The Times
March 07, 2007
Jan Raath
The closest it comes to is the feeling I get around the
start of every
spring. Something odd in the air, a tightening of the wind,
an unusual
sharpness in the light, that sets a stirring inside me.
A
new flush, a zing, a glow, an idea, I don't know what, came in late
January.
It wasn't the weather. I can't pinpoint the day it settled on me.
It took a
couple of weeks to begin to articulate it. It was more the
changing of the
colour of litmus paper than a flash. Suddenly, I found other
people
fervently agreeing with me, and startled also that I should be
feeling the
same thing. That this year there is going to be change.
If you had said
that to me in late December, I would have said, forget it,
Robert Mugabe,
just 83, will be bestriding Zimbabwe well into his nineties.
Since 2000,
when he began to hammer the life out of the first genuine,
popular
democratic movement in this country, despair has eaten into almost
everyone.
But there is that thing in the air. It's not just
journalists, academics,
lawyers and human rights activists unsettled by it.
The youths in Epworth
township south of the city who shout abuse at
policemen - provocative
behaviour unheard of till now - have been fired by
it. The same sense moved
the man arrested at a police roadblock at Hot
Springs in the southeast for
having a banknote with the words scribbled on
it in Shona: "For Satan so
loved Zimbabwe, he gave his only begotten son,
Mugabe, that whoever follows
him shall have everlasting poverty." And the
women demonstrators late last
month who picked up teargas canisters fired at
them by riot police, and
hurled them back.
This flickering that shows
itself in anger, boldness and hope has not had
anything to do with a welling
up of opposition political momentum, as there
was in 2000 when the
opposition Movement for Democratic Change had to be
beaten and cheated out
of election victory. The MDC has been split for
almost two years and the
separate factions are virtually dormant. The
restiveness has grown by
itself, spontaneously.
I can't pinpoint why it should have suddenly begun
to stir now, or at all.
The incremental pressure of the struggle for
survival under 1,600 per cent
inflation, incessant harassment and brutality
by Mr Mugabe's many arms of
repression, and the helpless outrage at being
trampled on by a small class
of ultra-rich venal parasites has to be at its
heart. But the same motives
have been there in other African tyrannies for
decades, without producing a
twitch of unrest.
Zimbabwe has passed an
indefinable tipping point. It is an elusive,
completely unpredictable and
fragile phenomenon; Mr Mugabe has already set
out to extinguish it, and he
knows no civilised limits.
But it can also be as terrifyingly infectious
and destructive as the ebola
virus.
Zim Online
Wednesday 07 March 2007
By Tsungai
Murandu
HARARE - The Zimbabwe government could find itself caught between
a rock and
a hard place as it moves to "wean-off" unproductive black
farmers, analysts
warned yesterday.
The government last week
announced that it would withdraw support to A2
farmers, with Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor Gideon Gono describing
them last week as "grown ups"
who should be weaned-off from State
assistance.
But analysts
yesterday said it remained to be seen if the Harare authorities
could
proceed with plans to wean-off resettled black farmers, particularly
as the
country approaches presidential elections in 2008.
The polls could,
however, be postponed to 2010 if a highly controversial
election
"harmonisation" plan by the ruling ZANU PF party sails through.
The
analysts said, as with previous policies, the government would be forced
to
back down from a blanket ban on assistance to black farmers.
"It will be
interesting to see how they (government) will handle this one
because a lot
more than just the economy will be at stake here," said an
investment banker
who could not be named for professional reasons.
It was the banker's view
that political considerations would as usual carry
greater weight than the
perceived economic benefits of cutting subsidies to
the agricultural
sector.
While the subsidies to agriculture - often in the form of inputs
such as
seeds, fertilisers and fuel - have milked the economy over the past
seven
years, President Robert Mugabe would be under pressure from his ruling
ZANU
PF party supporters to continue with the handouts.
"The tragedy
of Zimbabwean politics is that the people know Mugabe's
weaknesses and will
use that to their best advantage," the banker said.
Through mainly the
RBZ and several other departments, the government has
dolled out trillions
of dollars to so-called "new farmers" since 2000 when
it embarked on
ill-fated agrarian reforms.
Agricultural output has instead shrunk by
more than 60 percent since 2000
despite the increase in funding.
The
result has been shops starved of the staple maize-meal, and more than
1.4
million Zimbabweans are registered as requiring urgent help from the
World
Food Programme.
And with inflation topping almost 1 600 percent, millions
are now finding
themselves barely able to buy even the basic
staples.
University of Zimbabwe (UZ) political scientist John Makumbe
said the
sentiments by Gono - and two weeks earlier by Lands Minister
Didymus
Mutasa - were a sign of increasing irritation with the way the
government's
seven-year experimentation with agrarian reforms has
evolved.
"The chickens are indeed coming home to roost as the government
realises it
has made a costly seven-year-old mistake," said
Makumbe.
The UZ lecturer warned that, if the government proceeded with
its plans,
most of the A2 farmers would find themselves without land as they
had become
accustomed to the perennial State handouts and could not borrow
from banks.
Makumbe said this could see the return of some former white
farmers being
reallocated the land as the government desperately tries to
boost
production. - ZimOnline
Zim Online
Wednesday 07 March 2007
By
Thulani Munda
HARARE - A senior Zimbabwe government who was arrested last
week at the
Harare International Airport was caught in possession of 10
773.58 carats of
diamonds, a Harare magistrate heard on
Tuesday.
William Nhara, who is the principal director in the Ministry
without
Portfolio, was arrested last Thursday for attempting to pay a US$700
bribe
to the police to secure the release of a Lebanese woman, Carol Gerge
Elmatni, who had been arrested earlier on for attempting to smuggle the
precious minerals.
Harare magistrate Mishrod Guvamombe, was told
during the trial that the
value of the diamonds stood at Z$32 million
(US$128 000 at the official
rate).
Police Inspector Ignatius Muganiri
told the court that Nhara offered him
"any amount" to let the Lebanese woman
go with the ZANU PF spokesman
offering him Z$40 million to let off the
woman.
Nhara later gave him US$700 with a promise to pay off the balance
last
Sunday.
Muganiri said: "As a government official, the offence he
committed is a
serious offence if you take into account that smuggling is
now prevalent in
the country."
In opposing bail, prosecutor Tawanda
Zvekare said: "(Smuggling) is a serious
offence that harms the national
economy."
Nhara's lawyer, Byron Venturas, told the court that his client
had been
detained beyond the stipulated the 48 hours that is allowed before
suspects
are taken to court.
The trial continues today when Nhara's
bail application will be
determined. - ZimOnline
Zim Online
Wednesday 07 March 2007
By Batsirai Murenje
HARARE
- Zimbabwe's main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) on
Tuesday
urged its supporters to boycott paying rates until there is an
elected
council in Harare stoking up political tensions in the already
volatile
capital city.
The boycott call comes in the wake of last Friday's High
Court ruling that
declared a government-appointed commission running Harare
illegal.
Harare has been without an elected mayor and council following
the dismissal
of Engineer Elias Mudzuri and his MDC-dominated council for
alleged
incompetence about five years ago.
"The MDC calls for an
immediate rates boycott until an elected council is
put in place in Harare,"
said Sessel Zvidzai, the opposition party's
secretary for local government
who is also the executive mayor of the
Midlands city of Gweru.
"It is
only prudent that residents pay their rates to a democratically
elected
council and not to this group of thugs which has taken over Town
House.
Residents cannot sanitise an illegal Commission by paying rates to
it," he
added.
High Court judge Lawrence Kamocha last Friday said the decision by
Local
Government Minister Ignatius Chombo to re-appoint the Commission
headed by
Sekesai Makwavarara for a fourth term was illegal, null and
void.
The ruling came following an application by former town clerk
Nomutsa
Chideya in which he challenged the commission's powers to dismiss
him from
his job.
Chideya, fired by Makwavarara last year for alleged
incomptence, had argued
that the commission could not dismiss him because it
was not an elected
council and that its chairperson was not an elected mayor
as demanded by
Urban Councils Act.
Matters came to a head on Monday
after Chideya reported for work but council
officials told him he could not
start work as the commission had appealed to
the Supreme
Court.
Chideya's lawyer, Sternford Moyo, said the Commission could not
appeal to
the Supreme Court because it is an illegal body and has no legal
standing to
launch such an appeal.
The MDC said the continued stay in
office by the Commission was enough
evidence that there was no rule of law
in Zimbabwe.
"Zimbabwe cannot be part of the civilised world when an
unelected and
illegal bunch of people is in charge of the capital
city.
"Having this illegal club in Harare against the spirit of the High
Court
ruling is enough megaphone to the world that there is no rule of law
in this
country," said Zvidzai.
Chombo could not be reached for
comment on the call by the MDC to boycott
the paying of rates in
Harare.
Political analysts said last week's ruling appeared to derail
President
Robert Mugabe and his government's strategy to regain control of
cities from
the MDC.
The Zimbabwe government has over the past five
years fired elected councils
in Harare and Mutare and replaced them with
pro-government commissions.
