at the end of it, it has got a joint. That joint
connects it to three pieces of leathers, which dangle like three snakes. So
once those hit you - they take away your skin. If it hits you and there is
release it also liberates part of your skin and that was a dangerous
 weapon."

Biti added: "And this little boy probably 26 years old was using it very
liberally on our bodies without invitation."

..

SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news

Chief refuses permission to bury Gift Tandare

By Tichaona Sibanda
15 March 2007

The MDC has reacted with shock to reports that a local Chief has refused to
allow the family of Gift Tandare, the late MDC activist shot by police
Sunday, to bury him in his home area of Mount Darwin.

This has triggered a major political row between the MDC and the Chief, whom
the opposition party believe is getting his orders from Zanu (PF).
MDC MP for Glen View Paul Madzore said despite the chief's 'stupid' orders
they will go ahead with funeral plans to bury him in Mount Darwin on
Saturday. Thousands of MDC supporters are expected to attend the funeral.

'People are saying if the chief refuses let's leave his body at Mount Darwin
police station because he was killed by the police. We wouldn't want that,
we wouldn't want to dump our hero at the doorsteps of people who murdered
him. We will take him to his final resting place with or without the chief's
permission,' Madzore said.

As relatives and friends in Glen View continue to pay their tributes to one
of the MDC's leading activists, Madzore explained that at the time of the
fatal shooting, Tandare was actually scurrying for cover, contrary to police
reports that he was threatening one of the officers.

'When Gift was shot, his colleagues say he was running towards an alley to
avoid the volley of bullets from the police. We've heard the police say they
fired 18 warning shots. That's a lie, all the shots fired that day were
aimed at unarmed civilians-there was never any warning shot,' said Madzore.
His family was also waiting for post-mortem results.

Madzore who has worked with Tandare since 1999 in the constituency praised
him for his 'incisive wit' and said he was a 'master of detail' when it came
to party activities. A well-known figure in Glen View, Tandare has been
described a remarkable activist, a man of rare vision, integrity and
courage.

He was tragically shot in Highfields on Sunday after riot police started
firing indiscriminately at people walking towards the venue of a planned
prayer meeting convened by The Save Zimbabwe Campaign. A wife and three
children survive Tandare.

SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news

Kufuor warns Mugabe

The Statesman, Ghana

Asare Otchere-Darko , 15/03/2007

President John Agyekum Kufuor yesterday in the same breath described
war-torn Darfur and Zimbabwe as the "troubled spots of Africa."

In a joint news conference with British Prime Minister Tony Blair at Downing
Street, the President literally pre-empted journalists when in his opening
remarks he indirectly warned the President of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe to
allow the rule of law to prevail and move away from the use of violence and
intimidation against the opposition.

Morgan Tsvangirai, who heads the opposition in Zimbabwe, was in intensive
care with a suspected skull fracture on Wednesday after what he says was a
brutal police attack three days before.

President Kufuor, who is the chairman of the African Union, said the AU was
extremely concerned by Darfur and Zimbabwe. Inevitably he saw his state
visit to the United Kingdom dominated by worldwide outrage of police
crackdown on the Zimbabwe opposition this week, which led to the death of a
member of the opposition and images of a battered Tsvangirai on his hospital
bed granting an interview and before that appearing in court with stitches
in his head, sporting an 'identification' style haircut.

"In the spirit of the African Union," and in line with NEPAD, President
Kufuor told the international media yesterday, "We want the rule of law to
be the main agency of governance. Violence, beating up, and using brutal
force shouldn"t be the way forward. Allowing the constitution to work
properly should be the way forward."

In response, Mr Blair said how sorry he felt for the people of Zimbabwe.
Aligning himself with the President's view that the rule of law should be
the avenue for governance, he said the situation in the southern African
state was a "tragedy for the people of Zimbabwe."

Using Ghana as a fitting example of what is possible, the British Premier
said, looking at his guest, "The President I'm standing next to is showing
how it is possible to make progress and have democratic elections. It can be
done and it is being done in Africa."

"As President Kufuor just said, people should be allowed to live under the
rule of law and be able to express their views."

He pledged his country's continued support to the AU to enhance peace,
stability and the rule of law on the continent.

Earlier, President Kufuor came face to face with angry Zimbabweans who
heckled him repeatedly, urging the AU chairman to ensure that Zimbabwe, and
hence Africa, is liberated. Four times, in a calculated opposition by a
small group of concerned Zimbabweans who attended the President's address at
the political think-tank institute, Chatham House, in the morning, an
address which focused more on the progressive situation in Ghana.

One of the four protestors, who interrupted the speech, had on a symbolic
handcuff, to stress his point that Zimbabwean was under an oppressive
regime.

"As chairman of the African Union, we call on you to condemn Zimbabwe," he
shouted before he was grabbed and walked out. "Africa must be liberated!
Zimbabwe must be liberated!" shouted another to a mix of applause and some
resentment that the official programme was being interrupted.

"Mugabe is killing people and our African leaders are not doing anything,"
another said.

But, President Kufuor initially ignored these quick, successive
interruptions and continued with his script which focussed on Ghana's first
50 years and the way forward.

Each protestor was individually escorted by security agents from the hall.
But the demonstration continued outside, forcing the AU chairman to be
escorted out to his official luncheon at the Lancaster Gate, with Baroness
Amos.

Ironically it was this Lancaster House where the independence agreement
(known as the Lancaster House Agreement) for Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, was
signed on 21 December, 1979. The agreement ended the white rule in Rhodesia
under Ian Smith.

And, the signatories included Robert Mugabe, who became the head of
government in  Zimbabwe immediately afterwards in 1980, first as Prime
Minister and later as first executive President.

His major criticism is for ending white rule in Zimbabwe only to replace it
with his own form of oppressive rule.

President Kufuor, in response to a question by a Zimbabwean at Chatham
House, said African leaders are embarrassed by the situation in Zimbabwe. He
also showed the hitherto toothlessness of the continental body, AU, in the
face of the unfolding tragedy in Zimbabwe.

"The African Union is very uncomfortable. The situation in your country is
very embarrassing," Mr Kufuor told the Zimbabwean.

"I know personally that presidents like (Nigeria's Olusegun) Obasanjo,
(South Africa's Thabo) Mbeki and others have tried desperately to exercise
some influence for the better. But they came against stiff resistance," said
Mr Kufuor.

The protestors effectively represented global frustrations with the AU over
Zimbabwe, where economic hardship is more than insults to the political
injuries there.

"Please don't think Africa is not concerned. Africa is very much concerned,"
President Kufuor said.

"I think you should all assume that all these institutions, the African
Union, we mean well."

But, he had to admit,  "Perhaps we haven't exhausted the means to give us
the handle on the situation so it can be restored to normalcy."

