With inflation running at well over 100% and unemployment soaring, tens of
thousands of Zimbabweans are fleeing southwards to South Africa in the hope of
finding a better life.
It is a dangerous journey. Many people drown in the Limpopo river or are
killed by hippos and crocodiles.
The rainy season is drawing to a close in the Limpopo valley. The water in
the river is falling as the hard months of the dry season begin.
The sky is blue and cloudless. The sun shimmers off the white rocks.
On the South African side of the river runs a long electrified fence. It
stretches for hundreds of miles both east and west along the border.
It was erected by the apartheid regime, but the ANC government of Thabo Mbeki
still maintains this grim frontier.
Exodus
With Zimbabwe's economy in shreds, tens of thousands of refugees are coming
south to look for jobs.
Hippos are among the world's most dangerous
animals
On a stretch of the river is a grove of tall,
green-barked fever trees. They cast a cool shade over the banks.
A concrete weir has been built across the river. It forms a deep pool where
the South African farmers draw water for their fields.
There is a gate in the electric fence here. Johannes is the man who maintains
the pumps that draw the precious water. He has a key for the gate and lets me
into the pump station.
The concrete weir runs straight across to the Zimbabwean bank. It would take
a few minutes to walk through the low cascade of water across the border.
In the shade of the fever trees, Johannes introduces me to his friend Olbert.
We squat on our haunches in the clean white sand on the river bank. In the
gentle way of Africa, we begin by talking of the rains and of the long drive
from Johannesburg.
Contrast
Johannes is a South African citizen. He is in his mid-40s. He is proud of his
job and the money it brings him. He is wearing a clean pressed shirt, a baseball
cap and new sandals.
Zimbabwe is facing economic
meltdown
Olbert has walked across the concrete weir from Zimbabwe.
He is in his late twenties. A dirty T-shirt and ragged shorts are all he has to
wear, while his feet are bare and calloused.
Olbert has no job. Every day he comes down to the river to fish in the deep
pool.
He smiles broadly as he tells me about the fish. "They are as fat as this,"
he says, pointing to his forearm. "And their meat is very sweet."
Johannes has rolled a handmade cigarette. He takes a drag and hands it
across. The two men share it between them as we talk.
It occurs to me that Olbert has no money even to buy cigarettes, and that is
why Johannes shares his tobacco with him.
The talk of sweet, fat fish is so that Olbert can save face. The truth is
that he walks across the border because Johannes is willing, and able, to give
him something to eat.
Sharing tradition
It is the oldest custom in Africa - in times of hunger, people must share
with others.
I have seen it in action amongst the poor all across the continent, from the
war zones of Angola to the famine-parched savannas of Sudan.
There was a diamond mine there before. It is closed now,
because of Mugabe
Olbert, unemployed Zimbabwean
Soon, the talk turns to politics.
Robert Mugabe may have won his election but even here, on the edge of one of
the remotest parts of Zimbabwe, his message has failed to convince:
"They chase the whites from the farms," Olbert says. "They steal the maize
and eat the cattle. Then they kill the kudu and the impala. What will they eat
then?"
"People have nothing there," Johannes says, pointing across the river to
Zimbabwe. "They have no food, no work. That is why they come here."
Olbert gestures angrily: "There was a diamond mine there before. The
Australians owned it. It is closed now, because of Mugabe. And we have no jobs."
"Our president," he adds. "He doesn't want anyone except himself to have
anything."
Dangerous isolation
Robert Mugabe has utterly ignored people like Olbert. They do not matter to
him any more.
He talks obsessively of how he despises Tony Blair and of how he will never
allow Zimbabwe to become a colony of Britain again.
It is the last card left for him to play. Defending the
African way of life against the pernicious influence of the West.
But here, on the banks of the Limpopo, it appears to me that Robert Mugabe
has fallen into the trap of so many corrupted rulers.
He has become dangerously isolated from his own people.
In a continent where sharing is the highest virtue, he has placed his own
personal power and wealth above the welfare of his people.
Olbert narrows his eyes and shakes his head. "That Mugabe", he says softly,
echoing an old African saying. "He eats alone".
Peta Thornycroft, the Zimbabwe correspondent of The Daily
Telegraph, was charged yesterday with working illegally as a journalist and
with driving with incorrect number plates. She was still in cells in Mutare
central police station, 200 miles east of Harare, last night, her third in
custody. But police did not carry out their earlier threat to charge her
under the widely condemned Public Order and Security Act. Ms Thornycroft
said: "I'm fine, absolutely fine. This isn't a day in the life of Ivan
Denisovich but it's still bloody irritating." Hours after her arrest in
Chimanimani on Wednesday, she was told she would be charged with publishing
false news, an offence which, under this notorious law, carries a possible
five-year sentence. No evidence was ever produced to substantiate the charge
and the authorities have failed to take it further. Instead police have
chosen to charge her with working illegally under the Access to Information
and Protection of Privacy Act, which President Robert Mugabe signed into law
a fortnight ago.
Under this legislation, all journalists have to
apply for accreditation from the government to continue working. But they
have three months in which to do so and are permitted to work in the interim.
Tapiwanashe Kujinga, Ms Thornycroft's lawyer, described the charge as
"obviously unfounded". As a secondary line of attack, police have held the
number plates on her car against her. When she moved from South Africa to
Zimbabwe last July, she took her car with her. Ms Thornycroft began the
process of registering her vehicle with the Zimbabwean authorities but the
new number plates had not been fitted at the time of her arrest. Paperwork
proving her legal ownership of the car has been produced for the police.
Officers have allowed Ms Thornycroft, 57, unrestricted access to her lawyer.
She is being held in a tiny cell, with no bed and a bucket for a lavatory. Ms
Thornycroft has the cell to herself and friends have been allowed to deliver
food and blankets. At 7am every day, she has been allowed to leave the cell
and spend the day in the police station's offices.
Mr Kujinga is
preparing an urgent court application for her release. He hopes a hearing
will take place today or tomorrow and that she will not be kept in custody
until the end of the Easter break on Tuesday. State radio in Zimbabwe has
been broadcasting false reports of Ms Thornycroft's release since Thursday
night. The Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation website accuses her of being "in
the forefront of destroying [her] own country using the pen". It refers to Ms
Thornycroft, whose late husband was jailed under apartheid in South Africa,
as "a former Rhodesian journalist who could not accept black rule at
independence". She has been singled out for abuse in the official media. In
November, she was accused of being a "terrorist". Observers believe the
arrests and vilification are part of Mr Mugabe's campaign to silence
independent reporters in Zimbabwe.
