Zim Standard
BY CAIPHAS
CHIMHETE
HARD-UP civil servants last week spurned a government
salary hike
offer of 200%, describing it as peanuts.
They
threatened to stage another crippling strike, The Standard was
told last
week.
The teachers, who form a large segment of the civil service,
said if
government failed to review their salaries to their satisfaction,
they would
from next month teach for 10 days in a month.
Sources said government representatives and Civil Service Staff
Association
Apex Council - which represents the 180 000 civil servants - met
last week
but reached a deadlock, with the council demanding $2,6 million a
month for
the lowest paid civil servant.
The government had proposed a $200
000 housing allowance. They said
the transport allowance would not be
reviewed, as civil servants could use
Central Mechanical Equipment
Department (CMED) buses to and from work.
"We categorically
rejected that (offer) and told them (government)
civil servants were
prepared to go on strike again because they have been
reduced to paupers,"
said a source who attended the meeting. "The government
said it would come
back to us within a week or so, with refined proposals."
Had the
Apex council agreed to the 200% increment, the lowest paid
civil servant
would have ended up earning $241 000 a month.
The Consumer Council
of Zimbabwe has estimated that an average family
of five now needs about
Z$1.7 million to survive in just one month.
Most workers now earn
about $350 000 on average.
Chairperson of the Apex Council, Tendai
Chikowore, yesterday confirmed
meeting government representatives but denied
a deadlock.
"We are still negotiating," she said. "It would not be
honest on my
part to say that we reached a deadlock because we are still
talking."
Chikowore, the president of the Zimbabwe Teachers'
Association
(Zimta), declined to say how much the civil servants were asking
for, saying
it was "strictly confidential".
But Progressive
Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) secretary general,
Raymond Majongwe, said
his members would not accept anything below $4.2
million a month. Teachers
are also demanding monthly transport and housing
allowances of $420 000 and
$540 000 respectively.
"Teachers are not going to subsidize the
government any more. If our
demands are not met, teachers will come to work
for only ten days a month,"
Majongwe said.
He said their
salaries had been eroded by inflation, which currently
stands at 3 713.9%,
the highest in the world.
Over 4 500 teachers have left the
profession since the beginning of
this year due to poor pay and working
conditions. Some are now employed as
housemaids, gardeners and herdsmen in
Botswana and South Africa.
Majongwe dismissed the government's
failure to review transport
allowances, saying most teachers do not use CMED
buses since they only ferry
workers from government departments to their
homes. But most teachers
commuting between suburbs would not
benefit.
Moreover, they said, the majority are in rural areas. The
CMED buses
cost $1 500 a trip but are not always on the road due to
mechanical faults.
The chairman of the Public Service Commission
(PSC) Mariyawanda Nzuwah
could not be reached for comment.
In
February, civil servants were granted a 300% salary increment after
they
went on a "go-slow", for better pay. Three months down the line, the
workers
say hyperinflation, has wiped out their pay rise.
If the demands by
teachers and civil servants are not met, they will
join doctors and nurses,
who are already on strike over better pay and
working
conditions.
A junior doctor earns about $600 000 a month but takes
home about $1.1
million with allowances. Senior nurses, like schoolteachers,
earn $500 000 a
month.
Zim Standard
OTTAWA -
The Canadian Senate last week voted to cut diplomatic ties with Zimbabwe in
protest at
human rights excesses by President Robert Mugabe's security
forces as
Australia began measures to identify and deport family members of
Zimbabwe's
ruling elite.
The largely ceremonial but influential
Canadian Senate last week
unanimously passed a motion by Conservative
Senator, Hugh Segal - signalling
growing consensus of displeasure among
Canada's politicians at the political
situation in Zimbabwe.
In
Australia, authorities said they were investigating whether family
members
of the ruling regime are living in Australia, as the Australian
government
said it could employ "smart sanctions" and kick out relatives of
those
running Zimbabwe in order to pile further pressure on Mugabe's
regime.
Canada's foreign policy newsweekly, Embassy, said the
motion by the
senators will now move on to the House of Commons, where Segal
said he had
already garnered the support of MPs.
"It will send
a signal to the people of Zimbabwe that Canada is very
concerned with the
lack of democracy," Segal told Embassy. "The best way to
stand up for the
people of Zimbabwe is to withdraw our diplomatic mission to
make it clear
that it is not business as usual, that we view this as a
crisis."
The Senate vote follows concerted efforts by Liberal
MP, Keith Martin,
who, for more than two years now, has been demanding that
Mugabe be indicted
under Canada's crimes against humanity laws.
Three weeks ago Martin lobbied the Chinese parliamentary foreign and
defence
committee to use China's close relationship with Zimbabwe to
persuade Mugabe
to leave power. He admitted that the Chinese snubbed him
arguing that they
did not intervene in other countries' affairs.
Martin has also
demanded that Zimbabwe's Ambassador there, Florence
Chi-deya, be expelled
for working for a "brutal regime."
The Senate action also comes
after the local branch of the Movement
for Democratic Change (MDC) marched
on the Zimbabwean and South African
diplomatic missions in Ottawa with the
support of Amnesty International and
Oxfam.
Two weeks ago MDC
faction leader Arthur Mutambara met Canadian Foreign
Affairs Minister, Peter
MacKay, who promised moral support.
But the government has been
under pressure to go beyond the "we
condemn" and act to punish the Zimbabwe
regime for physically attacking
lawyers, journalists, opposition and civic
leaders as well as ordinary
Zimbabweans suffering under an oppressive
political system and an
unsustainable economy.
Meanwhile, the
Australian Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, said
Canberra was looking at
blocking relatives of Zimbabwe's ruling elite from
being educated in
Australia. - MAP Feature service.
Zim Standard
By Nqobani
Ndlovu
BULAWAYO - A Bulawayo High Court judge has ordered the
police to evict
a mining company that illegally took over a Masvingo gold
mine with the
assistance of the late deputy minister, Tinos Rusere, and
government
officials in the Ministry of Mines and Mining
Development.
The government was in February charged with contempt
of court after
ministry officials, including the late Rusere, assisted Fred
Moyo of Larmona
Enterprises to illegally take over Lennox Mine from
Knobthorn Mining
Company.
Although the minister, Amos Midzi was
cited as a respondent in the
case in his official capacity, affidavits
lodged with the High Court
indicated it was Rusere who last year helped Moyo
to evict Knobthorn in
violation of a court order.
Despite
several High Court orders instructing Larmona Enterprises to
vacate the
mine, Moyo with the backing of government officials refused to
budge.
On Wednesday, Justice Maphios Cheda ordered Mashava
police and "all
other members of the Zimbabwe Republic Police" to forcibly
evict the company
from the property.
"It is ordered that the
Officer in Charge, Mashava Police Station and
all other members of the
Zimbabwe Republic Police there stationed be and are
hereby directed to give
all the necessary assistance that the Deputy Sheriff
may require in carrying
out the eviction in terms of the Order of this Court
in Case No HC 2905/06,"
Cheda said.
Knobthorn Mining contested their eviction last year
from Lennox Mine
by Moyo's Larmona Enterprises with the help of Rusere, a Mr
Wekwete who is
the provincial mining commissioner, and Mr F Furusa, the
regional mining
engineer, through lawyer Josephat Tshuma of Webb, Low &
Barry.
The eviction was carried out despite a relief order by High
Court
Judge Francis Bere on 20 July last year "ordering the respondents not
to
evict the applicant from Lennox Mine save by reason of an order by a
court".
In the court application, Moyo, a company director,
Wekwete, Furusa,
the Officer in Charge of Mashava police station and Midzi -
in his official
capacity -are cited as the first, second, third, fourth,
fifth and sixth
respondents respectively.
Documents at hand say
Nathaniel Siwela, the managing director of
Knobthorn Mining Company which
owns Lennox Mine, received eviction threats
in April after Moyo wrote to him
and the Mining Commissioner expressing an
interest in the mine.
On 21 April 2006 through a P Shumba, the mining commissioner, Rusere
ordered
Knobthorn to vacate Lennox Mine after he was approached by Moyo.
Siwela made an urgent chamber application, case number. HC 933/06,
seeking
an interdict barring his eviction from Lennox Mine.
But Moyo on 10
May also issued summons at the High Court in Harare,
case number, HC 2601/06
seeking the eviction of Knobthorn and payment of
holding over damages to the
sum of $400 million a month calculated to the
date of vacation.
Zim Standard
BY CAIPHAS
CHIMHETE
SCORES of opposition Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC) activists
have gone into hiding over the past few months as political
repression by
State security agents mounts ahead of next year's elections,
The Standard
has been told.
Others have fled the country to
seek political asylum abroad fearing
for their lives as the Zanu PF regime
intensifies the political heat.
