http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in
Politics
FOLLOWING controversial remarks by senior Zanu PF officials,
Justice
minister Patrick Chinamasa and party spokesperson Rugare Gumbo, that
the
military would not accept an MDC-T victory in the next elections, it has
become increasingly clear security service chiefs are geared to defend their
massive wealth accumulated during extended periods of looting of public
resources by President Robert Mugabe’s regime.
Report by Staff
writers
Chinamasa and Gumbo’s remarks –– which follow similar threats by
three
senior army commanders Major-Generals Douglas Nyikayaramba, Martin
Chedondo
and Trust Mugoba –– have further thrust the military into the
spotlight,
showing they are prepared to fight to defend not just Mugabe and
Zanu PF,
but their riches.
Zimbabwe’s military is already on the
ground campaigning for Mugabe and his
party.
Senior army commanders,
mainly deployed in Manicaland, have warned they
would fight to preserve the
status quo.
What the military is not saying publicly is that its
commanders fear losing
their assets and privileges if Mugabe and his party
are defeated.
Local military chiefs, who have become fat cats, are some
of the richest in
the region. They own businesses, farms, safaris, huge
houses and big cars,
among other assets, courtesy of Zanu PF’s patronage
network.
They have also been deployed in various state institutions where
they are
drawing huge salaries and allowances.
The military is also
playing a pivotal role in money-spinning companies in
which the government
has a stake such as Mbada Diamonds and Anjin
Investments, which are
exploiting diamonds in Chiadzwa under shady
circumstances amid concerns of
looting.
Police and intelligence services were also involved in diamonds
mining.
Insiders say top army bosses, particularly Zimbabwe Defence
Forces
Constantine Chiwenga commander, have become extremely rich and own
several
farms, houses and luxury vehicles.
Some of the generals’
wealth can be traced back to the Democratic Republic
of Congo war where they
creamed off that country’s mineral wealth through
military companies at the
height of the campaign to prop the late Laurent
Kabila’s
regime.
Insiders say Chiwenga, for instance, is by all measures now a
rich man as he
controls a diverse portfolio of companies, properties,
including upmarket
houses and commercial assets, among other
investments.
Chiwenga reportedly owns luxury vehicles, among them a
Toyota Land Cruiser
V8, Land Rover Discovery, Prado, Jeep and two Mercedes
Benz.
The country’s top general also has several posh houses in such areas as
Borrowdale Brooke, Greystone Park and Glen Lorne, among other plush
suburbs.
Sources said Chiwenga also had interests in several companies,
among them
Brimstone Investments, Lighthouse Investments, Ventilux (Pvt)
Ltd, Hidecote
Investments, Albacore Investments (Pvt) Ltd and Moorhead
Investments (Pvt)
Ltd.
Chiwenga also owns Kazungula Wildlife
Safaris.
In all, sources say Chiwenga owns over 20 properties and assets,
making him
one of the richest public servants.
“The reason why the
military is threatening to defy the people’s will after
the next elections
has less to do with their involvement in the liberation
struggle but more to
do with their current material condition and
privilege,” a senior military
source said.
“Zimbabwe’s army commanders are some of the richest, if not the
richest, in
the region. For that reason, mainly, they will fight to keep
Mugabe and Zanu
PF in power.”
Currently a number of serving and
retired military officers, including
Major- General Engelbert Rugeje,
Retired Brigadier-General Gibson
Mashingaidze and Brigadier-General
Livingstone Chineka are scrambling for
safaris at the world’s biggest
private wildlife park, Save Conservancy in
Masvingo.
Virtually all
military commanders were allocated some of the best farms
during the chaotic
land reform programme before benefiting from the
agricultural mechanisation
programme in which they received state-of-the-art
equipment such as combine
harvesters, planters and tractors practically for
free and now the
wildlife-based indigenisation process.
Although the senior army officers,
like other top government officials
including ministers, earn low salaries,
they have big perks and allowances
which have made it easy for them to
accumulate wealth, hence their loyalty
to Mugabe and Zanu PF.
The
Pretoria-based Institute of Security Studies (ISS) says Zimbabwe’s
military
commanders – whose lifestyle are out of sync with the economic
trends in the
country – are even wealthier than their counterparts in South
Africa, the
continent’s largest economy by far.
“No one, at least in the uniformed
forces in the region, South Africa
included, has what Zimbabwe’s generals
have appropriated for themselves over
the years,” said Dr Gwinyai Dzinesa, a
senior researcher at ISS.
“We cannot compare the wealth of the army
chiefs in Zimbabwe to any other
uniformed forces personnel in the region.
Zimbabwe boasts some of the
richest army commanders and the source of their
wealth remains a mystery.”
To protect their positions and wealth, the
military has over the years
played a key role in campaigning for Mugabe and
Zanu PF. In the June 2008
presidential election runoff, the army embarked on
a bloody reign of terror
to rescue Mugabe who had lost the first round of
elections to Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai.
Top military
commanders, including Nyikayaramba, Mugoba and Chedondo have
come out in the
open declaring their allegiance to Zanu PF, in what was seen
as a clear
indication the army was not ready to relinquish the political
role it has
been playing to protect its interests.
The Zanu PF commissariat
department is also now militarised after former Air
Vice-Marshal Henry
Muchena and ex-Central Intelligence Organisation
director- internal Sydney
Nyanhongo took over the running of the department.
Many retired members of
the security forces want to contest the next
elections to get into
parliament on Zanu PF tickets.
High-ranking military officers are
currently campaigning for Zanu PF in
Manicaland and Masvingo provinces which
the party views at the battleground
regions in the next do-or-die elections.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in
News
Swords are drawn for the potentially-explosive Second All
Stakeholders’
Conference on the Copac constitution which kicks off on
Monday, where Zanu
PF is expected to push for the incorporation of its 266
amendments to the
draft, while the two MDC formations would resist its
bid.
Report by Brian Chitemba
Some of the controversial provisions
deal with restoration of executive
powers, running-mates for presidential
candidates in similar fashion to the
US, and devolution.
Zanu PF
insists it will only support a draft that has incorporated its
controversial
amendments but the MDC parties are opposing that, setting the
stage for a
bruising fight.
Chaos engulfed the first all stakeholders conference in
2010, with senior
Zanu PF officials including Saviour Kasukuwere and Patrick
Zhuwawo accused
of leading the disturbances.
According to the
conference programme, principals – President Robert Mugabe,
Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai and MDC leader Welshman Ncube – will
address the indaba,
after which delegates will break into 18 thematic
groups.
It is in
these groups that Zanu PF is going to push for the adoption of its
amendments, which it maintains were raised by the people during Copac’s
outreach programme, but were allegedly dropped by Copac. Delegates will be
provided with the Copac draft, the outreach data, and views from the
diaspora and the disabled.
The groups will go through the documents
clause by clause before reporting
back to the plenary conference chaired by
Dr Hope Sadza and Professor
Phineas Makhurane, who are the two civil society
representatives on the
Copac steering committee.
The plenary will
receive recommendations which will be incorporated into the
conference
report after which Copac will consider them for adoption.
However, there are
strong indications that the principals will later appoint
a cabinet
committee that will take-over the constitution-making process,
effectively
hijacking it. Of the 1 100 delegates expected to attend, about
280 will be
MPs, 246 from political parties, while 574 will come from civil
society
organisations. Delegates from countries with embassies in Zimbabwe
and Sadc
will also attend the conference.
Accreditation of delegates and
journalists started on Monday to ensure only
those invited attend the
meeting, to be held at the Harare International
Conference
Centre.
The conference will be held against the background of a High
Court
application by Harare businessman Danny Musukuma who is seeking to
block the
indaba, demanding the release of the national statistical report.
Zanu PF
activist Goodson Nguni has also approached the courts demanding the
same.
This is widely seen as an attempt by Zanu PF to manipulate and
influence the
outcome of the conference.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Politics
ZANU
PF’s smouldering succession battles are now threatening to sink the
troubled
constitution-making process amid latest disclosures which show the
fight to
succeed President Robert Mugabe, which has been playing on the
select
committee of parliament on the new constitution (Copac), spilled into
the
central committee meeting last week.
Report by Faith Zaba
The
outbursts at the central committee also showed realignments in Zanu PF’s
factional dynamics between the two camps led by Vice-President Joice Mujuru
and Defence minister Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Insiders say Zanu PF
structures in Copac, including the parliamentary
committee itself, the
management committee, the party’s technical committee
on the
constitution-making process and the politburo taskforce supervising
the
exercise, were all divided along factional lines, leading to the current
bid
by senior officials to intervene to save Mugabe from being weakened and
rendered vulnerable through curtailing of his sweeping executive powers
before crucial elections.
Fresh information obtained this week
indicates Copac co-chairperson
Munyaradzi Paul Mangwana has actually been
fighting in Mujuru’s corner,
contrary to earlier reports he was working with
the Mnangagwa faction to
oust Mugabe using the constitution-making
process.
Mangwana, who hails from Chivi in Masvingo province, one of the
Mnangagwa
faction strongholds, initially supported that camp, but later
shifted to the
Mujuru group which he is working with now.
As if to
confirm Mangwana was in her camp, Mujuru at last week’s central
committee
meeting at the party headquarters jumped to his defence after
Mandy Chimene,
a vocal member of the party’s decision-making body in-between
congresses
from Manicaland, proposed Mangwana be expelled from the party for
supposedly
working with MDC formations in trying to oust Mugabe and deal
with his
succession through the constitution.
Mangwana has been under fire for
allegedly collaborating with MDC party
officials to include presidential
terms and age limits in the initial draft
designed to bar Mugabe from
seeking re-election next year. He was also
blamed for pushing for the
controversial running-mates provision which
seemed calculated to resolve
Mugabe’s succession in favour of Mujuru.
Senior Zanu PF officials,
particularly influential politburo member Jonathan
Moyo, have fiercely
attacked Mangwana in public and Copac itself as
wrangling within the party
over the constitution reached boiling point.
Although Moyo was aligned to
the Mnangagwa faction, he is now reportedly
rooting for Mugabe to stay
on.
However, Mangwana has denied plotting against Mugabe, blaming
negotiators
Patrick Chinamasa and Nicholas Goche for some of the Copac
problems now
affecting Zanu PF.
After Chimene proposed the expulsion
of Mangwana last Friday, Mujuru quickly
leapt to his defence, interrupting
and accusing her of trying to further
divide the party and being
disruptive.
A central committee member said yesterday they were surprised
when Mujuru
spoke strongly in Mangwana’s defence.
“Chimene proposed
that we fire Mangwana, but as she was still speaking, Mai
Mujuru interjected
and told her to make constructive contributions and not
come up with
divisive comments and proposals,” the member said.