The MDC is adamant that it will not form a
government of national unity with Zanu PF
In the afternoon of
Robert Mugabe's inauguration on March 17 the presidents of Mozambique and
Malawi went on a simple errand to see how much power the leader of the
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), Morgan Tsvangirai, wanted. Not
presidential power, but maybe a senior job within the Zanu PF government that
would give Tsvangirai and a few of his comrades physical safety and perhaps
amnesty for those awaiting trial on mostly spurious charges. The Mozambican
leader, Joachim Chissano, and Malawi President Bakili Muluzi appeared
astonished when Tsvangirai and his colleagues said they had no interest in
power, glory or job security. They would rather be hounded, persecuted and
prosecuted than get into bed with Zanu PF. They told the African leaders that
the MDC would not stand for any deal with Zanu PF and whoever was hoping to
solve the "Zimbabwe problem" with a government of national unity was, to put
it politely, wasting their time.
Chissano and Muluzi may have failed
to mention their findings to South African President Thabo Mbeki and Nigerian
leader Olusegun Obasanjo. The African National Congress secretary general,
Kgalema Motlanthe, and Nigerian economist Professor Ade-bayo Adedji, dubbed
"the facilitators", certainly didn't appear to grasp the MDC’s position when
they met party leaders last Sunday. The facilitators are in Zimbabwe to
fulfill a committment by Obasanjo and Mbeki to the Commonwealth last week to
pursue a solution to the "Zimbabwe problem". The two have been shuffling
between Zanu-PF and the MDC, which says it will settle for nothing less than
internationally supervised and monitored presidential elections, managed by a
transitional administration that restricts all statutory and non-statutory
forces to barracks. At a meeting of the MDC's national council last week
party members said they wanted an agreement that anyone who wavered from this
position should be expelled.
For Mugabe it is more complex. The
MDC, unlike the late Joshua Nkomo's Zimbabwe African People's Union (Zapu),
is not a regional party; it is national and therefore more of a threat. The
MDC is not yet weakened sufficiently by violence to drive it into submission
to Zanu-PF. In 1987 Zapu signed a unity deal with Mugabe, after he sent in
troops to kill thousands of Zapu supporters. Nkomo succumbed to stop the
killing, and Zapu liberation heroes like Dumiso Dabengwa, fresh from five
years as a detainee after being acquitted of treason, were sucked in to the
Zanu PF hegemony. The legendary Dabengwa couldn't even win his parliamentary
seat in Matabeleland in 2000, losing to Gibson Sibanda, a former Zapu
colleague who resisted temptation and is now MDC vice-president and one of
its leading strategists.
But the MDC is in grave danger. The Amani
Trust, a human rights group, reported a sharp increase in the already high
level of violence since the election. Dr Frances Lovemore of the trust said
many victims in treatment centres in all provinces, except Matabeleland where
the MDC is dominant, say their attackers said they would "annihilate" the
MDC. She said up to 30 000 people have become internal refugees, among them 1
400 MDC polling agents, in addition to about 100 000 farm workers and their
families who have been evicted from their homes by Zanu PF militia. The
figure grows daily. The Amani Trust says it needs assistance from the
International Committee of the Red Cross.
Information Minister
Jonathan Moyo is doing his bit in the annihilation process. Tuesday's
headline in the state-aligned The Herald was "Tsvangirai loses grip", with a
strap: "MDC members call for congress to oust party leader." The bulk of the
report is from unnamed MDC legislators: "... Mr Tsvangirai and Prof Ncube
[MDC secretary general Welshman Ncube] should be removed from the party ...
as they have been making unilateral decisions which have compromised the
party..." Professor Masipule Sithole, head of political science at the
University of Zimbabwe said: "Mugabe knows it was an illegitimate victory,
and the violence is to strengthen his position. The only real hope is that
the people can withstand this terrible pressure as they did in the liberation
struggle against the Rhodesians." Perhaps someone could tell Obasanjo and
Mbeki that a government of national unity, South Africa's quick-fix solution,
won't fly for the "Zimbabwe problem". Not all African politicians will settle
for power at any cost.
CAPE
TOWN Italian President Carlo Ciampi said yesterday it would be premature to
comment on the situation in Zimbabwe.
Ciampi was responding to a question
on his arrival for a state visit to SA.
It would be inappropriate for the
New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad) to be tarnished on account
of the situation in one country, he said.
However, Italy had resolved not
to extend debt cancellation to those poor countries embroiled in
conflict.
President Thabo Mbeki said Ciampi's visit was historic because
it was the first time that an Italian head of state had visited
SA.
Mbeki said Ciampi was a friend of SA, and had supported Nepad at the
last meeting of the G-8 group of nations in Genoa. He said Italy was close to
the African continent and had a good understanding of it.
The visit
was an opportunity to strengthen relations between the
two countries.
Ciampi said: "My trip is a visit by an Italian head of
state to a SA that is finally free and democratic. The success of the
peaceful transition from apartheid to a multiethnic, multicultural democracy
is a beacon of civilisation that illuminates the 20th century.
"SA is
an important partner for Italy and Europe. The country has a wealth of human
capital, natural riches and the entrepreneurial, scientific and cultural
resources that are needed to build a prosperous future for
its people."
Mar 14 2002 12:00:00:000AM Wyndham Hartley Business
Day 1st Edition
Harare - A lawyer was seeking
a High Court order on Saturday to free Peta Thornycroft, the jailed
correspondent for Britain's Daily Telegraph and South Africa's M&G,
accused of violating Zimbabwe's new press law.
"We want her to be
released because she hasn't committed an offence," said Tendai Biti, a
constitutional lawyer, who is also a lawmaker for the opposition Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC).
"The constitution says no one can be held unless
they are believed to have committed an offence," he said.
"It is clear
that these are the machinations of a regime that has gone mad," he
said.
"The problem is it's Easter weekend, the logistics are very
difficult," Biti said, saying he would have to find a court clerk and a judge
during the holiday, when most people in Harare return to their family homes
in rural parts of the country.
The case will challenge the
constitutionality of a clause requiring accreditation for journalists, and
ask that Thornycroft be freed pending a full hearing of the challenge, Biti
said.
Thornycroft, 57, is being charged under a section of a press law
enacted two weeks ago which makes it a crime to practice journalism
without accreditation and valid qualifications, Biti said.
She was
arrested on Wednesday in the eastern border town of Chimanimani and told she
had been charged with "publishing false statements likely to be prejudicial
to state security" and "incitement to public violence" under the country's
new security laws.
The charges carry a possible five-year jail
term.
She also has been charged with possessing a car with an incorrect
number plate, which carries a small fine.
A colleague, David Blair,
who was expelled from Zimbabwe in June while working for the Telegraph, said
he had spoken to Thornycroft and that "she is in reasonably good
spirits."
"She is being treated quite decently and humanely and is being
allowed unrestricted access to her lawyer," Blair said.
Thornycroft
renounced her British nationality last year and is a
Zimbabwean citizen.
The charge of working illegally as a journalist is
punishable by two years in jail, but Blair said "it's manifestly ridiculous,
so any court would throw it out."
