• Pressure piles on govt to curb media attacks
• It’s time to tackle inflation head-on
• Under the ZANU PF bubble of delusion
• NOTEBOOK
• A successful 2004 Budget – a business perspective
• Attack on lawyer new law in abuse of power
• Important Information for Travellers to South Africa
• Foreign Nationals travelling on Air Zimbabwe
• NGOs step in as urban food crisis deepens
• Mugabe appoints general to key Zimbabwe province
• Aust 'sabotaging' Zimbabwe
• Zimbabwe doctors defy govt, continue stir
• Recreating the United Nations
• Focus on Utete committee report on agrarian reform
• National Economic Consultative Forum Needs Teamwork
• Bakeries At It, Again
• Media Weekly Update 2003-43

      11/6/2003 9:04:46 AM (GMT +2)

      The network that met in Harare last week to map out strategies to
counter the increasing assault on freedom of expression, among other rights
by the government of Zimbabwe, agreed to set up a bulwark to protect
Zimbabwean media and human rights groups currently under attack.

      "The groups agreed to launch a vigorous and coordinated campaign to
petition fellow Africans and the international community about the
oppression of the Zimbabwean people," the group said in a statement. "The
meeting agreed that time had come for African governments to recognise the
reality of tyranny in Zimbabwe and move away from the diplomatic paralysis
over worsening human rights in the country."

      Among regional and international organisations represented at the
meeting were the Media Rights Agenda, Media Foundation for West Africa,
Journalistes en Danger, International Media Support Group, Article 19, the
International Bar Association, Amnesty International and the Congress of
South African Trade Unions (COSATU).

      The meeting comes barely two months after the government shut down the
Associated Newspapers of Zimbabwe (ANZ), publishers of The Daily News and
The Daily News on Sunday, for allegedly refusing to register under the
Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA).

      The draconian AIPPA was enacted last year amid violent protests from
media and human rights groups who say the law aims at gagging the small but
influential media in Zimbabwe.

      Over 70 journalists, mainly from the private media, have been arrested
since the law became effective, but none of them have been prosecuted.

      "Since early 2002, the Media Rights Agenda has been monitoring
developments in Zimbabwe and other countries where attacks on the media have
become a matter of grave concern," said Edetaen Ojo, the executive director
of the Nigerian-based Media Rights Agenda. "This became more important with
the enactment of AIPPA last year and the recent closure of The Daily News."

      COSATU spokesman Patrick Craven said it was important for any
democracy to have diverse media voices to allow the free flow of
information.

      "We believe that, however bad the media may be at times, to have no
independent media voices at all is infinitely worse," Craven said. "Even the
sometimes distorted view of society that comes from the media gives people
access to information on which to make their own judgments, making allowance
for the bias in the source of that information."

      The group also agreed that part of their campaign strategies should
involve keeping a diary of all important regional and international events
likely to be attended either by President Mugabe himself or his senior
officials where they would embarrass them by heavily publicising human
rights abuses in Zimbabwe.

      "The immediate focus of this campaign will be the upcoming meeting of
the African Commission in The Gambia and the Commonwealth Heads of
Government Meeting in Abuja, Nigeria," the group said.

      11/6/2003 8:25:35 AM (GMT +2)

      INTENSIFYING inflationary pressures lie at the heart of the Zimbabwean
economy’s dilemma as they tighten the noose on a sickly economy desperately
gasping for breath. Local economic pride and promise, dreams and aspirations
of the nation are seriously threatened as the inflation scourge continues to
wreak havoc on people’s lives.

      Hyperinflation has become the millstone around the economy and indeed
the nation’s neck. It has taken the wind out of the once robust economy,
which has over the years been reassuringly resilient but is now skating on
thin ice. This has rightly prompted a chorus of demands for tough remedial
action to curb the menace. There is consensus that curbing inflation,
although it has all along seemed to be a finite game, should be at the
centre of the government’s economic agenda for the coming year.

      Last week we reported how insurance giant, Old Mutual, is now phasing
out 200 000 policies worth a whopping $15 billion to arrest a savage,
inflation-induced slump in the values of those policies. And there is no
guarantee that other insurance companies will not follow suit, otherwise
there is the real risk that policyholders would be left holding on to
insurance policies that are not worth the paper they are written on. If
nothing else, this cruel twist of fate from the policyholders’ point of
view, underlines the economic fall-out and sweeping nature of the
debilitating inflation.

      Businesses are finding it increasingly difficult to plan even a month
ahead. In fact, all sectors of the economy are feeling the inflation pinch.
Interest rates have been firming in sympathy with inflation, even though
they are not necessarily tracking it. This means the cost of borrowing has
gone up dramatically — forcing most companies to scale back on expansion
plans. Inflation has also become a scapegoat for discontent over sensitive
price increases but for how long will consumers accept large automatic price
increases month by month?

      That is why there is anxiety over the untenable inflation situation
largely blamed on government profligacy but worsened by the weak dollar
which has seen higher import costs translating into rising domestic prices.

      It goes without saying, therefore, that inflation is something crying
out for urgent attention. It is, however, imperative to note that this would
not be easy given that government has shown that, other than fuelling it, it
is incapable of tackling the complex inflation problem besetting the
country. It will have to do a great deal more to weather the inflation
storm. The government has to bite the bullet and adopt austerity measures no
matter how unpopular. It is no longer time for populist policies because
there is much more at stake than political expediency.

      With the appointment of a new governor for the Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe this week and the mooted far-reaching transformation of the central
bank, it is hoped that a change of leadership will bring about key policy
changes and not just change in emphasis and help Zimbabwe deal with the near
impossible task of reducing inflation to single digit levels.

      11/6/2003 7:57:46 AM (GMT +2)

      EDITOR — ZANU PF stalwarts are now permanently addicted to shameless
exploitation of others to justify and sustain themselves.

      They are so naïve that they think no one knows about what they are
doing, or that some day, a consequential accountability will have to be
dealt with.

      They rely on the state- enabled protective strategies, together with
the mental limitations and natural criminal dispositions of their engaged
supporters.

      They do not nearly understand the prime cause of the national demise
that will eventually encroach on their own doorsteps.

      They are so mentally incapable that they have forgotten anything that
they may have ever learnt or ever known about civilised standards and normal
behaviour.

      In advance of the agricultural season, it is predictable that the
heroes will expect the patronising West to again feed the nation without any
form of gratitude for keeping them in power.

      This time, they will probably declare that evil foreign influences and
another seasonal event caused the failure of Ignatius Chombo’s and Doctor
Made’s illuminating visions of alleged agrarian achievement.

      ZANU PF has so many leaks in its strategies that it’s ill-equipped to
know which hole to plug next in order to survive a while longer.

      Internationally available satellite pictures daily expose heroes’
villas, vehicle movements and land utilisation that has been seriously
diminished in recent times.

      The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Stan Mudenge, could possibly have
advised the Politburo that there is actually no need to grow any crops while
the local auspices of the United Nations will continually see to it that
they survive and prosper under a fiction that justifies their own
employment.

      Deluded ZANU PF stalwarts are mentally unhinged enough to think that
they can live and prosper in global isolation forever.

      They understandably still do not know that they are attracting to
themselves a near future analogous to that seen in places like Ethiopia.

      The emerged world must be understandably but sadly satisfied that
President Mugabe, in unity with the African Union, Thabo Mbeki and SADC, has
reminded them that Africa, after some 40 years of uplifting opportunities,
has re-confirmed itself to be an ongoing basket-case continent.

