SABC
May 29, 2008,
06:30
By Manelisi Dubase
Several NGOs and a former journalist from
Zimbabwe are the latest to urge
the international community to send as many
observers as possible to
Zimbabwe, to observe next month's presidential
run-off vote.
They worry that an increase in violence during and after
the run-off, could
lead to civil war. NGOs predict that the Movement for
Democratic Change
(MDC) is likely to win, even in the midst of violence. But
they say the
biggest challenge will be what happens afterwards.
Jamal
Jafari of the Enough Project says: “the chances that the government
will
step back and recognise the opposition led by Morgan Tsvangirai forming
the
government are very slim.”
A former Zimbabwean journalist says unless the
international community sends
more observers now, ZANU PF will not fail this
time to steal a run-off.
Former Zimbabwean Journalist, Ray Choto says: "The
general feeling on the
ground is that the opposition won the election and
there was no need for
this run-off, something was done. If that is true
again what guarantees are
in place that this thing is not going to happen
again?."
Choto reiterated a general view that the situation on the ground
is not
conducive to a free and fair election. But the Zimbabwean government
dismissed these allegations as a lot of propaganda.
However, the
Zimbabwean embassy says Choto and the Washington-based NGOs are
mis-informed
and are spreading lies.
VOA
By Peter Clottey
Washington, D.C.
29 May
2008
Civic groups and non-governmental organizations in Zimbabwe
will begin an
outreach program today aimed at encouraging voters in rural
areas ahead of
the presidential election run-off. The groups say their move
is in response
to escalated violence in the areas, which they claim
intimidates rural
voters from showing up at the polls. The main opposition
Movement for
Democratic Change has often accused the ruling ZANU-PF party of
using
violence to intimidate its rural partisans. But the government
dismisses the
charges and accuses the MDC and civic groups of conniving with
Zimbabwe’s
enemies to force a regime change. Gordon Moyo is the executive
director of
the Bulawayo project, a non-governmental organization in
Zimbabwe’s
commercial capital. He tells reporter Peter Clottey that there is
a need to
restore voter confidence in the rural areas.
“The civic
organizations together with frontline human rights defenders in
the country.
We have rolled out a rural outreach program to go out into the
rural areas,
which have been adversely affected by violence and displacement
by ZANU-PF
immediately after the March 29 elections. Therefore, the civic
society
organizations and front line defenders are saying lets go out to the
rural
areas to give confidence to the rural voters to give them information
because there has been a lot of disinformation and misinformation about the
elections run-off,” Moyo pointed out.
He said there is need for the
non-governmental groups to encourage rural
voters to take part in the
election run-off after the recent escalation of
violence.
“We are
going out to the rural areas and meeting the key stakeholders there
to show
them that those people in the games are not invisible, but they are
ordinary
people and they can be challenged when information is available,”
he
said.
Moyo calls the move to embark on the rural outreach program well
intended to
encourage residents to vote.
“We think we are going to
impact very positively to the rural communities by
urging them to move
forward, and that this is the last mile and that these
are hard times. And
we are saying to them, look, the times are difficult.
But that these are not
death sentence. They are birth pains. So we are
telling them to move forward
and we believe that the people of Zimbabwe have
had enough of the challenges
that they are facing. They have had enough of
dictatorship. They’ve had a
enough of hunger and starvation, and they would
like to see their country
moving forward,” Moyo noted.
He pledged that their outreach program would
enlighten the rural voters
ahead of the run-off.
“We believe that
this project is going to impact positively. It is going to
make a difference
to the lives of the people. It is going to make a
difference to the
elections come June 27,” he said.
Moyo described as shocking accusations
leveled by the ruling ZANU-PF party
that the non-governmental organizations
are agents of the west, working hard
to force a regime change.
“That
is a pathological lie. The civic society organizations and NGO’s in
general
in Zimbabwe are on the side of the victimized and not on the side of
the
political parties. We are frontline human rights defenders. When people
are
hungry, we condemn the policies that make people hungry. When people are
brutalized, we condemn the perpetrators. Whichever side perpetrates violence
is condemned. So, it is the guilty that say the civic society is against
them. It is because they are on the guilty side. They are the ones that are
perpetrating violence and civic organizations are against that,” Moyo
pointed out.
Meanwhile, the United Nations human rights commissioner
has reportedly
condemned the violence that has gripped Zimbabwe since its
March 29 election
and is calling for a full-scale investigation into the
killings and attacks.
Louise Arbour says she is shocked and concerned about
the brutal attacks
against political activists that opposition leader Morgan
Tsvangirai claims
have led to more than 50 deaths.
Media
Institute of Southern Africa (Windhoek)
28 May 2008
Posted to the web
29 May 2008
As reports of acts of lawlessness and
politically-motivated violence
continue to rock Zimbabwe, war veterans have
reportedly ordered villagers in
Matabeleland South to remove satellite
television receivers from their
homes.
According to "The Standard"
newspaper of 25 May 2008, terrified villagers
told the privately-owned
weekly that the war veterans had set up bases
throughout the province from
which they were conducting all-night "political
re-orientation"
vigils.
The war veterans ordered the villagers to remove the
receivers on 21 May
because the broadcasts they were receiving were
allegedly "misleading" them
into voting against Zanu PF. Most villagers in
the area can only watch and
listen to South African and Botswana-based
television and radio stations
because of the poor transmission signals of
the Zimbabwe Broadcasting
Corporation, the sole state broadcaster in
Zimbabwe.
MISA-Zimbabwe notes with great concern that these reports come
hard on the
heels of the torching of a truckload of 60,000 copies of "The
Zimbabwean on
Sunday" weekly newspaper on 24 May by unknown assailants. The
driver of the
truck, Christmas Ramabulana, a South African national, and
distribution
assistant Tapfumaneyi Kancheta were severely assaulted by their
attackers.
Ramabulana and Kancheta were stopped 67 km from Zimbabwe's
southern town of
Masvingo and forced to drive along the Chivi-Mandamabwe
road for 16 km
before turning into Mandamabwe Road, where the truck and its
contents were
set alight. According to Wilf Mbanga, the publisher of "The
Zimbabwean on
Sunday" and its partner publication "The Zimbabwean", the two
media workers
were severely assaulted before being dumped in the
bush.
A clear and consistent pattern of attacks on media and freedom of
expression
rights is emerging in Zimbabwe amid the post-election violence
and at a time
when preparations are on for the holding of the presidential
election
run-off on 27 June.
For further information on the
Ramabulana and Kancheta case, see:
http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/94043
New Zimbabwe
Last updated: 05/30/2008 01:22:01
TWO senior officials of
Zimbabwe’s main opposition party approached army
commanders to arrange a
“power transition” two days after Zimbabweans voted
in general elections on
March 29, a court heard Tuesday.
Tichaona Augustos Mudzingwa, secretary
for defence in the opposition
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and
newly-elected MP Pearson Mungofa
are accused of “communicating falsehoods”
and “causing disaffection among
the defence forces” prejudicial to the
State.