He ended optimistically that the AU was looking at "various ways" to bring a
solution to Zimbabwe.

It was reported yesterday that, Mr Tsvangirai, speaking to a radio reporter
from his hospital bed, said he was attacked after arriving at a police
station to check on colleagues who had been arrested earlier on Sunday.

"It was almost as if they were waiting for me," he said in remarks broadcast
on South Africa's national radio.

"Before I could even settle down I was subjected to a lot of beatings, in
fact it was random beatings, but I think the intention was to inflict as
much harm as they could."

"The hope for Africa is that there is a new leadership on the continent, a
leadership that has dedicated itself to redirecting the continent's destiny's
for peace and prosperity,"

President Kufuor told African heads of missions in an earlier breakfast
meeting, ending with some irony, "That leadership is prepared to submit
themselves to the African Peer Review Mechanism, we have made it possible
for many other sister countries to agree to be peer reviewed."

Stop pussyfooting around Mugabe

Daily News, SA

Editorial

The assaults on opposition leaders could unite resistance in Zimbabwe,
writes Max du Preez

March 15, 2007 Edition 1

Is the sight of Morgan Tsvangirai's battered, swollen face going to be the
image that will haunt Robert Mugabe into earlier retirement than he had
planned? Could Sunday's brutal assaults on top opposition leaders be the
trigger that will at last unleash a united and more effective resistance to
Mugabe's government?

Of all the African liberation armies who fought against colonialist or white
minority rulers, Zimbabwe's Zanu and Zapu were probably the most successful.

Which makes it all the more puzzling why Zimbabwean citizens have been so
passive in the face of the cruel repression and destruction of the economy
by the Mugabe regime.

Every time I visit Zimbabwe, I am stunned at the rate of literacy and the
proficiency in English, even in remote villages. Zimbabweans are certainly
not an underdeveloped, politically unsophisticated people - thanks in large
part to the progressive education policies after 1980 of the same political
party that is now terrorising the people.

So ignorance can't be the explanation for the absence of more vigorous
resistance.

Listen

The explanation one sometimes gets from some ANC leaders - one that I had to
listen to again last week in conversation with two apparatchiks - that the
reason for the lack of resistance is that most Zimbabweans are not as
unhappy as the media is portraying, is just nonsense.

Even though the post-2000 elections were in no way free and fair, the
opposition still got close to half the votes.

As South Africans we know very well how much it takes to move the liberated
to turn against their liberation movement. Mugabe was not only the biggest
hero in Zimbabwe's history; he was the hero of most of the continent.

Zimbabwe has become a hard place to live in if you are not a Zanu-PF
beneficiary. If the police are prepared to beat the man who was almost their
president like that, clearly lesser-known activists get much worse
treatment.

If the figures on inflation, GDP, life expectancy, unemployment and food
scarcity reflect reality, then there are a lot of very poor and some very
hungry people in Zimbabwe.

But it is also about more than physical hardship.

It is about freedom and about pride, commodities the people of Zimbabwe had
in abundance a decade ago.

Apart from those who benefit from Zanu-PF largesse and the Shona tribal
faithful, Zimbabweans, in my experience, are deeply embarrassed by Mugabe's
odd, Idi Amin-like behaviour.

They are ashamed of and angered by the way Zanu-PF runs the state as party
property.

Brutally

They are angry that their once proud democracy is now mentioned in the same
breath as North Korea and Equatorial Guinea.

And yet the opposition to Mugabe has been fractured and lukewarm. Why?

There are obvious reasons. A large number (probably around three million
plus) of the economically active population, and a huge chunk of the
intelligentsia, have moved to neighbouring states and especially South
Africa.

Mugabe still has strong pockets of rural support, especially among the
Shona, who form 80% of the population. Some say Tsvangirai is not a very
good leader and his style engenders factionalism.

It is also obvious that Mugabe has been looking after his armed forces. In a
country of hardship and unemployment, being a soldier or policeman is a good
job.

Many senior officers have in recent years been rewarded with farms and
expensive houses and cars.

It will take a lot to get them to turn against the hand that feeds them, and
in the meantime they are brutally effective in smothering dissent.

During my last visit to Zimbabwe, two other reasons for the lethargic
response to repression became clear to me.

The one is that the population between the ages of 20 and 40 are severely
affected by the HIV/Aids pandemic.

I was stunned by the listlessness and hopelessness of whole communities who
have been devastated by sickness and death.

Fighting Mugabe is the last thing on their minds.

The other reason is harder to quantify.

I got the impression from many conversations that many Zimbabweans who are
deeply unhappy with Zanu-PF rule, were reluctant to join the active
opposition because Mugabe's propaganda that the opposition was doing the
bidding for white racists and British imperialists created some doubt in the
back of their minds.

Impact

Add to that the impact of the glaring reluctance of South Africa and the
rest of the African Union to condemn and isolate Mugabe from the cosy
brotherhood of African heads of state, and these doubters stay out of
politics.

Armed resistance cannot be an option in Zimbabwe. But the shocking assaults
on Tsvangiari and his fellow leaders can now be used to unite the non-
violent resistance and to play into the deep divisions in Zanu-PF itself.

It is time for clever strategising and brave action.

It is also time for the African Union to stop pussyfooting around Zimbabwe.

A Mugabe-free Zimbabwe by next year is now a real possibility.

KweKwe MDC leadership tortured in prison cells

From SW Radio Africa, 14 March

By Tichaona Sibanda

The entire local leadership of the MDC in KweKwe has been tortured in prison
cells at a police station after being rounded up just before the start of an
anti-government protest on Wednesday. Alex Senge, an MDC activist and one of
the protest organisers in KweKwe, said they strongly suspect someone tipped
off the police because by the time they got to venue at the main bus
terminus, it was surrounded by heavily armed riot police. Despite the
presence of the police the MDC activists still tried to go ahead with the
protest march at which time they were rounded up and thrown onto trucks.
They were taken to KweKwe central police station. There the group was
subjected to severe beatings by the police, according to Senge. He said they
were taken three at a time into a torture chamber, where they emerged badly
bruised. 'It took the police ten minutes to deal with each group and the
torture sessions were so vicious it left most of the activists badly swollen
and bruised,' Senge said. All of those arrested and tortured hold senior
positions in the Midlands constituency. By mid afternoon, police were still
making follow-ups and arresting activists from their homes around KweKwe. On
Tuesday Gweru Mayor Fedel Zvidzayi was arrested together with Mkoba MP Amos
Chibaya at the start of a protest demonstration in the city. KweKwe MP
Blessing Chebundo confirmed that the senior officials of the party were
still in cells at the city's central police station.

