The Zimbabwean
HARARE - Zimbabwe's
commercial farmers are demanding talks with the
government over the
continued forcible acquisition of more tracts of land
under the land reform
programme.
Mugabe indicated a fortnight ago he was confiscating 220 more
commercial
farms for redistribution to "landless blacks."
The Commercial
Farmers' Union (CFU), which represents the remaining 600
mainly white
farmers, has reportedly come up with new proposals to discuss
with the
government.
A regional CFU member told The Zimbabwean that the union's
members
"reconfirmed their absolute commitment to urgent dialogue with the
government, without pre-conditions, and to assisting in the successful,
orderly implementation of land reform."
The farmers have called for
compromise in the dispute, saying court actions
and global pressure on
Mugabe have hardened his attitude and are not serving
national or farmers'
interests.
White farmers, who say they support land redistribution but oppose
seizures,
have reportedly agreed to accept the government's target and
immediately
resettle families on plots of between two and five hectares with
free
tillage, seed and fertiliser.
They have also resolved to drop all
legal challenges against the government
to allow Zimbabwe to approach donors
including Britain and the United States
to unblock aid for compensation for
the farmers and to help reverse
Zimbabwe's economic crisis.
Minister of
Special Affairs responsible for Land Resettlement, Flora Bhuka,
said two
weeks ago at least 800 evicted farmers had been compensated for
improvements
on their farms. But the evicted farmers said the compensation
was seriously
undervalued.
Mugabe says white farmers held 70 percent of the best land and
should
receive compensation only for improvements, not for the land.
He
encouraged party supporters led by self-styled veterans of the 1970s
independence war to occupy hundreds of white farms since February 2000 and
has defied court orders to evict them. Dozens of farmers and hundreds of
their workers have been killed in violence associated with the invasions.
The Zimbabwean
HARARE - The ruling Zanu (PF) party has taken its begging bowl to
the
corporate sector, forcing companies reeling under Zimbabwe's collapsing
economy to donate towards a Z$100 billion fund aimed at bankrolling the
party's campaigns for next year's municipal, general and presidential
polls.
Zanu (PF) finance chief, David Karimanzira, told a ruling party
newsletter
here that the party had set up fundraising committees in all10
provinces
that were expected to approach the business community, farmers,
banking
institutions and miners for cash.
"The money will cater for
necessary expenditure such as the purchase of
campaign motor vehicles for
all the provinces," he said at the end of a
meeting called Saturday to
discuss financing of the campaigns.
Karimanzira said the ruling party would
also sell party cards, hold dinner
dances, musical galas and soccer matches
in a bid to raise cash.
The ruling party had set a target of $10 million at
its December Goromonzi
Conference for campaigns. But Zimbabwe's
hyperinflation has already eroded
that amount, forcing the fundraising
committee to revise the figure to $100
billion.
The Zimbabwean
BY SIMBA
MANYANYA
'Silent diplomacy - an exercise in cowardice'
'Serious
preparations for alternative policies are now critical'
The performance of
public policy in Zimbabwe over the 27 years since 1980
clearly shows
failure, particularly with regard to the values and mandates
that inspired
the war of liberation against colonialism. This was the
outcome of
discussion and debate organised by the youthful Creative Writers
Workshop on
the 25 April to commemorate Zimbabwe's freedom day, 18th April,
in
Johannesburg. Presentations and discussions highlighted the failure of
public policy and the serious policy challenges facing Mugabe's
successors.
The liberation war was fought around issues of historical
inequities in
property and land distribution, the establishment of an
egalitarian and
economically prosperous society that also cherishes
democratic values. If
public policy was a tool for addressing these
challenges then Zanu (PF) has
failed dismally.
'Operation Murambatsvina'
(a cruel exercise of cleansing urban areas of poor
people) reflected in
essence a spirit reminiscent of the colonial days, and
also of Gukurahundi,
when 'rulers' belonging to certain 'superior classes'
dispensed huge state
powers in to the detriment of marginal and powerless
communities.
Academic researcher Tapera Knox Chitiyo demonstrates very
well that the
programme itself was an outcome of a general crisis of
governance. As he
indicates, in its execution it was reminiscent of the
1950's when the
colonists grabbed the best land the 'natives' were herded
into trucks and
relocated in arid, unproductive regions. He shows that in
those years,
between 1935 and 1955, 70,000 African families were relocated
in the
'reserves'. Several reports confirm that in 2002 the Mugabe regime
outperformed the colonialists by wide margins in terms of dispossession and
impoverishment of the poor.
Any policy gains from the 1980s have been
lost in the rapidly declining
economy. The educated and skilled seek
employment beyond the country's
borders. The country's huge public
investment in education now benefits its
neighbours, while resources for
sustainable health policy delivery are
depleted.
In consideration of the
left-right ideological swing in 1990 Government
failed to usher in a
framework for policy delivery that is sustainable. Thus
the national
development policy trajectory over the 1980-2007 period lacks
consistency of
purpose.
The change from socialistic to market-based developmental models had
serious
repercussions on the lives of ordinary Zimbabweans, through
inflation,
erosion of incomes, higher unemployment and rising economic
insecurity.
Unfortunately population disgruntlement, increased trade union
activity,
social movements and political opposition only brought increased
state
repression, the suppression of democratic rights and privileges and
deepening conflict between the political state and the population.
Since
Independence, Zimbabwe has experienced three historical shifts (a) in
the
administration of public policy shift from social and participatory
policy
management approaches to centralist, commandist and prescriptive
approaches.
In the 1990's this came when the principles underpinning the
public policies
were supposedly informed by values of freedom and market
choice; (b) in the
experience of 'freedom' and the enjoyment of
constitutional liberties. This
meant changes in the experience of 'freedom'
and enjoyment of
constitutional liberties as the political state became
increasingly
authoritarian, tyrannical and repressive; and (c) in the
quality of
individual and social life.
This meant that the (particularly
economic) rights and livelihoods of people
were undermined. Since the
1990's the state's economic and public policy in
general became increasingly
skewed against the poor. It was also in the
1990's that government embarked
on massacres of thousands of civilians in
the Matabeleland and Midlands
provinces in an operation called Gukurahundi.
This genocide entrenched a
fearsome one party rule, undermined the
confidence of investors, and led to
out-migration as people fled for their
lives. The operation remains a blot
on the nation's moral conscience.
In addition to these problems, the 21st
century, being a period of markets
and neo-liberal globalisation, is coming
with new policy challenges to
democratic movements and nations. Upon
assumption of the reigns of power
many new governments in the region have
found themselves suddenly without
much room to maneuver in terms of the
design of economic policy, so that in
most cases they end up recycling the
same market policies that made previous
regimes unpopular and that drove
them, then as social movements and trade
unions, on the war path.
A key
lesson from Zimbabwe is that the failure of Zanu (PF) is rooted in bad
policies, which primarily means inadequate policy preparations. The risk
still exists that those same policy mistakes, errors and disasters may be
reproduced in 'new dispensations'.
Serious preparations for alternative
policies are critical now for economies
to experience growth, for national
currencies to strengthen, for new jobs to
be created, for a renewed sense of
confidence, respect, pride, and dignity,
and improved quality and value of
human life in the region.
In 2007 it became clear that rapes, murders,
killings, political beatings,
intimidation, torture, rape, unlawful arrests
and detention, destruction of
homes, the suppression of media freedoms and
human rights abuses cannot
result from legitimate political leadership, be a
characteristic of
progressive political ideology or public policy. In this
regard, silent
diplomacy becomes an exercise in cowardice.
Further,
against the background of these public policy failings, perceptions
that
civil society organisations are conduits of foreign interference and
puppets
of imperialist forces seeking to effect regime change only reflects
a state
of paranoia among people experiencing their own crises of
appreciation of
the roles and values of leadership in a rapidly changing
world. These are
the sorts of things said by people who cannot come to terms
with their own
failings as leaders, and must therefore look for
scapegoats. - simbamanyanya@yahoo.com, Action Policy
Africa (APA)
The Zimbabwean
Leading South African
journalist, Patrick Laurence, says President Thabo
Mbeki's endorsement of
the Nigerian election result bodes ill for successful
fulfilment of his
mission on behalf of the Southern African Development
Community (SADC) to
persuade political adversaries in Zimbabwe to settle
their
differences.
"His approval of the result is implicit in his message of
congratulations to
the winner of the presidential election, Umaru Yar'Adua
of the People's
Democratic Party (PDP), who was handpicked by the outgoing
president,
Olusegun Obasanjo. The Nigerian department of foreign affairs
certainly
seems to have concurred with that deduction, judging by the
alacrity with
which it trumpeted triumphantly on receipt of Mbeki's
congratulatory
missive," wrote Laurence last week.
"Mbeki's indirect
affirmation of the election outcome is, however, in
conflict with the sharp
criticisms or stony silence of many of the
international and local election
observers who monitored the polls for
Nigeria's state and local elections on
April 14 and parliamentary and
presidential elections on April 21."
