Last stand for Zimbabwe's white farmers

Peta Thornycroft in Karoi

A "futile" court case in a shabby little town in northern Zimbabwe was the
settingfor the final, tragic chapter of President Robert Mugabe's
determination to get rid of all remaining white farmers.

Two highly productive white farming families went to the tiny Magistrate's
Court in Karoi, 125 miles north west of Harare yesterday (tues)  to try and
stop lands and security minister Didymus Mutasa from evicting them from
their homes in the same week they are due to harvest their wheat.

This case will be the last of hundreds heard in Zimbabwe's courts since 2000
when Mr Mugabe,  facing his toughest ever election challenge from a new
opposition party,  nationalised white farmers' properties and handed them
over to cronies in the ruling Zanu PF.

Defence lawyer David Drury, told the Karoi court that Mr Mutasa "has dragged
my clients to court...in a futile  bid to evict them."

 He said Zimbabwe's senate would rubber stamp a new law later the same day
giving the state all powers it needs to automatically evict all remaining
white farmers.

Mr Drury told magistrate Archibald Dingani, that the state's application
for the eviction of the Nel and Terblanche families from the Karoi district
was "incompetent, illegal and an abuse of all sorts of rules and all sorts
of laws."

He said the state had not read the papers before coming to court yesterday,
had ignored a provisional High Court order issued in June allowing the
families to remain, and had served eviction notices on the wrong people.

Since the constitution was amended a year ago all white-owned rural land -
about 6 000 title deeds - advertised in the state press as "acquired" became
state property and recourse to the courts was no longer allowed.

That, however, according to Mr Drury, "did not give the state powers to
evict farmers...without due process of law and the status quo has to
 remain."

Mr Drury told the court that the last of many land laws rushed through
Zimbabwe's parliament since 2000,  the Consequential Gazette of Land
Provisions Bill, would go to the second chamber, later in the day.

Then, Mr Drury said, only one step remained, and that was for Mr Mugabe to
sign the bill into law, and from that moment, the few hundred remaining
white farmers would have a maximum of 90 days to leave their homes and
businesses.

Magistrate Dingani postponed his decision until Friday.

After the case ended, Daniel Nel, 44, who was a government approved South
African investor  in 1994, said: "I am a white African, so why must I g?

"We are  operating on about 20 percent of the land we used to have, but we
still produce many thousands of tonnes of crops, and do so with government
loans. So why do they want us to go?

"The government made the laws for people like me  to invest and I didn't
bribe anyone to become an investor."

Only 11 white farmers remain in the Karoi district from 258 from before Mr
Mugabe's racial purge.

Ahead of yesterday's court case Mr Mutasa told a western diplomat: "I will
not go to my grave before each and every white farmer is removed."

He said in a brief  interview with the Daily Telegraph on Monday it was
irrelevant that 'new' farmers who had been given formerly white-owned land
were not productive.

 "So what? So, what do you want to make of that? Whites held on to  land
only for speculation, they didn't use it for farming. The responsibility for
land lies with me and me alone."

Mr Mugabe's land grab saw Zimbabwe's agriculturally dependent economy
contract by more than 40 percent since 2000 and western nations have had  to
provide food for up to half the population.

Doctors say labour leaders tortured

Zim Online

Thursday 05 October 2006

      HARARE - Doctors who examined Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU)
leaders say their injuries were a result of heavy "beatings and torture" and
not falling from a moving vehicle as claimed by the police.

      The Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights (ZADHR), which
examined the ZCTU officials, said in a statement on Wednesday that injuries
sustained by the labour leaders were consistent with torture, adding it
would submit a report to court to prove the police assaulted and tortured
the union officials.

      At least 29 ZCTU leaders were last month heavily assaulted and
tortured by the police for calling protests by workers for more pay and
better living conditions. The union leaders - who President Robert Mugabe
last week said deserved to be beaten by the police - incurred serious
injuries including broken ribs, arms and legs.

      The police are however denying assaulting or torturing the ZCTU
officials, telling a court earlier this week that the unionists were injured
after they tried to jump off a moving police truck.

      The ZADHR said injuries observed on ZCTU officials were "consistent
with beatings with blunt objects, heavy enough to cause fractures (nine
fractures in seven individuals) to hands and arms and severe and multiple
soft tissue injuries to the backs of the head, shoulders, arms, buttocks and
thighs (29 individuals).

      "Soft tissue injuries to the soles of the feet (eight individuals),
are also consistent with beatings, and correspond to the torture method
called Falanga, which can leave a torture victim having difficulty with
normal walking for the rest of his or her life."

      Police spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena was not immediately available to
respond to assertions by doctors that the ZCTU officials were tortured.

      Police officer in charge of crime prevention in Harare, Joel Shasha
Tenderere on Tuesday claimed the ZCTU officials were injured after trying to
hop out of a moving police truck. He also claimed the police only used
minimum force to subdue the ZCTU officials who he said were resisting
arrest.

      But doctors dismissed claims ZCTU officials had tried to jump off a
moving vehicle, saying: "Medical examinations of the arrested ZCTU members
showed no skin abrasions. Abrasions would necessarily result from the
shearing forces associated with falling from a moving vehicle."

      A magistrate court has already ordered a probe into the allegations
that union leaders were heavily assaulted and tortured by the police.

      Defending the police's strong-arm tactics to crush the ZCTU
anti-government protest, Mugabe said the unionists got the treatment they
deserved for breaking tough state security laws prohibiting Zimbabweans from
staging public protests without permission from the police.

      Torture and other forms of inhuman punishment are illegal in Zimbabwe.
Independent human rights groups however say illegal use of torture by state
security forces is on the rise as the government battles to keep public
discontent in check amid a deteriorating economic meltdown, hunger and
poverty. - ZimOnline

Students stage demo in Harare

Zim Online

Wednesday 04 October 2006

      HARARE - About 800 students from the Zimbabwe National Students Union
(ZINASU) on Wednesday caught the police by surprise as they demonstrated in
central Harare over falling standards at the country's universities and
colleges.

      The demonstration by the students comes barely three weeks after state
security agents brutally crushed a protest organised by the Zimbabwe
Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) leaders over worsening economic conditions
in the country.

      ZINASU leader, Promise Mkwananzi, said the students presented a
petition to Higher Education Minister Stan Mudenge and another to Parliament
demanding that the government reduces tuition fees at universities and also
improve falling standards at the institutions.

      "Apart from reduction in fees, improved standards of education at
colleges and universities, we also want the government to halt the exodus of
lecturers," said Mkhwananzi.

      The police, who are normally quick to pounce on demonstrators around
the country, were caught with their pants down as the students marched from
Harare Gardens near the central business district to Parliament where they
handed over the petition.

      Meanwhile, a magistrate in Zimbabwe's second biggest city of Bulawayo
on Tuesday acquitted four women from the Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA)
protest group who were being charged under a tough security law for
allegedly organising an illegal meeting.

      The four, Magodonga Mahlangu, Emily Mpofu, Siphiwe Maseko and Patricia
Khanye, were being charged under the Public Order and Security Act (POSA)
which bans individuals from meeting in groups of more than three without
clearance from the police.

      A lawyer representing the women, Perpetua Dube, said there was no need
for her clients to notify the police as they were conducting a workshop on
jam making.

      The four were arrested in 2004 at Matshobana Hall in Bulawayo while
conducting a meeting on self-help projects in jam making.