Straw man, straw men

Comment from ZWNEWS, 14 March

Challenged in a radio interview two days ago as to what South Africa was
doing to try and stop the brutality witnessed in Zimbabwe since last
weekend, South African government spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa replied: "What do
you expect us to do? Send the tanks rolling over the Limpopo?" He followed
by spinning the standard South African line: that Zimbabwe is a sovereign
nation and its future must be decided internally, not by intervention from
outside. The derision which followed Mr Mamoepa's statement embarrassed
South Africa's deputy foreign minister into a disingenuous call yesterday
for the Zimbabwe government to adhere to the rule of law. As if Zimbabwe's
laws and legal system were not already as corrupted as its ruling party.
Nothing has been heard so far from Pahad's boss, or his boss's boss.

South African tanks are the last thing Zimbabwe needs. In 1998, South Africa
led SADC troops into Lesotho. Several years later Maseru was still being
rebuilt. Nobody is asking South Africa to send in its tanks, and Mr Mamoepa
and his superiors know it. And as far as non-interference in the affairs of
sovereign states is concerned, South Africa has intervened in various ways
in plenty of other countries. Aside from Lesotho, (where the justification
was comprehensive rigging which delivered a sweeping electoral victory for
the ruling party!), South Africa has been involved in recent times in the
internal affairs of the Congo, Burundi, and Haiti. Closer to home, where
would Mr Mamoepa and his masters be now, if the rest of the world had
followed Pik Botha's constant warnings to steer clear of South Africa's
internal affairs? The rest of the world did not deliver South Africa's
emancipation alone, but it certainly helped.

South Africa's claim to the high moral ground regarding Zimbabwe is false.
South Africa is already intervening in Zimbabwe, backing Mugabe and Zanu PF
to the hilt. Just as Vorster backed Smith, South Africa has backed Mugabe:
in the Commonwealth, in SADC, in the AU, in the EU-ACP, and at the UN, using
its recently acquired Security Council seat. South Africa has provided spare
parts for Zimbabwe's military helicopters, electricity on credit, shared
intelligence, and offered a very substantial financial bail out package,
even if it was rather churlishly and publicly rejected by Mugabe. The claim
that South Africa is being asked to intervene militarily in Zimbabwe is
nothing but a straw man: a preposterous and exaggerated caricature of an
opposing argument, designed to destroy it by making it appear ridiculous.
Those who have constructed this straw man - Mamoepa, Pahad, Dlamini-Zuma,
and Mbeki - increasingly look like creatures of straw themselves:
preposterous caricatures of the worst, not the best, in Africa. What is
needed is not for South Africa to interfere, but to stop interfering.

UN, EU wary on extra Zimbabwe sanctions

Reuters

Thu 15 Mar 2007, 14:52 GMT

By Ingrid Melander

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Stepping up sanctions on Zimbabwe over a government
crackdown on the opposition could end up hurting the country's citizens more
than its leaders, senior United Nations and European Union officials said on
Thursday.

The United States said on Wednesday it was looking at additional sanctions
it might impose on Harare after the detention and beating of opposition
leader Morgan Tsvangirai and others sparked world condemnation.

 "Sanctions have to be weighed very carefully because of experiences we've
had in the past whereby sanctions have had a counter-productivity against
innocent citizens of a particular country," U.N. Deputy Secretary-General
Asha-Rose Migiro told reporters in Brussels.
Rights groups say 50 opposition figures, including Tsvangirai, were
maltreated after their arrest during a prayer meeting on Sunday organised by
a coalition of opposition, church and civic groups to discuss Zimbabwe's
problems.

EU aid commissioner Louis Michel also warned of the possible consequences of
sanctions.

"If these are sanctions that directly or indirectly affect the population or
hit the minimum welfare they have a right to, I cannot accept that," he said
after meeting Migiro.

Michel said he had nothing against sanctions that did not affect the
population but said of measures targeted at leaders: "I am not sure they
work."

The 27-nation EU last month extended for another year its sanctions on
Zimbabwe, including an arms embargo, travel ban and asset freeze on
President Robert Mugabe and other top officials.

In 2002 and 2003, the United States placed financial and visa restrictions
on some Zimbabwean individuals, banned transfers of military supplies and
suspended non-humanitarian aid to the government. In 2005, it included
family members of those originally targeted.

A U.S. official said on Wednesday Washington was looking at ways to punish
the regime without affecting the population, hit by 80 percent unemployment
and shortages of food and fuel.

Michel strongly condemned the government crackdown, saying it breached
democracy and human rights.

Migiro said U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon had "made very clear to the
government of Zimbabwe" that it should respect human rights and freedom of
expression.

Zimbabwe Detainee Says He Witnessed Morgan Tsvangirai's Beating

VOA

      By Peta Thornycroft
      Harare
      15 March 2007

Legislator Tendai Biti, who is a prominent Harare lawyer, says he witnessed
the beating of founding Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) president
Morgan Tsvangirai.  Biti spoke from his hospital bed to Peta Thornycroft in
Harare.

Tendai Biti was among the first to be detained when he was driving towards
the stadium where a prayer rally was to be held last Sunday.

He was arrested and taken with about 30 colleagues to the Machipisa Police
Station in Highfield, where he and fellow detainees say they were tortured
by police.

He said he saw his friends and colleagues, MDC treasurer Elton Mangoma, who
is disabled, and activists Lovemore Madhuku, Grace Kwinjeh, and Sekai
Holland being given what he describes as "special treatment."

Biti said the group was singled out for the most brutal beating by five
policemen and one woman he described as particularly violent and poorly
educated.

"Then they started beating people randomly, with rubber baton sticks, the
first time they hit, I said to Elton, phew, this thing is painful, really
painful, just going around hitting randomly, but there was another group of
policemen just outside the fence, they had started identifying people.
First they identified was Lovemore Madhuku," he recalled.  "Then this woman
said he is the ring leader, so they started hitting him, one woman removed
her belt, took the buckle end and started assaulting him in the head ... ka,
ka, ka, ka, ka.  Next they identified Grace Kwinjeh, 'oh Grace Kwinjeh you
think you are a commander?' and started assaulting her in the face, she
screamed once, and they beat her, you know she broke out into those spirits,
kushikirwa ... she started talking like a man, it was frightening, you never
seen something like that.  So they beat her up, beat her up, beat her up."

Biti said one of the plainclothes men who assaulted the detainees had a
baton with a three tailed whip on the end of it.

Biti said when Morgan Tsvangirai joined them he heard the police shouting,
"get in, get in", using words in the Shona language that would normally
apply to an animal.

      Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai is seen in bed at a
local hospital in Harare, 14 Mar. 2007

"Then they just start hitting him, then they said to him, 'so you are the
one who sends in kids to assault policemen,' and then he says in Shona, 'We
do not send kids to assault police or anyone, we do not do that.'"