The
reasons for concern over the fairness of the election include apparent
administrative incompetence, violence directed at voters as well as at the
electoral commission for its alleged bias, and outright bribery of voters by
reportedly ubiquitous party agents as they queued to deliver their
far-from-secret ballots. The election was marred by a shortage of ballot
papers that resulted in the frenzied printing of extra papers and in long
delays before voting started at many polling booths and even, though less
frequently, no voting at all at a few. The shortage was reported to be acute
in areas where opposition parties were particularly strong, which aroused
suspicions that the scarcity of ballots papers was, to use a colloquial
expression, "accidentally on purpose". Some 200 people reportedly died
during the election, which, though relatively small in the context of
Nigeria's total population of 140 million, hardly qualified the elections to
be described as a peaceful demonstration of democracy in action. - Staff
reporter
The Zimbabwean
John Makumbe
My
sekuru, the late Masipula Sithole, used to love to refer to the saying
that
if you leave two Zimbabweans on the moon and visit them the next day
you
will find that they will have formed three political parties. Indeed,
the
history of Zimbabwean political parties is that of splits, break ups and
factions. When the MDC was formed in 1999, some of us were gullible enough
to imagine that it would never split for frivolous reasons such as we have
since witnessed.
Whatever the reasons for the MDC factionalism, it is now
time for the two
factions to put their differences behind them and come
together to fight the
real enemy of the people of Zimbabwe, Zanu (PF). There
is certainly nothing
of redeeming value that is being served by the current
divisions within the
MDC. If anything, the divisions are counterproductive
and debilitating to
the opposition political party's efforts at uniting
progressive forces
against Zimbabwe's enemy number one, Robert Mugabe and
his rotten party.
There have been several schools of thought regarding the
real causes of the
MDC factionalism. One is that CIO infiltration of the MDC
was instrumental
in the whole shoddy process for the benefit of the
beleaguered and fractious
Zanu (PF). In other words, according to this
school of thought, the split
was a survival tactic utilised by Zanu (PF) to
weaken the MDC so that the
former party would retain political power
forever. The other school of
thought argues that there were serious
methodological squabbles within the
leadership of the MDC, especially with
regard to the best way of bringing
about an end to Mugabe's
dictatorship.
Perhaps a third school of thought would say the very nature of
the MDC at
its formation - an omnibus carrying all elements opposed to Zanu
(PF)'s
continued misrule of Zimbabwe - effectively militated against the
sustainability of that party as a viable and integral political party. The
dynamics of political development are such that over time some sheep would
go astray while others would maintain the original course of action.
Be
that as it may, the fact that the nation is inevitably moving towards the
2008 parliamentary and presidential elections requires that either the two
MDC factions re-unite and get on with the job of ridding this nation of the
hated dictator, or adopt new names that clearly distinguish them from each
other in a manner that does not confuse the people of this ruined country.
The current arrangement, where the two factions have agreed not to criticise
each other in public, is clearly not adequate.
Both Morgan Tsvangirai and
Arthur Mutambara need to sit down with their
senior party officials and
hammer out a sound process of either bringing the
two factions back
together, or effectively cut the umbilical cord, go their
separate ways and
face the consequences. The present situation will continue
to be exploited
by Zanu (PF) to its advantage, and the majority of
Zimbabweans will be the
losers. It appears to me that the major stumbling
block to unity is pride.
In politics, pride dictates a very high price and
in the case of the two MDC
factions, both sides are now paying that price.
Unity of purpose is best
served by a united entity.
It is my fervent hope that in the next few weeks
the two factions of the MDC
will shame Zanu (PF) and make the people of
Zimbabwe proud by announcing
their coming back together to constitute one
party. Failure to do so will
give Mugabe and his ailing political party
another opportunity to deceive
the people of this country in the forthcoming
elections.
The Zimbabwean
HARARE -
Firebrand nationalist, Edgar Tekere, has warned Zimbabweans of an
escalating
violence-ridden campaign in the period leading to next March's
presidential
and general elections.
The founding Zanu (PF) member said President Robert
Mugabe would fight tooth
and nail to retain power, and the current spate of
abductions and torture of
opposition officials would intensify in the run-up
to the poll.
Tekere spoke as Mugabe called a special congress to endorse his
candidacy as
party leader and sole candidate for next year's presidential
election. For
the first time, the ruling party officially alluded to the
Mujuru and
Mnangagwa factions in Zanu (PF) and that they were embroiled in a
bitter
battle to succeed Mugabe.
Tekere said: "I think I know Mugabe
fairly well. He doesn't like contests
and when you stand against him he is
going to fight tooth and nail."
The veteran politician was speaking in a
telephone interview with The
Zimbabwean from his Mutare home.
A former
secretary-general of Zanu (PF), Tekere, who was once a close ally
of Mugabe,
was first expelled from the party in October 1988 for agitating
against
one-party state rule.
He formed the Zimbabwe Unity Movement and contested the
1990 presidential
election, but lost to Mugabe. He resigned as ZUM president
in January 2000.
He was reinstated into Zanu (PF) in 2005 but was fired again
last year after
publishing a highly controversial autobiography, A Lifetime
of Struggle,
insinuating that Mugabe was a reluctant recruit into the
liberation
struggle.
Tekere said Mugabe, 83, had boasted of having
degrees in violence and openly
said opposition officials "vakadashurwa (were
battered)" and that they will
be "bashed" again if they provoke
police.
He said: "There is going to be lots and lots of violence sponsored by
the
Head of State, make no mistake about it."
He said Zanu (PF) would
unleash violence during the campaign period, which
would then be toned down
just before polling to hoodwink international
observers.
Tekere said:
"They will have broken your ribs and expect you to remember
that on polling
day."
He said because rigging elections had become difficult over the last
decade,
the ruling party would compensate for that through violence.
"You
are dealing with a man who believes there is no Zimbabwe without him.
One
day he is going to die, but he doesn't think Zimbabwe will continue
after
him. All affairs of state start and finish with Mugabe," Tekere said.
He
dismissed the possibility of a military coup in the event of Mugabe
losing
to the opposition.
He said: "One who is very outspoken on the issue is
Didymus Mutasa, my
uncle. Don't be deceived by him. The army will comply
with the result. You
only hear that from people like Mutasa. Have you ever
heard it from the real
masters of war, Rex Nhongo or Vitalis
Zvinavashe?"
Rex Nhongo was the nom de guerre of General Solomon Mujuru - the
powerful
husband of Vice President Joice Mujuru - a retired commander of the
Zimbabwe
National Army, during the liberation war when he was Zanla's chief
of
operations. General Zvinavashe is the past immediate commander of the
Zimbabwe Defence Forces, now Gutu Senator.
Mutasa, who is Zanu PF's
secretary for admistration, is on record as saying
Zanu (PF) would go to war
if it lost the presidential election.
"There is going to be no such thing, I
can tell you quite confidently,"
Tekere said.
He said youths were being
trained under the guise of national service
primarily to beat up the
electorate.
Scores of people have been killed, mostly supporters of
opposition parties,
while more than 600 people have been tortured for
sympathising with the
opposition since March 11, according to opposition
figures.
The Zimbabwean
MUTOKO
A
cluster of villagers in Mutoko has witnessed the hypocrisy of Zanu (PF)'s
claims that it has the interests people at heart after recently being told
to go it alone in an electrification programme started way back as an
election campaigning gimmick. Members of the project, from Nyamakosi
village in Chief Chimoyo area of Mutoko, are among many Zimbabweans taken
for a ride by the beleaguered Zanu (PF) regime.
This comes amidst reports
that the government's rural electrification
programme has virtually stopped
due to lack of funds.
Before the 2000 parliamentary elections the ruling
party used the rural
electrification programme to seduce the villagers not
only to vote for it,
but also to campaign for it. Seven years later,
villagers wanting
electricity at their homesteads have been told to find
Z$25 million to
complete the project.
Government, in conjunction with the
troubled Zimbabwe Electricity Supply
Authority (ZESA), has provided poles
but said they don't have funds to buy
the expensive materials and
cables.
An official at the Mashonaland East provincial offices in Marondera
refused
to discuss the matter.
A source at ZESA told The Zimbabwean in
confidence that the parastatal,
which recently reported serious viability
problems, had all but shelved the
rural electrification programme, despite
pressure from the Mugabe regime.
"There is nothing happening on that front
but there has been a lot of
pressure from government officials wanting to
use the issue as usual for
campaigning ahead of next year's elections," the
source said.
The Zimbabwean
HARARE
The
Zimbabwe Schools Examinations Council (ZIMSEC) has not yet announced
examination fees for this year's Ordinary and Advanced levels more than
three months after the normal time they are usually released. Parents have
been told to budget for about Z$20 000 per subject, which the council has
not announced officially.
However, officials at ZIMSEC have indicated
that the fees might be pegged at
Z$50 000 per subject. Last year candidates
paid between Z$500 and Z$5000
per subject.
