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Zimbabwe farm threat - BBC: Monday, 8 May, 2000, 17:31 GMT 18:31 UK
Mandela lashes out at Mugabe - from the Sydney Morning Herald & The Telegraph London 8/05/2000
Zimbabwe farmer dead, opposition condemns attack - Reuters - May 8 2000 3:34AM ET
Zimbabwe Farmer Dies After Beating - Reuters - May 7 2000 8:38PM ET
Farmer Dies After Squatter Assault - The Associated Press - May 8 2000 10:03AM ET
Concern as split in Zimbabwe’s army appears - Scotsman 8/5/2000
What happens if you don't support Mugabe - Independent UK
ZIMBABWE: Military role in farm invasions alleged - IRIN 5 May 2000
Clinton Decries Zimbabwe Violence - The Associated Press - May 8 2000 11:28AM ET
Friends of Zimbabwe Hold Peace March - Harare (Zimbabwe Standard, May 7, 2000)
SADC Lawyers Condemn Anarchy - Harare (Zimbabwe Standard, May 7, 2000)
True face of Zimbabwe 'war vets': jobless youths, women, govt backers - HARARE, May 8 (AFP)
Furious Zimbabwe farmers blame Mugabe's party for more killing - HARARE, May 8 (AFP)
Zimbabwe: e-mail highlights - BBC
Mugabe accused of 'terror campaign' BBC: Monday, 8 May, 2000, 11:01 GMT 12:01 UK
 
Zimbabwe farm threat
BBC: Monday, 8 May, 2000, 17:31 GMT 18:31 UK
Hunzvi wants British passport holders thrown out
Zimbabwean war veterans' leader Chenjerai Hunzvi has served notice that the invasions of white-owned farms will be stepped up.

Mr Hunzvi urged his followers to seek out British passport holders - whom he denounced as ruthless, cunning people - and force them to leave the country.

He said he was setting up a committee to redistribute the land, as politicians could not be relied upon to do the job.

Mr Hunzvi's remarks follow the killing of a third white farmer, Alan Dunn, who was a regional organiser for the main opposition group, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).

Mr Dunn's death prompted emergency talks among white farmers' leaders.

A BBC correspondent in Harare says Mr Hunzvi is well-known for his fiery rhetoric and erratic behaviour, but his words are now being listened to more closely, given President Mugabe's support for his actions over the past three months.

The emergency talks called by leaders of the Commercial Farmers' Union after Mr Dunn's death were held in Harare on Monday in an atmosphere described as one of shock and increasing alarm.

Deal in ruins

The farmers had attempted to implement a deal with squatters, in a bid to end the violence, but those efforts are now seen as being in ruins.

Hundreds of farms have been occupied since the crisis began, some as recently as Sunday.

The UK government has said it has contingency plans to evacuate up to 20,000 people in the event of an emergency.

Many thousands more are eligible to apply for British passports.

The UK has also confirmed that it has held talks with other European Union nations on preparing joint evacuation plans.

The latest comments from Mr Hunzvi came after the leader of the MDC, Morgan Tsvangirai, accused the government of unleashing a campaign of violence aimed at intimidating the opposition. "It is part of a terror campaign that has been going on for the last three months," the MDC leader said. "White farmers who support the MDC are seen as a challenge to Zanu-PF and they are made to pay - some with their lives. It is very tragic."

At least 12 opposition supporters - including the three white farmers - have been killed in political violence over the past few weeks.

The farm squatters say they are taking the action in protest at the slow pace of land reform in Zimbabwe, where the government has pledged to break up big, largely white-owned farms and redistribute them to landless peasants.

 
Mandela lashes out at Mugabe - The Telegraph
Johannesburg: There are growing signs of a rift among South Africa's leaders over the Zimbabwe crisis after Mr Nelson Mandela made a barely disguised attack on Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe as a "tyrant".
This was in sharp contrast to the softly-softly approach of President Thabo Mbeki, who has kept up a show of African solidarity with Mr Mugabe. In a televised address last week he told critics of his diplomatic policy that nothing would be achieved in Zimbabwe by the "noise of empty drums".
But at the weekend, Mr Mandela denounced Mr Mugabe and other power-grabbing African leaders. He said ordinary people should depose tyrants who enriched themselves at the expense of their countrymen by "picking up rifles and fighting for liberation".
Asked later whether he was referring to Mr Mugabe, Mr Mandela said: "Everybody here knows who I am talking about. The situation exists in many parts of the world, especially Africa."
Mr Mandela was careful to remain within the bounds of the official South African position, with Mr Mbeki adopting polite and subdued language of African brotherhood in his public dealings with Mr Mugabe and urging a negotiated end to the crisis.
But even as he paid lip service to Mr Mbeki's diplomacy, Mr Mandela made it clear he had little patience with it and believed other South Africans should speak out forcefully.
Mr Mbeki's lieutenants were prickly when asked about Mr Mandela's comments.
"That is Mr Mandela's view. Mr Mbeki has explained his position in the address," the President's spokesman said. "The situation in Zimbabwe is very serious. There are more serious things to do than to look for differences between public officials."
The first evidence of a rift between Mr Mandela and Mr Mbeki came last week when Mr Mandela held talks with the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, and Mr Blair's officials said Mr Mandela supported Britain's position.
In contrast, Mr Mbeki's Government says Britain must make the first move by providing funds for white-owned farms to be redistributed to poor blacks and criticises Britain for being too strident.
But a senior British source suggested Mr Mandela spoke with Mr Mbeki's blessing. "He is free to say what everybody feels. Do not underestimate how tough Mbeki is in private talks with Mugabe."
A third Zimbabwean farmer died yesterday after he was beaten unconscious by suspected liberation war veterans leading the violent seizure of white-owned farms and attacks on opposition supporters.
Mr Alan Dunn's death, some three months into the violent land grab, brings to nearly 20 the number killed.