Mungofa, the court heard, is believed to have skipped the country
to escape
the charges.
Prosecutor Public Mpofu told the Harare
Magistrates Court that Mudzingwa and
Mpofu went to the Zimbabwe National
Army headquarters at KG VI in Harare on
March 31 where they sought an
audience with Army Commander Lt General
Phillip Sibanda.
Quizzed
about their mission by two duty army officers manning the reception,
a
Harare magistrate heard, the two politicians said they wished to discuss
“power transition” with the army chief, claiming Morgan Tsvangirai had
defeated President Robert Mugabe with 62 percent of the national
vote.
Official results of the elections which showed Tsvangirai with 47.9
of the
vote to Mugabe’s 43.2 percent were not announced until May 2.
Tsvangirai’s
vote share was not enough to have him declared winner, and
Zimbabweans will
vote again in a second round election on June
27.
Prosecutors charge that the two men told army officers Lieutenant
Colonel
Lunga and Captain Owen Mudziviri that Tsvangirai was the
“president-in-waiting and that their visit was part of the party’s grand
transition strategy”.
Mudzingwa applied for bail, which was strongly
opposed by the State. A
magistrate was due to give his ruling on the
application before Friday.
http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com
May 29, 2008
By Our
Correspondent
HARARE – The editors of the state-run Herald newspaper have
been left with
egg on their faces after the paper reported, in an
embarrassing case of
mistaken identity, that the United States ambassador to
South Africa had
sneaked into Zimbabwe on clandestine business.
On
Wednesday The Herald published a story in which a reporter named the US
ambassador to South Africa as Patrick Kelly Diskin and claimed he had
slipped into Zimbabwe through Botswana on an undisclosed mission, presumably
malicious.
While the US is officially represented in Pretoria, Diskin
is not the
country’s official envoy.
Quoting unnamed sources at the
Plumtree border post, The Herald claimed
Diskin was visiting his outspoken
colleague James McGee, the US envoy to
Zimbabwe, in the capital “over
confidential matters”. The report claimed the
visitor was scheduled to
remain in Harare for two weeks.
To strengthen the story the newspaper
published the alleged ambassador’s US
diplomatic passport number as well as
the registration number of the vehicle
he used to cross the
border.
The newspaper then quoted a government official as saying:
“Whilst it is
normal for ambassadors to visit each other, we find the timing
and the route
used very odd.”
But the unnamed government official’s
vocal concerns were allayed within
hours of the newspaper hitting the
streets.
A US embassy spokesperson in Harare promptly denied that Diskin
was the US
ambassador to South Africa. The spokesman pointed out that the
name of the
US ambassador to South Africa was, in fact, Eric Bost. He
explained that
while US citizen Patrick Kelly Diskin did exist and was,
indeed, also based
in Pretoria, he was only an official with the United
States Agency for
International Development (USAID) in its office in the
South African
capital.
Diskin, had, indeed, arrived in Zimbabwe
through the route described by the
source of The Herald, but he was on a
routine visit to monitor the
implementation of food aid programmes currently
being officially carried out
by USAID in Zimbabwe.
”Contrary to
reports in The Herald, Patrick Diskin is actually the Regional
Food for
Peace Program Coordinator at the United States Agency for
International
Development (USAID) office based in Pretoria, South Africa.
Diskin is on a
routine visit to assist USAID/Zimbabwe in monitoring the
implementation of
U.S. Government humanitarian food assistance programs,”
said Paul Engelstad,
the public affairs officer at the US embassy.
Engelstad said
USAID/Zimbabwe had provided US$171 million worth of food to
the most
vulnerable individuals in 2007 through the World Food Program (WFP)
and
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from the Consortium for the
Southern
African Food Emergency (C-SAFE).
The Herald has recently embarked on a
campaign to vilify US diplomats, in
particular McGee. He has been critical
of the orgy of violence, mainly
against MDC supporters, which has erupted
ahead of the presidential run-off
election which is scheduled for June 27
and which threatens to end President
Robert Mugabe’s 28-year-old
increasingly authoritarian rule.
McGee was held by the police at a
roadblock recently after he visited
rural-based victims of violence. Mugabe
has since threatened to expel McGee.
Casting diplomatic etiquette to the
wind, Mugabe went a step further and
branded US assistant secretary of State
responsible for Africa, Jendayi
Fraser, as a ‘prostitute’.
Relations
between Harare and Washington have been frosty since 2000 when
Mugabe and
supporters of Zanu-PF mounted a violent campaign to seize white-
owned
commercial farming estates for redistribution ostensibly among
landless
black citizens. The major beneficiaries of the farm allocations
were party
officials and selected card-holding supporters.
The government mounted at
the same a violent crackdown on supporters of the
opposition movement for
Democratic Change. The highlight of this campaign
was the arrest and assault
while in police custody of MDC leader Morgan
Tsvangirai and a number of
other leading opposition figures, including Dr
Lovemore Madhuku, chairman of
the National Constitutional Assembly.
Pictures of Tsvangirai and Madhuku,
with heads and limbs swathed in
bandages, shocked the world.
The US
and European Union member countries have imposed travel restrictions
on
Mugabe and his lieutenants as an inducement to democratic governance in
Zimbabwe.
The Zimbabwean
Tuesday, 27 May 2008
20:36
Where is the real power now in Zimbabwe? Certainly there is
'power' in
the military. The Daily Telegraph of London reports an army
officer
lecturing farmers, 'I do not accept failure. Magabe has to win. If
he
doesn't win we will be back to war. Tsvangirai and the MDC will never
rule
Zimbabwe.' This kind of incessant hectoring backed up by torture and
deaths
(42 known ones) and with all its consequences of displaced people, is
the
felt power in the land. And it is inducing a despair beyond the
weariness we
already feel. This contradictory push - to hold an election,
meaning an
opportunity to choose, while at the same time foreclosing any
choice - is
just forcing people into a desert of empty prospects. More of
the last eight
years simply means more of the last eight years while the
quality and
quantity of the resources we live off diminish all the
time.
But the real power doesn't actually reside with the agents of
force.
They wield force temporarily and ephemerally. The real power is with
the
people and the people are becoming more and more conscious of what is
happening. They are gathering more and more inner strength. Here is a
paragraph to ponder.
I have always loved the shy beauty of country
people who have quietly
made their lives sacred. Their presence has the feel
of unaffected
authenticity. Theirs is a spirituality that draws no attention
to itself; it
is more beautiful than most institutional religious decorum or
studied
spirituality. These people have often lived through great
difficulty; but
their quiet and subtle lives never saw any need for brash
declarations of
spirit; rather they exhibited the shyness that is natural to
the soul
itself.