Officials attributed the delay
to "the need to avoid a problem we witnessed
last year whereby the fees did
not cover the costs of running the
examinations, causing a lot of
administrative problems". Education minister
Aenias Chigwedere admitted the
matter was giving headaches due to
hyperinflation.
Meanwhile, chaos and
tension characterized the reopening of schools this
week as parents faced
drastically increased fees with some boarding schools
now charging up to Z$5
million per term.
A serious clash looms following Chigwedere's recent threat
to crackdown on
schools charging fees above those stipulated by government.
Schools argue
that the only way they can operate in the face of inflation is
to raise
fees.
The Zimbabwean
HARARE -
Despite the official opening of the tobacco selling
season -Zimbabwe's
foreign currency cash cow - the country's forex crunch
has worsened over the
past two weeks amid reports that the exchange rate of
the Zimbabwe dollar to
the American greenback has crashed to more than
Z$28,000 against one US
unit.
Currency dealers said the already short supply of hard cash had
deteriorated
in the past fortnight despite the opening of the tobacco
marketing season,
seen by many as the lifeblood of the Zimbabwean
economy.
Officials running money transfer agencies and forex dealers said the
foreign
exchange market had been uncharacteristically dry for this time of
the year.
Tobacco is Zimbabwe's premier export crop, which rakes in about a
third of
the country's annual foreign currency earnings.
There was
speculation this week that the government had been buying most of
the funds
on the official market to meet its commitments to import food as
well as to
pay off mounting debts at Air Zimbabwe.
Official sources said the government
was also trying to raise more than
US$23 million required to import grain
before the end of May.
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor Gideon Gono
indicated last month that only
500,000 tons of maize and wheat had so far
been imported out of the 1,2
million tons required to meet the anticipated
shortfall of food up to the
end of this month.
The Zimbabwean
HARARE - The Grain
Marketing Board is stepping up imports of over 800,000
metric tonnes of
maize and other small grains from neighbouring South Africa
and Zambia as
severe food shortages sweep across parts of the country
devastated by
drought and the disastrous land reform programme.
Last year the GMB's CEO,
Retired Colonel Samuel Muvuti, and the then
Agriculture minister Joseph Made
denied that the country would need to
import maize this year. The government
and the GMB claimed the country had
excess maize in its strategic grain
reserves. Agriculture minister Rugare
Gumbo has declared this a drought
year.
While Col Muvuti was not immediately available for comment, a GMB
official
who declined to be named said the grain shortages were a result of
drought
and increased monthly demand. The GMB currently sells over 70,000
tons a
month, a sharp increase from the 61,000 tons sold monthly last
year.
The board's grain stocks are virtually empty and the Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe governor Gideon Gono announced recently that Zimbabwe had imported
500,000 tons of grain to avert starvation since January. The situation was
expected to worsen given the drought that is already pounding Matabeleland
South.
Thousands of people have already applied for drought relief. The
situation
is exacerbated by the unfolding catastrophe in Binga where
flooding last
year reduced yields substantially.
The Zimbabwean
BY A SPECIAL
CORRESPONDENT
HARARE - A strike by nurses at Harare's two referral hospitals
entered its
10th day today, in defiance of a government ban on industrial
action among
health workers and amid growing tension.
Harare Hospital CEO
Jealous Nderere said "just a few" nurses were on strike.
Health and Child
Welfare minister David Parirenyatwa was not available for
comment.
But
President Robert Mugabe's Health advisor, Timothy Stamps, told a
gathering
during a donation of food aid worth $25million at the Harare
Children's
Hospital at the weekend that nurses were not on strike but could
not afford
to come to work
Nurse representatives told The Zimbabwean that an estimated
90 percent of
nurses at Parirenyatwa and Harare Hospitals were on strike on
Tuesday and
that they expected the ranks to swell.
"Nurses cannot take
this anymore," said a representative of the nurses. "We
are being paid
peanuts and we are demonstrating our protest with the
stay-away, despite the
intimidation."
The nurses called the strike to protest against "very very
poor salaries" in
the face of hyperinflation. The are currently earning a
shocking Z$110,000
monthly at a time the Poverty Datum Line has raced to
Z$1,5 million per
household per month. With allowances, the nurses are
taking home around
$550,000 while matrons earn $800,000.
The government
declared the strike illegal and has accused the union of
abandoning dialogue
with the Health Services Board. On Tuesday, hospital
wards were being manned
by student nurses.
The Zimbabwean
THE STUDENT
+263 91 2 471 673 www.zinasu.com
BY
TREVOR MURAI
Most of us now find it repugnant to expend time and ink in a
non-productive
exercise of capturing and articulating the ideological
debates surrounding
the socio-political and economic calamity that
University of Zimbabwe (UZ)
finds itself in. However the culture of silence
and inaction within which
students are encased can never change the
situation.
Students have a vital role to play - telling the world the truth,
exposing
accurately the real economic and social corruption that
characterises UZ. Of
course critics will hasten to say that students are a
problem, incapable of
effectuating action-oriented solutions to the
problems.
This letter proffers some pragmatic solutions that can only be
accomplished
through consolidated effort by all stakeholders. Students may
be dismissed
as talkers instead of but it is better to observe and express
our
indignation than to remain mum.
It costs Z$4 000. 00 to commute from
town to UZ. Transport and other
ancillary costs associated with being a
non-resident student make the lives
of more than 8 000 commuting students a
nightmare. Bear in mind the
shrinking incomes of their parents and the
hyper-inflationary environment.
As one proceeds from the university's main
bus stop to the administration
block, lurk baton-wielding police guards with
dogs on leash - seemingly
enlisted by the UZ administration to curb any
students' unrest.
UZ has its own security guards popularly known as the Green
Bombers (GBs),
most of whom are retired police and army personnel.
Never
think that students are only under physically surveillance. The
relative
stability and peace among students that saw the Vice Chancellor
Professor
Levi Nyagura being awarded with the manager of the year award
ought to be
attributed to intricate forms of cognitive control mechanisms
meted to
students through calculated means.
There is the oppressive ordinance 30 that
fosters docility and passivity.
Students are reluctant to express their
genuine grievances, due to fear of
expulsions and suspensions. Add to this
parental pressure for students to
graduate.
The Student Executive Council
is rendered defunct, systematically stripped
of its capacity to fundraise
for student mobilisation by the administration.
The media has also not done
the SRC any good by disregarding adequate
coverage of the student
movement.
The Association of University Teachers (AUT) called for a strike a
few weeks
before the opening of the second semester. The industrial action
is still
raging and the semester is less than a month from ending.
Of a
total of 36 toilet chambers in New Complex One (NC1) male hostel, only
three
are functional, but unusable as they are usually dirty. In other male
hostels the situation is almost the same. Bathing rooms are flooding and the
water is flowing to the corridors. Corridors stink with the odour coming
from the ablutions. The ablution floors are seldom dry. Students step on
stagnant water as they enter or exit the toilets.
It would be wise for
the government and the administration to start with
haste a process of
engagement with students through their representatives
such ZINASU, in
trying to solve these problems.
Civic Society and the corporate world should
also be engaged in this
process. Funding of the education sector must be
intensified as specified in
the UNESCO agreement that 26% of a state's
resources must be directed
towards the education sector.
The Zimbabwean
HARARE - A vigilante group
of youths clad in Zanu (PF) regalia attacked
street foreign currency dealers
at a regional bus depot weekend accusing
them of destroying the
economy.
Fourteeen youths attacked the women, street traders and members of a
church
sect on Friday morning, one week after Reserve Bank governor Gideon
Gono
announced that devaluing Zimbabwe's overrated foreign currency exchange
rate
would give an incentive to people trading money on the black
market.
The youths made off with foreign currency worth more than $100
million after
the raid at the Fourth Street Bus Terminal.
A forex dealer
told The Zimbabwean the youths were "angered over the
continued destruction
of the economy by illegal forex dealers".
A fortnight ago Gono devalued the
nation's currency for exporters only, in a
move he claimed was aimed at
easing foreign exchange shortages.
Exporters and companies that generate
foreign currency will be paid the
equivalent of Z$15,000 while the rest of
the forex deals will continue to be
done with the skewed exchange rate of
$250 to US$1.
The government blames the street forex dealers for the
crippling shortages
of foreign currency on the official market.
The Zimbabwean
ZAKA - Zimbabwe's
leading opposition party said this week nine of its
supporters were
kidnapped and at least four others beaten by suspected Zanu
(PF) thugs here
ahead of the hotly-contest Zaka East by-election.
The group of youths were
kidnapped at around 6:30 pm Saturday from a
shopping center at a growth
point in the rural Zaka East constituency, about
120 kilometers south east
of the provincial capital Masvingo, a regional
Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) spokesman told The Zimbabwean.
MDC reported the incident to the
Jerera Police Post, who refused to open a
docket in the case.