Top Zanu PF sources in
Copac told the Zimbabwe Independent this week
factionalism has poisoned the
party structures dealing with the
constitution-making process. The sources
blamed infighting for the mess Zanu
PF now finds itself in with regards to
the constitution-making effort, which
resulted in the party making wholesale
amendments in June and July to the
draft in six politburo meetings lasting
close to 50 hours.
Zanu PF hardliners, working with securocrats, have
thwarted moves by a group
in Copac to remove Mugabe using the
constitution-making process. Mugabe
survived manoeuvres to oust him during
the 1999/2000 constitutional
commission process by a group led by the late
party maverick Eddison Zvobgo.
After the term and age limits designed to
block Mugabe were removed, a
clause draft was introduced in the final draft
stipulating that presidential
election candidates must select running-mates
who automatically become
vice-presidents if the principal candidate
wins.
Insiders say the provision was meant to close the succession
debate, as
Mujuru would have automatically become the first
running-mate.
“People have been getting it all wrong that Mnangagwa was
working with
Mangwana to deal with the succession issue. Instead, Mangwana
has been
working with Mai Mujuru’s faction,” said a Copac
insider.
“The issue of running-mates was done to help Mujuru, not
Mnangagwa.
Seriously, why would Mnangagwa be part of a process that was
geared to
ensure Mai Mujuru’s ascendancy? Mai Mujuru would have
automatically become
the first running mate and there was no way Mnangagwa
would have jumped to
that position for the elections next year.”
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in News
MASVINGO mayor
Femias Chakabuda has blamed the demise of the country’s
oldest town on the
chaotic fast track land reform programme which destroyed
a once thriving
cattle ranching industry that was the backbone of the city’s
economy.
Report by Staff Writer
Masvingo was home to the
largest Cold Storage Company’s abattoir,
slaughtering around 450 cattle
daily. The abattoir, which was shut down,
supported the town’s transport and
engineering companies as its downstream
industries, but these have since
closed leaving over 3 000 workers jobless.
Chakabuda told the on-going
parliamentary finance, budget and investment
committee’s 2013 national
budget consultations in Masvingo on Wednesday that
the resettlement
programme’s “excitement” overshadowed the future of the
city.
“The
land reform programme killed Masvingo industry when peasants were
resettled
in the once thriving cattle ranches that supported the
city’s industries like
CSC and transport companies like AJ Capple, Railway
Motor Services and
Mkondo Transport,” said Chakabuda.
Chakabuda said it was foolhardy to try
and commercially farm in areas such
as Zaka and Bikita because the weather
was hostile.
He said government could still remedy the situation by assisting
resettled
farmers venture into the lucrative cattle ranching sector thus
helping
revive the town’s fortunes
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in
News
MUTARE residents have demanded that government sets aside US$10
million in
the 2013 national budget to save the city’s collapsing industries
which have
forced thousands of workers onto the streets despite the city
being the
diamond hub of the country.
Report by Paidamoyo
Muzulu
The calls were made at a pre-budget consultation process on
Wednesday.
Mutare’s two largest industries, Mutare Board and Paper Mills
and Karina
Textiles shut shop this year leaving about 2 000 workers jobless.
Mutare
Board and Paper Mills was liquidated while Karina Textiles is under
provisional liquidation.
Mutare Board and Paper Mills was the largest
paper-making company in the
country, strategically located in the city to
tap into the abundant forestry
plantations of Manicaland.
Karina
Textiles is one of the largest textiles companies in the country and
specialises in producing garments and carpets for the local and export
markets.
War Veterans leader Alfred Mbengo told the meeting that
Finance minister
Tendai Biti should immediately release US$10 million to
save the city’s
flagging industry or Mutare would descend into chaos as
workers continue to
lose jobs.
Biti will be in Mutare
today.
“We are worried that our big industries continue to close and make
people
jobless because the government cannot inject US$10 million to save
the
ailing industries. We cannot continue to harp on about indigenising the
economy when we are failing to save existing industries,” said
Mbengo.
Residents asked government to prioritise investment in irrigation
infrastructure so that farmers can produce throughout the year.
They
also demanded Marange diamonds revenue be transparently accounted for
and a
huge chunk of the proceeds be rechanneled back to the province to
improve
infrastructure and build sustainable industries to create jobs.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Politics
ZANU PF is
stepping up efforts for massive campaigns ahead of do-or-die
elections next
year which might mark the end of President Robert Mugabe’s 33
years in
power.
Report by Elias Mambo
Informed sources say the party has
begun rolling out its election machinery
and strategies by buying campaign
materials that include vehicles, motor
bikes, T-shirts, posters and putting
in place other necessary logistics for
the make-or-break
polls.
Insiders say Zanu PF has a multi-pronged strategy for the
elections centred
around a carrot-and-stick approach, which includes
vote-buying methods such
as community share ownership schemes, splashing on
community projects using
its war chest built through Marange diamond
proceeds and using coercive
measures, including the deployment of security
forces in the countryside.
In terms of logistics, the party has already
acquired 550 vehicles at a cost
of US$14 million and motor bikes for 68
districts to ensure that its
campaign managers and their foot soldiers reach
all areas, including remote
districts, to mobilise voters. Zanu PF has
bought an assortment of single
and double cab 4X4 vehicles including Toyota
Hilux, Nissan NP300, Ford
Ranger and Mazda BT50s.
“The party is
stepping up preparations for elections. The idea is to reach
every ward the
country. As a result of the land reform some areas are not
accessible, but
with motorbikes we can now reach them.
Three motorbikes and two cars
shall be distributed to each district. Our
commissars shall be using the
motorbikes to mobilise support in areas not
accessible by road,” a source
said.
Sources said Zanu PF, boosted by favourable opinion polls, wants to
launch
one of its massive campaigns since Independence in 1980 in a bid to
hang
onto power.
Zanu PF spokesperson Rugare Gumbo confirmed the
acquisition of the vehicles
but declined to disclose the source of funding,
only saying his party was
extensively preparing for the crucial set for the
first half of next year.
“There is nothing unusual about buying cars as
we prepare for elections,”
said Gumbo. “Any serious party that wants to win
elections is bound to get
ready, so we are just beefing up our fleet as we
prepare for elections.”
However, Gumbo could not confirm the actual
number of vehicles being given
to districts although he indicated that all
members of the party’s
provincial executives were allocated
vehicles.
Mugabe and his party are still reeling from their defeat by
MDC-T and its
leader Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai in 2008. Zanu PF was
edged by the
MDC-T, losing its parliamentary majority for the first time in
28 years,
while Mugabe was thrashed by Tsvangirai the first rounding of
voting before
launching a brutal comeback in a bloody
run-off.
Institute for Democratic Alternative for Zimbabwe manager
Jabusile Shumba
said Zanu PF’s unusual acquisition of vehicles showed the
party was heavily
investing in the elections, raising fears of a possible
bloodbath if it
loses.
“The vehicles and motorbikes will be used to
maximise violence as there is a
sudden resurgence of terror bases that were
used prior to the 2008
controversial polls,” Shumba said.
Army
commanders and senior Zanu PF officials, including politburo member
Patrick
Chinamasa and Gumbo, have warned of military intervention of Mugabe
and Zanu
PF lose.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Politics
SQUABBLES continue to
rock the inclusive government as party principals this
week clashed over the
formation of a cabinet committee to drive the
controversial
constitution-making process after the Second All-Stakeholders’
Conference.
Report by Wongai Zhangazha/ Brian Chitemba
The
formation of the cabinet committee would effectively wrest control of
the
much-delayed constitution-making exercise from political parties to
become a
government-driven process, rendering Copac defunct in violation of
the
Global Political Agreement(GPA).
High-level sources told the Zimbabwe
Independent that President Robert
Mugabe met Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai on Monday over the issue despite
an agreement earlier this month
that principals would only meet after the
Second All-Stakeholders’
Conference slated for Monday.
Mugabe, who has long been plotting to
hijack the constitution-making process
from Copac, roped in Tsvangirai in
his grand plan to establish a cabinet
committee to take over the writing of
the governance charter in his quest to
have greater control as he chairs
cabinet.
The two agreed to appoint a cabinet committee to “speed up” the
finalisation
of the new constitution under the guise of implementing the
Sadc Maputo
resolutions.
Sources said Mugabe and Tsvangirai had also
agreed that Sadc representatives
be seconded to the Joint Monitoring and
Implementation Committee
immediately.
But there was drama after
Mugabe sent Tsvangirai to talk to MDC leader
Welshman Ncube over the
decision to establish a cabinet committee to take
over the finalisation of
the constitution-making process since Ncube was not
invited to the Monday
meeting.
Ncube, the sources said, told Tsvangirai at a tense meeting on
Tuesday after
cabinet that he would not endorse the formation of a cabinet
committee
because he was not part of the deal.
Tsvangirai is said to
have tried in vain to convince Ncube, who dismissed
the premier demanding
that all issues they had clandestinely agreed to be
revisited in his
presence.
Squabbles among political party principals were triggered when
Mugabe
somersaulted on his promise to engage Ncube on issues related to the
GPA
constitution, politics and Jomic.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Politics
SADC has
failed to effectively deal with the Zimbabwe political logjam
because the
bloc’s conflict resolution mechanism depends on heads of state
and
government and ministerial committees which are perpetually committed to
their own domestic issues.
Report by Brian Chitemba
According
to the International Crisis Group (ICG) report titled Implementing
Peace and
Security Architecture (II) Southern Africa, the regional bloc’s
intervention
in Zimbabwe’s political crisis exposed its limited capacity to
enforce
agreements it helps broker.
Sadc brokered the September 15 2008 Global
Political Agreement (GPA) to end
Zimbabwe’s political and economic turmoil
which had rocked the country since
2000.
“Sadc has limited capacity
to monitor, evaluate and ensure implementation of
agreements that it helps
broker, and has no sanction mechanism for violation
of the deals,” reads the
report.
Sadc’s mediation efforts in the Zimbabwe and Madagascar
conflicts, the ICG
said, reveal the complexities of dealing with
unconstitutional changes in
government, contested elections and violations
of the region’s electoral
code.
The ICG criticised Sadc’s mediation
processes, saying they lack resources
and relies on the means and actions of
mediators, rather than on a regional
autonomous capacity while the regional
body’s response to conflict
situations remains slow.
South African
President Jacob Zuma’s mediation role in the Zimbabwe crisis
has failed to
address risks posed by the security sector given the evolving
role the
defence forces play in local politics.
The ICG said despite slow progress
around the drafting of the much-delayed
constitution, security concerns are
exacerbated by destabilising political
statements from senior army officials
and widespread impunity for past and
current violations.