The government has also barred mayoral
elections and council elections in
Harare saying the city is not yet ready
for such polls in what critics say
confirmed fears in government circles
that it would lose the elections. -
ZimOnline
Zim Online
Wednesday 07 March 2007
Own
Correspondent
HARARE - Sweden's ambassador to Zimbabwe, Sten Rylander, on
Monday urged
President Robert Mugabe's government to embark on swift
political and
economic reforms to stem a serious humanitarian crisis
affecting the
country.
In a statement released to the media on
Monday, Sweden said it had donated
US$6.7 million through various agencies
for humanitarian assistance to
Zimbabwe in 2007.
"The humanitarian
situation in Zimbabwe is still very serious and there are
few signs of an
improvement in the near future.
"I appeal to the Zimbabwean government to
work closely with the
international donor community . . . in trying to
respond to the humanitarian
needs and to embark swiftly on the political and
economic reforms, which are
necessary for a sound recovery process," said
Rylander.
The tough-talking Swedish envoy said it was ultimately the
responsibility of
the Harare authorities to take care of the humanitarian
situation in the
country adding that the government should move quickly to
"bring the
situation (in the country) back to normal."
Zimbabwe is in
its eighth straight year of a bitter economic recession that
has manifested
itself in rampant inflation of nearly 1 600 percent, food
shortages and
surging unemployment.
The southern African country has survived on food
handouts from aid agencies
over the past seven years after Mugabe seized
white farms for redistribution
to landless blacks. - ZimOnline
VOA
By Ben Chaleka, Blessing Zulu & Jonga
Kandemiiri
Washington
06 March 2007
Zimbabwean
authorities pointed to driver error, out-of-order railway signals
and poor
visibility as factors in a collision between an overcrowded
commuter bus and
a freight train early Tuesday that claimed the lives of 35
aboard the bus
including its driver.
The National Railways of Zimbabwe came under fire
for failing to repair a
signal at the level crossing in the Harare suburb of
Dzivarasekwa, and the
Harare city government was also criticized for failing
to cut back high
grass that obscured train traffic.
Police said the
freight train, heading into the capital, slammed into the
commuter bus
carrying 59 passengers, well over its nominal capacity of 32,
around 5:30
a.m. The driver reportedly did not stop before entering the
level crossing,
reports said.
Some survivors were reported in critical condition and
receiving treatment
at Parirenyatwa Hospital, one of Harare's leading public
hospitals.
Reporter Ben Chaleka of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe was at the
scene of the
crash and at Parirenyatwa Hospital and briefed Studio 7 host
Ndimyake
Mwakalyelye.
Chief Inspector Andrew Phiri of the Zimbabwe
Republic Police told reporter
Blessing Zulu that the crossing was a "black
spot" where previous accidents
had occurred.
Dzivarasekwa Member of
Parliament Edwin Mushoriwa said Tuesday's tragedy
could have been avoided
had local authorities and the National Railways
properly maintained crossing
signals and the approaches to that crossing.
Mushoriwa said the grass by
the crossing had grown so high that drivers
cannot see a train coming. He
charged that the National Railways had not
repaired broken
signals.
Mushoriwa told reporter Jonga Kandemiiri of VOA's Studio 7 for
Zimbabwe that
the government has declared the accident at Dzivaresekwa a
national
disaster.
VOA
By Carole Gombakomba
Washington
06 March
2007
At least 30 members of the activist group Women of
Zimbabwe Arise and its
male counterpart were arrested Tuesday after staging
a demonstration in the
southeastern Zimbabwean town of Masvingo in a
continuing series of protests.
Police in Gweru, the capital of Midlands
Province, arrested 34 members of
the group there Monday.
Sources in
the organization said members took to the streets of Masvingo to
distribute
copies of what WOZA calls a "people's charter" calling for social
justice.
Lawyer Dumisani Hwacha, representing those arrested Tuesday,
told reporter
Carole Gombakomba of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe that police
had not yet
brought formal charges but say the activists violated a
government ban on
political rallies.
Meanwhile, eight members of WOZA
and its male counterpart organization, Men
of Zimbabwe Arise, remained in
police custody in Gweru following Monday's
protest.
Hilary Garikai,
one of the lawyers representing them, said 26 other WOZA and
MOZA members
were arraigned in Gweru on Tuesday on charges that they
participated in an
unlawful gathering, and then were released on Z$20,000
(US$2.50) bail.
VOA
By
Peta Thornycroft
Zimbabwe
06 March 2007
At
least 34 people are reported dead after a packed commuter mini bus
crashed
into a railway engine on the outskirts of Harare. Peta Thornycroft
reports
for VOA that Harare's main hospital is struggling to cope with
another 20
seriously injured commuters.
Assistant commissioner Wayne Bvudizjena said
the commuter bus was heavily
overloaded during the morning rush when it
crashed into a National Railways
of Zimbabwe engine at a rail
crossing.
He said the small bus had 53 passengers and should only have
been carrying a
maximum of 30.
Assistant Commissioner Bvudzijena said
the crash could be Zimbabwe's worst
commuter accident.
The accident
occurred near a poor township, Dvarasekwa, about 15 kilometers
west of the
Harare city center.
Many of those who regularly use the bus are women who
buy wholesale fruit
and vegetables at the market and re-sell on the side of
the road in
Dvarasekwa.
Many fares on commuter mini buses, or
emergency taxis as they are known in
Zimbabwe, have trebled in the past five
weeks, as Zimbabwe's economy
continues to plunge. A regular commuter in
central Harare said all the
vehicles are overcrowded because of the high
cost of fuel.
A member of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change
who monitors
transportation issues, Edwin Dzambara, said Zimbabwe's
transport system is
in a state of collapse. He said most vehicles on
Zimbabwe's roads are
unsafe.
Parirenyatwa Hospital in Harare, where
the victims are being treated, is
back in operation this week after a
two-month strike by junior doctors. The
strike ended when the government
awarded pay increases.
The Raw Story
dpa German Press
Agency
Published: Tuesday March 6, 2007
Lusaka- Zambia
broke the regional silence Tuesday over the
deteriorating political
conditions in Zimbabwe, telling its
counterparts in the Southern African
Development Community (SADC) to
stop pretending "all is well in
Zimbabwe."
"We should not pretend that all is well in Zimbabwe. There is
a
serious problem and ostracizing Zimbabwe will not help solve
the
problems there," Foreign Affairs Minister Mundia Sikatana told
SADC
executive secretary Thomaz Salomao in Lusaka.
Sikatana made the
remarks to Salamao during the latter's visit to
Zambia to organize the annual
SADC summit set to take place in Lusaka
in August, at which Zambia is due to
take over the community's 12-
month rotating chair.
Sikatana said the
summit should aim to help stem the economic
meltdown in Zimbabwe by engaging
authoritarian Zimbabwean President
Robert Mugabe and the European Union (EU)
on the issue of sanctions.
"We should engage the EU over its sanctions
against Robert Mugabe.
This should be on the agenda," he said.
Salamao
said the SADC secretariat would look at addressing the
issue of the sanctions
that had "crippled the economy and resulted in
widespread chronic
poverty."
Sikatana said ending the sanctions was key to ending the
food
crisis is what used to be known as the breadbasket of
Africa.
Zimbabweans, who are already jumping the border into South
Africa
in droves, were now also flooding into Zambia seeking food, he
said.
Unless the issue of the confiscation of white-owned farms
was
resolved quickly, the situation would attain catastrophic
proportions
exacerbated by flooding and drought, he said.
It was up to
SADC states to take the bull by the horns and help
Mugabe realize that
dialogue was the best recipe for sustainable
peace and stability, according
to Sikatana.
Diplomats in Lusaka told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa they
regional
economic powerhouse South Africa was the only state with the clout
to
persuade Mugabe to tone down his crackdown on the press and
the
opposition.
Zimbabwe is a hotly-debated issue within the 14-member
economic
and trade bloc, with some members, including South Africa,
still
feeling the need to show loyalty to their erstwhile
freedom-struggle-
era comrade-in-arms.
South African President Thabo
Mbeki has been criticized for
remaining curiously quiet on the deteriorating
political and economic
situation in Zimbabwe.
© 2006 - dpa German
Press Agency
By Violet Gonda
6
March 2007
For Zimbabweans to begin to move forward Robert Mugabe has to
exit the
political radar and should not be a political factor beyond March
2008.
According to the International Crisis Group these are the sentiments
across
the political and social divide, including responses from the main
ZANU PF
factions.
The global political 'think tank' released a new
and comprehensive report on
Monday, which examines the deadlock in Zimbabwe
and sees a chance to resolve
the situation through the retirement of Mugabe
when his term ends in 2008.
The ICG recommends a power-sharing deal to
create a transitional government
that will prepare a new constitution and
democratic elections in 2010.
The various suggestions in the report all
make sense but some critics have
said it relies upon a large number of
theoretical transitions - such as
whether Mugabe could realistically be
persuaded to retire. But according to
ICG senior analyst Sydney Masamvu all
stakeholders, including the Mnangagwa
and Mujuru factions in ZANU PF, agree
that Mugabe is the stumbling block and
has to go.
Masamvu said even
though the 83 year old leader might have support from his
security forces:
"The feeling in ZANU PF is that even if Mugabe decides to
defy the party and
stands for re-election, indications are that he will be
beaten even in an
unfair election, because ZANU PF factions are ready to
withdraw that support
from him."