"The youths
who have been kidnapped are believed to have been taken to a
Zanu (PF)
torture camp," said the spokesperson. Police officials were not
reachable
for comment.
At least four people were severely beaten in three separate
incidents with
axes, spears, iron bars and sticks, he said. They were beaten
for supporting
the MDC or for having relatives who supported the opposition
party, he
added.
The weeks of campaigning have been marred by similar
violence in the rural
constituency. Police have set roadblocks leading into
Zaka East, and on the
mostly dirt country roads within the
constituency.
The election is the latest test for President Robert Mugabe's
ruling Zanu
(PF) party, pitted against the eight-year-old MDC, which is
expected to give
him a tough challenge in presidential polls due in March
next year.
The Nomination Court accepting candidates to run in the poll is
expected to
sit on Friday, while the inspection of the voters roll closes
today
(Thursday).
The by-election was called after the death of Tinos
Rusere, a
Parliamentarian and deputy minister who was responsible for
Mines.
The constituency suffered some of the worst violence ahead of the 2005
Parliamentary election, which left several people dead and scores others
tortured around the country, according to rights groups.
The Zimbabwean
BY TAWANDA MUTASAH
'For a sinking regime whose rhetoric is
wearing thin, the SADC communiqué
was an opportune lifeline'
'Silence
always benefits the oppressor, never his victims'
The scholar, as depicted in
the well-known university common room
caricature, puts a flea on a table and
shouts: "Jump!" The flea jumps. The
scholar rips off the legs of the flea
and shouts: "Jump!" But the flea does
not jump. The scholar concludes that,
without its legs, the flea cannot
hear.
Something of the disjunctive
logic of the scholar and the flea came to mind
at the end of March. That was
when the Southern Africa Development Community
(SADC) heads of state issued
a pro-Mugabe communiqué after their emergency
meeting on
Zimbabwe.
Maintaining hope against the odds, many pro-democracy activists
tried to
think of the communiqué as an unfortunate aberration, which by now
would
hopefully be forgotten history. I hoped so myself until a few days
ago, when
I witnessed the unedifying spectacle of Zimbabwe's ambassador to
the United
States circulating the document in a public meeting. For Mugabe's
representative in Washington DC, the document constituted his principal, if
feeble, attempt at defending himself against world condemnation of his
master's human rights abuses.
These reached unprecedented heights last
week with the arrest of Alec
Muchadehama and Andrew Makoni - two leading
human rights lawyers - in the
course of their work and their unlawful
detention.
Over the last several weeks, it has been suggested encouragingly
that the
SADC leaders were forthright with Mugabe behind closed doors, and
that the
communiqué issued at the end was merely a clever decoy by Mugabe's
peers to
enable their elderly counterpart to walk out of the meeting 'with
skin on
his face'.
That is not impossible. Within SADC, heads of state
and government in
Botswana, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, Mauritius and
Lesotho have in the
past been quoted, either publicly or by sources close to
them, as expressing
the need for democratic change in Zimbabwe.
The
trouble is, while it was only Mugabe and his few body-guards and
mind-guards
that sat in the Dar es Salaam meeting, human rights abuses in
Zimbabwe are
being perpetrated not only by these few, but by a posse of
police, military,
intelligence and ministerial leaders whose feedback from
the SADC meeting
was through the regional body's public communications, and
from Mugabe
himself.
"We got full backing, not even one (leader) criticised our actions,"
Mugabe
boasted to the party faithful back in Harare. "SADC is not a court.
We are
brothers, we co-operate with each other and we have love for one
another,"
he was quoted as saying in the state-run Sunday Mail
newspaper.
And so it was, indeed, that Mugabe's listening enforcers were
emboldened to
go forth and spread the violence, so much that to date, the
state in
Zimbabwe has been able to unlawfully lock up leading human rights
lawyers,
abduct and torture over 600 activists, transfer sympathetic police
officers
to remote rural outposts, murder a journalist for sending pictures
of terror
out to the world, and arbitrarily entrench conditions that make a
free and
fair election impossible.
Therein lies the problem. Saving
Mugabe's face in a SADC boardroom would be
culturally understandable if
Zimbabwe's dictator had honour enough not to
twist such an approach to his
advantage. For Mugabe's young terror militia,
working under the influence of
a combination of alcohol, indoctrination, and
patron-client obligations,
there is no nuance: the southern African region
is behind their president.
He tells them so.
Even worse, the public messages by SADC are being used by
propagandists of
the Mugabe regime in domestic, African and international
fora to "show" that
SADC, which by virtue of neighbourhood is presumed to
understand and care
about Zimbabwe more than anyone else, has given a thumbs
up to what is going
on. For a sinking regime whose rhetoric is wearing thin,
the SADC communiqué
was an opportune lifeline.
It is being diligently put
to use. To human rights monitors and supporters
of democratic reform, Mugabe
and his lieutenants are pointing to the
communique's reticence on human
rights, rule of law, and democracy questions
in Zimbabwe. In order to
misappropriate the sympathy of bona fide activists
against Washington
Consensus dogmatism, the regime is underlining the
language in the document
that calls for the "lifting of all forms of
sanctions against
Zimbabwe".
To the SADC Parliamentary Forum and others whose reports decry the
violence,
fraud and systemic rigging that was passed by some as a
presidential
election in 2002, Mugabe waves the communiqué with its claim
that that
election was free and fair.
If lives are to be saved in
Zimbabwe, and if we are to chart a way out of
Zimbabwe's political crisis -
with its humanitarian and economic impact on
the SADC region - publicly
speaking out against repression in all its
particulars is critical on the
part of regional leaders. As professor Elie
Wiesel has consistently taught,
silence always benefits the oppressor, never
his victims. - Tawanda Mutasah
works on human rights and democracy building
issues in the SADC region.
The Zimbabwean
HARARE - Hundreds of
people bussed into Rufaro Stadium from nearby Harare
suburbs by the ruling
Zanu (PF)-aligned Zimbabwe Federation of Trade Unions
(ZFTU) to attend last
week's May Day celebrations, were left stranded after
they failed to get
transport back home.
ZFTU, with assistance from the ruling Zanu (PF) party,
hired a fleet of
ZUPCO buses to transport people from within Harare and the
surrounding areas
to attend the Workers Day celebrations addressed by ZFTU
president Alfred
Makwarimba and his deputy Joseph Chinotimba.
Workers
were induced to travel to the stadium on the strength of promises of
free
entertainment from popular musicians Hosea Chipanga and Cephas
Mashakada.
There was also a Dynamos and Black Rhinos soccer match.
After the
celebrations in the evening, thousands of people milled around the
stadium
complaining of lack of transport. Many of the buses which had
ferried them
to the stadium in the morning were nowhere to be seen.
Chinotimba said it was
possible that some people experienced transportation
problems after the
event because "there were many people who had to be
carried (ferried) back
to their homes".
Chinotimba, who estimated the crowd at the stadium at
"thousands and
thousands" said however not all the people were ferried to
the stadium,
saying about half used their own means to attend the
celebrations which were
held simulatenously with a rally of a rival
federation of trade unions,
ZCTU, held at Gwanzura Stadium.
"There was no
problems," Chinotimba said. "Some people may have transport
problems back
home because there were thousands and thousands, better than
ZCTU."
The Zimbabwean
"Do not be
afraid!"
The Catholic bishops of Germany have expressed support for the
strong
pastoral letter issued at Easter by the bishops of Zimbabwe on the
deepening
crisis in their country.
Karl Cardinal Lehmann, President of
the German Bishops' Conference, wrote to
Archbishop Robert C. Ndlovu,
President of the Zimbabwean Catholic Bishops'
Conference:
"Straightforwardly, you have pointed out that a small elite
gets ever richer
at the expense of the people referring to the government's
responsibility
for the grievances. Zimbabwe has turned into a poorhouse in
Africa.
The German bishops explicitly support ZCBC's call for an end of
violence,
for rule of law and true democracy in Zimbabwe.
For this
reason, the bishops in Germany call on the government in Harare, on
the
member states of the African Union and on the political leaders in
Southern
Africa to take responsibility and search for ways to put a stop to
the
suffering of the Zimbabwean people. We will also ask the German
government,
which is holding the Presidency of the European Union and will
chair the G8
Summit in June 2007, to take appropriate action to relieve the
suffering and
to overcome the political crisis in Zimbabwe.
Above all, we wish to assure
you of our prayers. We feel united with the
Catholics in your country when
they gather to pray for Zimbabwe next
Saturday and then every Friday.
The
Easter Liturgy reminds us of God's saving deed who liberated the people
of
Israel from slavery and heard the cry of his people (Ex 14:15 - 15:1). In
the Gospel according to St Matthew, we hear that Christ comes to meet his
disciples in their mourning and despair saying "Do not be afraid!" (Mt
28:9). We live and act strengthened by our hope for his help.
