http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010 12:15
A maid's
complaint against a woman who allegedly pointed a gun at her has
resulted in
an unexpected outcome: An unprecedented transfer of the entire
police force
at Avondale station.
Police Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuri on
Friday ordered the
immediate transfer of all 78 officers stationed at
Avondale police station.
The order contained in a radio number EM347/10 and
dated 15/10/10 is a
bitter pill to swallow for the officers who have to be
out of Harare by
Tuesday.
Save for two policemen who are well
connected to senior police officers who
have been posted to stations in
Harare, the majority have to kiss goodbye to
the city life they had grown
accustomed to.
They are heading for Tuli, Mushumbi, Mutorashanga,
Binga, Jambezi, Guyu,
Kezi, Mbembesi, Kazungula, Gezani, Nkayi, Dete and
other remote areas.
Officers from those far-flung areas will fill
their places.
The result of this well-calculated move is that
Avondale police station,
which presides over Strathaven, an area where Prime
Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai resides, will be mainly staffed by officers
coming from remote
stations.
There were suggestions that an
unnamed officer in charge of an unknown
Ruvangwe police station, near the
Mozambique border would take charge at
Avondale.
Very senior
police officers concerned by the move by Chihuri yesterday
revealed that
Avondale police station had always been on Chihuri's radar
amid suspicion
that officers there were sympathetic to Tsvangirai.
The complaints
raised by an Indian woman identified as Bhata Bhavyamalini
who was accused
of threatening her maid with a gun (CR 24/10/10) may have
provided a
convenient excuse to punish the officers, The Standard was told.
The
maid Ivy Dzengu alleged that Bhav-yamalini had pointed a gun at her.
Avondale police responded to her report and proceeded to search
Bhavyamalini's
home for the gun. They returned empty-
handed.
Bhavyamalini, in turn, is said to have complained that police
involved in
the case were conniving with the maid and an organisation for
domestic
workers to extort money from her.
A top police officer
who cannot be named for legal reasons is alleged to
have shown his interest
in the matter and pushed for an internal
investigation into the
case.
Thereafter police at Avondale heard rumours that they were all
going to be
transferred to remote places because by arresting and going to
search for a
gun at Bhav-yamalini's home they had "overstepped their
mandate".
Yesterday, Bhavyamalini said she was happy that action had
been taken
against the police at Avondale.
"Don't you think some
element of discipline was supposed to be brought
against these people?" she
asked in an understatement.
Bhavyamalini confirmed reports that she
had approached "senior people" to
intervene in her case.
She however
disputed police reports that it was the maid who first made a
complaint
against her.
"It's me who first went to the police. The maid was in
the habit of shouting
at night and she was illegally occupying my cottage. I
reported her to the
police but I don't know the mix and match she did and
she was demanding
US$600 from me for working for seven days.
"I
started hearing that the she was making false gun allegations about me,"
she
said.
Asked to comment on allegations that she had a special
relationship with a
senior police officer, Bhavyamalini became abusive and
started threatening
this journalist.
"You are poking your nose on
matters that are dangerous. I am very powerful
and you can be in serious
trouble for that. Give me your name again boy, you
and your paper are in
trouble."
While Bhavyamalini may be pleased that all Avondale police
details have been
punished, for the officers who have scrounge around for
cash to finance
their relocation to Zimbabwe's far-flung areas, it is not a
laughing matter.
Forlon officers said they did not know where to
start from yesterday.
"Look I have kids who are in school in Harare,
when I am told that I have to
leave the city and go and stay 500 km away,
how can that be possible.
"My kids are supposed to be writing exams
next month, and I don't even have
the bus fare to relocate."
The
Standard yesterday heard heart-rending stories of officers who were
sick,
some barely able to walk who were supposed to dash out of Harare at
the
earliest possible time.
According to police regulations, officers who
fail to reach their new
stations in time will be charged.
The situation
was so desperate yesterday that several officers were
contemplating leaving
the force.
Many picked the Form 71, which is an application for
discharge from the
force.
"The way Chihuri has transferred
everyone at the station is unprecedented.
It will not only affect officers
personally but will have serious
implications for smooth running of
operations. There is no proper handover
takeover and officers who were
investigating cases have to leave them just
like that.
While the
Bhavyamalini case may have sparked the mass transfers, senior
police
officers told The Standard it was merely an excuse.
"That something
drastic was going to happen was in the offing. There are
perceptions that
the station is sympathetic to Tsvangirai," said one of the
officers.
"Attempts by the station to establish a police post at
Strathaven worsened
matters. There are some who viewed that as an attempt to
provide security
for Tsvangirai. Officers from the rural areas can be
trusted to work in an
area which is very sensitive."
The officer
said one of the senior police officers also raised eyebrows
after he saluted
Tsvangirai and Finance minister Tendai Biti.
Chihuri and Police
spokesperson Wayne Bvudzijena could not be reached for
comment
yesterday.
BY WALTER MARWIZI
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010 12:05
MUTUMWA
Mawere (pictured above) is now a free man, six years after the
Zimbabwean
police launched a manhunt for the businessman on alleged
externalisation
claims.
On Thursday, Harare provincial magistrate Mishrod Guvamombe
cancelled the
warrant of arrest on Mawere at the behest of the police after
the
Attorney-General declined to prosecute the Zimbabwean-born
businessman.
Augustine Zimbili, Criminal Investigations Department
spokesperson confirmed
to The Standard the cancellation of the warrant of
arrest.
"Yes I can confirm that the warrant of arrest was cancelled
yesterday
(Thursday). He is now a free man and no longer a wanted person,"
Zimbili
said.
In 2004, the police issued a warrant of arrest against
Mawere accusing the
Zimbabwean-born business mogul of externalising US$18
464 595,27, C$628
071,84 and ZAR4 515 367,48 from SMM Holdings
Limited.
The cancellation of the warrant of arrest will shape pending
cases at the
courts where the businessman is challenging the seizure of his
assets via
the reconstruction laws.
It comes months after Mawere
was despecified giving him the right to
challenge the seizure of his assets
at the courts.
When the specification of Mawere was revoked in May
alongside those of
former Meikles chairman, John Moxon and Telecel founder
James Makamba,
police and AG Johannes Tomana said the trio had cases to
answer.
In June, Tomana was quoted as saying, "Being despecified does
not wash any
real wrongdoings which can be proven. Despecification is not
like an
acquittal."
The AG's Office's refusal to prosecute the case
indicates that the state's
case is crumbling against Mawere and is now
clinging onto the Reconstruction
Act.
Mawere is challenging the
constitutionality of the Act and the seizure of
his
assets.
Speaking from his base in South Africa yesterday, Mawere told
The Standard
the cancellation of the warrant of arrest shows that there was
no case from
the beginning.
"It means that the AG must have come
to the conclusion that there is no case
to answer albeit six years later,"
he said.
Mawere said the move is the last leg in his long march to
freedom coming
months after the co-Ministers of Home Affairs revoked his
specification.