Since March this year, the Central
Intelligence Organisation (CIO),
soldiers and police have abducted, tortured
and murdered opposition
supporters in a terror campaign apparently designed
to frighten them as the
elections draw near.
The MDC
spokesperson, Nelson Chamisa, confirmed the opposition
leadership and
supporters were under siege.
"Our structures are under siege
countrywide," he said. "Our supporters
are being subjected to terror and
psychological persecution by this rogue
government and as a result a lot of
them have gone into hiding or have left
the country."
Chamisa
could not supply figures, but in its latest report the
Zimbabwe NGO Human
Rights Forum supports the opposition's general claims of
persecution.
It says politically-motivated abductions, torture,
murder and violence
by State security agents against opposition members and
human rights
defenders have reached alarming levels as the country gears for
next year's
harmonised elections.
"Zimbabwe again witnessed
despicable levels of politically motivated
violence perpetrated by state
agents, including the ZRP, CIO, alleged Zanu
PF supporters and in some
instances, suspected MDC supporters," says the
report.
In March
alone, there were 128 cases of assault, eight of abductions,
168 of torture
while one person was murdered, says the report.
More than 200
people, mostly MDC supporters, were arrested unlawfully.
According
to the report there were 254 cases of torture, 356 of
assault, 1 444
violations on the rights to freedom of association, assembly
and movement
between January and March.
The human rights forum says following
the disruption of the Save
Zimbabwe Campaign prayer meeting by the police on
11 March in Harare, an
orgy of violence and resurgence in abductions
ensued.
On that day, National Constitutional Assembly (NCA)
activist Gift
Tandare was shot dead by the police. MDC president Morgan
Tsvangirai,
Chamisa, Grace Kwinjeh, Sekai Holland and Lovemore Madhuku of
the National
Constitutional Assembly were among those brutally
assaulted.
A few days later, journalist Edward Chikomba was
murdered by suspected
State security agents for allegedly supplying footage
of a battered
Tsvangirai to the international media.
Chamisa
said of the three million Zimbabweans in South Africa, about
75% were MDC
supporters fleeing economic impoverishment and political
persecution.
Asked if the exodus was not a form of political
cowardice, Chamisa,
who himself survived a brutal attack by suspected State
security agents in
March said: "A temporary avoidance of calamity is not
surrender. It's no use
to have a dead hero. It would not add value to the
struggle if all our
supporters were going to be corpses and
graves."
Chamisa said the MDC leadership would continue to provide
political
guidance to its members abroad.
"The war is being
waged from all fronts," he said.
MDC legislator for Chitungwiza and
the party's shadow minister of
education, sport and culture, Fidelis Mhashu,
went into hiding after police
accused him of having helped his assistant,
Shame Wakatama, to evade police
investigations into his involvement in
terror activities.
Former MDC legislator for Chimanimani Roy
Bennett, skipped the country
last year, but has now been granted political
asylum in South Africa. He had
been implicated in an alleged plot to kill
Mugabe after a cache of arms was
found in Mutare.
MDC
pro-Senate spokesperson Gabriel Chaibva indicated that no members
of his
faction were in hiding or had fled the country.
"All our members
are active on the ground. No one is in hiding or has
skipped the country,"
Chaibva said.
The human rights forum has urged Mugabe to desist
from using "hate
speeches and statements" that fuel political
divisions.
But the 83-year-old leader, who has ruled the country
for the past 27
years, is determined to cling to power at any cost, as he is
standing again
for election as president next year, his 28th year in
power.
Zim Standard
By Foster
Dongozi
WHILE driving into Harare from Bulawayo recently, a
colleague not too
well-acquainted with different crops wondered loudly what
the lush green
produce growing just outside Norton was called.
Another member of the travelling party, sounding bored, muttered
sarcastically: "It's sora beans. The new farmer was hoping to grow soya
beans but ended up growing wild grass."
Sora is grass in
Shona.
As we cast our minds to the state of agriculture a few years
ago, I
reminded my colleagues of a statement made by a government minister,
Webster
Shamu, at a field day for Delta chief executive, Mutizwa last
year.
Shamu had, in the presence of senior Zanu PF and government
stalwarts - among them junior minister, Patrick Zhuwawo and RBZ governor,
Gideon Gono - bemoaned the collapse of agriculture.
Mutizwa's
rose farm is just outside Norton and Shamu spoke
passionately about how, in
the past, driving into Harare was always a joy as
one would always be met by
lush crops as they neared the capital.
The hills on the right as
you approached Harare were emblazoned with
the words Kintyre
Estates.
Shamu recounted how the foothills were populated by
hundreds of dairy
cows which produced much milk for the
country.
The collapse of agricultural production is not confined to
Kintyre
Estates but has been replicated around the country as bewildered and
clueless new commercial farmers ponder where and how to access finance and
farming skills.
A drive along Chinhoyi road in the prime
farming province of
Mashonaland West will reveal that not much agriculture
is taking place.
The only viable project being run by most of the
new farmers is the
sale of firewood, now popular as many urban households go
for days without
electricity.
Game meat is another "viable"
product being "produced" by the new
farmers.
When the
government embarked on the chaotic land reform exercise to
buy votes ahead
of the 2000 elections, it resulted in the destruction of
what had become one
of the most sophisticated agro-based economies in the
world.
Critics of land reform say, instead of unskilled, senior government,
Zanu PF
and military officers taking up prime land, black graduates from
agricultural colleges should have been allocated the land and given
financial assistance.
With senior government officials and
senior military officers now
occupying the best land, production has dropped
spectacularly, with Zimbabwe
reduced to importing maize from Malawi and
Zambia.
Some farmers who lost their land fled to Zambia and Malawi;
for the
first time in years, the two countries have surplus maize to export
to their
starving neighbour.
The vandalism of farm equipment by
farm invaders and the mass
slaughter of animals have pushed back Zimbabwean
agriculture by decades.
It is this which forced President Robert
Mugabe to create the
Agricultural Mechanisation ministry, which basically
means its core business
will be importing tractors, combine harvesters and
planters from China.
Yet despite the well-documented failure by the
new farmers, the
government is going ahead with its latest "final solution"
- to banish the
few remaining white commercial farmers.
Emily
Crookes, the spokesperson for the Commercial Farmers' Union of
Zimbabwe,
says:
"It is correct to say that there has been an increase of late
in the
incidence on productive farms, with new beneficiaries, some in
possession of
offer letters, threatening farmers with immediate eviction and
seizure of
farm equipment.
"These attempts to move farmers off
productive farms and to seize
equipment are not in accordance with the law.
It is a matter of considerable
concern that productive farmers are being
targeted when so much arable land
lies idle throughout the
country."
John Worsley-Worswick, the chief executive of Justice for
Agriculture
which fights for the farmers' human rights, said since the land
invasions,
agriculture had been dealt a body blow.
"Take
tobacco for example: commercial farmers produced 240 million kg
in 2000
compared with 54 million in 2006 by the new farmers. A projection
that this
year the new farmers will produce 80 million kg is propaganda. A
reasonable
projection would be between 40 and 45 million kg."
The commercial
beef herd stood at 400 000 in 2000; in 2006, it was
down to 100
000.
Worsley-Worswick said according to statistics, in 2000,
commercial
farmers produced 810 000 tonnes of maize; the new farmers
produced 225 000
tonnes in 2006.
There have generally been
dismal agricultural performances on the
large estates to which Zanu PF
heavyweights helped themselves.
Most have presided over the
collapse of the farms, resulting in food
deficits, officially blamed on
sanctions and drought.
The drought appears not to affect other
countries in the region.
Zambia and Malawi, for instance, have enough to
export to Zimbabwe. And
irrigation systems ensured production.
Zim Standard
By Bertha
Shoko
THE National Aids Council said last week its Expanded
Support
Programme is expected to put at least 20 000 more people on
Antiretroviral
Drugs (ARVs) after donations of more than US$3
million.
The NAC has in the past been accused of mismanaging
taxpayers' money
compulsorily collected through the National Aids Trust
Funds (NATF), better
known as the Aids Levy.
Last week, the NAC
received the huge donation from Irish Aid and the
Swedish International
Development Agency (SIDA). These two donors have each
pledged their support
for the next three years. The assistance will be used
to scale up HIV and
Aids interventions in 12 districts in the country.
The total
Swedish support for the three-year period is 45 million
Swedish kroner
(US$6.5million).
The ESP is a joint NAC and United Nations
bilateral effort aimed at
rapidly expanding HIV and Aids services in
Zimbabwe and the key areas of
intervention will be care, prevention and
treatment.
The ESP was initiated in November 2006 in order to
facilitate a
significant increase in the funding to complement existing
financial
resources towards the attainment of goals of the recently launched
Zimbabwe
National HIV and Aids Strategic Plan (ZNASP).