What these words of the poet John O'Donohue mean
to me is that there
is a power in the soul of rural people that can only be
trampled on for a
time. We may feel we are close to despair as all avenues
of progress are
blocked one after the other - the election, the counting,
the run off - but
there is an authenticity there that cannot be fooled or
crushed and which
make any 'victory' temporary. There can be no contentment
or lasting fruit
from a forced solution. It has never worked in the long
history of
humankind. Ultimately the purveyors of the present violence are
doomed to
failure and ignominy.
A few weeks ago we were waiting for
the results. Now we know that
there are forces unleashed that will accept
only one 'result.' So we are
into a new waiting mode; this time for the
whole artificial structure (so
reminiscent of Rhodesia in the late 1970s) to
implode. Pray that it may do
so soon and that the suffering and deaths may
end quickly. Pray too for our
leaders. We wish them no ill but only that
they may find the authenticity,
and eventually the peace of heart, to rise
above self interest and reach for
the good of all the people.
The Zimbabwean
Tuesday, 27 May 2008 20:42
BY CHIEF REPORTER
HARARE
Another senior regional MDC official has been killed in Zimbabwe's
worsening
post-election violence.
Shepherd Jani, MDC provincial treasurer for
Mashonaland East and the
party's Senate candidate for Murehwa North was
kidnapped last Thursday at
gunpoint. He was found dead in Goromonzi, his
body savagely mutilated.
Jani was seized at home by four armed men
driving a blue twin-cab
truck. Witnesses were able to identify the
registration number.
Jani's death brings to 45 the number killed since
political violence
flared after the March 29 elections.
Jani was
abducted in broad daylight in full view of his MDC
colleagues, who attempted
to stop the assailants. They were forced to back
off when the men threatened
to shoot and kill them.
His mutilated body was retrieved by villagers
in Goromonzi on Sunday,
just as MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai was laying to
rest another murdered MDC
activist, Tonderai Ndira in Harare.
Ndira's body was also found in Goromonz, more than a week after his
abduction, with his eyes gouged out and his tongue slashed.
On
Wednesday last week, MDC activist Bhekithemba Nyathi (22) died in
Ntabayende
Resettlement farming area in Esigodini, Matabeleland South. His
death was
caused by injuries sustained after he was abducted, beaten and
tortured by a
group of war veterans and Zanu (PF) militia members last
month.
Speaking to The Zimbabwean in Bulawayo, Nyathi's mother said Zanu (PF)
had
cost her all her sons. Her other son, Bhekimpilo, fled to the United
Kingdom
after war veterans threatened to kill him for supporting the MDC.
The
MDC says 45 are to have been killed by the regime in the past two
months but
also said more of its supporters were feared dead as their
whereabouts were
not known.
The Centre for Community Development in Zimbabwe demanded a
full probe
into Jani's murder.
"We urge immediate investigation and
the prosecution of the criminal
gangs that are targeting prominent community
leaders to instil fear in the
whole electorate," CCDZ said in a statement.
"The attacks against the civic
leaders are systematic and targeting opinion
leaders within communities to
instil fear in the electorate and make it
difficult for people to identify
with the MDC."
Zimbabwe Lawyers
for Human Rights said this week it was "greatly
disturbed by the escalating
phenomenon of enforced disappearance of
political party members", adding the
victims had been "abducted, severely
tortured and in a growing number of
cases, extra-judicially executed," with
the corpses dumped in remote
areas.
"The silence of President Robert Mugabe's regime over the
incidents
indicated its complicity," the human rights lawyers said.
The Zimbabwean
Thursday, 29 May
2008 07:14
Harare - Newly elected MP, Iain Kay, arrested and accused
of
"inciting
violence" last week was yesterday moved from cells
where he was
awaiting a
hearing on June 4 to another prison
hundreds of km away and in the
heart of
the post election
violence.
He was arrested in his home area, Marondera, 80 km south
east of
Harare and applied for, and was granted bail in the Marondera
Magistrate's
Court last Friday. The state appealed the bail
decision and was given
until
June 4 to prove to the Harare High
Court why he should not be granted
bail
ahead of his
trial.
The state has, so far, been unable to provide a single item of
evidence that
Kay has done anything, or said anything to incite any
violence and
about 95
percent of all the post election violence has
been caused by members
of Zanu
PF including the security forces
according to victims who have sought
medical treatment for their
injuries.
Yesterday, members of his family went as usual to
deliver him
food
- there is almost none available for prisoners
from the state - and
found
he had was in the process of being
moved to Mutoko Prison about 220
km
away. The first post election
violence occurred in the Mutoko district
in
north eastern Zimbabwe,
which had traditionally been a strong Zanu PF
area,
but where
record numbers of voters decided not to vote for President
Robert
Mugabe in the presidential poll.
Militias prowl the road to
Mutoko and there are several
heavy
duty police road blocks along
this road which is the main highway to
Nyamapanda, the northern border
post with Mozambique.
"There is no reason to move him, it's
just petty spite," said
one of
Kay's friends yesterday. His wife
Kerry is in the welfare department
of the
MDC which tracks missing,
injured and killed party members.
Soft spoken Iain Kay is a
fluent Shona speaker and was
brutally
attacked and forced off his
farm in the Marondera area in 2002.
However he
was on record after
the March elections telling people resettled on
white-owned farms in
the Marondera district that none would be forced
off
by an MDC
government. He told them: "We will not behave like Zanu PF.
There
is plenty of land for everyone."
However President Robert
Mugabe and the state press claim that
hundreds of "Rhodesians" returned
to Zimbabwe after the MDC won a
parliamentary majority threatening to
take back their land.
No proof has ever been produced that a
single white farmer who
was
stripped of his land, house, and
farming equipment did go back to look
at
their old homes, although
the Herald newspaper has run pages and pages
of
comment and reports
in the last few weeks.
Threats that "Rhodesians" will return to
take back the country
with
an MDC government, is the rallying cry
put out by Mugabe and the
central
plank of his re election
campaign.
He and Zanu PF claim that former Rhodesian security
forces,
now
mostly in their middle 60's are planning to invade
Zimbabwe if MDC
leader
Morgan Tsvangirai wins the presidential re
run on June 27,.
He beat Mugabe in the first round but failed
to win more than
50
percent of the vote and so now faces the run
off at a time of
unprecedented
violence against opposition
supporters.
Justice minister Patrick Chinamasa did not answer
his mobile
phone
yesterday.
The Zimbabwean
Thursday, 29 May
2008 05:42
One dead in Murambinda as soldiers go on rampage.
Manicaland province was rocked by a fresh wave of violence on Saturday
as
armed soldiers and militias indiscriminately shot and beat up
people
atMurambinda growth point, leaving one person dead and 31
hospitalised.
Acting with impunity, the soldiers and the militias, led
by Zimbabwe
National Army Colonel Morgan Mzilikazi, had total disregard
for human
life.All those seriously injured were taken to
Murambinda hospital.
MDC MP elect for Makoni South, Pishai Muchauraya,
said initial reports
suggest the soldiers wanted to flush out MDC
supporters among the many
hundreds of people who were at the growth
point. It's reported there
wasreluctance and resistance from
individuals about taking orders from
themilitary.