"This was the last hurdle in the long march to
freedom. [Patrick] Chinamasa
is not the police. Chinamasa's basis for acting
against me has always been
the [Edwin] Manikai-[Afaras] Gwaradzimba matrix
that still remains in his
corner," he said.
Gwaradzimba is the
SMM administrator while Manikai is the legal advisor to
SMM.
"If
the AG has declined to prosecute and the police have taken the matter to
court to revoke the warrant of arrest then what did Chinamasa rely upon to
establish the cause of action against me?" he questioned.
Is he
prepared to come to Zimbabwe?
"Yes. I have always been prepared to
visit Zimbabwe but now you can
appreciate why this has not been possible
with the existence of a warrant of
arrest," Mawere said.
Asked
whether the acquittal of Mawere will not have an impact on his tenure,
Gwaradzimba said it would have no impact because in his involvement with SMM
"he was never made aware that it was because of the warrant of
arrest".
Chinamasa was not answering his mobile phone
yesterday.
Mawere was specified in 2004 and subsequent to that
Chinamasa as the Justice
minister appointed Gwaradzimba to administer his
sprawling empire that cut
across virtually every sector of the
economy.
In 2004 the government through AMG Global Nominees
clandestinely tried to
buy the empire by paying US$2 million for the shares
of SMM Holdings (SMMH)
and THZ Holdings (THZH) arguing that Africa Resources
Limited (ARL) had
defaulted in payments for the acquisition of the two
firms.
Mawere's ARL bought SMMH and THZH from Tuner and Newell
(T&N) in 1996 for
US$60 million. It paid US$37 million, leaving a
balance of US$23 million.
After paying the money, AMG took the matter
to the UK courts for it to be
registered as the owner of the two
UK-registered companies.
In 2008, the UK Supreme Court dismissed with
costs an application by AMG to
be registered as the owner of the
shares.
The British court ruled that ARL had not defaulted in payment
and that it
had title to the bearer share warrants of SMMH and
THZH.
Last year RBZ governor Gideon Gono wrote an advisory note to
President
Robert Mugabe asking for his intervention in the Mawere
saga.
In the brief, Gono said by virtue of owing parastatals,
Mawere's SMM was not
indebted to the state. He said that there were
conflicts of interests as the
administrator had previously audited SMM
accounts and the legal advisor,
Edwin Manikai had previously done work in
Mawere's empire.
Gono was forced to withdraw his note after Chinamasa
said the RBZ boss was
interfering with court processes.
BY NDAMU
SANDU
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010 13:47
BULAWAYO -
AN outbreak of the deadly influenza H1N1 commonly known as swine
flu has
been reported in Tsholotsho, Matabeleland North where two people
have tested
positive out of the 300 cases reported.
Themba Moyo, the Tsholotsho district
administrator on Friday wrote to
Matabeleland North provincial
administrator, Latiso Dlamini notifying her of
the outbreak.
"We hereby
report on the outbreak of influenza H1N1 in Tsholotho District. A
total of
300 cases have been reported, seven tests done and two have been
confirmed
positive.
Moyo said two vehicles, 600 litres of fuel, oxygen and NS fluids,
among
other things, were urgently needed to fight the outbreak.
Moyo
confirmed the outbreak to The Standard on Friday but referred all
inquiries
to Dlamini.
"I can confirm the outbreak of H1N1 in Tsholotsho district but I
am not at
liberty to shed more light at this stage. The provincial
administrator,
Dlamini could be in a position to comment further" said
Moyo.
It was not clear by yesterday whether the two who tested positive are
quarantined in hospitals or not.
Minister of Health and Child Welfare
Henry Madzorera and Dlamini were not
available yesterday for
comment.
When the virus was first detected last year, all entry points to
Zimbabwe
were put on high alert.
Early this year the United States Agency
for International Development
(USAid) donated medical supplies to fight a
future influenza outbreak.
The consignment included
50 000 personal
protective clothing kits worth US$645 000, for influenza
preparedness for
use by health care workers in Zimbabwe and throughout
southern Africa in
case of an outbreak.
Last year, the World Health Organisation (WHO), declared
swine flu a
pandemic, making it the first outbreak to be classified as such
in 41 years.
Swine flu, which was first detected in Mexico in April last
year, infected
some 40 000 people in more than 70 countries and killed
167.
The US Centre for Disease Control advice on combating the H1N1 says that
the
flu is believed to spread between humans through sneezing or coughing by
infected people.
It recommends confinement at home in order to limit
contact with other
people and running the risk of spreading the
disease.
It advises against close contact with infected people, covering the
nose and
mouth when sneezing or coughing.
It also counsels against
touching eyes, the nose or mouth after coughing or
sneezing as this spreads
germs.
Washing hands with soap after sneezing or coughing is
recommended.
Some of the symptoms of swine flu are like regular flu symptoms
which
include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and
fatigue
BY NQOBILE BHEBHE
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010 13:43
MINETECH
Zimbabwe has distanced itself from the saga involving 55 Zimbabwean
de-miners who were recently thrown out of Afghanistan by their employer, UXB
International FZE.
The de-miners were last month forced to return to
Zimbabwe after UXB
International, a company working on Afghanistan
minefields, terminated their
contracts for going on strike.
The de-miners
embarked on the strike citing punitive remuneration under
dangerous working
conditions.
They were based at Bagram airfield in Afghanistan which is
operated by
United States marines.
MineTech Zimbabwe management explained
that they were only contracted to
train new de-miners for and on behalf of
UXB International FZE.
Their involvement and responsibility thus had nothing
to do with the
employment contracts and remuneration of the de-miners, which
was purely the
sole responsibility of UXB International.
MineTech has in
the past carried out de-mining activities in post conflict
areas but has
since switched over to strictly providing security services.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010
13:42
BULAWAYO - A human rights organisation representing victims of
political
violence has written to the Attorney General (AG) demanding a
fresh inquest
and prosecution of six surviving war veterans accused of
kidnapping and
murdering MDC activist Patrick Nabanyama in 2000.
The
Zimbabwe Victims of Organised Violence Trust (ZIVOVT) is also demanding
that
the AG's office retrieve past court records - which have miraculously
disappeared - for the prosecution of the accused war veterans.
Nabanyama,
who was a polling agent for the Minister of Education, Sport, Art
and
Culture David Coltart in the volatile June 2000 parliamentary polls,
disappeared after he was kidnapped by suspected state security agents and
war veterans from his home on June 19 the same year.
Nine war veterans -
Cain Nkala, Stanley Ncube, Ephraim Moyo, Julius Sibanda,
Edward Ndlovu,
Howard Ncube, Simon Rwodzi, a Mr Moyo and Ngoni were arrested
in connection
with the kidnapping and murder of Nabanyama.
They were acquitted in
2001.
Nkala was later kidnapped and killed by suspected state security agents
after he indicated that he was ready to spill the beans as to what had
actually happened to Nabanyama.
Edward Ndlovu and Howard Ncube are also
late.
Nkala was buried at the National Heroes' Acre.