Last week
Justice minister Patrick Chinamasa hinted that the military would
stage a
coup if MDC-T leader and coalition government partner Morgan
Tsvangirai wins
the polls.
Zanu PF spokesman Rugare Gumbo has warned of a bloodbath if
Tsvangirai wins.
The military is currently campaigning for Robert Mugabe and
Zanu PF.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Politics
PRIME
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has found a new broom to clean up his
office
while sidelining the dominant Makone family which has been deeply
influential in the MDC-T party as well as his personal life.
Report
by Wongai Zhangazha
Within a month of marrying Tsvangirai
in a customary union in Harare,
Elizabeth Macheka has flexed her muscles by
pushing for the realignment of
the PM’s office, and relegating her husband’s
long-time confidants Ian
Makone and his wife Theresa for their involvement
with Tsvangirai’s
estranged lover Locardia Karimatsenga
Tembo.
Macheka’s influence has seen Tsvangirai reshuffle senior officials
in his
office with chief secretary Ian Makone’s wings clipped together with
chief
of protocol James Maridadi, while trusted adviser Gandhi Mudzingwa and
principal director for policy implementation Lazarus Muriritirwa were
reassigned.
MDC-T insiders say Macheka is largely responsible for the
changes because of
bad blood between her and the Makones over their
involvement in Tsvangirai’s
ill-fated marriage to Tembo.
Tsvangirai’s
spokesperson Luke Tamborinyoka denied Macheka’s role in the
shake-up, saying
the changes are realignments “intended to strengthen the PM’s
constitutional
responsibilities in the areas of planning, policy formulation
and
supervision of government ministries, management of the Government Works
Programme and implementation of approved legislation”.
There are
mixed feelings over the changes with some saying the weakening of
the
“kitchen cabinet” would strengthen Tsvangirai while others felt it would
cost him, considering the Makones’ financial muscle and role at Harvest
House — the party’s headquarters.
Macheka has also not wasted time in
making her presence felt in the public
arena.MDC-T insiders say thrusting
Macheka into the public limelight was
aimed at ensuring her visibility after
the distressing and dramatic events
leading up to her marriage to Tsvangirai
last month. This was also aimed at
preparing her for a major political role
in MDC-T structures, insiders
note.
Just two days after her marriage
to Tsvangirai, Macheka made a surprise
appearance at a High Court bail
hearing accompanied by National Healing
co-minister Sekai Holland and MDC-T
national organising secretary Nelson
Chamisa to show her solidarity with 29
Glen View party activists charged
with murder.
Her visit to Chikurubi
and Harare Remand Prisons was not all rosy as she
endured a two-hour ordeal
at the hands of guards.
Not only did Macheka manage to boost the morale
of the prisoners, but she
got sympathy from the public for her defiance of
the system. This was
followed by an appearance at the MDC-T’s well-attended
13th anniversary
celebrations in Bulawayo where she received a standing
ovation.
Prior to that, Macheka donated an assortment of goodies to the
King George
IV Memorial School for the disabled where she was the guest of
honour at a
ceremony at which the Japanese government handed over more than
US$124 000
worth of donations.
She was pictured playing marimba with
the school’s junior band which even
Zapu leader Dumiso Dabengwa commended
when giving his vote of thanks.
Party officials said Macheka would soon
be rubbing shoulders with a
high-profile Japanese delegation expected in the
country for a flower
arrangement event at the end of the month. This was
revealed at a dinner
hosted for editors by Japanese diplomats in Harare last
week.
Japanese officials confirmed the event but could not confirm
Elizabeth’s
attendance.
Elizabeth also graced commemorations at the
International Day of the Girl
Child Network in her hometown of Chitungwiza
where she strongly condemned
girl child abuse.
However, Macheka has
not been spared attacks on social media networks which
have been awash with
negative comments about her past private life and her
close links to Zanu
PF, issues which may result in her being dragged through
the mud as she
wades deeper into politics in months ahead.
Team of elderly women
appointed to groom Tsvangirai’s new wife
A TEAM comprising Public Service
minister Lucia Matibenga and Sekai Holland
has been assigned by MDC-T to
“groom” Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s
wife Elizabeth Macheka in a move
seen as elbowing out his longtime allies
Ian and Theresa Makone.
Over
the years Ian and his wife Theresa have played an increasingly
influential
role in Tsvangirai’s political and personal life, particularly
after the
death of his wife Susan in 2009.
But the Makones have come under fire
from party supporters for their role in
Tsvangirai’s embarrassing love
life.
Tsvangirai has been linked to a string of women and party officials
accuse
the Makones of playing matchmakers in a long list of failed love
affairs
which they say tarnished the party’s image.
The “grooming”
team was set up at the same time Tsvangirai announced
structural changes to
his office seen as designed to sideline the Makones
from his “kitchen
cabinet”.
The Makones are also accused of paying legal fees for
Tsvangirai’s estranged
lover Locardia Karimatsenga-Tembo who successfully
managed to stop the
premier’s wedding to Macheka at the 11th hour last
month.
Since their recent botched wedding, Macheka has been playing an
increasingly
influential political role in the MDC-T under the watch of her
groomers.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Politics
AS
election fever gradually but surely grips Zimbabwe, parties across the
political divide are jockeying for the support of local churches which draw
thousands of followers to their worship services.
Report by Elias
Mambo
Most local churches have been infiltrated by politicians who have
turned
places of worship into political rallies as the struggle for the
religious
vote takes centre stage.
The church, seen as an important
constituency in the power matrix, is now
infiltrated and used in what
Zimbabwe has become well known for: political
theatre to woo voters shunning
rallies which are increasingly turning
tiresome and violent.
Due to
the economic meltdown, starvation and social problems that saw Zanu
PF
losing its political grip in the 2008 elections, most Zimbabweans have
turned to religion in their thousands for salvation. Churches are
mushrooming all over the place.
President Robert Mugabe and Zanu
PF’s election loss to the MDC-T and its
leader Morgan Tsvngirai shook them
to their foundation. As a result Mugabe
and Zanu PF are pulling out all the
stops to mobolise voters. Churches are
mushrooming around the country’s
open-air spaces and sports arenas where
thousands gather to seek divine
intervention for different problems they
face.
Political parties are
particularly battling to entice the United Family
International Church, led
by Emmanuel Makandiwa who draws up to 60 000 to
his Sunday services. For
politicians, these numbers if harnessed are a
jackpot.
Makandiwa
drew about 100 000 people at his Easter rally dubbed “Judgment
Night” in
which politicians such as Zanu PF political commissar Webster
Shamu joined
Mahendere Brothers on stage at the National Sports Stadium in a
bid to
identify and belong. No one has ever attracted such a crowd
there.
Although Makandiwa has tried to steer clear of politics, he, like
many other
men of the collar, finds himself surrounded by politicians who
have no
interest in the word of God but like a chameleon stretching its
tongue to
catch a fly want to woo the voters to win elections.
Mugabe
and senior Zanu PF leaders have been trying hard to endear themselves
to
churches.
MDC-T leader and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has also
joined the fray
and has been on a religious crusade attending a series of
“prayer for peace”
rallies, mass prayer meetings mainly organised by the
Zimbabwe National
Pastors’ Conference, a grouping of mostly Pentecostal
church leaders.
An increasingly religious Tsvangirai, who has previously
visited Nigerian
famed pastor and prophet Temitope Balogun Joshua —
popularly known as TB
Joshua — has been on a national campaign to promote
peace in the country.
Extensively quoting from the Bible, the MDC-T
leader is exhorting
Zimbabweans who shun political violence, to stand for
what is right and be
ready for change because “it was within God’s plan to
bring leadership
change in the country”.
The battle for the church
vote intensified in 2010 after Tsvangirai was
forced to cancel his scheduled
visit to the Zion Christian Church (ZCC)
Mbungo Shrine in Defe, Gokwe, after
state security agents reportedly
threatened and intimidated the church with
unspecified action.
While Tsvangirai’s meeting was scuttled, Mugabe went
on to address the
Johanne Marange Apostolic church at Mafararikwa in Marange
to mark the sect’s
annual passover.
Completely clad in white robes,
Mugabe appeared at an open-air mass
gathering of the populous Apostolic
sect, holding a stuff that is the
trademark of the group worshippers in a
desperate attempt to win the hearts
of close to its two million
members.
Earlier this year Vice-President Joice Mujuru retraced Mugabe’s
footpaths to
Mafararikwa for the church’s ceremony where she addressed more
than 300 000
people.
Mujuru however did not come back empty-handed as
she was assured of more
than a million votes. Whether this will materialise
or not remains to be
seen.
Since then Mujuru, who is a member of the
Salvation Army, has been
crisscrossing the country addressing several
indigenous church gatherings
like the ZCC and the Vapostori
sect.
However, Zanu PF’s involvement in the Anglican Church has returned
to haunt
the party as the church’s pews at its main cathedral in central
Harare stand
largely empty most Sundays because of the ongoing political
battle for its
control.
Typical of the Zanu PF behaviour, Bishop
Nolbert Kunonga refuses to hand
back the Harare Cathedral, offices,
buildings, schools, church bank accounts
and vehicles he seized with the
protection of police loyal to the Mugabe
regime.
Controversial and
self-styled clergymen such as Obadiah Msindo have also
used the church
platform to spearhead Zanu PF campaigns.
Msindo, who uses his Destiny of
Afrika Network to mobilise voters for Zanu
PF, recently handed over 1 200
residential stands to party supporters in
Mutare in an attempt to entice
electorates ahead of elections.
Not too long ago, Defence minister
Emmerson Mnangagwa publicly declared that
he had become a born again
christian.
Police Commissioner-General Augstine Chihuri has also done the
same while
many politicians have mastered the art of lacing their statements
with
Biblical quotes to appeal to multitudes of churchgoers attending
different
houses of worship.
However, it remains to be seen whether
worshippers would prove to be swing
voters in the next elections which are
expected in March 2013.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in News
BULAWAYO residents have
urged government to increase the Constituency
Development Fund (CDF) in the
2013 national budget, saying it is critical in
alleviating the plight of the
poor in most constituencies.
Report by Nqobile Bhebhe
The call was
made at a pre-budget consultation meeting held by the
parliamentary
committee on budget, finance and investment promotion in the
city.
Residents said despite reports of gross corruption, the fund
should not be
scrapped but increased to enable legislators to initiate
meaningful
developmental projects.
They say the current US$50 000 was
inadequate and should be increased to
US$70 000 noting development it
brought in some constituencies far outweigh
reports of the fund’s
abuse.
Four legislators, Albert Mhlanga (MDC-T Pumula), Marvellous
Khumalo (MDC-T
St Mary’s), Cleopas Machacha (MDC-T Kariba) and Franco
Ndambakuwa (Zanu-PF
Magunje), were earlier this year arraigned before the
courts on allegations
of misappropriating the CDF.