      Human rights groups and the main opposition Movement for Democratic
Change party have often accused the police of abusing POSA to harass
government critics.

      Several WOZA members have been arrested over the past few years for
staging demonstrations around the country without first seeking clearance
from the police. - ZimOnline

Minister hawks Zim's natural resources to Russians

Zim Online

Thursday 05 October 2006

      HARARE - Zimbabwe Economic Development Minister Rugare Gumbo on
Tuesday night hawked the country's impressive natural resources to visiting
Russian business executives, telling the east Europeans it was time to move
in and invest in the country after its fallout with the West.

      Gumbo acknowledged Zimbabwe - with its high inflation, fuel and ford
shortages - was not the ideal destination for any investor but urged the
Russians to focus on the handsome returns to be reaped from the southern
African nation's vast mineral resources and lucrative agricultural sector.

      "You have come at an opportune time as you know we have sanctions from
the West," Gumbo told the 48 Russian investors at a dinner hosted for them
by the state.

      The Russian delegation, the second to visit Zimbabwe in the last eight
weeks, is in the country to explore investment opportunities in the energy,
mining and farming sectors.

      President Robert Mugabe's government, shunned by the West since 2002
over accusations of repression and human rights violations, has turned to
China and Russia in search for help to resuscitate Zimbabwe's comatose
economy.

      For example, Chinese companies have been contracted to rebuild
Zimbabwe's rail network, supply trains, buses and farm equipment under
several other economic co-operation deals between Beijing and Harare.

      But economic experts say a lot more cash and resources than Moscow and
Beijing alone could ever provide are required to revive Zimbabwe's
economy. - ZimOnline

Food aid agency seeks 97 000 tonnes to avert starvation in Zim

Zim Online

Thursday 05 October 2006

      JOHANNESBURG - The World Food Programme (WFP) says it urgently needs
about US$61 million to buy 97 000 tonnes of food to feed vulnerable groups
in Zimbabwe.

      In an emergency report issued last week, the WFP which says had
already scaled down operations by 66 percent this month, needed the food to
help vulnerable groups such as the chronically ill and orphans.

      "WFP is currently facing significant pipeline shortfalls in cereals,
pulses and corn-soya blend. As a result, food distribution for October 2006
will be cut by 66 percent, affecting some 364 000 school children and 190
000 chronically ill people and orphans . . .," read part of the report
issued out last Friday.

      "In addition, beneficiaries of the urban feeding programme will
receive half rations. The pipeline is expected to slightly improve in
November through to January 2007, after which stocks will be depleted.

      "WFP is in urgent need of US$61 million or 97 000 tons of food to
cover the food gap, particularly during the critical lean season," says the
report.
      The WFP says it is feeding close to a million people in Zimbabwe.

      Zimbabwe has battled severe food shortages over the past six years
after President Robert Mugabe seized white-owned farms for redistribution to
landless blacks.

      But the new black farmers failed to maintain production on the farms
leaving a quarter of Zimbabwe's 12 million population to survive on food
handouts from international donors.

      The WFP says although the food security situation had improved in the
southern parts of the country, some households still require food assistance
due to poor harvests during the 2005/6 agricultural season.

      The Zimbabwe government, eager to portray its land reforms as a
success, had earlier this year insisted that the country would harvest about
1.8 million tones of food, enough to feed the country.

      But aid agencies insisted that Zimbabwe would harvest between 700 000
and 800 000 tonnes at most due to a crippling shortage of fertilizer and
inputs.

      Last week, Agriculture Minister Joseph Made in a rare admission of
failure, said the country was facing severe food shortages and would import
food to meet the deficit.

Water under pressure

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

HARARE, 4 Oct 2006 (IRIN) - Shouts of "water, water, water," stir frenetic
activity in the affluent suburb of Marlborough in the Zimbabwean capital,
Harare.

Ntando Ndlovu, 10, runs down the street spreading the news that the water,
unavailable for three weeks, has been reconnected and within minutes men,
women and children spill out of their houses and start filling buckets, pots
and even cups with water from the standpipes in the street, while baths fill
up inside the houses to store the increasingly rare liquid.

The spillover creates a novelty for Ntando and his friends, who splash and
dance in the puddles, but their playtime is cut short as the water splutters
and runs dry a few minutes later, and the summer heat returns.

Ntando's mother, Sarah Ndlovu, is grateful. "I am happy that I managed to
fill a few containers with water, and I hope this time the water will only
be gone for a few days instead of more than 21 days," she told IRIN.

Although Harare's reservoirs are near capacity, the water scarcity is being
blamed on Zimbabwe's foreign currency shortage, which makes it difficult for
the government to afford water treatment chemicals and the necessary spare
parts to keep an ageing reticulation system going.

Clean drinking water has joined the growing list of shortages in Zimbabwe,
which also includes fuel and food.

Until recently the treatment and distribution of water was the
responsibility of the Harare municipality, but in 2003 residents voted for
executive mayor Elias Mudzuri, of the opposition Movement for Democratic
Change.

Mudzuri was fired in September 2003 after allegations of mismanagement, and
replaced by an unelected commission staffed by ZANU-PF government
sympathisers and technocrats. The authority to distribute water was handed
to the Zimbabwe National Water Authority, but the city fathers have failed
to deliver a consistent and adequate water supply to residents.

Precious Shumba, spokesperson for the Combined Harare Residents Association,
told IRIN that some Harare suburbs have gone without water for nearly three
months and, when it was available, the quality had deteriorated
substantially compared to previously.

Shumba blamed the water shortages on the commission, which was appointed and
not democratically elected and therefore had no obligation to deliver decent
municipal services. "The hardest hit areas are the affluent northern
suburbs, like Borrowdale, Chisipite and Highlands, although some
high-density suburbs, like Mbare, Mabvuku and Rugare, have also been
hard-hit by water cuts."

John Mupani, an enterprising resident, has identified an opportunity for
easy money in an economy with an annual inflation rate of 1,200 percent -
the world's highest - and unemployment above 70 percent.

"Although I am employed elsewhere in the CBD [central business district], I
have employed four people who drive my water bowser to the rich suburbs,
where they sell water to residents of that area. I have given them powers to
be flexible with their pricing and I cannot complain about the profit which
I am making."

Selling water is not restricted to the richer suburbs; households in poorer
neighbourhoods are also targeted by the water entrepreneurs, but the price
is lower. Formal business has also cashed in. TAISEK Engineering, a borehole
company, says it is doing a "roaring business".

"After experiencing these horrible water cuts, Harare residents, especially
those who live in houses built on large pieces of land, have begun seeking
our services," a company official told IRIN. "The amount of business that we
are doing is so amazing because there has been a huge surge in demand for
boreholes."

Residents in poorer neighbourhoods are sinking shallow open wells, which
have become a feature of "high-density suburbs". An influx of people since
May last year, when the government launched Operation Murambatsvina - a
sudden campaign to purge informal settlements, which left more than 700,000
people homeless or without a livelihood - has increased pressure on already
stretched resources.

Untreated water sources have been blamed for a recent outbreak of scabies in
poor neighbourhoods. Several Harare schools have stopped children affected
by scabies from attending school and there have been reports of diarrhoea
outbreaks, attributed to contaminated water supplies.