'We are
told many people resisted taking orders from the soldiers and
apparently this set off an ugly scene where they started firing
indiscriminately towards a group that was being vocal. One person was
shotand died on the spot while several others received bullet
wounds,'
Muchauraya said.
The deceased has been identified as
25 year-old Taurai Matanda who
hailsfrom Gutu. The MDC has also
been able to identify the killer.
Muchaurayanamed the soldier who
fired the fatal shot as Private Svosve Mupindu.
'We have all the names
of the leaders and those committing crimes
againsthumanity. What
happened in Murambinda was total mayhem. Many more
peoplewere
brutally attacked as one violent act led to another,' Muchauraya
said.The MP said this was a systematic approach adopted by Zanu-PF
aimed at
destroying MDC structures in rural areas. He believed worse
turmoil
andbloodshed might follow as Mugabe prepares to hold on to
power at all
costsagainst Morgan Tsvangirai in the second round of
the presidential poll
slated for the 27th June.
'Zanu-PF
cannot fool us to say soldiers are not involved in the
violence. We
have them in the rural areas, dressed in complete army regalia and
heavilyarmed. We have all the evidence, the names, places and the
nature of
theiroperations,' Muchauraya added.
SWRadio
Africa
The Zimbabwean
Thursday, 29 May 2008 05:38
The abductions of
political and civil activists have intensified in
the lastweek as
ZANU-PF continues its campaign to destroy opposition
structures
ahead of the presidential runoff. We have received reports that nearly
20people have been abducted since Friday.
The latest
abduction was in Marondera, where it is reported that the
wife of
Ian Kay's campaign manager, Mable Penisara, was abducted on Monday
night.Witnesses say she was taken away by armed thugs who had
apparently
come forher husband. But it is believed Tonderai
Penisara managed to escape.
Thethugs were wielding what looked
like AK-47 rifles and pistols. Mable's
whereabouts are still not known.
MDC spokesperson Nelson Chamisa
confirmedthe abduction and said
this is the latest strategy by ZANU-PF to
dismantletheir
structures ahead of the presidential runoff.
Ian Kay is the newly
elected MDC MP for Marondera in Mashonaland East.
Hewas arrested
last week Tuesday on trumped up charges and has not yet
appeared in
court. There are also reports that Kay's Chairman, Mr
Bakaaiman,
has been missing since last week Monday. A CIO operative named Sydney
Shumwayo was identified as one of those who abducted Bakaaiman.
We also
received reports that Nehmiah Nhembera, the newly elected
Counsellorfor Musana village in Bindura South, plus 15 others,
were abducted
lastFriday. The 15 included village heads Sabhuku
Mabhena and Sabhuku
Chibaya.The rest were youth members from the
area.
We got the report from another Sabhuku from Bindura South who
managed
toescape, and he implicated Police Commissioner Augustine
Chihuri in the
abductions. He said Chihuri was at Musiwa Business
Centre on Thursday
askinga lot questions about specific people.
The abductions were then
carried outearly Friday morning.
The Sabhuku, who chose not to be identified, said the assailants went
doorto door late night around 1:00 AM forcing people out at
gunpoint. He
believes it was done quietly because the youth members in
Bindura have
beenvery successful in organising and defending
themselves against
abductions.Our contact said the abductions were
reported to the police at Bindura
Headquarters and they said they would
investigate. So far nothing has
happened. He added that the abductions
will not weaken the resolve of
theyouth in Bindura.
SWRadio Africa
The Zimbabwean
Tuesday, 27 May 2008 20:43
BY CHIEF REPORTER
HARARE
Three weeks after Zimbabwe's annual tobacco auctions opened, a
paltry
2,000 bales are going under the hammer each day compared to 18,000
bales
eight years, providing stark evidence of the accelerating economic
collapse
under Robert Mugabe.
The bids of buyers and sellers echoed
loudly across the six square
miles of the Tobacco Sales Floor in the Harare
suburb of Willowvale as just
2,800 bales were sold on Monday. Before the
crisis set in following the land
grab in 2000, 18,000 bales were routinely
sold each day.
Tobacco is the mainstay of Zimbabwe's economy and once
the largest
single export earner. After more than eight years of chaos that
has seen the
invasion of 4,000 white-owned farms by squatters, tobacco
production has
fallen sharply to 68.8 million kilos last year, generating
around US$160m.
The decline, which industry figures blame on "official
vandalism",
represents a loss to the nation of more than US$400m -
disastrous for a tiny
economy already in free-fall. Buyers, sellers and
their valuable produce
covered barely one third of the sales floor on
Monday.
Philemon Mangena, Deputy Managing Director of the Tobacco Sales
Floor,
said the delay in the opening of the floors due to a dispute over the
selling price had had a disastrous impact on the season but said it was
recovering.
But another official in the floors said: "Normally, by
now, we would
be fully booked. The uncertainty is the worst."
As
well as the invasion of their land by axe-waving squatters, tobacco
farmers
have had to cope with fuel shortages.
The recent liberalisation of the
exchange rate by the central bank has
had little impact on the tobacco
season.
One buyer said: "A lot of these stumbling blocks have been
deliberately placed by the government. It's a miracle that we have a crop at
all, given all that has happened since the orgy of invasions sparked by the
election results."
Perhaps most disastrously of all, many of
Zimbabwe's best tobacco
farms were among the 4,000 properties grabbed under
the compulsory
acquisition programme by the government over the last eight
years.
Banks have now refused to provide loans to the 300 remaining
white
farmers over the uncertainty surrounding the latest land grab, which
has
forced the remaining white landowners to end production. At least
another 20
tobacco farmers have left Zimbabwe in the past two
months.
Farmers suspect that the onslaught on the tobacco industry is
part of
Mugabe's wider attack on the white minority.
He has pledged
to end what he calls "white control" of the economy and
tobacco - largely
grown by white farmers and sold to white buyers - has
always fed his
paranoia.
By wrecking the formal economy, Mugabe could reinforce his
grip on
power by creating a Zimbabwe where everyone was dependent on
government
patronage.
One industry figure said: "This is official
vandalism with a political
purpose."
The Zimbabwean
Tuesday, 27 May 2008 20:43
BY CHIEF REPORTER
HARARE
Civic groups in Zimbabwe have resolved to endorse the candidacy
of MDC
leader Morgan Tsvangirai in the presidential election run-off, saying
this
was the only way to get their People's Charter adopted.
Civic
society was however quick to point out that they would be
willing and able
to take on Tsvangirai and his government if he reneges on
delivering once he
gets into power.
"The reason we are saying lets rally behind Tsvangirai
is that he
won't be as repressive as Mugabe; that's one thing we know," Dr
Lovemore
Madhuku, head of the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) said.
"But I
will be the first person to look for more people to stage demos
against him
if he gets into power and ignores issues of constitutional
reform."