"We're quite encouraged by this
development because the charges have nothing to do with the (new) Public
Order Security Act (POSA). Her lawyer is confident she will be free in a
matter of days."
POSA, passed in January in the run-up to March's hotly
disputed presidential elections, has been condemned by rights groups and the
opposition Movement for Democratic Change as repressive.
The act
outlawed criticism of President Robert Mugabe, required police permission for
public gatherings and gave authorities sweeping powers to detain people
without trial. - AFP
Income loss hurts Zimbabweans By JON
PIERIK 31mar02
ZIMBABWE captain Stuart Carlisle said Australia's
decision to abandon its tour of the strife-torn country would result in a
major loss of pay for his players and severely disrupt his team's World Cup
plans.
A top Australian cricketer can earn upwards of $200,000 from his
contract alone, with match fees and lucrative sponsorship deals on top of
that. Carlisle said his players were paid "nothing like that".
"From a
financial point of view for us cricketers it's going to be tough now," he
said.
"We basically don't have any income coming in.
"We have our
contracts, but we now miss out on match fees. Those match fees are very
important."
The Australian Cricket Board cancelled the tour this week
over a fear for player safety.
Zimbabwe's President, Robert Mugabe,
has reportedly intensified revenge attacks on opposition supporters and white
farmers after his controversial re-election earlier this month.
The
Australians were to play two Tests and three one-day internationals
in Zimbabwe.
Carlisle's men had been looking forward to using the
limited-overs games as a major part of their preparation for next year's
World Cup in South Africa.
The frustrated captain said his team had only
seven limited-overs games slated before the showpiece
tournament.
"It's important we try to fit some more one-dayers before the
World Cup," Carlisle said.
"We are sitting down this week with the
chief executive and the board to discuss this.
"At the moment we have
just seven one-dayers before the World Cup.
"That's no good at
all."
Zimbabwe was also to host six World Cup games, but South African
cricket officials now admit that plan is in doubt.
The Zimbabwe
Cricket union also awaits news on whether New Zealand will head over for a
one-day series in October.
It now seems more than likely the Black Caps
will instead head to Pakistan.
They were scheduled last October to tour
Pakistan, but the trip was scrapped in the wake of the September 11 terrorist
attacks in New York.
Carlisle said some of the country's young and
talented cricketers were leaving the country because of the difficult
political and social situation there.
He said, if international teams
continued to avoid travelling to Zimbabwe, the exodus of players would grow
and the very fabric of the game in the country could be irreparably
harmed.
"We have lost a couple of young guys," Carlisle said.
"We
probably lost three or four young, talented guys. They probably thought it
was better for them to leave.
"It's very hard for young guys to live here
at the moment."
Carlisle said he could understand the ACB's decision to
pull out of the tour.
"At the end of the day if something happened it
would be an embarrassing situation for us as well," he said.
"We
thought it would go ahead but, I suppose in saying that, I can understand
their concern."
This week Agriculture Minister Joseph Made said
that commercial farmers being evicted from their properties could not take their
moveable assets, such as tractors and irrigation equipment, with them. He said
that the Government were considering introducing a Statutory Instrument to
stop farmers from removing their farm implements when they are evicted from
their land. I quote: "These agricultural assets must be left on the acquired
farms for use by new commercial farmers. We are stopping forthwith the
exportation of agricultural machinery and equipment. .... No asset of an
agricultural nature should be moved off the commercial farms." To summarize two
years of pronouncements by Dr Made on behalf of the Zimbabwe government: We are
taking your land; you may not grow food; any grain that is grown may only be
sold to the State; we are taking your homes and now, we are taking your
equipment as well. I am reading Schindlers Ark (List) and in places the
similarities to the persecution of Jews is frightening. When the author talks of
Jews being forced to move into ghetto's he says that people seemed almost
relieved by the horrific outrage. "...there were strange elements of homecoming
to it, as well as that sense of arriving at a limit beyond which, with any luck,
you wouldn't be further uprooted or tyrannized..." Farmers in Zimbabwe have
reached their limit. They need a directive and a direction and sadly many are
now being forced to make plans to leave as they have no way of earning a
living. Farmers in Zimbabwe have begun to realise that there is no point at
which our government will stop, there are no guarantees and many cannot go on.
While Dr Made continues to make pronouncements stripping farmers of every single
thing they have worked decades to build up, hunger has begun to take hold. Even
the ZBC television this week finally saw fit to tell us what we already know.
There is no food in the ground and hundreds of thousands of people have applied
for food aid. The television cameras showed footage of dead, shrivelled maize in
all areas of the country. The commentator explained how drought had devastated
crops but said nothing about billions of dollars of irrigation equipment lying
idle because farmers with knowledge, experience and equipment had been forcibly
stopped from saving us from starvation. It is a diabolical situation and I
believe unparalleled in world history. So many people have chosen to stay silent
for two years as the outrages on farms have continued and now, with no sugar,
oil, milk and roller meal, they are paying the price of their silence. As I
predicted some months ago, the shortage of maize for stock feed has begun to be
felt in the supermarkets. Egg supplies are dwindling, chicken is becoming harder
and harder to find and undoubtedly bread will be next as Dr Made has said that
100 000 hectares of land will be used to grow maize through winter. There are
only 160 000 hectares of irrigable land in Zimbabwe and 60% of that is supposed
to be used for growing wheat in winter. Other government agricultural officials
this week said they intended to cull 50% of sugar plantations and put that land
to maize as well. Inflation is over 110%, unemployment over 60%, hundreds of
thousands of people have no food and decades of development have been completely
destroyed for political gain. People who have chosen to stay silent - farmers,
teachers, doctors, lawyers, shop assistants - must stand up and be counted now
or think of ways of telling their children why there is no supper tonight or
breakfast tomorrow. Until next week, with love, cathy.
Washington adds bishop of Harare to sanctions list
Chris McGreal in
Johannesburg Saturday March 30, 2002 The Guardian
Washington has
added the Anglican bishop of Harare and Zimbabwe's richest businessman, who
is a UK resident, to its list of Robert Mugabe's close associates subject to
sanctions. The Americans say the listing of politicians, generals and senior
civil servants as banned from the US, and the freezing of their assets there,
is designed to punish those who help keep Mr Mugabe in power or who profit
from his rule. The spouses and children of those named are also barred from
the US.
Washington is consulting the European Union to coordinate
measures against the named individuals. The EU is expected to announce its
own expanded blacklist before long.
The latest subjected to personal
sanctions include Bishop Nolbert Kunonga, who has divided the Anglican church
in Zimbabwe by his outspoken support for land seizures and his derision of Mr
Mugabe's black opponents as puppets of the west.
The travel ban and
freezing of assets may be particularly painful for those who do business in
America. These include John Bredenkamp, a former Rhodesian national rugby
captain, who lives part of the time in Ascot, where he runs a sports agency
which represents stars such as Ernie Els and François Pienaar.