      The time has already passed for Africa to do something constructive
for itself rather than think that it can regain alleged lost dignity and
self-respect by endlessly blaming others for its proven and consistent
deficiencies while its incompetent undemocratic leaders fill their pockets
with loot.

      President Bush had enough wisdom to assign President Mbeki to be the
token torchbearer of alleged good governance in Africa.

      Mbeki’s now predictable solidarity to driven failures will naturally
assert that the last hope of reversion to sane governance on the continent
remains out of reach for some time longer.

      On this renewed revelation, Western taxpayers will thus save billions
of dollars of once well-minded supportive contributions that would typically
end up in the external bank accounts of corrupt heroes rather than where
these aid givings were intended.

      Africa must solve its own problems without relief or intervention,
when and if this understanding ever comes. Then they may then try to join in
a union with the civilised world in pride and without shame and begging
baskets as their natural appendages.

      The West must leave Mbeki to prove his professed honourable democratic
sponsoring intents, and he must accrue all costs for any measured failures.

      Let Africa solve its own problems.

      This means that all Western aid to the derelict states of Africa
should be terminated, and that Mbeki shall deliver support and recognition
for sane results or else he will inevitably fail.

      Walter Hurley,

      Pretoria,

      RSA.

      11/6/2003 8:06:46 AM (GMT +2)

      THINGS have gotten tough in Zimbabwe. I know most Zimbos —thanks the
word in now official — used to know suffering as just a word, but now they
have had the privilege of experiencing what suffering really tastes like.

      A good many employers are quite too happy to pay their workers net
monthly salaries as sick as $50 000, if not much less, and from this, the
workers would have to start breaking it up on the basics!

      Accommodation in a three-roomed house at $15 000 per room will cost
them $45 000.

      A bucket of maize is going for a cool $10 000 and that’s $20 000 for a
family of six which is dieting, while bread at the princely sum of $3 000
per loaf will cost something in the region of $90 000 a month.

      Those who did not heed Simba Makoni’s advice to buy bicycles would
have to fork out a cool $1 000 per trip in commuter fares, whether it’s
going to work, to school, to church or just to window-shop in the city
centre. For one family member to commute daily, between $40 000 and $60 000
would be needed.

      With the cheapest cut of meat selling for $12 000 per kilogramme,
fridges are now just there for decorating homes, as only bottles of water
are guaranteed to be there and nothing else! A family of six will need no
less than 10 kg per month and that’s a scandalous $120 000. So no meat from
Sunday to Saturday!

      And then cooking oil is going for at least $6 000 per 750 ml bottle
and the most economical housewife will need at least three per month, that’s
$18 000!

      We won’t even mention washing soap, the cheapest of which is going for
$5 000, while bath soap starts from $2 500.

      Has anyone noticed how otherwise smartly dressed ladies are let down
by their sticking clothes which would have been starved of fabric softener?

      Toothpaste is another headache. At an average price of about $8 000
per tube for most common brands, how many families can still afford this lux
ury? It’s now quite understandable when a work-mate’s breath does not smell
so good.

      And we will not mention men’s socks and the other stuff!

      Finally after a stressful day, the father of the house will definitely
need a Scud or two to cool off a boiling head and retain his sanity, for
under the prevailing circumstances, very few can remain sober and sane at
the same time!

      But when Zimbabweans were told to take their destiny into their own
hands, they dismissed CZ & Co as the prophets of doom who were just making
addled threats!

      And now they are realising the "land of milk and honey" which we were
promised was just an illusion!

      AND the president of the Zimbabwe Cross-Border Traders’ Association,
Cde Killer Zivhu, has finally decided to sell out? Last week he was on our
one and only ZBC telling the whole country that it is the chefs, their wives
and children who are directing the country’s foreign currency black market —
something that we have known all along.

      Although we are not quite sure what motive was driving Cde Killer —
patriotism or otherwise — we should still salute him for having been man
enough to tell the truth for the first time despite his history of appearing
on TV to waffle just for the fun and pleasure of boring us.

      Cde Killer decided to be gentleman enough to tell the whole country
that it is the same Cabinet ministers who sit in these endless taskforces
who are the main culprits in fueling the crises they purport to be seeking
solutions to.

      Now that the likes of Cde Killer are telling the whole world that it
is the ZANU PF mandarins who are killing this country, how do the British,
Americans and the Rhodies come to be responsible for the endless headaches
we are having?

      It is pleasing to note that the Great Uncle himself demanded the Zivhu
tape so that he can play it once or twice to be doubly sure he had heard him
right. We all hope that after this, he will summon Cde Killer to Munhumutapa
Building to get the full list of the names of the Cabinet criminals who are
externalising the Zimbabwean dollar and controlling the black market. And,
then he will make a patriotic decision.

      IT is quite surprising that when real solutions are needed to end the
country’s worsening public transport problems, some one decides to dream of
a public vehicle model that consumes less fuel and has low maintenance
costs. This is real day-dreaming because the only such mode of transport is
Adam’s own — feet— and one cannot imagine whether this will apply to people
in Chitungwiza, Chisha-washa or Norton who may want to do some
window-shopping in Harare.

      There is no way one can find a solution to the country’s public
transport woes that does not involve finding a permanent solution to the
broader economic problems the country is facing.

      cznotebook@yahoo.co.uk

      11/6/2003 8:24:08 AM (GMT +2)

      NOVEMBER 20 2004 is near and investment activity around the country is
rather subdued. This is because of expectations that the Budget statement
will indicate the direction the economy is to take over the next 12 months
and beyond.

      There are so many expectations about the National Budget as already
covered in previous articles in the Zimbabwe Economics Society series in
this newspaper. I thought it is still relevant to revisit the same from a
different but complimentary angle to that presented by Dr Godfrey Kanyenze.

      Meanwhile, planning for a week has become a nightmare for most
business leaders. Planning for a country for a whole year must surely be a
nerve-wrecking exercise if not an exercise in sorcery. What else can it be
in this hyper-inflationary environment? The Minister of Finance and Economic
Development has the unenviable task of attempting to live up to the
expectations of millions of Zimbabweans, at home and abroad, in business and
out of work, manufacturers or traders, as well as people across a wide
spectrum of activities. Some (many!) have already given up hope that the
economy can be turned around and this should put a lot of pressure on
Minister Murerwa.

      But then, the Minister cannot turn the economy around in his person so
there is no need for him to have high blood pressure over it. However, the
policies that his Budget team will recommend to Government and, ultimately,
Parliament and you and me, have a profound effect on the work that
Zimbabweans will carry out in pursuit of their own self-aggrandisements.
This self-aggrandisement is the basis of profit and motivation to work for
the majority of Zimbabweans. The Minister will have got it right if in the
pursuit of self interest, we all have confidence that our own abilities and
not anything else will determine the success or failure of our individual
(and hence collective) initiatives. It is confidence that is lacking in
Zimbabwe at the moment. Uncertainty can add to inflationary pressures in the
economy as economic agents seek to "grab and run". Removing this uncertainty
is the key to unlocking value in Zimbabwe. This requires more actions than
the Budget can provide. Nevertheless, the policy pronouncements accompanying
the Budget figures play a key role in the success or otherwise of other
activities.