The report which took five months to research in Zimbabwe, the
region and
internationally, urges all figures to rally around to stop Mugabe
from
extending his term, but also to provide him with an exit strategy at
the
expiration of his term next year.
Masumvu added; "I can tell you
that the majority of SADC leaders - they want
change of guard in Zimbabwe
.and they are now willing to even persuade. even
talk to some leaders in
ZANU PF to persuade President Mugabe to exit . and
even the issue of a
smooth dignified Mugabe exit, they are willing to go
that extra mile because
they have seen the economic meltdown in Zimbabwe and
the impact which it is
having in their countries and in the region in terms
of economic
growth."
Analysts say Mugabe will soon have no choice but to negotiate
because the
economy is caving in and Zimbabwe is increasingly isolated. They
see the
runaway inflation and increasing labour unrests as major factors
that will
bring Mugabe to the negotiating table. The ICG says if the regime
refuses to
engage in any transitional mechanism then the international
community should
tighten the targeted sanctions currently in place. The
pressure group also
says pressure from the African Union and the regional
countries should be
applied.
The think tank believes there is hope in
the fact that two major factions of
ZANU PF all agree that Mugabe must not
proceed beyond 2008 and that there is
a joint strategy between the two MDC
factions who also agree that there
should be a negotiated
settlement.
The ICG analyst said: "We are not saying the MDC should come
to power
neither are we saying ZANU PF should stay in power for as long as
it wants.
We are saying we need a roadmap which creates conducive conditions
under a
new constitution which produces a legitimate outcome."
An
in-depth interview with Sydney Masamvu can be heard on the programme Hot
Seat.
SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news
Monsters and Critics
Mar 6, 2007, 9:11 GMT
Johannesburg - Aircraft
from South Africa were due Tuesday to join the
relief operation in
flood-ravaged neighbouring Mozambique, which is
struggling to recover from a
devastating cyclone and widespread flood
damage.
Three army
helicopters and an aeroplane were scheduled to depart from an air
base in
Pretoria base to begin work in Mozambique following a request from
the
government in Maputo for humanitarian aid.
Two of the helicopters will be
used to transport food from the epicentre of
aid operations in the city of
Caia to the central Zambezi River basin, where
weeks of flooding have left
roads and bridges unpassable, a defence ministry
spokesman
said.
South Africa has also agreed to donate five water purification
plants.
Around 30 people have been killed and 100,000 forced into
emergency shelters
in central Mozambique in flooding caused by heavy rains
since the beginning
of the year.
At least four more people were
killed, 70 seriously injured and 40,000 left
homeless when Cyclone Favio
slammed into the southern city of Vilanculos and
nearby islands on February
23.
Zambia, Zimbabwe and Angola, through which the powerful Zambezi
flows, have
also been affected by the flooding.
Some lodge owners in
Zambia's resort city of Livingstone on the famous
Victoria Falls told
Zambia's state broadcaster they would have to shut up
shop after the lodges
were submerged by floodwaters.
About 100 trucks and cars are also
marooned at the Kazungula crossing on the
Botswana/Zambia border after a
pontoon on the Zambezi River was flooded.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche
Presse-Agentur
The Herald (Harare)
March 6,
2007
Posted to the web March 6, 2007
Harare
UNIVERSITY of
Zimbabwe lecturers met yesterday and resolved to continue with
their strike,
saying the new salary structure announced by the Government
last week did
not fully meet their demands.
Secretary for Higher and Tertiary Education
Dr Washington Mbizvo announced
that the Government had awarded a salary
increment to staff at institutions
of higher learning.
He did
not, however, give details as to the percentage increase.
Association of
University Teachers president Mr James Mahlaule said UZ
lecturers met to
chart the way forward.
"We met as lecturers and acknowledged the new
salary structures announced by
Government," said Mr Mahlaule in an
interview.
"It was, however, felt in the meeting that although the new
salary structure
was welcome, it did not address our plight and, as such, we
remain on the
collective job action until the issues we raised are
addressed."
Lecturers downed tools demanding that the lowest paid should
earn $1,7
million a month and the highest paid, a professor, should get $3,2
million a
month.
New Zimbabwe
By
Lebo Nkatazo
Last updated: 03/06/2007 11:31:34
ZIMBABWE surpassed all its
tax collection targets for 2006 but its appetite
for using money saw it
posting a budget deficit of $47,9 billion during the
same period, a
government bulletin.
"Revenue collections of 2006 during the last quarter of
2006 continued on a
positive note, with November and December collections
amounting to $72,7
billion and $116,7 billion against a target of $69,1
billion and $86,8
billion, respectively," it said.
"Total revenue
collections for 2006 were $417,3 billion, surpassing the
annual target of
$320,2 billion by 30percent. Tax revenue accounted $404,3
billion of total
revenues, while $12,5 billion was raised from non tax
sources."
The
quarterly treasury bulletin, which is published by the Ministry of
Finance,
was released last Friday following its suspension in 2006. The
finance
ministry attributed this to "improved tax efforts by Zimra (Zimbabwe
Revenue
Authority) ."
Value Added Tax (VAR) recorded the largest contribution at
27 percent of
total revenue, followed by Payee As You Earn (PAYE) and
Company Tax that
contributed 24 and 23 percent of total revenue
respectively.
"Vat collections in 2006 amounted to $109,7 billion against
a target of $100
billion. Of this local sales, recorded $81,2 billion, whilst
imports
accounted
for $27,1 billion," the bulletin said.
On Pay As
You Earn, the bulletin said: "Cumulative collections for 2006
amounted to
$96,3 billion, surpassing the annual target of $ 80 billion by
30
percent.
"PAYe collections benefited from the quarterly wage and
salary adjustments
adopted during the course of the year."
Customs
duty contributed $42, 64 billion against a 2006 target of $39,99
billion,
while corporate tax brought in $93,5 billion against a target of
$55 billion
during the same period.
The Ministry of Finance bulletin said Tax
collections on dividends and
interest on both resident non-resident
Zimbabweans amounted to $7,1 billion
and $5,4 billion against targets of
$6,6 billion and $5,5 billion
respectively.
Excise duty, which is
levied on beer, tobacco, wines, spirits as well as
second hand motor
vehicles surpassed the target by 18 percent to reach $14,
1
billion.
Tax collections on dividends and interest on both resident and
non-resident
Zimbabweans also surpassed targets.
It added:
"Collections for 2006 amounted to $32,4 billion against a target
of $15,9
billion giving a positive variance of 47percent.
"With total 2006 budget
expenditures of $465,3 billion and revenue
collections of 417,3 billion for
the year, the overall budget deficit for
the year was $47, 9 billion. The
deficit was entirely financed from the
domestic market largely through the
issuance of short term paper."
International Herald Tribune
The Associated
PressPublished: March 6, 2007
LONDON: The British Court of
Appeal on Tuesday ordered a tribunal to
reconsider the deportation of a
citizen of Zimbabwe who fears mistreatment
if returned.
The case
involved a 31-year-old man identified only as AA, who arrived in
Britain in
2002. The man, who said he had been involved in low level
political
activity, applied for asylum but was rejected by the Home Office
in
2005.
"The government has put a great deal of time, money and effort into
defending this test case, but in our view the evidence reveals a risk that
Zimbabweans who exercise their right to claim asylum in the UK are at risk
of serious violence if returned to Harare Airport," said Thea Rogers, deputy
chief executive of the Refugee Legal Center, which argued the case for the
Zimbabwean.
AA, who claimed that he was at risk of ill-treatment if
sent back simply
because he had tried to gain asylum in Britain, was granted
an appeal and
won. The government then appealed and won its case.
The
appeal judges - Lord Justice Anthony May, Lord Justice Stephen Sedley
and
Justice Paul Kennedy - have now sent the case back to an immigration
tribunal. It accepted AA's argument that the tribunal had failed to properly
consider the evidence of two former members of the Zimbabwean Military
Intelligence, and to properly consider evidence about attitudes and
practices of Zimbabwe's Central Intelligence Organization.
The two
former intelligence officers, identified only as W5 and W6, were
both
formerly involved in airport security in Zimbabwe and have been granted
asylum in Britain.
They testified that deportees are separated from other
arrivals in Zimbabwe
and are interviewed. If there is a suspicion that the
deportee has a
suspicious military history or has been involved in
opposition activity, the
deportee may face a rigorous interrogation by the
Central Intelligence
Organization.
"In view of what is known from the
country evidence about the CIO that does
given rise to a real risk that the
deportee will be detained for a period of
time and will be subjected to
serious ill-treatment," said the Court of
Appeal, quoting from an
immigration tribunal judgment.
Testimony by the two former intelligence
officers that deportees could face
significant violence at the airport was
supported by other witness, the
Court of Appeal said. It noted a report that
a woman was hit in the mouth
when officials doubted her claim that she was a
student.
Sunday Times SA
04
March 2007
Own Correspondent
President Robert Mugabe has moved with
speed to pamper Zimbabwe's
disgruntled judiciary: the country's 27 judges
have each been given new 4x4
twin-cab bakkies, laptops and desktop
computers.