Charges against
Ndambakuwa and Mhlanga were withdrawn before plea while the
cases against
Machacha and Khumalo are still pending.
The committee chairperson Paddy
Zhanda told participants that not all
contributions would be incorporated
into the final document as they are too
financially handicapped to reach all
parts of the country.
“As a committee, we would like to spread our
consultative meetings
countrywide, but due to budgetary constraints we are
not able to do so,”
said Zhanda.
“Our task is to gather views,
consolidate them and forward them to the
ministry of finance for
consideration.”
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 18, 2012 in
News
The results in the recently released Zimbabwe All Media &
Products Survey
(ZAMPS) are strange. The internet part at
least.
Report by Techzim
Last month, when the report came out, our
opinion, after reading about it in
the Herald, was that the internet data
just didn’t make sense. To be fair on
ZAMPS, this was just the Herald’s own
interpretation of the data. After
going through the ZAMPS report ourselves,
however, we still find that most
of the data remains quite
strange.
Like last year, the release of the survey results had some media
houses
questioning the integrity of the results and others (like the Herald)
celebrating the integrity and taking full advantage with story headlines
declaring “the Herald most complete, balanced newspaper”. The Research
Bureau International (RBI) itself, the organisation behind the survey,
defended the integrity of its findings, and about the internet data
explained:
please note ZAMPS measures internet penetration and not
how many times an
individual visits a site as done by Google
Analytics.
There is the problem.
ZAMPS’ stated objective for the
survey is:
to provide comprehensive information to the marketers on the
audience for
all media, including all the radio stations, TV channels,
newspapers and the
Internet etc..
Measuring internet penetration and
usage through a questionnaire is just not
effective. Internet penetration is
generally understood to be the percentage
of the total population of a given
country or region that uses the Internet.
While finding this number is not a
stroll in the park, instead of asking
users in a survey, a good start would
be to ask the providers of internet
services. They sign users up for the
service. They surely can provide the
data, or at least they can find
out!
The internet makes the “Readership vs Circulation” argument that the
RBI and
AMH have been having irrelevant. Except for the purposes of
determining
specific demographic data, the RBI doesn’t need go out into the
field to
gather data about the readership on the internet. Everything is
recorded
already, and the RBI just needs to develop ways to access this data
from the
service provider and publishers.
From the number of visits
publishers get to the unique & return visitors,
the number of pages
viewed, the time of the visits, the time spent on the
site, the clicks (or
touches) made on adverts, the physical location of the
‘readers’, the types
of devices used and, in the case of Facebook at least,
the demographic
profile of the users. The data doesn’t lie.
To meet their objective of
providing comprehensive information to the
marketers on the audience for all
media, this is the information the RBI
should be compiling about internet
usage in Zimbabwe.
http://www.techzim.co.zw/2012/10/why-the-zamps-internet-usage-survey-results-inadequate/
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 17, 2012 in
News
Under Le Balelo, the highest of the seven koppies that surround the
green,
flat plains of Kalkfontein near Steelpoort in southeastern Limpopo,
Andries
Masha’s eyes grow distant.
Report By Niren
Tolsi
Gesturing towards the land, he said: “I walked all over here. There
is no
place that my foot hasn’t touched – even that mountain.”
Masha
(69) is still nimble as he takes the Mail & Guardian around to a
gnarled
old mohlopi tree that reaches out with its branches to dominate the
expanse
of grass and acacia around it.
Under it, he said: “This tree is holding
our history. When the government
was trying to remove the community [in
1949] the people were holding their
meetings here … It is where the Masha
people have been meeting since the
1700s and even when the soldiers tried to
bulldoze it they couldn’t.”
The army moved into the area in 1949 to
remove the Bakone ba Masha ba
Mokopele community to make way for white
farmers after the racial rezoning
of the area.
Then a young boy,
Masha had, together with his family, been dumped “in the
middle of nowhere
with nothing”. He had returned when his father started
working as a labourer
for the farmer who had occupied the land a few years
later.
For
Masha, there is magic in the Kalkfontein valley and its surrounding
koppies.
He talks of a bird that arrived to inhabit the imbizo tree the day
the
soldiers did. It stayed until the 1970s and talked in Sesotho “to
protect
the land”, singing a warning whenever strangers arrived in the area.
Masha
also remembers heavy rain causing a large boulder to roll down the
hill
towards the homes of locals, only to be deflected from destruction by
“a
tiny pebble in its path”.
Subsistence existence
“The old magic, it’s
already disappearing … it’s going with the old people,”
he said,
sighing.
At the family gravesite, the birth dates of the dead go back
centuries. The
oldest, Lengai Masha, Masha’s great-grandfather who was born
in the 1700s
(the exact date having faded with time), was buried on the land
in 1812.
He says 60 or 70 graves will have to be removed to make way for
Kameni’s
offices, but he has a guarantee that his family’s gravesite, which
is part
of the Masha royal family, will remain.
A few kilometres away
on the neighbouring portion of land known as
Buffelshoek, Molemane Maimela
is the fourth generation of his family to live
on the farm.
His
father, Madikadike Mpedi Maimela, was born and bred on the farm and died
at
the age of 115. His grandfather, Morwa Phaga Maimela, died at the age of
110.
His family’s subsistence existence at Buffelshoek was also
disrupted when
the area was given away to white farmers in the 1940s by the
apartheid
government. The Maimelas had stayed on as tenant labourers and, in
an
affidavit submitted to the Johannesburg high court to successfully stave
off
a 1995 eviction attempt, Molemane Maimela paints a disturbing picture of
random violence, harassment and the constant threat of forced removal from
the land that his family had lived on for “approximately 400
years”.
According to the affidavit, in 1994 a “certain Mr JPG Botha” had
taken over
the management of the farm and told Maimela to pay a monthly
rental of R5
for each cow he owned.
“One afternoon, Mr JPG Botha came
to my house with a firearm and started
shooting randomly and thereby causing
the children to run for shelter,”
Maimela states in his affidavit.
In
February 1994, the farm manager locked the entrance to the farm and “only
reopened it during the second week of January 1995 with the instructions
that we should use it to vacate the farm”.
There were other events of
violence and attempted evictions, but Maimela,
his wife Maria, their
children and grandchildren remain on the farm.
Prospecting
There are
about 30 families living on Buffelshoek, but the Maimelas are one
of three
families who are considered part of the Tau and Maimela communities
that the
land claims commission has settled with as the rightful owners.
The
majority of the other claimants from these communities live across a
steel
bridge in a township that forms part of the Greater Tubatse
municipality.
Impala Platinum has been prospecting in the area, but
according to the
86-year-old Maimela “all of a sudden they introduced us to
Kameni. They
promised us good things, but we are frustrated because they
don’t give us
any details [about the mining deal].”
Philemon Maimela,
Molemane Maimela’s nephew, who also has a farm at
Buffelshoek, said “we
don’t have a geological report from Kameni. There has
been no disclosure of
the potential for the mine, [which] is critical. The
other issue is the
lease agreement. We have not agreed on anything yet.”
Molemane Maimela
says the community – divided between those who live at
Buffelshoek and those
who live in the township – “are not breathing with one
nose. We live here
and will be directly affected. So we want more
information, but the majority
of the community wants the mining to happen
quickly so that there are jobs
and money from the mining.”
There is intensive mining by other companies
on lands around Kalkfontein and
Buffelshoek and, according to the locals,
the top groundwater has dried up.
The mines are pumping water from
underground and, according to the elderly
Maimela, Impala Platinum “have
checked the healthiness of the [surface]
water around here. It is not
healthy. It is being contaminated by those
above us near the springs.
Already our cattle are affected. The rest of the
community does not realise
things like this.”
Lease agreement
The Masha community are as divided.
Part of the community has sided with the
Communal Property Association – of
which Andries Masha is the chairperson –
that has signed a lease agreement
with Kameni to receive just more than R16
000 a month for the
community.
He says the agreement was signed because people are impatient
for the mining
to start because they are desperate for jobs.
Another
faction, led by traditional leader Kgoshi Lengwane Masha, is
contesting
Andries Masha’s validity as chairperson of the association and
the deal he
struck with Kameni. It is alleged that there are other
agreements with other
mining companies in the pipeline for use of the land.
Although Andries
Masha is nostalgic for a time “when we were living here
very nicely; we
didn’t struggle and never went hungry because we had our
crops and
livestock”, he is realistic about the fact that “you can’t run
away from the
mining”.
“The [white] farmers came here and took this rich place from us,
the mines
have come and they take the minerals and they do nothing for us
while the
government sits back … They told us there is number one platinum
here … but
we suffer here, and we will continue to suffer here like people
who have
nothing on their lands.” -Mail&Guardian
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Business
SOUTH African
Trade and Industry deputy minister Elizabeth Thabethe
(pictured) (ET) is in
Zimbabwe, leading a trade and investment delegation of
33
companies.
Report by Faith Zaba
Zimbabwe Independent News Editor
Faith Zaba (FZ) spoke to her on Wednesday
on several issues including trade,
investment, indigenisation and
intra-Africa trade.
FZ: Investors have
expressed concern over Zimbabwe’s indigenisation policy.
Is this an issue
among South African investors?
ET: They (the business delegations) want to
seek clarity on how it is going
to work and how it is going to be
implemented. That is what people are
asking. Overall people are positive.
They are keen to contribute to the
recovery of the Zimbabwe
economy.
FZ: The balance-of-trade between the two countries is one sided.
How can
this be redressed?
ET: As you know it is skewed in our favour. So
if we were another country,
we would sit and relax) we have nothing to lose.
But we don’t believe in
that. We believe in working together and dealing
with the imbalances. We
have businesspeople coming in so that they can end
up investing here.
FZ: How sustainable is this skewed trade balance in
the long term?
ET: We live in a global village and you can’t work as an
island. It (trade
imbalance) will take time to be balanced. We believe in
doing these trade
missions (since) it is then that we try and deal with the
trade imbalance.
FZ: Bippa agreements have often been disregarded. What
is South Africa doing
to deal with such issues?
ET: They should go to the
embassy which is able to deal with them. It’s not
like they are not getting
any help. The ambassador must be vocal in
assisting and supporting some of
the moves here to make sure that we can
have a fair trade.
FZ: But
when such cases happen, doesn’t that put off investors in Zimbabwe?
ET: The
people who are doing business from South Africa are increasing, not
decreasing. If there were bigger problems, we wouldn’t find South African
people investing here. We still have a lot of companies that are operating
here. So in essence, when problems arise, they are tackled.
FZ: Do
the impending elections have an impact on investment and trade?