The Telegraph, London, and agencies

Zimbabwe farmer dead, opposition condemns attack
Reuters - May 8 2000 3:34AM ET
 
HARARE, May 8 (Reuters) - A white farmer in Zimbabwe died on Monday after he was beaten unconscious by suspected liberation war veterans leading the violent seizure of white-owned farms and attacks on opposition supporters.
Alan Dunn was the first white farmer to be attacked in two weeks and the third to die since veterans of the 1970s war against white rule began invading farms in February, demanding land they say was stolen by British settlers.
``I can confirm that the patient is dead,'' said a spokesman for the Harare hospital where Dunn was being treated for severe head injuries sustained on Sunday.
Police said Dunn had been assaulted on his farm, about 60 km (40 miles) southwest of the capital Harare, during a confrontation with people believed to be war veterans.
Zimbabwe's political crisis has shown no signs of abating. Four more white-owned farms were invaded by veterans on Sunday and opposition supporters beat two men wearing shirts with the logo of President Robert Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF at a rally.
Dunn was a regional executive committee member for the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), which poses the first serious threat to Mugabe's party in 20 years of post-independence rule.
``It is all aimed at intimidating the opposition. It is part of a terror campaign that has been going on for the last three months,'' MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai told Reuters on Monday.
``White farmers who support the MDC are seen as a challenge to ZANU-PF and they are made to pay -- some with their lives. It is very tragic,'' he said.
MDC secretary for legal affairs David Coltart said a dozen serious assaults had been reported to party headquarters in the last 24 hours. He accused the ZANU-PF of trying to intimidate voters ahead of parliamentary elections due by August.
FOUR MORE FARMS INVADED
Dunn was at home with his wife and three teenage daughters when a man knocked on the back door and asked him to come outside, said his friend Guy Watson-Smith.
Once in the yard, five men beat Dunn unconscious and left him for dead.
``I guess that this is the agenda. There is a serious campaign against anyone who is perceived to oppose the government and I presume that Alan Dunn was perceived to oppose the government,'' Watson-Smith told Reuters.
Some 700 white-owned farms have been invaded and at least 19 people killed since the land reform crisis and related political violence began.
``This (Dunn's murder) is not about the land issue. Alan Dunn was an MDC supporter and maybe that has something to do with it,'' said Jerry Grant, deputy director of the Commercial Farmers' Union (CFU), which groups 4,500 mainly-white farmers.
The CFU cut a deal with the veterans nearly two weeks ago to stop the invasions, end the violence and allow farmers to plant winter wheat crops.
Since then more than 50 farms have been invaded and attacks on farm workers perceived to be opposition sympathisers have gone unchecked.
``It is a very difficult time. We've been trying to calm the situation down,'' said Grant.
The CFU reported two farms near Mwenezi and two in Matabeleland were invaded on Sunday by veterans who staked out their claims and then left.
MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai told a rally on Sunday that Mugabe was responsible for the poor state of the economy and the invasion of white-owned farms.
``ZANU-PF has created an environment where everyone now lives in fear,'' he said. ``Because of this, farm workers cannot work and business is declining. That is not good for our country.''
Witnesses at the opposition rally said police rescued two men after they were beaten and rushed them to hospital. An MDC supporter was detained.
The rally, seen as a major test of support for the eight-month-old MDC, was attended by 3,000 chanting and singing people in the southern town of Masvingo.
Zimbabwe Farmer Dies After Beating
Reuters - May 7 2000 8:38PM ET
 
HARARE (Reuters) - A white farmer in Zimbabwe died on Monday after he was beaten unconscious by suspected liberation war veterans leading the violent seizures of white-owned farms.
Alan Dunn was the first white farmer to be attacked in two weeks and the third to die since veterans of the 1970s war against white rule began invading farms in February, demanding land they say was stolen by British settlers.
``I can confirm that the patient is dead,'' said a spokesman for the Harare hospital where Dunn was being treated for severe head injuries sustained on Sunday.
Police said Dunn had been assaulted on his farm, about 60 km (40 miles) southwest of the capital Harare, during a confrontation with people believed to be war veterans.
Zimbabwe's land crisis has shown no signs of abating. Four more white-owned farms were invaded by veterans on Sunday and opposition supporters beat two men wearing shirts with the logo of President Robert Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF at a rally.
A spokesman for the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) said Dunn was a regional executive committee member and was being persecuted for his political beliefs.
``This is part of a well-orchestrated widespread campaign of violence directed at MDC supporters by ZANU-PF, backed by President Robert Mugabe,'' said David Coltart, MDC's secretary for legal affairs.
He adding a dozen serious assaults had been reported to party headquarters in the last 24 hours. He accused the ZANU-PF of trying to intimidate voters ahead of parliamentary elections due by August.
``There is nothing else that could probably win them forthcoming elections. A terror campaign is their trump card,'' Coltart said.
FOUR FARMS INVADED, ZANU-PF SUPPORTERS BEATEN
Dunn was at home with his wife and three teenage daughters when a man knocked on the back door and asked Dunn to come outside, said his friend Guy Watson-Smith.
Once in the yard, five men beat Dunn unconscious and left him for dead.
``I guess that this is the agenda. There is a serious campaign against anyone who is perceived to oppose the government and I presume that Alan Dunn was perceived to oppose the government,'' Watson-Smith told Reuters.
Some 700 white-owned farms have been invaded and at least 19 people killed since the land reform crisis and related political violence began.
The Commercial Farmers' Union (CFU) said four more white-owned farms in the south had been invaded on Sunday.
The CFU, grouping the country's 4,500 white farmers, reported two farms near Mwenezi and two in Matabeleland were invaded by veterans who staked out their claims and then left.
With parliamentary elections due by August but expected in June, ZANU-PF supporters have stepped up intimidation of black rural voters, threatening violence if they vote the MDC into power.
To loud applause, MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai told Sunday's rally that Mugabe was responsible for the poor state of the economy and the invasion of white-owned farms.
``ZANU-PF has created an environment where everyone now lives in fear. Because of this, farm workers cannot work and business is declining. That is not good for our country.''
Witnesses at the opposition rally said police rescued two men after they were beaten and rushed them to hospital. An MDC supporter was detained.
The rally, seen as a major test of support for the eight-month-old MDC, was attended by 3,000 chanting and singing people in the southern town of Masvingo.
The European Union has urged Zimbabwe to allow foreign observers to be deployed as early as possible before election day and expressed concern at the breakdown of law and order.

Farmer Dies After Squatter Assault

The Associated Press - May 8 2000 10:03AM ET
 
HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) - A white farmer died early today from injuries suffered in an attack from squatters occupying his farm, the latest fatality from political violence that started in February.
Alan Dunn died after squatters fractured his skull and broke his arms Sunday afternoon at his farm near Beatrice, 35 miles south of Harare, said David Hasluck, head of the Commercial Farmers Union. Representatives of the union planned an emergency meeting later today.
The attack, along with the abduction and beating of two game scouts on Saturday, renewed fears among white Zimbabwean farmers.
``I think people in Zimbabwe, especially in rural areas, at the moment are unsafe,'' Dunn's neighbor, Guy Watson-Smith, told reporters Sunday evening at the hospital.
At least 18 people have died from political violence that started in February, when the opposition Movement for Democratic Change led the defeat of a referendum on a revised constitution. Many of the victims have had ties to the opposition, including Dunn.
Shortly after the vote, mobs and ruling party militants began staking claims to land on white-owned farms. More than 1,000 farms are now occupied. At least three white farmers have been killed in the often-violent occupations and at least a half-dozen have been severely beaten.
Squatter leader Chenjerai Hunzvi has agreed with the farmers union that the violence must stop, though the occupations can continue. He said today that he was unaware that his supporters were accused of having killed Dunn.
Jason Garrett, a manager at Dunn's farm, showed reporters the bloodied garage where Dunn was attacked. The assaulters used bricks and a folding chair as weapons, he said.
Another farm manager, Marus Stean, described Dunn as a ``good man'' who looked after his workers. Farm operations would continue, he said.
``He would have wanted us to carry on. For his sake, and for his wife's sake, we've just got to carry on,'' he said.
President Robert Mugabe has called the land occupations justified in this former British colony, where one-third of the fertile land is still owned by about 4,000 whites.
Opponents accuse Mugabe of provoking the land crisis to intimidate white farmers and other opposition supporters.
The worst economic crisis since independence has fueled support for the labor-backed MDC ahead of parliamentary elections, expected to be called within months. The MDC is seen as the biggest threat to Mugabe's hold on power since he led the nation to independence in 1980.
Hunzvi on Sunday urged people attending a ruling party rally in Glen Norah, south of Harare, to seek out British passport holders and force them to leave the country, Voice of America reported.
In a telephone interview with The Associated Press, Hunzvi called the British ``ruthless, cunning people.'' About 20,000 of Zimbabwe's 70,000 whites are eligible for passports from Britain.
British passport holders who want to stay should share their land and toss the passports, said Hunzvi, the leader of the National Liberation War Veterans Association and a ruling party parliamentary candidate.  
 
Concern as split in Zimbabwe’s army appears
Paul Beaver and Ron Golden In Harare
EUROPEAN Union ministers are becoming increasingly concerned at the stability of the army of Zimbabwe, following reports that it contains two factions.