ZIVOVT officials told
The Standard last week that they were now pushing for
a fresh inquest and
prosecution of the surviving war veterans accused of
kidnapping
Nabanyama.
"We went to look for the court records last week but we could not
get them,"
said Bekithemba Nyathi, ZIVOVT information officer.
"The case
was not concluded but surprisingly the records have miraculously
disappeared. Court officials have told us that they sent the records to the
archives."
He added, "We have written to the AG (Johannes Tomana) seeking
the records
and demanding a fresh inquest and prosecution of the
accused."
The human rights organisation is chaired by Patience, Nabanyama's
widow.
She said, "We are pursuing the case with a view to prosecute the
surviving
war veterans. Our agenda is to pursue justice.
"As a family and
organisation, we want the arrest and prosecution of the
surviving war
veterans who kidnapped my husband. We will not rest until
there is
justice.we want to know where they took him and why they took him."
Attorney
General Johannes Tomana could not be reached for comment last week.
The MDC-T
has said over 200 of its supporters were killed by suspected
security agents
in the run-up to the June 2008 violent elections. The party
last year
forwarded names of the victims and those of the suspected
murderers to the
AG's office for prosecution but up to now no one has been
charged.
ZIVOVT, an organisation that seeks to assist victims of
politically-motivated violence in Zimbabwe was launched recently in
Bulawayo.
It brings together all victims of political violence regardless
of their
political affiliation or gender.
Critics say the formation of
the ZIVOVT shows that victims of political
violence are frustrated by the
government process of justice, national
healing and reconciliation which has
hitherto not yielded any results.
Victims of political violence, civic groups
and the two MDC formations have
however said that justice is a prerequisite
to a successful national healing
process for a country.
But President
Robert Mugabe recently called for a blanket amnesty to all
perpetrators of
past violence saying arresting perpetrators would derail
efforts of the
inclusive government to embark on a national healing and
reconciliation
process.
By NQOBANI NDLOVU
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010
13:41
GWERU - Angry commuters on Thursday stoned and destroyed several
commuter
omnibuses in the city centre after operators declined to take
tickets they
had issued earlier insisting on real money.
The commuter
operators had introduced tickets worth US$0,50 that could be
used by
commuters as money.
However, problems started on Thursday evening, when
operators refused to
take the tickets from commuters and demanded that
commuters pay cash
although they had been issued with tickets in the
morning.
Commuters who spoke to The Standard said they felt it was high time
that
they showed that commuters could also be violent and rowdy.
"How can
they (commuter operators) just from nowhere declare that they are
not taking
tickets yet they are the ones who gave us the tickets in the
morning? All
the time they inconvenience us and they are rude to us,"
complained Sarah
Mugwagwa, a regular commuter.
"They want everyone to be afraid of them and we
are tired," she said, adding
"It is good that people are standing up to
them."
Another passenger, Mercy Dhliwayo said commuters were tired of being
ill-treated by omnibus operators hence they took the law into their own
hands.
"People decided to stone the buses because the touts were
harassing
commuters who were complaining that they had been given tickets in
the
morning which the operators were refusing to take back as fares," she
explained.
Commuter operators who spoke to The Standard however accused
the commuters
of forging tickets which resulted in the operators losing a
lot of money.
"The introduction of tickets was a noble idea as there are no
coins but then
commuters are abusing the facility as they are forging
tickets. We felt we
could not continue taking tickets from the commuters,"
said one conductor,
who only identified himself as Bomber.
A driver, who
had his bus stoned, said they had not anticipated that
commuters would react
violently. "We never thought commuters could be so
violent and would destroy
our kombis," said the driver. "We were shocked,
but we have no option
because if we continue accepting the tickets we will
be losing in the
business."
Commuters who attacked the buses randomly only stopped stoning
after the
intervention of riot police.
While the commuter operators have
stopped accepting tickets, conflicts
between the commuters and the operators
have also increased due to the
shortage of coins.
There was drama in the
city centre when commuters exchanged bitter words
with conductors over
change.
Efforts to get a comment from the police were
fruitless.
BY OUR CORRESPONDENT
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010
13:40
MOST mining companies are looting mineral resources from areas they
operate
from without developing the local communities, traditional chiefs
who
attended a mining conference in Harare said last week.
The conference
titled "Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for Broad-based
Empowerment in
the Mining Industry" was attended by government officials,
representatives
from the mining sector and traditional chiefs.
The chiefs said local
communities were not benefiting from most mining
operations taking place
countrywide.
"There is no development within the community or benefits that
we get out of
these mining firms operating in our communities," said Chief
Mafala from
Zvishavane.
Minerals such as asbestos and diamonds are mined
in Zvishavane while
platinum and gold ore deposits are found at
Buchwa.
Chief Ntabeni from the Midlands town of Kwekwe, where huge gold
deposits are
found, said there was need for chiefs to be empowered so they
could monitor
mineral extraction from the mines in their areas.
Deputy
Minister of Mines and Mining Development, Gift Chimanikire said there
were
plans for the promulgation of CSR legislation to prevent mining
companies
from abdicating their social responsibility.
He said his ministry had
received several complaints of mining companies
abandoning areas they would
have exhausted without a single benefit for the
communities.
But Murowa
Diamonds managing director, Niels Kristensen countered the
minister's claims
saying mining firms were contributing significantly to
both communities and
the government.
"With all due respect, the contribution of the mining sector
in Zimbabwe is
a lot more than government realises," said
Kristensen.
"About 60 to 70% of the revenue from the minerals we are mining
remain in
the hands of the communities and government through the CSR
programme we
have in place."
The mining sector presently contributes up
to 50% of the country's exports
and has been identified by the government as
a strategic sector that can
lead the country's economic growth.
However,
Lois Hooge, a senior policy advisor in the mining sector in
Johannesburg
said many governments in Africa have no capacity for the
monitoring and
implementation of CSR as it is a challenge unique to African
countries.
"CSR is difficult to regulate and this is applicable to
Zimbabwe. There is
need for the articulation of clear government
expectations at policy level
and the need for communities that are organized
and cohesive," said Hooge.
"To overcome this challenge there is need to
incorporate civil society
for the purposes of effective monitoring," said
Hooge.
However, most African governments have not developed a good working
relationship with their own civil societies citing foreign influence making
it very difficult to work together.
BY KUDZAI CHIMHANGWA
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010
13:40
A housing cooperative developing stands for members at a new Harare
suburb
is at loggerheads with residents on an adjacent location for digging
trenches in their yards for sewer pipes.
Tynwald South residents recently
held a peaceful demonstration against
Fountain Blue Consortium Housing
Cooperative.
The women and children accused the cooperative of trying to
destroy their
houses by digging the trenches running through their
yards.
"When this pit was dug up, a section of my house cracked," said one of
the
affected residents.
"This giant electricity pole was also disturbed
so much that it bent towards
my house. I had to move my children elsewhere
fearing it would fall on the
house and set it ablaze."