In
Zimbabwe he is better known as a multi-million-dollar arms dealer
who breached sanctions for Ian Smith's white regime but is now one of the
few white men to have Mr Mugabe's ear.
Mr Bredenkamp was named in the
Commons in November as one of Mr Mugabe's "henchmen" and "the main arms
supplier to Zimbabwe and its adventure in the Congo".
Other
businessmen on the list include Billy Rautenbach, who oversaw Mr Mugabe's
mining interests in Congo. He is wanted for fraud in South Africa, where he
has been named as a primary suspect for the murder of the head of the Daewoo
car company there. At the time of the killing Mr Rautenbach had the franchise
for Hyundai.
Also included is Mutumwa Mawere, who lives mostly in
Johannesburg but is described as Zanu-PF's money launderer. He spends a lot
of time in the US and personally pleaded with American officials to be
excluded from the list.
The latest people named are in addition to 20
politicians and top military officers already barred from the US.
But
the most unusual name on the list is Bishop Kunonga. He first caused uproar
in the Anglican church a month after he was installed as bishop of Harare
last April, with a speech supporting Mr Mugabe by deriding the president's
opponents and claiming that criticising human rights abuses was a cover for
opposing land redistribution.
In January he declared that Mr Mugabe was
more Christian than himself. The Anglican Church's own justice, peace and
reconciliation committee has accused Bishop Kunonga of longstanding links
with the ruling party.
Rebels from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) said the
re-election of Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe was bad news for efforts to
end the war in their country, in which Mugabe's troops are fighting on the
side of the government. The secretary general of the Congolese Liberation
Movement (MLC), Olivier Kamitatu, said they believed Mugabe's victory had
seen Kinshasa harden its stance at peace talks in South Africa. The talks
have deadlocked over a dispute on the formation of a new army for the DRC
which would unite regular soldiers and rebels. "We suspect there is a link
between the arrogance of the government in the military commission and
Mugabe's victory," Kamitatu said. "If (Morgan) Tsvangirai had won the
elections at least we would have gotten some assurance that Zimbabwe will
withdraw its troops, but Mugabe will retain his interests in the Congo, by
which we of course mean his mineral interests," he added.
The
Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD) described the announcement that Mugabe
had taken 56.2% of the vote as "a tragedy." "It is a parody of democracy and
it is sad for all of Africa. Certainly with Mugabe we are not moving rapidly
towards a withdrawal of foreign troops, though this has to happen for the
sake of peace," RCD spokesman Kin-Kiey Mulumba said. Other rebel
representatives privately said they had hoped Mugabe would be defeated as
this would have put Kinshasa at a psychological disadvantage in the
peace talks. The war in the DRC broke out in August 1998 when Rwanda and
Uganda invaded the country to back the rebels' attempts to overthrow the
Kinshasa regime, which has had Zimbabwe, Angola, Chad and Namibia fighting on
its side. The foreign belligerents, who stand accused of plundering the
DRC's mineral resources, are obliged to withdraw from the country under a
1999 Lusaka peace accord, but only Chad and Namibia have so far done so.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- HARARE
- Zimbabwe's government is facing the prospect of stronger international
sanctions following the re-election of President Robert Mugabe in a vote
condemned by the international community and numerous observer groups as
being deeply flawed. The United States and several European nations said
Mugabe's victory in the weekend elections was marred by violence and
intimidation.
The United States and Britain threatened to beef up
sanctions focusing on Mugabe and his allies. The European Union, which
imposed economic and diplomatic sanctions last month after Mugabe refused to
let its monitors observe the elections, has threatened further
punishment.
EU leaders are expected to discuss the situation in a summit
in Spain this weekend.
"We do not recognise the outcome of the
election because we think it's flawed," US President George W. Bush said
after Zimbabwean officials declared that Mugabe had won another six-year
term.
"We are dealing with our friends to figure out how to deal with
this flawed election," Bush told a news conference in Washington.
US
Secretary of State Colin Powell alleged the Mugabe administration
had subverted democratic principles and processes for more than two
years.
"Mugabe can claim victory but not democratic legitimacy," Powell
said.
The United States imposed travel sanctions against Mugabe and his
allies last month.
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he was
"anxious about the situation," appealing to Zimbabweans to stay calm and
saying they "showed amazing commitment and patience in the way they turned
out and tried to vote."
Annan told a news conference he was getting
conflicting reports from election observers on whether the vote was free and
fair.
"But there is clearly great controversy both within the country and
abroad about the way the elections were organised and conducted," he
said.
The EU last month cut off E128-million in development aid for the
2002-2007 period, banned all travel to the EU for Mugabe and 20 of his
Cabinet ministers and froze their assets in Europe.
Amid cries of foul
play by the opposition, the government said Mugabe had won the election with
about 56.2% of the vote, while former labour leader Morgan Tsvangirai had 42%
of the 3.1 million votes cast. The remaining votes went to other candidates
or were spoiled.
Bulawayo, Zimbabwe - Police used tear gas
to break up a riot on Friday in Zimbabwe's second city of Bulawayo, after
pro-government militias staged attacks in a populous township and met resistance
from residents. The riot began around 8am in Sizenda township, where residents
had teamed up to stone the militia base at a community hall in retaliation for
militia attacks during the night on homes in the neighborhood, witnesses said.
"When they went there, there were two guys within the militia armed with AK-47
rifles, which they fired into the air," said one witness. "But they kept on
stoning the hall, which is when the riot police came out and started firing tear
gas." The militia had marched through Sizenda two weeks ago, demanding that the
ruling Zanu PF pay them Z$18 000 dollars (about R3 700). Their raids during the
night on Thursday were apparently in frustration at not receiving the money
demanded and losing the food supplies that had been given to them during the
period around Zimbabwe's hotly contested March 9-11 presidential
election.
Residents and at least 200 riot police
staged running battles for more than four hours. Residents blocked off the main
roads in the township and stoned cars that refused to turn around and leave.
Police fired tear gas at random in Sizenda and managed to break up the riot and
dismantle the roadblocks by 12.30pm, an AFP correspondent reported. After the
riot died down, the militia remained huddled inside the community hall. "It
looks like they are now scared even to go outside and see what is going on," one
witness said. Police officials in Bulawayo referred questions to the national
police headquarters in Harare, where officials were not reachable for comment.
Pro-government militants have staged regular attacks around Zimbabwe for more
than two years, but widespread retaliation has been rare.
The MDC has accused the militias of
engaging in violent attacks of retribution against its supporters for opposing
President Robert Mugabe in the hotly contested presidential election. The party
said Friday that the militia had destroyed the homes of at least six of its
polling agents in the central district of Gokwe during and after the election.