One is loyal to the president, Robert Mugabe, and is led by the 1,000-strong Presidential Guard and the notorious 5th Brigade, trained by North Koreans in the 1980s. This unit is solely trained for internal security and counter-insurgency.

The other faction includes officers concerned about the cost of the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the increasing lawlessness at home.

South African military sources reported an attempted coup in January but that the ringleaders were rounded up and executed or imprisoned before their troops hit the streets.

Foreign sources say it is impossible to tell who is involved in which faction at the moment, but point to increasing evidence that the 5th Brigade has been supplying weapons and even transport to the so-called war veterans, many of whom are neighbours or relatives of unit personnel, coming from the Shona peoples of eastern Zimbabwe.

The loyalty of the army is confused by the fluctuating circumstances of the war in the Congo, where Zimbabwe has 11,000 troops plus helicopters and aircraft supporting President Laurent Kabila.

The forces have suffered from 350 to 500 casualties in 18 months. More than 90 per cent of army vehicles are useless because of a lack of spares.

Zimbabwe has also lost a British-built Hawk trainer, modified for ground attack, and a Chinese-built F7 copy of the Russian MiG-21 in the fighting. Spares for the Hawks are running low and several orders for engines and other parts will not be filled because of the UK-imposed arms embargo.

All this is said to make President Mugabe desperate to quit the war but that he will not do so until rivals Rwanda and Uganda do so – Uganda has troops up to 1,000 miles inside the Congo and shows littlelikelihood of moving out soon.

The side considered to be pro-stability includes the British-trained parachute battalion, which has worked with the British Army for 15 years in safeguarding the Mozambique border areas against poachers and ivory trafficking.

Sources say substantial numbers from the battalion have been deployed in the Congo and cannot act as a stabilising force.

However, none of the pro-Mugabe Presidential Guard has been allowed leave during the last three months, so frightened is Mr Mugabe of a coup.

Meanwhile, no signs were evident that violence was abating in Zimbabwe. A white farmer, Alan Dunn, was badly beaten during a confrontation with people believed to be war veterans who had invaded his farm, police said.

The farmer was rushed from Beatrice about 35 miles north-west to hospital in Harare.

White farmers said they were bracing for the announcement of the seizure of more than 800 farms – described by one farmer as the "guts of the agricultural industry" – by the government before the end of this month.

That would be in line with the announcement more than a week ago by the justice minister, Emmerson Mnanagagwa, that legal manoeuvres for the seizures would soon be ready.

The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, yesterday attacked the president, saying: "Mugabe has told people they can invade farms, but if we have no tobacco we have no foreign currency, which is why the country is suffering with things like fuel shortages."

The farmers union reported at the end of last week that 1,109 farms had been occupied by invaders since February. About 750 are still occupied and reports of new occupations are coming in.

The land grab, while being interpreted in the more sophisticated urban areas as an election ploy, would doubtlessly give a major boost to the fading fortunes of Mr Mugabe’s ruling ZANU-PF party in most parts of cities and towns, which have seen a marked swing to Mr Tsvangirai’s MDC.
 
What happens if you don't support Mugabe
Zimbabwe's approaching election is awakening savage memories
By Alex Duval Smith
7 May 2000
In the bleak, remote landscape of Matobo, people know what happens to those who are in two minds about supporting Zimbabwe's ruling party. They starve to death or are beaten, raped and tortured. This is what happened in the southwest of Zimbabwe in the 1980s. Then, at least 10,000 people died so that Zanu-PF could assert its power.
So, Lovemore Muthe Moyo knows he faces a formidable challenge, standing as the opposition Movement for Democratic Change's (MDC) candi- date in Matobo in the parliamentary elections due to be held this summer. Not only is his personal safety threatened by the ruthless ruling party but the minds of his future potential constituents are filled with fear.
"We do not want to think of what happened here. I myself witnessed beatings, rapes and brothers being made to fight one another. Those memories, we suppress them because they bring forth a lot of unanswered questions and suspicions," said the 35-year-old financial adviser.
In the centre of Matobo district lies Bhalagwe concentration camp, occupied as late as 1987 as part of Robert Mugabe's campaign to crush the rival liberation movement, Zapu. Local people have demolished some of the camp buildings where the worst atrocities were committed on thousands of people, but several are still standing, like grim monuments to fear. There are unmarked graves containing an untold number of bodies.
Now, says the MDC, President Mugabe is unleashing the same intimidation tactics he used in Matobo and the rest of Matabeleland on the country as a whole – murders, beatings and "re-education camps". Eighteen people have died since February and hundreds have been beaten – not just white farmers, their staff and MDC supporters, but also teachers and other influential figures in rural areas.
According to Gibson Sibanda, vice president of the MDC, there are strong parallels between the 1980s massacres in Matabeleland, known in the language of its Ndebele people as the Gukaruhundu (the spring rain that washes away the chaff of the winter season) and Zanu-PF's current intimidation, aimed at securing power for another five years.
"They are saying they will bring back the Gukaruhundu and the tactics are exactly the same. They attack and kill, they ransack places to find party cards and campaign material – just as they did against Zapu," he said.
There are differences between Zapu and the MDC. Zapu had its own armed liberation movement, Zipra. Together with Zanu's military wing, Zanla, it fought a long war to end white rule in 1980. Zipra's main base was in Matabeleland, the kingdom of the Ndebele people. Zanu, however, which was strongly supported by Mozambique, drew its support from the Shona people of Mashonaland, of whom President Mugabe is one.
When Zanu wanted to crush Zipra in the mid 1980s, it could claim dissidents with arms caches were destabilising the country. Such was Zanu's fear of its former liberation ally that President Mugabe renewed states of emergency in Matabeleland every six months between 1980 and 1990 – enforced by its special terror unit, 5 Brigade, trained by North Korea.
The MDC, on the other hand, is a young party, formed only last year and born out of the churches and trade unions. It is multi-racial and multi-ethnic. "It is great," said Mr Muthe Moyo. "The leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, is Shona but the vice president is Ndebele and we have whites among our membership, too. The party is truly representative, which is important, because there is strong discrimination in Zimbabwe against the Ndebele people."
Zapu was subsumed into Zanu after an accord was reach- ed at the end of Gukaruhundu in 1987 between Mr Mugabe and the late Joshua Nkomo. Today, Zimbabwe's three million Ndebeles are divided.
"People are hungry for change, especially the young voters," said Mr Muthe Moyo. "But Ndebeles are quite conservative. Our tradition is to be ruled by a royal family, and we gave Dr Nkomo the position of a king. It takes a while to win the support of Ndebele people but once you have, they are loyal and dedicated."
Mr Muthe Moyo, who hails from Matobo, stands a good chance. He knows his constituency and its 115,000 population: commercial farms in the north and a national park; two-thirds of people living on poor drought-prone communal lands; heads of families working in South Africa; zero infrastructure; clinics without drugs or doctors; no libraries and bad schools.
"It has always been hard for us. The communal lands are of the poorest variety and the people there know the meaning of famine." They also know the meaning of Gukaruhundu, he said, and are living in fear and uncertainty about their future,
President Mugabe, after years of denial, has agreed to pay compensation to families of those who died, though the government has never acknowledged how many were killed, nor issued death certificates for those who disappeared.
But Mr Muthe Moyo is dismissive: "What is compensation? It cannot bring back a mother, a sister or a brother. What we will build is a national shrine to all those people who died because they were Ndebele, loyal to Dr Nkomo or Zapu." The MDC also has plans for a truth commission which will help secure the victims' place in Zimbabwe's history.
As yet, the Matabeleland massacres have not been properly recorded and mass graves are still being discovered. Only one study, called Breaking The Silence, drawn from information gathered by rural Catholic missionaries, provides a real insight. The chapter on Matobo makes chilling reading.
It describes Bhalagwe as "the most notorious" concentration camp, where 5,000 people were detained at any one time. Here, digging graves was a daily chore and 5 Brigade played sadistic torture games with the men, women and children who were incarcerated for weeks or months on end.
Young women were taken as "wives" by the soldiers. Others were raped, with sticks. It was here that a woman, in 1983, was made to eat the flesh of her dead child. Men had their testicles bound with rubber strips and beaten. Some were made to push vehicles with their heads, then beaten for bleeding on government property.
In his office in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second city, Mr Sibanda has his own memories of the terror of the 1980s when he was active in Zapu. But he is optimistic that the MDC supporters will not be cowed. "Our candidates and supporters are being targeted. But I think Zanu-PF realised too late how powerful the MDC has grown. The horse had bolted before they started to try to rein it in."
 