The minister responsible for Water Resources, Munacho Mutezo, has admitted
that the state agency was failing to supply water, saying: "We are asking
consumers to bear with us while we are battling to provide enough water for
everybody."

fd/go/he

See special report on water:
http://www.irinnews.org/webspecials/runningdry/default.asp

Cry, the beloved country

http://www.janegalt.net/archives/009487.html - Blog October 3, 2006

From the desk of Jane Galt:

Yes, that's a cheap title for a post about Zimbabwe. But it's impossible to discuss the country's current state without wanting to weep. In 1998, Zimbabwe had a per-capita GDP of roughly $2,300 (PPP). . . not lavish, but very comfortable for its neighbourhood. More importantly, that was growing every year. This year, the Economist Intelligence Unit expects GDP to clock in around $1,600 . . . and shrinking fast.

Timothy Burke expects things to get much worse:

’m often asked, “What’s going to happen next in Zimbabwe? Are things going to get better?” To which I often say, “No, not really: they’re probably going to get worse”. This surprises some people, because they figure it’s already as bad as it can be. What I think they don’t realize is that Zimbabwe is falling from a relatively high point. The Zimbabwean economy in 1988 was actually relatively strong, with a lot of capacity and potential. There’s a lot of things to wreck and destroy, and even a party with the prodigious ability to demolish their own society is going to take a while to thoroughly mess up everything they can put their hands on.

If you read Cross’ entry, you’ll see just how breathtaking the destruction is, however, and how lethal a cocktail of incompetence, malice, and authoritarian sadism is involved. It will not improve magically on the death of Robert Mugabe, assuming that ever actually happens. There are too many other hands with blood on them, too many other petty tyrants. And it’s gone too far at this point for some ZANU-PF member with a secret desire for reform in his heart to emerge smoothly during a transition and pull the country back from the brink. Too much has already been ruined that either cannot be fixed, or can only be repaired through a generation’s labor.

I suspect it will take more than a generation. Zimbabwe has destroyed most of its human capital, which was held by the whites who have fled or been killed. They will not return, even if a better government is put in place.

Human capital is a surprisingly powerful thing. Germany in 1945 was probably poorer than India, certainly than Mexico; its cities lay in ruins, and death, disease and poverty stalked its citizenry daily. By 1955, it was much richer than either country, and the gap was growing wider every day. Ditto Japan. The Marshall Plan was not much more than a pretty band-aid. The real reason that Germany and Japan were able to quickly regain, and then exceed, their economic might, while India and Mexico languished, lay in human capital. And no, not in the glories of whiter skin or superior Teutonic values. Even with her factories in ruins, Germany still had people who knew how to build factories, and run them. It had networks of people who were used to trading with each other. It had bankers who knew how to evaluate loan candidates and calculate interest. It had a citizenry with strong capitalist habits . . . savings and investment, trusting strangers enough to buy from them, a belief and insistence upon the rule of law. These deeply ingrained habits formed the foundation upon which the factories could easily be rebuilt.

Building that kind of human capital is a slow and arduous task, which is why not everyone is as rich as we are. If you look at per-capita GDP around the world, you can see that economic growth disperses rather directly from four points of infection: England, America, Australia, and Japan. The closer you are to one of these countries, the higher your standard of living is likely to be.

Luckily that kind of human capital is hard to destroy; it took the communists almost half a century to do it in Eastern Europe. Unfortunately, the other lesson of Eastern Europe is that it can be destroyed, if you work hard enough. And it is most fragile in former colonial countries, where the European rulers strove to make sure that as little of this capital as possible rubbed off on the subject peoples. so that when the Europeans left, all the sophisticated economic machinery collapsed.

The Zimbabwean government has made things bad by chasing off all the rich people who owned things, and making it unlikely they will ever return; now it is busy making them worse, by chasing all the other capital out of the country, and slowly destroying the habits of interpersonal trust, and planning (what sort of lunatic plans for the future when inflation is in the quadruple digits?) that support economic growth. Those sorts of habits are not an easy cultural equilibrium to get to (what sort of lunatic buys things from a perfect stranger 1,000 miles away?); once destroyed, they seem just as difficult to regain as they were to build in the first place.

Economically, Viscount Grey's famous quote applies better to modern-day Africa than war-torn Europe: once the lights go out all over Zimbabwe, we may well not see them lit again in our lifetime.

Posted by Jane Galt at October 3, 2006 3:03 PM | TrackBack | Technorati inbound links"); ?>

HIV-positive farmworkers are forgotten

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

HARARE, 3 Oct 2006 (IRIN/PLUSNEWS) - Little is being done to provide
treatment and care for Zimbabwean farmworkers living with HIV/AIDS since the
government launched its controversial fast-track land redistribution
programme in 2000.

Historically neglected, the chaotic reform programme and a series of bad
droughts has deepened the vulnerability of the remaining farm labourers
working the land.

On Bryne Farm, about 55km west of the capital, Harare, Lloyd Munapo*, 39,
was diagnosed as HIV positive in 2001. He can no longer work and relies on
his wife, Anna*, to get by. She is also HIV-positive, but can still join
other labourers every morning in the fields.

"If she stays behind taking care of me here, we will both die of hunger. The
doctor told me to eat healthy foods, so we have to work for it at all
costs," said Munapo.

Due to the high death rates on farms, owners now give workers as little time
as possible to bury loved ones or tend to the sick, claimed acting president
of the Zimbabwe Farmers' Union (ZFU), Jabulani Gwaringa.

"It's now very common on most farms. If you give them [farmworkers] the
whole day, production will suffer. It's now only a handful of workers who
attend funerals these days, the rest will be working," said Gwaringa, who
owns a farm in Mashonaland East Province.

The 1,200ha Bryne Farm, which produces maize, tobacco and cattle, was
invaded by former Masvingo provincial governor Josaya Hungwe in 2001, who
dislodged the previous owner, David Dobson. About 100 workers still live on
the farm.

Anna's monthly earnings cannot cover Lloyd's life-prolonging antiretroviral
(ARV) drugs, costing between Z$20,000 (US$80) and Z$25,000 (US$100) a month.
The gazetted salary for farm labourers is Z$4,160 (US$16.6), which cannot
even buy five litres of cooking oil in a country with an annual inflation
rate of 1,200 percent.

Munapo has been on the government waiting list for ARVs since 2001, but has
grown frustrated and no longer visits the nearest ARV distribution site in
Norton town, about 20km away. "They kept telling me to come the following
month and check, until I lost hope," he said.

He is not alone: many farmworkers cannot access treatment or even basic
healthcare services, say rights groups. HIV/AIDS prevention campaigns seldom
target or reach poorly-educated farm labourers, allowing myths about the
disease to go unchallenged.

Gift Muti, deputy secretary-general of the General Agriculture and
Plantations Workers' Union of Zimbabwe (GAPWUZ), which represents the
interests of about 400,000 farmworkers, said the living conditions of
labourers often made them even more vulnerable to the pandemic.

Although Bryne farm has some workers' housing with cement floors and
corrugated iron roofing, most live in overcrowded, badly ventilated huts
with poor sanitation. The subsidised food rations they used to receive from
Dobson were cut soon after Hungwe took over, leaving some workers without
enough food.

"The problem is that those who know that they are HIV-positive cannot afford
ARVs or the recommended nutritious foods. Some HIV-positive farmworkers only
have one meal a day," said Muti.