Their salaries have been hiked from Z$600 000 (about R17 000)
to a whopping
Z$5-million (R143 000) with immediate effect, exactly a month
after Judge
President Justice Rita Makarau publicly complained bitterly over
low
salaries and poor working conditions.
The vehicles, laptops and
computers were provided by the Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe, whose governor,
Gideon Gono, has no qualms about printing money to
finance unbudgeted
expenditure. The Toyota IMV 4x4 turbo trucks each cost
US$63 000, foreign
currency which the country is battling to mop up.
David Mangota, the
secretary for Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs,
said the trucks
would enhance the capacity of the judiciary as well as
improve their working
conditions.
Justice Makarau, in her maiden speech to mark the official
opening of the
2007 legal year, stung Mugabe when she said the government
was undermining
the judiciary by starving it of resources and thereby
reducing the esteemed
Bench to "beggars".
Said Makarau: "It is not in
the tradition of the judiciary to publicly speak
on any issue including
calling attention to needs. I am breaking that
tradition briefly and for
today only, to agitate for better funding to the
justice delivery system as
a whole, generally and in particular, to the
judiciary. It is wrong by any
measure to make the judiciary beg for its
sustenance. It is wrong to make
the judiciary beg for resources from central
government."
The remarks
jerked the government out of its slumber. Within weeks of the
judge's
protest, latest models of Toyota Raider trucks were duly parked
outside the
Harare High Court.
These were officially distributed to the 27 judges
last month while on
Wednesday they were handed laptops, computers and other
computer hardware
including printers at a function attended by Justice
Minister Patrick
Chinamasa.
The all-terrain vehicles are in addition
to Mercedes sedans, which were
officially issued to judges upon their
appointment. After five years the
judges are allowed to buy the cars at book
value.
The majority of the judges, cherry-picked by Mugabe from a list of
loyalists
that include war veterans of the country's liberation struggle
that
culminated in independence from Britain in 1980, are also proud
recipients
of the choicest farms seized by Mugabe from former white
commercial farms
under his controversial land reform
programme.
Sources at the Harare High Court said the all-terrain vehicles
had come in
handy, as the judges would use them to visit their farms during
weekends.
New Zimbabwe
By Torby
Chimhashu
Last updated: 03/07/2007 04:48:39
WILLIAM Nhara, the Zanu PF
Harare Province spokesman and senior director in
the government, has had his
bid for freedom dashed after a Harare Magistrate
denied him bail and
deferred his application to this morning.
The diminutive Nhara has been
languishing in police cells since his arrest
last Thursday at the Harare
International Airport where he was found in
possession of
diamonds.
He was said to have escorted a Lebanese woman who was believed
to have been
travelling to South Africa with the precious
stones.
Nhara was suspected of trying to smuggle diamonds although the
value of the
diamonds was not disclosed.
On Tuesday, Provincial
Magistrate Mishrod Guvamombe ruled that Nhara spend
another night at the
Harare Remand Prison despite objections from Nhara's
lawyer, Chris
Venturas.
Nhara was expected at the court in the morning but turned up at
3PM under
tight security. Originally he was billed to appear in court Monday
but
police cancelled his appearance in the last minute.
Apart from
facing charges of possessing diamonds, Nhara is also being
charged with
attempting to bribe a police officer. Nhara allegedly offered
the cop who
arrested him US$700 to gain his freedom.
Zimbabwe is losing between
US$40-US$50 million every week through the
smuggling of precious minerals,
especially gold, according to the Reserve
Bank of Zimbabwe.
A Harare
magistrate was arrested last week together with seven others in
Mhangura
where they were allegedly found panning gold.
Police last week raided a
house belonging to Zimbabwe Defence Industries
Chief, retired Colonel
Tshinga Dube, and arrested his son who was released
on bail following his
appearance at the Harare Magistrates Court.
The plunder of minerals has
been blamed for the downturn of mineral
production especially gold. Police
have claimed that several top government
officials and civil servants are
involved in the illegal mining of minerals.
Gold deliveries in 2006 were
10,96 tonnes, down from 13,45 tonnes, owing to
a combination of factors
including, lack of equipment, reduced exploration
and illegal trading and
smuggling, the RBZ said in the Monetary Policy
Statement for the first
quarter.
In January, authorities vowed to press on with a crackdown on
illegal gold
and diamond miners under an operation code-named Chikorokoza
Chapera.
So far police has nabbed nearly 31 509 people since November but
no top
government official has been caught in the blitz -- despite repeated
claims
by police and licenced miners that officials are involved in the
plunder.
Police have recovered 3,6kg of gold and 7 868 diamonds since the
blitz was
launched in November.
By
Tererai Karimakwenda
06 March, 2007
Student leaders from the Zimbabwe
National Students Union (ZINASU) report
that police in Bulawayo used teargas
and brute force to disperse thousands
of students who had gathered for a
general meeting at Hillside Teachers
College. They said 20 students had been
arrested and are being accused of
inciting others to boycott classes. The
arrests took place as news spread
that the government has extended the ban
on public gatherings to all major
cities. Reports say a circular from Home
Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi was
distributed to police commanders over the
weekend ordering senior police
officials to apply a ban, that was initiated
in Harare, to all major cities
and towns.
The students had earlier
this month called for a national strike starting
Wednesday, March 7th.
Maureen Kademaunga, secretary general of the Student
Representative Council
at the University of Zimbabwe, said the arrested
include the Zimbabwe
National Students Union Secretary General, Beloved
Chiweshe, Lawrence
Mashungu and Trust Nhubu.
Kademaunga said approximately 2,500 students
attended the meeting at which
they launched their "Save Our Future/Save our
Education" campaign. They had
also resolved to go ahead with the class
boycott when police threw teargas
canisters and began assaulting them. No
serious injuries were reported. The
students are demanding affordable fees,
better accommodation and catering
and reasonable salaries for lecturers and
staff.
The extended police ban is believed to be a response to weekend
rallies that
saw supporters of the Tsvangirai MDC defy police and flock to
hear their
party officials at three separate rallies held in Budiriro,
Murehwa and
Makoni West. At two of the rallies police interfered by using
teargas and
baton sticks to disperse the crowds. This ignited running
battles with
rally-goers and innocent street vendors who were mostly women
with babies on
their backs.
Our contacts say notices of the extended ban
have already been posted in
several cities and the atmosphere is tense.
Reports said the circular
distributed to police officials read in part: "You
are advised that all
public, political gatherings and demonstrations in
major urban centres under
your jurisdiction have been banned." It also said:
"The ban should remain in
force until further notice since the measure is
meant to protect ordinary
citizens and their properties in view of threats
by some elements within the
opposition to embark on street protests," read
the circular.
The Tsvangirai MDC have said they will defy the ban and they
urged
supporters to exercise their constitutional right to assembly by
continuing
to attend the rallies.
Itai Zimunya of The Crisis
Coalition said the major cities are seeing beefed
up police patrols. But he
added that it was too late and this will not bring
food and a better economy
for the people. He believes the government is
treating the wrong ailment.
Zimunya also warned that the extra police
patrols sleeping in tents around
the country will soon get fed up of being
ill treated by the government as
well. He said the people have become
stronger and are willing to defend
themselves against police brutality.
Meanwhile the Women of Zimbabwe
Arise report that they launched their People's
Charter in Masvingo with WOZA
members taking to the streets of that city on
Tuesday. No incidents were
reported but 36 members were arrested Monday
after launching the People's
Charter in the Midlands town of Gweru. All were
expected in court Wednesday
morning but they still have not been charged.
SW Radio
Africa Zimbabwe news
Times Online
March 06, 2007
David Byers and agencies
President Robert Mugabe is planning to
withdraw all financial support for
Zimbabwe's black-owned commercial farms,
even though the country still faces
a chronic national food shortage since
the mass land-grab from white
landowners seven years ago.
Zimbabwe's
Government-run Herald newspaper has quoted Gideon Gono, the head
of the
country's central bank, as telling a meeting of farmers that the
Government
would be "weaning off" those who were given large-scale
commercial
properties when whites were driven from their land.
The move comes
despite the fact that the Zimbabwean agriculture industry - a
one-time
exporter - is now failing to provide the country with enough basic
food,
leading to chronic nation-wide food shortages and soaring
poverty.
Critics of Mr Mugabe's regime blame his land-grab of white-owned
farms and
their replacement with black farmers, a policy which originated in
2000. It
has been claimed that the replacement farmers lacked the equipment
or
expertise to run the large commercial premises, leading to their
decline.
"It is now seven years since we reclaimed our land but we
continue looking
at the Government for support," Mr Gono was reported as
telling the farmers.
"Next season we will wean off all A2 (black)
farmers, as they are now
grown-ups."
Mr Gono accused large-scale
farmers of selling subsidies received from the
Government and failing to
repay loans given to them. He did, however,
confirm that the Government
would continue supporting small-scale,
subsistence farmers.
Today, Mr
Mugabe's authoritarian regime came under further pressure when his
Zanu-PF
party suspended one of its co-founders for insulting the President
in a
recently published autobiography.
According to the state's Sunday Mail
newspaper, party leaders in 69-year-old
Edgar Tekere's home district of
Manicaland, in eastern Zimbabwe,
"unreservedly condemned" his book, A
Lifetime of Struggle, launched in
Harare in January.