"MDC polling agents are living in fear following threats on their lives by
ZANU-PF militia and war veterans," the MDC said in a statement Friday. "Many of
the polling agents are no longer sleeping at their homes at night," the
statement said. "Members of the Zanu PF militia and war veterans have reportedly
vowed to continue persecuting members of the MDC until the party accepts the
presidential election results," it said. MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai refused to
recognise Mugabe's re-election, saying the poll was "massively rigged" and
citing widespread pre-election violence targetting his supporters.
Print Media- the election aftermath Update # 2002-08- Print March 18th
- March 24th 2002 Contents 1. General comment- election aftermath
2. Zimbabwe's suspension from the Commonwealth 3. Political violence
4. The ZCTU stay away 5. Media Issues
1. COMMENT: ELECTION AFTERMATH The coverage of the presidential election
results revealed the polarization of the Zimbabwean press. The government owned
press expressly endorsed the result whilst the private press rejected them as
illegitimate. The public press gave ample space to organizations and observers
that declared the election legitimate. In contrast, the private press
highlighted the local and international voices that rejected the result and
engaged its own investigations revealing electoral irregularities, which it used
as evidence to reach its conclusion. Notably, the public press deliberately
ignored the SADC Parliamentary Forum observer report (which it discredited on
the basis that the group was funded by the European Union) that declared the
result illegitimate. Instead, prominence was given to other SADC government
voices endorsing the poll as legitimate.
2. COMMONWEALTH Zimbabwe's suspension from the Commonwealth attracted
significant press coverage. Prior to the decision, the print media generally
concurred that the Commonwealth risked a credibility status with regard to its
stance on the Zimbabwean question. What differed between the two sections of
the press was the action to be taken. The public press said suspending or
imposing sanctions would compromise the group's credibility on a racial basis,
citing favourable reports from observers who deemed the poll result legitimate.
Conversely, the private press cited those observer groups that believed the
opposite to justify calls for drastic action against the
government. Predictably, the private press welcomed the decision to suspend
Zimbabwe. The Daily News (21/3) ran a comment saying the government deserved
"expulsion" rather than suspension. The private press particularly emphasised
the fact that the decision was made by the two African leaders, apparently to
dispel public media allegations of racism within the Commonwealth. The public
press simply parroted the government stance. It dismissed the suspension on
racial grounds and went further to question the benefit of Commonwealth
membership for African countries (The Herald 20/3). The pattern of coverage
sought to play down the impact of the suspension, describing it as only
"symbolic" and of little effect. The Herald (20/3) quoted an unnamed analyst
who said, "it (the decision) is certain to boomerang because Africans are going
to ask themselves why anyone should belong to the Commonwealth because the
benefits are nowhere to be seen." Government officials were given unchallenged
space to reject the decision as flawed and inspired by hostile members of the
"white Commonwealth." Foreign Minister, Stan Mudenge, likened it to "being
savaged by a dead sheep", The Herald (21/3). ZANU PF secretary for
administration Emmerson Mnangagwa was quoted by The Daily News (20/3)
saying, "The decision does not change anything for us at all. Life goes
on nothing has changed." It was The Zimbabwe Independent (22/3) and The Daily
News (22/3) that exposed that, contrary to official statements, the government
was indeed ruffled. The papers quoted the Nigerian President, Olusegun
Obasanjo, saying President Mugabe "erupted" and took the decision "badly". None
of this appeared in the state press. The Financial Gazette (21/3) provided
more helpful analysis of the expulsion. Besides quoting local academics
explaining the meaning of the suspension, it also ran Reuters news agency
reports that gave an international perspective. The thrust of the Reuters
analysis was to determine how the two African leaders, known to be close to
Mugabe, had reached their decision. One Lagos report claimed that Obasanjo
"reluctantly" backed the Commonwealth for his own credibility in light of
pending elections in his country and a wish to host the Commonwealth summit next
year. Another reported that British Premier Tony Blair sent President Mbeki a
warning to influence his position on Zimbabwe. This was partly corroborated by
The Sunday Mail (24/3) report "West accused of double standards", which said
Western funding for Mbeki's New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD)
initiative, heavily influenced his decision. This was reinforced by The
Financial Gazette (22/3) and The Standard (24/3). Press coverage of the
possibility of a coalition government featured prominently in the press. But
while The Daily News and The Herald (20/3) reported that Presidents Obasanjo and
Mbeki had proposed MDC-Zanu PF reconciliation talks and a coalition government,
the purpose of such an arrangement remained vague. Both papers gave prominence
to Tsvangirai's refusal because, according to The Daily News, "the conditions
did not exist in the country for talks." The Herald avoided reporting the
fact that the leaders had requested "a joint committee" and that Tsvangirai had
rejected the idea on the basis of "massive retribution" against his supporters,
as reported by The Daily News. Herald readers were only given a brief glimpse
of what transpired. The rest of the report was dominated by comments from
Information Minister Jonathan Moyo saying his party was willing to talk with the
MDC. He was not challenged to explain his position on the issue of a
government of national unity. Neither was he made to explain his previous
stance; that unity was achieved back in 1987 between ZANU PF and ZAPU, and was
therefore unnecessary now. The MDC was never directly quoted or afforded the
opportunity to explain, leaving the impression that the MDC was indeed stalling
unity. The thrust of the report headlined, "MDC backtracks on reconciliation
talks," clearly blamed the mendacious nature of the MDC. It was left to The
Financial Gazette to clarify the purpose of the coalition. It published a
Reuters report quoting Obasanjo saying a coalition government was for "unity,
security, the issue of division, the issue of polarization and the essential
issue of the economy." The Nigerian president also confirmed that the
international community was considering the possibility of restaging the
election. He was quoted saying, "There will be an election.we are talking about
the short to medium term." However, he was not challenged to qualify how
long this was in terms of time. All the media failed to make the connection
between the coalition advocated by Obasanjo and earlier efforts by the
presidents of Mozambique and Malawi (The Daily News and The Herald 18/3).
The Herald effectively masked the fact that the two leaders had recommended
a government of national unity, a fact pointedly made by The Daily News. It
simply stated that the two leaders met Tsvangirai "to impress on him the need to
cooperate with the government for greater unity and prosperity." The Daily
News (22/3) broke the news that the African, Caribbean and Pacific and European
Union (ACP-EU) Joint Parliamentary Assembly had turned the germ of an election
re-run into hard fact when it quoted resolutions at the meeting calling on
Zimbabwe to re-run the presidential poll and drop treason charges against the
MDC leadership, among other things. However, this was called into doubt the
next day when The Herald responded with a story that effectively contradicted
The Daily News report. It claimed that ACP countries ".had refused to endorse a
resolution tabled by the European Union.calling for fresh elections in Zimbabwe"
and concentrated on alleged divisions between ACP and EU countries and the abuse
of procedure by the session's chairperson, Glenys Kinnock. The report, "EU
vote on Zim rapped" told its readers that the ACP countries had delivered a
"formal protest" to the assembly regretting ".the adoption, by the European
Union side alone, of the resolution on Zimbabwe of which they have, however,
taken note". While The Herald carried some detail of the procedures and the
decisions of Mrs Kinnock who ". used her new position as co-president of the
JPA to pursue her anti- Zimbabwe crusade," the paper mysteriously declined to
name its diplomatic sources and failed to access comment from the two government
officials who attended the assembly. There was no way of resolving the
conflict arising out of these two reports. But as this update was being
compiled a new and more ominous development began to appear in the two papers,
with The Herald and The Daily News (27/3) reporting Minister Moyo threatening to
prosecute Daily News editor, Geoff Nyarota under the new Access to Information
and Protection of Privacy Act over his paper's story of the ACP-EU
meeting.