GAPWUZ distributes condoms in farming communities and regularly holds
workshops for farmworkers, encouraging them to be tested for HIV. Despite
these initiatives the odds were still heavily stacked against farmworkers,
as risky sexual behaviour has persisted.

"There are a lot of unwanted pregnancies and high [numbers of] cases of
sexually transmitted infections, clearly showing that they are not using the
condoms. A lot of them abuse drugs and alcohol," said Muti.

The Zimbabwe Business Council on AIDS (ZBCA), a coalition of private
companies, is undertaking a survey in cooperation with GAPWUZ to establish
the extent of HIV/AIDS on commercial and communal farms.

Muti said the general welfare of farmworkers deteriorated after the land
invasions in 2001, which displaced white commercial farmers and their
workers. The new owners, mostly black Zimbabweans, lack the financial muscle
to take care of their workers.

Wilson Nyabonda, president of the Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers' Union (ZCFU),
warned that the high prevalence of HIV/AIDS on farms could no longer be
ignored, and called for the development of a national programme to address
the crisis. "If we fold our arms, the gains of the land revolution will not
be noticed," he told PlusNews.

* Not their real names

/This article is part of a series on HIV/AIDS and communities of
humanitarian concern. Visit: www.plusnews.org/AIDSreport.asp/

Why Shamuyarira makes me sick

Zimbabwe Police Say Union Leaders Hurt While Attempting Escape

VOA

By Patience Rusere
      Washington
      03 October 2006

Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions Secretary General Wellington Chibhebhe and
31 others in the labor organization were arraigned today in Harare
Magistrate's court and a trial date was set for October 17, legal sources
said.

But their prosecution on charges of illegally demonstrating was overshadowed
as the magistrate threw out a police report saying the injuries sustained by
the labor activists on September 13 were not caused by beatings but incurred
resisting arrest.

Magistrate William Bhilla dismissed the police findings after the lawyer for
the trade unionists raised objections to the investigation's method and its
findings.

A new investigation by Zimbabwe's Criminal Investigation Department has been
launched and is expected to issue its own findings on October 17.

Chibhebhe his associates face charges of gathering illegally and "displaying
tendencies likely to disrupt the peace." Union member Moses Ngondo attended
the hearing on a stretcher bed due to the injuries he sustained September
13.

Police denied responsibility for the injuries and said they merely
restrained the trade unionists, using minimal force, when they resisted
arrest. Police statements said the union officials "went wild" and tried to
escape three times, breaking a vehicle lock.

Police denied withholding food from the union officials during their
detention, as has been alleged, saying the labor activists refused to eat
the food given them. They said the prisoners were put in the condemned
Matapi station because it was nearest.

Lawyer Alec Muchadahama, representing the 32 accused labor officials, said
in an interview with reporter Patience Rusere that the police assertions
were false.

Zim magistrate urges probe of torture claims

IOL

          October 04 2006 at 08:30AM

      Harare - A Zimbabwean court has ordered a probe into allegations that
labour union leaders were tortured by police while in custody awaiting trial
for attempting to protest against President Robert Mugabe's rule.

      Harare magistrate William Bhila on Tuesday ordered an investigation
into claims that leaders of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU)
were beaten up in police custody, and postponed their trial until October
17.

      "On allegations of torture it is also ordered that further
investigations be carried out by the Criminal Investigations Department,"
Bhila said.

      Lawyer Alec Muchadehama had asked for a postponement of the trial,
saying some of his clients were still recover-ing from their injuries and
were unable to follow proceedings.

      Lawyers for the ZCTU members said secretary-general Wellington Chibebe
had a fractured arm while 29 others sustained bruises and cuts after being
assaulted in police custody.

      The ZCTU leaders were forced to abandon plans for a series of
anti-government marches over the spiralling cost of living when police
arrested them for breaching the tough Public Order and Security Act on
September 13.

      The ZCTU had hoped to rope in thousands to denounce fuel and food
shortages, more than 1 200% inflation and 80 percent unemployment - which
critics blame on economic mismanagement by Mugabe's government.

      Mugabe last week backed Zimbabwean police for using brute force to
pre-empt the protest, saying: "Police were right in dealing sternly...
because the trade unionists want to become a law unto themselves.

      "We cannot have a situation where people decide to sit in places not
allowed, and when the police remove them, they say no," a state-run
newspaper quoted Mugabe as saying.

      "We can't have that, that is a revolt to the system. When the police
say move, move.

      "If you don't move, you invite the police to use force," Mugabe said.

      Demonstrations by the ZCTU, formerly headed by opposition leader
Morgan Tsvangirai, threatened to bring Zimbabwe to its knees in the late
1990s as hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets.

      However, opponents of Mugabe have been unable to take advantage of the
current economic crisis as a result of internal divisions within the
opposition and fear of the security services. - Sapa-AFP

      This article was originally published on page 6 of The Star on October
04, 2006

Opposition Legislator Says West Turning 'Blind Eye' To Zimbabwe Suffering

Mens News Daily

October 02, 2006
Countries in the West have turned a blind eye to suffering in Zimbabwe, said
a senior opposition politician now in Europe lobbying for increased pressure
on Harare.

David Coltart, member of parliament for Bulawayo South and justice spokesman
in the Movement for Democratic Change faction led by Arthur Mutambara, said
Zimbabwe's humanitarian crisis needs urgent attention because people are
"dying like flies."

Coltart said Western leaders have not understood the extent of the suffering
because their attention is focused on places like Iraq, Afghanistan and
Sudan's Darfur.

Coltart, reached by cell phone, declined to disclose his whereabouts in
Europe or say with which governments or institutions he was meeting during
his trip.

He also lambasted the Harare government for selling off the nation's assets
to China at what he called cut-rate price and receiving, in return, "third
rate shoes and clothes," which undermine the country's textile industry.

Coltart told reporter Ndimyake Mwakalyele of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe
that with some 3,500 people dying a week due to AIDS, malnutrition and
related causes, more people are losing their lives in Zimbabwe on an ongoing
basis than in Sudan's Darfur region, where much of the West's attention and
concern is focused.

Africa: Forced evictions reach crisis levels - Amnesty International

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
PRESS RELEASE

AI Index: AFR 01/009/2006 (Public)
News Service No: 255
4 October 2006

Embargo Date: 4 October 2006 00:01 GMT

Research conducted by Amnesty International and the Geneva-based Centre on
Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) reveals that the practice of forced
evictions has reached epidemic proportions in Africa, with more than three
million Africans forcibly evicted from their homes since 2000. The two
organizations today called on African governments to halt forced evictions
and abide by their international human rights obligations.

"The figures are truly staggering and clearly indicate that forced evictions
are one of the most widespread and unrecognised human rights violations in
Africa," said Kolawole Olaniyan, Director of Amnesty International's Africa
Programme.

Although the practice of forced eviction has been recognised as a gross
violation of human rights under international law and, in particular, by the
African Commission, governments throughout Africa continue to forcibly evict
hundreds of thousands of people from their homes each year. Many of these
evictions are often accompanied by further rights violations, including the
use of excessive force by those carrying out the evictions, such as
arbitrary arrests, beatings, rape, torture and even killings.

Jean du Plessis, Executive Director (Acting Interim) of COHRE, said, "Many
African governments justify forced evictions on the grounds that they are
essential for 'development' and therefore, in the interests of the general
public good. However, development that leads to forced evictions is
fundamentally counterproductive because forced evictions create
homelessness, destroy property and productive assets, and obstruct access to
potable water, sanitation, healthcare, livelihood opportunities and
education. By carrying out forced evictions, African governments are pushing
people into poverty -- not pulling them out of it."