ZIMBABWE: Military role in farm invasions alleged
 
UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - IRIN 5 May 2000
tp://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/sa/countrystories/zimbabwe/20000505.phtml
 
JOHANNESBURG, 5 May (IRIN) - Senior ruling party-linked officers in Zimbabwe's armed forces have allegedly taken a direct role in organising the invasion of white commercial farms by "war veterans", a military analyst told IRIN on Friday. Confirming media reports in Zimbabwe and South Africa, the retired army officer said he had "come across evidence that old party cadres in the military have been organised to implement the strategy" of land invasions to punish white farmers for their support of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).
"The intelligence service provided the lists (of the farms to target), the government provided the political strategy, and the armed forces provided the logistics," the military analyst said. The government's approach is aimed in part at ending the political influence of the farmers over their workers, he added. Media reports allege that the military has coordinated support for the self-styled war veterans, trucking in food and cash as well as armed soldiers to lead the occupations.
The reports have named General Perence Shiri, the head of the air force and former commander of the notorious Fifth Brigade, as the architect of the land invasions. In the 1980s the Fifth Brigade was accused of civilian massacres in Matabeleland in a campaign to stamp out dissidents. Shiri was alleged to have been part of a delegation of war veterans that met with white farmers last week.
Other senior officers were reported to have held talks with Commercial Farmers Union (CFU) leaders in which the government's displeasure with the support some of the CFU's 4,000 members had given to the MDC was spelled out. Fifth Brigade soldiers have also been identified as among the war veterans. The government's use of the military "deprofessionalises the armed forces, emphasises factions and political intrigue," the military analyst said.
However, armed forces spokesman Colonel Chancellor Diye has denied the military's involvement in the land invasions. Meanwhile, the 'Zimbabwe Independent' reported on Friday that government funds to support the war veterans were apparently running low, and the squatters had resorted to escalating their demands for supplies from farmers. "Phase 2 which includes political 're-education' of farm workers (ie, conversion to ZANU-PF) has been accompanied by an escalation of demands. War vets and ZANU supporters are now demanding food and transport," the newspaper said.
 
Clinton Decries Zimbabwe Violence
The Associated Press - May 8 2000 11:28AM ET
 
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Clinton on Monday decried as ``quite sad'' the political violence in Zimbabwe that has left several white farmers dead. ``I hope it can be worked out in a lawful manner,'' Clinton said.
Clinton said U.N. ambassador Richard Holbrooke is currently in Africa trying to address ``a lot of the troubles'' there, including violence in Zimbabwe, where squatters have been occupying white-owned farms.
After meeting with organizers of an upcoming anti-gun violence march, Clinton told reporters he hopes the violence in Zimbabwe will soon ease before it threatens South Africa and other nearby countries.
``I think it is quite sad what is going on because (Zimbabwe) is an important country,'' Clinton said. ``I hope we can do something that will encourage them to return to a progressive and stable path. We'll work it out.''
At least 18 people have died violently since February, when the opposition Movement for Democratic Change helped defeat a referendum on a revised constitution. Many of the victims have had ties to the opposition.
Shortly after the vote, mobs and ruling party militants staked claims to white-owned farms, sometimes violently. More than 1,000 farms are now occupied, at least three white farmers have been killed and at least a half-dozen have been severely beaten.
President Robert Mugabe has said the occupations are justified in this former British colony, where one-third of the fertile land is still owned by about 4,000 whites.

Friends of Zimbabwe Hold Peace March

Harare (Zimbabwe Standard, May 7, 2000) - Friends of Zimbabwe, a South African-based pressure group, held a peace march in Cape Town on Friday, calling on the South African government to take a firmer stand on the Zimbabwean crisis.
The march, hailed by the organisers as a tremendous success, comprised about 200 marchers from various backgrounds thus cutting across racial lines. The mood of the proceedings was said to be one of clear solidarity with the people of Zimbabwe in the face of the intense intimidation they face.
A spokesperson for the group told The Standard : "Most of the marchers were Zimbabwean students, but there were many South Africans. There was much support for the march as it progressed."
The spokesperson added that the theme of the march was 'Peace, Democracy and the Rule of Law'. A memorandum and petition with over 30 000 signatures was submitted to the South African foreign affairs ministry.
"The memorandum called on the South African government to make its position on the Zimbabwean crisis much clearer and to initiate concrete steps to support a return to democracy and the rule of law in Zimbabwe, so that free and fair elections can take place as a matter of urgency", the spokesperson pointed out.
The group said the march was also held to try to garner the support of the international community, particularly that of the Southern African Development Community, against the actions of President Mugabe and his government.
The spokesperson said they were aggrieved by the stance of the South African government, which they accused of making vague statements about "monitoring the situation" and carrying out "behind the scenes action".
The group acknowledged that the central issue in Zimbabwe was one of land redistribution.
"However, we believe that this issue is being manipulated for the ruling party's own political gain in the run-up to the elections. It is clear that President Mugabe and the Zimbabwean government are promoting lawlessness and racial division as part of their political agenda," the spokesperson said.
By Itayi Viriri
 