"Then they started assaulting him, they stopped assaulting everyone else,
they assaulted him for anything between 15 to 20 minutes, sustained," he
continued, "and all you could hear all you could hear was the sound of the
whip.  They shifted into another gear, once they saw Morgan.  He was lying
prostrate like a dead person, blood coming out ... he was unconscious."

Biti said that when the assault stopped he and others were forced to carry
those who could not walk onto a large police truck and driven to Harare
Central Police Station, where they were made to lie down on a road.  There,
he said, officials from President Robert Mugabe's office came to ask
questions and saw them lying, injured and bleeding, and groaning in agony.

He said later they were forced back onto the truck, and driven to several
police stations where they were dropped off in groups.  Biti said that
enroute he used sign language to indicate to a taxi driver that Morgan
Tsvangirai was being dropped off at the Borrowdale Police Station, about 15
kilometers north of Harare.

The taxi driver then alerted people and the lawyers were informed of
Tsvangirai's whereabouts.

Biti, still in pain from his beating in police custody, said the worst
injured was Sekai Holland, an activist in her late 60's.  Both of her ankles
were broken and her arm was mutilated.  She was in surgery much of the day.

No charges have been filed against any of those arrested last Sunday.
Doctors say Tsvangirai's injuries are not life threatening and he should be
well enough to go home in a couple of days.

The government has accused Tsvangirai of sending some of his youth members
to attack the police.  It says opposition youths were also attacking
civilians in several townships, accusations denied by the MDC.

Zimbabwe's Tsvangirai Hasn't Suffered Brain Damage

Bloomberg

By Brian Latham

March 15 (Bloomberg) -- Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai
hasn't suffered brain damage after being beaten by police, said Frances
Lovemore, director of the Amani Trust.

Tsvangirai, 55, underwent a brain scan yesterday to determine the extent of
injuries sustained when he was beaten by police March 11. He was among
opposition members detained when police broke up a prayer meeting in the
suburb of Highfields in the capital, Harare. A member of his party, the
Movement for Democratic Change, was killed in the violence that followed.

``There was no brain damage,'' Lovemore, whose organization counsels torture
victims, said today in an interview from Harare. ``He does have massive
lacerations to his head, from which he lost large quantities of blood, but
the brain is fine and the only other damage he has is extensive bruising and
a fractured hand.''

Tsvangirai, a former labor union leader, has been unsuccessfully prosecuted
twice on treason charges and ran against President Robert Mugabe in three
elections.

Under Mugabe, food production has plummeted after the government seized
white-owned farms for redistribution to black supporters of the president.
With little financial backing or farming skills among those who gained
control of the land, many of the farms were left to deteriorate. Zimbabwe is
in its eighth consecutive year of recession and has the world's highest
annual inflation rate, at 1,730 percent.

To contact the reporter on this story: Brian Latham in Harare via
Johannesburg on pmrichardson@bloomberg.net

SADC leaders losing patience

News24

15/03/2007 18:04  - (SA)

Johannesburg - African leaders, for so long reluctant to speak out about the
crisis in Zimbabwe, are finally running out of patience with President
Robert Mugabe over fears of being tainted by the fallout.

As images of a badly beaten opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai led the news
bulletins in neighbouring South Africa, Pretoria finally abandoned its
'quiet diplomacy' on Tuesday by urging Mugabe to respect the rights of the
opposition.

A similar rebuke came across Zimbabwe's northern border when Zambian leader
Levy Mwanawasa voiced his "concern", adding that "when the economy of
Zimbabwe coughs ours also coughs" in reference to the 1 730% inflation rate.

The barbs stop far short of the outright condemnation heard from the likes
of Washington and London, but nevertheless indicate leaders are distancing
themselves from a man who was once regarded as a liberation hero.

"African leaders understand that Mugabe has become a bloody embarrassment
and has gone past his sell-buy date," said Hussein Solomon, a professor at
Pretoria's centre for international political studies.

Comments by South Africa's deputy foreign minister Aziz Pahad, urging Harare
to respect the rights of "all Zimbabweans and (party) leaders" came hours
after the US ambassador to Pretoria condemned the so-far muted response.

"We are disappointed we have not heard from many of the SADC (Southern
African Development Community) countries speaking out about it and taking
some action because the people of Zimbabwe are suffering," said ambassador
Eric Bost.

But even before the events of the weekend, when Tsvangirai and dozens of his
supporters were rounded up while trying to attend an anti-government rally,
there were signs Mugabe was being cut loose.

'It serves no one if they stay in power'

Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba made a clear dig at Mugabe during a
state banquet for the Zimbabwean leader last month by urging him to
"reenergise efforts to strengthen democratic governance and the rule of
law".

And asked about Mugabe and other veteran African leaders at a conference on
democracy here last week, African Union Commission president Alpha Oumar
Konare pointedly said that "it serves no one if they stay in power for 30
years".

According to Zwelethu Jolobe, an Africa expert at Cape Town University,
Mugabe has become "a clear liability to anyone associated with him".

"People are getting to see that having Mugabe as an ally damages your
reputation internationally. The sad thing is that it has taken people ten
years to realise this and only when things have gone too far."

South Africa has previously insisted the problems of Zimbabwe should be
resolved among the Zimbabwe people but the stance has been heavily
criticised.

A cartoon in Johannesburg's The Star newspaper on Wednesday showed President
Thabo Mbeki sitting smugly in an armchair with a pipe, saying: "Bob old
chap, I don't mean to interrupt, but ... um ... when you do have a
minute..." as Mugabe truncheons Tsvangirai.

'Too much of an over-emphasis'

Jolobe said the South African government had had to rethink its insistence
Zimbabwe should be left to sort out its disagreements as it became clear
Mugabe had few qualms about how he treated his opponents.

"I think that perhaps there was too much of an over-emphasis that the
Zimbabweans can sort out their own issues and not a realisation that the
balance of power within Zimbabwe is that the people cannot do it themselves.

"For the people of Zimbabwe to fully realise their rights and enjoy the kind
of rights that we enjoy, we also have to assist in the process."

Hussein said however that talk of a South African u-turn was overstated and
noted that its reaction was still "quite limp" and illustrated Pretoria's
failure to exert influence.

"They are embarrassed but they don't know how to it admit it."

U.S. Calls for African Efforts to `Foster Change' in Zimbabwe

Bloomberg

By Ed Johnson and Brian Latham

March 15 (Bloomberg) -- African leaders must examine what can be done to
``foster change'' in Zimbabwe which is suffering under President Robert
Mugabe's increasingly repressive regime, the U.S. State Department said.

The assault on main opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai and other political
activists shows Mugabe has ``little intention, without additional efforts on
all our parts'' of allowing free and fair elections in Zimbabwe, department
deputy spokesman Tom Casey told reporters in Washington yesterday.