Kolawole Olaniyan of Amnesty International said, "By failing to bring an end
to the practice of forced evictions, African leaders are violating their
obligations to protect human rights and undermining their expressed
commitments to development imperatives such as the Millennium Development
Goals and NEPAD."

Examples of forced evictions from across the continent are as numerous as
they are distressing. Some recent examples include:

  a.. An estimated two million people have been forcibly evicted from their
homes and many thousands have been made homeless since 2000 in Nigeria.
  a.. More than 12,000 people were forcibly evicted from Dar Assalaam camp
in Sudan in August 2006. The majority of the evictees had been previously
displaced through conflict in Sudan and settled in camps in or around the
capital Khartoum. Authorities have forcibly evicted thousands of people from
these camps, resettling them in desert areas without access to clean water,
food and other essentials. Currently, there are over four million internally
displaced persons in Sudan.
  a.. The government of Zimbabwe staggered the international community in
2005 when, in a military style operation, it forced an estimated 700,000
people from their homes, their businesses or both. To date, the government
has not taken any effective action to address the plight of those displaced.
  a.. In Luanda, the capital of Angola, at least 6,000 families have been
forcibly evicted and had their homes demolished since 2001. Many of these
families, who have received no compensation, had their property stolen by
those carrying out the forced evictions and remain homeless.
  a.. In Kenya approximately 70,000 people have been forcibly evicted from
their homes in forest areas since 2005, while at least 20,000 people have
been forcibly evicted from neighbourhoods in or around Nairobi since 2000.
  a.. In Ghana over 7,000 people were made homeless when they were forcibly
evicted by the Game and Wildlife Division from the Digya National Park in
March and April 2006. The eviction was halted in April only after a boat
carrying over 150 evictees capsized, causing the death of at least 10
people. Those remaining in the park still live under threat of forced
eviction. Some 800 people also had their homes destroyed in Legion Village,
Accra in May 2006, while approximately 30,000 people in the Agbogbloshie
community of Accra have been threatened with forcible eviction since 2002.
  a.. At least 300 families in Equatorial Guinea have been forcibly evicted
from their homes since 2004, when the government embarked on a programme of
urban regeneration in Malabo and Bata. These families had title to their
property. Thousands more remain at risk.

Background
The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (African Commission), in
a landmark decision on forced evictions in Nigeria in October 2001, found
that the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights guaranteed the right
to adequate housing, including the prohibition on forced eviction (see SERAC
and CESR v. Nigeria, ACHRP 2002). In this case, the African Commission
incorporated the substance and jurisprudence of international human rights
law on the prohibition of forced eviction into the implied right to adequate
housing in the African Charter. However, this important decision has not yet
been reflected in the jurisprudence throughout the continent nor in
governments' practices.

Under international human rights law, including the African Charter, which
has been ratified by member states of the African Union, evictions can only
be considered as lawful if they are deemed necessary in the most
"exceptional circumstances". If such "exceptional circumstances" exist, then
certain procedural protections and due process requirements have to be
adhered to, including that States must ensure, prior to any planned
evictions, and particularly those involving large groups, that all feasible
alternatives are explored in consultation with affected persons.
Furthermore, and in any event, eviction shall not result in rendering
individuals homeless or vulnerable to the violation of other human rights.
Governments are legally obligated to ensure that adequate alternative
housing and compensation for all losses is made available to affected
persons.

The Millennium Development Goals, as set out in the United Nations
Millennium Declaration, were adopted by the General Assembly of the United
Nations on 18 September 2000. Goal 7, Target 11 calls for governments to
"[h]ave achieved by 2020 a significant improvement in the lives of at least
100 million slum dwellers".

The New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) is a vision and
strategic framework for Africa's development. Its stated primary objectives
include, among others: "to eradicate poverty" and "to place African
countries, both individually and collectively, on a path of sustainable
growth and development". One of its stated principles is: "Ensuring that all
Partnerships with NEPAD are linked to the Millennium Development Goals and
other agreed development goals and targets".

For interviews or additional information please contact:
Deanna Fowler Eliane Drakopoulos
COHRE Amnesty International
Tel: +41 22 734 1028 Tel: +44 20 7413 5564
Email: deanna@cohre.org Email: edrakopoulos@amnesty.org

Public Document
****************************************
For more information please call Amnesty International's press office in
London, UK, on +44 20 7413 5566
Amnesty International, 1 Easton St., London WC1X 0DW. web:
http://www.amnesty.org

For latest human rights news view http://news.amnesty.org

"Suffer continue Zimbabwe and Zimbabweans"

      October 4, 2006

      By ANDnetwork .com

      Johannesburg (AND) As inflation continues to surge upwards above the 1
200% mark and unemployment levels astronomically shoot up, most Zimbabweans
are now leaving their homes and flocking to South Africa where they believe
they will be able to earn something to sustain their livelihood.

      The situation can be aptly described "suffer continue Zimbabwe and
Zimbabweans".

      The track southwards also comes in the wake of increased political
repression on Zimbabweans by the government on all those who engage in
opposition politics. The high volumes of the Zimbabweans that are in South
Africa can be given testimony by the large multitudes of Shona and Ndebele
speaking people that one encounters at Johannesburg's Central Park Station.

      The central park station has become a favourite mingling point for the
Zimbabweans who come to South Africa as at the station one is most likely to
have a chance meeting with colleagues that one went to school with back
home.

      "There is no more employment back home and our (Zimbabwean) economy is
in tatters and we are forced to come as we know that we will definitely get
something in return for our labours, no matter how small," said Martin Kufa
who says he has been sleeping at the Park Station for over a week. To many
the Park station is a starting point as one does not have to grapple with
the hard realities of parting with the rand to pay for accommodation in
flats.

      All that one has to bear at the station is the scourge of the
bribe-seeking South Africa police officers and the daring tsotsis who prey
on the vulnerable Zimbabwean. The situation back home in Zimbabwe is
terribly bleak and what aggravates the whole thing is that the government
seems reluctant to engagement with its political foes like Britain and the
United states of America in the international arena, which has left the
country in a state of political and economic limbo.

      As such the ordinary Zimbabwean has been left with no option but to
migrate to South Africa which is still seen not only as the bastion of
democracy not only in Africa, but the rest of the whole world. This is
because the South Africa economy and tolerance for political dissent lure
both political and economic refugees from as far as Pakistan and India.

       It is  this chaotic state of events in Zimbabwe that has forced the
Zimbabweans to abandon the comfort of thier homesteads and brave the
staggering transport costs that hover between Zim $17 000 and $20 000 (new
currency) to commute to south African cities, with Johannesburg as the most
sought-after destination. The Zimbabwean bus operators who ply the
Harare-Johannesburg are making a killing as thousands of Zimbabweans flock
to South Africa in search of Christmas groceries, jobs, the rand to be
traded on the black market, an atmosphere that allows many political voices,
and a host of other freedoms and benefits that have become non-existent in
Zimbabwe.

       "The situation at home is bleak. At least if you come here and raise
R800 ($100.60) and R1 000 ($125.80), you are assured that when you get back
home you will raise more than Zim $100 000 (new currency) ($400) on the
black market. Even some big companies cannot pay their managers that much,"
said Esther Tope who sells woodcarvings at wholesale price at the Park
Station.