The
courageous statement by the bishops of Zimbabwe is an expression of this
hope, a hope which unites the entire Church. Please be assured of the
solidarity of the German Bishops' Conference and the Catholics in our
country. We will also make tangible contributions to help alleviate the
suffering through our German relief and development agencies and religious
communities. We feel united with the faithful in Zimbabwe, with their
Shepherds and with all the suffering people, in the love of Christ." -
(CISA - shortened)
The Zimbabwean
HARARE
The
Anglican Bishops of Central Africa (Botswana, Malawi, Zambia and
Zimbabwe)
said in a recent pastoral letter that "the deteriorating
economy..has been
exacerbated by the economic sanctions imposed by the
Western countries.
These so called targeted sanctions aimed at the
leadership of the country of
Zimbabwe in reality have affected the poor
Zimbabweans who have born the
brunt of the sanctions. The result has been
the displacement of thousands of
Zimbabweans roaming the cities and rural
areas of our region.."
To
straighten out this crooked allegation we can do no better than quote The
Zimbabwean, 26 April - 2 May 2007, "For the umpteenth time, it seems we must
make the point that there are no economic sanctions against Zimbabwe. There
is merely a range of targeted measures involving travel by Mugabe and his
sycophants, a freeze on their assets, and an arms embargo implemented by the
government of the United States and the European Union."
Surely these
measures targeted at the leaders cannot be blamed for
'displacing thousands
of Zimbabweans'.
Would lifting these measures end the misery of these
thousands now 'roaming
the cities and rural areas'? Certainly not. It would
merely allow the First
Lady once more to go shopping on Oxford Street.
If
Bishops wish to evaluate a situation on moral and ethical grounds they
first
of all have to get the facts right. These particular Bishops got them
wrong.
As a result their moral evaluation is worthless. Which is a great
pity.
As Christians we ought to be able to come up with a generally
shared
analysis of social injustice in our country and agree on a common
response
to it. The inter-church discussion paper "The Zimbabwe We Want", at
least in
its original form, seemed to have achieved this to a large extent.
The
Churches in Manicaland impressed with a show of unity when they produced
"The Truth will make you free - a compendium of Christian social
teaching".
This Anglican statement is a regrettable set-back, especially
since it seems
to rudely contradict the Catholic Bishops and their pastoral
message "God
Hears the Cry of the Oppressed" which blames "bad governance
and corruption"
and an "overtly corrupt leadership" for our deep
crisis.
Relentless propaganda has been hammering this lie into our heads that
the
western nations must be blamed for our misery. The truth is we must
blame
ourselves. Repentance begins with admitting one's own faults instead
of
blaming others. That is basic Christianity.
The Anglican statement
just goes to show how effective propaganda can be. If
you repeat a lie often
enough it will be believed. Even by those who tell
the lie. Even by bishops,
apparently.
But the Church should be truthful and be a beacon of light in a
world
darkened by the shameless lying of the powerful. - In Touch Jesuit
Communications
The Zimbabwean
Transition, reconciliation and
reconstruction
The Peoples' Policy Committee (PPC), a network of Zimbabweans
based in the
UK, has submitted a comprehensive position paper to the
President of South
Africa, Thabo Mbeki, in his capacity as mediator to the
crisis in Zimbabwe.
We continue with a summary of the main points
raised:
'We recommend the implementation of an emergency economic recovery
plan to
curb inflation, restore donor and foreign investor confidence and
boost
mining and agricultural production, including establishment of a Land
Commission with a strong technocratic base and wide representation of
Zimbabwean stakeholders to recommend policies aimed at ending the land
crisis.'
The Transitional Processes
PPC would like to propose the
following sequence as a roadmap towards the
resolution of the crises in
Zimbabwe:
Prenegotiation Phase: - The mediator to consult the actors across
the
spectrum in order to set the agenda for the formal negotiations. These
consultations can take the form of secret talks, as has already been
happening, but they should as a matter of principle be open to all
stakeholdesr in Zimbabwe. The Prenegotiations should bridge the chasm that
lies between the various actors; the outcome of these meetings should be
made public at the appropriate time.
All Stakeholders Convention (ASC):-
An All Stakeholders Convention composed
of civil society, political parties,
media , faith-based organisations,
women , youths and student movements as
well as all sectors of society that
are willing to contribute to this
process should be constituted. The ASC
should be organised into working
groups so as to deal conclusively with all
the critical issues in the
crisis. PPC would like to propose the following
working groups; (a)
constitutional reform (b) land reform (c) electoral
reform (d) truth
recovery (e) economic recovery. The working groups would
report to ASC for
debate and approval.
The talks should lead to a power-sharing agreement on a
transitional
government, including opposition and civil society in key
government posts,
a new constitution, demilitarisation of state
institutions, a new voters
roll, a program of administrative and legislative
reform guaranteeing
genuinely free and fair elections on an agreed schedule
and emergency
economic recovery measures that could lead to full resumption
of external
financial support after elections. The stakeholders should agree
on the
composition and establishment of an interim authority to oversee the
country's transition to democracy.
Dissolution of Parliament: - The
incumbent president's departure from office
when his term expires in March
2008 should be followed by the takeover by an
interim government. An interim
government would take responsibility for the
basic administrative functions
of the state until a new government is
elected later in the process.
Various constitutional amendments are
required to facilitate the creation of
an interim government should be
passed by the current parliament in the
spirit of the SADC-led Initiative.
As the process of normalising the
constitutional and political situation
develops, the international community
should withdraw the targeted sanctions
and other restrictions applying to
the Zimbabwean government and initiate
steps to assist in restoring
democratic order and economic recovery in
Zimbabwe.
Interim Government: -
The All Stakeholders Convention should establish a
transitional government,
which should include the members of the opposition,
civil society and the
ruling party and provide for a rotating transitional
presidency.
The
mandate of the Interim government should include the following:
.organisation
of a referendum for a new constitution and drawing up of a new
voters roll;
and
.Implementation of the transitional articles of the new
constitution
.Professionalisation of security and uniformed
forces
.Repatriation of Zimbabwean community in the diaspora
.The
international community should be available to provide assistance to
this
process when required by the Zimbabwean negotiators. PPC would
recommend
that the African Union Force be deployed to give protection to the
Interim
Government.
Elections:- Following the ratification of the new Constitution,
preparations
should begin for new elections to be held no later than the end
of 2008.The
elections should be held under a new democratic constitution.
The new
constitution should provide for an Independent Delimitation
Commission,
'Independent Electoral Commission', Media and Information
Commission as well
as the Security and Defense Commission all of which
should be constituted in
time to run both the Referendum and the
Presidential/parliamentary
elections.
These elections should be based on
the SADC principles and standards of
holding democratic, free and fair
elections. In that regard, the current
electoral laws should be amended to
meet the SADC principles and standards.
The electoral reforms should also
provide for the diasporans vote. An
estimated four million Zimbabwean adults
now live in exile outside Zimbabwe
and have been disenfranchised by the
incumbent government. PPC recommends
that suitable arrangements be made to
restore in full the voting rights of
this community in time for the
referendum as well as the parliamentary and
presidential
elections.
International observers should be present to monitor the
elections, to
oversee the transition from the interim government to the new
elected
government, and to ensure that the elections are free and
fair.
The Truth recovery process
For the purposes of building sustainable
democracy in a failed state such as
Zimbabwe, there is a need for a truth
recovery process. While accepting the
genuine doubts and fears around the
issue of 'Truth', it is clear that many
victims and survivors of the crises
in Zimbabwe believe that some formal
collective examination and
acknowledgement of the past is necessary for them
to find closure.
The
idea of truth recovery processes is based on the concept of
'transition',
from crisis to peace or from one government to another. At its
most basic, a
truth process is meant to mark the end of one difficult era
and the
beginning of a new and better one. It is completely unacceptable,
disrespectful and insensitive for any political leader to arrogate or
appropriate to himself/herself the right to grant pardon to individuals that
sponsored and committed human rights atrocities and state sponsored
terrorism since independence in 1980.
With or without a Truth and
Reconciliation Commission, only the people of
Zimbabwe can determine whether
or not to take legal action against those who
committed crimes against
humanity and genocide against defenceless citizens.
We would caution that
this is a highly delicate matter which if not handled
sensibly, could
trigger conflict and war in future.
The political leadership should honestly
and publicly acknowledge
responsibility for past political violence due to
their acts of omission and
commission. This would be seen as the first and
necessary step having the
potentiality of a larger process of truth
recovery. When acknowledgement is
forthcoming, we recommend that measured,
inclusive and in-depth
consideration be given to establishing an appropriate
and unique truth
recovery process. For this to develop, a team with local
and international
expertise should be established using a fair and
transparent method to
explore the specific feasibility of such a
process.