Zimbabwe's Information Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu accused the U.S. and U.K.
of trying to topple Mugabe's government and warned that anyone inciting
violence in the country will ``pay a very heavy price,'' Agence
France-Presse reported.

Mugabe, 83, has ruled the country since it gained independence from the U.K.
in 1980 and says he has no intention of stepping down. Human rights groups
and Zimbabweans living in exile have criticized African governments for
failing to condemn the abuse of civil and political rights in the country.

Tsvangirai, 55, a former labor union leader who formed the Movement for
Democratic Change party in 1998, was among opposition members detained when
police broke up a March 11 prayer meeting in the Harare suburb of
Highfields. He underwent a brain scan yesterday to determine the extent of
injuries sustained when he was beaten by police, MDC spokesman Eliphat
Mukonoweshuro said yesterday.

U.S. Sanctions

The U.S. is considering tightening sanctions that already include travel
bans and asset freezes on senior leaders of Mugabe's party, Casey said
yesterday, according to a transcript.

``We've got a long and clear track record from the Mugabe government of
taking increasingly more repressive measures against the political
opposition,'' said Casey. ``And this is something that should be of concern
to democratic countries in the region like South Africa as well as to the
broader international community.''

The African Union and countries in the region ``ought to take a look at what
can be done to foster change in Zimbabwe,'' he added.

About 100 people rallied two days ago in the South African capital,
Johannesburg, demanding President Thabo Mbeki is more critical of Mugabe's
regime, Agence France-Presse reported. South Africa called on Zimbabwe's
government to respect the rule of law, according to an e-mailed statement
two days ago.

Silence condones ``Mugabe's brutal regime,'' AFP cited former MDC lawmaker
Roy Bennett, who lives in South Africa, as saying March 13. ``It is sad that
those who speak out against abuses of the people in Zimbabwe are not
Africans themselves.''

London Protest

Demonstrators yesterday disrupted a speech by African Union chairman John
Kufuor, the president of Ghana, for failing to condemn political repression
in Zimbabwe, AFP reported.

``The African Union wants to do something, but it's only two years old and
there are many challenges confronting it,'' AFP cited Kufor as saying.

Zimbabwe, a former British colony known as Rhodesia, became a republic in
1980, 15 years after a unilateral declaration of independence by a
government then run by the white minority.

Under Mugabe, food production has plummeted after the government seized
white-owned farms for redistribution to black supporters of the president.
With little financial backing or farming skills among those who gained
control of the land, many of the farms were left to deteriorate.

Zimbabwe is in its eighth consecutive year of recession and has the world's
highest annual inflation rate, at 1,730 percent. The government imposed a
three month ban on political rallies in Harare, as anger mounts over the
country's economic collapse.

Police failed to show at a court hearing yesterday at which Tsvangirai and
other activists were to be charged, lawyers said.

``They are all free men now,'' Innocent Chagonda, Tsvangirai's lawyer, said
in a telephone interview yesterday.

Tsvangirai has run against Mugabe in three elections, which observers say
were marred by violence and electoral irregularities. Mugabe's current term
ends in 2008.

To contact the reporters on this story: Ed Johnson in Sydney at
ejohnson28@bloomberg.net ; Brian Latham in Harare through Johannesburg at
asguazzin@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: March 14, 2007 21:56 EDT

Govt refuses to comment on Zim

Nation online, Malawi

by Emmanuel Muwamba, 15 March 2007 - 03:56:20
Government has refused to comment on the arrest and beating of Zimbabwe
opposition MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai with his supporters saying it cannot
do it because other countries have done so.
The civil society in the country in a press release yesterday called upon
President Bingu wa Mutharika to discuss the problems facing Zimbabwe in the
wake of arrests of opposition political leaders who were attempting to
attend a prayer vigil on Sunday.
The four civil society groups- Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation
(CHRR), Centre for Children Affairs (Ceyca), Civil Liberties Committee
(Cilic) and Christian Agency for Responsible Democracy and Unity (CARDNU)-
say they applaud the government of Zambia for taking a strong stand against
the deteriorating situation in Zimbabwe.
"We call upon our State President Dr Bingu wa Mutharika to take advantage of
his personal relationship with President Robert Mugabe to take a lead in
convening other Sadc leaders to discuss the problems facing Zimbabwe.
"Our President cannot continue to shy away from the Zimbabwe crisis as that
will be betrayal of the people of Zimbabwe and the whole Sadc region," says
a statement.
The statement says the Zambian government has broken the ranks with the
region on the meltdown in Zimbabwe by declaring that there is a serious
problem in Zimbabwe which needs Sadc intervention.
But government spokesperson Patricia Kaliati yesterday condemned the human
rights organisations that have signed the press release, saying the
organisations have overstepped their boundaries because there are many human
rights abuses in the country which need attention.
"My comment is that the human rights organisations have asked us at a wrong
time. We cannot comment on the Zimbabwe issue just because Zambia has done
so. These organisations should meet the President and discuss these issues.
They should also discuss that with their counterparts there (in Zimbabwe),"
said Kaliati.
Sunday's arrests came as Zimbabwe faced a deepening economic crisis with an
inflation at more that 1,700 percent, unemployment of 80 percent and
frequent shortages of food, fuel and foreign exchange.
But the official Herald newspaper yesterday reported that some Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC) supporters had gone on an "orgy of violence"
barricading roads, destroying property and stoning vehicles in Harare
townships on Tuesday.
 

This Must Stop!

Accra Mail (Accra)

March 14, 2007
Posted to the web March 15, 2007

Kwaku Osei Bonsu
London

African Union (AU) Chairman President John Agyekum Kufuor has described the
political situation in Zimbabwe as embarrassing to the continent. What was
happening in that country, he said was making the AU uncomfortable.

President Kufuor was responding to a question on the Union's position on the
political intolerance and brutal attacks on the opponents of the government
of President Robert Mugabe, when he addressed members of the Royal Institute
of International Affairs, Chatham House, in London yesterday.

This comes in the wake of recent horrifying beating and torture of the
Zimbabwean Opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai and dozens of his supporters
after their arrest at a banned meeting.

President Kufuor rejected claims that seek to suggest that the AU has
remained unconcerned about Zimbabwean situation, saying, it has all along
been making every necessary effort to exercise some influence to help to
restore normalcy there.

"We want accountable government. We want multi-party democracy."

The main theme of President Kufuor's address was "Fifty Years of Ghana 's
Independence : Prospects and Challenges for accelerated National
Development." He gave a positive assessment of Ghana 's economic
performance, saying the "indicators point to good prospects for the
country's development."

The nation, he declared, has entered into a new phase of sustained
development and was among the few, listed by the multi-laterals, to likely
meet the Millennium Development (MDGs).