      What is most saddening is that the Zimbabweans who come here for
cross-border trading and other jobs have to contend with parting with their
hard-earned rands to pay absurdly high-priced rental charges to flat
caretakers. Who in most cases happen to be Zimbabweans. The average price of
sleeping in a room per night used to be R5, later went up to R10. But as I
write now most flats around town are charging an average of R15 a night, and
it does not make sense to part with so much on rent when you are trying to
save as much as possible.

      This has forced many to then take the risk of going to the park
Station where there is 'free rent', but a host of many other dangers. In
addition to all this the South Africans who buy the wares that are brought
from Zimbabwe force the Zimbabweans to sell their stuff at ridiculously low
prices. Just because one wants to make money, you are at the end of the day
forced to sell your products at give-away prices.

      The Zimbabweans back home who survive on the graces of those trying it
out in South Africa should not just expect to receive and receive, but learn
to appreciate the gruelling conditions in which their breadwinners operate.
For how long will the Zimbabweans in the Diaspora have to bear with the
unbearable-is a definitely a difficult question to answer. But what appears
to be a definite solution to the Zimbabwe crisis is the need for a new
leadership in Zimbabwe.

      The investors are now afraid of directly investing in Zimbabwe , which
is under the captaincy of an ailing leader, and investor confidence, more
jobs and a resuscitated economy will only resurface if Mugabe goes. It only
makes sense if Mugabe appeals to his humanitarian conscience, and resign so
that Zimbabweans are spared of further hardships.

      Johannesburg Bureau, AND

JAG Classifieds dated 3 October 2006

As a JAG member or JAG Associate member, please send any classified adverts
for publication in this newsletter to:

JAG Classifieds: jag@mango.zw; justiceforagriculture@zol.co.zw

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1.  For Sale Items
2.  Wanted Items
3.  Accommodation
4.  Recreation
5.  Specialist Services
6.  Pets Corner

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1. OFFERED FOR SALE

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1.1 For Sale (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

Fuel - Marineland Harbour, Kariba

Dear Customers,

Please be advised that Kingdom Calls Pvt. Ltd t/a Marineland Harbour will be
taking over supply and control of their fuel depot with immediate effect.

Our Management Agreement to supply fuel to the Harbour has expired, and we
have decided against renewing it.

Please revert to contacting Marineland directly for your fuel requirements
on the following numbers:

Main Switchboard: 061 2845 / 3115 / 2331

PLEASE NOTE THAT MOBILE NUMBERS 091 275 714 & 091 269 330 ARE NOW PERSONAL
NUMBERS.

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1.2 For Sale (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

HONEY JEWELLERY:  Imported from South Africa - a selection of gold-plated,
rhodium plated, antique bronze plated necklaces, bracelets, rings and
earrings, exclusively made up with Swarovski crystals, cubic zirconia,
pearls and a new range of bayong wood beads, coconut heish, brown lip shell
necklaces and bracelets.  Please contact Annette on 011 600 769 or
dapayne@zol.co.zw
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1.3 For Sale (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

22 kva Generator run by 4 cylinder Diesel motor.
In very good condition

Offers welcome. For more information & viewing arrangements
Please contact Craig on 091 418 625

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1.4 For Sale (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

2x 350l DEFY Fridge /white/

1x DEFY Sove /black/

1x TV SONY PLAZMA 42` LCD /silver/

Just imported. Call: 882384, 091 775544, 011 607045

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1.5 For Sale (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

Mein Kampf or My Struggle by Adolf Hitler. Unexpurgated edition.1939.Two
volumes in one. First volume: A Retrospect. Second volume: The National
Socialist Movement. Hurst and Blackett LTD London 1939. In good condition. I
am selling this book as a collector's item of historical interest as I in no
way condone the views contained in the book. Please email zermatt@mweb.co.zw

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1.6 For Sale (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

AUDI A4 - Second owner since new with service record.  Excellent condition.
Leather seats. 160000km Offers.  Phone 339144, 091 311 503

HONDA PRELUDE V TEC - 1994.  Beautiful metallic silver. Immaculate. 155000
km.  Offers.  Phone 339144, 91311 503

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1.7 For Sale (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

OFFERED FOR SALE

Milk Seperator.

Alfa Lavel hand operated milk separator with all attachments. Also has
fittings to operate by electric motor.

Contact: 04 - 745463  / 011211924.

Wall Mirrors.

1 x 60 cms x 162 cms x 3 mm.
1 x 60 cms x 120 cms x 4 mm.
1 x 100 cms x 100 cms x 3mm.

Contact 04 - 745463 / 011211924.

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1.8 For Sale (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

Piano for sale: C Burlman & Co.  Phone 775691.

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1.9 For Sale (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

2002 Toyota Landcruiser 100series GX Standard
55000km,white,mp3 player plus many more extras. Equivalent 38000US. 4.2
diesel. Contact 091 261085 Alex
011609709 Mike.  Available for sale 20 September

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1.10 For Sale (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

MP3 Player:  FM/MP3/WMA/DVR/Line-In, 265MB, USB2.0, R480.00
Contact 091314285 Debbie, 091394803 Alisha

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1.11 For Sale (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

Small bar. 1,6 X 0,5metres. Never been used. Considerable lockable storage
space. Ideal for a small entertainment area. $300,000.00 ONCO. Phone 302702
for appointment to view.

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1.12 For Sale (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

SEED DESIGNS (based in Chiredzi)

Beautiful hand embroidered items for sale as follows: -

Wall Hangings                    $19,000
Muslin Throws/tablecloths    $13,400
Throw-overs                         $34,000
Bedspread/duvet covers       $45,100
Tea cosy/cloth set               $ 7,000
Toaster covers                     $ 3,500
Tablecloths assorted            $ 8,800
Oven gloves                         $ 4,200
Small bags                          $ 3,500
Binocular bags                     $ 4,500
Shoulder bags                      $ 6,600
Wallets                                $ 3,600
Canvas bags large                $10,920
Webbing bags                      $11,200
Med cushion covers              $  7,600
Small cushion covers            $  4,800
Cushion inners                     $  3,800
6 table mats & serviettes       $15,000
Pillow case                           $ 2,700
Table runner                          $ 7,700
Paintings                              $40,000

And much more!!  For more information please contact Michelle Ross (Harare
rep) on cell phone no: 091 202 138 or 883606 or alternatively e-mail me at
rossi@hms.co.zw

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1.13 For Sale (Ad inserted 19/09/06)

Coarse Salt imported from South Africa $4 500.00 / 50 kg neg.
Phone 091 210 268 or 091 609 841(evenings)

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1.14 For Sale (Ad inserted 19/09/06)

Pavillion tent.

Tent for sale pavilion type 3 meters X 2.75 meters. PVC ground sheet, one
gauzed zip up door, verandah and all poles and pegs. Comes folded in a
canvas bag.

Contact 04 - 745463  / 011211924.

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1.15 For Sale (Ad inserted 19/09/06)

A "family"(mother, father and baby) of exquisitely, carved hippos. You won't
find another like them. View them at "Serendipity"-coffee shop.2a,
Serendipity close (entrance on Golden Stairs Road), Mount Pleasant. Phone:
Anne 011212424 or Robyn 011413609 or Janet 091344616.They really are
stunning--you need to see
them for yourself.