Madhuku said rallying behind Tsvangirai's candidacy in the
June 27
presidential election run-off would help in pressing for the
adoption of the
People's Charter.
The People's Charter, agreed to
by more than 300 civic leaders at a
People's Convention on February 9,
outlines the way in which the people of
Zimbabwe would want to be
governed.
The Charter is meant to address the socio-economic and
political
challenges that the country faces.
The Zimbabwean
Thursday, 29 May
2008 06:03
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES.
1230
Condemning post election violence in Zimbabwe and calling for a
peaceful resolution to the current political crisis.
IN THE HOUSE
OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 22, 2008
Mr. PAYNE (for himself, Ms.
KILPATRICK, Mr. RANGEL, Ms. LEE, Ms.
JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. JEFFERSON,
Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Mr. DAVIS
of Illinois, Mr. RUSH, Ms. EDDIE
BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. BISHOP of
Georgia, Mr. WATT, Mr. THOMPSON of
Mississippi, Mr. CLAY, Mr. CONYERS, Mr.
TOWNS, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Ms.
NORTON, Ms. WATERS, Mr. CLYBURN, Mr.
HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. SCOTT of
Virginia, Mr. WYNN, Mr. FATTAH, Mr.
JACKSON of Illinois, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mrs.
CHRISTENSEN, Mr. MEEKS of New York,
Mrs. JONES of Ohio, Ms. WATSON, Mr.
DAVIS of Alabama, Mr. MEEK of Florida,
Mr. SCOTT of Georgia, Mr.
BUTTERFIELD, Mr. CLEAVER, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin,
Ms. CLARKE, Mr. ELLISON,
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Ms. RICHARDSON, Mr. CARSON,
and Mr. AL GREEN of
Texas) submitted the following resolution; which was
referred to the
Committee on Foreign Affairs
RESOLUTION
Condemning
postelection violence in Zimbabwe and calling for a
peaceful resolution to
the current political crisis.
Whereas the Zimbabwean African National
Union-Patriotic Front
(ZANU-PF), led by President Robert Mugabe, has
controlled Zimbabwe's
executive and legislative branches for 28
years;
Whereas over the past 8 years, ZANU-PF has suppressed political
dissidents and won elections and referendums through the use of vote
rigging, localized violence, harassment, and intimidation;
Whereas
the political and economic situation in Zimbabwe has been
worsening since
2000, culminating in the current electoral crisis;
Whereas Presidential
and Parliamentary elections were held in Zimbabwe
on March 29,
2008;
Whereas the Zimbabwe Election Commission (ZEC) released the
results
for the 2008 presidential election 5 weeks after the contest took
place,
announcing President Mugabe won 43.2 percent of the vote, while
Morgan
Tsvangirai of the opposition party, Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC),
won 47.8 percent of the vote;
Whereas as the ZEC announced
neither candidate won over 50 percent of
the vote, the 2 candidates have to
compete in a runoff election;
Whereas the long delay in announcing the
presidential election results
undermined the credibility of the
ZEC;
Whereas the Zimbabwean people have indicated through the ballot
box
that they want a change in leadership;
Whereas in the wake of
the elections, President Mugabe has unleashed
security forces and militia
against opposition supporters and members of
civil society;
Whereas
over 900 people have been tortured and beaten, and 22 have
been confirmed
dead;
Whereas government security forces raided the MDC party
headquarters,
arresting 300 people, some of them children;
Whereas
the offices of the Zimbabwe Election Support Network have been
raided and
some of its employees detained;
Whereas security forces have attacked
humanitarian organizations and
civil society groups;
Whereas the
African Union (AU) and Southern African Development
Community (SADC) have
been continually engaged in efforts to bring about an
end to the political
crisis in Zimbabwe ;
Whereas the AU and SADC dispatched delegations to
Harare, but have not
yet successfully compelled the Government of Zimbabwe
to restore the rule of
law;
Whereas Zimbabwe's gross domestic
product declined about 43 percent
between 2000 and 2007 and the unemployment
rate is 80 percent;
Whereas Zimbabwe's inflation rate, at almost
165,000 percent, is the
highest in the world and has contributed
significantly to the country's
economic collapse;
Whereas worsening
economic conditions and commodity shortages have
caused at least 3,000,000
people to flee the country;
Whereas after the March 29, 2008, elections
the opposition offered to
enter into a dialogue to bring about an end to the
ensuing political crisis;
Whereas all parties must engage
constructively towards peace and
reconciliation for the sake of the
Zimbabwean people; and
Whereas the people of Zimbabwe deserve the
assistance of the
international community in the restoration of fundamental
human rights,
democratic freedom, and the rule of law: Now, therefore, be
it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) calls on
all security forces, informal militias, and individuals
to immediately cease
attacks on and abuse of civilians;
(2) strongly condemns the
orchestrated campaign of violence, torture,
and harassment conducted by the
ruling party and its supporters and
sympathizers in the police and military
against members of the opposition,
opposition parties, and all other
civilians;
(3) supports an international arms embargo until the current
political
situation has been resolved;
(4) encourages the
government and opposition to begin a dialogue aimed
at establishing a
government of national unity which would allow for the
restoration of
democratic governance structures, and create an environment
conducive to a
peaceful transition of power through free and fair elections;
(5)
advocates for a mechanism such as a truth and reconciliation
commission
through which to ensure accountability for all groups and
individuals who
are found to have orchestrated or committed human rights
violations in the
context of the elections;
(6) urges the United Nations, with the
cooperation and support of the
African Union (AU) and Southern African
Development Community (SADC) to
dispatch a special envoy to Zimbabwe without
delay, with a mandate to
monitor the runoff elections and the human rights
situation, and to support
efforts to find a peaceful resolution to the
political crisis;
(7) urges the international community, under the
leadership of the
United Nations, AU, SADC, and the SADC Parliamentary
Forum, to deploy teams
of credible persons to serve as monitors to ensure
that the outcome of the
presidential runoff elections reflects the will of
the Zimbabwean people;
(8) commends the people of Zimbabwe for their
continued courage in the
face of systematic persecution, intimidation, and
abuse, and commits to
providing continued humanitarian assistance until the
economic crisis is
resolved;
(9) commends the recent actions taken
by regional trade unions,
churches, activists, and civil society
organizations in support of democracy
and respect for basic human rights and
the rule of law in Zimbabwe , and
encourages these entities to maintain
their activities; and
(10) stands in solidarity with the people of
Zimbabwe .
COSPONSORS(41), ALPHABETICAL [followed by Cosponsors
withdrawn]:
(Sort: by date)
Rep Bishop, Sanford D., Jr. [GA-2] -
5/22/2008 Rep Brown, Corrine
[FL-3] - 5/22/2008
Rep Butterfield,
G. K. [NC-1] - 5/22/2008 Rep Carson, Andre
[IN-7] - 5/22/2008
Rep Christensen, Donna M. [VI] - 5/22/2008Rep Clarke, Yvette D.