ET: We
believe that every country has its own systems of democratic
processes and
elections come and go. The country can’t stop just because
there are
elections. Elections are going to come and we hope that they will
be free
and fair. Governments come and go (and) some are re-elected, but
people-to-people relations stay.
FZ: What are your views on a single
regional currency?
ET: That can only come after thorough negotiations. Just
look at the euro
zone; there are problems now. Remember we are developing
countries (and) a
developing continent. The needs and priorities are much
more. We can come to
that at a later stage. To me, it is too early to talk
about a single
currency.
FZ: How would you describe the two
countries’ relations?
ET: Without the political will, you won’t have the
economic relations with
other countries. You first have to have the
political relationship. You need
the political will and the political
relationship so that the government to
government economic relationship is
also informed in what you do. So far,
the relationship between our two heads
of state seems OK.
It has paved the way for some of the things that are
happening now.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Business
SOUTH
African businesspeople in Zimbabwe on a trade and investment mission
have
expressed apprehension over the country’s Indigenisation Act, saying it
exposed policy inconsistencies and contradictions within the coalition
government.
Report by Faith Zaba
The businesspeople, part of
the delegation of 33 companies led by their
Trade and Industry deputy
minister Elizabeth Thabethe, said they are worried
that parties in the
inclusive government are not speaking with one voice on
the empowerment
drive.
Zanu PF has vowed to force all foreign-owned companies to hand
over 51% of
their shareholdings to locals while the two MDC formations have
opposed the
legislation charging it is retrogressive.
The
businesspeople said the implementation of the policy was ill-timed as it
scared away investors.
Kagiso Jansen, chief executive officer of
Mission Point, a hydraulics
company based in Bloemfontein in the Free State
province, said they were
concerned local partners would not have money to
pay for a 51% stake.
“So the main concern is that we need to find a way
of working around the
capitalisation of their shareholding,” said Jansen.
“The general concern is
that most of these guys want to do business and they
are willing to partner,
but capitalising their shareholding portion is one
thing to look at, but I
am sure there is a way.
“It’s beyond our
control, but you cannot just come with a project and give
shares for free.
If maybe, for example, we can say to the guys this is your
shareholding but
you will pay for it with your dividends and we agree on a
timeframe,” said
Jansen.
He said they would determine the monetary value of the shares and
every time
there is a dividend, their portion of the dividend would be paid
back like
an internal loan.
Jansen said investors should take up
political risk insurance to protect
their investments.His views are shared
by many investors. `
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in
Business
MARANGE is situated roughly 90km south west of Mutare, in
Manicaland
province. The area is generally arid with crops perennially
failing.
Most families in this area are exposed to hunger as they are not
privileged
with good rains experienced in other areas of Manicaland such as
Honde
Valley.
A survey conducted by Mbada Diamonds Safety and Health
department in
Chiadzwa and Mukwada villages revealed most families were
going for days
without food, while the rate of children dropping out of
school was
alarming.
Children were the most affected as they suffered
from malnutrition related
ailments.
It is against this backdrop that
Mbada Diamonds injects more than US$600 000
quarterly to feed more than 7
000 families in Chiadzwa under its Corporate
Social Investment.
Every
family receives foodstuffs comprising 50kg of mealie-meal, 10kg of
kapenta,
10kg of beans, 10 litres of cooking oil, 10kg of sugar and one kg
of salt,
which help their livelihoods quarterly.
Mbada Diamonds also feeds
children from various schools in Chiadzwa under
the supplementary feeding
scheme. The mining company injected more than
US$360 000 towards this
initiative.
The scheme to feed children is a response to reports that
malnutrition kills
six million children annually world-wide.
Research
shows that 57% of the current world population of about 6,5 billion
are
malnourished.
Malnutrition is not only the direct cause of death for six
million children
each year, but also renders millions of people much more
susceptible to
deadly health problems such as acute respiratory infections,
malaria and a
host of other life-threatening diseases, according to the
report.
So important has the Mbada Diamonds food distribution and
supplementary
feeding scheme become in Chiadzwa that some families now keep
the event on
their calendars.
Living up to its mantra “Harnessing
diamonds for the people”, Mbada Diamonds
has managed to avert hunger in the
area it is operating in.
Worldwide, hunger remains the principal cause of
death, surpassing HIV/Aids
and cancer.
There are 820 million
chronically hungry people in the world.
Ten million people die every year of
chronic hunger and hunger-related
diseases. Only 8% are the victims of
hunger caused by high-profile
earthquakes, floods, droughts and
wars.
The gesture by Mbada Diamonds is seen as a major milestone towards
combating
hunger in Marange and Zimbabwe at large.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in
Opinion
THE political silly season is now upon us again. More
presidential
candidates, including those from the lunatic fringe, are
surfacing out of
the blue with murky and dubious agendas.
Report by
Herbert Moyo
Only last Thursday Mark Baard, claiming to be the leader of
the until-then
unknown Zimbabwe Republican Front party, threw his hat into
the presidential
ring announcing he would slug it out for the presidency in
polls expected
next year.
The presidency is a vision from God, Baard
said, crediting his decision to
contest on a prophecy by one Cindy Jacobs in
the United States.
The 53 year-old Baard joins Kisinoti Mukwazhe,
president of another
virtually unknown outfit calling itself the Zimbabwe
Development Party (ZDP)
and Raymond Chamba, in a growing list of political
upstarts who sprout
during election time with all sorts of agendas,
including suspicious ones,
only to disappear after the vote.
However,
United States-based Chamba (41) does not really see himself as the
next
president of Zimbabwe, but says he wants to give his ideas to
Zimbabweans so
that they can make a choice to gradually move away from the
current politics
which he said “border on pettiness”. Chamba surprisingly
expresses
admiration for President Robert Mugabe, saying he remains Zanu PF
inside,
but castigated factionalism within the party.
In a verbose if cryptic
statement Chamba was quoted as saying: “The coddling
of mediocrity and
denigration of excellence has desecrated the hopes of our
forefathers and
dreamers thereafter. Let’s stop normalising the abnormal,
the grotesque
political freak-show that is the GNU (Government of National
Unity) as
presently constructed. Political pimps, old ringmasters, petty
egoists and
narrow ethno-centrists need to be put to pasture.”
Mukwazhe, a colourful
dresser who is garrulous but gives the distinct
impression of trying to
project a dignified demeanour in keeping with his
stated presidential
ambitions, says his party must not be taken for granted.
He released a
statement, which contains lunatic suggestions, to the Zimbabwe
Independent
in person two weeks ago announcing a “super callup cabinet” in
which he
named a 93-member cabinet he would form if he assumes power.
Surprisingly it
comprises most of those in the current cabinet!
While the glaring
grammatical mistakes littering Mukwazhe’s seven-page
statement and his
eccentric proposals may provide some comic relief, the
question is there
some method behind the madness of the likes of Baard,
Mukwazhe, Chamba and
others who suddenly appear towards elections?
What is their agenda and
who bankrolls them? Are they not state projects to
create a semblance of
democracy and confuse voters?
Political analyst and law lecturer Alex Magaisa
says these candidates are
attention-seekers who view election time as an
opportunity to grab a few
headlines and enjoy some publicity –– never mind
how fleetingly.
“They are not in it to win, but for the thrill of being a
candidate. They
get their 15 minutes of fame and they are pleased with
that,” Magaisa said.
Theatrics aside, the proliferation of presidential
aspirants is seen as
working against democracy as the parties split the
opposition vote –– a
scenario that suits the incumbent, Mugabe perfectly
well. That is why many
suspect some of these candidates are state-sponsored,
one way or another.
Analyst Blessing Vava said although having many
candidates and opposition
parties is a normal aspect of democracy, a divided
opposition is “an
advantage to Mugabe and Zanu PF”.
Vava cited the
2008 elections when former finance minister and Zanu PF
politburo member
Simba Makoni suddenly joined the fray, grabbing at least 8%
of the vote
which possibly “robbed” MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai of votes
needed to
attain the 51% required to sweep into power.
Vava said those who voted
for Makoni were clearly registering their
discontent with Mugabe and could
have given Tsvangirai an outright victory
had they voted for
him.
“They may have preferred Makoni to Tsvangirai but they collectively
represented votes against Mugabe and if given the choice between one
opposition leader and Mugabe, it is fair to imagine that they, or at least
the majority, would have voted for the opposition leader, Tsvangirai in this
case,” said Vava.
“So from that point of view, one could say that the
Makoni votes benefited
Mugabe in the final analysis.”
Although
Zimbabwe lacked an opposition powerful enough to challenge Mugabe
before
Tsvangirai during the 2002 elections, the contestants served another
useful
function of giving Mugabe and Zimbabwe the veneer of being a
democratic
country where polls are held timeously with everyone free to
challenge the
incumbent.
Besides Tsvangirai, Mugabe has contested polls against the
likes of the late
nationalist Edgar Tekere, Wilson Khumbula, Shakespeare
Maya, Paul Siwela,
Langton Towungana and Simba Makoni..
Instead of
perennial candidates, Zimbabwe mainly has fly-by-night
contestants.
But if he loses the next elections, Tsvangirai,
ironically still the most
popular politician in Zimbabwe despite his current
woes, might end up as a
perennial candidate, one who runs for public office
with a record of success
that is infrequent, if existent at
all.
Perennial candidates are often either members of non-major political
parties
or have political opinions that are not mainstream. Although
Tsvangirai’s
party is the biggest now and his views are mainstream, he has
lost due to
political violence and intimidation, as well as electoral
theft.
However, if he loses the next polls, the MDC-T leader might
eventually end
up like Afonso Dhlakama of Mozambique who contested and lost
four times in
1994, 1999, 2004 and 2009.
Or Moumouni Adamou
Djermakoye of Niger, Philippe Boulle and Wavel Ramkalawan
of Seychelles,
Ghana’s Edward Mahama, Ibrahim Lipumba of Tanzania and Zambia’s
Godfrey
Miyanda.
Most of the fly-by-night candidates often run without any
serious hope of
winning, but to promote their views or themselves instead.
In Zimbabwe’s
case, they also do it as fronts for sinister forces.
Some,
like Siwela in 2002, may however overestimate their chances of winning
out
of delusions of grandeur when they have little by way of campaigning
skill
or voter appeal.
Apparently, Zimbabweans have dismally failed to learn
from Kenya where a
multiplicity of presidential candidates played into the
hands of former
president Daniel Arap Moi before he was defeated by Mwai
Kibaki in 2002
after 24 years in power.
In a country where ethnicity
is a crucial factor in politics, Moi who hailed
from the minority Kalenjin
tribe, was able to win the Kenyan presidency not
so much because he was
popular, but due to the array of opposition
candidates who always split the
opposition vote.
After learning its lesson in 2002, the opposition formed a
strong coalition
led by Kibaki, eventually ousting Moi.