The specific purpose of a truth recovery process:
.Promote
reconciliation, peace and healing; and to reduce tensions resulting
from
past violence;
.Clarify and acknowledge as much unresolved truth about the
past as
possible;
.Respond to the needs and interests of
victims;
.Contribute to justice in a broad sense, ensure accountability and
responsibility for past actions from organisations and institutions, as well
as potentially from individuals;
.Identify the responsibilities of the
State, of military and police, and of
other institutions and organisations
for the violence of the past; and to
make recommendations for change that
will reduce the likelihood of future
conflict.
The truth recovery process
can take the form of any of the following:
Truth and Justice
Commission
Historical Clarification Commission
Truth and Reconciliation
Commission
Reconstruction
The new government would face the daunting
challenge of entrenching
democracy and peace, rebuilding the battered
economy and resuscitating
collapsed social services. The negotiations should
thus, come up with an
economic recovery framework. The economic
reconstruction is crucial to
restoring order and providing social security
for the generality of the
population. Without it, the negotiated settlement
will be meaningless to the
general public.
We recommend the
implementation of an emergency economic recovery plan to
curb inflation,
restore donor and foreign investor confidence and boost
mining and
agricultural production, including establishment of a Land
Commission with a
strong technocratic base and wide representation of
Zimbabwean stakeholders
to recommend policies aimed at ending the land
crisis. To this end we would
like the negotiators to engage with the
Brettonwoods institutions at various
levels of the negotiation process in
order to build the confidence for their
engagement in the reconstruction
phase of this conflict resolution process.
The Zimbabwean
LONDON
A friend of mine recently
came back from a trip home. Most of what he had
to say was what we all know
of, and have come to expect of Zimbabwe. What
struck me the most, and had me
thinking, was some of the stories he told me.
Without doubt, we are a
resilient people. The stories were of people's clubs
beating shortages and
of people pooling together to help the less fortunate;
of children facing
seemingly insurmountable challenges to go to school. He
told of a stop he
made at a market to buy some curios. One of the women he
bought from asked
if he had any Vaseline, old shoes or clothes to spare. She
asked most
importantly for any food like rice or mealie meal for her
children. She said
they were eager to go to school barefoot, if only she
could provide a solid
meal somehow.
It was a poignant reminder that there is hope, and there are
still people
out there who are the face of kindness, the face of the sense
of community
and generosity that once was the norm.
There are faceless
and nameless people out there doing what they can with
limited resources to
feed, clothe and educate children, to hold families
together, to survive.
Most importantly it reminded me of my duty and
responsibility to do my part
with whatever resources I have. It provided me
with the impetus to carry on,
to encourage, and to continue to make a
difference.
It was especially
relevant in the light of the UAY Fundraising & awareness
event held a
few months ago. The black tie ball held at the Crowne Plaza at
Royal
Victoria Dock was for United Action for Youth, a charity founded to
raise
funds and resources for youth underprivileged and orphaned by the
HIV/AIDS.
It was a well-attended event, by people from various
backgrounds and
nationalities. What was most encouraging was the feedback we
got from those
who attended. One shared perspective was that we were doing a
good thing.
A lady from Ghana said it was easy to become complacent, or
dismiss it as
someone else's problem and yet we could make a difference for
as little as
the cost of a can of Stella. A gentleman I met said that it was
important
that we were not only talking, but doing. He admired our courage
in the face
of need that would be there for the foreseeable future. Fellow
Zimbabweans
gave contacts of people they knew who were involved in other
charities,
while we inspired others to contact ex-school mates and start
their own. It
reminded some of a mustard seed, in that though tiny, it would
grow into a
tree, and hopefully that tree would yield further seed, and so
on.
I think a fitting summary of the event and the sentiment would be our
motto
' Love them, Serve them, Help them, The Youth, our
Future'.
Ignatius Chikambi, a trustee, gave a presentation highlighting the
facts
figures and statistics of HIV/Aids in Zimbabwe. This not only reminded
us of
the task at hand, but was informative and drove home the point that
consistent action was required.
We had a South African Acapella
performance from ladies that have worked
with among others Albert Nyati and
various South African artists.
We had a refreshing performance by another
trustee, Amanda Chikambi and her
friends. The theme of the dance was the
representation of the suffering of
Christ through and onto the cross. It
reinforced the shared belief of the
members of the charity, and was enjoyed
by Christian and non-Christian
alike.
We have the following events on the
cards:
* A charity musical gig in June, some up and coming artists will be
representing worldwide live music.
* A Charity album launch, featuring
some of the above artists.
* A Seaside event outdoor event followed by a
Ball.
* A Fun and Day, Fete and Outdoor music festival muted for July.
Be
sure not to miss any of this and watch the press for details. - Lovejoy
writes in his capacity of a trustee of United Action for Youth UK. United
Action for Youth (Reg. No. 1111613) is a bona fide charity registered in
theUK. He can be contacted at UAYUK@yahoo.co.uk or charity@uay.org.uk.
The Zimbabwean
HARARE
Some sections
of the Roman Catholic church in Zimbabwe have started lobbying
for President
Robert Mugabe to be ex-communicated for what some of them
describe as
"arrogance and stubbornness".
Sources said groups of youths and senior
members based in Harare and
Bulawayo have already started mobilizing among
the church leadership for the
church to maintain a tough stance of
condemning Mugabe and eventually
ex-communicate the aged dictator.
It
emerged that the manouevres have been going on for quite sometime now but
were accelerated by Mugabe's recent arrogant response to the condemnation of
his human rights abuses by the Catholic Bishops Conference.
Mugabe is a
Catholic himself, who was brought up under the church's
indoctrination at
Kutama Mission in Zvimba, his rural home.
"Many Catholics are ashamed by the
fact that Mugabe is a member of the
church but what more, he arrogantly
tells the bishops conference to go to
hell," a source said. "We are lobbying
for the conference to continue
condemning his leadership and ex-communicate
him. We have already written to
the conference urging them to issue another
pastoral letter denouncing
Mugabe's attempts at intimidating
them."
Mugabe responded to an objective and assessment and comment over the
political crisis affecting the country by threatening the bishops he alleged
were acting like politicians and would be treated as such by his regime.He
further insinuated that Archbishop Pius Ncube had influences the other
bishops and accused him of having always fought against his
government.
Ncube this week said Mugabe was a "troubled man who has reached a
dead-end
and now sees anyone who tells him the truth as an enemy". Ncube,
who
reiterated his call for Mugabe to go, said the issue of excommunicating
Mugabe would be considered by the church leadership if brought up by
members. - Itai Dzamara
The Zimbabwean
THE
MAVERICK
We need a people who are not afraid to hold their leaders
accountable for
their actions. '
John Makumbe writing in The Zimbabwean
of 27/10/06 highlighted a number of
headlines from the Manica Post that
portrayed the moral decline that has
taken place in Zimbabwe. Although I am
writing almost six months later the
situation is even worse, particularly if
Gideon Gono is correct and that we
are losing USD40m.to USD50m per week
through illegal mineral exports.
At the same time the Government approaches
the World Food Programme for Food
Aid of USD230m. The irony is sickening and
what is worse is that the WFP
will find the money and in so doing condone
the actions of a few. Corruption
is at an all time high or should I say has
sunk to levels unimaginable even
seven years ago.
As is normal, Makumbe
looks for someone to blame, who has caused this to
happen in this beautiful
country? He offers as a possible explanation, the
rot within the national
leadership. In my view this is only partially
correct.
If, as a nation,
we expected these leaders, mere men who by nature are
sinners, to govern us
responsibly without checks and balances then we have
the government that we
deserved. Since 2000 government has consistently
undermined the rule of law,
they have changed the laws to suit themselves,
and having done so they have
taken full advantage of the position that they
themselves have
created.
They believe that they are no longer accountable to anyone, least of
all
their constituents or, at the very least, the people who have voted to
keep
them in power. While they believe that this lack of accountability may
be
true in this life, it will not be true in the next. They will all have to
face a Judge whom they will not be able to bribe, intimidate, fire or
corrupt. As they have abandoned God's laws, God will nevertheless still hold
them accountable for all that they have done and the Day of Judgment draws
near.
Francis Schaeffer a Christian philosopher/thinker of the 20th
Century says
that "as man has set himself up as God in defiance of the moral
and
spiritual truth which God has given we will have moral breakdown in
every
area of life, as man cuts himself loose from his Christian restraints
in the
move towards freedom the result is destruction leading to chaos." For
those
of our leaders who have acknowledged Christ as their Lord and Saviour
and
who have nevertheless condoned or participated in the murder, mayhem and
corruption they will not escape God's judgment but will be judged even more
harshly; perhaps they should examine the Scriptures and repent before God,
before it is too late.
Makumbe suggests that, as a nation this country
needs God more than ever
now. We as a nation have at many and various times
had national days of
prayers, with the Scripture "if my people will humble
themselves and pray,
seek my face and turn from their wicked ways then I
will heal their land".
Earnest prayers have gone up before God for this land,
we have offered
prayers of repentance but, dare I say it, God has not yet
answered because
life has become more difficult. I suppose this begs the
question as to what
were we expecting when we prayed, were we expecting a
life where we could
live in peace and prosperity?