      Readers may remember that last November 2002, the Budget statement did
not give a hint that the export support rate could be introduced. Foreign
cash inflows into the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) then nose-dived. This
was particularly marked following the announcement of the 50:50 foreign
currency sharing arrangement with exporters. In an effort to avert total
collapse, business, led by CZI, worked out some proposals which later on
culminated in the adoption of the National Economic Revival Programme
(NERP). It is a pity that the programme has not been implemented to the
full, typifying previous attempts at resuscitating the economy. The bottom
line is that there was a new (!!) policy direction adopted, especially with
regards to introduction of the new export support rate of 824:1. A major
criticism of the National Budget statement was its failure to announce
policies that would reign in inflation – fiscal balance and tight money
supply growth. Without reducing inflation (expected decline from around 220
percent to 96.1 percent), it was obviously clear that ALL other
stabilisation targets could never be satisfactorily met. They were not met.

      So what is business looking for in the Budget? Business is looking for
a viable business environment. Critical ingredients of such an environment
include, among others, pricing stability, arising out of low money supply
growth (not shortage of cash!) and a low Budget deficit. Hence the focus of
the budget should be as follows: -

        a.. Expansion/growth oriented budget;

        b.. Set the scene for growth in output, exports, employment;

        c.. Reduce inflation, social and political turmoil;

        d.. Generate foreign currency; and

        e.. Improve disposable incomes.

      It is critical that we re-establish growth as an objective whilst at
the same time seeking price stability. The two are not mutually exclusive.
The IMF prescription normally associates stabilisation with contraction,
which we can ill-afford. There must be harmony between Budget policy
pronouncements and measures to be taken immediately by the RBZ

      To this end, the following measures on money supply and Interest Rates
must be taken: -

        a.. RBZ should introduce money supply targets and commit to meeting
these targets;

        b.. Gradually raise Interest Rates whilst monitoring money supply;

        c.. Reduce Interest Rates as soon as money supply is under control;
and

        d.. lIntroduce index linked bonds.

      Restriction of money supply growth is the ultimate price control
weapon which is easy to administer and does not require hordes of
inspectors. The rise in Interest Rates is meant to suppress consumptive
borrowing. Subsidised facilities such as the productive and export sector
ones should be maintained, but it is clear that the resources from these are
not enough to meet working capital needs of productive sectors. Investors
would, therefore, only borrow at high rates if there is a real need.
Speculative borrowing would be discouraged by the high rates. The rise in
Interest Rates would, however, not match inflation and the measure is
expected to be of a short-term nature. At the same time, high Interest Rates
would act as an incentive for domestic savers. Currently, the magnitude of
negative real rates is such that it only makes sense to hedge against
hyper-inflation through investments in property and foreign currency. The
introduction of index linked bonds is expected to reduce the cost of
borrowing for the State although the yields of the bonds on maturity would
be higher than consumer inflation. Repayment of the larger portion of
interest would be deferred until maturity, which could be three to five
years. Such bonds with a positive return should be attractive to pension
funds.

      It is also clear that a simultaneous attack needs to be launched on
the exchange front. The secretive parallel market is not good for the
economy in the long run. However, it is clear that there can hardly be any
growth in foreign earnings as long as there is a perception, real or
imagined, that policy discourages real positive returns to the export
sector. Business, therefore, expects the Budget to tackle head-on the issue
of exchange rate policy as follows: -

        a.. Urgent review of the exchange rate policy to act as incentive to
the generation of foreign currency;

        b.. The policy must be clear and dependable;

        c.. The country must move to a market-determined exchange rate in
every sense; and

        d.. Limiting money supply growth to agreed targets will ensure
exchange rate stability within those parameters set by the targets.

      Adopting the above measures has some advantages, including: -

        a.. Resumption of formal trading in foreign currency. This is
necessary to remove the uncertainty associated with the current informal
arrangements. There is no use in denying that the present system works,
because even Government agencies use it. However, there is little benefit to
the fiscus, if any and is associated with externalising money changing
activities (to Zimbabwe’s neighbours) thereby leading to a drain of cash
from the country. We should re-instil confidence in our own Zimbabwean
markets.

        b.. lDampening exchange rate movements. This is particularly
effective in view of the high jumps that have characterised exchange
movements in the parallel market over the past six months.

        c.. lIncreasing revenue to Government through duty collections at
market rate. The RBZ recently noted that there has been a huge increase in
luxury goods imports over the past three years or so. It is easy to
associate this increase with the fact that there is now a very huge gap
between the official export support rate used to calculate duty on luxuries
and the parallel exchange rate at which foreign currency can be obtained.
There is no disincentive to importing luxuries as the duty payable has
become insignificant. Correcting the balance of trade necessarily calls for
a more realistic exchange rate.

        d.. lEncouraging exporting and improving foreign currency inflows
into economy. Increasing export activities is only possible if there is a
bias in favour of exporting. In other words, it must be attractive enough to
make investors take the risk. Contraction in non-value added exports such as
from mining and agriculture can be traced back to lack of viability as a
result of a fixed exchange rate. Zimbabwe has never had excess foreign
currency, even in good years. However, the situation can be improved
significantly if exporters are accorded their rightful place in the economy.

      Eliminating distortions in the economy.

      These are some of the benefits that can arise from the exchange rate
policy suggested above. The suggestions are not comprehensive, but will go a
long way to stabilise the economic situation in Zimbabwe. This is a snapshot
of what is expected by business from the budget. There are concerns of a
social nature such as PAYE which have been adequately dealt with in the
earlier contribution referred to above.

      11/6/2003 8:09:11 AM (GMT +2)

      Like every normal person who was horrified by the attack on Harare
lawyer, Beatrice Mtetwa, I awaited the findings of an investigation into the
ugly incident promised by the police with bated breath.

      And I hope I will not have to hold my breath indefinitely. In the
past, cases in which the police have had to investigate allegations of
brutality and professional misconduct levelled against them have tended to
either die a natural death or the findings have not been allowed to see the
light of day.

      It would be intolerable for this trend to continue. I share the
concerns of the International Bar Association and the Law Society of
Zimbabwe about the implications of the violence perpetrated against Mtetwa,
who seems to have been targeted so as to smother her articulate, principled
and courageous voice in defence of human rights.

      Sternford Moyo of the Law Society of Zimbabwe put it diplomatically
when he said: "The conclusion that Mrs Mtetwa was attacked because she is a
human rights defender is irresistible." In an interview with the weekly
newspaper, The Independent, he also said: "The council of the Law Society
condemns the fact that despite the assaults on members of the society taking
place as far back as three years ago, most of the relevant offenders have
not been brought to justice."

      The attack on Mtetwa, who was physically abused at two police stations
after being carjacked, marks a new low in the abuse of power in that it
seems to have been premeditated and carefully orchestrated. The police were
at no stage, according to what has been reported in the press, interested in
the car-jacking suspects. Instead, the victim (Mtetwa) was turned into the
prime suspect and was subjected to hostile interrogation and physical abuse.

      If, as they say, you cannot beat a man when he is down, what does it
say about the calibre of our law enforcers if a fully able-bodied officer
can direct his energies towards attacking a defenceless woman seeking his
protection under the law? If the police are daring enough to abuse a legal
practitioner who knows the law inside and out, one shudders to think what
happens to the average person who finds him or herself in a similar
situation.

      There is no doubt that those benefiting from the prevailing
lawlessness, chaos and confusion in the country have a vested interest in
perpetuating the status quo. They find it particularly wounding and
intolerable, therefore, to have their misdeeds exposed or pointed out by
people they consider to belong to a lower class, such as women
professionals.

      They know that people like Mtetwa, who have made it in male-dominated
professions on merit, are an inspiration and serve as role models to young
girls. By treating such a professional brutally, a coded warning is being
sent to other female "upstarts" not to try similar tricks.