Zimbabwe’s
relatively simple age and citizenship requirements for
presidential
candidates have fed the proliferation of presidential aspirants
which some
analysts say promotes democratic rights of political
participation and
representation.
Apart from being a Zimbabwean citizen aged at least 40,
one must be
nominated by at least 10 people in each of the country’s 10
provinces to
qualify as a presidential candidate.
While Zimbabwe’s
next elections are a make-or-break affair for the main
political parties,
more unknown presidential aspirants could spring up,
spicing up the polls
with more comedy, although their ultimate agendas may
be tragic.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Opinion
THE
MDC-T, whose catchphrase is “change”, has since its formation promised
it
would embrace a different political culture and open the democratic space
in
the country to ensure power is not concentrated in the hands of the
executive, but is distributed to other arms of the estate — parliament and
the judiciary.
Report by Brian Chitemba
A new democratic
dispensation would be introduced once the MDC-T came to
power, people were
repeatedly told. Ordinary people would strongly influence
government
policies in a refreshingly different bottom-up approach to
governance.
This would mark a departure from the top-down Zanu PF
style in which leaders
had arrogated themselves unfettered powers and
latitude to decide what was
good for the electorate.
However, after a
few years in the trenches before tasting the trappings of
power following
the formation of the unity government in February 2009 the
MDC-T appears to
be backtracking on its promises and committing aberrations
in moves that
smack of betrayal of its founding principles and values. The
party seems to
be abandoning its core ideology and philosophy as it drifts
away from
founding doctrines.
In a series of actions which have raised eyebrows
among its supporters, the
party has removed term limits for its leader; is
now moving to discard
primaries; and is fast embracing the personality cult
around its leader
Morgan Tsvangirai besides joining the Zanu PF gravy train
of corruption and
looting.
Although the MDC-T remains a major
political force capable of winning the
next elections, it is fast abandoning
its democratic framework and promises.
The latest example of this
deviation is its plans to circumvent open primary
elections which are normal
party procedure, to ring-fence incumbent MPs and
senior party leaders,
mainly ministers, facing challenges from aspiring
legislators.
In
democratic systems, candidates for parliamentary elections are elected
freely and openly by party members, and secure the party ticket to be the
candidates.
However, indications are that the MDC-T is now willing to
ride roughshod
over its own principles by abandoning the popular and
transparent primaries
in favour of imposition of candidates, a recurring
theme within Zanu PF
where it has caused ructions and deep
divisions.
While Zanu PF openly imposes candidates much to the detriment
of popularity,
the MDC-T is now trying to do the same although it seeks to
camouflage such
a move by couching it as a “confirmation” process for
sitting MPs.
Tellingly, the party has so far failed to explain how the
confirmations
would be conducted.
Tsvangirai was initially supposed
to serve two five-year terms, but the
party shredded its constitution,
arguing he would only step down after
unseating Mugabe.
Tsvangirai
was also accused of refusing to contest the 2006 senatorial
elections
although senior party officials voted in favour of participating
in the
polls, resulting in the late Gibson Sibanda and Welshman Ncube
pulling out
of the party in protest over his “dictatorial tendencies”.
In 2008, the
MDC-T fielded two candidates in some constituencies after
junior officials
were barred from standing against senior leaders, a
development which split
the vote and divided votes especially in the
Midlands Province, robbing the
party of a clear victory.
Political pundits have urged the MDC-T to uphold
its principles and values
if it is to remain a genuine and viable
alternative.
Political commentator Blessing Vava said the strange methods
adopted by the
MDC-T were a clear indication the party’s in-house democracy
was shaky.
“The MDC-T leadership does not practise what it preaches,”
said Vava. “They
are denying other people their democratic right to
participate in primary
elections through self-serving rules and guidelines.
It’s totally against
what they ought to stand for, it’s
undemocratic.”
He added: “Forcing the electorate to rally behind the
incumbent legislators
is a bad move because most of them have failed voters
and their
constituencies,” said Vava. “Some MPs have not done much since
2008 and this
may adversely impact on the MDC-T’s performance in the
forthcoming polls.”
Another political analyst Chamu Mutasa said the
removal of the MDC-T
presidential term limits, Tsvangirai’s unilateral
decision over senatorial
elections and the abandoning of primaries show the
MDC-T might be a cut from
the Zanu PF cloth.
“What’s the difference
between Zanu PF and MDC-T?” asked Mutasa. “The
parties don’t value
democratic principles as they claim. It’s more
disappointing for MDC-T
supporters because their party is borrowing Zanu PF
tactics.”
However, Bulawayo-based political commentator Effie Ncube
said there is a
world of difference between Zanu PF and the MDC-T. He said
the confirmation
process, instead of primaries, was designed to prevent
internal rifts which
could worsen during primary elections that tend to be
acrimonious.
Ncube said it was easier for sitting MPs to continue
mobilising support than
to choose new representatives.
“The idea is
to minimise infighting and achieve unity ahead of elections,”
said Ncube.
“It’s a strategy to keep the MPs in touch with their supporters
and win
elections.”
With elections fast approaching, the MDC-T could pay dearly for
adopting
some Zanu PF’s methods while abandoning its founding principles and
values.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Opinion
I HAVE been
monitoring the various statements the founder and owner of new
radio
station, ZiFM, who is journalist-cum-businessman Supa Mandiwanzira,
has been
making in public fora with an ambivalent mixture of foiled optimism
and
sadness.
Tabani Moyo, Commentator
Foiled optimism at his
arrogance and mild appreciation or deliberate
disregard for the facts
surrounding evolution of the broadcasting reforms
agenda in Zimbabwe, and
sadness at his expectation that the nation will
accept his
legitimacy-seeking statements.
Unfortunately for Mandiwanzira, the
struggle for the liberalisation of the
airwaves is mightier than his narrow
interests. There are two critical
statements pertaining to this
debate:
When you (Mandiwanzira) join national debate such as the
controversy
surrounding the constitution of the current Broadcasting
Authority of
Zimbabwe (Baz) and the subsequent licensing of two commercial
radio stations
(ZiFM and Star FM) it doesn’t become a Mandiwanzira debate,
but remains a
crucial national discussion and;
The campaign for
broadcasting reforms started long ago with people being
arrested, declared
persona non grata in Zimbabwe and called many unprintable
names. As a
beneficiary of such rigorous campaigns by institutions,
individuals and
regional pressure from Sadc and the AU, Mandiwanzira should
be grateful for
these efforts as they helped secure his licence.
The broadcasting sector,
like telecommunications, remains under tight
government control. Until
recently the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation,
predecessor to the Rhodesia
Broadcasting Corporation, had monopoly of the
airwaves.
This
triggered concerned Zimbabweans, independently or organised by civil
society, to challenge the glaring anomaly with implications over how we as a
people relate and communicate.
There was a milestone in 2000 when
Capitol Radio successfully challenged the
legality of ZBC’s monopoly. The
Supreme Court ruled ZBC‘s monopoly was in
violation of the constitutional
provision of freedom of expression. However
government moved in swiftly to
overturn Capitol Radio’s triumph by invoking
the Presidential Powers
(Temporary Measures) Act and crafted the nefarious
Broadcasting Services Act
in 2001.
Given these developments media stakeholders under the Media
Alliance of
Zimbabwe took a lead in calling for extensive amendments or
repeal of the
draconian media laws, to be replaced by a more transparent,
accountable and
democratic regulatory framework.
This is where the
current Baz comes under the spotlight in that its
composition and
constitution did not follow the basic tenets of
transparency, fairness,
representativeness; nor is it accountable to the
people. This was confirmed
by President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai and Deputy
Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara.
It therefore saddens me to hear
Mandiwanzira, in what can only be described
as rent-seeking behaviour,
asking the nation to stop the debate over Baz
because he is a beneficiary of
its highly disputed process. Mandiwanzira
spews venom on anyone who speaks
against the process that led to ZiFM’s
licensing. I hope he will start
appreciating criticism, for it is aimed at
informing debate rather than
attacking his person.
It must be equally noted that during the sustained
broadcasting reform
campaign Mandiwanzira was never quoted calling for the
opening up of the
airwaves alongside reform campaigners. We would have had
no problems with
him had the energy he is showing in defence of the
Tafataona Mahoso-led
licensing regime been also demonstrated in campaigning
for the
liberalisation of the broadcasting sector.
In a public
discussion over the licensing issue media academic Ernest
Mudzengi warned
Mandiwanzira: “The demons of the licensing process will
continue to haunt
the new radio stations”.
I will go a step further and borrow a Nigerian
idiom that says “when you
have flies in your hands, don’t be surprised when
lizards visit you”. I do
not have an axe to grind with Mandiwanzira and his
business empire, but
dream of seeing the broadcasting sector genuinely
transformed and opened up.
Pressure groups in Zimbabwe must continue to
pressure government to grant
more licences so that the country is bequeathed
with a wider pool of
information for making informed decisions.
The
broadcasting debate would not be complete without touching on
broadcasting
laws.
Mandiwanzira must join media stakeholders in calling upon
government to
amend extensively or, better still, repeal laws that hinder
access to
information and media freedom. These include the Broadcasting
Services Act,
the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act, the
Interception of
Communications Act, the Censorship and Entertainment
Controls Act and the
Official Secrets Act.
There must be a holistic
overhaul of the broadcasting sector that includes,
but not limited, to the
following:
Urgent reconstitution of Baz to replace it in the long run
with the
Independent Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe which would be
answerable to
parliament.
Repeal of restrictive and undemocratic
laws.
Government must swiftly embrace digitalisation and comply with
regional and
international deadlines of 2013 and 2015
respectively.
Government must transform ZBC into a genuine public service
broadcaster.
Government must facilitate a three-tier broadcasting system
that comprises
commercial, public and community
broadcasting
Mandiwanzira must help the nation in taking a lead in
articulating these
pressing issues, instead of spending time futilely trying
to defuse national
debate on the quest for total broadcasting
reforms.
Moyo is based in Harare and writes in his personal capacity. He
can be
contacted at rebeljournalist@yahoo.com.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Opinion
To complement
the objectives of the extraordinary congress of 2007 as
discussed last week
(the main purpose of the congress was to affirm Mugabe
as the party
presidential candidate for 2008), the previously disgraced (and
still
apparently suspended) War veterans leader Jabulani Sibanda organised a
“Million Man March” in support of President Mugabe ahead of the
congress.
Derek Matyszak, Constitutional expert and
researcher
Although ostensibly a demonstration to show support for
Mugabe, despite
“Western powers opposition to his rule”, the real audience
was obviously
intended to be those within Zanu PF opposed to Mugabe’s
candidacy.