The
ZNASP goals include to prevent new HIV infections, to improve the
quality of
life of those infected and affected by HIV and Aids and
strengthen
coordination of the HIV and Aids response at all levels.
This
initiative has the support of several bilateral donors together
with six
United Nations agencies in Zimbabwe under the leadership of the
NAC, in an
effort to complement other resources available for HIV and Aids
in Zimbabwe
through the government.
These include the Aids levy, the Global
Fund (Round One) and from
other donors such as the United States and the
European
Commission.
The ESP has disbursed US$14 million
so far and expects to disburse a
further amount later in 2007.
The UN agencies to provide technical support for implementation of the
ESP
include the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and Aids, United
Nations
Children's Fund, United Nations Population Fund, World Health
Organisation
and the United Nations Development Fund.
The International
Organisation of Migration is also part of this
partnership.
In
an interview with Standardhealth on Thursday NAC executive director
Dr
Tapuwa Magure said a huge chunk of the money donated under the ESP would
be
used to procure ARVs and ensure that more people access the
life-prolonging
drugs.
Magure said: "The ESP will strengthen an integrated HIV and
Aids
response in up to 16 districts during the first year of implementation.
This
new support would contribute significantly to the goal of providing
universal access to prevention services and antiretroviral
therapy.
"With support from the ESP, the Ministry of Health and
Child Welfare
will be able to provide life-saving antiretroviral drugs to an
additional 20
000 people living with HIV. The majority of these will be in
rural areas."
Magure said the other money would be channelled
towards prevention
efforts. Of the more than 1.8 million living with HIV and
Aids in the
country, only 40 000 are accessing ARVs compared with the 600
000-plus in
urgent need of the drugs.
Zim Standard
By Foster
Dongozi
SOUTH African higher education students say they intend
to mount
pressure on their government to ensure Zimbabwe stops attacks on
journalists, students, the opposition and civic society before talks with
the opposition begin.
South African President Thabo Mbeki has
been assigned by the Southern
African Development Community (Sadc) to
initiate dialogue between President
Robert Mugabe's Zanu PF and the two
factions of the opposition Movement for
Democratic Change
(MDC).
The students were part of a six-member delegation which
sneaked into
the country last week - for fear of being deported by an
increasingly
nervous and violent government - to conduct secret talks with
opposition
elements.
They represent 700 000 students in South
Africa.
One of the delegates, Daluxolo Jacobs, is the secretary for
international affairs in the South African Students Congress, an affiliate
of the ruling African National Congress.
Before leaving
Zimbabwe, he said as part of their efforts to highlight
human rights
violations in Zimbabwe, they would join other students under
the SAUS to
demonstrate in their country against escalating violence against
civilians
in Zimbabwe.
"The demonstrations against the poor human rights
situation in
Zimbabwe will be held on 25 May, Africa Day, throughout South
Africa," said
Jacobs.
He said they were in the country at the
invitation of the Zimbabwe
National Students' Union (Zinasu).
Jacobs said during their stay in Zimbabwe, they witnessed for
themselves the
levels of human rights violations on the newly-resettled
farms.
He said they had also seen the spectacular collapse of the educational
sector.
"There should be a serious change as far as the
situation of human
rights is concerned in Zimbabwe."
Jacobs
said their delegation was appalled at the dilapidation of the
institutions
of higher learning.
"The University of Zimbabwe is a health hazard
and should be closed.
What we saw was horrible; toilets have not been
functioning for a long time,
to the extent that students have to relieve
themselves in the university
grounds."
Their visits had
revealed that out of 30 faculties at the University
of Zimbabwe, only four
were partly operational, as others had no lecturers.
The SA
students were in the country following the arrests and
detention of scores
of tertiary students who complained about poor college
payouts and the poor
educational delivery system.
Some of the students are still in
police custody.
A representative from the South African Students'
Union said: "Our
support for our comrades in Zimbabwe has moved from being
oral to physical.
We do not support the MDC or Zanu PF, but we support the
people of Zimbabwe.
From what we have observed, the crisis in Zimbabwe is
not because of land
redistribution or the threats to your sovereignty; it is
a governance
issue."
The South African delegation is the latest
to come on a fact-finding
mission after the Sadc Lawyers' Association came
into the country last week
on a similar mission.
The African
Union's Pan African Parliament has voted to send a similar
fact-finding
mission to Zimbabwe.
Joram Gumbo, a senior Zanu PF official has
hinted the African
legislators could be barred from entering
Zimbabwe.
Mugabe withdrew Zimbabwe from the Commonwealth in 2003
after the
multiracial group, meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, refused to lift its
suspension
of Zimbabwe for human rights violations.
Zim Standard
BY OUR
STAFF
IF Alexeos Maziyikana from The Standard's marketing staff
had first
thought the ideas whirling in his head, he would have shouted
"Pamberi
nebasa". But he was pre-occupied just trying to cope with the
innumerable
hardships that litter the Zimbabwean landscape.
He
thought he was exercising his right to free expression when he
asked - no
one in particular - why of a poor vendor struggling to fend for
his family,
should be handcuffed after municipal police arrested him along
Harare's
Kwame Nkrumah Avenue.
But these days there are so many government
spies lurking in our
midst. One of these heard Maziyikana exercise his
freedom of speech on
Thursday. Maziyikana was immediately accused of being a
"street lawyer" and
arrested. He was later released.
In a day
full of drama, an Inspector Chinembiri from Harare Central
Police Station
called The Standard photographer, Boldwill Hungwe, and
advised him to report
to Harare Central.
His crime, it appears, was the front page
photograph published in last
Sunday's issue of The Standard. The photograph
showed the results of the
savage beatings of human rights lawyer and
president of the Law Society of
Zimbabwe, Beatrice Mtetwa.
Davison Maruziva, the Editor of The Standard, described the incidents
as
"pure harassment designed to send shivers down the spines of independent
journalists".
"The intention is to scare us away from covering
their acts of naked
brutality," Maruziva said: "For anyone to suggest
otherwise is to add insult
to injury of those caught up in the State's
terror crusade.
"First, it was the leaders of the opposition and
civic society; then
their supporters; and the lawyers who defended them. Now
they are coming for
the messengers who carry images of their excesses to the
wider domestic and
international public.
"They would be happy
to continue with their savagery away from the
glare of the
media."
This is not the first time the paper has received veiled
intimidation.
Recently, Bill Saidi, the deputy Editor of The Standard,
received a bullet
in the mail after publishing a cartoon showing baboons
poking fun at an army
officer's pay- slip.
But the world is
watching and this week it passed a verdict on the
gallant efforts of The
Standard and the Zimbabwe Independent: The board of
the International
Publishers' Association (IPA) awarded Trevor Ncube, the
publisher of the two
newspapers the 2007 IPA Freedom Prize in recognition of
his role in
promoting freedom of expression.
"Trevor Ncube's work as a
publisher and his wholehearted support of
freedom of expression," said IPA
president Ana Maria Cabanellas, "have often
brought him into conflict with
Zimbabwean authorities and endangered his
personal safety.
"Despite repeated threats of violence and attempts to strip him of his
Zimbabwean citizenship, Ncube's newspapers have continued to expose
corruption and human rights abuses in Zimbabwe, thus encouraging healthy
dissent and criticism both in public and private sectors."
Zim Standard
BY WALTER
MARWIZI
SQUABBLING over Zvobgo Holdings (Pvt) Ltd continues
amid allegations
the executor of the estate failed for almost three years to
get audited
financial statements for the companies.
Eddison
Mudadirwa Zvobgo, a lawyer and Zanu PF's legal guru, died on
22 August 2004
and was declared a national hero.
His death sparked a bitter
dispute over his estate between his three
children with his late wife Julia
- Kerina, Edison Jnr and Tsungi - and
those born out of
wedlock.
The case spilled into the courts, with the High Court
ruling that the
four children born out of wedlock - Jonas, Esther, Tendayi
and Farayi - were
entitled to a fair share of their father's
estate.
Sources familiar with the case told The Standard yesterday
the four
had already benefited from the first distribution of the estate
held by
Zvobgo in his individual capacity, but were yet to benefit from the
vast
business empire he left behind.
The late founder member of
Zanu PF held significant shareholding in
three hotels: Protea Flamboyant,
Chevron (both in Masvingo) and Fairmile
Motel in Gweru.
Zvobgo
also had shareholdings in Les Diz Properties, Nyuni Farm,
Sunrise Holdings
(1990), Zvobgo Investments and in Nuvuzeze Property and
Investments, trading
as Ritz Night Club, a popular night spot in Masvingo.
The Standard
was told the business empire, estimated to be worth
billions of dollars, was
being run by Eddison Jnr, a Zanu PF Masvingo
politician.