      Mtetwa is the second female lawyer to be assaulted by or in the
presence of police officers in five months. Daily News legal adviser,
Gugulethu Moyo, was attacked in June. This is a suspiciously high incidence
of physical abuse in a group that does not constitute the majority within
the legal profession.

      It would seem that women who are good at their jobs in professions
where they must speak out on political, moral and other issues are an
endangered species in today’s Zimbabwe.

      It is only those who have been "fast-tracked" to the top of the ladder
by decree in these vocations who are not subjected to harassment and
intimidation.

      For instance, despite the paucity of women professionals in the
independent media, there have been unmistakeable official efforts to "make
examples" of the few holding their own in this section.

      Young up-and-coming-newspaper editor, Nqobile Nyathi, has endured a
baptism of fire in terms of the challenges she has had to confront at the
Daily News. She had been charged a number of times under the draconian
Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA).

      And who can forget the haunting picture of the tear-drenched face of a
young photo journalist from the same paper who was assaulted while in police
custody after being arrested while covering a demonstration last year? The
shaken young woman had to leave the country after her ordeal.

      Following the attack on Mtetwa, some correspondents have asked in
letters to the Editors of local papers, why women’s organisations have
remained silent. One writer raised the same point with respect to the
abduction of Zena Mahlangu so that she could become the 10th wife of King
Mswati II of Swaziland.

      Without speaking for any women’s groups, the point I have to make is
that women’s rights are human rights and when they are violated, all people
of conscience in society should be concerned regardless of whether they are
male or female.

      Another observation worth making is that under despotic regimes like
the ones in Zimbabwe and Swaziland at present where rulers believe in their
own infallibility, the last thing they are likely to do is listen to women’s
groups, which are at the bottom of the prestige scale.

      Sociologists have long known that changes that are proposed by people
at the top of the prestige scale and power system will filter down more
rapidly than those suggested by low-status persons are likely to percolate
upwards.

      What is needed in a situation such as the one prevailing in Zimbabwe
where dissent is mercilessly crushed and human rights activists are harassed
and persecuted, is a concerted effort rather than a fragmented approach, in
confronting the onslaught.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR TRAVELLERS TO SOUTH AFRICA

Please note that with immediate effect, anyone traveling to South Africa must have two consecutive blank pages in their passport which lie side by side when the passport is open (i.e. a left and a right hand page).  Passports must also be valid for at least six months.

Passengers traveling to South Africa with passports  which do not comply with these requirements, will either be stopped from boarding the aircraft or risk deportation on arrival in South Africa.

In addition, a parent traveling with children, WITHOUT the other parent, will need a letter of consent from the absent parent.  The letter of consent must be certified by the police.

NGOs step in as urban food crisis deepens

Bulawayo - Clutching the plastic cup to her chest like a prized possession,
four-year-old Clara Ncube grins broadly as she inches closer to the serving
podium at Tshabalala Clinic, a supplementary feeding centre for children in
Zimbabwe's second city, Bulawayo. After a short wait she gets her share and
skips off to the patch of shade where dozens of other children are already
eating their highly nutritious corn meal porridge. Clara is one of 10,164
children aged six years and below who are being fed by Help Germany, an NGO
working to mitigate the effects of food shortages on urban households in
Zimbabwe. The supplementary feeding programme operates at all 17 clinics of
the Bulawayo City Council and is a joint venture between the NGO and the
city's directorate of health services. In Harare, 25,625 children are also
benefiting from a similar programme operating at 25 municipal clinics. The
pilot programme in both cities, which started in March, has since lapsed to
make way for an expanded main programme beginning in November. The children
are screened for various health conditions while visiting the council
clinics for regular check-ups, to see if they are eligible. "This programme
cares for children whose growth is diagnosed as either faltering or static.
Some are found to be terribly underweight, or to suffer from other diseases
which do not permit body growth," Help Germany's project co-ordinator for
Matabeleland Province, Yvonne Neudeck, told IRIN. "We are primarily feeding
them on corn-soya porridge. This is a very easy-to-prepare mix that goes
with either salt or sugar. We also give the families of beneficiaries a
monthly allocation of 10 kg of the corn-soya blend, and one litre of cooking
oil. The more the beneficiaries, the bigger the allocation," she added.

Information gathered during and after the pilot programme suggested that 30
percent of the children aged six and under in Bulawayo were stunted because
of lack of food. "Growth and weight-faltering is a serious a problem among
the children. Eight months after the beginning of the pilot programme, the
number is growing steadily. In July we thought we were at a peak total of
7,275 children under our programme, but we were feeding 10,164 by the end of
September. The number is set to grow, as the shortage of food in urban
households is also on the increase," said Neudeck. She noted that while 80
percent of the children in the supplementary feeding programme had shown
positive growth and weight gain, 20 percent of the children showed no
improvement. "These are the children who end up dying. But the truth is not
that they die of malnutrition, as has frequently been said. The children are
either HIV-positive, or have tuberculosis, diarrhoea, or any other
life-threatening diseases which ends up leading to their death. They still
die, even if they are fed on high-energy foods like the nutrimeal porridge
supplied by organisations. So malnutrition is not the cause of most of the
deaths as reported." Neudeck said visits to the homes of the beneficiaries
had revealed there was hardly any food - and the food situation in the homes
continued to deteriorate as shortages worsened across the country. "The
criteria used by the United Nations and humanitarian organisations states
that employed people cannot be beneficiaries in food aid distribution
programmes. But, because of the hyper-inflation environment, incomes have
been eroded to a point that breadwinners can no longer feed the families.
Besides, the food - when it's there, in the shops - is so expensive that
some people simply cannot afford it. [Also,] the quality of foods people are
... eating are so low as to have no real nutritional value. The result among
children is severe loss of weight and lack of growth," said Neudeck. In
conjunction with the World Food Programme (WFP), Help Germany will start a
new feeding programme at Bulawayo's 14 primary schools as well as several in
Harare.

"Education officials have of late reported that school children are fainting
during lessons because of lack of food. They had also complained of a drop
in individual child performance in the classes and a high number of children
dropping totally out of school. So it was decided that the programme be
expanded to include children of primary school-going age. This time there is
also a plan to include Chitungwiza," she said. A total of 32 schools are
expected to participate in the programme by the end of January next year.
Schools and parents will provide the sites and personnel to cook and serve
the food. "Depending on continued financial support from donors, who include
the German government, we would like to expand the programme, not only to
include other age groups, but other urban centres around Zimbabwe, since
this programme is not confined to the three centres we are currently
operating in," said Neudeck. World Vision International, another WFP food
distribution implementing agency, announced that it would embark on a
similar programme in schools in Zimbabwe's urban centres. The food security
situation in Zimbabwe's major urban centres has deteriorated in the last six
months. After operating on critically low stocks for some time, the Grain
Marketing Board (GMB), the country's sole grain procurement and distribution
company, hit the zero mark last month, setting off severe food shortages
among urban families that had been dependent on cheap cereals from the GMB,
as compared to the exorbitant prices of the parallel market.