SADC Lawyers Condemn Anarchy

Harare (Zimbabwe Standard, May 7, 2000) - The Southern African Development Community Lawyers' Association has joined other bodies in condemning the failure of President Robert Mugabe's government to control the current lawlessness in Zimbabwe.
The new regional body of lawyers, formed in August last year, expressed its profound concern at a recent meeting.
A Sadc Lawyers' Association councillor, Sternford Moyo, told The Standard, last night, that his organisation was concerned at the apparent lawlessness now prevailing and that it had called upon the government of Zimbabwe to put in place measures and processes to uphold the law in the country and address the land issue within the framework of the constitution of the country and the relevant laws.
"The Sadc Lawyers' Association encourages the government of Zimbabwe to proceed with due expedition and diligence to facilitate the enforcement of the order which was made by Mr. Justice Paddington Garwe on 17 March 2000, which is fundamental to the observance of the rule of law and the maintenance of law and order," said a statement issued by the association. Justice Garwe declared the occupation of the farms illegal and ordered the police to evict the invaders from the commercial farms. But the commissioner of police neglected to enforce the order, citing a lack of resources.
Moyo, who is also the president of the Law Society of Zimbabwe, said the executive of any Sadc country should not be seen to be reluctant to enforce the court orders of its country.
"The Sadc Lawyers' Association encourages all Sadc countries to resist any act which may serve to undermine the credibility of our courts and respect for the rule of law," said Moyo.
The Zimbabwean lawyer said his organisation had met to discuss the land crisis in Zimbabwe since court orders were not being honoured by the government of Zimbabwe.
In an interview with The Standard, last night, Moyo said he wrote to the minister of home affairs, Dumiso Dabengwa, appealing to him to restore law and order on the commercial farms, following the illegal occupation of the farms by former freedom fighters and some land-hungry peasants.
Moyo said he pointed out to the minister that a perception of abrogation by the state of its duty to maintain law and order, whether this arose from inaction or ineffective action, or delayed action, was extremely dangerous.
"I stated to the minister that in the relationship between the state and its subjects, legitimacy was rooted in the effective maintenance of law and order by the state," said Moyo.
The Zimbabwean attorney said he again wrote to the minister, in his capacity as president of the Law Society of Zimbabwe, pointing out to him that crimes were being committed on commercial farms, and that somebody had threatened war in the event of election results bringing into power a government that was not acceptable to him.
"I pointed out further that these threats amounted to threats to commit treason and sedition. I expressed concern in that letter that these threats amounted to intimidation which could be viewed as denying the people of Zimbabwe their democratic right to vote for whoever they pleased in the forthcoming elections," said Moyo.
He said only the head of state, acting in his capacity as a commander-in-Cchief of the defence forces of Zimbabwe, could declare war.
"A threat to go to war by a person who has no authority whatsoever to declare war, is a threat to commit offences against the state. Furthermore, it is intimidation which is aimed at denying the people of Zimbabwe their democratic right to vote as they please in the forthcoming elections. Threats of armed defiance and/ or subversion of the authority of a government other than a government formed by the current ruling party will, most certainly, alarm and disillusion even the most ardent supporters of the ruling party," Moyo told Dabengwa.
He said their request to have audience with Dabengwa since March had been futile. But they have, of late, been informed that the minister will be in a position to meet with the local law society after the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair.
Dabengwa himself could not be reached for comment at the time of going to press.
By Ray Choto
Copyright 2000 Zimbabwe Standard.
 
Monday, May 8 10:07 PM SGT

True face of Zimbabwe 'war vets': jobless youths, women, govt backers

HARARE, May 8 (AFP) - War veterans in Zimbabwe leading a bloody campaign of white farm invasions are a militia of ex-guerrillas, jobless youths, women and party followers in the pay of a president desperately clinging to power.
The thousands of blacks who have flooded on to some 1,200 white-owned farms since February, beating farmworkers and killing three white farmers, most recently Alan Dunn who died overnight Sunday after being bludgeoned into a coma, say they are veterans of the war against white rule in the 1970s.
But a close look shows that while some greying ex-guerrillas are among those occupying the farms, their ranks are swelled by radical members of President Robert Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF party, young unemployed men in their late teens and some women.
Analysts say Mugabe allied himself with the war veterans after his crushing defeat in a land reform referendum in February, which proved to him that his 20-year hold on power in the former British colony was, for the first time, shaky.
Mugabe moved fast. Legislative elections were due in just two months time -- he postponed them from April and has still not set a firm date for them -- and the veterans and their land grievances would, he saw, prove useful.
When later in the month they began flooding onto white-owned farms calling for them to be given back to their rightful -- and landless -- black owners, Mugabe concealed his delight with difficulty.
Whilst maintaining that the land occupations had not been orchestrated by the government, he refused to condemn them.
At a rally last Wednesday he finally said the government supported the war veterans, who had taken the iniative to occupy white farms on their own, he claimed. The government had been pleasantly surprised by the initiative, he said.
At least 50,000 self-styled war veterans now benefit from a "logistical and political support" from the ZANU-PF, according to David Coltart, a member of the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).
Those occupying farms get food supplies delivered to them in vehicles belonging to government organisations, witnesses say.
Meanwhile unemployed youths are getting paid to join in the farm occupations.
Around half the population of Zimbabwe is without work. Joining the so-called war veterans is a job that pays well, according to one young squatter.
"I was amongst the squatters in the north until last month and got a good pay for it," said 20-year-old George Chiweshe.
Some of these young men, often drunk and armed with sticks, have been behind recent vicious attacks on black farmworkers, as in Marondera, southeast of Harare.
"Youngsters are the most unpredictable," said one white farmer whose farm near Marondera has been occupied by hordes of the so-called war veterans.
"They are desperate because of the economic dead-end and so they would do anything they are told," he said, interviewed on the telephone.
"It seems they haven't taken part in any killings yet, but they are very often drunk and can then beat up anybody passing by," he added.
Not all Zimbabwe's liberation war veterans support the land occupations and some are angered by what they see as the recuperation of their bloody struggle -- in which 27,000 people lost their lives -- for political ends.
"Those who use the black nationalists' struggle for independence for their disreputable political ends are insulting the dead," said one ex-fighter who opposes Mugabe and asked to remain anonymous.
Squatter Chiweshe has left the war veterans for "a less demanding job" as a taxi driver, he says.
For those who stay on, the next few weeks hold the promise of more state-sponsored violence.
 
Monday, May 8 7:41 PM SGT

Furious Zimbabwe farmers blame Mugabe's party for more killing

HARARE, May 8 (AFP) - Angry Zimbabwe farmers Monday blamed President Robert Mugabe's office and ruling party for the brutal killing of a white commercial farmer and opposition supporter in the latest political violence over land.
"Alan Dunn's murder is the evidence that you cannot negotiate with bandits and murderers," Commercial Farmers' Union (CFU) legal officer David Coltart said after the white cattle rancher died overnight.
"What is unfolding in Zimbabwe is an orchestrated campaign of violence," he added. "I have no doubt that this campaign is orchestrated from the office of the president."
The CFU meanwhile called its officials Monday from across the country for an urgent meeting after the death of Dunn, who was beaten into a coma on his farm south of Harare by attackers who smashed his skull and broke his arms.
The latest killing and the general escalation of violence, linked to land invasions led by self-styled veterans of Zimbabwe's 1970s liberation struggle, would be the main items on the agenda, according to CFU vice-president Colin Cloete.
However, Cloete contradicted reports by neighbours and other CFU officials that war veterans were behind the attack at Beatrice, about 64 kilometresmiles) from the capital.
He said that according to witnesses interviewed by the CFU Monday, those responsible were supporters of Mugabe's Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) party who had just come from a rally.
Dunn, described as a known supporter of Zimbabwe's main political opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), was the third white farmer to die since the crisis over land reform began in February.
He was set upon by a group of about nine men wielding iron bars, clubs and crowbars on his property at Beatrice, about 64 kilometres (40 miles) from here, Commercial Farmers Union (CFU) officials said.
Malcolm Boyland, managing director of Avenues Clinic here where Dunn was admitted after the attack, said the farmer died late Sunday night.
"He remained unconscious until the end," Boyland said. "His brain damage was too extensive to support life."
"This was a designed operation and was not war veterans with grievances, it was a targetted operation by all accounts," Cloete told AFP.
He said Dunn had been resting Sunday afternoon when he heard a noise at the back of his house.
"When he went to the back door, they set about him with iron bars, clubs and crowbars," Cloete said. "He was in no position to retaliate. His wife realised what was happening and took the children to safety."
His wife got on to the farm radio network and called for help, during which time the assailants disappeared.
Dunn's neighbour, Guy Watson-Smith, said the farmer had backed the MDC, which is posing a significant challenge to the grip on power the ZANU-PF party has maintained for the past 20 years.
With a general election due in the next month or two -- a date has still to be set -- violent intimidation of MDC supporters is being reported across Zimbabwe, with at least 20 centres affected at the weekend.
According to latest CFU figures, 16 MDC supporters -- including Dunn -- have been killed since February in clashes linked to the land invasions and electioneering. The death of a policeman last month brings the toll to 17.
Another CFU official, Ben Zietsman, of the southern Matabeleland region, warned last week that armed "warlords" were taking charge of the land invasions, and that increasing bloodshed could be expected.
The invasions had been spearheaded by war veterans leader Chenjerai Hunzvi, but a court action brought by the CFU had the effect of forcing him to take part in negotiations with the farmers in a bid to seek a peaceful solution.
Coltart, however, lashed out Monday at what he termed "Hunzvi's so-called veterans."
"ZANU-PF realizes that its only way of winning the elections is to continue to intimidate, assault and murder people," he told AFP by telephone from the southern city of Bulawayo.
 