The woman said it
was easy for the developers to dig a trench on her
premises as her stand was
not fenced.
"They just came here and told me that the sewerage line passes
through my
stand and started digging," she said.
An elderly man, Nervious
Benza said Tynwald South's sewer line passed behind
his house and the
addition of another pipe for the new suburb increased the
risk of sewer
flowing in his yard.
"They are also installing 300 mm pipes which they want
to join to our thin
pipes which only measure 150 mm," said Oliver
Mangena.
"It is like wanting a sea to feed a small river; our pipes will
burst from
the pressure."
At one house, the developer installed another
manhole for the new
settlement, further infuriating residents.
They are
also not happy that there would be no buffer to separate the old
settlement
from the new one known as Kuwadzana Phase Three.
Some residents claimed that
they had been informed that someone at the city
council had changed the
initial plan which clearly separated the two
settlements.
They alleged
that the initial plan required the cooperative to upgrade
Tynwald's sewer
system so the two settlements can share but "short cuts had
to be made to
cut on expenses".
They said both the government and the council had failed to
intervene.
Fountain Blue Consortium Housing Cooperative officials referred
questions to
the City of Harare.
Council spokesperson Leslie Gwindi said
he was still waiting for a report
from the urban planning services
department.
BY JENNIFER DUBE
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010 13:39
ABOUT 4 000
children die from diarrhoea in Zimbabwe each year due to poor
hygiene and
unsafe drinking water, a United Nations senior official said
last
week.
In a speech read on his behalf at the annual commemorations of the
Global
Hand-Washing Day held in Mutoko last week, Unicef country
representative Dr
Peter Salama said hand-washing is the single most
effective and inexpensive
way to prevent diarrhoea.
Globally, diarrhoea,
which is caused by poor hygiene and unsafe drinking
water, kills an
estimated two million children under the age of five per
year.
Salama
said although most Zimbabweans have fostered a culture of washing
hands at
critical times, they do not use soap which is the most important
ingredient.
Addressing the same gathering in a speech read on behalf of
World Health
Organisation, country representative Dr Custodia Mandlhate also
emphasised
the importance of washing hands to save lives.
“A simple act
of washing hands with soap can dramatically reduce the
incidences of
diarrhoeal disease and pneumonia, which accounts for the
majority of deaths
of children around the world,” said Mandlhate.
The minister of Health and
Child Welfare, Dr Henry Madzorera said there was
need to educate children on
the importance of washing hands.
“The focus for communicating the issues of
hand-washing for this year is for
school children as they are effective
learners and excellent communicators,
they are change initiators for they
can take the message to the community,”
said Madzorera in a speech read by
deputy director of health Regis Magausi.
During the commemorations PSI
demonstrated to school children 10 steps of
washing hands with soap, for
them to be completely clean.
According to Unicef, at its peak cholera claimed
more than 4 000 lives while
more than 100 000 cases were recorded in the
2008/2009 cholera season.
This is the second year Zimbabwe has commemorated
this day.
BY INDIANA CHIRIGA
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010 13:35
IMBIBERS
and traders have roundly criticised government's proposed
regulations that
will bar outlets from selling beer after 7pm on week days.
The proposal
contained in a National Alcohol Policy launched by President
Robert Mugabe's
adviser on health, Timothy Stamps, seeks to also stop the
sale of alcohol
after midday on Sunday.
Visibly pregnant women would also be barred from
buying beer at any outlet.
Justifying the policy, Stamps said excessive
consumption of alcohol had
contributed to the carnage on the country's roads
and moral decadence.
But imbibers and industry players last week said the
policy may achieve the
opposite of what the government is hoping for because
it would encourage
underground beer outlets.
Bottle store owners said the
policy would hit their pockets hard as their
customers mainly bought beer
after working hours.
The policy proposes that alcoholic drinks be sold only
between 6am and 7pm
in shops, supermarkets and bottle stores.
The
majority of Zimbabweans prefer buying beer from these outlets at retail
prices because they cannot afford the extra charges at pubs and night
clubs.
"We are saying no to this policy," said a man from Glen View who only
identified himself as Jani.
"What will happen to people who finish work
late and get to their
neighbourhoods after 7pm?
"This policy will promote
the sprouting of illegal outlets such as shebeens
and this will in turn
promote immoral behaviour."
Others said it would be difficult to enforce the
policy because it does not
benefit both consumers and traders.
In the
colonial era, Zimbabwe (then named Rhodesia) and South Africa
introduced
tough alcohol consumption policies targeted at Africans which
drove them to
open illegal shebeens.
Despite the fact that patrons are often rounded up by
police, shebeens
remain popular in townships because they have become
alternatives to pubs
and bars.
Tapuwa Makoni of Highfield said it was
high time the inclusive government
concentrated on bread and butter
issues.
"I doubt if Stamps consulted any consumer of alcohol before coming up
with
this draconian policy," Makoni said.
"There are better ways of
enforcing responsible drinking, such as public
awareness campaigns. This
policy is just not practical."
A reader who commented on the story published
on The Standard's online
edition said: "It seems we are being unnecessarily
over-regulated by the
government. We need to move away from these
meaningless regulations and even
go to the extent of allowing public
drinking.
"Do we really need police to go after revellers instead of
criminals?
"They should arrest those who cause public nuisance due to
drunkenness, not
people who are spending money on a good cause."
Bottle
store and shop owners who spoke to The Standard said they feared
their
businesses would collapse because most customers bought their beer in
the
evenings.
"We are paying a lot in terms of rentals and council rates and we
will find
it difficult to remain afloat if our trading hours are reduced,"
said a till
operator at Vambe Bottle Store in Highfield who only identified
himself as
Tony.
"For example, I earn a commission based on the amount of
beer I sell every
day and if they impose a ban on trading hours how I will
feed my family?
"Since morning I have sold less than a crate of beer because
there are no
customers coming during this time of the day and our only hope
is that we
will maximise our sales in the evening."
The alcohol industry
contributes significantly to Zimbabwe's economy through
taxes.
But there
are concerns that government's high taxes will impact negatively
on the
growth of the industry and the new policy may just add insult to the
injury.
Delta Corporation Limited, Zimbabwe's biggest beverage maker and
distributor, at the beginning of the year said it expected its revenue to
grow to US$1 billion a year.
However, it feared that the target may be
frustrated by periodic reviews of
excise duty on spirits.
From January,
the government has doubled excise duty on spirits to 40%, six
months after
reviewing it from 15%.
Ben Holtzhausen, the group CEO for VHI Manufacturers
and Distillers said the
policy would affect consumers more than the
producers.
"As an organisation responsible for manufacturing and producing
alcohol
beverages, this policy will not affect us much but it will impact
heavily on
consumers," he said.
"Consumers need to be educated on the
need to develop responsible drinking
habits."
He said controls were
necessary so that Zimbabwe does not descend into a
country of
alcoholics.
Stamps admitted at the launch that there was no scientific
evidence that
suggested that Zimbabweans had become a nation of
alcoholics.