The newspaper
quoted Tinaye Chigudu, the provincial party chairman, as
saying saying the
autobiography "clearly and explicitly denigrates and
vilifies" Mr Mugabe,
and that he was expelled with immediate effect.
Mr Mugabe, 83, was
greeted with a noisy protest when he made a three-day
state visit to Namibia
last week.
Positioned behind cordons outside the Zimbabwean embassy on
February 28,
demonstrators in the capital city Windhoek held up signs that
read "Go
Mugabe Go" and "Go Home Dictator."
Reuters
Tue Mar 6, 2007
8:50 AM GMT
SYDNEY, March 6 (Reuters) - Australia have put back their
tour of Zimbabwe
from June to September this year to coincide with the
Twenty20 World Cup in
South Africa, Australian Associated Press reported on
Tuesday.
The world champions are scheduled to play three one-day
internationals
against Zimbabwe, who do not get their test status back until
later in the
year.
Cricket Australia plans to send a delegation to
the African country in
August to assess the volatile security
situation.
Australia play Zimbabwe in a World Cup warm-up match in the
Caribbean on
Tuesday, the first time the teams have met since 2004.
The Mass Media
In addition
to his honorary degree he holds "many degrees in violence"
When
current presidential hopeful Barack Obama received an honorary degree
at
UMass Boston last year for "advancing and protecting the interests of the
less fortunate [and] adherence to a political credo that transcends both
party and race," many people were excited to hear the charismatic politician
give his opinions on leadership and race in America. Millions of Americans
and Bay Staters are now thrilled that Obama, the only sitting black senator,
has thrown his hat in the ring and is striving to become the leader of our
nation.
Exactly 20 years earlier, another black politician received
an honorary
degree from UMass for his efforts "to establish racial harmony
between
blacks and whites." Only one year after accepting his degree he
became
president of his native country, Zimbabwe. He was an early critic of
apartheid and had fought for years for the independence of African
nations.
Today, in 2007, Robert Mugabe, recipient of an Honorary
Doctorate of Laws in
1986 from the University of Massachusetts, is known as
one of the most
oppressive, violent and tyrannical dictators of our time,
responsible for
the death of countless Zimbabwe citizens and the primary
actor in the
economic collapse and devastation of a nation.
The stark
contrast between the violent rhetoric and actions of the African
dictator
versus the hope and vision of the American senator is unequivocal
in the
speeches they gave during the ceremonies.
"We also advocate war
against-armed struggle-against South Africa," Robert
Mugabe told a crowd of
students and faculty while receiving his degree. His
program for ending
racial prejudice in Africa called for violence and harsh
economic sanctions
against those he perceived as racist.
Senator Obama's speech in 2006 also
called for an end to racism, but in
contrast to Mugabe, he hopes to achieve
this through love and mutual
understanding. "Empathy is a quality of
character that can change the
world-one that makes you understand that your
obligations to others extend
beyond people who look like you and act like
you and live in your
neighborhood," he said.
Mugabe's penchant for
violence was either unnoticed or unimportant to the
board of trustees who
decided to award him with the honor. In 2002 a BBC
special reported that, in
the years 1982 through 1985, Mugabe consolidated
power by committing mass
murders. Giving an award to a man who in the future
would become a dictator
is unfortunate, but giving an award to a man who had
already executed tens
of thousands in order to stifle political opposition
is morally
reprehensible.
UMass President Jack Wilson has acknowledged that
stripping Mugabe of his
degree is not out of the question, but almost no
real action has been taken
in the 20 years since the degree was given. For
years, Mugabe has been a
well-known human rights abuser, yet nothing has
been done. Last semester, a
Zimbabwean student at UMass Boston started a
petition that call for the
revocation of the degree, but as no action has
been taken, pressure was
clearly insufficient.
Last year, Mugabe
ranked fourth on Parade Magazine's list of the world's
worst dictators, only
behind Omar al-Bashir of Sundan, Kim Jong-il of North
Korea and Than Shwe of
Burma-a dictator known for his use of child soldiers
and forced labor
camps.
Mugabe has never been known for his dedication to democracy or
freedoms, but
his disrespect for rule of law and decency was especially
evident in 2000
when he confiscated farms from white farmers and
redistributed them to
political allies with little or no agricultural
experience. Zimbabwe's
agricultural industry, which it depends on heavily,
quickly fell into
dissary.
More than two-thirds of Zimbabwe's work
force have jobs in the agricultural
sector, primarily as wage laborers, and
with the collapse of white-owned
farms, more than 400,000 of the poorest
Zimbabweans lost their jobs.
Zimbabwe's economy has been driven to
shambles by poor government
mismanagement over the years. Lagging tax
revenue and outrageous government
spending has forced Mugabe's government to
print excess amounts of money to
pay off their debts. Zimbabwe's unprovoked
war of agression against the
Democratic Republic of Congo in 1998-2002 hit
them particularly hard.
The International Monetary Fund has described
Zimbabwe's economic policies
as "off-track" and "mis-guided." Support from
the IMF has been suspended
(again) due to payments that have come late, and
sometimes not at all. Two
weeks ago, the IMF expressed "deep concern" over
Zimbabwe's deterorating
economy. Mugabe did not seem to worried and threw a
massive party for his
80th birthday in which thousands attended.
By
U.S. standards the inflation rate in Zimbabwe has always been off the
charts, but it did remain nearly manageable until around the year 2000. The
official annual inflation rate rose from 32 percent in 1998, to 133 percent
in 2004 and to 585 percent in 2005. The IMF reported 1,216.0 percent
inflation for 2006 and projects a 4,278.8 percent inflation rate for
2007.
In 1983, one US dollar could be exchanged for about one Zimbabwe
dollar.
Today's exchange rate cannot be published in a weekly newspaper
because it
changes so dramatically every day. In mid-February, one dollar
could buy
about Z$5,000. By Feb. 26, one dollar was worth about Z$7,000. All
this is
even after reevaluating their currency in 2006 by knocking off three
zeros.
Mugabe, who has two bachelors degrees and one masters degree in
economics
responded to hyperinflation last month by declaring all price
increases
illegal.
Economists are not convinced that this is going to
have the effects that
Mugabe hopes for. Price inflation is caused by an
increase in the money
supply. This occurs only when the government literally
or figurative speeds
up the printing presses and churns out more cash.
According to classical
macroeconomic theory, buyers and sellers cannot have
a lasting impact on
inflation of domestic prices without having more money
in the system.
Zimbabwe currently suffers from an employment rate of 80
percent. Eighty
percent of the country lives below the poverty line. The
richest 10 percent
of the country consume more than 40 percent of all goods
there. Gross
Domestic Product in Zimbabwe is shrinking, and the current
public debt is
1.08 times the GDP. Mugabe has blamed the economic problems
of his country
on Western powers and imperialism.
During the week of
Mugabe's birthday celebrations, he responded to
opposition party rallies by
declaring political demonstrations illegal and
arresting opposition party
leaders. He also postponed presidential elections
that would have taken
place in 2008 until 2010. The UN described his
presidential victory in 2002
as "rigged."
Mugabe is known for throwing political enemies in jail,
framing them for
outrageous crimes or creating arbitrary laws that he knows
enemies violate.
Mugabe's attempt to frame opposition leader Morgan
Tsvangirai for an
assassination attempt even inspired a Hollywood
production: "The
Interpreter," starring Sean Penn and Nicole
Kidman.
In 2005, Mugabe led a bold "Clean up the Filth" campaign. He
forcibly
removed 700,000 people from their homes, destroying their property
and
businesses. He claimed that it was a campaign of urban renewal that
sought
to clean up the worst parts of the country. The areas that people
were
removed from were known strongholds of opposition.
Opinions of
Mugabe continue to be mixed. In the 1960s, Zimbabwe was under
the racist and
undemocratic rule of white leaders. The country, then known
as Rhodesia, was
not given independence from the UK because of its
maltreatment of its racial
majority. Although whites represented only five
percent of the population,
they controlled the government, were 95 percent
of voters and by law owned
50 percent of the land. Mugabe was an important
leader in the struggle to
overthrow the shameful racist white government
that controlled the
region.
After decades of violence and negotiations, the new nation,
Zimbabwe, was
given independence, blacks were granted political and social
freedoms, and
Robert Mugabe was named prime minister. Despite his current
unpopularity in
Zimbabwe, Africa and the entire world, he was voted number
three on a list
of the "100 Greatest Africans" by readers of the monthly
magazine "The New
African."
Mugabe's list of degrees include a BA and
BSc from Fort Hare, a BAdm from
University of South Africa by distance
learning and a BEd, LLB, LL.M, and
MSs from University of London by distance
education. He received honorary
degrees from Michigan State University,
University of Edinburgh and the
University of Zimbabwe. Mugabe also famously
quipped in a 1998 speech
threatening trade unionists that he had "many
degrees in violence."
The fact that a despot like Robert Mugabe has an
honorary degree from the
University of Massachusetts devalues the prestige
of this honor for all who
posses it. Students should question whether
inspirational leaders like
Senator Obama should be lumped into the same
category as Mugabe by the Board
of Trustees. Students at both Michigan State
University and University of
Edinburgh have been calling for revocation of
his degrees since the mid-90s.