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1.16 For Sale (Ad inserted 19/09/06)

New Eurostar Borehole Pump. 0.75 HP. $90,000 o.n.c.o. Phone Michael
091404542 or 333069.

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1.17 For Sale (Ad inserted 19/09/06)

An avent baby bottle and food warmer.  Warms bottles or baby food in just 4
minutes and is small and convenient.  Brand new and still in box so never
been used.  Bought it this weekend in Joburg for R500.00 so would like the
equivalent.  Contact Brenda Pattenden on 091 3267 55.

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1.18 For Sale (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

I have two Electrolux freezers for sale - they are 30 years old but still
going strong, though their looks have suffered a little. They have been
checked by a
refrigeration specialist of long standing and he has recommended the
following prices:

1 chest freezer 12 cubic feet                  $400, 000.00

1 upright 9 cubic feet                              $290, 000.00

Office furniture

I have two filing cabinets [imported oak] three drawers, lockable for sale:
$220,000.00 each

L shaped desk, oak, one side has sliding doors and a shelf, plus normal desk
$350,000.00

This is less than half the cost of new ones. All in good condition.  Please
phone 861167 if interested.

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1.19 For Sale (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

WHITE LUGGAGE TRAILER, LOCKABLE.
CROP MOISTURE TESTER, complete (Delmhorst Instrument Company, USA)
ELNA LOTUS SEWING MACHINE
PROLINE SOHO SCANNER (Computer)
HEWLETT PACKARD DESKJET 670C PRINTER
CARPET TILES
SHOWER HEADER TANK 100 LITRES
8 sq.m. ITALIAN FLOOR TILES
2 sq.m. MOSAIC TILES
KNITMASTER DOUBLE BED KNITTING MACHINE.
ELECTRIC MOTORS - various
BANJO
PIANO ACCORDIAN

Please phone 091 305 313

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1.20 For Sale (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

Motor Bike

Suzuki  TF 125  -- in very good condition -- Zim $ equivalent of US$ 1000.00
contact: zanadu@zim.co.zw

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1.21 For Sale (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

Microwave oven for Sale.  Singer 700W.  Under one year old.  $120,000.
Bought solely for office lunches and no longer in need of it.

Phone 091-240-401.

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1.22 For Sale (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

Linhoff photographic tripod with tilt and pan head.

Price $15,000

Phone evenings 04 487631 or days 04 459702 ask for ray or email
rwestley@mango.zw

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1.23 For Sale (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

One big DSTV Satillite Dish for sale - cash only.   $30,000 (Thirty thousand
dollars only)

please contact Mrs H DON   on Land line 571737

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1.24 For Sale (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

Very Good Condition - ADAM BEDE Oak Dining Room Suite, Six Chairs and Two
Carvers, Extendable Table and Welsh Dresser with Leaded Glass Doors. Price $
3 000 000.00.  Must Be Seen. Telephone 020 68626 Trevor or Michelle

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1.25 For Sale (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

Toyota Hilux double cab 3Lt  2003 model  white in colour, 57000 kms.
Excellent condition.Offers
Phone 091 606212

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1.26 For Sale (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

Book titled, Exotic Tropical Fishes

Authors of this comprehensive book include:
Dr. Axle rod
Dr. Vordevinkler
Dr. Emmens
Mr.Sculthorpe
Mr. Proneck
Dr.Burgess

700 plus pages most with full colour plates and description. One page per
species. Condition as new
Asking price $15,000

Suit the more serious fish keeper or breeder. There are also many others
being sorted for sale.

Telephone 04 487631 or during business hours 04 459702 (if lines not down)
Ask for Ray. Or email rwestley@mango.zw

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1.27 Generator For Sale (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

8 H.P. Briggs and Stratton Motor with 3.5.K V A  Alternator. Mounted on
Frame and in good condition. Price   $400.000.00

Contact Telephone 301860or Cell 011 416984

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1.28 For Sale (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

"The Weavery"
Super gift ideas for local and overseas friends and family.Hand woven
articles which are light,easy to pack and send, and fully washable.
Xmas is on the way again! Buy before the "rush" and before prices go up
again!Contact Anne on 332851 or 011212424.Or email joannew@zol.co.zw

Crocheted oven gloves--$3,000.
Cotton oven gloves--$2,000.
Small woven bags--$2,000.
Large woven bags--$3,000.
Crocheted bags--$4,000.

Queen(approx.250x240cms) size bedcover--$30,000.
Other sizes to order.
Single Duvet cushions(open into a duvet)--$24,000.
Other sizes to order.
2x1 meter Throw--9,000.
Baby Blanket(1x1meter)--$3,500.

3 piece toilet set--$5,000.
Bath mat--$3,000.

Decorated cushion covers--$3,000.

Table runner--$2,000.
Set(4)Bordered table mats + serviettes--$9,000.
Set(6)Bordered table mats + serviettes--$13,000.
Set(4) crocheted table mats only--$5,000.
Set(6)fringed table mats + serviettes--$12,000.
Lots of other combinations.

Small (approx.105x52cms) plain cotton rug--$3,000.
Medium (approx.120x65cms) plain cotton rug--$5,000
Large (approx.150x75cms) plain cotton rug--$7,000.
Ex. Large(approx.230x130cms) plain cotton rug--$22,000.
Small patterned cotton rug--$4,000.
Small rag rug--$3,000.
Medium patterned cotton rug--$6,000.
Large patterned cotton rug--$10,000
Ex. Large patterned cotton rug--$28,000.
Small patterned mohair rug--$6,000.
Medium patterned mohair rug--$9,000
Large patterned mohair rug--$12,000.
Ex. Large patterned mohair rug--$30,000.

Lots of other articles. Please be aware that prices may change without
notice.

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1.29 For Sale (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

 "Mercedes-Benz C180 Elegance for sale.  Automatic. Petrol.  1994 model.
104850 genuine kilometres.  Metallic Gunmetal, all extras including Sony
radio and a 10 CD shuttle.  Pristine condition.  Asking price US$14 000.00
or equivalent in Zimbabwe Dollars.

Please contact Adam on:  - 091 208754 or 04 336237 after hours."

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1.30 For Sale (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

CAMPING EQUIPMENT FOR SALE
Various camping equipment for sale, tents in good condition, camp beds,
double inflatable lilo, gaslights, gas skottle, set of new stainless steel
camping pots (very compact one inside another) etc. Phone 091 311 503, or
work 339144

ENCYCLOPAEDIAS FOR SALE
Complete set of Brittanica encyclopaedias for sale.  Ideal for reference for
young people.  Phone 091 311 503, or work 339144.

GOLF CLUBS FOR SALE
1 complete set of golf clubs - Rawlings, and two other part sets.
Must sell - offers.  Phone 091 311 503, or work 339144

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2 WANTED ITEMS

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2.1 Wanted (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

Plastic.  Most kinds of used clean plastic purchased.  Free transport on
commercial quantities.
Please contact:  Reclaim Plastics, Ruwa.  Phone 073-2860 or 073-3350.