He however said this did not mean that imbibers were not abusing
alcohol as
the carnage on the country's roads pointed to a bigger
problem.
BY SIMBARASHE MANHANGO
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010 13:33
JERERA
- Community leaders in Zaka say Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
should flex
his muscles and stop war veterans' leader Jabulani Sibanda from
operating in
their district.
The leaders said Sibanda was an unwelcome guest in their
district and there
was no reason why he should be allowed to continue
striking fear into the
hearts of the inhabitants of the drought-prone
province.
Sibanda, who invaded Zaka a few weeks ago, has travelled the length
and
breath of the district drumming up support for President Robert
Mugabe.
He is accompanied by hordes of war veterans who are determined to
wrestle
Zaka district in Masvingo province from the MDC-T.
While some
people may see nothing wrong with people canvassing support for
their
preferred candidates, it is Sibanda's campaign methods that are
causing
anxiety, mostly among the communal leaders.
They said Sibanda's primary
business in Zaka was fear-mongering and
witch-hunting for MDC
supporters.
They noted that under an operation code named Budiranai Pachena,
Sibanda was
summoning villagers to meetings where he and the other war vets
took turns
to threaten villagers into disclosing those who supported the
MDC-T.
Villagers said they were presented with two choices: either to support
Zanu
PF and live in peace or support MDC and face violent consequences from
war
veterans.
A village head who spoke on condition of anonymity said
Sibanda was in the
habit of threatening people and denouncing Tsvangirai.
"We are constantly
reminded that we will be severely beaten up if we vote
for MDC-T again," he
said.
"They are not even afraid of talking about
killing people."
The village head said he was surprised that the powers that
be, including
Tsvangirai, are not taking the issue of Sibanda's activities
in Zaka
seriously.
"We need our peace. We have never gone to Sibanda's
home area to disturb his
peace, why should he be allowed to disturb our
lives?"
Another angry village head said Sibanda and his charges had
threatened to
banish them to London if they failed to produce the lists of
MDC-T
supporters in their areas.
Zaka Rural District Council chairman,
Peter Imbayarwo said Sibanda had
perfected the art of fear-mongering.
"He
(Sibanda) must have been trained to intimidate," remarked Imbayarwo at
Jerera growth point last week.
"When people leave his meetings, they are
evidently struck by fear. It's
something that is worrying us, especially
considering that we may go for
elections next year."
Imbayarwo said
Sibanda's threats were being taken seriously by villagers in
Zaka who
witnessed unmitigated violence during the 2008 elections.
"We live with
people who sustained horrific injuries from the 2008 attacks.
Sibanda and
his group openly say they are going to finish them off. You can
imagine the
effect such statements can have on defenceless people."
Imbayarwo is one of
the people who are personally affected by such threats.
As coordinator of
MDC-T activities in Zaka during the 2008 elections, he was
part of the party
activists who worked at the MDC-T makeshift office at
Jerera which was
petrol bombed by people in army uniform on June 3 2008.
Three MDC youths died
on the spot and those who managed to survive sustained
horrific injuries
that haunt them up to this day.
Imbayarwo was away on party business in
Masvingo town when the attack took
place. Last Sunday he led us into the
room where his colleagues perished.
For a minute, he stood quietly starring
at the burnt-out walls that are
clear evidence of the hideous work of the
men in army uniform.
He said the offices accommodated many people as they
were also doubling as a
safe house for victims of political
violence.
Some of these people were in transit to either Masvingo or Harare
where they
sought specialist treatment.
The place could at one time carry
up to 40 people, he said, adding the
assailants may have wanted to kill as
many MDC-T youths as possible.
"Considering the atrocities that happened
here, I don't think Sibanda should
be allowed to come and tell us that what
happened here can be repeated in a
big way," said Imbayarwo.
"What he is
doing is wrong and someone in authority should have the guts to
tell him to
leave us in peace."
The MDC-T has said over 200 of its supporters were killed
by suspected
security agents in the run-up to the June 2000 violent
elections.
The party last year forwarded names of the victims and those of
the
suspected murderers to the Attorney-General's Office for prosecution but
up
to now no one has been charged.
The council chairman gave us an
assessment of why Sibanda and his protégés
may have targeted Zaka after his
unpopular forays in Bikita.
Since independence, the district which is prone
to poor rainfall and high
temperatures was a stronghold of Zanu PF.
But
things dramatically changed after March 2008 elections which ushered in
an
MDC-T dominated rural district council.
Out of the 33 contested wards, MDC-T
got 20, with the remaining 13 going to
Zanu PF.
For the parliamentary
elections, out of the four constituencies at stake,
three went to MDC-T and
one to Zanu PF.
"The U-turn by Zaka inhabitants must have shocked them. This
was a Zanu PF
territory since independence, and for them violence is the
only way to
reclaim lost territory."
Sibanda could not be reached for
comment yesterday. He has however in the
past denied that he is threatening
people. Sibanda said he was peacefully
campaigning and any suggestions that
he was tormenting villagers were
mischievous.
BY WALTER
MARWIZI
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010
13:33
A survivor of the infamous June 3 2008 militia attack on the MDC-T
Jerera
offices which claimed the lives of three activists has launched a
stinging
tirade on the party leaders for abandoning victims of political
violence.
A visibly irritated Edison Gwenhure said MDC-T had forgotten him
and
wondered whether the leaders still remembered the grassroots activists
who
propelled them to power.
"From all the struggles I waged for the
party, all I got was disability,"
said Gwenhure, who suffered serious body
and facial burns after a Zanu PF
militia doused him with petrol.
He made
his comments just a metre away from the makeshift office which was
petrol-bombed by five men who came in uniform.
Gwenhure survived the
attack but three of his colleagues lost their lives.
Asked what he thought
about war veteran leader Jabulani Sibanda's widely
condemned activities in
Zaka district, an area he once fiercely fought to
defend, Gwenhure said he
had lost interest in politics.
"Why should I be involved, what do I get from
it. Look at me, look at my
face I never received any compensation for the
suffering I went through."
"I fight and get these injuries. Look at the MP
(Harrison Mudzuri), he
enjoys driving around in a double cab. People like us
who endured the brunt
of the Zanu PF militia are now like scarecrows with no
one bothering to help
us."
Gwenhure however said, like any other
Zimbabwean who had a right to vote, he
would go the polls and cast his vote
for MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai and
the councillor for the area Peter
Imbayarwo whom he said stayed among the
people.
"I have learnt my
lesson," said Gwenhure, "I am more careful this time. Even
for you (this
journalist), I won't allow you to take my picture, you can use
the one in
your files."
BY WALTER MARWIZI
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010
13:30
SITTING on an empty wooden box next to a heap of fly-infested
garbage,
45-year-old Chipo Chayambuka looks lost in her thoughts.
She
appears oblivious to the buzzing flies around her and the strong stench
emanating from the rotting mounds of rubbish.
For the second time in a
week, the small-scale farmer from Uzumba, in
Mashonaland East province, has
been forced to “sell” her tomatoes to touts
at Mbare Green Market at a
give-away price.