Zimbabwe: e-mail highlights

BBC: Wednesday, 19 April, 2000, 15:34 GMT 16:34 UK

We have been inundated with e-mails concerning the crisis in Zimbabwe. Here is an edited selection.
Experiences from Zimbabwe

I was a resident of Rhodesia from 1976 to 1978. I remember one day reading in the Rhodesian Herald about a white farmer who was convicted of beating a sixty-year-old farm worker to death because he had planted the maize seeds to close together. He was fined $300 (about £200). Where were the calls for justice then? I remember white farmers putting African workers in their car boots to take them to the fields. I remember drunken white soldiers boasting about throwing people out of helicopters and other horrors. I remember sitting in a crowded city centre restaurant being shouted at as a "kaffir lover" because one of my companions was "coloured". None of this makes Mugabe right - but why the western sympathy for the white farmers? When did they ever say sorry?
Will Rogers, Britain

I lived in Nyamandhlovu, Zimbabwe for 4 years, Martin Olds was my neighbour. He did not deserve to die such a violent death. Now that the conflict has reached Matabeleland we can expect to see further violence in the country. I always thought that Mr Mugabe was strong enough to see the country through all the difficulties ahead after Independence. On this anniversary of their independence I would like to ask Mr Mugabe to think of the future for all people in his country; the Shona, the Matabele and the whites. He had a lot of respect when he took over the presidency and could regain this by working towards conciliation. I also send my sincere condolences to Alf and Gloria Olds and to the families of all those touched by the current tragedies.
Alison Carman, United Kingdom

would like to add a comment about the killing that went on Today at Nyamandhlovu. Mr Martin Olds on the first white person to receive a Bronze Medal of Valour for saving MR G Parkin's life on the 11 Jan 1989 from a crocodile attack. Approx. 1 year later Mr Olds went to the State House where he shook hands with Mr Mugabe to accept the medal. The Nymandhlovu Police have had a history of poor service especially where whites are concerned, this has been highlighted tragically by today's events.
Lisa, Zimbabwe

As a white Zimbabwean farmer who has had to flee from my home we send out a plea to the rest of the world. We are being executed by our government because of the colour of our skin, all in an attempt by a thoroughly corrupt leader to cling to power. Can anyone help us?
Lorraine, Zimbabwe

What is Britain and the United Nations going to do about this ethnic cleansing? How many more innocent Zimbabweans, black and white, have to die before the international community reacts to stop this dictator bringing the country to it's knees in his desperate attempts to maintain his iron grip on power?
Expat in Exile, UK

I am a white Zimbabwean - I was born here - I have nowhere to go. The farmers were agreeable to land distribution from the very beginning, provided it was done fairly. They drew up plans and presented them to government. The government then took it upon themselves to take the land they wished and give it to their buds. All that land is standing idle whilst 20 year old 'war veterans' are destroying productive farms. Once they have taken the farms how can they possibly hope to run them? Please will someone out there help us before our home is destroyed....
Sarah , Zimbabwe

Born in Zimbabwe, raised in Zimbabwe, forced to leave because of the colour of my skin. Where do I go? The UK? I have no right of abode. I am not a British citizen. Where is my home? I have no farm, I have nothing. Just my skin colour. That's enough to make me the expense of Mugabe's desperate attempts to retain his dictatorship. He's not the only black Zimbabwean who can lead. Don't let the actions of a few desperate men convince you that Zimbabwe has a racially unstable society. Anyone taken in by Mugabe's last playing card has got to look at themselves and think "do I really want to be his puppet?". What do you want? I want harmony, success, and happiness in the place I was born and raised. I want to work, as I have, for a better life for us all. I want a place I can call home.
Homeless, No Man's Land

Most of the people commenting above are out of touch with the reality of the situation. All of us Zimbabweans fought for our country and there should be no privileged minority such as the "war vets".
I am a black Zimbabwean and feel that Mugabe has lost it and its time to go. He is clinging to any possible "solution" to extend his period in power. It is unfortunate that fellow Zimbabweans "war vets" continue to be used by a man who will shake them off once he has "won" the elections. We can not pay for the sins and inequities of our forefathers. The government has acquired land for themselves and the top brass, why can't they redistribute that land first before they go and illegally acquire more.
The whole land reform and distribution process is not transparent hence the upheaval happening today. You do not correct a wrong by another wrong. Zimbabweans wake up before it is too late. Mugabe has taken us for a ride over the past twenty years.
Susan, Zimbabwe

I was sitting in a restaurant in Zimbabwe with my friends one minute, the next minute the riot police had thrown tear gas in.... I was certainly crying¿. I want to go back. I am worried about my family there, and my friends. I can't watch them be destroyed by a little man, who is very short and very clever! Lets hope that he is not clever enough!!!
Kat (age 17), UK

On the land issue

Who are the commercial farmers supposed to give their land back to? The land tenure system in Zimbabwe recognises two forms of land ownership - private freehold and communal. I presume the commercial farms would have to be given to the people and cease to be freehold and revert to communal ownership. The financial institutions will not lend money to the communal owners of the land to develop it. The financial institutions will not lend the present owners of any freehold money to develop it if its ownership is under threat.
Mugabe and his war veterans are taking the country back into a communally owned form of land tenure that can only support agrarian subsistence farming. If they get their way and are allowed to flaunt the laws of the country Zimbabwe will become a rural slum. If farmland is to be 'nationalised' what about urban land? No one's freehold property in Zimbabwe is secure.
God help Zimbabwe. Let the voters decide on which party can lead the country into the information age. The voters will get the government they deserve. If Mugabe ever lets free and far elections the voters will get their chance to replace him and ZANU (PF). If the current voters do not like their politicians they can do what thousands of others have done and voted with their feet and become economic refugees and exiles living outside the country they would love to call home.
Osie Osborne, New Zealand Ex Zimbabwe

The point people seem to be missing is this; the conflict is about land and the confiscation of white owned land. Mugabe wants to confiscate the white's land without compensation. The people of Zimbabwe voted AGAINST this confiscation of land in the recent referendum. The courts have ruled in favour of the farmers, so they can't be in the wrong. Wake up world - your silence is allowing a dictatorship to flourish. Murder and anarchy will follow.
Jason, UK

This 'conflict' has nothing to do with land. It has everything to do with the corruption of Robert Mugabe. He is a corrupt political tyrant who has bled Zimbabwe dry to fill his own pockets and those of his ZanuPF cronies.
Like most African countries since the ending of white rule, the victors have been the greedy and insane. The ordinary citizens of Zimbabwe, both black and white will now suffer at the hands of one of Africa's most successful and richest dictators.
The British government (of all persuasions) bear some of the blame for keeping him in power for so long. Now is the time to pull the plug on Mugabe. He has bankrupted what was one of the richest countries in Southern Africa, and condemned its people to poverty. If 'ethnic cleansing' is deemed wrong in Europe, then it should be deemed wrong in Africa, and the West take a stand.
Dave, UK