From The Mail & Guardian (SA), 2 March
Godwin Gandu
The Mail & Guardian is reliably
informed that at least three times a week
hundreds of prisoners are bused to
commercial farms owned by politicians and
the army's top brass in
Mashonaland East and Central, Bulawayo and Harare
provinces. "We received
information during our tour of prisons that
politicians were using them
[prisoners] as labour," says Willias Madzimure,
opposition Movement for
Democratic Change legislator, who toured seven
prisons last year as a member
of the parliamentary portfolio committee on
justice, legal and parliamentary
affairs. Madzimure says prisoners told him
they were working on politicians'
farms for nothing. The arrangement between
prison services and senior
politicians is not yet clear, but it appears that
prisoners who work on the
farms are compensated only with food. Yet, they
are still better off than
the average prisoner. "At least they have had
something to eat, but those
inside the prisons can go for about three days
without eating anything,"
Madzimure said. In Bulawayo, former home affairs
minister and ruling Zanu PF
Politburo member Dumiso Dabengwa has been using
prisoners from Khami Prison
for labour on his farm for the past year. The
legislators also received
information during the tour that another Politburo
member, Senator Dzikamai
Mavhaire, was using prisoners at his farm in
Masvingo, about 350km south of
Harare. "When the judge sentences you to jail
with labour, it means
providing labour for state services," says Dr Lovemore
Madhuku, law lecturer
at the University of Zimbabwe and constitutional law
expert. "Any other
labour is illegal and borders on exploitation. It's
forced labour, pure and
simple, even if the prisons service is being paid.
The prisoners are simply
working against their will." Meanwhile, those who
remain inside jail walls
are now relying on "relatives to supplement the
little food they get", said
Madzimure. Prisoners "with no relatives visiting
are severely compromised.
They have no food or anyone to turn to."
According to his lawyer,
jailed suspected British mercenary Simon Mann is
provided food three times a
week at Chikurubi Maximum Support Prison. "I
feel sorry for those without
relatives. The situation inside Chikurubi is
pathetic. Deaths and severe
cases of malnutrition are common. If you are
HIV-positive and you go for
days without food, it creates havoc in your
system," says prominent lawyer
Jonathan Samkange. Prisons are congested,
with a population of more than 40
000 crammed into a system capable of
handling only 15 000. With a budget
severely whittled down by inflation,
prison authorities are battling to get
increasingly scarce commodities such
as maize meal, cooking oil and meat,
and the attorney general's office is
granting easy bail to accused in lesser
crimes. "We just can't send people
to die of hunger," said an officer within
the attorney general's office.
"The last time a prisoner had tea or porridge
at Chikurubi was last year
August." According to the Prisoner Support
Service, a human rights group,
"the men are crowded - 25 men per cell - in a
cell measuring 9m by 4m. They
are confined to their squalid quarters between
3.30pm and 7am, and because
there are no beds, they have to sleep on a mat
on the cell floor. Some
prisoners are in the terminal stages of Aids,
tuberculosis, herpes and other
highly infectious diseases. Others are
mentally ill. Many infected prisoners
are unable to control their bodily
functions, and this results in the cell
floor and blankets being
contaminated with body fluids, pus, phlegm, blood,
urine, faeces." The group
sees this as a violation of the Zimbabwean
Constitution, as it constitutes
"degrading punishment . and violates human
dignity".
Zim Online
Wednesday 07 March
2007
By Nqobizitha Khumalo
BULAWAYO - A Zimbabwean journalist working for a South African
television
station, etv, was on Monday fined Z$40 000 (about US$160) for
practising
journalism without accreditation.
Peter Moyo, and another
Zimbabwean cameraman, Trymore Zvidzai, were
convicted and fined on Monday
when they appeared before Mutare magistrate
Tsungisai
Madzivaidze.
The two were being charged under the controversial
Access to
Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA), which makes it
illegal
for journalists to operate without first seeking accreditation from
the
Media and Information Commission (MIC).
The two were
arrested last month after they were found in possession
of video equipment
which they were using to cover illegal diamond mining
activities in the
eastern Marange district.
Two other state media journalists, Andrew
Neshamba and Gumbo are being
charged separately under the Criminal Law
(Codification and Reform) Act that
deals with criminal abuse of duty by
public officers.
Neshamba and Gumbo were remanded to 21 March for
trial.
Moyo becomes the second journalist to be convicted under
AIPPA
following last year's conviction of two Botswana journalists who were
arrested in the southern border town of Plumtree without
accreditation.
Zimbabwe has some of the harshest press laws in the
world. At least
four newspapers including the biggest daily, The Daily News,
have been shut
down over the past four years while at least a hundred
journalists have been
arrested for violating the country's tough media laws.
- ZimOnline
Zim Online
Wednesday 07 March 2007
By
Hendricks Chizhanje
HARARE - A senior Zimbabwe opposition official on
Tuesday filed an urgent
chamber application at the High Court seeking to
compel the Registrar
General Tobaiwa Mudede to issue her with an emergency
travel document (ETD)
to travel to Europe on party business.
Zimbabwe
last year stopped issuing passports because of a severe shortage of
foreign
currency to buy special ink and paper to produce the identity
documents.
Zimbabweans wishing to travel outside the country can however
still get
ETDs.
But last week, Mudede refused to issue an ETD to Grace Kwinje, who
is the
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party's deputy secretary for
international affairs in the Morgan Tsvangirai-led faction.
On
Tuesday, the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) representing
Kwinje,
filed an urgent application to force Mudede to issue the travel
document to
the opposition official.
Kwinje said she went through all the formalities
at the Registrar-General's
office but was denied the travel papers following
some intervention by
suspected state security agents.
The MDC
official is scheduled to attend a meeting in the Netherlands
organised by
Zimbabwe Watch, a grouping of non-governmental organisations
pushing for a
democratic Zimbabwe.
She was also scheduled to address the International
Women's Day celebrations
in the United Kingdom on Thursday.
Tafadzwa
Mugabe, the ZLHR lawyer who is representing Kwinje, last night said
the High
Court had still not set a date for the hearing of the matter.
President
Robert Mugabe's government has in the past threatened to bar vocal
citizens
from travelling abroad saying they would harm "national interests"
if they
were allowed to do so.
The Harare authorities have in the past seized
passports from government
critics and only returned them after the critics
took the matter to the
courts. - ZimOnline
Zim Online
Wednesday 07 March 2007
By Pfudzai Chibgowa
HARARE
- Zimbabwe trade unionist Raymond Majongwe has rejected charges by
President
Robert Mugabe that his teachers' union is an appendage of the
opposition
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party.
Mugabe, in an interview with
state television to mark his 83rd birthday last
month, took a swipe at
Majongwe accusing the former student leader of
working hand in hand with the
MDC to fuel discontent among teachers.
In a letter addressed to Mugabe
last week seen by ZimOnline on Tuesday,
Majongwe who is the secretary
general of the militant Progressive Teachers
Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ),
rejected Mugabe's assertions saying the conflict
was purely between civil
servants and their employer.
"I will remind you once again that the PTUZ
is a trade union not a political
party. As such PTUZ leaders and members do
not deserve the political
intimidation which was a deliberate goal of your
public statement," Majongwe
said in the letter.
Majongwe said
Mugabe's remarks linking his union to the MDC was designed to
"intimidate
teachers and expose them to political victimization by putting
them in the
same blanket with opposition elements".
Majongwe said schools
particularly in rural areas were in a bad state
because of a "leadership
crisis" at the Ministry of Education.
"There has been a serious neglect
of rural schools and many are in a
pathetic state. The ministry is losing 4
500 to 5 000 teachers a year due to
poor salaries while losing between 600
and 700 annually due to AIDS although
teachers contribute towards a national
AIDS levy," Majongwe said.
Mugabe's spokesperson, George Charamba, could
not be immediately reached for
comment on the letter.
The PTUZ last
month spearheaded a three-week old strike in schools to press
for better
salaries and working conditions. The union called off the strike
two weeks
ago after the government relented and awarded teachers a 600
percent salary
hike.
The lowest paid teachers now earns about Z$528 000, up from the
Z$84 000
that he used to earn before the salary adjustment. - ZimOnline
As a JAG member or JAG Associate member, please send any classified
adverts
for publication in this newsletter to:
JAG Classifieds: jagma@mango.zw
JAG Job Opportunities: jag@mango.zw
Rules for
Advertising:
Send all adverts in word document as short as possible (no
tables, spread
sheets, pictures, etc.) and quote your subscription receipt
number or
membership number.
Notify the JAG Office when Advert is no
longer needed, either by phone or
email.
Adverts are published for 2 weeks
only, for a longer period please notify
the JAG office, by resending via
email the entire advert asking for the
advert to be
re-inserted.
Please send your adverts by Tuesdays 11.00am (Adverts will
not appear until
payment is received.). Cheques to be made out to
JAGMA.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.
For Sale Items
2. Wanted Items
3. Accommodation
4. Recreation
5.
Specialist Services
6. Pets
Corner
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.