The touts or scroungers infamously known as makoronyera use
threats and
other intimidatory tactics to force farmers to dispose of their
produce to
them at extremely low prices, which they then resale at
market-related
prices.
“When we arrived at the market this morning, two
of them were already
standing next to our produce and they told us that they
were buying our
tomatoes at US$1,50 per box,” said Chayambuka, with tears
welling up in her
eyes.
Other farmers sold their tomatoes at US$2 per
box.
Although Chayambuka and her husband Frank (56) protested, that did not
deter
the determined touts who evidently thrive on using brawn rather than
brains.
One has to be well-muscled to ward them off.
“They became abusive
and seized all the tomatoes and paid us using the price
they determined
themselves,” she said. “The municipal police don’t protect
us because they
also benefit from the chaos.”
Chayambuka is one of the scores of small-scale
farmers who are being fleeced
of hundreds of dollars by the touts who force
them to sell their produce for
a song.
The scroungers also act as
middlemen.
Attempts to speak to some of the makoronyera were constantly
rebuffed as
they tried to evade being identified.
Farmers who spoke to
The Standard last week called on the Harare City
Council to take decisive
action against the scroungers to enable them to
sell their produce without
coercion.
They said prices for their produce were not determined by demand
and supply
but by the scroungers, most of whom were suspected to be aligned
to the
notorious and feared Zanu PF terror group, Chipangano.
“They fix
the prices themselves, force us to accept the low prices then they
will
resale our commodities at a higher price, at the same marketplace,”
said
Andrew Gurure, another farmer from Mutoko.
“In some cases, if one resists
they beat that person up or create commotion
so that they get an opportunity
to loot the produce.”
As a result, some farmers were resorting to desperate
measures like hiring
hooligans for US$10 to sell the produce on their
behalf.
But that still was not a guarantee that they would get a favourable
price or
that the produce would not be stolen.
Apart from the hassle of
dealing with the scroungers, the farmers who sell
agricultural produce such
as tomatoes, green maize, onions, cucumbers and
butternuts, also have to
contend with high fees charged by the city council.
The local authority
collects US$10 from each farmer for overnight storage
and the sale of
produce for six hours — from 6am to midday.
If a farmer is accompanied by
another person, he has to pay a double fee.
The charges weigh heavily against
the small-scale farmers who travel long
distances to Mbare.
When storage,
transport and other related charges are factored in, a farmer
like
Chayambuka pockets less than US$60 after selling 93 boxes of tomatoes.
Some
of the farmers accused the city council of failing to provide them with
enough facilities and services that match up with the fees they
charge.
“The council is just collecting money from us but they are not
providing
requisite services,” said Abel Musori (54) from Murehwa.
The
conditions around the market are also a cause for concern for the
farmers.
The area around the green market becomes muddy when it rains.
Heaps of
uncollected garbage, which attract large green flies, famously
known as
“green bombers”, are an eyesore and pose a serious health hazard.
The
possibility of an outbreak of contagious diseases such as cholera and
dysentery is very high, especially during the coming rainy season.
There
is no accommodation for the farmers and most of them sleep in the open
or
verandas of shops waiting to sell the goods the following morning.
For
sleeping on verandas, the farmers pay a US$1 a night.
There are no clean
public toilets or bathrooms. Farmers relieve themselves
at the back of the
shops under the cover of darkness.
But the city council, which collects
thousands of dollars each month from
farmers, seems unperturbed by these
worrisome conditions.
“I wonder if the council has not observed this
unhealthy situation where
people sleep the whole night in open spaces,
getting into blankets with
shoes because taking them could mean losing them
to thieves while sleeping,”
said Crispen Chikonye, a bus driver who plies
the Harare-Mutare route.
Harare City Council spokesperson Leslie Gwindi said
it was difficult for
council to provide adequate facilities and services to
the farmers because
it has no money to upgrade them.
Most of the
facilities have not been maintained for the past decade, said
Gwindi, as the
country was going through a very difficult economic phase.
“We know there are
problems and it’s difficult for the council to revamp the
facilities
overnight since we have not invested any resources in them for
the past 10
years or so,” said Gwindi, adding that the farmers must sell
their produce
the same day and return to their homes.
He added, “Farmers must know that we
are not in the business of providing
accommodation. They must go home once
they sell their produce.”
The farmers must organise themselves to avoid being
taken advantage of by
the middlemen because they are the ones who pay to
sell their produce in the
market, said Gwindi.
However, come next week,
Chayambuka and many others like her will still have
to endure the usual
harassment by the scroungers without any protection and
sleep on the open
but still pay the city fathers for the scant services
offered.
BY CAIPHAS CHIMHETE
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010
13:28
THE International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised upwards
Zimbabwe's growth
forecast for 2010 in an indication that the economy has
been on a rebound in
the second half of the year.
IMF is viewed as an
"International Commissioner of Oaths" and its
projections are followed
religiously by investors interested in a
destination.
In its World
Economic Outlook Report for October, the Bretton Woods
institution projected
a real GDP growth of 5, 9 % this year.
In April, IMF had slashed its growth
forecast to 2, 2% from the 6% the
institution had earlier
projected.
According to the October report, Zimbabwe is projected to record a
real GDP
growth rate of 4, 5% next year, up from the zero growth rate it had
projected in April.
It sees inflation ending the year at 4, 7% and 7, 8%
in 2011.
The upward revision of growth projections follows Finance minister
Tendai
Biti's forecast last month that the economy is expected to grow by
8,1% from
the 5,4% earlier projected, underpinned by a serious rebound in
agriculture,
mining and tourism.
But he warned that the country could not
pop champagne bottles yet as
treasury is constrained and requires "fiscal
marksmanship" to meet the
growing needs.
Revenue generated is chewed up
by recurrent expenditure with salaries
getting a huge chunk. This means
little money is allocated to capital
expenditure necessary to revive the
economy.
Zimbabwe suffered a decade of recession when the political crisis
took a
toll on the economy. The formation of an inclusive government last
year and
the use of multiple currencies brought the confidence
back.
However, the debt overhang is threatening to stymie growth. Zimbabwe is
saddled with an over US$7 billion debt to multilateral institutions meaning
that it cannot access lines of credit to revive the
economy.
BY OUR STAFF
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010 13:21
NO
sooner have we gone through what is arguably the most violent election in
our country than a fresh round of polls has been announced for next year.
The country has faced a number of lean years economically that could have
seen it grow its economy by two digit figures on the back of interest in
mining (diamonds and platinum), agriculture and tourism. The political
environment and the perceived country risk did not make the country a very
attractive investment destination for would-be investors hence we still find
the country in a stagnant economic position.
The stagnation, and that's
not to say there hasn't been any progress in the
sectors mentioned above but
that the movement has not been as much as most
anticipated, could be
attributed to the flawed Global Political Agreement
(GPA). Flawed in that it
does not seem to have any relation to the supreme
law of the land which
would have made it more binding.