Because of these land occupations current crops are not being harvested and new winter crops are not being planted. Farmers will not be able to pay their debts and will go bankrupt. If this happens, the economy in Zimbabwe will collapse as, an agricultural economy, no foreign exchange will come into the country, and there will not be any money to pay for food imports to replace the unplanted food crops.
Taking farms away from whites may sound like a fair and noble idea, but the reality is that most of these re-distributed farms will be used for subsistence farming. Unfortunately subsistence farming does not feed a nation.
Unless something is done about this now, the world will end up paying later in the form of economic/food aid to Zimbabwe.
Aris, UK

There are many facts that need to be stated clearly. Who 'owned' the land before the Shona moved onto it prior to white people moving onto it? Mugabe and his cabinet have pocketed the 30 million odd pounds that the British Government donated to buy back the land from white farmers. Mugabe is now one of the richest men in the world - he wasn't 20 years ago. The white farmers are largely responsible for keeping the economy such as it is, going. Without them the country will become another Ethiopia in the not too distant future. In the interests of law and order and human decency the world must rally to support the white Zimbabwe farmers.
Jean Illingworth, Australia

The principle of land redistribution is not in dispute. The overwhelming majority of white farmers in Zimbabwe accept that an unfair situation needs to be put right.
But this crisis is not really about land. It is about Mugabe seizing any opportunity he can to remain in power. Most Zimbabweans would like to see a fair settlement on the land issue. Mugabe would rather see continued unrest... it provides him with an issue that he thinks will attract support. The reality is that most Zimbabweans despise him and his corrupt government. If he did not have the whites to flog, he would find some other reason to behave the way he has done.
Vengai Ndlovu, UK

I appreciate that there may be past injustices and very real land issues in present day Zimbabwe, however have the war veterans possibly forgotten an fundamental point. Did they fight the Rhodesian war merely about land? Were they not also fighting against racial discrimination? Were they not also fighting for democratic rule? It appears to me that they have lost the war on these fronts entirely.
Noel, UK

On race

Mugabe surprises me with his war vets. I am sure many of them do not even know proper farming methods because many never learnt agriculture in school, yet agriculture holds almost 70% of Zimbabwe's economy, lets wait and see how the vets will perform after they are handed the farms, no repair will be done to the machinery because they do not even know what fertiliser to apply where and how. Let Mugabe compensate the white farmers and I am sure farming in Zimbabwe will come to a halt the moment vets take over.
Martha James, Tanzania

Mugabe's strategy is working...he is going to create terror and the whole world are going to give him what he wants in order to stop the bloodshed. Watch - Britain will give money to resettle the blacks, and farmers will not be compensated. The opposition will be defeated because of the terror he is installing and the Mugabe supporters will rule strong because the first world once again gives into Mugabe just to stop the violence.
Linda Edwards, Canada

Is it any surprise that after Mr Mugabe's recent incitement, white farmers are now being killed by "war veterans" who have been instructed to invade their land. Another example, sadly, of Mr Mugabe's disgusting dictatorial attitude to government. I know that the troubled history of this beautiful country, but I fail to see how the latest round of violence will help to resolve anything
Malcolm, UK

The western media is guilty of racism. For the last 25 years, thousands of blacks have die in the struggle for equality. The ferocity of the media has never been as acute as it is now. We've all heard the names and seen the faces of the murdered and beaten white farmers in the media. What about the black opposition activists who were recently murdered... who were their names again?
John, UK

Personally, I think Robert Mugabe has been destroying Zimbabwe ever since he took over. The country has only been going down and down and now they've hit rock bottom. If he stays in control of the country, it's just going to get worse (and we thought when you hit the bottom, you can't get any worse.. wrong!). Get rid of him and let the country get back to its beautiful self.
Colin Webb, England

It is very reassuring to hear that so many Zimbabweans, black and white, have not been distracted by the Mugabe race hate propaganda. These intelligent people have shown that they know exactly what the megalomaniac Mugabe is up to. I think this shows that there is much hope for Zimbabwe, as long as Mugabe goes soon before the damage is irreparable.
Graeme, England

The harmony which has existed for so long has been deliberately destroyed by Mugabe and Zanu-PF. They do not wish to see unity. They hope to achieve their own political ends via unrest.
The world can see that there is no place in the 21st century for Mugabe and his racist views. The hatred is not confined to whites but also targeted at the Asian business community. Pamphlets have recently been circulating in Bulawayo, proclaiming "the Indians will be next". In many ways they are more visible than the white community.
White farmers known to hold British passports are being deliberately targeted by Mugabe's thugs. This is nothing but ethnic cleansing.
John Nevitt, UK

Bloodshed would be unavoidable since bloodshed is the only language colonialist understands. Whites in Zimbabwe would be responsible if bloodshed happens since they were tolerated for long and even asked nicely to leave. No one should expect peace after taking forcefully other's land. If the whites in Zimbabwe don't want to see bloodshed they should leave Zimbabwe and go back to Britain. It is Britain where they belong. Whites claims are baseless.
The Africans were never given the protection of the law and compensated when they lost their lands to this same people. Now it is their turn. Talk of economic disaster is propaganda to divert the real issue. What we see is history catching up with the Whites. Every form of colonialism shall be eradicated. Zimbabwe is symbol for Africa and the world.
Mahamed Abdullahi, Somalia

The great sadness of all this is that Mugabe is employing racism ("its all the fault of the white devil") to prop up his political support (much as European racists have done in France, Austria, Italy and elsewhere). Clearly the land was illegally expropriated many years ago, but from whom? Until this is clearly agreed, the present (white) incumbents have the greatest claim to their farms. At such time as agreement is reached (possibly by arbitration) the farmers must pay adequate compensation - they may argue that they have paid for the property, but unfortunately it was not the vendors to sell.
Craig Harry, England

I cannot believe the comments about 'this is because of colonialism', and 'land distribution is needed so economic wealth to be shared'. Rubbish! Within five years of a world war Germany had rebuilt itself more than most of Africa has managed in the 30 years since independence. That's because of corrupt and incompetent governments in Africa. Not colonialism. As for the land - it needs to be distributed to all for the good and overall wealth of the country..... I don't see it being a major issue in any developed country. It's time to stop your ignorant and misplaced ideals, support the law, and try and do what is best for Zimbabwe; which is to get a decent government.
Nick, UK

On Mugabe

I lived in Zimbabwe in the late eighties and experienced Mugabe's dictatorial methods firsthand when he tried to blame South Africa for killing Samora Machell. Anyone in Zimbabwe will remember what I mean. Everyone is to blame, except him and his cronies. Now it seems that it is open season on White Farmers. The same White farmers that provide Zimbabwe with most of there badly needed foreign currency. Most of the 'Veterans' that I have seen 'liberating' Farms were not even born when Rhodesia/ Zimbabwe was having its 'liberation war'.
It seems that it is the usual Zanu PF rent a mob, being used to catch votes for the forth-coming elections. To keep an old man who is trying to retain power in this land, one way or the other. Racism is such an easy card to play - this man has been playing it for years, would any western country be allowed to get away with what is happening in Zimbabwe?
Mark, England

I am a Zimbabwean based in Canada. What I do not understand is the concern now being expressed by the British over what is going on in Zimbabwe. In 1997 Tony Lloyd visited Zimbabwe where he had the temerity to tell journalists that Britain had no obligation to honour the promise it made during the Lancaster House negotiations. Things have now come to a head because all diplomatic efforts to solve Zimbabwe's land problems were ignored by the British, particularly the Tony Blair government. What is important is to realise that blacks in Zimbabwe need land; their land that was expropriated up to 1974 when the Tangwena clan was driven away from their land which was then taken by a Hanmark. Please what us Africans need is a place we call home.
Spear Katibu, Zimbabwean/Canada