Cecil
Madondo, appointed executor of the Estate on 20 October 2005,
accuses Zvobgo
Jnr of abusing estate property and failing to co-operate with
the
distribution of the estate.
A few days ago, Madondo lodged a High
Court application seeking an
order to compel Zvobgo Jnr to produce audited
financial statements covering
a three-year period.
Madondo
wants Zvobgo Jnr to furnish him "with all details regarding
the shareholding
structure in each company or subsidiary, particularly in
relation to
shareholding interest of the deceased".
He wants current values of
all assets belonging to Zvobgo Holdings and
its subsidiaries.
He is suing Zvobgo Jnr for the use of luxury vehicles without his
consent.
In the summons issued to Zvobgo Jnr, Madondo says:
"During the period
extending from August 2004 to January 2007, the Defendant
wrongfully and
unlawfully used two motor vehicles, namely a Mercedes Benz
ML500 belonging
to the Estate without the consent of the Executor, thus
prejudicing the
Estate and other beneficiaries."
As a result,
Madondo is "praying for judgement in the sum of $35 512
813.90 together with
interest thereon at the prescribed rate of interest
currently at 30% per
annum from 12 February, being date of demand to date of
payment in
full".
He wants Zvobgo Jnr to bear the cost of the
suit.
Zvobgo Jnr told The Standard yesterday from Zaka East where
Zanu PF
was launching an election campaign for the constituency that the
case had
been resolved amicably.
"My understanding is that the
executor has withdrawn his application
from the courts," he said. "We have
sat down and discussed the issue. The
application was premature and has been
withdrawn. If it hasn't been
withdrawn, then I am sure it will be on
Monday."
He blamed his failure to respond in time to issues raised
by the
executor on bureaucracy.
"Zvobgo Holdings is a large
organisation - these things happen."
Zim Standard
By Pindai Dube/Nqobani
Ndlovu
BULAWAYO - Zimbabwe's frail dollar plumbed fresh depths
to hit $38 000
to the greenback on the thriving parallel market, reinforcing
gloomy
forecasts of an unprecedented acceleration in the rate of
inflation.
The dollar which opened the year trading above $2 900 to
the United
States dollar was trading above $30 000 the previous Friday and
last week
was fetching above $38 000 to the greenback.
Other
major currencies, mainly the British pound, the South African
rand and
Botswana pula, were moving around the benchmark US dollar rate.
The
local unit was trading above $64 000, $5 400 and $4 500 to the
British
pound, the Botswana pula and the South African rand respectively.
The previous week the dollar was trading at $60 000, $4 500 and $3 900
to
the pound, pula and rand respectively. The three currencies had opened
the
year trading above $5 100, $400 and $380 to the pound, pula and
rand.
Foreign currency dealers in Bulawayo said the fall of the
country's
dollar was fuelled by a increase of fuel during the
weekend.
Fuel stations in Bulawayo have upped pump prices to
between $35 000
and $40 000 a litre from between $22 000 and $26 000. The
increase in fuel
prices has sparked a wave of increase in transport and
basic commodities.
The local unit has remained fixed at $250 to the
greenback on the
inter-bank rate since July 31 last year.
Bank
economists said the Zimbabwe dollar was still battling to find a
bottom on
the parallel market due to escalating demand from both
institutional buyers
and individuals trying to escape inflation-induced
losses on local currency
holdings.
Parallel market dealers said the currency had been moving
daily during
the week in line with mounting demand. Economic consultant John
Robertson
said parallel market rates would continue to rise until foreign
currency
inflows improved and major sectors of the economy start
performing.
"The hyperinflationary environment had made it
unattractive to hold
the local currency when costs for goods and services go
up almost every
day," Robertson said.
He said the market was
expecting Reserve Bank governor Gideon Gono to
adjust the exchange rate
significantly. Economic research and consultancy
firm, Techfin Research has
forecast Zimbabwe's embattled domestic currencys
to have a fair value rate
of $16 588,73 to the US dollar.
The projections support gloomy
forecasts made by the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) suggesting
Zimbabwe's economic crisis was likely to
accelerate at an unprecedented rate
this year.
The IMF expects inflation to average 6 470% by December
next year.
Zimbabwe's vulnerable currency atypically firmed against
major
currencies once this year during the first week on April.
It
was the first time that the US dollar had taken a step back on the
parallel
market since November last year.
David Mupamhadzi, Zimbabwe Allied
Banking Group (ZABG) group economist
said the firming of the Zimbabwe dollar
on the parallel market against most
major currencies showed that the market
was a reflection of demand and
supply.
"It was a clear
testimony of the forces of demand and supply at work.
The movement of the
rate was due to increased demand from the big buyers in
the market,"
Mupamhadzi said.
Genesis Bank economist, Brains Muchemwa said it
will be difficult to
protect the value of the dollar because of high broad
money supply growth,
struggling exporters and insignificant overseas
assistance and waning
foreign direct investment.
"As long as
inflation remains as high as it is now even the basic
approach of using the
purchasing power parity to forecast exchange rate will
tell you that the
exchange rate will continue depreciating." Muchemwa said.
Muchemwa
said the rate of depreciation will depend on the excess of
domestic broad
money growth net of foreign currency inflows.
"The current rate is
definitely linked to supply and demand, but
because of uncertainty and
varying contingent risks facing the big consumers
of foreign currency we
cannot rule out pronounced volatility of the exchange
rate," said
Muchemwa.
Zim Standard
By Pindai
Dube
THE Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe (MMCZ) has
lost a
significant market share for local minerals in the lucrative European
Union
(EU) due to Zimbabwe's worsening relations with the trading bloc,
Standardbusiness learnt last week.
The corporation, the sole
buyer and seller of minerals, except gold
and platinum, has in the past four
months tried in vain to negotiate mineral
deals with buyers in the
EU.
But it is now reported the efforts have not yielded any
tangible
results so far, due to the strained relations between Zimbabwe and
most
European countries.
The EU and the United States have
since 2002 maintained targeted
sanctions against President Robert Mugabe,
his cabinet colleagues and most
senior members of his Zanu PF ruling
party.
The sanctions were instituted as punishment for the
government's human
rights violations, particularly the violence against
opposition elements.
MMCZ public relations manager Pretty Murwisi
confirmed last week the
corporation was now pursuing new markets in Asia
after the bid to regain its
market share in the EU hit a snag.
"It is true that we are pursuing new markets in the Middle East and
China,"
Murwisi said.
"I can actually say we are looking for new markets in
all parts of the
world.
"As for the EU, I can't say we have
dropped business deals there, but
we are still dealing with a few European
countries, such as France and
Belgium."
The MMCZ is among
parastatals reeling under financial problems
worsened by the seven-year
economic crisis triggered by the land reform
fiasco.
Mineral
experts have bemoaned the corporation's failure to lobby for
the lifting of
the ban on Zimbabwean asbestos to South Africa, another blow
to the mining
industry's contribution to exports.
A joint venture marketing deal
between the MMCZ and JNMC Limited, a
Chinese marketing firm, that targeted
new markets in the Far East collapsed
early this year under unclear
circumstances.
Zim Standard
By Pindai
Dube
UNITED Refineries Limited (URL) has struck a deal with a
group of
Zimbabwean businesspeople based in South Africa which will see the
struggling company venturing into salt exploitation in the Bulilima district
of Matabeleland South.
Sources told Standardbusiness last week
the Zimbabwe Stock
Exchange-listed company had merged with the injiva to
start exploiting the
salt deposits discovered in Bambadzi area of Bulilima
in 2001.
Injiva, whose origins remain somewhat obscure, is Ndebele
for
Zimbabweans operating businesses in South Africa.
It has
been reported that the scarcity of salt on the local market,
coupled with
the high cost of importing it from Botswana, had prompted URL
management to
enter into the deal with the injiva.
URL managing director, Busisa
Moyo, said the company and its partners'
consortium was currently working on
plans to start exploiting the salt
deposits.
The company is the
second largest cooking oil and soap manufacturer in
Zimbabwe.
"Salt is one of the major raw materials we use especially in soap
making.
All along, we have been importing salt at a high price from
Botswana, but
with this new project we hope to cut costs," said Moyo.
He would
not name the South Africa-based partners but sources familiar
with both
parties cited Micah Ndlovu, owner of Micah Security Alarms in
South Africa,
and a Charles Moyo.
The Bulilima salt deposits stretch for about
20km along Maitengwe
River, before proceeding to Botswana, now one of Sadc's
biggest salt
exporters.
If successful, the project on the
Zimbabwean side would be a boost to
the struggling Bulawayo
company.
There are reports URL has considered an approach to the
government in
the hope of accommodation under the Distressed Companies Fund,
used to bail
out private companies in trouble.
One of URL's
majority shareholders, TA Holdings Limited, has
threatened to dispose of its
20% shareholding, citing poor performance,
blamed on management
inefficiency.