"To us in today's Ghana , we know where we are coming from, where we are now
and where we are going. What we demand is committed co-operation and support
from all our friends."

President Kufuor, who is on a three-day state visit to the United Kingdom
(UK) said the government was determined to maintain strict financial
discipline to prevent a relapse to the debt situation that forced it to
adopt the Highly Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC).

"The Government would not be sentimental in borrowing. We would go in for
money that would be of benefit to the development of the economy."

He pointed out that one of the major challenges the country and the rest of
Africa was facing was the frustrations in competing on the international
market, citing agricultural subsidies by the wealthy nations and the high
tariffs imposed on products from the Continent.

"We do not feel the World Trade Organisation (WTO) represents Africa 's best
interest." President Kufuor had earlier at a breakfast meeting with leaders
of Africa Missions in the UK at Buckingham Palace, noted that the Doha
Development Agenda, which provides for the establishment of rules based on
equitable trading system, as representing the hope for improving the lives
of the peoples in the Continent and free them from abject poverty.

The debt burden, inequitable trading relations with the developed countries
as well as the rampant conflicts on the continent have conspired to keep
Africa poor and weak.

He however told the diplomats that through determination, Africa would be
able to resolve many of the seemingly intractable problems, standing in its
way to growth and prosperity and which have kept the Continent poor and
marginalised.

President Kufuor said there was hope for Africa as its new leaders were
dedicated to re-directing the continent's destiny for peace and wealth
creation.

GNA Special Correspondent

CoD Condemns Maltreatment of Zimbabwean Opposition Members

New Era (Windhoek)

March 15, 2007
Posted to the web March 15, 2007

Kuvee Kangueehi
Windhoek

Members of the Swapo Party in the National Assembly voted against a motion
by Congress of Democrats (CoD) President Ben Ulenga to debate the recent
beating and torture of opposition leaders in Zimbabwe.

Despite a plea from the Speaker of the National Assembly, Theo-Ben Guirirab,
to allow Ulenga to motivate his motion, the Swapo parliamentarians insisted
that the decision should go down to voting, and a total of 31 Swapo MPs
voted against, while only nine voted for the motion. Nobody abstained,
although some senior leaders tried to lobby their fellow parliamentarians to
abstain just before the voting started.

At a joint press conference arranged during the parliament tea break by all
opposition parties, except the Republican Party, Ulenga said he has no
problem with the Swapo Party opposing the motion but said he is concerned
about the state of denial in the Namibian Parliament. Noting that he wanted
to condemn the torture and maltreatment of opposition leaders and members in
Zimbabwe, Ulenga said he also wanted to call on the Namibian Government to
use its diplomatic relations with Zimbabwe to persuade the Zimbabwe
government to desist from further trampling on the human rights of its
citizens.

Ulenga expressed his dismay and said the CoD National Chairman, Tsudao
Gurirab, was currently in Zimbabwe with other duties but was expected to
contact MDC members to express their solidarity.

McHenry Venaani of the DTA, on behalf of his party, said Zimbabwe should
learn that human rights was a universal issue and not a privilege.

He noted that it was embarrassing for the Namibian parliament to throw out
the motion without listening to the motivation. He also took a swipe at the
Minister of Labour and Social Services, Alpheus !Naruseb, who remarked that
they were also arrested by the South African regime.

"For !Naruseb to justify what is happening in Zimbabwe to what the South
African regime did to Namibians before independence, is totally
unacceptable." He charged that SADC has failed with its quiet diplomacy to
address problems in Zimbabwe, adding that the issue in Zimbabwe is no longer
a land issue but a regime that has run the economy down.

Arnold Tjihuiko, on behalf of Nudo, warned that Namibia is heading the same
way and in 10 years the country could face the same problems as Zimbabwe.

He added that in 1980 the inflation in Zimbabwe was just above 6 percent,
but today it is over 1000 percent.

Tjihuiko also noted that Swapo threw out the motion on the Lubango dungeons
because they feared being exposed, but failed to understand what they are
hiding in this motion. "The Swapo Party has shown its true colours, and now
we know what happened during exile."

However, the Zimbabwe issue is expected to feature again today in Parliament
as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Marco Hausiku, is expected to answer
questions regarding the situation in the country.

SA opposition pressures Mbeki to act on Zimbabwe

Zim Online

Friday 16 March 2007

Own Correspondents

JOHANNESBURG - South African opposition parties on Thursday urged President
Thabo Mbeki to denounce the ongoing repression in Zimbabwe as the
international community piled the pressure on Harare following last weekend's
torture of Morgan Tsvangirai and other party officials.

In a statement in Parliament, Freedom Front Plus leader Peter Mulder said
Mbeki's hard work to address "the negative and stereotypical views" of poor
democracies in Africa was being undone by President Robert Mugabe.

He said Mugabe's actions in torturing opponents strengthened and confirmed
all the stereotypes about Africa and democracy adding that Mbeki should move
quickly to help address the crisis in Zimbabwe.

Inkatha Freedom Party leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi added his voice to the
growing chorus of disapproval of Mugabe's policies. The IFP chief said the
violence against the opposition in Zimbabwe should be denounced decisively
and irrevocably.

"If we, as South Africans, are to live up to our often declared respect for
civil liberties and human rights at home and our noble ambition for an
African Renaissance elsewhere on the continent, we must be clear in our
condemnation of these brutal acts and the suspension of the basic human
right of free assembly," he said.

The ruling African National Congress' (ANC) parliamentary caucus also
condemned the violence against the opposition leaders.

"We support the statement issued by the ANC on the matter and the
organisation's principle that any torture, assault and acts of violence
against any citizen cannot be condoned."

Elsewhere around the world, the United States said it was looking at ways of
widening targeted sanctions against Mugabe and his senior lieutenants
following the crackdown on the opposition.

US State Department spokesman, Tom Casey, said Washington was exploring ways
to widen sanctions against the ZANU PF ruling elite.

"We will have to take a look at what is currently on the table and what
other steps might be taken. There's always other tools in the tool box,"
Casey told reporters in Washington on Wednesday.

The US State Department stepped up pressure on the African Union by
dispatching US Assistant Secretary of State, Barry Lowenkron, to the AU in
Addis Ababa to consult on the Zimbabwean situation.

Australian Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, yesterday said his
country was drawing up a contingency plan to evacuate its 700 nationals who
are still in Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe's Information Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu said Harare was
unperturbed by the US sanctions threat.

"The country is already under sanctions and we will not allow colonialists
to control us, Zimbabwe is a sovereign state," said Ndlovu. - ZimOnline

12 opposition activists nabbed

News24

15/03/2007 21:17  - (SA)

Bulawayo - Twelve members of Zimbabwe's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC)
have been arrested in the country's second biggest city after holding a
meeting, the opposition party said on Thursday.