3. POLITICAL VIOLENCE Despite incessant government press editorials
calling for unity and cooperation, the private press provided comprehensive
evidence of a systematic and sustained retribution campaign against people
suspected to have voted for the MDC in the presidential election. Targets
ranged from suspected MDC supporters, workers, civil servants, farmers, to
independent press vendors. The violence was blamed on Zanu PF supporters.
The murder of a Norton farmer, Terry Ford, received wide press attention.
While the government press treated the murder as another crime report, the
private press named Zanu PF supporters and war veterans as perpetrators. The
Zimbabwe Independent quoted the Commercial Farmers Union (CFU) saying the extent
of post-election violence on farms had "reached alarming proportions". The
private press recorded 32 violence-related stories containing 67 incidents of
violence. All the reports were blamed on ZANU PF supporters, war veterans or
security forces. The public press recorded five violence related stories
containing the same number of incidents. Two stories were about ZANU PF in-
fighting in Masvingo following the death of a war veteran, Amos Masendeke. ZANU
PF supporters and war veterans were blamed one each. The MDC was blamed three
times. MMPZ has recorded nine politically motivated murders during the week
under review, all in the private press. Two occurred on farms and the rest were
named MDC activists. The perpetrators were alleged to be ZANU PF supporters or
war veterans. The deaths were mostly linked to the ruling party's campaign of
retribution. The Financial Gazette reported that at least six people had been
killed in political violence since March 11 2002, all of them MDC supporters.
In the same vein, The Zimbabwe Independent reported that 10 white farmers had
been murdered in since 2000. The same paper reported that the discovery of the
charred remains of an Nkayi village headman had "raised fears of mass murders as
dozens of people disappeared or went missing in the district before the poll and
have not been accounted for."
4. THE ZCTU STAYAWAY Both the private and public press agreed that the
ZCTU's call for a national strike had failed. The private press was more
reticent in its reportage. The public press measured the stay-away against
President Mugabe's inauguration speech calling for national cooperation. Large
tracts of the public press's news pages were devoted to government officials,
the police and business organizations accusing the ZCTU of sabotage. The
official position was that the demonstration was "politically motivated",
designed to undermine President Mugabe's re-election. The public press
feasted on the failure of the stayaway and used it to question the credibility
of the ZCTU and the MDC. No distinction was made between the two
organizations. One report (21/3) headlined "Tsvangirai irrelevant in new
political dispensation" sent a wrong message altogether by suggesting that
Tsvangirai himself had organized the industrial action. The report claimed that
the Commonwealth suspension was meant to coincide with the stayaway, stating,
"Unfortunately for Mr. Tsvangirai, the stayaway was a monumental flop as
workers ignored it and turned up for work, further dampening his chances of
organizing a "popular revolt" against the presidential election result." Yet
according to the organizers the action was meant to draw attention to government
threats to the labour movement and victimization of its members by government
authorities and ZANU PF supporters. Not the presidential poll results. The
Sunday Mail (24/3) further expanded this notion, alleging that the MDC had
initiated the stay-away and had used the ZCTU as a whip boy. The Herald (21/3)
comment said the failure was significant in that it showed that "for most urban
people, economic troubles are more important than political wishes. The failure
has removed the spectre of mass action in Zimbabwe politics following the
presidential elections." The private press blamed the failure on other
factors like poor organization, police brutality, and repressive legislation
and, according to The Daily News (21/3), an alleged threat from war veterans.
The Daily News reported that a socialist labour group, Left Wing, had its
members assaulted by police for supporting the job action.
5. MEDIA ISSUES President Mugabe signed the controversial Access to
Information and Protection of Privacy Bill into law. Predictably, coverage
remained polarized in the press. The public press endorsed the development and
continued to parrot the voice of officialdom. The private press remained
vigilant and critically highlighted its repugnancy. The Daily News and The
Financial Gazette carried comments rejecting the Act. The Financial Gazette
observed that the signing of the legislation together with other abuses showed
President Mugabe was not sincere with his nation-building pledge. ENDS
This report was produced and circulated by the Media Monitoring Project
Zimbabwe, 15 Duthie Avenue, Alexandra Park, Harare, Tel/fax: 263 4 703702,
E-mail: monitors@mweb.co.zw Feel free
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Electronic Media- the election aftermath Electronic report March
18- March 24 2002 Weekly report 2002-
Contents 1. Election aftermath 2. Post election violence 3.
The ZCTU stay away
1. THE ELECTION AFTERMATH The week opened with Mr. Mugabe's calls for
unity being broadcast by ZBC throughout the week. His muted appeal followed the
controversial presidential election whose results were endorsed by regional
leaders and rejected by the Commonwealth, the SADC Parliamentary Forum and
western countries. ZBC (18/03, 8pm) reported the meeting between Morgan
Tsvangirai and Bakili Muluzi of Malawi and Joaquim Chissano of Mozambique.
Both Muluzi and Chissano were said to have told Mr. Tsvangirai that
"national interest should come first". In an attempt to portray the MDC
leader as standing against nation building, ZTV (18/03, 8pm) reporter Faith Zaba
referred to previous reports in which the opposition leader's statements were
deliberately distorted by the broadcaster. The reporter stated: "Mr.
Tsvangirai's party has been lobbying for sanctions. MDC was disappointed
when the Commonwealth refused to impose immediate sanctions and suspend Zimbabwe
from the grouping. Mr. Tsvangirai three months ago asked South Africa to cut
off transport and fuel links to Zimbabwe". Footage of Mr. Mugabe calling for
unity was screened. In the same report, ZTV re-screened South African deputy
president Jacob Zuma endorsing the election results. Zaba went on to state that
the "behaviour of opposition parties is not surprising" and cited Mozambique's
Renamo, Unita in Angola, opposition in Zambia and the Democrats in the US as
having rejected results in their countries, reinforcing the impression created
by ZBC that Tsvangirai's rejection of the results had no basis The broadcaster
(18/03, 8pm) also reported that Thabo Mbeki and Olusegun Obasanjo had called for
unity among Zimbabwe's political leadership during their meetings with Mugabe
and Tsvangirai on their way to London to decide what action the Commonwealth
should take following the damning verdict of its election observer team.