[NY-11] - 5/22/2008
Rep Clay, Wm. Lacy [MO-1] - 5/22/2008 Rep
Cleaver, Emanuel [MO-5] -
5/22/2008
Rep Clyburn, James E. [SC-6] -
5/22/2008 Rep Conyers, John, Jr.
[MI-14] - 5/22/2008
Rep
Cummings, Elijah E. [MD-7] - 5/22/2008Rep Davis, Artur
[AL-7] -
5/22/2008
Rep Davis, Danny K. [IL-7] - 5/22/2008 Rep Ellison, Keith
[MN-5] -
5/22/2008
Rep Fattah, Chaka [PA-2] - 5/22/2008 Rep
Green, Al [TX-9] -
5/22/2008
Rep Hastings, Alcee L. [FL-23] -
5/22/2008Rep Jackson, Jesse L.,
Jr. [IL-2] - 5/22/2008
Rep
Jackson-Lee, Sheila [TX-18] - 5/22/2008 Rep Jefferson, William
J. [LA-2]
- 5/22/2008
Rep Johnson, Eddie Bernice [TX-30] - 5/22/2008 Rep
Johnson, Henry C.
"Hank," Jr. [GA-4] - 5/22/2008
Rep Jones,
Stephanie Tubbs [OH-11] - 5/22/2008 Rep Kilpatrick,
Carolyn C. [MI-13] -
5/22/2008
Rep Lee, Barbara [CA-9] - 5/22/2008 Rep Lewis, John
[GA-5] -
5/22/2008
Rep Meek, Kendrick B. [FL-17] - 5/22/2008
Rep Meeks, Gregory W.
[NY-6] - 5/22/2008
Rep Moore, Gwen [WI-4] -
5/22/2008Rep Norton, Eleanor Holmes
[DC] - 5/22/2008
Rep
Rangel, Charles B. [NY-15] - 5/22/2008Rep Richardson, Laura
[CA-37] -
5/22/2008
Rep Rush, Bobby L. [IL-1] - 5/22/2008 Rep Scott, David
[GA-13] -
5/22/2008
Rep Scott, Robert C. "Bobby" [VA-3] - 5/22/2008
Rep Thompson, Bennie
G. [MS-2] - 5/22/2008
Rep Towns, Edolphus
[NY-10] - 5/22/2008 Rep Waters, Maxine [CA-35] -
5/22/2008
Rep
Watson, Diane E. [CA-33] - 5/22/2008 Rep Watt, Melvin L.
[NC-12] -
5/22/2008
Rep Wynn, Albert Russell [MD-4] - 5/22/2008
Pearl-Alice Marsh, Ph.D.
Majority Senior Professional Staff
Member
House Committee on Foreign Affairs
The Zimbabwean
Wednesday, 28 May 2008 10:08
KUNLE SOMORIN, writing in Leadership,
Abuja, presents the report of
concerned African civil society coalition
working on the resolution of the
political logjam that pitches ruling
president Robert Mugabe against main
opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai in
Zimbabwe.
The 29 March 2008 elections have dramatically changed
Zimbabwe's
political landscape. For the first time since independence in
1980, Robert
Mugabe ran second in the presidential voting, and the
opposition - the
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) - won control of
parliament. The MDC
went to the polls deeply divided, but Morgan Tsvangirai
and his party
regained their authority by winning despite an uneven playing
field. Instead
of allowing democracy to run its course, Mugabe has fought
back by
withholding the presidential results for five weeks and launching a
countrywide crackdown.
Zimbabwe is in constitutional limbo:
it has no elected president or
legally constituted cabinet, parliament has
not been convened, and ZANU-PF
and the MDC are challenging half the
parliamentary results in court. African
leaders, with support from the wider
international community, must step in
to stop the violence and resolve the
deepening political crisis, ideally by
facilitating an agreement
establishing an MDC-led transitional government
that avoids the need for the
run-off now scheduled for 27 June.
Military
intransigence
While there is wide agreement in ZANU-PF that its
survival now depends
on Mugabe's immediate exit, influential hardliners in
the party and military
will not simply hand over power to the MDC. They and
Mugabe likely
manipulated the presidential results to show a run-off was
necessary and
have put in place a strategy to retain power through force.
Since the
elections, there has been a sharp increase in state-sponsored
violence, as
the security services and ZANU-PF militia have unleashed a
campaign of
intimidation, torture and murder against opposition activists,
journalists,
polling agents, public servants, civic leaders and ordinary
citizens
suspected of voting for the MDC. The opposition says that at least
43 of its
members have been killed and thousands displaced in the violence.
Zimbabwe's
transition to democracy is being held hostage.
If
Mugabe manages to cling to the presidency through political
repression and
manipulation, he will face a hostile parliament, growing
public discontent,
mounting international pressure and increased isolation.
The consequences of
his staying in office would be catastrophic, not least
that the economic
decline would intensify, with more Zimbabweans fleeing
across borders, while
inflation, unemployment and the resulting massive
suffering
increase.
There has been a chorus of condemnation from Western
leaders and
international and African civil society over the withholding of
the results
and the rising violence. The UN Security Council discussed
Zimbabwe, while
the African Union (AU) and Southern African Development
Community (SADC)
called for release of the results and criticised the
violence. However,
South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki has continued to
shield Mugabe, not
backing away from his 12 April statement that there was
no crisis in the
country. Other African leaders, led by SADC Chairman Levy
Mwanawasa and AU
Chairman Jikaya Kikwete, seem prepared to take a more
robust line. Since the
impact of outspoken, Western-driven diplomacy is
likely to be limited,
African-led mediation, with concerted, wider
international backing, gives
the best chance for a peaceful and definitive
resolution to the crisis.
President Mbeki negotiated SADC-backed
talks between ZANU-PF and the
MDC through January 2008, and he remains the
regionally appointed mediator.
But his reluctance to criticise Mugabe or
condemn the escalating violence
has badly undermined his credibility,
particularly in the eyes of the
opposition. Further, his inability to turn a
ZANU-PF/MDC agreement in
September 2007 into a lasting accord to resolve the
crisis casts doubts upon
his effectiveness in the current environment.
Nonetheless, South Africa
cannot simply be sidelined. A formula is needed
that broadens the South
African-led SADC mediation, adding strong
accountability and oversight
measures.
Mediaton
Focus
That broadened mediation, supported by additional
international
actors, should focus on two immediate objectives, which are
not mutually
exclusive, as the end objective of each should be some form of
government of
national unity, under MDC leadership:
" A
negotiated settlement on a Tsvangirai-led transitional government.