HARARE, Nov. 6 — Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe has named an army general
as governor of the country's largest province, filling another key state
post with a military officer ahead of crucial parliamentary elections in
2005.
       The Zimbabwe Defence Forces' (ZDF) top brass consists largely of
veterans fiercely loyal to Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF party, now grappling with
the country's worst economic and political crisis since independence from
Britain in 1980.
       In a statement made available on Thursday, the government said Mugabe
had on Wednesday appointed army chief of staff Lieutenant-General Michael
Nyambuya as governor of the eastern Manicaland province to succeed Oppah
Muchinguri, who is retiring at the end of November.
       Nyambuya's promotion follows a string of similar moves by Mugabe, who
over the last four years has retired more than a dozen top officers to head
institutions including the national intelligence agency, foreign embassies
and the electoral supervisory commission.
       Political analysts say former guerrilla leader Mugabe sees the army
as source of loyalist cadres who can be redeployed into civilian jobs to
help fight his political challenges.
       In his reshuffle of provincial governors, Mugabe also dropped
Mashonaland West governor Peter Chanetsa, who has denied reports in private
newspapers that he grabbed more than one farm from thousands of white-owned
properties seized by the government for black resettlement.
       Mugabe named four new provincial governors, including Nyambuya, and
renewed the terms of four others in what could be the start of a reshuffle
of government ministers which Zimbabwe state media said at the weekend was
on the way.
       Nyambuya, who led the United Nations' peacekeeping force in Angola
and Zimbabwean troops during their intervention in the war in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, is a veteran of Zimbabwe's 1970s guerrilla war which
was co-led by Mugabe.

PREPARING FOR THE POLLS
       Nyambuya takes charge of Manicaland for a two-year term that covers
legislative elections due in 2005, likely to see Mugabe's ZANU-PF and the
opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) face off again after a
fierce competition in 2000.
       ''I think Mugabe is already looking to the next elections, and I see
this appointment as part of ZANU-PF's preparations for those elections,
trying to lock in Manicaland because of its size,'' said analyst Lovemore
Madhuku, chairman of political pressure group National Constitutional
Assembly (NCA).
       Manicaland is the rural home province of MDC leader Morgan
Tsvangirai. Although he personally lost a parliamentary seat during the 2000
elections, the MDC won several seats in the eastern province bordering
Mozambique.
       The High Court ruled that Tsvangirai had lost ''unfairly'' in the
poll, which was marred by violence and intimidation, but ZANU-PF has
appealed against the ruling.
       Nyambuya's appointment came just days after Mugabe announced the
retirement of army chief General Vitalis Zvinavashe amid speculation he will
switch to full-time politics.
       There are no former military officers in the cabinet at the moment
but Mugabe's team includes senior veterans of the 1970s war of independence.
       Mugabe, 79, has been in power since independence in 1980 and is
struggling with a deep economic crisis blamed on government mismanagement
and his controversial policies, including his seizures of white-owned farms
for black resettlement.

Zimbabwe is grappling with a record economic problems characterised by
hyperinflation at 455 per cent and shortages of most basics, among them
grains and fuel. The economic problems have been widely blamed on Mugabe's
government.

"This country is under de facto economic sanctions," Moyo said.

Mugabe and his closest associates have been placed under targeted sanctions
which include travel bans to the European Union and the United States on
allegations of right abuses.

Zimbabwe has repeatedly accused Britain, the former colonial power of
bankrolling the leading opposition, the Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC).

Moyo accused government workers of failing to implement government policies
because of bureaucracy and ideological differences.

"Right now there is in our country a frenzy against government authority,
against policy. The state machinery has been weakened," he said.

"That is why we have a flourishing parallel (black) market, that is why we
have hyperinflation ... the instruments for intervention are not there," he
admitted.

The two day conference convened by government and business heard yesterday
that Zimbabwe's economy was being undermined by contradictory and
ineffectual government policies, corruption, greed and the country's
negative image abroad.

Agence France-Presse

      AP[ THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 06, 2003 12:58:33 AM ]

            HARARE: Doctors stayed away from Zimbabwe's state hospitals on
Thursday in defiance of a government order declaring their crippling
two-week strike illegal.

            About 500 doctors are participating in the strike to demand pay
hikes of up to 8,000 per cent to keep pace with runaway inflation. The most
junior among them make as little as 400,000 Zimbabwean dollars ($80) a
month.

            Labour court Judge Lillian Hove conceded on Wednesday that the
doctors had "genuine grievances" but declared their action illegal.

            Under Zimbabwe's tough labour laws, anyone disrupting an
essential service could be jailed up to five years.

            Doctors participating in the strike did not comment on the
ruling, and there were no immediate reports of arrests.

            Last week, some 20,000 striking nurses returned to their wards
following an appeal by Health Minister David Parirenyatwa and the promise of
a speedy pay review.

            Zimbabwe faces its worst economic crisis since independence in
1980, with 70 per cent unemployment and acute shortages of food, gasoline
and medicine. Inflation is running at over 455 per cent.

Ed Feulner is the president of The Heritage Foundation.

HARARE, 6 Nov 2003 (IRIN) - Zimbabwe's "fast-track" agrarian reform
programme has redistributed far less land than has been claimed in a process
dogged by administrative shortcomings and interference by officials,
according to a presidential land review committee.

President Robert Mugabe set up the committee in May to examine the
implementation of land redistribution to black commercial and communal
farmers, as well as looking into its impact on former commercial farmers and
workers.

The committee was headed by influential former secretary to the cabinet,
Charles Utete. The team gathered evidence from a wide selection of
stakeholders, among them government ministers, provincial land committee
members, chiefs, aspiring and actual beneficiaries, and representatives of
indigenous commercial farmers' unions.

SMALLER NUMBER OF RESETTLED

The ministries of agriculture and information had repeatedly claimed that
about 300,000 new farmers had been resettled, and close to 11 million
hectares acquired from former commercial farmers under the fast-track
programme, adopted by the government in July 2000 after a wave of often
violent farm invasions led by veterans of Zimbabwe's armed struggle.

However, according to the report, the committee found that only some 4.2
million hectares had been taken up by 127,192 households under the A1
resettlement model designed to benefit small-scale farmers. Rather than the
government's claim of 50,000 new commercial farmers created under the
programme, the committee said that just 1,672 "A2" farms, a total of 2.1
million hectares, were resettled by 7,260 beneficiaries.

The report, finalised in August but not widely available, lauded the goal of
the government's fast-track programme, but said agrarian reform was
tarnished by bureaucratic bungling and irregularities.

"Ministers and other government officials wholly supported the programme,
stated it to have been successfully implemented in the face of formidable
odds, but variously noted numerous obstacles that impinged on the
implementation process, including resource constraints, the legal framework,
bureaucracy and related operational difficulties," the committee said.

"It should be noted that the process of acquiring and distributing land to
the people under the two resettlement models, the A1 and A2, was undertaken
in a complex legal framework which rendered the process both difficult and
cumbersome. As the committee went about its work, it could not fail to be
struck by the number and variety of legal issues that still required
resolution in respect of the acquisition procedures; the allocation of land
to beneficiaries, especially under the A2 model; the assessment of the value
of improvements; and ownership and access to moveable assets on the farms,"
the report stated.

It pointed to the number of legal challenges to government acquisition
orders, lodged in Administrative Courts by commercial farmers.

The Utete report acknowledged that a significant number of commercial
farmers owning multiple farms had approached the authorities to voluntarily
surrender all but a single property, but had still lost all their land.
Similarly, owners of just one farm also had their property compulsorily
acquired, even though they had met all the criteria which should have
allowed them to keep it.

"These matters need to be addressed by government conclusively and
expeditiously, to allow for productive use of the land and a sense of
certainty about the future of the farmers concerned," stated the report.

COMMERCIAL FARMERS STILL UNDER THREAT

During their annual general meeting in August, the remaining members of the
Commercial Farmers Union (CFU) charged that production had been further
undermined by the uncertainty over the status of their farms. The UN World
Food Programme has noted that agrarian reform has been one of the causes of
Zimbabwe's two successive years of serious food insecurity.