Party spokesperson Khumbulani Muzavazi said he expected the group to be
brought to court on Friday although it was not known what charges they would
face.

The Zimbabwean authorities have effectively outlawed opposition gatherings
by demanding that they receive prior approval.

"We are still waiting to hear from our lawyers. At least now all the members
are at Central police station where we understand the police are preparing
charges," said Muzavazi.

"We expect them to be taken to court tomorrow (on Friday)."

The southern city of Bulawayo has been traditionally more hostile towards
President Robert Mugabe than Harare and tensions have been mounting since
MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai was arrested and assaulted earlier this week.

Uniformed and armed police officers could be seen patrolling the streets
both on foot and in police trucks although there were no reports of
violence.

'Zim inflation like HIV'

News24

15/03/2007 20:38  - (SA)

Harare - Zimbabwe's central bank chief has compared the country's surging
inflation, which is the highest in the world, to the deadly HIV pandemic, as
the high cost of living ravages consumers.

"Inflation has ceased to be just the number one enemy, it is actually the
economic HIV of this country," Reserve Bank governor Gideon Gono said in
remarks carried by the official Herald newspaper on Thursday.

The southern African country is in the throes of a deep economic recession
marked by inflation above 1 700%, shortages of foreign exchange, food and
fuel and rising unemployment and poverty.

It is also ravaged by HIV/AIDS which claims the lives of 3 000 Zimbabweans
every week, and which, according to the United Nations Childrens' Fund, has
led to one in four children losing one or both parents.

The inflation crisis has heightened political tension and urban workers bear
the brunt of the crisis, largely blamed on President Robert Mugabe's
controversial policies, including the seizure of white-owned commercial
farms for blacks.

As Gono spoke, the official Central Statistical Office (CSO) said the cost
of living for an average family of five had increased to nearly Z$1m - far
above what the majority of Zimbabweans earn.

CSO figures showed on Thursday that an average family required Z$937 838 in
February to get through the month for it not to be considered poor, up from
Z$566 401 the previous month.

Political analysts say a deteriorating economy is the biggest threat to
Mugabe, in power since independence in 1980 but facing mounting pressure
from the opposition and within his ruling ZANU-PF party over plans to hang
on to power.

Cost of Living Hits $1m Mark

The Herald (Harare)

March 15, 2007
Posted to the web March 15, 2007

Bulawayo
Harare

The cost of living for a family of five has shot up to almost $1 million in
February, the Central Statistical Office said yesterday.

The Poverty Datum Line registered a 65,58 percent increase to $937,838 from
the January rate of $566,401, with two Matabeleland provinces emerging as
the most expensive.

In all the 10 provinces in Zimbabwe, the average family now needs $826 000
in Midlands Province, $890 000 in Bulawayo; $896 419 in Manicaland; $900 000
in Harare; $937 838 in Mashonaland East, $984 000 for Mashonaland West;
$1,07 million for Matabeleland North while Matabeleland South becomes the
most expensive province at $1,2 million.

The increase is mainly driven by the continued increase in the prices of
basic goods and services. The latest statistics show an increase of more
than 4 000 percent on the February 2006 figure of $25 533.

In January, it went up by 64,53 percent to $566 401 from $344 255 in
December last year.

The PDL is defined by the CSO as the cost of a given standard of living that
must be attained for a person or family not rendered poor.

It is measured by the food poverty line (FPL) and the total consumption
poverty line (TCPL), representing the minimum and maximum consumption
necessary to feed each member of a standard family of five.

The PDL figures have been released at a time when salaries and wages have
remained static while prices of goods and services, fuelled by inflation now
pegged at 1 729,9 percent, continue to increase, which will prompt labour
organisations to lobby for a minimum wage of at least $1 million.

O-Level Results Out

The Herald (Harare)

March 15, 2007
Posted to the web March 15, 2007

Harare

THE much-awaited Ordinary Level results are finally out and candidates can
collect the results from their schools tomorrow, the Minister of Education,
Sport and Culture, Cde Aeneas Chigwedere has said.

Cde Chigwedere said in an interview yesterday that regional offices were
dispatching the results to the respective schools.

"The results are out. They are getting to the schools today (yesterday) or
tomorrow (today)," he said.

Last week, Cde Chigwedere told the House of Assembly that there had been a
delay in releasing the results by the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council
because of the shortage of markers.

He said only half of the markers were involved in the exercise with the
other half having boycotted in protest over low allowances.

Efforts to get a comment from Zimsec were fruitless as officials referred
all questions to the Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture.

Under normal circumstances, the results should have been announced a few
weeks ago to give prospective Lower Sixth form students ample learning time
during the first school term.

Senators last week expressed concern over the delay by Zimsec in announcing
the results, saying this would negatively affect thousands of candidates.

JAG Job Opportunities dated 15 March 2007

Please send any job opportunities for publication in this newsletter to: JAG
Job Opportunities; jag@mango.zw or justiceforagriculture@zol.co.zw
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 9 March 2007)

VACANCY / BUSINESS PARTNER (NAMIBIA)

We have a vacancy or business partnership available for a sober, capable,
dedicated, reliable and experienced Vegetable Farmer. Specific experience in
the growing of tomatoes, cabbages, potatoes, tobacco, onions and carrots
would be advantageous.

The successful candidate must be able to work independently, identify and
rectify problems on his own, be an improviser and maintain good labor
relations. He must have knowledge of soil preparation, pests, and disease
and the control thereof, fertilization, sprinkler, center pivot and drip
irrigation, harvesting, handling and packing process, machinery and
equipment.

Remuneration package will depend on experience and abilities.

Interested individuals can e-mail their CV to katimafa@iway.na   Please
mention if you are interested in employment and if you would consider a
business partnership.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 9 March 2007)

Wanted Manager for Dodhill Garden Centre Restuarant.

It is a position that would suit a semi retired person, male or female, and
entails supervising the kitchen staff who are well trained, and supervising
the garden centre nursery, which also has trained staff, so all in all it is
more of a supervisory position.

The position requires a working knowledge of computers, mainly spread sheets
for stock control.

Our contact details are as follows:

Mrs A MacCallum, DODHILL GARDEN CENTRE
P O Box 102, Chegutu, 091 273056, 053 - 3555

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 9 March 2007)

JOB OPPORTUNITY, STELLENBOSCH, SOUTH AFRICA

Help needed by elderly lady owner of a national monument garden and home
situated 5 km from stellenbosch.

 prefer retired or semi-retired couple or single lady.  Farming or similar
practical background would be a great asset.  South african residency would
be necessary.