The
current levels of violence and intimidation preclude the possibility of
holding a credible run-off. The holding of a run-off by the Mugabe camp is a
ploy to stay in power, and it is highly unlikely that Mugabe would accept
the conditions for a free and fair run-off in which he would be
humiliatingly defeated. As ZANU-PF prepares for a second election, violence
is likely to escalate, prolonging the suffering of Zimbabwe's people. For
this reason, the first objective of the mediation should be to secure a
political agreement between the MDC and ZANU-PF that avoids the need for a
run-off and the accompanying risks of even greater violence. A negotiated
settlement could establish a Tsvangirai-led transitional government with
substantial participation by ZANU-PF stalwarts to implement agreed upon
constitutional reforms and hold free and fair elections under an agreed
timeframe.
Senior military commanders strongly opposed to the
MDC have been
instrumental in preventing a democratic transition following
the 29 March
election, and there is growing risk of a coup either before a
run-off (in a
pre-emptive move to deny Tsvangirai victory) or after a
Tsvangirai win.
Indeed, this is one reason why priority should be given to a
negotiated
settlement ahead of a run-off. The mediation must accordingly
address the
loyalty of the security services as a priority, including the
handover of
military power in a transitional government
arrangement.
Zimbabwe will need a transitional justice mechanism at
some stage to
come to terms fully with and move beyond its long nightmare.
Both national
reconciliation and the practical necessities of pulling the
country out of
its immediate crisis require, however, that the agreement on
a transitional
government contain guarantees for present political leaders
and the security
forces. These would extend to Mugabe himself, but it is
difficult to see him
having any formal role in the new political
dispensation. The agreement will
need to be complemented by the regional and
wider international community's
strong commitment to provide resources for
reconstruction and recovery.
" A credible run-off. Even as it works
to facilitate a negotiated
settlement on a transitional government, SADC
mediators must work with
ZANU-PF and the MDC to delineate the basic
requirements for a credible
run-off in the event the effort fails. Urgent
steps would be needed to
guarantee a free and fair vote - even one in
conditions as imperfect as for
the 29 March election. These include
immediate cessation of violence and
intimidation; strong monitoring and
organisational roles for SADC, the AU
and the UN; and massive deployment no
later than roughly a month before the
poll of independent national and
international observers, who must remain on
the ground until the results are
announced. As with negotiations for a
transitional government, the mediation
would need to address the modalities
for ensuring military loyalty to a new
civilian government. Failure to do so
would risk a Tsvangirai victory
leading to a military coup or martial law,
and the security services
splitting along factional lines.
On 16 May, the Zimbabwe Electoral
Commission (ZEC) announced that the
run-off will take place on 27 June. This
means that the AU and SADC must
start preparing immediately to dispatch
large election observation missions
by no later than 1 June.
In
the event that a run-off is held and Tsvangirai wins, he should
assume the
presidency but move to form a unity government for at least the
initial
period of his term. While his party controls parliament, ZANU-PF has
a near
stranglehold over the security sector and state institutions and has
a
strong influence over economic and social life. Tsvangirai and the MDC
will
need to include ZANU-PF in their government if they are to govern
effectively.
In short, with or without a run-off, third-party
African-led
negotiations are essential to help gain acceptance from the
military for a
handover of power and establish the parameters for a
transitional or unity
government. Some MDC supporters may consider the
compromises involved an
affront to democracy, but they are necessary if the
country's democracy is
to be stable and secure.
If Mugabe
succeeds in retaining power by winning an election through
fraud and/or
intimidation, appropriate regional and other international
action must be
taken to deal with what would be a rogue regime. Examples of
such action
would be declaring his government illegitimate; tightening
existing targeted
sanctions on known hardliners; and establishing a Security
Council
commission of inquiry to investigate reports of torture, murder and
widespread violations of human rights and to recommend appropriate
accountability mechanisms, perhaps including referral to international legal
authorities
The Zimbabwean
Tuesday, 27 May 2008 20:42
BY TRACY SHOKO
HARARE
The military junta controlling Zimbabwe has blamed the Movement
for
Democratic Change (MDC) for the xenophobic attacks in South Africa,
accusing
the opposition party of fuelling anti-Zimbabwean sentiments there
in a bid
to force people to return home and vote for MDC leader Morgan
Tsvangirai.
Fifty African immigrants - legal and illegal - are reported
dead and
20,000 displaced in racist attacks that began in the poor suburbs
of
Johannesburg and spread to other cities.
Morgan Tsvangirai
visited Zimbabwean victims of the attacks, and said
the political and
economic crisis at home had driven Zimbabweans into South
Africa. He urged
Zimbabweans to return home and vote.
According to the military junta,
Tsvangirai's statement confirmed that
MDC "thugs" had taken advantage of the
anti-immigrant violence to force
Zimbabweans home to vote on June
27.
"The MDC has exported the violence to South Africa to fuel
anti-Zimbabwe sentiments in that country and the region as a whole. The
timing of the attacks is also suspect," said Bright Matonga, former Deputy
Information Minister, in a telephone interview.
"The MDC is also
recruiting the thugs, telling the thugs to target
Zimbabweans to force them
to return home and vote for Tsvangirai. The MDC
knows it will lose the
election and is resorting to desperate means…I am
talking from an informed
position and the government has gathered
intelligence that the thugs, paid
by the MDC, are saying this is not your
fault, it is the fault of Zanu (PF);
go back home and vote to remove Zanu
(PF). The MDC is even arranging
immediate transport to the victims and that
confirms our intelligence
reports that the MDC is also behind the attacks."
South Africa's
intelligence chief blamed forces inside and outside the
country of
orchestrating xenophobic violence to destabilise South Africa
ahead of next
year's general elections.
The Zimbabwean
Thursday, 29 May
2008 06:00
NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND
TECHNOLOGY
As the National University of Science and Technology
(NUST) 2007-08
academic year draws to an end, we note with grave concern the
continued
deterioration of the education system in Zimbabwe. The 2007-08
academic year
has been characterized by a mass exodus of qualified personnel
in search for
greener pastures in neighboring countries and abroad. It is so
sad to note
that the National University of Science and Technology has
managed yet again
to produce half baked graduates. Development at our
institution has come to
a standstill. Poverty remains prevalent amongst the
students' populace.
Of much greater concern is the continued
victimization of students and
human rights defenders by state agents in
Zimbabwe.This victimization has
even spread to the rural areas where an orgy
of violence is being
perpetrated on the supporters and activists of the
Movement For Democratic
Change party by the so-called war veterans and ZANU
PF militia. It is quite
disturbing to note that there is a clique of
individuals who still do not
realize the sanctity of human
life.
We would like to unreservedly condemn these nefarious and
satanic acts
by the self professed professors of violence. It is rather
unfortunate that
those who purport to have liberated this country have
become more oppressive
and repressive than the colonizers themselves. Robert
Mugabe and his
bootlickers are just aggravating the economic meltdown by
siphoning
resources meant for development towards the sponsoring of
violence.