OFFERED FOR
SALE
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.1
Generators & Inverters for Sale
The JAG office is now an official
agent for GSC Generator Service (Pvt) Ltd
and receives a generous commission
on sales of all Kipor generators and
equipment. Generators are on view at
the JAG office.
The one stop shop for ALL your Generator Requirements
SALES:
We are the official suppliers, repairs and maintenance team of
KIPOR
Equipment here in Zimbabwe. We have in stock KIPOR Generators from 1
KVA to
55 KVA. If we don't have what you want we will get it for you. We
also
sell Inverters (1500w), complete with batteries and rechargeable lamps.
Our
prices are very competitive, if not the lowest in town.
SERVICING
& REPAIRS: We have a qualified team with many years of experience
in the
Generator field. We have been to Kipor, China for training. We
carry out
services and minor repairs on your premises. We service and
repair most
makes and models of Generators - both petrol and diesel.
INSTALLATIONS:
We have qualified electricians that carry out installations
in a professional
way.
SPARES: As we are the official suppliers and maintainers of KIPOR
Equipment,
we carry a full range of KIPOR spares.
Don't forget, advice
is free, so give us a call and see us at: Bay 3,
Borgward Road,
Msasa.
Sales: 884022, 480272 or admin@adas.co.zw
Service: 480272, 480154
or gsc@adas.co.zw
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.2
For Sale
So Far and No further! Rhodesia's Bid for Independence during
the Retreat
from Empire 1959-1965 by J.R.T. Wood
533 pages; quality
trade paperback; pub. Trafford ISBN 1-4120-4952-0
Southern African edition,
pub. 30 Degrees South : ISBN 0-9584890-2-5
This definitive account traces
Rhodesia's attempt to secure independence
during the retreat from Empire
after 1959. Based on unique research, it
reveals why Rhodesia defied the
world from 1965.
Representing Volume One of three volumes, Two and Three
are in preparation
and will take us to Tiger and thence to 1980;
To
purchase:
Zimbabwean buyers contact Trish Broderick: pbroderick@mango.zw
RSA buyers:
WWW. 30 degreessouth.co.za or Exclusives Books
Overseas buyers see: http://www.jrtwood.com
and a link to
Trafford Publishing http://www.trafford.com/04-2760
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.3
Pet Food for Sale
Still supplying pets food which consists of 500g of
precooked pork offal and
veg costing $1000 and 250g of pigs liver or heart
costing $1000 for 250g.
Collection points: Benbar in Msasa at
10.30
Jag offices in Philips Rd, Belgravia at 11.30
Peacehaven which is 75
Oxford St at 13.00
This is on Fridays only. Contact details: phone 011
221 088 and E mail at
claassen@zol.co.zw
Looking for a
partner to join in established home based business (see
above). Must have
own pickup and preferably live in Ruwa. Would suit
ex-farmers
wife.
For further information contact the JAG offices -
799410.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.4
Fuel Coupons for Sale
Caltex petrol coupons for sale (25 litres).
Phone: 730507, 799410
or
011610073.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.5
Items for Sale (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
Fridge
Double bed & base,
headboard & dressing table with stool
Bar & four chairs
Generator
1.5kva - brand new - including fuel!
1 x green & brown couch with 1 x
chair
WRS stereo - 3 way bass reflex system - twin tape deck (cd player
not
working)
Grass/cane table & three chairs
1 x small 3-drawer
desk
1 x white wrought iron garden lounger
1 x large beige coloured carpet
(quite worn)
1 x large striped brown carpet
1 x round dining room table
& four chairs
1 x massage bed - wooden with hole for face
Dstv
multichoice decoder d5d 990 with remote & dish (including cable)
Phillips
az1003 portable cd player & radio
Phone - 091605909 or
233362
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.6
FOR SALE (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
TOYOTA HILUX TWIN CAB
(2002) STARLING
BLUE.
4X2, KZTE 3.0L
45000 KM (GOOD CONDITION)
GENERATOR 55 KVA
/ PTO DRIVEN
(IDEAL FOR A 75HP AND ABOVE TRACTOR)
GX 160 HONDA
5.5
1993 MODEL
PETROL
PULL START, (Has recently been
serviced)
TWO LANDROVER DEFENDERS (OPEN) GAME VIEWING TYPE.
1 PETROL
& 1 DIESEL.
MAZDA B 1600 @ CANOPY
250 000 KM`S, (ONE OWNER) GOOD
CONDITION.
PLEASE PHONE: 091 777 062 (7AM TO
8PM)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.7
For Sale (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
1 Kelvernator Tumble dryer - $
700,000.00
1 Double Bed Headboard, Dressing table & Chest of draws - $
700,000.00.
1 Capri washing machine - $ 2,200,00.00
1 Nina Overlocker
(sewing machine) - $ 1,200,000.00
1 Empiral Pacesetter 10 (sewing machine) -
$ 1,000,000.00
1 Zedaburg Dining Room Suit. (Wagon Wheels) Table, 6 Chairs
& Sideboard, - $
6,000,000.00
All the above in good
condition.
For Sale - Brake, Clutch & Radiator Business in Kwekwe,
Premises is rented.
The Lease can continue with the new owners of the
company.
Theo Serfontein, 15 Industria Rd, Kwekwe
Tel:- 055 -
24063 or 24230 (w), Tel:- 055 - 22984 (h), Cell:- 011 210343
(Theo)
Cell:-
011 410830
(Ingrid)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.8
For Sale (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
1 Battery Charger
Z$1,500,000
1
Craster Swimming Pool Filter
Z$2,500,000
1 Craster Swimming Pool Motor and
Pump
Z$3,500,000
1 High Pressure Water Geyser (old but
working) Z$200,000
1 Mega Green Heavy Duty Transport 2000 liter
tank Z$4,000,000
4 Solco Black Heavy Duty Transport 2000 liter tanks
each Z$4,000,000
1 Pipe Tread Cutter to 2 inch
Z$1,500,000
1 Twin Tub
Kitchen Zinc with Mixer Taps
Z$1,500,000
1 Motorola two Channel Base Set
with Antenna Z$3,500,000
1 Motorola 125 Channel Base Set with
Antenna Z$4,000,000
1 Open Sabre Boat with 200 Yamaha
Lets
Talk
4 215 x 15 Tyres (second hand but fair) each
Z$200,000
2 550 x 12 Tyres (second hand but fair) each
Z$100,000
1 Trailer Spare Wheel with Tyre & Tube 750 x 16 good
Z$150,000
1 Wacker Electric M 3000 Concrete Vibrator complete
with
Flexible Shaft and 45 mm probe.
Z$10,000,000
Tel: 04-335681,
Cell: 011410118
All prices are
negotiable.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.9
For Sale (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
1. Squirrel Cage Induction Motor KW45,
Volts 390, RPM 980, 6 Pole.
2. Tractor Pump. Wright Rain, Ringwood Hampshire,
England. Type H 3, Outlet
2". Inlet 4" reduced to 3".
3. Wesson &
Bremnar Pump 3HP.
4. Tractor Pump & Pulleys, 1000 litre/min volume.
Harlend Patent No:-415244.
5. Pump & Motor (Electric). Used for garden
irrigation. 1.5 KW. Type Iris
70FSI.
6. Grundfoss Multi Stage Pump for
Borehole/Swimming Pool.
7. 3 Window Frames with Burglar Bars (unused). 2.8
metres x 1.5 metres.
8. Electric Cable. 73 metres x 35 mm, 118 metres x 33
mm.
Phone 091 255 659 for
details.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.10
For Sale (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
Fits Hino FF 8 Ton Lorry. Made in Square
Metal Tubing. Length 23'5"
(7m.14cms) x width 7'6" (2m.29cms). Price
US$1800 equivalent in local
currency.
Fits Perfection Trailor. Made
in Metal and Wood Strips. Length 17'8"
(5m.39cms) x width 7'31/2"
(2m.23cms). Price US$700 equivalent in local
currency.
Phone: - 0912
255 659 or 04 - 498234 for
details.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.11
For Sale "THE WEAVERY" (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
Super gift ideas for local
and overseas friends and family.Hand woven
articles which are light,easy to
pack, and send, and fully washable.
Contact Anne on 332851 or
011212424.Or
email joannew@zol.co.zw
Crocheted
oven gloves--$30,000.
Cotton oven gloves--$22,000.
Small woven
bags--$18,000.
Large woven bags--$27,000.
Crocheted
bags--$33,000.
Queen(approx.250x240cms) size bedcover--$243,000.
Other
sizes to order.
Single Duvet cushions(open into a duvet)--$168,000.
Other
sizes to order.
2x1 meter Throw--117,000.
Baby
Blanket(1x1meter)--$72,000.
3 piece toilet set--$55,000.
Bath
mat--$40,000.
Decorated cushion covers--$24,000.
Table
runner--$20,000.
Set(4)Bordered table mats +
serviettes--$60,000.
Set(6)Bordered table mats +
serviettes--$90,000.
Set(4) crocheted table mats
only--$40,000.
Set(6)fringed table mats + serviettes--$72,000.
Lots of
other combinations.
Small(approx.105x52cms) plain cotton
rug--$40,000.
Medium(approx.120x65cms) plain cotton
rug--$55,000
Large(approx.150x75cms) plain cotton
rug--$70,000.