Picking up a Herald (19/3) report that claimed the MDC had agreed to hold talks
with ZANU PF after its meeting with Mbeki and Obasanjo, ZTV (19/03, 8pm) stated
that following "the apparent U-turn on its rejection of the poll result, the MDC
executive was expected to meet this afternoon to consider the agenda and format
of the talks with ZANU PF." No comment was sought from the MDC. The report
merely relied on the unsubstantiated Herald article. Mr. Tsvangirai was only
accorded the opportunity to respond to regional leaders' calls for unity on SW
Radio Africa (22/3). He said the MDC would not engage with government in "any
meaningful discussions until violence was put to an end". He further stated
that his party's main concern was the restoration of a legitimate government
"through an election in the near future". Reasons for the regional leaders'
calls for unity only became clear towards the end of the week, days after
Zimbabwe's suspension from the Commonwealth, when the private press reported
that unity was meant to facilitate an election re-run and quoted Obasanjo in
this context saying there would be another election. The state broadcaster
ignored this development. ZBC's coverage of the Commonwealth left no doubt
that the broadcaster is unwilling to air negative news about Zimbabwe. Before
the meeting of the Commonwealth troika in London to decide Zimbabwe's fate, ZBC
(18/03, 8pm) aired a preview of the meeting in an effort to discredit the
Commonwealth observer team report. ZBC's Judith Makwanya stated (ZTV, 18/03,
8pm): "General Abubakar, under pressure to appease the British, issued a
negative interim report saying the election was not free and fair, a development
strongly opposed by some black members of the observer team". As proof that
black members were against the report, footage of a Namibian member of the
Commonwealth observer team, Margaret Mensah dissociating herself from the report
was re-screened. After the report, ZTV interviewed political commentator,
Dr. Norman Mlambo, who said "there will be victory for Zimbabwe" since Mbeki
and Obasanjo would base their judgments on the reports issued by their
respective countries' observer teams. Mlambo was not challenged on his
misleading statements since the troika was to base its decision on the
Commonwealth observer group report.
When ZTV (19/03, 8pm) broke the news that Zimbabwe had been suspended from
the Commonwealth, it relegated the story to the last item after the weather and
sports news despite billing the story in its headlines. The newscaster stated
that the decision to suspend Zimbabwe "was meant to be a face-saver for Britain
that has been in the forefront of de-campaigning Zimbabwe because of wide
differences with Harare government over the land issue". All ZBC radio
stations carried the report in its morning bulletins (20/3, 6am &
7am). Predictably, the suspension attracted severe government criticism.
Immediately after ZTV announced the suspension of Zimbabwe, Information
Minister Jonathan Moyo was accorded more than four minutes to comment. In spite
of the fact that Moyo initially stated that the Foreign Affairs Minister would
make an "appropriate statement" on the suspension, he went on to attack the
Commonwealth observer report: ".The report of the Commonwealth observer
team.is a heavily opinionated report, one sided document totally out of step.
It is a bad report that can only lead to bad decisions.the report lacks
credibility and cannot stand any objective scrutiny." Moyo also stated that the
report was written well before the observer team had arrived in the country. He
said: " They could not have had time to write such a long report after the
announcement of the results." Moyo did not provide evidence to substantiate
his claims. When Foreign Affairs Minister Stan Mudenge responded to the
suspension (ZTV, 20/3, 8pm & ZBC radio 21/3, 6am) he also attacked the
Commonwealth report saying: ".The composition of the Commonwealth observer group
was heavily influenced by the Secretary-General and those member countries who
habour well known negative dispositions and hidden agendas against Zimbabwe."
In an attempt to portray the suspension as baseless, ZTV (20/3, 8pm)
lumped together old footage of regional diplomats who appeared in support of
Zimbabwe. The footage included a clip on General Abubakar stating that the
media was exaggerating incidents of political violence. Abubakar later denied
making such statements saying that ZBC had distorted what he said.
Interestingly, ZTV still found the clip useful to peddle its editorial
slant.
In its follow-up, ZBC attempted to downplay the underlying implications of
the suspension. ZTV (20/3, 8pm) stated: "Zimbabwe has more to benefit from
regional bodies such as SADC and COMESA than from the annual and symbolic
attachment of the Commonwealth and the former colonial power, Britain led by the
Queen." The report was also carried on 3FM (21/03, 6am). Radio Zimbabwe
(21/03, 6am) quoted Dr. Mlambo saying the suspension would not have much impact
on Zimbabwe as it excluded sanctions. As a way of down-playing the economic
impact of the suspension, ZTV (20/3, 8pm) in its business news slot, reported
that: "Despite news of Zimbabwe's suspension from the Commonwealth, the equities
market was firm today". On the other hand, SW Radio Africa (20/3) quoted
Prof. Masipula Sithole explaining how the suspension would further isolate
Zimbabwe. Before the suspension ZBC had led its audiences to believe that
Mbeki and Obasanjo and other African leaders supported Zimbabwe and would not
agree to the suspension of the country from the club. When it was announced
that the troika had done the opposite, ZTV (20/3, 8pm) was at pains to convince
its audience that Mbeki and Obasanjo were still behind Zimbabwe. State
television reported that: "Local analysts have commended efforts by the two
heads of state, Mbeki and Obasanjo for preventing the imposition of sanctions on
Zimbabwe by the Commonwealth". But it provided no evidence to prove that the
two African leaders had stalled the imposition of sanctions.
While ZBC was busy re-broadcasting Mugabe's inauguration speech in the
context of his appeal for unity, the state formally charged Tsvangirai with
treason and remanded him out of custody on $1.5m bail. However, the state
broadcaster misled the public into believing Tsvangirai had been arrested while
trying to escape Zimbabwe. ZTV and Radio Zimbabwe (20/03, 8pm) stated: "MDC
leader Morgan Tsvangirai was arrested today after he attempted to flee the
country." This was false as Tsvangirai was at home when the state decided to
press charges against him. ZBC did not offer any explanation for the charges
in the context of. Mugabe's calls for unity. SW Radio Africa (20/3),
attempted to do this and quoted MDC secretary-general Welshman Ncube saying the
"action flies flat in the face of its (government's) call for reconciliation".
Ncube added that the unity appeal was aimed at "vanquishing the MDC like they
did with ZAPU".