This has, until the
January2007 Monetary Policy statement, been the promise
of the Governor of
the RBZ and former Minister Murerwa. Meantime the
situation has got worse. I
have no doubt that God could intervene in the
situation should He choose to
do so. This is a very cynical thought and
perhaps if it had not been for the
work of many activists and what is left
of the independent press, the
situation in this country would have been
considerably worse. Perhaps our
prayers have indeed been holding back the
full force and face of evil in
this land.
We also now need men and women who know their God and are not
afraid to
speak out; we need a Daniel, or an Elijah who is not afraid to
confront the
rulers and point out the error of their ways, men and women who
will not be
corrupted with the offer of money or property or intimidated by
fear or
enticed by their own sense of self importance. More important,
however, is
an acknowledgement by our leaders, not only in government but
all sectors of
the community, that they have failed us and themselves, that
their/our lust
for individual and corporate power and unbridled greed, has
lead this nation
astray.
Our spiritual leaders have and are building
fancy buildings but ignore a
responsibility for confronting our world in
respect to truth and morality.
In the words of Francis Schaeffer "I think
when Christians get to heaven and
speak of how much they gave to missions,
to build schools and so on that the
Lord is going to tell them it would have
been better if they had less money
to give and had made their money with
justice." We need men and women in
leadership who know that they are
servants of the people and not rulers of
the people. There is a significant
difference. We need a people who are not
afraid to hold their leaders
accountable for their actions.
The Zimbabwean
Sokwanele - Enough is Enough
'What are we going to tell our grandchildren when they ask us what we
did to
try and stop one man from destroying our country?'
'Promoting
non-violent principles to achieve democracy'
The news that Bob is going to
step down after the 2008 elections should not
be greeted with relief but
with the disbelief and suspicion that it so
thoroughly deserves. We know all
too well from experience that this man's
word cannot be trusted and it is
folly for the press to even hint that we
should expect such a kind gesture
from the man who has ruined us.
There is something that seems to escape
public discourse in this country and
that is the fact that this man has
outwitted us from the word go. His plan
has been simple: acquire power and
having acquired it, retain it all costs
as the late Edson Zvobgo once
pointed out to us. His problem is not greed
for power as many have tried to
explain. The dilemma he has is the number of
atrocities that have been
committed under his watch and now he is afraid to
take the stand and account
for them. That is his problem.
Our problem, on the other hand, is we seem to
be content to wait him out as
if we are the ones in besieging the country.
We have given up all pretence
of resisting this man, and are now giving him
permission to take the country
down with him to guarantee his natural death
in office. When he dies in
office, he will have won. It is as simple as
that. It is either senility or
a natural death that will drive him out of
office.
This begs the question: Where is our manhood and womanhood that we
are
willing to go about our business of survival without resisting the
person
who has caused the mess in the first place? Where is our manhood when
we
leave it to WOZA to carry the protest on our behalf? Where is our
womanhood
when we stare in shock and awe when our fellow women are carted
away before
our very eyes each time they try and demonstrate in the streets
in
accordance with their constitutional right? Are we prepared to lose our
dignity to avoid being bashed? What are we going to tell our grandchildren
when they ask us what we did to try and stop one man from destroying our
country? Are we not men and women of honour?
Surely, since this man has
decided that he is staying in office, and damn
the consequences for the
country, we should take him up on his word and add
to his stomach ulcers and
headaches? We know from experience that he does
not intend, will not step
down from office.
How can an entire nation of people look the other way while
neighbours are
arrested, abducted, tortured or simply disappeared? How can
an entire nation
simply gratefully accept handouts from our children in the
diaspora when we
know they are not happy there? We know that a good number
of our children
are living in foreign lands with between zero and nil
dignity.
All of this to allow one man to die in office, one day in the
unknown
distant future, lest we annoy him? Are we willing for the
infrastructure to
absolutely fall to pieces before we can begin to rebuild?
Where is our sense
of outrage?
So what can you do individually to help
save our country from impending
disaster?
Write to every one you know
outside the country and get them to press
charges against him. He cannot get
away scot free.
Write to the press in South Africa and keep the pressure on
public opinion
there.
Write to your relatives who are currently outside
of the country and ask
them to come and vote. In fact, ask them to start
saving now for the trip
home so that their voice can be heard through the
ballot box.
Encourage every 18 year old you know to register and tell them
the future is
mostly in their hands. Tell them they must be the change they
so desperately
wish to see.
Go home in August and December and tell your
relatives two things: tell them
about the horrors of Murambatsvina, then if
you do not mind, tell them that
their vote is secret and that it has always
been.
Dispel once and for all the myth of sanctions.
Boycott all
government press and government linked businesses. Boycott
especially those
shops that you know are owned by members of the ruling
clique.
Register
to vote and on the day, make sure you turn up and cast that vote.
You cannot
afford to give up because you are tired of every thing, because
you think
elections will be rigged, because it was painful hearing the
results the
last time and whatever reasons you might have. Instead, think of
what
potential Zimbabwe has.
Think back on the first three years of independence
when everything seemed
to be on track before the mask slipped. Think of
where we could have been
had it not been for one man and think that we can
get there but only if we
start now. We have a window period here and now
before the rot gets beyond
repair.
What are you going to do?
The Zimbabwean
BY GOODMAN
MAJOLA
JOHANNESBURG
The South African government has abandoned its policy
of "quiet diplomacy"
on Zimbabwe, describing President Mugabe's government
as "intolerant" of
people's and workers' universal rights.
Addressing a
tripartite alliance recently, comprising the ruling African
National
Congress (ANC), the powerful Congress of South African Trade Unions
(COSATU)
and its South African Communist Party (SACP) allies, the Minister
of Safety
and Security, Charles Nqakula, deplored the gross violations of
citizens'
rights in Zimbabwe.
Nqakula's call has defied president Thabo Mbeki's
so-called "quiet
diplomacy", a situation that has exposed double standards
by the SA
government on the Zimbabwean crisis.
Nqakula, who is also the
South African Communist Party's chairperson,
blasted Mugabe for what he
described as "undermining" the rights of the
workers to celebrate workers
day.
Speaking at Jabulani Amphitheatre in Soweto recently he called upon
President Robert Mugabe to step down, arguing that the Zanu (PF) government
had denied workers the right to express their feelings during international
workers day on May 1, 2007.
"We are here today to celebrate workers day
but Zimbabweans are not allowed
by their government to celebrate this day.
We cannot completely celebrate
this day while our fellow brothers and
sisters are being tortured in our
neighbouring countries like Zimbabwe,"
said Nqakula.
He added that South African workers should support their
Zimbabwean
counterparts in order to enjoy what he termed "true
freedom".
This follows repeated calls by the COSATU General Secretary,
Zwelinzima
Vavi, for the crisis to be resolved as a matter of urgency before
the rot
spilled to other SADC regional member states.
Speaking at the
same ceremony, COSATU spokesperson Zenzile Zokwana also
called on Mugabe to
step down.
"Zimbabweans are brutally beaten by the Mugabe regime almost
everyday. An
old baboon doesn't mix with young ones. We say to Mugabe the
time has come
to hang up his boots," Zokwana said. -CAJ News
The Zimbabwean
HARARE - Amid
serious moves to have scores of Zanu (PF) chefs' children
deported from
Western schools and universities, an embattled Zimbabwe
government has
approached Britain's Cambridge examining board, cap in hand,
indicating it
was ready to revoke an eight-year-old decree by President
Robert Mugabe's
regime barring pupils in Zimbabwe from taking the
internationally recognised
examinations.
Official sources said Education minister Aeneas Chigwedere has
written to
the Cambridge International Examinations indicating that some
9,000 pupils
at Zimbabwe's independent schools are being forced to find
money and
resources to write their November examinations in neighbouring
African
countries.
Chigwedere was not immediately available for comment.
But reliable sources
revealed that government was eager to have the
Cambridge examinations
re-introduced at private schools only. The move is
part of covert manoeuvres
by Mugabe's embattled regime to shield the chefs'
children, who are set to
be deported soon under a proposed new sanctions
regime, from having to
convert hastily to a local examination of dubious
value.
Most Zanu (PF) chefs, including Mugabe, send their children to private
schools - and many have already had their children safely graduate with
Cambridge school-leaving examinations and move on to foreign
universities.
The Cambridge examination ban was imposed in 1999 by Chigwedere
- whose
child studied at a university in Canada - as part of what the Mugabe
regime
said was a drive to eradicate all "colonial" and "Western" influence.
The
Cambridge board, which has set examinations for schoolchildren in
Zimbabwe
for generations, has reportedly not yet responded.
There were
also concerns about the continued leaking of examination papers
from Zimsec
which has impacted negatively on the credibility of the local
examinations
board.
The Zimbabwean
BY OUR
CORRESPONDENT
HARARE
South African President Thabo Mbeki is expected in
Harare "very soon" to
break the political log-jam between the opposition and
the ruling Zanu (PF)
party.