The company's turnover for the year ended December
2006 plunged 51%
from $11.3 billion in the prior year to $5.5 billion. The
company was
reportedly operating at below 20% capacity.
from $8, 9 billion to 3, 9 billion and profit after tax stood at 1, 6
billion from 2, 9 billion in 2005.
Zim Standard
IN a bid to consolidate returns,
high-flying
financial concern, Barclays Bank has adapted the Honey Branch
concept to
service previously unbanked commercial areas.
In an
interview, Barclays Communications and Community manager,
Sibongile
Mapungwana said the bank expected to double its clientelle this
year.
"We expect to establish nine Honey Branches across the
country this
year and most will be in commercial areas where there are no
commercial
banks.
"The project will complement our Easy Bank
concept which was launched
in April to cater for low income-earners. We are
determined to make banking
accessible to everyone in the country and we
expect to have doubled our
clientelle before the end of the year,"
Mapungwana said.
Zim Standard
Comment
WITH doubtful poll prospects next year, Zanu
PF is intensifying preparations
of its weapons of terror.
Last week a
government minister announced plans to restart recruitment of
Green Bombers,
a programme which had been suspended due to inadequate
funding. The
government also called for countrywide meetings of war
veterans. The first
was in Harare yesterday.
War veterans and the Green Bombers have been the
twin evils in Zanu PF's
election campaign strategy. They form part of the
government's terror
crusade. The announcements are wrong signals if Zimbabwe
hopes to benefit
from 2010 Fifa Soccer World Cup.
The statements
confirm the panic within government and ruling party circles.
Since 2000,
war veterans and Green Bombers have been instrumental in tipping
the
electoral scales in favour of the ruling party. While they are hoping
for
salvation in this strategy, their luck may have deserted them.
Parents no
longer have an idea of what school fees are - thanks to the
government.
Teachers are leaving the profession - thanks again to the
government's
insensitivity. Doctors and nurses have downed tools as have
lecturers
because of the pittance they earn while in contrast military
officers have
all their hearts' desire, including the latest
state-of-the-art imported
vehicles.
During the past fortnight power cuts during mornings, day time
and evenings
are now more frequent. Water supplies have become so erratic
that towns and
whole suburbs go for weeks without, contributing to a health
time bomb.
The government was so concerned that last week it staged a
report-back
meeting with the "public" in Harare, ostensibly to explain the
water crisis
but in reality to forestall public protests at the rapidly
deteriorating
collapse in service delivery in the capital.
In fact,
the meeting only served to demonstrate government's arrogance and
utter
contempt for the voice of the people. They were not prepared to accept
that
Zinwa is a failed project, no matter how much spin the government will
put
in an attempt to sell it.
The government's arrogance is legendary. The
National Social Security
Authority serves only the interests of its staff
and none of the
contributors to the scheme. Now not satisfied with ripping
off the
hard-pressed workers, NSSA wants another gravy train project - the
National
Health Insurance Scheme.
There is so much fire-fighting the
government will need to do in order to
convince any ordinary Zimbabwean that
they deserve their support and another
chance of leading this
country.
Zimbabweans have almost come to accept that the country can
never have
adequate and affordable fuel supplies for both industry and
public transport
requirements.
With the highest inflation and
unemployment rates in the world as well as
food shortages, conditions for
the majority of Zimbabweans continue to
degenerate. It is precisely for
these reasons that the government will
increasingly resort to violence
because given a free and fair contest it
will require more than a miracle
for the ruling party to put up a
respectable showing during the
polls.
The government and the ruling party's record of disappointment
could provide
the opposition the best ammunition it has ever prayed for,
going into
elections.
Never has a nation been buffeted by so many
self-inflicted crises that it
has been transfixed and paralysed and can
offer no positive response. But
does the opposition have the resourcefulness
to respond to this opportunity?
Zim Standard
sunday opinion By
Bill Saidi
THERE is much evidence that it took the Europeans
thousands of years
to forge what they and many non-Europeans now regard as a
continent of
Enlightenment and, controversially, Civilisation.
I say "controversially" because there can only be a few Africans,
Asians,
Australasians, Americans and even Europeans who could describe as
"civilised" the brutal occupation of other continents by the wanderlust of
these greedy, expansionist Europeans - if you include, as you must, Cecil
John Rhodes.
Europeans who have belatedly begged for
forgiveness on behalf of their
ancestors, and Africans who have agitated
belatedly for reparations for
slavery and colonialism, all acknowledge the
uncivilised conduct of those
"knee-less" invaders, as they were so
colourfully called by Shona prophets.
What is tragic is that some
Africans, even those who claim to have
attained a certain level of
enlightenment, have pleaded passionately for
African leaders to be allowed
the same thousands of years to commit the same
bloody blunders as the
Europeans before this continent can achieve this same
state of
contentment.
Who can wait that long? Will there be any Africans
left by then?
"We have thousands of years to cover before we can
hold free and fair
elections," a number of African intellectuals have
apologised for their
dictators.
"We must be allowed thousands
of years before we can embrace the
doctrine of 'more jaw, less war'," say
African militarists, the closet
coup-makers. "For the moment, we must bash
their (the civilians') heads
before we allow them to speak against
us."
The Europeans saw much bloodshed before they formed all
these
organisations which have forged this nervously united continent. There
are
still trouble spots, as there are in Africa: Kosovo and Turkey are just
two
of them.
The break-up of the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia
spawned dictatorships
more savage than the ones in those old, openly
totalitarian regimes.
New Hitlers, Stalins and Milosevics emerge
every year.
I have heard it said, by Africans impatient for us to
devote all our
energies to uplifting our standards of living and thinking,
we should
fast-track our political and economic advancement.
We
can only achieve this by a dedicated, disciplined commitment to our
mission.
One condition insisted on: no armies.
It has been argued, in this
debate, the use of "fast-track" could be a
curse.
Fast-track
was used by the government and Zanu PF in the 2000 land
reform fiasco.
Perhaps only the newly-born need to be reminded why that was
such an
unmitigated disaster, in both human and material terms.
There has
never been a satisfactory explanation for the speed with
which the programme
had to be implemented. None of the true zealots can
justify the killings and
the pillaging. There is still something hysterical
about the insistence that
the programme is a roaring success.
Why there has been a
serious food shortage since then has been
attributed to causes other than
the cock-eyed, politically cross-eyed plan
to give land back to the
landless.
Many of them really needed jobs in industries operating
on their own,
unencumbered by the assurance of a bail-out from a government
still obsessed
with Marxism-Leninism, when most experiments with the
ideology had exposed
it for the hare-brained sham it really
was.
In many instances, armed forces have been the bane of African
independence. Even in Zimbabwe, if it were not for the assurance of the
armed forces that they would come to their rescue - come what might - in the
event of a toe-to-toe encounter with the people, neither Zanu PF nor its
stepchild, the government, would be so cocky with this widespread "bashing"
of innocents.
Many African leaders would be politically
emasculated if they didn't
have to rely on the defence forces to defend
them, not against an external
enemy, but against their own
people.
That is why most African countries have these huge armies,
sustained
by huge budgets while their people are starved of food, jobs,
water, power,
good roads, good schools, good clinics and good
hospitals.
Above all, Africans can determine the pace of their
fast-track to real
Enlightenment by ensuring they retain, absolutely and for
all time, the
right to choose who should lead them.
Europe has
more or less achieved this. It took maximum sacrifice. For
Africa, the
sacrifice could be double, with the prize doubly sweet.
saidib@standard.co.zw
Zim Standard
sunday opinion By
Arthur Mutambara
THERE is increasing repression in our country
while the economic
crisis is deepening. The recent arrest and brutal
physical attacks on
lawyers have demonstrated that this regime has lost any
semblance of
legitimacy.
The continued detention of our
political activists and leaders, their
torture in cells, the random
abductions and killings of ordinary people have
marked the escalation of
unprecedented brutality in our country.
At the same time the
economy is going through an unmitigated free
fall, towards 4 000% inflation.
Prices of basic commodities increase on a
daily basis, while joblessness and
starvation are the order of the day.
School fees are not affordable, while
the schools do not have enough books,
teachers or equipment. Hospitals are
without sufficient medicines, nurses or
doctors. Zimbabwe is burning. We
demand change. We do not want that change
tomorrow. Neither do we want it
today. We demand it yesterday.
It is not enough for Zimbabweans to
seek political change without
discussing the content of that revolution. We
have seen meaningless
democratic change in Africa. In Zambia, Frederick
Chiluba got into power and
he was worse than Kenneth Kaunda, while in Malawi
Bakili Muluzi proved more
incompetent than Hastings Kamuzu
Banda.