2. POST ELECTION VIOLENCE Despite Mugabe's calls for unity during his
inaugural speech, the private press and SW Radio Africa carried reports of
post-election violence perpetrated by alleged ZANU PF supporters against MDC
sympathizers. ZBC ignored the reports. On the murder of Norton farmer Terry
Ford, ZBC (3FM, 18/03, 8pm & ZTV, 19/03 7am & 8pm) stated that the
murder was not linked to political violence. ZTV newscaster stated that:
"Police have ruled out any political motive in the murder of a Norton commercial
farmer yesterday saying the suspects arrested so far have been linked to other
criminal activities in the area". Assistant Inspector Andrew Phiri was quoted
reinforcing this view when he said: ".we have further recovered another weapon
which was reported stolen from another farm further strengthening the fact that
these are purely criminal elements we are dealing with." While ZBC reported
the incident as non-political, SW Radio Africa (18/3, Newsreel) linked the
murder to ZANU PF supporters. The station quoted CFU spokesperson Jenni
Williams who gave an account of what transpired. The station also reported that
one of the suspects still at large was a war veteran. ZTV (19/03, 7am) also
made it clear that it was not willing to expose ZANU PF's violent nature when it
reported: "Police are also investigating the murder of a farm guard in
Marondera, allegedly killed by people who settled on the farm". The political
affiliation of the settlers was deliberately ignored and the circumstances
leading to the guard's death were not given. Those who could access SW Radio
Africa had an opportunity to hear of ZANU PF's retribution after the election.
Throughout the week the short wave station reported on the attack of MDC
supporters in Manicaland, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Masvingo and
Matabeleland South. Among those accused of perpetrating violence was ZANU
Ndonga member Wilson Kumbula who lost the election in his stronghold of Chipinge
South. However, Kumbula denied (21/03) he was behind the violence that engulfed
Chipinge South after the election. He blamed ZANU PF. The main sources in
all the station's reports were MDC supporters. MMPZ repeats its observation
that SW Radio Africa should inform its audiences of the cases where the
authorities refuse to comment in order to avoid allegations of bias.
3. THE ZCTU STAY STRIKE Right from the eve of the ZCTU stay-away
through to its end; ZBC linked the labour movement's protest against the state
violation of workers' rights to the MDC. While reporting Tobaiwa Mudede's
denial that the election was rigged, ZBC's Judith Makwanya stated (ZTV, 19/03,
8pm): "Political analysts said while the most logical thing to do for the MDC is
seeking legal redress, the party is instead attempting to cause chaos in the
country by supporting an industrial action by workers through the Zimbabwe
Congress of Trade Unions which gave birth to the MDC." Excerpts of Mugabe's
inauguration speech calling for unity were re- screened in the same report to
give the impression that while ZANU PF was calling for unity the labour movement
influenced by the MDC was taking a confrontational route. In the same
bulletin newscaster Obriel Mpofu stated: "The decision by the Zimbabwe Congress
of Trade Unions (ZCTU) to stage a stay-away has been described by members of
the business community and the ZFTU, which now consists of the bulk of workers
in the country, as a setback in revitalizing the economy." Little known
Business People's Forum leader and Alfred Mukwarimba the president of the ZFTU
were quoted criticizing the ZCTU. The report stated that the ZFTU has about 800
000 members. There was no mention of how many members the ZCTU has to support
claims that the ZFTU "consists of the bulk of workers". All ZBC radio
stations (19/03, 8pm) also quoted Joseph Chinotimba ZFTU vice-president
criticizing the ZCTU.
Two ZCTU affiliates, Associated Mine Workers of Zimbabwe and Zimbabwe
Leather Workers Union were quoted dissociating their unions from the planned
stay-away (ZTV, 19/3, 8pm & radio, 20/03, am bulletins). Contrary to ZBC
reports that some affiliates had dissociated themselves from the stay-away, SW
Radio Africa (19/03) reported: "Other workers' unions have backed the ZCTU
stay-away". However, the station only quoted one workers' union, the General
Agricultural and Plantation Workers Union (GAPWUZ) as proof. ZBC (ZTV and all
radio stations, 19/03, 8pm & 20/03, am bulletins) as is now the norm,
quoted carefully selected samples of members of the public around the country
denouncing ZCTU plans. No comment was sought from the ZCTU to explain its
position. Instead, Minister Moyo got himself into ZTV's bulletin ZTV (19/03,
8pm) linking the planned stay-away to the MDC and attacked the party for
accepting the results of the Harare mayoral elections while rejecting the
presidential elections. Moyo said ZANU PF was the "only party with a track
record of accepting an election result whichever way it goes". He stated
that ZANU PF had accepted the results of the June 2000 elections, and other
mayoral elections and asked: "What is it about these people that makes them feel
so special that an election is free and fair only if they win and that if they
don't win we must keep having elections - re-election is what we hear Morgan
Tsvangirai talking about - until they win?" Moyo was allowed to mislead ZTV
audiences into believing that his party had accepted all elections results when
it had gone to court to contest the outcome of the Seke constituency 2000
election result and is challenging the Masvingo and Chegutu mayoral election
results. In its subsequent reports, ZBC gave updates on the situation on the
ground across the country and continued to quote members of the public,
government officials and some business people denigrating the ZCTU. The labour
body was not given any opportunity to respond to any of the allegations made
against it. SW Radio Africa also carried updates on the stay-away. Both
ZTV and ZBC's radio stations (21/03, 8pm) reported that following a "flopped"
ZCTU stays-away, the union's executive decided to engage government and abandon
the confrontational approach. ZBC reporter Reuben Barwe stated on ZTV: ".ZCTU
today made a policy u-turn to abandon its confrontational approach. ZCTU
president Lovemore Matombo said today the labour body will be minimizing
confrontation." Instead of according the labour union space to air their
views ZTV quoted Labour Minister July Moyo stating that the stay away was
illegal. ZCTU officials Wellington Chibebe and Lovemore Matombo were only
given the opportunity to explain to the public why they called for a stay-away
on SW Radio Africa (19/03). The station also quoted members of civic society
who believed the ZCTU mass action was justified.
While ZBC gave the impression that the stay-away had failed because
Zimbabweans wanted to revive the economy, SW Radio Africa (20/3) quoted a human
rights activist Brian Kagoro saying "the message went out rather late and there
was confusion as to whether it was on or off". Matombo was also quoted in the
same bulletin saying the response to the strike was not good because it was
"being carried out in an environment of intimidation and harassment," adding
that businesses were forced to open. Radio Zimbabwe (23/03, 7am) reported
that seven youths were arrested in Harare, Bulawayo and Chinhoyi for forcing
people to stay away from their jobs. The youths were said to belong to the
MDC. No evidence was provided to substantiate the claim.
ZBC 's coverage of the strike was not short of its usual racist conspiracy
plots that whites had closed their shops forcing workers to stay away (ZTV,
20/03, 8pm) Ends
This report was produced and circulated by the Media Monitoring Project
Zimbabwe, 15 Duthie Avenue, Alexandra Park, Harare, Tel/fax: 263 4 703702,
E-mail: monitors@mweb.co.zw Feel free
to respond to MMPZ. We may not be able to respond to everything, but we will
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