Many of those opposed to Mugabe’s candidacy expressed their
views through
the ballot box in March 2008. In what was called Operation
Bhora Musango
(which basically means sabotage), many Zanu PF MPs were said
to have
encouraged their constituents to vote for the party in the
parliamentary
elections, but to withhold their vote from Mugabe in the
presidential race.
Mugabe blamed these “divisions” in the party for his
defeat.
These fissures and dynamics were all apparent in the Zanu PF
congress of
December 2009,preceded once again by the death of vice-president
Joseph
Msika in August of that year.
Mugabe and the politburo
initially sought to control the succession process
by directing that only
the three Matabeleland provinces should submit
nominations for the vacant
position of “Zapu” vice-president. While this
may have satisfied the
Ndebele sector within Zanu PF still smarting at the
imposition of the Zapu
(but Zezuru) Msika, the division around the
contentious issue of reserving
two posts in the presidium for Zapu members
emerged once
more.
Violence broke out during the nomination process at some provincial
coordinating committees (PCCs). Of the three, only the recently “purged”
Bulawayo province agreed to nominate Mugabe’s preferred candidate, John
Nkomo (Ndebele), for the post. The politburo was compelled to open up the
process to all 10 provinces. This allowed the divisions that had
characterised the Tsholotsho saga to re-emerge.
Midlands and Masvingo
declined to immediately endorse the presidium
preferred by the politburo,
with Mugabe and vice-president Joice Mujuru
(both Zezuru) retaining their
posts and Nkomo and Simon Khaya Moyo (a
Ndebele of Kalanga origin)) as
vice-president and national chairman (to
replace the elevated Nkomo),
respectively.
Masvingo once again showed further recalcitrance by
proposing that Oppah
Muchinguri (a Manyika) replace Mujuru as a
vice-president, but accepting the
nomination of Nkomo and Kembo Mohadi (from
Matabeleland South and a Venda
with Sotho-Tswana roots under the broad
Ndebele umbrella) as national
chairman. The Manicaland and Mashonaland
Central PCCs also defied the
politburo by advancing Didymus Mutasa (a
Manyika) as national chairman.
On account of these disputes and nervous
of possible attempts to nominate
alternate candidates from the floor, Mugabe
summoned all PCC chairmen to
Harare in an attempt to “whip them into line”
before the congress. Masvingo
and Mashonaland Central bowed to the political
pressure and altered their
nominations to reflect those of the other
provinces. Manicaland stood its
ground, refusing to rescind the nomination
of Mutasa for the post of
national chairman.
The recent disbanding of
DCCs may also be viewed as part of the Tsholotsho
leitmotif. Several
analysts have suggested the dissolution was at the
instigation of the Mujuru
faction, which once again used the ruse of a
constitutional amendment to
undermine the Emmerson Mnangagwa faction whose
supporters had won the
majority of places on these committees.
Nominations to the Zanu PF
presidium have to date been determined, in the
face of considerable
resistance, by a process of “guided democracy” on
instructions issued by a
politburo controlled by Mugabe. The question thus
arises as to what will
happen when the post to be filled is that of the
“guide” — Mugabe
himself.
Several scenarios suggest themselves.The first is that the
democratic
processes set out in the Zanu PF constitution and sidelined by
Mugabe, will
be reinvigorated and activated.
However, as noted above,
these very processes have been altered
significantly by Mugabe, who
facilitated the constitutional amendment to
change the provincial electoral
colleges from the 44 member provincial
executive committee to the 100-plus
PCCS. Since these later committees are
made up of several other elective
bodies, those structures will need to be
in place before a PCC can be said
to be properly convened.
The costs and logistical difficulties of
bringing such a large number of
delegates together on short notice, and the
legal complexities around the
disbandment of the DCCs, may well present
grounds for procedural objections,
already as noted, a weak spot of this
electoral process.
In view of these difficulties, a second scenario may
arise where the central
committee exercises its power to amend the Zanu PF
constitution and
establishes an expedited method of
nomination.
Thirdly, the politburo may continue to arrogate to itself
powers it does not
have, as it has done under Mugabe, and direct the
nomination procedure. In
these latter two instances, none of these bodies is
likely to speak with one
voice and the process may be susceptible to legal
challenge, or worse, extra
juridical conflict.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Opinion
IT cannot be
gainsaid that South Africa is a special friend and a critically
important
trading partner of Zimbabwe.
Eric Bloch Column
Not only is it
Zimbabwe’s foremost and biggest neighbour with concomitant
common interests
and interactions, but it has also been a major source of
investment into
Zimbabwe over many years.
South Africa –– the biggest economy on the
continent –– has engaged in more
trade with Zimbabwe than any other country,
and it has become the home
(permanent or transitional) to more than two
million Zimbabweans.
Although Zimbabwe has responded well to courtship
from China and other Far
East nations, in many respects it has continued to
perceive South Africa as
its closest friend, albeit with some reservations
because of the country’s
leading role in Sadc’s interventions in
Zimbabwe.
Indeed Zimbabwe should cultivate and preserve its special
friendship with
South Africa. However, over-dependence on a single country
can be dangerous
and prejudicial. We must vigorously strive to develop many
such strong
relationships with other countries.
Government will
contend that it has done so, citing its “Look East” policy
as evidence that
this has achieved positive results. The fact that the
resultant so-called
alliances have benefited these nations to a markedly
greater extent than
they have Zimbabwe is conveniently ignored.
One of the first major
instances where Zimbabwe’s excessive dependency on
South Africa backfired
severely was in 1992. For many years, South Africa
was the main destination
for Zimbabwe’s textile and clothing industries.
Although the manufacturers
supplied the domestic market with all its needs,
local demand did not
suffice to assure viability as well as future growth of
textile and clothing
production.
Therefore manufacturers sought to export. South Africa
became the key
destination for the exports, its department stores,
wholesalers and
retailers being purchasers of substantial quantities of
products from local
enterprises.
Then, without warning, South Africa
terminated its Preferential Trade
Agreement with Zimbabwe, resulting in
Zimbabwean textiles and clothing being
subject to crippling South African
import duties. That severely eroded the
price competitiveness of local
goods, resulting in the near-collapse of many
of the manufacturers’
operations.
Had the manufacturers sought to develop diverse export
markets instead of
only focusing on South Africa, their future would not
have been jeopardised
as it was, thereby negatively impacting upon many
other sectors of the
economy.
In the last few years the perilous
dependency upon South Africa, and a few
other regional countries, has been
further apparent. Instead of a
forward-thinking and constructive approach,
government sought ever-greater
volumes of electricity from South Africa,
Mozambique, Zambia and the
Democratic Republic of Congo, with a considerable
portion of the energy
imports being sourced from South Africa’s
Eskom.
With time the supplier countries required more of their
energy-generation
capacity for themselves, and increasingly reduced their
supplies to
Zimbabwe. Moreover, as Zimbabwe became more impoverished it
could not pay
the energy-supplier countries on time, further impacting
negatively upon our
ability to meet our power needs. Government should have
had the foresight
not to place undue reliance on our neighbours, and
timeously focused on
enhancing our power-generation resources to meet future
needs.
After the demonetisation of the local currency in February 2009,
most people
were opposed to the use of the United States dollar as the base
currency for
our economy. Many vociferously suggested the use of the South
African rand
instead. This was because rands were already in circulation in
the economy,
repatriated by millions of Zimbabweans who had relocated to
South Africa. It
also came from the illegal and informal cross-border
trading which had
become a prominent element of the Zimbabwean
economy.
Fortuitously, government recognised the potential grievous
economic
consequences of yielding to public pressure, and resolutely
resisted it.
Since 2009, the rand has weakened considerably, save for a
period of time in
2011 and early 2012 when the weakening of the US dollar,
and a strengthened
gold price, strengthened the rand, but recently it has
again weakened. Had
the rand been the foundation of Zimbabwe’s monetary
system, that weakening
would have even seriously impacted upon the economy,
albeit that it has had
some negative and inflationary repercussions on the
economy –– but not as
great as would have been if the rand was Zimbabwe’s
principal currency.
In the last few weeks it has again been evident that
over-dependancy on
neighbouring nations can have negative consequences.
South Africa has been
rocked by severe labour unrest in its transport sector
which has crippled
road movement of goods, with concomitant violence,
including the
petrol-bombing and over-turning of vehicles. So destructive
have been the
strikes that most factories have barred access to their
premises, even by
privately-owned vehicles.
This industrial action is
having severely negative repercussions upon
Zimbabwe, for 70% of Zimbabwe’s
external trade is with South Africa.
Manufacturers are not receiving
delivery of essential inputs, critically
impairing operations.
Other
Zimbabwean importers are similarly not benefitting from timeous
receipt of
goods they ordered for onward sale to retailers, resulting in
many order
cancellations. In Matabeleland availability of fuel is declining
rapidly.
Zimbabwe’s already very fragile economy is being further
decimated.
Without in any way decreasing its close ties with South
Africa, Zimbabwe
must progressively minimise its over-dependence on South
Africa, and should
strive to develop wide-ranging economic interactions
throughout Southern
Africa, and further afield.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Opinion
FROM the Nuremburg
and Tokyo trials after World War II, the International
Criminal Tribunal on
the former Yugoslavia, the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission hearings in
South Africa, to the International Criminal Tribunal
on Rwanda, human rights
trials have been the major policy innovation for
more than half a century
designed to halt massive rights violations.
Report by Pedzisai Ruhanya,
Director, Zimbabwe Democracy Institute
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai,
who is also MDC-T leader, has for some
time now without elucidation, been
saying that if he assumes power he would
pardon military generals accused of
human rights transgressions.
What has been missing from his
pronouncements though is the public policy
guidelines on how that will be
executed. In other words, the MDC-T policy on
transitional justice seems
opaque or non-existent. In the absence of that
policy blueprint it becomes
difficult to appreciate what informs his remarks
on such important policy
issues.
Assuming his pronouncements on the need to pardon the brutal
military
generals who dabble in politics and in the process violate the
constitution
and laws of the land amount to his party’s policy position,
then it is
really unfortunate given the levels of impunity associated with
the state
security apparatus.
Given the massive human rights
violations associated with President Robert
Mugabe’s three-decade
authoritarian rule, Zimbabwe needs human rights trials
in order to deter
future violations.
The main justification for such trials is that
punishment is necessary to
prevent human rights violations as the country
grapples with a violent past
and the urgent need to change and transit to a
democratic dispensation.
Given successful human rights trials in post-war
Germany and Europe in
general, Yugoslavia, Rwanda and South Africa, human
rights prosecutions
during and after the transition can lead to improvements
in rights
protection.
The justification for human rights trials is
rarely merely retributive as
some might argue. The purpose is not only to
punish perpetrators, but to use
the penalty to deter future
violations.