After 28 years of servitude under the regime of Robert
Mugabe, the
people of Zimbabwe have clearly spoken and Mugabe has no right
whatsoever to
subvert and subjugate the will of the people. We would also
like to
encourage the people of Zimbabwe to remain resolute in this period
of
Mugabe's madnesss as he is surely digging his grave as fast as he can. We
would also like to encourage the people of Zimbabwe to fearlessly go out and
vote on the 27th of June 2008 for the person that has their interests at
heart, someone who values life. We strongly and unapologetically believe
that person is Morgan Tsvangirai. A new Zimbabwe is before
dawn.
"When evil people are in power, crime increases. But the
righteous
will live to see the downfall of such people".
Proverbs
29 vs 16
Sheunesu Nyoni
NUST Students Union Secretary
General
Information Department
Zimbabwe National Students
Union
53 Hebert Chitepo Ave,
Harare, Zimbabwe,
+263912471673/ +263913010369
zinasu@gmail.comThis e-mail address is
being protected from spambots,
you need JavaScript enabled to view
it
www.zinasu.org
The Zimbabwean
Thursday, 29
May 2008 05:39
Charred newspaper truck remains
The
Zimbabwe Union of Journalists would like to condemn the abduction
and
torture of two media workers while delivering copies of The Zimbabwean
on
Sunday by unidentified gunmen on Saturday night.
The Union is
equally appalled by the sadistic and crude disposition of
the gunmen who
doused the delivery van and the newspapers with diesel before
setting them
on fire.
The delivery truck which was carrying a consignment of 60 000
newspapers was carjacked 70 km from Masvingo town on its way from Beitbridge
border town by unidentified people wielding military issue AK 47 automatic
rifles.
According to information at hand, the gunmen commandeered
the driver,
Christmas Ramabulana, a South African national and distribution
assistant,
Tapfumaneyi Kancheta, a Zimbabwean to drive towards Chivi where
the truck
and the newspapers were doused with diesel before being set on
fire.
The two media workers were then beaten up and tortured by the
armed
militia who abandoned them in the bush.
They managed to find
their way to a local hospital where arrangements
were being made to get them
to Harare.
The episode is a further indicator, as has been pointed out
by The
Union that the run up to the Presidential election run off on June 27
has
witnessed an escalation of violence against journalists and media
workers.
We call on authorities to sincerely investigate the matter in
order to
bring the culprits to book.
The Zimbabwean on Sunday is a
sister publication to The Zimbabwean
which are printed in South Africa and
then shipped to Zimbabwe for sale.
The two publications and a host of
online publications and radio
stations have flourished after the government
shut down four newspapers and
hounded out private radio stations.
The closure of local media outlets has resulted in an influx of
foreign
media products especially from South Africa, Botswana and the United
Kingdom, a situation which leaves Zimbabweans more informed about what
happens in other countries when they know very little about what is
happening in their own country.
We call on authorities to complete
investigations connected to media
atrocities such as the bombing of The
Daily News printing press, Voice of
The People offices and the murder of
journalist, Edward Chikomba.
iafrica.com
Article By:
Thu, 29 May 2008
07:52
The border between South Africa and Zimbabwe should be abolished
"comprehensively", Methodist Bishop Paul Verryn told academics at the
University of the Witwatersrand on Wednesday.
"In exactly the same
way we pulled down the fences in 1994 and found that
instead of restricting,
it enabled. Instead of closing the economy, it
opened up much wider trust in
the economy," Verryn told a colloquium on
violence and xenophobia.
He
said foundation for what had gone wrong lay in the labelling of
vulnerable
people as "illegal aliens" and their criminalisation.
South Africa had to
decide whether ubuntu was really the new philosophy it
wanted to
espouse.
"... Ubuntu is a fairly untidy and a fairly irresponsible social
concept, I
think because it doesn't have predictable, normal family
connections,"
Verryn told the academics.
"Anybody can be family and
many are family and the family extends wherever
humanity can be
found."
South Africans belonged "inextricably" to one another on the
African
continent, and "some of our family are beginning to explore the rest
of
their family", he said.
He pointed out that the xenophobic attacks
were not on the rich Zimbabweans,
but the poor Zimbabweans, "the ones in the
shacks, the ones in the
streets...".
The attacks were a warning to
the community about what it did with its
resources, said
Verryn.
"Resources in this country belong to the entire nation and need
to be shared
in a way that ensures that every human being knows that they
are of value
and they have human dignity that cannot be alienated from
them."
And so you have this phenomenon (xenophobia) having wind in our
community
because the poor are becoming recklessly impatient."
While
the first xenophobic attack he experienced was in Braamfontein three
years
ago, the government had known of the problem for at least four
years.
Each and every South African had to "scrutinise profoundly" the
attitude
that "breeds such vicious violence", said Verryn.
The system
of values at play was inconsistent with the country's
constitution many of
whose words, he believed, were "written from personal
experience of
alienation in your motherland, of humiliation by people over
and over
again."
Other academics speaking at the meeting said inequality was at
the heart of
the xenophobia sweeping the country.
The government
claimed to have done more to address poverty since 1994 than
any other
developing country and indeed had, said economics Professor
Stephen
Gelb
"Poverty and inequality are not the same thing and cannot be treated
by
politicians as if they are," he said.
The problem of poverty was
extremely deep and intractable.
"The problem of inequality is equally
deep and intractable."
While it was clear that the government had
addressed poverty, it was
"equally clear inequality has not been addressed
at all".
Inequality was "extreme" and had actually worsened since 1994,
Gelb pointed
out.
Inequality could only be addressed by the transfer
and building of assets
such as education, skills, land and
houses.
Only asset ownership would persuade people they had prospects and
hope for
the future.
"The government hasn't succeeded at all in asset
building and transfer."
Sapa
Last Updated:
Wednesday, April 9, 2008 | 4:29 PM ET
CBC Sports
Kirsty Coventry of
Zimbabwe has set a world record in the 400-metre
individual medley at the
short-course swimming world championships.
Coventry finished in four
minutes 26.52 seconds at the M.E.N. Arena in
Manchester, England, on
Wednesday.
Yana Klochkova of Ukraine set the previous world mark of
4:27.83 in 2002.
Hannah Miley of Britain finished second in 4:27.27 and
Mireia Belmonte of
Spain took bronze in 4:27.55 — both also ahead of
Klochkova's old mark.
At the 2004 Athens Olympics, Coventry won the 200
backstroke, finished
second in the 100 back and third in the 200 individual
medley.
She added two gold and two silver at the world championships in
Montreal in
2005 and two silver at the Melbourne worlds two years
later.
Meanwhile, the Netherlands set a world record in the women's 800
freestyle
relay.
The Dutch team of Inge Dekker, Fernke Heemskerk,
Marleen Veldhuis and Ranomi
Kromowidjojo finished in 7 minutes, 38.90
seconds. China had set the
previous mark of 7:46.30 at the 2002 short-course
worlds in Moscow.
The next three finishers were also ahead of the old
mark. Britain finished
in 7:38.96, Australia in 7:39.01 and the United
States finished in 7:45.58.