The Utete report said that out of 4,500 commercial farmers before the
fast-track programme, 1,323 were still farming on 1,377 estates. That figure
has been disputed by the CFU. It has insisted that the remaining farmers
amount to no more than 600, with the authorities continuing to list farms
for seizure, and some farmers still facing threats of violence from new
settlers.

The committee recommended that some dairy farms be returned to their
original owners to resuscitate the dairy industry, which has suffered a
severe knock since the beginning of the land reform programme. But in a
recent speech on state radio the minister of information, Jonathan Moyo,
dismissed the likelihood that any white farmers would be returned to their
original property.

This week, John Nkomo, minister of special affairs in the President's
Office, told an economic conference in Harare: "Our agrarian reforms have
reorganised one of the major natural resources possessed by this country -
the land. The country's land gains are irreversible."

An issue seized on by the media was the committee's recognition that the
government's "one man, one farm" policy had not been respected by some
senior officials. An annex to the report, which has not been made public,
named 178 senior officials who had allegedly violated the policy, amassing
about 150,000 hectares of prime land between them.

Mugabe recently ordered all officials to surrender their excess farms, but
there have been few details on compliance with the directive.

LACK OF MANAGEMENT

The committee noted that the policy breaches were to a large extent caused
by "deficiencies in programme planning, administration and management".

"As for the problems of administration and management ... some provincial or
district officials acted, ultra vires (exceeding their authority), by, for
example, allocating land to individuals of their choice, or by delaying, or
failing to forward, letters of offer of land to successful applicants for
plots demarcated for the A2 resettlement model," the report observed.

The committee found that the "welter" of ministries, departments,
parastatals, taskforces and informal groups included in the redistribution
exercise had opened the way for some individuals to exert unnecessary
influence on the process, and said a more centralised programme would have
been more effective.

The report also pointed to illegal land take-overs in conservancies,
plantations, safari and forest areas, particularly in Masvingo, Manicaland
and Matebeleland provinces, where some settlers were involved in poaching.

Since attempts to subdivide such areas into individual plots "would clearly
be unviable", the report called for the immediate removal of the squatters
to preserve wildlife, which had the capacity to generate foreign currency
for the country.

The committee also suggested an "overhaul of the machinery of government
involved in land and agricultural affairs", saying there should be a
ministry of agriculture, and another for land affairs. The former would deal
with agricultural matters relating to water development and irrigation,
while the latter would have responsibility for all land issues, including
land registration, resolution of boundary disputes, compensation, farm sizes
and land allocation.

There was a need, the committee said, for a semi-autonomous national land
board that exercised both executive and advisory functions in the proposed
land affairs ministry. The land board would also ensure that land allocated
to people under the fast-track programme was fully utilised.

MIXED REACTIONS

Analysts and observers have greeted the report with mixed feelings. Ibbo
Mandaza, a political scientist and publisher, said the Utete report was an
"exercise designed to lay the policy foundations through which to
successfully conclude the agrarian reform process in Zimbabwe". He hailed
the document for being "scathing in its criticism" of some public officials,
among them government ministers and provincial governors.

Mandaza, in an opinion column in his pro-government Sunday Mirror newspaper,
said because the report revealed maladministration and anomalies in the way
land was reallocated, it provided a "solid critique of the implementation
exercise, whilst also offering a solution".

He urged the government to move quickly to address the concerns raised by
the Utete committee. "The report is a major advance ... provided requisite
and expeditious action is taken by the government of Zimbabwe, to clean up
the [land reform] programme and implement its recommendations."

However, Douglas Taylor-Freeme of the CFU said he was pessimistic that the
suggestions made in the report would be respected. "There is no reason to be
upbeat about the report, because we have seen the government set commissions
whose recommendations have been left to gather dust," he told IRIN.

He said the government lacked the capacity and political will to implement
the Utete recommendations, but in order to resolve the impasse on land,
there was a need for all stakeholders to come together and discuss the way
forward.

"If we had been allowed to sit down together meaningfully before the farm
invasions, or even when the fast-track exercise was taking place, we would
have avoided such glaring violations of set-down policy as the "one man, one
farm" principle," Taylor-Freeme said.

Silas Hungwe, president of the Zimbabwe Farmers' Union, which represents
black farmers, said the report's recommendations should be followed for the
government to escape the accusation that the land redistribution programme
was merely a political expedience.

"The report was compiled by experts who know the field of agriculture very
well. Their recommendations should be stuck to if agriculture is to become
productive again. There should be no political interference," Hungwe told
IRIN.

The Herald (Harare)

November 6, 2003
Posted to the web November 6, 2003

Victoria Ruzvidzo
Harare

AS I write this column, the Government, industry, civic society and other
stakeholders are meeting in Harare under the auspices of the National
Economic Consultative Forum to map out strategies that will rescue the
economy from the murky waters in which it finds itself in.

We have said it before, Zimbabwe's economic challenges are surmountable but
they need men and women who are committed to resolving the crisis and
exorcise the ghost of gloom.

Major challenges which include rising inflation, foreign currency shortages,
inadequate fuel supplies and unprecedented price increases, need team
effort.

Previous attempts, under the Tripartite Negotiation Forum, have fallen
through mainly because some parties have advanced personal interests at the
expense of national well-being.

The labour body, the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, has been a complete
let-down in this respect but we hope they now realise the importance of
teamwork.

Members of a team do not necessarily agree on every point but sacrifice or
compromise on some aspects to achieve global objectives.

The old adage which says, "United We Stand, Divided We Fall" aptly applies
in this instance. Stakeholders need to be united and determined to redress
the situation.

The NECF has previously been criticised for being a talk shop but the
economy can ill-afford mere talk at this juncture. We need action, action
and more action.

Strategies should be sought and implemented so the economy can get back on
its feet.

Only through homegrown solutions can the economy be revived. Zimbabwe has
the brains, both in the public and private sector, to coin and implement
solutions.

The impressive line-up of participants, both from the Government, business
and other stakeholders gives us hope that something concrete will come out
of the discussions.

The NECF was instrumental in the formulation of the National Economic
Revival Programme (NERP) and we hope it still has the same zeal to
resuscitate the economy.

NERP is an important economic blueprint which has the potential to revive
the economy if it is implemented correctly.

Major stakeholders have failed to meet a number of targets for the past
eight months but all hope is not lost.

It will be the business of the current dialogue to take note of weaknesses
and effect changes in the document where there is need.

The ongoing dialogue presents an opportunity for frank discussion and,
hopefully, tangible and long lasting solutions will come out of the
deliberations.

Moreso, given the fact that this comes about two weeks before the
announcement of the 2004 national budget, scheduled for presentation to
Parliament on November 20.

On Tuesday, Minister Murerwa alluded to the fact that recommendations from
the meeting would be considered in the 2004 budget statement. This is as it
should be.

The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development may have already finished
preparing the budget statement, but we hope Dr Murerwa will create room to
factor in the latest deliberations, which could actually set the tone for
next year's budget.

Some economies worldwide, such as Malaysia, have gone through periods of
economic recession but they have emerged victors through the implementation
of sound policies.

We can draw lessons from their experiences.

Even big economies, such as the United States and Japan, have had their bad
times but its all history now.

Zimbabwe is definitely not a lost cause. It is endowed with a rich human and
natural resource base capable of changing the tide

The Herald (Harare)

November 6, 2003
Posted to the web November 6, 2003

Harare

SOME unscrupulous business people have once again increased the price of
bread to $2 700 in direct contravention of the Government's gazetted price
of $380.

The last unofficial increase of bread was effected a fortnight ago jumping
from an average $1 200 to $1 900.