Although both leaders (Chiluba and Muluzi) were products of
democratic
change, they became dictators and wrecked their economies. To
crown it all,
they ended up seeking third terms in office and were only
stopped by their
people. This is a travesty of justice. It is not the kind
of transformation
we seek in our country. Change must have both form and
substance. We must
have a national economic vision and a corresponding
strategy to achieve that
destination economy. We have a duty and obligation
to construct both
technocratic solutions and capacity to address specific
national challenges.
We must build institutions and develop a value system
that guarantee and
provide democratic checks and balances, while ensuring
economic delivery.
There must be measurement, monitoring and feedback
systems for all economic
programmes.
As MDC our vision of
Zimbabwe as the leading democracy in Africa
characterised by people-centred
social development and economic growth. Our
GDP and per capita income should
be in the top three in Africa. We want a
society where human rights,
individual freedoms, property rights, women's
rights, workers' rights and
economic rights are cherished and respected. We
want a nation of prosperity,
economic opportunities, affordable high quality
public services, social
justice, equity, and gender justice. We want a
country of business growth,
productive commercial agriculture, innovative
entrepreneurship, creative
managers, and productive workers whose working
conditions are decent. We
seek a Zimbabwean economy that leverages science
and technology, while
emphasizing manufacturing, export-based investment and
a thriving services
industry.
This is the new mandate, an economic one that seeks to
transform
Zimbabwe into a globally competitive and high performance economy.
It is not
enough for Zimbabweans to aspire towards economic recovery,
stabilisation
and survival. We must thrive to rise up, embark on economic
transformation,
and grow into a global economic superstar: the Singapore of
Africa! In 1957
the GDP of Singapore was the same as that of Ghana. Today
the per capita
income of Singapore is greater than those of Germany, France
and Britain.
This is in spite of the fact that Singapore is a city-state
without much
land and natural resources. With our strength in natural
resources, physical
infrastructure, and human capital surely we can do
better. What is required
is innovative leadership and strategic
thinking
Zimbabwe is at the crossroads where to advance forward
requires nation
builders, visionaries, statesmen and stateswomen; those
skilled in the art
of crafting states. Statecraft speaks to the expertise
and wisdom in the
effective management of public affairs. We refer here to
leaders in the
genre of Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore, Mahathir Mohamad of
Malaysia, Nelson
Mandela of South Africa, Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana, Ellen
Johnson-Sirleaf of
Liberia, Indira Gandhi of India, Angela Merkel of
Germany, Ernesto Che
Guevara in Cuba, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson,
Abraham Lincoln and
Franklin Roosevelt. These were (are) men and women of
immense talent,
resolve, vision, and strategy. More importantly they were
(are) masters of
the art of execution and implementation.
Nation builders are able to unite and mobilize people for a national
cause.
They channel national energy and synergy towards the growth and
development
of a country. Unfortunately, Robert Mugabe does not belong to
this group of
nation builders. Great and significant leaders go beyond the
limited scope
of Maslow's hierarchy of needs that ends with
self-actualisation. They
thrive to self-transcend, go beyond self and leave
a legacy. Presumably,
Mugabe's favourite political text is that classic by
Machiavelli, The
Prince, where it is argued that the prince (leader) must
pursue, obtain, and
maintain power at any cost.
However, Machiavelli also wrote a
second book, The Discourses, where
it is explained that the prince (leader)
must also care about his legacy and
judgment by history. This means the
prince (leader) must be a state crafter.
I guess our learned President has
not read this insightful text, or if he
did come across it, he never
understood its import. What a shame.
Zimbabwe must become a
globally competitive economy that rivals such
nations like Singapore,
Malaysia and Japan. We need creative dreamers and
parallel thinkers who do
not fear globalisation, but rather thrive on chaos
and uncertainty. Only
freedom can allow our citizens to attain their full
potential and take our
nation forward.
It is the duty and obligation of every Zimbabwean
to free our country
from tyranny, and build a better society. The revolution
will not deliver
itself. Every citizen has a role to play. We must all
become players.
Zimbabwe's future will be determined by Zimbabweans.
External players can
assist and facilitate, but the buck stops with us. We
cannot outsource our
emancipation to foreigners. We shall be our own
liberators through active
struggle on the ground in the
country.
All the progressive and democratic forces in the country
must close
ranks in pursuit of the collective national interest. Let us
spurn Zanu PF's
divide and rule tactics. Let us fight together for
conditions that will
allow for free and fair elections in our country: a new
people driven
democratic constitution, electoral law reform, and the removal
of repressive
legislation, such as AIPPA and POSA.
Let us
ensure that every Zimbabwean has the right to vote, including
the Diaspora.
Voter registration and voter education are essential for all
Zimbabweans. In
this way when conditions for free and fair elections obtain
in our country
we will be ready to deliver change.
In any such elections all
opposition parties must close ranks in order
to concentrate on one enemy,
Zanu PF. A united front inspired by a single
candidate principle is a
categorical imperative in every poll (Presidential,
Parliament, Senate,
Council). Every vote must count against Zanu PF.
While this
framework will energize the generality of our people, it
will also have
strategic national appeal to multitudes of progressive Zanu
PF members and
supporters. There is absolutely no alternative to working
together. A
peaceful, democratic and prosperous Zimbabwe is only possible
through unity
of purpose and action.
* Arthur G O Mutambara is
President of the pro-Senate MDC
Zim Standard
sundayview by
Nicholas Baines
ANY critical account of life in Zimbabwe is written
off by the
government-sponsored media in Zimbabwe as "propaganda". "UK media
lies",
aimed at securing re-colonisation, poison the minds of potential
visitors
and investors, blinding them to the peaceful and harmonious reality
of life
in a wonderful country. If it wasn't for Western countries such as
Britain,
there wouldn't be any problems to speak of.
Well, I
have just returned from a two-week visit to Zimbabwe with a
group of 20
people from my Episcopal Area. We began to plan the visit nearly
three years
ago and became increasingly diffident about it as conditions
deteriorated
there more recently.
Our fears were not based purely on British
media coverage of Zimbabwe,
but also on reports we were getting from the
country through contacts in the
churches at all levels. Our visit, then,
afforded a unique opportunity to
see for ourselves what is going on there as
well as develop our
long-standing link with the Diocese of Central
Zimbabwe.
The situation looks like this:
* Inflation
is well above 3 000% and rising, thus making any planning
impossible. The
official exchange rate was 250 Zim dollars to 1 US dollar;
but the parallel
rate (on which prices are based) was 16 000 Zim dollars to
1 US dollar. The
black market rules.
* Nothing has been repaired for years and the
country's infrastructure
is collapsing. Constant power cuts, sometimes
lasting for days, are
interspersed with water shortages. In Gweru, the
administrative centre of
the Midlands Province, we were without running
water for our last five days;
in Kadoma, where I preached and presided on
Sunday 22 April there has been
no running water for two months.
* We saw signs of malnutrition in children, and adults suffering from
hunger
fatigue. Some of the people we stayed with are normally eating what
is
called "zero one zero" -no breakfast, a basic lunch and nothing in the
evening. This year's drought has devastated the maize crop.
*
Agricultural land, once so rich and well-farmed, is now largely
abandoned.
The land-reform process has been catastrophic, not because it was
morally
wrong in itself (the UK agreed to it), but because it was
ill-conceived,
appallingly executed and has proved economically disastrous.
You don't need
a GCSE in economics to know that it could never work.
* Many
businesses and industries have closed down or are working at a
small
percentage of their capability.
* HIV/Aids is wreaking devastation
and life expectancy for a male is
now 34 years.
Our visit was
designed to give us unique access to ordinary people.
Our hosts were
generous and hospitable, wanting us to be comfortable and
looked after.
However, nothing can hide the reality that lies behind this
warmth. People
are going hungry and are beginning to feel hopeless. One
priest said to us:
"You see us walking, but we are dead already." They are
fearful of the
authorities and pessimistic about the possibility of next
year's elections
bringing any change. They end many conversations with: "We
must pray that
God's will may be done." And therein lies a problem.
One of the
aspects of Zimbabwean life that is hard to comprehend is
the disjunction
between "hope" and responsibility. Many of the people we met
hope that
radical change will come and their lives improve. But when we said
that
prayer must be accompanied by action, this was often dismissed. It is
clearly easy to be critical from a distance of these people's apparent
unwillingness to take responsibility for the changes that are needed (eg
voting against President Robert Mugabe in 2008), but nevertheless this is a
striking feature of many conversations.
Our group comprised
eight clergy and 12 lay people of different ages
and backgrounds. We had
educationalists, medics, a lawyer, IT specialists -
all of us falling in
love with Zimbabwe and her people. We spent time
together as a group, but
were then dispersed to different parts of the
Diocese of Central Zimbabwe.
Therefore, the picture we built came not from
second-hand reports, but from
personal experience. Water shortages and power
cuts were experienced by all.