It was like a gentlemen's agreement really
with the loser being made the
winner in the final analysis. To cite am
example, the GPA says that the
political parties will appoint/recommend
names of their provincial governors
to the head of state for appointment by
the head of state, yet the law says
the power (authority) to appoint
provincial governors lies with the head of
state alone. This situation has
created the circumstances that we find
ourselves in today.
The head of
state has reappointed the governors whose term of office expired
in August
thereby creating what the MDC-T terms a constitutional crisis. The
MDC, in
my view, should familiarise itself with the contents of the
constitution
before appending their signatures to any document which has
legal
implications in the governance of the nation of Zimbabwe. If they
have,
which I am sure they have, then surely they are being outwitted at
every
turn by the foxy old guard in Zanu PF.
The elections coming next year were
announced by the head of state a long
time ago and I got surprised when
people started talking about them in
recent months as if they had never
heard the announcement. Last year, when
the GPA was being announced, the
agreement therein stated that the
government of national unity was going to
have a two-year lifespan. This was
going to be followed by an election.
Mugabe even went on to say the country
would go to the polls "with or
without a new constitution". The situation
thus begs the question, has the
coalition government worked in the two years
that it has been in existence
before the election next year?
Before answering the question it would be
important for the readership to
understand the concept of unity governments
from other geopolitical areas.
In Europe, particularly Eastern Europe, the
emerging democracies have been
ruled by successful coalitions that have seen
different people being united.
More importantly different political
ideologies (communism and capitalism)
have come together and created
governments that have thrived.
In the Middle East, Israel in particular,
coalitions have been the order of
the day but real issues have not been
resolved; the major one being the
Palestinian question.
The Zimbabwean
situation has been that politicians have been flexing muscles
trying to show
power even when the situation did not call for that at the
expense of the
economy. One partner in the coalition makes an announcement
only for the
other to claim the opposite of the same, the indigenisation law
is one such
example. In short the coalition government has not worked to
serve the
people. Put in another way: the partners in the coalition have not
worked
for the betterment of the Zimbabwean people but their own political
gain.
Does the nation deserve inaction on the part of its leadership
given the
economic meltdown it went through over the years? Surely the
nation needs
some action and urgently for that matter. Surely the nation
needs a decisive
leadership brought about by a decisive election. A
coalition government, at
this stage of our political development in our
young democracy, is merely a
rescue package spawned by an economic or
political crisis, nothing more.
JUJU CHIVI
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010
13:20
DATES have almost been set for elections next year. The
constitutional
referendum should be held in the first quarter while general
and
presidential elections should be held by mid-year.
Because of
President Mugabe's announcement to this effect last week, the
country is
already in election mode.
Opinion polls have shown that President Mugabe and
his Zanu PF party are
unlikely to win an election in the circumstances the
country finds itself
in. They show, instead, that Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai and his MDC
party would win the polls as they did in March
2008.
Many - in civil society and on the world stage - argue that Zimbabwe is
not
ready for free and fair elections. They cite the ineffectiveness of the
national healing process which, although it has a full ministry to attend to
it, has not taken off. Indeed the country is still grossly polarised mainly
because people who have perpetrated violence in the past - all well known -
still roam the streets because of the immunity they enjoy.
Further,
having not known political and economic stability for a whole
decade,
analysts argue that the semblance of normality prevailing now should
be
nurtured a little longer, so that the economy can continue to improve.
The
IMF has estimated that Zimbabwe will enjoy economic growth of almost 6%
next
year. This desperately needed growth will not happen if the year
becomes an
election year. We all know how the civil service has been
manipulated during
election years to fulfil one political party's agenda at
the expense of
doing government business.
Zimbabwe has taught the world one salutary lesson,
namely that elections don't
necessarily translate to democracy. Polls have
not changed a thing in the
past 30 years because results have openly been
tampered with and the
incumbent government has not been willing to transfer
power in the event of
a loss.
Next year's elections are unlikely to be
any different. Signs abound that
Zanu PF is going to employ the same tactics
it has used before to retain
power. Already the country has seen the party's
propensity for violence.
During the constitution outreach programme the
party was wont to disrupt any
gatherings it deemed would make proposals that
were contrary to its
thinking. One person died in the violence that the
party unleashed in Mbare.
Rogue war veterans leader Jabulani Sibanda has
already brought terror to
areas, particularly in Masvingo, where his party
lost dismally in 2008. This
kind of terror-mongering is likely to spread
countrywide.
Although Sibanda's deeds have been brought to the attention of
the police,
nothing has been done. One police spokesman has even defended
Sibanda's
despicable actions as a non-crime. Curiously he said if someone
incites
violence and the violence doesn't happen then he has not committed a
crime.
What this means is that the police will continue in its partisan ways
of
seeing no evil, hearing no evil and saying no evil as far as Zanu PF
misdeeds are concerned.
Mugabe's insistence on elections next year shows
that he has something up
his sleeve. He has been a pariah for more than a
decade now; he has proved
impervious to censure ignoring other world leaders
who have sought to
implement the much-talked-about peer review mechanism.
Regional body Sadc
has shown its toothlessness in dealing with him. Mugabe
is aware of this
weakness and is ready to continue to exploit it. He will
steal next year's
election and - like in the past - the world will not be
able to do anything
about it.
As it is, there is no national consensus
that the country should go to
elections next year. The country's citizenry
should stand up to unilateral
decisions that they know will do more harm
than good because they are not in
national interest.
Until the situation
becomes conducive to credible, free and fair elections
Zimbabweans should
refuse to be herded once more into a process that is
tailor-made to return
the country to its shameful past.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17
October 2010 13:18
CURRENT developments in the Sadc region are alarmingly
showing that the
present generation of leadership fear to entrust leadership
responsibilities
to younger people. Yet at the same time it is the same
leaders who are
blowing horns claiming that they have improved education
standards in the
region.
Why did the post-colonial governments in Sadc
invest so much in education
and yet do not trust the products of their
efforts to lead? Countries like
South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Mozambique
and Zambia have made some
relatively reasonable strides to educate their
populations despite the
obvious development challenges. Many graduates have
been produced in the
region. There is lots of talent among these young
people which the current
leaders can utilise for the development of the
region.
Would it not be a good idea if some presidents in Sadc who have
served for a
long time embarked on a new programme to pass on presidential
or prime
ministerial leadership mantles to the younger generations? Sadc was
born out
of liberation wars. The Frontline states were critical in
orchestrating the
independence of the entire region.
How do we know if
the leaders of the next decades will uphold the legendary
status of our
independence heroes? We can only know that if the current
leaders in the
region give the younger people the opportunity to lead whilst
they
themselves are still alive.
In South Africa Nelson Mandela handed over to
Thabo Mbeki, then he had a
chance to advice Mbeki and see how he performed.
If Mbeki had gone wayward
Mandela would have been able to take corrective
action in a democratic way.
A different situation happened in Togo where
President Gnassimbe Eyadema
died in office posing great dangers for
political stability in the region.