Prices of other bakery products and confectioneries have also increased in
another wave of price increases within a fortnight.

Players in the bakery industry said the price increases were necessitated by
a myriad of reasons including an increase in operational costs.

"Most bakeries have increased the wages and salaries of their workers as a
result of the cost of living adjustments which were effected in the last two
months.

"This has seen an increase in operational costs and there was nothing we
could have done but to pass the cost to the customer," said one manager from
a city bakery.

The chairman of the Zimbabwe Bakers Association, Mr Armittage Chikwawira,
could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Bakery products have become popular with many households, as they cannot
afford other foodstuffs.

The bread price increases is another sign of anarchy that has characterised
the country's manufacturing industry in the last few months.

It seems most of the manufacturers have developed a habit of deliberately
increasing prices without due consideration of the consumers, most of who
are failing to make ends meet.

Economists have, however, argued that prices will stabilise after reaching a
saturation point, where consumers cannot afford to buy the products.

This would see the prices either falling or remaining constant.

Several bakeries have been fined for failing to adhere to the recommended
weight of bread.

Others have also been fined for selling the bread above the gazetted prices
of $250 per loaf.

The fines do not appear to have any effect since most bakeries have
continued to increase the prices despite having been penalised.

Efforts to get a comment from the Minister of Industry and International
Trade, Dr Samuel Mumbengegwi, proved fruitless at the time of going to
press.

CONTENTS

1. GENERAL COMMENT
2. SYMPTOMS OF ECONOMIC MELTDOWN
3. MOUNTING PRESSURE ON ZIMBABWE

1. General comment

Since the Supreme Court refused to hear The Daily News' constitutional
challenge to the Access to Information Act until it registers with the Act's
Media and Information Commission, the paper's publishers, the Associated
Newspapers of Zimbabwe, have suffered a number of legal setbacks in its
efforts to obtain justice from the country's courts.
Although the Administrative Court has ruled that the Commission was
improperly constituted and had been biased in refusing to register the
paper, government's appeal against this ruling has effectively prevented ANZ
from getting its paper back onto the streets. And the arrest of its
journalists and directors, together with the occupation of its offices by
the police, stand testimony to the determination of government to ensure
that the gag on the paper remains.
Despite the obviously urgent need to resolve the legal hiatus over this
fundamental constitutional right to free expression, there is precious
little evidence that the administrators of justice consider the matter of
any great importance.

MMPZ deplores the evident lack of commitment from the judicial authorities,
not just for the sake of the hundreds of ANZ employees whose jobs are now in
danger, but also because it deprives the Zimbabwean nation of an important
alternative source of information and unreasonably deprives those providing
this service from practicing it.
Indeed, it could be argued that government is using the judicial process to
frustrate the dispensation of justice. This is supported by the fact that
the Supreme Court has yet to hear, or rule on at least three other
constitutional challenges to AIPPA, one of which has been outstanding for
nearly a year. Such delays to the administration of justice, especially over
such an important constitutional matter, are intolerable.

More recently, other legal proceedings suggest that the authorities are
seeking to dismantle the ANZ's capacity to publish newspapers. On October
1st High Court judge, Justice Tendai Uchena, dismissed an ANZ application
for the return of property irregularly seized by the police in their initial
crackdown on the publishing company following the Supreme Court's original
decision in September. He gave no reasons for his ruling and The Herald
(2/10) merely quoted him as having said he would do so on "another day in
the near future".
According to ANZ lawyer, Gugulethu Moyo, the company has, as of October 31,
written four times to the Registrar of the High Court seeking details of the
judgment without any response. Thus, in effect the paper is being denied its
constitutional right to lodge an appeal against the ruling, which was made
more than four weeks ago.
None of the media have followed up the matter and exposed this apparent
subversion of the judicial process.
Equally, none of the media has revealed that the ANZ recently had six of its
vehicles attached by the Sheriff following a default judgment against the
company's failure to service a  $25 million dollar debt. This is despite the
fact that the company was unable to access its chequebooks to pay the
complainant due to the continued occupation of its offices by the police.
The failure by the media, particularly the private media, to expose such
clear cases of injustice, gives the State latitude to perpetuate unchecked,
violations of basic human rights as enshrined in the constitution.

2. Symptoms of economic meltdown

Strikes by doctors and nurses working for government received considerable
media attention during the week. However, it was only the private media,
which viewed the industrial action as symptomatic of the country's economic
crisis. They generally pointed out that addressing the current economic
recession could only solve the doctors' perennial salary problems.
The government-controlled media's coverage of the strikes however, focused
mainly on dismissing the doctors' salary demands as unrealistic without
clearly stating what figures were justifiable. They also reported the
strikes in isolation to other related labour unrest and therefore failed to
give a holistic picture of the discontent elsewhere in the country's labour
force. As a result, industrial action at Tel-One and National Breweries,
were largely ignored.

In fact, it became clear that these media were merely reflecting the
disregard with which government was handling the doctors' concerns. For
instance, The Herald (28/10) quoted Public Service Commission (PSC)
Secretary Ray Ndlukula claiming that he was not aware of the strike adding
that he did "not see any reason for them [doctors and nurses] to do so as we
announced their new salaries in July".
Taking a leaf from Ndlukula's comments, The Herald (29/10) then castigated
doctors saying they should not expect more than they are getting adding that
government should only consider their grievances when they have returned to
work.

ZBC also adopted a similar trend. ZTV (27/10, 8pm) allowed Health Minister
David Parirenyatwa to skirt the issues the doctors were raising by implying
that their professional ethics were more important than their livelihoods.
He was quoted as saying, "...patients are already suffering...because of an
unethical industrial action". Without questioning the minister the reporter
then tried to give the impression that the medical workers' actions were
unjustified because they had gone on strike when government was already
looking into their concerns. Said the reporter: "The PSC last year awarded
all civil servants, doctors and nurses included, a salary increase. The PSC
says it was still making an effort to address the anomalies [of the job
evaluation exercise] when doctors embarked on the industrial action now
joined in by the nurses".

Comments by the Hospital Doctors' Association leader, Phibion Manyanga, that
"It ($30million a month) might sound like a very big figure but you have to
take into consideration deductions that will be effected..." were let to
pass without any analysis. Instead, the Chronicle (27/10) said the doctors'
demand for a $30 million monthly salary was "outrageous and ridiculous to
say the least", adding that they "have a political agenda" and "should not
be allowed to hold the government at ransom".

But The Zimbabwe Independent (31/10) disputed this. It pointed out that the
industrial action in the health sector was a result of "failure by
government to adopt workable economic policies". The Financial Gazette
(30/10) agreed. It quoted a social analyst, Alois Masepe as saying "unless
the government can move in to find holistic solutions to the problems
bedeviling the whole economy, it would be very difficult for it to find
solutions to recurrent strikes by the country's medical staff".

However, there was no unity within the private media. Like the government
media, The Business Tribune accused the doctors of engaging in unethical
blackmail. The Sunday Mirror (2/11) also quoted a University of Zimbabwe
social scientist as having said, "Everybody is suffering, which means they
[doctors] should make a compromise for the good of their patients".