Hunger was identified by all. Fear of
intimidation was discerned by
many.
From high-density townships to rural villages, the picture
was
remarkably consistent.
In the midst of all this the
Anglican Church is struggling to keep
hope alive. The worship in the
churches we visited was vibrant and
life-changing. The music was fantastic
everywhere we went. People know how
to celebrate - but whilst celebrating
their faith and their God, they are
not celebrating their circumstances.
Priests and people are trying to enable
one another to remain faithful under
pressure and to have the courage to do
what is necessary to bring about
change. We met some very brave and good
people.
However, the
Anglican Church is also hindered in its witness. The
scandalous Bishop of
Harare, Nolbert Kunonga, dominates the church and makes
it impossible for
the Church to speak with one voice. He is a Mugabe man and
is supported by
Bernard Malango, Primate of the Province of Central Africa.
Archbishop
Malango (who has announced his retirement from the end of 2007)
is a
"conservative" Primate who sees sexuality as a moral issue, but appears
to
see little problem with (presumably, non-moral) matters of financial
fraud,
incitement to murder and corruption. Kunonga has his support.
Following a recent Provincial Episcopal Synod (April 12) the bishops
issued
a statement that appeared weak in its demands, as this newspaper
reported
last week. Yet it clearly called for change in Zimbabwe and, by
implication,
change in governance and government. Those who have ears to
hear will
discern in this an encouragement to bring about such change. Even
Kunonga
signed a plea for change. The regime of Robert Mugabe will end - all
empires
do - and many of those who have climbed on his back will go down
with him -
including those who are prepared to let their people suffer in
the interests
of their private power games.
Our visit has left us with much to
reflect upon. The extraordinary
faith and spirituality of the people we met
reaches out in costly praxis to
the hungry, the orphaned and widowed, the
sick, the aged and the bereaved -
but how can they speak and act
prophetically before people who cannot bear
criticism or challenge? How can
we best support the ordinary people of
Zimbabwe through the networks we have
in the churches there? How can we help
prepare for the rebuilding of this
suffering country in a way that does not
patronise, but enables Zimbabwean
Christians to re-shape their country and
church? How can we most usefully
use our resources to support those who will
one day be able to offer good
models of governance and the exercise of
power? How can we most effectively
pray for our brothers and sisters in
Christ while they suffer in a land
waiting for liberation?
And are these observations the result of
naďve consumption of British
propaganda? No. We saw for
ourselves.
The Rt Revd Nicholas Baines is Bishop of Croydon. This
article was
originally published in the Religious Intelligence
Attack on Pastoral letter lacks merit
AFTER recent
attacks on the Zimbabwe
Catholic Bishops' Conference in the state media for
their prophetic and
revealing Pastoral letter, one is left wondering whether
the propagandists
behind the stories are deluded or simply
stubborn.
Most Zimbabweans who have read the Pastoral letter
identify with it.
Catholic bishops throughout Africa gave their seal of
approval to the
statement which they feel is thoroughly pastoral. The
Pastoral letter is
purely an inspired theological interpretation of the
Zimbabwe we live in and
nothing else. And because President Robert Mugabe
and his spin doctors are
akin to theological interpretations, they fail to
accept the simple truth
contained in this document. And to show that they
are found wanting in their
challenge to the Pastoral letter, none of them
really writes a critique of
the facts, save for merely seeing imperialists
even where they are none.
The Pastoral letter, aptly titled 'God
Hears the Cry of the Poor'
purely reflects on today's Zimbabwe from a
pastoral viewpoint without adding
or subtracting anything. In giving a
prognosis of our crisis, the bishops
state that we have a governance crisis
and it baffles one's mind when
someone denies this open secret. Everything
in this country, save for
inflation, abductions and corruption, has come to
a standstill. This is what
the bishops mean and mentioning such an open
truth is not taking a political
stance. They further point that health and
education systems have collapsed
but Mugabe in his "warning" to them insists
otherwise. " . . . we have
maintained a solid educational system, a solid
health system . . ." he says.
Remember it is the Church and these
very bishops who are running
schools and hospitals and so they are always in
touch from both a pastoral
and social point of view. Thus when they lay bare
what they daily witness,
in their flock and at their institutions, when they
have to reason with a
lot of students who cannot afford fees, when daily
patients die at their
institutions because of a paralyzed health delivery
system, it may be folly
to "warn" them for "parroting political
lies."
President Mugabe says the pastoral letter is "political
nonsense"
because it doesn't spell why we are in this crisis. Maybe his eyes
are
failing him. That is understandable with his age. The Pastoral letter
clearly says our crisis has its "roots deep in colonial society". It
unequivocally states that oppressive structures and legislation of
pre-independent Zimbabwe continue to haunt us. The bishops clearly singled
out legislation such as AIPPA and POSA which are mere perfections of
Rhodesia's draconian LOMA.
The bishops also say our misery
today is because, whereas we were
advocating for a socialist society, "soon
after independence the power and
wealth of the tiny white Rhodesian elite
was appropriated by an equally
exclusive black elite . . ." hence a return
to the old pre-independents
scenario in which the poor fought running
battles with the rich, battles
between "those who are determined to maintain
their privileges of power and
wealth at any cost, even at the cost of blood
shed, and those who demand
their democratic rights and a share in the fruits
of independence"
Whereas a common man in the streets may find the
Pastoral letter
prophetic, one totally fails to understand responses to it
by CIO agents
calling themselves special correspondents in The Herald. Their
failure to
articulately defend their masters is understandable. They are not
used to
such language. If it was the opposition and civic society, they
would have
quickly understood. But now it is the prophets of God, defending
the Lord's
flock
As for Mugabe himself, his "warning" exposes
him simply as a Sunday
Christian who has since stopped belonging to the
Church. By not being at
Church on Holy Thursday (5 April 2005) when the
Pastoral letter was read
out, he simply shows himself as an uncommitted
Catholic for the Day is very
sacred to Catholics and they would rather
sacrifice anything just to attend
Mass on this day.
In Mugabe's
words, in the battle between Catholics and government, he
would rather
belong to the political grouping and deal with the Church as
"politicians".
Simplified, it means having the Church leaders arrested and
beaten on the
head as happened to opposition leaders.
But no matter what Mugabe
says, a fundamental truth every God fearing
creature must know is
"oppression is sin and cannot be compromised with" and
that "God is always
on the side of the oppressed." May someone out there
take note and repent
whilst there is still time for we know God does not
reconcile his people
with oppressors. No. Moses was not reconciled with
Pharaoh nor did God
reconcile Hebrew slaves with their Egyptian oppressors.
Gift
Mambipiri
(Former President,
National Movement
of
Catholic Students)
Harare
----------------------
CCJP dismayed by Mugabe
threat
IT was with great sadness that we read of President
Mugabe's
'threats' to our Bishop's as was reported in The Herald of 4 May
2007.
We, the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace in
the
Archdiocese of Bulawayo, fully support the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops'
Conference and their Pastoral Letter 'God Hears the Cry of the Oppressed'.
It is a wonderful example of true Christian leadership and
teaching.
In the Herald report the President states that the
pastoral
letter was "not something spiritual, it is not religious". In point
of fact,
the letter represents orthodox Catholic and Christian spirituality.
Throughout the Bible, God not only pleads, but demands, that his people
denounce evil: "Who rises up on my side against the wicked? Who stands firm
on my side against all evil-doers?' (Psalm 94:16) 'Shout for all you are
worth, do not hold back; raise your voice like a trumpet. To my people
proclaim their rebellious acts." (Isaiah 58:1).
As a
Catholic, the President will also be aware that Cannon 747
of the Code of
Cannon Law states: "To the Church belongs the right always
and everywhere to
announce moral principles, including those pertaining to
social order, and
to make judgements on any human affairs to the extent that
they are required
by the fundamental rights of the human person or the
salvation of
souls."
We take great exception to the President's assertions
that
Zimbabwe "has maintained a solid educational system, a solid health
system".
Lower sixth pupils throughout the country wasted most of the first
term of
this year waiting for ZIMSEC "O" level results. The infrastructure
in
government-run educational institutions is collapsing through gross
under-funding.
Teachers and lecturers are underpaid and
demoralised, and those
children who do manage to complete their education
have scant chance of
finding employment within their homeland. It is totally
disrespectful of the
suffering of the vast majority of Zimbabweans to state
that they enjoy "a
solid health system'" when our women have the lowest life
expectancy in the
world and our men the second lowest.