We have seen the sad destruction of our once rich and glorious African colonies, since the winds of change speech. African Governments should be inviting back our pioneering youth to resettle the land and bring a firm hand to the task of rebuilding the country. The white settlers who have built up so much from scratch have as much right to own and farm as the tribesmen. African countries are largely artificial groupings, with a collection of tribes living in their bounds. The whites largely created Africa as we know it.
G F Sandeman, UK

So now these people who chose to live in Zimbabwe, as "Zimbabweans" are going to be rescued by the British. What about the black Zimbabweans? Everyone tries to say that this shouldn't be a question of 'black' and 'white' but to me it seems clear that when the going gets tough, the British government is prepared to airlift people just because of the colour of their skin. Not enough attention has been given to the blacks who are against Mugabe, and who have died for their beliefs.
Kirsty Carter, Zimbabwean living in the USA

It is very embarrassing to witness what is happening in Zimbabwe. This should not be a race issue. Britain or Zimbabwe's response should be fair. They should treat the white Zimbabweans and the black Zimbabweans equally, by addressing their needs fairly.
If white Zimbabweans truly consider themselves to be true Zimbabweans, they should see the suffering of their fellow (black) Zimbabweans and propose social reforms that will address issues of poverty in the country. It would be wonderful to get all true Zimbabweans, white yellow, black green etc. working together to solve issues in the country. It is very childish to propose going to remove white Zimbabweans from their homeland. Please let there be no racism or discrimination from both sides of colour. When are we going to learn to live in harmony as human beings?
Bernard Mukwavi, Zambian studying in Canada

I am an American who has emigrated to South Africa and have lived in, written about and worked in Southern Africa for twenty years. I have recently been to Zimbabwe for the third time and found no animosity between the races at all. A racist despot in the person of Robert Mugabe has created the present situation. Ask him about his own human rights records in regard to the Metabeli. What has happened to all the young Metabeli men and what of his own young Mashona that have died in his useless alliance with the Congo forces.
Zimbabwe's potential as a tourist Mecca is unsurpassed by even it's rich cousin to the South but one small-minded, tribalistic dictator has been able to bring it to it's knees. Remember when Edi Amin deported the Asian population form Uganda? The only hard currency earned by Zimbabwe is from its farmers. The squatters will not replant the land for export they will simply exist and Zimbabwe will cease to exsist other than as a jungle outpost as Livingston and Rhodes found it.
Michael Bagley, South Africa

We in Canada stole the land from the Indians. We managed to become the numerical majority, and don't lose much sleep over it. For us to prognosticate on Zimbabwe is presumptuous at best. But here at least we have the rule of law, and a tradition of rights for minorities, unlike in Mugabe's kleptocracy. The failure of Zimbabwe is a moral one, not related to any past injustices, but to present greed, present corruption and present incompetence. Mugabe, in his personal moral failure, has failed his people and the country that once held so much promise. When he has finished with the whites, he will return again to victimise that other minority, the Matabele, thousands of whom he had killed in 1983. Mugabe's disease, however, is a pandemic in Africa. Accordingly, the post-colonial epitaph to Africa and Zimbabwe now reads "Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here."
John Nicholls, Canada

I was due to fly to Zimbabwe with an aid team this weekend, but we have had to delay indefinitely due to the present unrest. It seems to me that the situation is fairly clear-cut. Yes, a great injustice was done when the British colonialists massacred natives and took land for themselves. Yes, this is still a real issue today, no matter how long ago it happened. But surely anyone with a balanced mind can see that there is a right way and a wrong way to resolve this kind of issue.
The right way is by peaceful negotiation, and using democratic and peaceful means to apply pressure where necessary. The wrong way is what Mugabe is doing - using violence, intimidation and ignorance to further his own political ends. When will the world realise that Mugabe is not interested in justice for his people, but in staying in power and tightening his hold on the nation? His behaviour, and that of his regime, is typical of any dictator in the process of losing his grip (a look at the history books will confirm that).
I am not proud of the atrocities committed in the name of Britain in the past, but I fear that if Mugabe has his way, the majority of white farmers will leave. It's not difficult to predict what will happen then: an economy already on the verge of collapse will sink into the abyss, and the poor will get poorer while Mugabe and his cronies continue to do what they've been doing - lining their own pockets with land and money that should have been given to the people.
Rob Grayson, UK

My family arrived in Bulawayo on Christmas Day in 1896. They were given land by Cecil John Rhodes and have remained there ever since. They were people desperate for a start in life and this was it. Did they think of the Matabele who had just been cheated of their land by the British? Who knows? That is not the point. Like the USA and various other countries around the world, this is the way it was. My mother and father still live in Bulawayo. They are not British or citizens of any other country. They are Zimbabwean. The ignorant comments submitted by the "Go back to England where you belong" crowd are laughable. May as well tell that US Farmer in Iowa to go back to Ireland or Poland or wherever his ancestors came from. The real issue at hand here is that Mugabe is willing to trade people's livelihoods for his own personal gain.
P Blundell, Ex Zimbabwean now in Australia

Mugabe accused of 'terror campaign'

BBC: Monday, 8 May, 2000, 11:01 GMT 12:01 UK

Police stopped a fight at an MDC rally
Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsavangirai has accused the government of unleashing a "terror campaign" against its opponents.

He was reacting to the killing of farmer Alan Dunn, who was a regional organiser for Mr Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change.

At least 12 opposition supporters - including three white farmers - have been killed in political violence over the last few weeks.

The killings have accompanied the invasion of white-owned farm land by members of the Zimbabwe National War Veteran's Association - a group which supports President Robert Mugabe.

Mr Tsvangirai said recent events were aimed at intimidating the opposition.

"It is part of a terror campaign that has been going on for the last three months," the MDC leader said.

"White farmers who support the MDC are seen as a challenge to Zanu-PF and they are made to pay - some with their lives. It is very tragic," he said.

Beaten

Mr Dunn died early on Monday after having been attacked and severely beaten the previous day on his farm, about 60km (40 miles) south-west of Harare.

He was the first white farmer to be attacked in two weeks and the third to die since so-called war veterans began invading farms in February, demanding land they say was stolen by British settlers.

An MDC spokesman said a dozen other serious assaults had been reported to party headquarters on Sunday.

BBC correspondent Grant Ferrett says attempts by farmers' leaders in recent weeks to implement a deal with the squatters are in ruins following the latest attack.

Fight at rally

Also on Sunday, a scuffle broke out at an MDC rally in the southern town of Masvingo, as MDC supporters attacked a man suspected of being a Zanu-PF supporter.

Police intervened to help the suspected Zanu-PF supporter.

In Harare, a gang of about 20 Zanu-PF members - armed with whips and clubs - rampaged through a workers' compound at an industrial plant, beating anyone who refused to attend a government rally.

Workers said the police were present but took no action.

'Ruthless British'

War veterans' leader, Chenjerai Hunzvi, has meanwhile extended his campaign against white farmers to anyone believed to have any connection with the United Kingdom.

Speaking at a rally in Harare, he denounced the British as ruthless, cunning people and urged his followers to seek out British passport holders and force them to leave Zimbabwe.

There are about 20,000 British passport holders in Zimbabwe, and thousands more are eligible to apply.

European Union officials are to visit Zimbabwe to prepare the way for EU observers to monitor the forthcoming general election.

The decision was announced at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in the Azores which expressed concern about the breakdown of the rule of law in Zimbabwe.

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