Private accommodation in a 2-bedroom cottage in a group of cottages adjacent
to the main homestead in a peaceful and magnificent country setting only 10
minutes drive from shops.

 duties would be part time,  assisting owner with activities such as local
driving, shopping, paying garden and domestic staff, incidental faxing and
phoning, preparing occasional meals, handyman repairs and light maintenance
around the buildings and gardens, arranging for servicing  and repairs of
motor vehicles, lawnmowers and similar activities.

This is very much a flexitime position with minimal routine.  You would be
able to pursue other interests and activities in the area.

 Remuneration comprises the cottage accommodation and a salary commensurate
with duties and individual requirements, by negotiation.

 we are hoping to fill this position by late april.

Please reply, providing relevant information about yourself and with contact
phone numbers,  to the lady's son in harare, email miner@mweb.co.zw or fax
263 (0)4 70 70 35.  Confidentiality and prompt response assured.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 9 March 2007)

Position Required: GARDENER AND MAID

Ex farm gardener and wife who is a house maid require positions in Harare.
Very honest and reliable couple.

Please Contact Jo on 0912-247001 for info.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 9 March 2007)

Employment Offered

1. Position for bookkeeper up to trial balance (pastel), to assist with
administration, salary by negotiation.

2. Workshop managers to supervise caterpillar and earthmoving undercarriage
repairs. Mechanical knowledge essential. Salary by negotiation.

For both positions please contact Mr J.Meintjes on cell: 011411117,
0912434293 or
263 4 447180-3

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 15 March 2007)

Employment Offered

Family living on a smallholding in Umwinsidale (+- 12 ha) looking for
"estate manager" to supervise labour, security guards and construction of
various projects on the property. (Boreholes/ irrigation systems/ fencing/
buildings)

The successful candidate will have a commercial farming background, be good
with labour and procurement, have farm construction skills and should be
knowledgeable on irrigation systems etc.

Competitive package offered which would include allowance for accommodation.

Kindly email CV's to: Email: ted@hfa.co.zw

Mailing Address: Private Bag 604E, Harare, Zimbabwe

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 15 March 2007)

Employment Offered

Financial manager (accountant or senior bookkeeper)

Experience essential with sound knowledge of computerized accounting
practices to balance sheet.
Incumbent to head a department of 3 subordinates in a long established
family business in Graniteside Harare

 Telephone - Glynis 751904/6 or 751343 or cell 011630164.  Email:
auctions@yoafrica.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 15 March 2007)

ADMINISTRATION MANAGER

Experience essential, must be able to manage the following departments :
Transport and fuel control
Security, guard force, in-house & yard
Purchasing & stock control

Telephone - Glynis 751904/6  or 751343 or cell 011630164.  Email:
auctions@yoafrica.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 15 March 2007)

ASSISTANT MANAGEMENT COUPLE REQUIRED

Description:
Zanzibar -Small 16 bedroomed beach resort on the island of zanzibar ,couple
needed to help in the daily running of the resort , dealing in all aspects
of the hotel, communication skills and good understanding of general
maintenance and must enjoy meeting people and have fun while doing it . must
be flexible . Please look at web site  www.pongwe.com

Skills/Requirements:
Areas of responsibility include guest relations, room's check and guest
service. One member of the couple to be in control of housekeeping and
laundry departments and be involved in training. One member to be strong of
food and beverage management and kitchen control

ALL E-MAILS TO  valprest@aol.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 15 March 2007)

Employment Offered

Two ladies needed.

Bookkeeping, using Pastel.  Computer literacy required.
Receptionist, required to do banking and pettycash.

Please contact Ann on 485514 (B) or 496261 (H).

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 15 March 2007)

Contracts in the DRC (Ad inserted 13/03/07)

Wanted: for  six month renewable contracts in the DRC, three Zimbabwean farm
managers.  One with experience in orchard and plantation crops especially
citrus and bananas, the second with experience in row cropping: potatoes,
maize/soya, wheat and barley and the third with experience in dairy
production.  Formal agricultural qualifications an advantage but not a
necessity.

Fluency in Swahili preferable but not essential.

Contact: 011610073.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

EMPLOYMENT REQUIRED

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 22 February 2007)

Employment Sought

Position                             Accounts Clerk / Assistant Accountant
Experience                         4 years
Qualifications                     S.A.A.A  Diploma in Accountancy
Computer Packages           Microsoft word, excel and (S.A.P)

For more information an Curriculum Vitae  madziwanacollins@yahoo.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 22 February 2007)

Employment Sought

Been self-employed for 17 years, in Zimbabwe, specializing in the service,
spares, and sales of tractors but due to the change of the economy it has
become almost impossible to make self-employment worthwhile at present.

Due to this, I am looking for a consultancy, management, supervisory work,
willing to do hands on work only when necessary, related to the above, our
first preference being Zambia, second Mozambique. My wife is computer
literate with ICDL certificate and office experience and certificates and
would be able to handle the administration side if a position were
available. Our preference would be something along the lines of servicing,
managing, repairing a fleet of tractors belonging to a large farming
operation or a syndicate of farmers in close proximity of each other.  With
33 years experience in the above type of work, specializing particularly in
Fiat, Ford and MF, I would request an attractive package including
accommodation, vehicle and salary which would make my efforts worth while.
I wish to stress that regular work hours are not a necessity and that if my
services were required I would be fully committed to whatever contract I
agree to. My wife is computer literate and would be able to handle
administration work.

My wife and I would like to do this together and would need to travel back
to Zimbabwe fairly regularly to spend time with our children as they are all
being schooled locally.

For CV and/or interviews, please contact us on 263-68-22463 / 263-11212545 /
tracspray@zol.co.zw

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 9 March 2007)

Employment Sought

Single male aged 45 mechanic by trade, keen knowledge of nature.  Looking
for a job within the wildlife environment within the SADC Region.

Contact Nick MyBurgh:  lee@qouimetgirls.co.zw

References - available on request.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 15 March 2007)

Employment Sought

25 year old female recently returned from London looking for PA/Secretarial
work.

*  6 1/2 yrs work experience (all in London)
*  Advanced knowledge of all Microsoft Office Programs and other
*  Shorthand 110 wpm
*  Typing 70 wpm
*  Eager to learn and take on new challenges

Please email Louise for cv or further details at dapayne@zol.co.zw

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Ad inserted 15 March 2007)

FULL OR PART TIME EMPLOYMENT SOUGHT

I am an active, multi-skilled retiree seeking a fresh challenge. I have
extensive and long-standing knowledge of the Agrichem and Veterinary
supplies industries with over twenty years experience in management and
research. I am computer competent, multi-lingual, and have good
communications skills with all segments of Zimbabwean society. I will
consider full or part time engagement in any field.

Please contact me on 885236, on cell 0912 535737 or e mail at:
carmiked@zol.co.zw.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
For the latest listings of accommodation available for farmers, contact
justiceforagriculture@zol.co.zw (updated 15 March 2007)