We
would invite our President to read the words of one of his
own mentors, the
late President of Tanzania, Julius K Nyerere, who said in
his book Man and
Development: "Unless we participate actively in the
rebellion against those
social structures and economic organisations which
condemn people to
poverty, humiliation and degradation, the Church will
become irrelevant to
people and the Christian religion will denigrate into a
set of superstitions
accepted by the fearful. Unless the Church, its members
and its
organisations, express God's love by involvement and leadership in
constructive protest against the present conditions of mankind, then it will
die, and humanly speaking, deserves to die."
To our own
Archbishop Pius Ncube we say, thank you for your
courage and tireless
pastoral care. In a country that is fast losing hope
you are an inspiration.
We know that the very courage that has produced so
much spiteful slander
from the State press also guarantees that when the
history books are
written, your name will be alongside Archbishop Desmond
Tutu, Cardinal Jaime
Sin and the Reverend Martin Luther King as true
warriors of
God.
To our Bishops and all people of good will in Zimbabwe
we share
our Lord's blessing, "Blessed are you when people abuse you and
persecute
you and speak all kinds of calumny against you falsely on my
account.
Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven; this
is how
they persecuted the prophets before you." (Matthew 5; 11,
12).
The Catholic Commission for Justice and
Peace
Archdiocese of Bulawayo
----------------
Chinos is no unionist
JOSEPH Chinotimba is not a
trade unionist. He
is an employer just benefiting from the coverage given to
the ruling party
apologist.
In his interview on Workers'
Day, Chinotimba seemed not to know
much about the idea behind the holiday as
he was always talking about the
sanctions and the MDC.
Chinotimba did all he could to please his masters by making them
believe
that it is the sanctions and the MDC that are making the workers
suffer.
President Robert Mugabe must have smiled at Chinotimba's every word
but I
bet no worker really took the man's waffle seriously.
I think
Chinotimba needs some lectures for him to appreciate and
understand what
Workers' Day is all about.
To make matters worse, when I
visited the self-proclaimed trade
unionist's farm in Watakayi, Mazowe, the
workers looked overworked and
hungry.
As reported in your
paper, the gazetted wages for farm workers
is now a paltry $96 000 a month.
I think Chinotimba must stand up and
agitate for an upward review of the
wages on behalf of his and other farm
workers.
Phibion
Machingura
Harare
-------------------------
Another term,more suffering
I am dismayed
as well as excited that
President Robert Mugabe will be the Zanu PF
presidential candidate during
next year's elections.
I am
dismayed because it is a sad chapter for Zimbabweans. The
continued presence
of Mugabe in active politics means more untold suffering
for the citizens of
this cursed nation. We all know what happens when it
comes to elections. The
outcome will be manipulated despite the presence of
local, regional and
international observers.
On the other hand I am excited
because Mugabe's participation in
the elections gives an advantage to the
opposition. I foresee more of Mugabe's
current supporters deserting him for
the opposition, which I foresee to be a
solidly united front by election
time.
The majority of Zimbabweans are disillusioned and
frustrated and
they know full well that their problems are a result of
Mugabe's method of
governance. Mugabe is learned enough to realise that no
one needs him any
more.
The Zanu PF's Women's League
supported Mugabe's bid for
re-election. The endorsement was made by the
League's top leadership and not
by ordinary members who do not have a say in
such weighty matters.
These top leaders know they have to
protect their ill-gotten
fortunes only as long as Mugabe is still in
power.
As we all know there is not a single shred of
democracy in any
of Zanu PF's organs.
C
Chaipa
Kwekwe
Nehanda Radio
20 May
2007
By Fortune Tazvida
Death has once again robbed Zimbabwe of a
renowned academic. Professor
Walter Kamba died on Friday at Parirenyatwa
hospital after suffering
complications from diabetes. Sources say Kamba had
lost the use of both his
legs as a result of the disease.
Professor
Kamba was part of a group of intellectuals and clergy who drafted
the
National Vision Document last year. He rose to fame as the first Vice
Chancellor of the University of Zimbabwe, a position he held for over 10
years. Unknown to many he was one of those who helped draft Zimbabwe's first
constitution and when government appointed a commission to draft a second
one, Kamba was the Vice Chairman to Justice Godfrey Chidyausiki and his team
of commissioners.
He spent 13 years in exile, only coming back at
independence with wife
Angeline, the first ever black Director of the
National Archives in the
newly independent state of Zimbabwe. Professor
Kamba leaves behind a wife
and two sons.
Brief History of Professor
Walter Kamba (PhD Law)
Professor Kamba was the Herbert Chitepo UNESCO
Professor of Human Rights,
Democracy, Peace and Governance at the University
of Zimbabwe. After his
term as Vice-Chancellor of the University, he was
appointed Founding Dean of
the Faculty of Law at the University of Namibia
where he was also Professor
of Human Rights. He is also former: Dean of Law
at the University of Dundee
(Scotland); R.G. and E.M. Knight Distinguished
Professor of Law and
Education at the University of Manitoba, Canada;
Chairperson of the Council
of the United Nations University; President of
the International Association
of Universities. He was legal advisor in the
drafting of the Zimbabwe
(Lancaster House) Constitution and Deputy Chair of
the Zimbabwe
Constitutional Commission.
Business Report
May 20, 2007
By Basildon Peta
Johannesburg - Mutumwa
Mawere, a Zimbabwean-born businessman whose R1.8
billion conglomerate was
nationalised by President Robert Mugabe's
government, has relodged an
application in the Johannesburg high court suing
the South African
government over its alleged failure to protect South
African investors in
Zimbabwe.
Mawere's application follows a decision by the constitutional
court barring
him from seeking direct access to the top court. He had sought
a hearing by
the country's leading judges in a case in which he accused the
government of
being complicit in illegal property seizures because it had
allowed South
African institutions to enforce Zimbabwe's controversial
nationalisation
laws.
In his suit Mawere cited 21 respondents,
including President Thabo Mbeki,
foreign affairs minister Nkosazana
Dlamini-Zuma, trade and industry minister
Mandisi Mpahlwa and the master of
the high court in Johannesburg.
In a brief judgment, deputy chief justice
Dikgang Mosoneke, with the
concurrence of five other judges, ruled that it
would not be in the
interests of justice to allow Mawere direct access to
the constitutional
court, forcing the firebrand South African businessman to
resort to the high
court.
Mawere relodged his suit as Mugabe's
government announced that it had
completed drafting a bill that would
require mining firms to cede 51 percent
equity to Zimbabweans.
After
seizing his mining, telecommunications and banking empire in Zimbabwe,
Mawere claims, Mugabe's government filed suits liquidating his subsidiary
firms based in South Africa.
By allowing Mugabe's representatives to
use South African courts and other
institutions to enforce draconian
property seizure laws, the South African
government has given effect to
"Mugabe's principles", which are "repugnant
to the values that inform the
South African constitutional order", Mawere
argues in his
application.
Mawere's conglomerate was wrested from him in September 2004
through a
legislative decree after he was accused of illegally externalising
foreign
currency. Harare tried to get Mawere extradited to face trial but
the
magistrate's court in Randburg dismissed the application, ruling that it
had
failed to raise a case against the businessman.
He believes he
was victimised by Mugabe's government after he refused a post
in the ruling
party.
He had been elected to become Zanu-PF's provincial secretary for
economic
affairs in Masvingo.
Another reason advanced by Mugabe's
government for nationalising Mawere's
companies is that the companies were
indebted to the government. However,
according to the papers lodged in South
Africa, even the attorney-general of
Zimbabwe, Sobuza Gula-Ndebele, seems to
have been at pains to establish on
what basis the government had come to the
conclusion that Mawere's companies
were indebted to the state.
Mawere
has also instituted court proceedings in Zimbabwe challenging the
nationalisation of his companies on the grounds that they were never
indebted to the state.
Mawere says some of his South Africa-based
companies have been liquidated as
a result of Harare's actions, resulting in
the loss of about 200 local jobs.
He also wants the court to determine
"whether a company, whose parent has
been nationalised by the actions of a
foreign state based on a penal revenue
and public law, can enforce its
rights in South Africa against generally
acceptable international standards
of law".
Mawere argues that the intended enforcement of rights to
property situated
in South Africa would transfer South African property to
the Zimbabwean
state.
The "confiscatory actions" instituted by Harare
place Zimbabwe in possession
of South African assets, thereby giving force
and effect to those
expropriation laws in the jurisdiction of South
Africa.
The action was confiscatory because his assets were taken without
notice and
by force, Mawere says, and it was discriminatory because of the
unprecedented use of special laws aimed solely at him.
He contends
that his former firms are now organs of the state of Zimbabwe
and are not
acting freely but are directed and controlled by the Harare
regime.
Therefore, any rights enforced in South Africa are to the benefit of
the
Mugabe regime.
Mawere argues that all the actions brought before local
courts enforce
Mugabe's prerogative, thereby giving an extra-territorial
effect to his
commands and emasculating Pretoria's stance against
confiscation of private
property. - Independent Foreign Service