What then is the point? The issue is that
the leadership should be passed on
to younger generations whilst our
independence heroes are still alive. By so
doing the elders will be in a
position to contribute more to the national
and regional development as
experienced advisors. Do the current leaders
fear to take this noble
step?
Currently it seems there is hesitation. Nevertheless young leaders will
be
eager to assure the current leaders that they should not fear them. In
fact
the elder statesmen should know that the future of the region is in the
hands of the younger generations. In the whole process it should be popular
democracy which should decide which younger leaders will lead.
The way
succession should be handled is critical in democratic transitions
to power.
There should be clear-cut and democratic leadership competition
within
political parties. Any person willing to contest for party leadership
should
be constitutionally allowed to do so without fear. Look at the
Miliband
brothers, David and Ed, in the United Kingdom. Look at the
Democratic Party
in the US. Succession of one leader by another should be a
celebration of
democracy rather than an imminent danger to peace and
security. Our leaders
in Sadc should know that history will not be kind to
them if they don't
allow their nations to survive beyond them.
Political parties should not
equate one leader with a specific party. In
Angola the end of Jonas Savimbi
was the near end of the movement associated
with him. What will happen to
Zanu PF and MDC in Zimbabwe? South Africa's
ANC seems to be surviving.
Frelimo in Mozambique has also survived
succession traps. Swapo in Namibia
seems to have survived this. BDP in
Botswana also joins the list.
What
can be said of Zimbabwe? Time will tell. There is no denial at all that
we
need to maintain national and regional sovereignty. I think all the
citizens
of Sadc will not accept to be re-colonised because the same
citizens fought
against colonialism and they will continue to fight
neocolonialism. But
calls for democracy should not be confused with a return
to
colonialism.
Despite having been the former oppressors of people in the SADC
region, the
western countries provide classic examples of leadership models
to follow.
Free media, free political party campaigns, transparency and
congratulations
of winners and acceptance of defeat in the west are good
models to follow.
Recent models from Ghana, Tanzania, South Africa, Chile
and others are
leadership change models that the regional leaders must
emulate.
Marambanyika writes from University of Oslo, Norway.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw
Sunday, 17 October 2010
13:00
LAST week the world stood enthralled by the rescue of the 33 miners
trapped
for 69 days more than 600m under the Atacama Desert in Chile. The
story of
that rescue is about one of the greatest stories of this century.
For more
than two months the world’s attention focused on the rescue which
almost
completely overshadowed such big events as the Commonwealth Games in
New
Delhi, India and the international football matches taking place all
over
the world especially the UEFA qualifiers. It also eclipsed the wars in
Afghanistan and Pakistan and Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s visit to
Lebanon.
In early August the world woke to the news that 33 miners had
been found
alive in a collapsed mine. Prior to that discovery the miners had
been
presumed dead for the first 17 days of their ordeal. We may never know
what
they did to survive during those days as they have signed a pact never
to
talk about them. But one can just imagine how the human mind works in the
face of hopeless and death.
Similar situations have happened in past,
most famously the Uruguayan Air
Force Flight 571 plane crash on October 13
1972. Ironically the crash which
became known as the “Miracle in the Andes”
happened on the Chilean side of
the Andes.
It was carrying 45 people
including a rugby team and their friends and
family.
More than a quarter
of the passengers died in the crash, and several more
quickly succumbed to
cold and injury. Of the 29 who were alive a few days
after the accident,
another eight were killed by an avalanche that swept
over their shelter in
the wreckage. The last of the 16 survivors were
rescued on December 23
1972.
The survivors had little food and no source of heat in the harsh
conditions,
at over 3 600m altitude. Faced with starvation and radio news
reports that
the search for them had been abandoned, the survivors fed on
the dead
passengers who had been preserved in the snow. Rescuers did not
learn of the
survivors until 72 days after the crash when two passengers,
after a 12-day
trek across the Andes, found a Chilean who gave them food and
then alerted
authorities about the existence of the other survivors.
The
plane crash and the trapped miners make two great stories of human
survival.
After the flawless rescue of the miners Chilean president
Sebastian Pinera
said “the country is not the same after this”. He was
alluding to the unity
of purpose that all Chilean citizens displayed in the
70 days of the rescue.
Chile is a scarred nation; but it has recovered
superbly from the
depredations of the Augusto Pinochet reign that began with
a bloody coup in
September 1973. Pinochet is listed among the greatest
killers of the 20th
century.
Below are excerpts of his biography.
“On
11 September the military strike, taking Santiago [Chilean capital] in a
violent offensive that sees Pinochet order air strikes on the presidential
palace, and then securing the provinces.
“[President Salvador] Allende
dies defending the presidential palace,
probably by his own hand. Many of
his aides are arrested then transported to
a military base, where they are
executed and buried. In the provinces the
notorious ‘Caravan of Death’
targets political opponents, summarily
executing at least 72.
“The
military form a four-man junta headed by Pinochet and composed of the
commanders-in-chief of the army, navy, air force and police and embark on a
campaign to remove the influence of the [Allende’s party] UP from all social
institutions.
“A state of siege is declared, martial law is introduced
and parliament is
closed. The media is censored, universities are purged,
books are burned,
Marxist political parties are outlawed and union
activities are banned.
Thousands are murdered or ‘disappeared’. Thousands
more are jailed or forced
to leave the country. Torture is commonplace. Up
to one million will flee
into self-imposed exile.
“It is reported that up
to 250 000 people are detained in the first months
following the coup.
Stadiums, military bases and naval vessels have to be
used as short-term
prisons. At least five new prison camps are established
for political
prisoners.
“The newly formed secret police (National Intelligence Directorate
— DINA)
creates a reign of terror at home and organises the assassinations
of
opponents in exile abroad. Civilian courts are supplanted with military
tribunals.”
Despite such a past Chile has shown us that there can indeed
be peace
heroes; these include the 33 miners themselves who in the face of
death
stuck together sharing the little food they had which at some time was
single can of tuna. But equally important were the heroes at the
surface.
The Seattle Times wrote in an editorial: “The rescue effort was an
extraordinary melding of talent and technology. A Chinese heavy-equipment
company provided the massive construction crane for the operation. Two firms
in Pennsylvania provided specialised drills. A Denver drilling expert was
pulled off contract work in Afghanistan.”
President Pinera and his wife
were at the site all the 70 days. Mining
Minister Laurence Golborne, who was
a nobody on August 5 is now the
best-loved politician in Chile. Some see him
as Pinera’s likely successor.
In contrast in Mexico in 2006 63 Mexican miners
in a similar situation were
abandoned after five days and the Mexican
president Felipe Calderón never
once appeared at the disaster site. Likewise
President Mugabe has not
appeared at a single bus disaster.
Zimbabwe has
seen too many Pinochet-like “heroes” some of them buried at the
National
Heroes’ Acre, while many more wait in the wings to take their place
at the
shrine — these are called WAR HEROES. But where are the PEACE
HEROES?
NEVANJI MADANHIRE