The government-controlled media's stance on the strikes fitted their
attempts to present government's efforts at rescuing the economy as paying
dividends. According to the government media, Zimbabwe's economic malaise
was mainly a result of unscrupulous business activities. For example, The
Herald (29/10) announced that government had "formed a special taskforce to
urgently address the management of foreign currency after realizing that the
root cause of the obtaining economic problems was the unaccountability of
foreign currency by exporters and other players". An unnamed "analyst" was
quoted as saying only 10 out of about 8,000 exporting companies in Zimbabwe
were remitting their foreign currency on time. Other "analysts" reportedly
said the tourism sector, for example, " was grossing less than US$2 million
per month even though tourist arrivals and bookings were increasing". No
evidence was given to support these claims. Rather, an unnamed government
spokesperson was allowed to claim: "All available evidence indicates that
this economy is generating more foreign currency today than it did three
years ago" adding "this foreign currency is being externalized and abused in
the black market for reasons which are either political mischief or economic
sabotage".

ZTV (29/10, 8pm) carried a similar report that evening. But unlike its
stable mate, which deliberately avoided questioning government policy on the
issue, ZTV quoted National Economic Consultative Forum spokesman Nhlanhla
Masuku as saying, "...(government) need(s) to do away with policies that
spawn corruption, do away with policies that don't address the situation on
the ground..." to address the foreign currency shortage. Economist Andy
Hodges agreed, saying government should come up with a realistic exchange
rate.
However, ZTV (30/10,8pm) quoted Information Minister Jonathan Moyo
unyielding. "It is not because our economy is not generating foreign
currency.We received a report .that tourism has picked up to levels now
approximating 60 percent and growing, but there is no commensurate receipt
in terms of the inflows of foreign currency.it means there are leakages..."
Moyo said.

The private media however, criticized government for formulating policies
based on "self-deception". The Zimbabwe Independent, for example, dismissed
the claim that Zimbabwe is generating more foreign currency, saying exports
had actually "declined from US$3,1 billion in 1996 to an estimated US$1,2
billion in 2002". The paper also pointed out that, contrary to government
claims, private companies were not the root cause of Zimbabwe's economic
problems but "the unaccountability of a government intent upon imposing its
discredited and unworkable economic mantras upon the nation". It further
observed exporters were turning to the black market because of the
unrealistic exchange rate, an issue which was notably corroborated by the
central bank deputy governor, Sam Malaba, in the Chronicle (28/10).

Studio 7 (29/10) revealed that despite government's pretence that it was
solving the foreign currency shortage, the worst was still to come. It
reported that the monthly production of gold was "expected to shrink by
another 5% because of low international prices and the depreciating
economy..." It quoted the Chamber of Mines monthly report stating that "some
mines have closed down." and added that "some mines were invaded and (this)
scared off investors..."

But the government-controlled media persisted with their efforts to convince
their audiences that government was in control and doing everything possible
to resuscitate the economy.  ZTV (30/10, 8pm) for example, praised the
Zimbabwe-Iran Joint Commission saying- without full explanation that, "It
will go a long way in improving the country's economy which has been under
siege from Western countries..."
Similarly, The Herald and the Chronicle (1/11), The Sunday News and The
Sunday Mail (2/11) uncritically reported President Mugabe's announcement
that the Reserve Bank would be restructured as another solution to the
country's economic woes.

3. Mounting pressure on Zimbabwe

The private media continued to reveal that, contrary to claims by government
and the media it controls, the international community's disappointment with
Zimbabwe's misgovernance was far from waning.
For example, The Zimbabwe Independent (31/10) reported that the outgoing
United States Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Walter
Kansteiner, had "fired a broadside at President Robert Mugabe", whom he
accused of human rights abuses. Describing Zimbabwe as "a country on the
brink of disaster", Kansteiner reportedly added that "carrot and stick"
measures were needed "to force Mugabe and his regime to jettison tyranny".
The Sunday Mirror (2/11) and Studio 7 (29/10) carried the same report.

However, The Sunday Mirror viewed Kansteiner's statements as a "somewhat con
ciliatory position", which "represents a dramatic shift from the hard
stance" the United States had earlier taken on Zimbabwe.
Studio 7 (31/10) also revealed that Germany was also anxious to see a
solution to the Zimbabwean crisis. It reported German Deputy Chancellor as
having called on African leaders to find a "speedy resolution" to Zimbabwe's
problems saying this was "in the interest of the continent".

In another related matter, The Zimbabwe Independent reported that the World
Council of Churches had called on "government to restore the rule of law and
put an end to arbitrary arrests, torture and killings".
The government-controlled media ignored these reports, preferring to
continue with their misleading notion that the leadership was not under any
pressure, either from within or outside the country, for it to mend its
ways. To buttress this facade of normalcy, they ignored reporting on ZANU PF
violence at local council election nomination courts, resulting in some MDC
candidates failing to register. It was not surprising therefore that ZTV
(30/10, 8pm) unquestioningly quoted Minister Moyo misrepresenting the MDC's
failure to register candidates for some council posts to mean that the
electorate had confidence in ZANU PF's leadership. Moyo was quoted as saying
that as a result, the MDC had difficulty finding candidates because people
now "understood" the causes of their problems.

However, The Weekend Tribune (1/11) and The Standard (2/11) revealed that
Moyo's statements bore no relation to reality. The two papers reported that
ZANU PF supporters had assaulted MDC candidates and barred them from
submitting their papers to the nomination court for the elections in
Chinhoyi. As if that was not enough, those who had managed to submit their
nomination papers had their documents forcibly taken away from the court.
Officials from the Registrar's Office were also reportedly assaulted for
accepting nomination papers from the MDC.

Despite this brazen subversion of the democratic process, the
government-controlled media would not relent in their suffocation of the
truth. They continued to make unsubstantiated claims that reports of rights
violations were being fabricated by the international media, whose countries
were against land reform.
The visit by the British Foreign Affairs official, Andrew Lloyd, to Zimbabwe
however, gave the government media a golden opportunity to promote the
impression that Britain now had a different perception of Zimbabwe. ZTV
(30/10, 8pm) reported that Lloyd, together with British High Commissioner
Sir Brian Donnelly, met ZANU PF Chairman John Nkomo and other ruling party
officials. There was no independent investigation of the reason behind the
visit and the outcome of the meeting. And in the absence of any explanation
from Britain, Minister Moyo's statements were left to stand as fact: "...He
had come to familiarize himself with the reality of this country and one
reality is that there is Zanu PF and it is the ruling party".

The Herald (31/10) carried a similar story and quoted Moyo adding that, "It
is good to notice that the British realise there is a ruling party in
Zimbabwe and remember where it is located". ZANU PF secretary for external
affairs, Didymus Mutasa, was also quoted as having said his party had
"exposed British hypocrisy" when it pointed out that Lloyd "was free to
visit Zimbabwe yet Zimbabwean...officials were barred from visiting
Britain". The paper failed to remind its readers that the ZANU PF government
had drawn up a counter travel embargo on British government officials in
retaliation to targeted sanctions slapped on the Zimbabwean leadership. Nor
did it reveal whether Lloyd was on that list.

The Zimbabwe Independent failed to shed light on this peculiar meeting, and
added to the fog surrounding Britain's real position regarding Zimbabwe by
quoting its Minister of State in the Foreign Office, Baroness Elizabeth
Symons: "Mugabe's time was almost up...Our policy towards Zimbabwe has not
changed. We want a democratically accountable government which respects
human rights and the rule of law".
Ends.

The MEDIA UPDATE was produced and circulated by the Media Monitoring Project
Zimbabwe, 15 Duthie Avenue, Alexandra Park, Harare, Tel/fax: 263 4 703702,
E-mail: monitors@mmpz.org.zw

Feel free to write to MMPZ. We may not be able to respond to everything but
we will look at each message. For previous MMPZ reports, and more
information about the Project, please visit our website at
http://www.mmpz.org.zw/