Ex.Large(approx.230x130cms) plain cotton
rug--$172,000.
Small patterned cotton rug--$55,000.
Small rag
rug--$40,000.
Medium rag rug--$55,000.
Medium patterned cotton
rug--$70,000.
Large patterned cotton rug--$120,000
Ex.Large patterned
cotton rug--$200,000.
Small patterned mohair rug--$120,000.
Medium
patterned mohair rug--$150,000
Large patterned mohair rug--$190,000.
Ex.
Large patterned mohair rug--$340,000.
Lots of other articles.PLEASE be
aware that prices may change
without
notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.12
For Sale "FAMILY" OF 3 HIPPOS (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
These beautifully
carved,wooden hippos are still "homeless" and going for
US$2000.They really
are unique and worth every cent.Phone
Robyn--011413609.Grant--011402122. Or
you can view them at Serendipity
Coffee Shop--2a,Serendip Close,Mount
Pleasant(entrance on Golden Stairs
Road).Open from 9am-5pm-Tuesday-Saturday.
Phone
334377.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.13
Items for sale (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
2 Keep nets for fishing
$75,000 ea
Various hockey sticks $l50,000 ea
Hockey shin
pads (new) $50,000 ea
Roller blades size 6 $200,000
ea
Horse Equipment
2 ordinary riding saddles
$l,500,000 ea
3 bridles $l20,000
ea
Reins $l00,000
ea
Noseband $80,000
ea
Martingale $l00,000 ea
3
numnas $l50,000
ea
Surcingle $80,000 ea
Fly
guards $ 20,000 ea
2 soft
halters $50,000 ea
3 hard
hats $l00,000 ea
Long riding boots
$l50,000
3 rope Hay feeders $20,000 ea
Windsucking
collar $20,000 (needs stitching)
Pelham bit with
chain $300,000
Snaffle
$200,000
2 prs jodphurs (size 32/34) $80,000 and $l00,000
4 hoof
protectors $l0,000
2 hoof protectors
$5,000
Stirrup Irons $350,000
Tel
Jennifer at 0ll 4236l4 or 5725l3 (Allan for message) or sms to the
cell
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.14
For Sale (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
Runners World have received new stock,
Asics and New Balance running
shoes, (Nike to come). Prices the same as South
Africa. Cross-training,
Court and Trail as well as running shoes. Contact Jo
on
0912-247001.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.
WANTED
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.1
Wanted (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
Old wood burning stove wanted for cash, the
power cuts are hitting us hard!
If you have one lying around please call
Gordon on 496829 or 023
894597
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.2
WANTED (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
GROUND LEVEL TRAMPOLINE
PHONE -
091605909 OR
233362
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.3
Wanted Stamp Collection (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
Anyone wanting to sell
their collection. Please contact me on 885967, or
011209880, 011610010 or
Email: lion@zol.co.zw
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.4
Wanted (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
Sheila Macdonald (Sally in Rhodesia) - If
you have any of Sheila Macdonald's
books for sale, please let JAG know the
details including condition etc with
your name, telephone number and price
wanted.
Telephone JAG - 04 -
799410
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.
ACCOMMODATION WANTED AND
OFFERED
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.1
Accommodation Wanted (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
A.S.A.P. - 2brm House or
Cottage Preferabley Eastlea/Highlands area.
Willing to pay upto $300,000.
per month. Pse contact Sue on 746656/7 or John
on
0912-919-954
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.
RECREATION
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.1
Savuli Safari (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
Self catering chalets in the heart
of the Save Valley Conservancy. Game
watching, fishing, horse riding,
canoeing, walking trails and 4x4 hire. Camp
fully kitted including cook and
fridges. Just bring your food, drinks and
relax. Best value for money. U12
are 1/2 price
Contact John : savuli@mweb.co.zw or Phone 091 631
556
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.
SPECIALIST
SERVICES
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.1
Vehicle Repairs (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
Vehicle repairs carried out
personally by qualified mechanic with 30 years
experience. Very reasonable
rates.
Phone Johnny Rodrigues: 011 603213 or 011 404797, email:
galorand@mweb.co.zw
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.2
Valuations on Hardback Books (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
Harrington Rare
Books. We undertake valuations on all hardback books and
will gladly sell
your books on commission if you wish. Please contact Mr
Wallis on HRE 496829
evenings.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.3
PROPERTY MAINTENANCE (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
We regularly come across
property owners who are disappointed at the failure
of tenants and / or
appointed agents to properly care for and maintain the
house and property
they rent. Standard maintenance and repairs are generally
neglected until
deterioration necessitates major refurbishment work - even
where the owner
reduces rental rates with the proviso that the tenant agrees
to maintain the
property. The house-owner tends to lose at every turn. We
can help.
We
are a small privately-owned company that specialises in property
maintenance
and refurbishment and who provide a service that will give you
peace of mind
that your home is being maintained and properly cared for. We
can act on your
behalf to do regular checks on your property to ensure they
are being
maintained to an acceptable standard, as generally stipulated in a
lease
agreement. We keep you informed through regular status reports.
Some of
our projects have recently been terminated as the houses have been
placed on
the market. Openings for new maintenance projects have therefore
recently
come available.
If you believe we can assist in caring for your property
or would like
further information please contact us on:
011-620-745
landline 498723 or e-mail to shelvan@earth.co.zw - to
discuss
"Property Maintenance
Management".
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.4
(Ad inserted 27/02/07)
Magna plumbing and electrical Pvt ltd
Magna
multi contracting
We offer professional and prompt service for the
following :-
A. Electrical repairs and installations
B. Plumbing
repairs and installations
C. Home and office renovations
D.
Extensions and buildings
E. Patios and driveways
F. Painting,
carpentry and glazing
G. Roofing, gutters and flashing
All our work
is carried out professionally and promptly to the
customer`s
requirement.
We thank you in advance and look forward to doing
business with you.
Please contact
Rob and sue
(04) 309051
/ 011 601 885 / 023 824 896
Email macgyver@zol.co.zw or havill@zol.co.zw
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.5
PARA LEGAL ADVISORY SERVICES (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
....14yrs
on.......
and still providing the following much needed valuable
Advisory
Services......
1. Obtaining
- Full (Long)
Birth Certificates (FBC) for Zimbabwe (replacement of
old style)
- Registration of new births
- Adoption Orders - Certified Extract
of originals with FBC
(identifying biological
parent/s)
- Marriage Certificates - Certified Extract of
originals
- Death Certificates (only possible in some
instances)
- Zimbabwe Drivers Licenses - new, replacement of lost,
& Letter of
Confirmation (required when needing to obtain a
Drivers Licence
in
another
country)
- Divorce
Orders - certified extract of originals
- Certificate of
Non-Marriage
2. Facilitating
- Immigration formalities
into Zimbabwe,
ie Residence & Employment Permits
- Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) - New Investor formalities
3.
Company Registration Procedures
- New Companies
- Statutory
Returns
- completion & submission of changes in Company/'s
details
4. Para-Legal Services
- Wills (preparation of and
amendments)
- Establishment of Discretionary Trusts
-
enquire further as to what you are needing
Contact us for further
information and/or to arrange a no obligation
consultation.
Financial
Arrangements - We will always assist 'bona fide' financially
challenged
persons.
Contact: Thomas Vallance ACIArb, Commissioner of
Oaths
PARADiGM TRUST (Pvt) Ltd, Para-Legal Advisory Services
Trust
Executives & Administrators, Tels: (B) 302 207 (M) 011-617
161
Emls:[paradigm@zol.co.zw],
[paradigm@mango.zw]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.6
HEALTH (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
Do you or anyone you know suffer from skin
disorders, arthritis, and many
other inflammatory conditions, digestive
problems, allergies, stress,
obesity? Or do you simply want to maintain your
good health? Perhaps our
superb range of Aloe products (drinks and skincare
products), nutritional
supplements and Bee Products could help.
For
more Information, contact Cheryl on 055 20213, 011 407747, or e-mail
coet@mweb.co.zw
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.7
G-Tech services (Ad inserted 6/03/07)
Specialist diesel, light, heavy,
commercial, staitionary & 4x4 services,
repair and overhaul, call Graham
on 011 406 023, 741001 or e-mail
gtech@zol.co.zw
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.
PETS
CORNER
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.1
PUPPY (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
MEDIUM SIZE / LGE TYPE DOG --- REASONABLE
CROSSES OK.
SHORT HAIRED.
Phone Tayler 091631556 or e mail savuli@mweb.co.zw
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.2
Lost African Grey (Ad inserted 27/02/07)
Please, I need some help. I
lost my African Grey who answers to the name of
Cocco'. He flew away a week
ago and we haven't been able to find him. I
live in the Umwinsidale area and
I am really getting desperate.
If anyone finds him please contact: olivieros@yahoo.it or 011-608880
or
497373/497200 (b).
I would really appreciate your
assistance!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
JAG
Hotlines: +263 (011) 610 073, +263 (04) 799 410. If you are in trouble
or
need advice, please don't hesitate to contact us - we're here to help!
To
advertise (JAG Members): Please email classifieds to: jagma@mango.zw
with subject
"Classifieds".