The deterrence hypothesis says increases in the probability
or likelihood of
punishment should diminish repression if there are trials
against human
rights violators.
Studies in Europe, South America and
parts of Africa such as Rwanda and
South Africa show that in countries going
through transition, where human
rights trials took place, there is less
repression than countries without
trials.
Consistent with the
deterrence argument, it has also been proven countries
with more accumulated
years of trials after transition are less repressive
with fewer accumulated
years of trials.
In addition, studies have shown countries surrounded by
more neighbours with
transitional trials are less repressive, which suggests
a deterrence impact
across borders. It is also argued truth commissions are
associated with
improvements in human rights practices.
These
postulations suggest both normative pressures and material punishment
are at
work in transitional justice, and that the combination of the two, as
in the
case of human rights trials or hearings combined with truth
commissions, is
more effective than either pure punishment or pure normative
pressure.
However, realist scholars argue human rights trials do not
deter future
violations and that in some circumstances they actually lead to
an increase
in repression. The threat of prosecution could cause powerful
dictators or
insurgents to entrench themselves in power rather than
negotiate a
transition from authoritarianism.
For instance, in the
mid-1980s, scholars of transitions to democracy also
generally concluded
that trials for past human rights violations would
undermine new
democracies, and thus not have a deterrent effect on future
human rights
violations.
However, human rights trials are required in Zimbabwe because
violators,
including security forces, war veterans and militias, believe
they are
immune from legal responsibility for their actions. They are
fortified in
this belief by amnesties granted to them by the government, in
particular an
amnesty granted in October 2000 which pardoned all
politically-motivated
crimes committed in the run-up to that year’s
elections, except crimes of
murder, rape and fraud.
This was a
retrogressive policy by Mugabe’s government because it encourages
impunity
and denies justice to the victims of human rights violations.
Tsvangirai
should not send signals which encourage further human rights
violations as
the country prepares for elections.
Impunity is failure in law and practice
to hold perpetrators of human rights
violations accountable mainly through
the justice system. Zimbabwe has been
a victim of both de facto and de jure
impunity which has led to egregious
abuses from the Matabeleland and
Midlands massacres in the 1980s, the 1985
retributions by Zanu PF supporters
against Zapu followers after general
elections, the 1990 elections abuses to
the infringements since 2000,
particularly the 2008 election
atrocities.
Perpetrators of all these outrages have largely not been
prosecuted.
Resultantly, this has led to citizens losing faith in
government, security
forces and criminal justice system. It is therefore a
matter of serious
public interest for the MDC-T to clearly state its public
policy on
transitional justice.
Perpetrators of past human rights
crimes enjoyed de facto immunity from
prosecution since, more often than
not, the police turn a blind eye to their
activities. This type of impunity
takes place when the state, through its
security apparatus and justice
system, fails to prosecute individuals who
violate human rights as a result
of lack of capacity, but in the Zimbabwean
case its due to lack of political
will.
The situation in Zimbabwe is worsened by de jure impunity where
laws or
regulations allowing people to get away with committing crimes
strengthen
the impact of de facto immunity by making it difficult or
impossible to
bring to the justice system perpetrators of human rights
violations.
The perpetrators’ belief in their immunity is encouraged and
re-enforced by
political leaders’ words and deeds.
International
human rights treaties, to which Zimbabwe is party, impose on
the country the
obligation to stop and prevent gross human rights
violations, investigate,
prosecute and remedy injustices and abuse. Victims
of human rights
violations have a right to justice and reparations from the
government.
That is what Tsvangirai and others must always remember
when they talk about
human rights violations and transitional
justice.
The African Charter on Human and People’s Rights places
obligations on
states to ensure protection of the rights enunciated in the
charter and for
individuals to have human rights violations against them
presided over by
competent national institutions such as the
courts.
Equally, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
(ICCPR),
to which Zimbabwe is party, requires states to adopt measures
including the
legal route to protect the fundamental rights of citizens. The
UN Human
Rights Committee, an independent body made up of experts whose role
is to
monitor compliance with the ICCPR, has observed that a state’s failure
to
investigate and bring perpetrators to justice especially with respect to
crimes such as killings, torture and ill-treatment, is considered a
violation of international law.
Zimbabwe has violated its state
obligations under international human rights
and humanitarian laws. As such
perpetrators of human rights abuses must be
held to account.
Ruhanya
is a PhD candidate and director of the Zimbabwe Democracy Institute.
http://www.theindependent.co.zw/
October 19, 2012 in Opinion
Zanu PF
appears to think that playing host to populist demagogues from South
Africa
will endear Zimbabweans to the derelict party.
Report by The
MuckRacker
Last week they smuggled the disgraced Julius Malema into the
country to
attend a Youth League wedding. Given this platform, he declared
Zimbabwe was
“an inspiration to Africa”.
“Don’t listen to imperialist
newspapers,” Malema declared, “you have
achieved a lot. You are running your
own country, you have been managing
your own affairs and you are not
controlled by foreigners.”
However, when millions of Zimbabweans in economic
exile are attacked in
South Africa, Malema goes silent. Why?
Despite
touting himself as an “unemployed fellow”, Malema was still able to
proffer
a supposedly humble US$6 000 wedding gift.Malema is under
investigation in
Limpopo for corrupt tenders that could have benefited him
personally. He
lives well beyond his means and sports Breitling watches and
similar such
bling.
Malema also seems to prefer his Sandton townhouse to residing in
dusty
townships.
Then he comes here to lecture us on social equality!
Luckily the newspapers
he tells us to ignore carry details of his hypocrisy
(which of course is why
he wants us to ignore them).
SA
bashing
The bond between Malema and demagogues like Jim Kunaka of Chipangano
was
illustrated a few weeks ago when in an interview with the Financial
Gazette
Kunaka claimed that unlike former South African president Nelson
Mandela,
President Mugabe was a genuine African leader.
“That story
that he (Mandela) was in jail for 27 years,” he told the
newspaper, “was not
true. He was not in jail. He was kept in luxury eating
nice food. That’s
when he sold South Africa.”
This was probably a reference to Mandela’s
spell in Pollsmore. That came
right at the end of his incarceration. But
Kunaka can’t be expected to
understand these distinctions.
He belongs
to a party which trades on ignorance. And its anti-South African
credentials
are becoming more obvious by the day.
Zim run aground
We liked the bit
in Malema’s speech at the Harare wedding on Zanu PF
“running your own
country”.
Running it into the ground would be more apt! Much can be said
of Zanu PF’s
stewardship that is increasingly emulated by South
Africa.
The similarity is evident to anybody following the South African
Airways
saga or the comings and goings on the SABC board.
Then there
is the saga of Menzi Simelane and Richard Mdluli, among several
other
dubious appointments of presidential cronies. The recently unearthed
Nkandlagate shows South Africa is now catching the Zanu PF
virus.
Chef on the run!
Zimbabwe is indeed an inspiration to the rest
of Africa.
It is a good example of how a parasitic post-liberation elite eats
the
country in the way locusts do.
And then, like Patrick Chinamasa
they sit back and declare who can govern
and who can’t.
There would
be “trouble” if anybody sought to reverse land reform, he
declared to the
BBC.
“And if those countries impose for him (Tsvangirai) to win,”
Chinamasa said,
“that result will not be acceptable.”
So here is a
minister and negotiator, who also happens to be unelected,
attempting to
thwart the will of the people.
Zanu PF mandarins will determine who can
rule irrespective of the electoral
outcome. Does that sound like a confident
and successful leader? It sounds
more like a chef on the run!
Bubble
bursts
Zanu PF’s delinquency was laid bare this week as its land-grab spree
backfired on hapless Epworth residents who had settled on a piece of land
owned by private developer Sunway City.
The residents were allocated
the stands by local party leaders only
identified as Kembo and Chisango,
NewsDay reports, apparently without
authority to do so from the owners of
the land.
Unfortunately the bubble burst for the members of the so-called
Chinamano
housing co-operative on Sunday when they woke up to find a
bulldozer
demolishing their homes. This followed a High Court order issued
recently
indicating that the residents were unlawfully settled on land
reserved for
light industries. Sunway City general manager Kwaku Dzvukamanja
said his
company had tried in vain to make the settlers leave voluntarily
since
September 2011.
If the hapless and now homeless residents
thought they would get any comfort
from their benefactor, Zanu PF, they had
another think coming.
Asked by NewsDay if Zanu PF was responsible for
issuing the illegal stands,
Zanu PF Harare Province chairman Amos Midzi
disowned the action by their
functionaries in Epworth, saying the party did
not have a policy to
illegally seize land.
No kind words
The
evictees had no kind words for Zanu PF for allocating them stands
illegally
and lying to them that they would never be removed.
“Zanu PF told us to
come and occupy this area last year and we were told we
were not going to be
affected by any demolitions or evictions because land
belonged to the
people,” said one of the affected people.
“Zanu PF leaders, one known as
Kembo and another known as Chisango,
collected money from each family as
assurance that we would never be
evicted, and at one time we paid US$50
each. Only last week we were made to
pay another US$5 per family as
contribution towards legal fees so that we
would not be evicted,” another
said.
Limited scope
Miss Global Zimbabwe Mutsa Mutare has denied that
she was summoned to a
Jamaican radio station while in that country to
explain President Mugabe’s
“alleged comments” on Jamaican men.
“I
could not comment because that was something outside my scope,” she
claimed.
This illustrates just how controlled Zimbabweans are both at
home and
abroad.
What’s Mutsa’s scope? Is she not able to express a
view about the president’s
remarks? How can they be “beyond her
scope”?
Was this not an issue that affected perceptions of Zimbabwe as a
tourist
destination? And what is “alleged” about Mugabe’s remarks? Did he
make them
or not?
‘Look in the mirror’
We can expect a torrent of
vitriol from state mandarins following good
governance advocate Mo Ibrahim’s
sentiments that Zimbabwe should be a
powerhouse in Africa but its stagnant
political leadership under President
Robert Mugabe is holding it
back.
Ibrahim’s Index of African Governance foundation announced that for
the
third time in four years it would not award its Prize for Achievement in
African Leadership as no suitable candidates were found.
“Zimbabwe
should have been a success story. It is a wonderful country with
wonderful
resources but unfortunately is at a political impasse,” he said.
“The
past generation, most African leaders came from freedom-fighting,
liberation
movements. A good fighter is not necessarily a good governor. It
takes
different skills to run a country,” Ibrahim said.
“If you look in a
mirror and see an ugly face, maybe you are really ugly. It’s
not the fault
of the mirror. We need to be a little bit more brutal in order
to move
forward. We need more honesty to say the tough things.”
Brace for a
backlash from Zanu PF’s angry attack dogs.