The talks are regarded here as a last-ditch
effort to bring about a
settlement to the crisis, as state-sponsored
violence and mass hunger
escalate.
This is the first visit to the country
by Mbeki since his appointment by
SADC leaders as mediator in the Zimbabwean
crisis. He will face a very
stubborn Mugabe who has already set
pre-conditions to any talks - including
recognition by the MDC that he is
the legitimate head of state and action by
MDC to call off the imaginary
"sanctions" by western nations, which in
reality are nothing more than a
travel ban on Mugabe and his henchmen and an
arms embargo.
On the other
side he will face opposition leaders Morgan Tsvangirai and
Arthur Mutambara,
who will speak with one voice in demanding a halt to all
state-sponsored
violence and the repeal of repressive laws against public
meetings and the
press before negotiations can take place.
Official sources said Mbeki would
also discuss the MDC's proposal that
Mugabe step down and appoint a
successor to head a transitional government,
sharing power with the MDC
until elections are held. The opposition wants
the transitional authority to
be mandated with writing a new constitution,
leading to the holding of
internationally supervised, free and fair
elections.
Sources in Mbeki's
office indicated this week that both sides were expected
to make concessions
that had been unthinkable only a few months ago, given
the deepening
hardships here.
Sources said there was unlikely to be a public rebuke for
Mugabe or the
prospect of Mbeki raising the volume of his widely-discredited
"quiet
diplomacy" policy on Zimbabwe.
According to high-level sources,
Mbeki will not broach the so-called "exit
strategy" for Mugabe's retirement,
nor will he use as a lever South Africa's
supply of electricity to
Zimbabwe.
Mugabe reportedly wants assurances that he will be granted immunity
from
prosecution for alleged human rights abuses.
Tsvangirai indicated in
an editorial in the Washington Times last Friday
that he might consider an
amnesty for Mugabe, if that was what it took to
secure change. (See
p16)
Tsvangirai added to feverish speculation over Mugabe's fate when he
pledged
his support for "serious and sincere dialogue" between the two
parties to
resolve Zimbabwe's problems.
It is expected that Mbeki will
hail Mugabe as a leader of Africa in public,
while urging him to quit in
private.
But Mugabe is unlikely to heed calls for him to step down. The
83-year-old
leader has called a special Zanu (PF) congress in a desperate
bid to silence
critics opposed to his continued cling to power. The move is
also seen as a
strategy to elbow out Vice President Joice Mujuru, who has
been angling to
succeed the ageing leader.
The Zimbabwean
BY SPECIAL
CORRESPONDENT
HARARE
Zimbabwe's largest opposition party, the MDC led by
Morgan Tsvangirai, has
said it will boycott the forthcoming Zaka East
by-election, arguing it was a
waste of time contesting the poll when
government was due to dissolve
Parliament before the end of the year.
The
by-election, scheduled for June 9, is likely to be a two-horse race
pitting
Zanu (PF) against the Arthur Mutambara-led MDC.
The ruling Zanu (PF) party
has indicated it will field Retired Colonel
Livingstone Chineka when the
Nomination Court sits in Zaka tomorrow. The
Mutambara MDC was yet to
nominate its candidate at the time of going to
print.
MDC (Tsvangirai)
spokesman Nelson Chamisa said his party had identified six
candidates,
including three businessmen and three female candidates. But
after careful
consideration of the political and electoral environment, his
party resolved
to boycott the by-election as it was a waste of time, effort
and
resources.
"It doesn't make sense to continue to be sent on a wild goose
chase
considering that whoever is elected is going to meet the fate of a
dissolved
parliament," he said.
President Robert Mugabe is expected to
dissolve parliament before December,
a move which will cut the legislature's
lifespan by two years. He has
indicated he will invoke his Presidential
Powers to provide for the
so-called "harmonisation," a move which will see
presidential and
legislative elections held simultaneously in March next
year.
The 6th parliament's tenure was expected to run until 2010. But Mugabe,
facing a rising tide of opposition, has resolved to hold joint polls to
enable his Zanu (PF) MPs to help him in his presidential campaign.
The
MDC spokesman said the prelude to the poll had been characterised by
shocking violence against opposition members. In addition, the voters roll
was a shambles, traditional chiefs were doing the bidding for Zanu (PF) in
the rural constituency, the opposition party was being denied access to the
media and a partisan electoral commission was still in charge of running the
poll.
"There is need to remedy various areas of deficit in the electoral
system,"
Chamisa said.
He said delimitation was supposed to be done by an
independent body, not by
Zanu (PF), adding the voters roll should ensure
everyone is entitled to
vote, and that an independent electoral body should
take charge of
elections.
The MDC spokesman said traditional chiefs were
being used to intimidate
their subjects and were also using food as a
political weapon in the run-up
to the poll.
Chamisa said the MDC believed
repressive laws such as the Public Order and
Security Act (POSA) and the
Access to Information and Protection of Privacy
Act (AIPPA) should be
repealed.
"The MDC is being denied access to the media," Chamisa said. "Its
as if
there is no opposition. The opposition only exists when they accuse it
of
petrol bombing."
Chamisa said his party demanded a new constitution so
as to put a stop and
finality to the issue of contested electoral outcomes.
The Zimbabwean
Last Friday's arrest of two
lawyers while carrying out their lawful duties
in the High Court of Zimbabwe
is despicable and shows how desperate the
Mugabe regime has become to cling
to power at any cost.
Alec Muchadehama and Andrew Makoni were simply doing
what any lawyers in any
country are expected to do in order to defend their
clients, who had been
arrested on trumped-up charges and beaten and tortured
while in police
custody.
What they did is not an offence and cannot, by
any stretch of the
imagination, be construed to be an obstruction of
justice. But of course
that all depends on your definition of "justice".
Officers of the court
should not be molested and threatened in the way
Muchadehama and Makoni have
been by the Zimbabwean authorities.
What we
find particularly abhorrent is the threatening of their families by
suspected CIO agents.
The entire matter descended to the depths of
tragic-comedy when the
prosecutor - a government lawyer who correctly
discerned the folly of the
case - was assaulted by the police for having had
the temerity to agree to
release the two lawyers on bail.
He was
assaulted by none other than the head of the law and order
maintenance
section, assistant commissioner Mabunda. One of his officers,
detective
inspector Rangwani, threatened to beat other lawyers who had come
to his
offices to assist their colleagues.
Both these officers should, in our view,
be prosecuted - if not now, then
certainly one day.
As the Lawyers for
Human Rights said in their statement: "The entire law and
order section
continues to remain a law unto itself, and impunity for their
actions is
further entrenched as each day passes. Further, the continued
contempt of
court orders by the police has become an everyday phenomenon and
no person
is safe from those who are constitutionally obliged to protect the
people of
Zimbabwe. Such actions cannot be tolerated or condoned in a
democratic
society."
We appeal to President Thabo Mbeki to take note.
The Zimbabwean
HARARE
The Zimbabwe National
Water Authority (ZINWA) has come under more
condemnation as water problems
worsen under its management. The utility now
plans huge tariff hikes.
In
an unusual development, Water and Infrastructure Development minister
Munacho Mutezo this week joined the growing voices crying foul about ZINWA
when he blasted the utility over the worsening water problems in Harare and
other cities and towns.
Mutezo has been in the forefront of campaigning
for ZINWA to take-over water
and sewage reticulation services of cities and
towns saying it would provide
the panacea to the problems that have become a
permanent feature regarding
availability of water and servicing of sewage
systems.
Most parts of Harare, Chitungwiza, Norton and Ruwa have been without
water
for the past week despite recent assurances by ZINWAthat the situation
would
improve.
The same situation prevails in Bulawayo where the battle
is on as residents
fight for the reversal of the ZINWA take-over.
"It is
worrying that most places are having water problems and we are saying
to
ZINWA this must be addressed," Mutezo said. "The water authority must
correct this situation as a matter of urgency."
The Zimbabwean
The MDC
organising secretary in North West district, South Africa, Joshua
Rusere has
urged people to resort to music as a way of keeping up their
revolutionary
spirits.
Rusere awakened Zimbabweans in the Diaspora recently when he pointed
out
that revolutionary songs had contributed immensely to the victory won by
Zanu (PF) and Zimbabwe in 1980.
The renowned song composer for Margaret
Dongo's Zimbabwe's Union of
Democrats and MDC revolutionary songs in
Zimbabwe, Rusere said this soon
after he finished recording his first
acapella project in collaboration with
Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition.
"In
Zimbabwe people can no longer attend rallies freely and the press has
been
heavily thwarted, so the remaining alternative is circulating protest
music
cassettes and compact disks," said Rusere.
Parts of his protest album include
songs like Sendekera Mukoma, Changamire
tongai nevamwe and Jehovah chiona.
These tracks were recorded at one of
South Africa's top music studios to
ensure good quality. - Trust Matsilele