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2.2 Wanted (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

Alternator only (no engine) single phase 5KVA.  Please contact Rob on
robfynn@mango.zw or phone: 04-499776, 091887864

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2.3 Wanted (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

UREGNTLY looking for a Reel-to-Reel Tape recorder.  Power operated.  With or
without microphone.
Variable speed 1 1/4 to 7 1/2 rev's per second.
Please contact Bill Edwards on 091240206 or through Doug Edwards
tracspray@zol.co.zw or 068-22463

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2.4 Wanted (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

Wanted are old $100 000.00 bearer cheques, phone 496829

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2.5 Wanted (Ad inserted 19/09/06)

Am looking for a PERSIAN CARPET Runner suitable for a passage - about
85-95cm wide and 3-4 m long.
Also any Persian carpets in good condition.

terrys@cabsonline.co.zw
091 315 297

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2.6 Wanted (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

Second hand baking trays and tins in good conditions
Also second hand electrical mixer in good condition
Please call 011 200 325

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2.7 Wanted (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

Does anyone have a second hand swimming pool fence that they would like to
sell?  If so, please could you phone me on 091326755.

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2.8 Wanted (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

Looking for a copy of "Golden Age of Tobacco" if anyone has a copy of this
book please contact me on secretary@zol.co.zw

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2.9 Wanted (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

Second-hand 28" old-fashioned bicycle wanted. Please phone John Robertson on
Harare 740205

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3 Accommodation Wanted and Offered

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3.1 Accommodation Wanted (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

Single house-proud lady with elderly mother and two children looking for a 3
or 4 bedroomed house.  Must be walled and gated.  Loves gardening.  Please
contact Debbie on 091 830 953 or email customercare@hotelguestsupplies.co.zw

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3.2 House-sitter Wanted (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

Reliable family/elderly couple to housesit a house on a citrus farm in
Hazyview South Africa from mid November to mid February. Any queries please
contact us at the following email fourstreams@xtra.co.nz

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3.3 Accommodation Offered (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

On offer is a three bed roomed house in Chisipite in a very secure area.
Rentals Z$100,000 + deposit reviewed every 3 months. Contact Roy on 011
433588 or e-mail me vascozim@yahoo.com. Available 1st October.

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3.4 Accommodation Wanted (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

Accommodation wanted in Harare, preferably around Mount Pleasant, Newlands
or Borrowdale.
Any cottages or small houses would be perfect. Will consider house sitting.
Needs to be a secure surrounding, as, I'm a single female who's very
friendly, neat & tidy.

If anything is available please contact Caroline on 011 214 453

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3.5 Accommodation Available (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

I have a very attractive, newly thatched cottage to let in Bromley, 55 kms
from Harare and 30 kms from Marondera.  It is small, only two bedrooms, and
is in the garden next to the pool.  It has its own garden, and space to grow
vegetables or whatever. Rent l8 thousand dollars monthly plus Zesa

Phone Jennifer - 073 3399, or 0ll 4236l4, or 04 333952, 336945 (leave
message)

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3.6 Housesitter Wanted (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

Desperate for a house sitter on my Bromley farm for the months of October
and November while I go to Australia.  No farming necessary, just 3dogs and
2 cats to love, and a lovely home and garden.  No money exchanges either
way.

Please phone Jennifer at 0ll 4236l4

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.7 Accommodation Wanted (Ad inserted 19/09/06)

Small Harare family would like to rent a small cottage or domestic quarters
in any area between Belvedere and Mount Pleasant. Please phone Rich Tere on
091 295 129

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.8 House for Sale (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

Greendale North
2.5 subdivisible acres with msasa trees
3 bed/ 2 bath brick under tile and a self contained cottage
Double garage and staff quarters, Pool
10 000 litre water storage tank with pressure pump
Electric gate and security light
2 metre electrified security fence and prickly pear hedge
House alarm, Security guard at end of Close
Borehole sited but not drilled.
Good area - Italian Embassy, French, British and Nigerian ambassadorial
residences
Walking distance of Chisipite School and shops.
Serious buyers only, phone Margot on 04-776499 or 091 358 122

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.9 House Sitter Wanted (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

Attractive newly thatched cottage to let for October and November on farm
near Bromley, 55 kms Harare.   Garden and space for vegetables.   $15,000
per month plus Zesa.
Please phone 073 3399, or 011 423614, or 04 572513 (leave message here)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.10 Flat Wanted to Buy (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

Widow requires a safe cluster home/garden flat in Northern suburbs.  Must
have three bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2 carports or garages (a must) as she
doesnt want to lose her late husbands vehicle!!  Phone Jacquie (on behalf of
Widow) 091 311 503, 339144.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.11 House Wanted (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

3/4 bed roomed house for single mother with 2 children.  Must be safe and
secure.  Areas around
Mt Pleasant, Greendale, Alexander Park, Avondale, Borrowdale, Highlands;
Newlands, Gunhill.

Please phone Debbie on 091 830 953 or 446191/2 during business hours

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.12 Cottage for Rent (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

AVAILABLE TO RENT, end of October

DOUBLE- STOREY SPACIOUS THATCHED COTTAGE with wooden decking
verandahs/balconies...
KAMBANJI - BEAUTIFUL VIEWS
TWO DOUBLE BEDROOMS EN SUITE.  SECURITY - ELECTRIC FENCE, ELECTRIC GATE,
NIGHT WATCHMAN ETC.
PLEASE CONTACT 499119. e-mail calder@zol.co.zw

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.13 Fish Hoek for Rent (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

To let:  In Fish Hoek;
Two bed roomed house with lock-up garage. Close to beach, shopping centre
and station in quiet street. R3000 monthly. Six-month lease. Available from
1st November.

To let: In Fish Hoek;
One bed roomed flat with own fitted kitchen, bath in secure area; Close to
beach, shopping centre and station in quiet street. R1500 monthly. Six-month
lease. Available from 1st November.

For details please contact Graeme:   gjcopley@yahoo.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.14 Wanted Housesitter/Part time tenant

Garden flat in secure complex, two minutes walk from Sam Levy's village. 2
bed 2 baths, 1 en-suite. Furnished, Lock-up garage.
Minimal rent to cover expenses required.
Available 15th October. Please phone Nello Davies. 091-402410.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.15 House Wanted (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

House wanted to rent as from 1st December 2006 in Avondale, Milton Park,
Emerald Hill, or Mount Pleasant.
Need at least 4 bedrooms and swimming pool and if possible a borehole.
Please contact Carol on 332798 or 011 231 541 if you have anything suitable.

---------------------------------------------------------------

4 RECREATION

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

4.1 TANDEM SKYDIVES (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

Contact Chris on: 091302357 (every Saturday at Charles prince airport)
Great idea as a gift...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

4.2 Hippo Pools Wilderness Camp

Need a break from your hectic everyday life, for a relaxing weekend or
midweek getaway Hippo Pools Wilderness Camp is the place to go.  For details
phone Tracy on 730123 or email mailto:wildernessafrica@zol.co.zw "

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------

4.3  LIFORDIA SCHOOL (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

Hosts its' third annual DAY/NIGHT Cricket
Top Junior School Teams
Barwick, Bryden, Heritage, L.C.P.S
Lilfordia, Ruzawi, Springvale, St.Johns
Plus 'Stars of the Past'

Full Bar & Catering, 'Jump Up Jills' Disco
Water slides & jumping castles for kids
Date: Saturday 7th October 2006, Time: 9am - late
Cover charge: $200.00 per person, Children under 12 free

V.I.P Tickets are also available, for further details contact
Brenda 091 913085, Alistair 091 237027, Andrew 091 745745.

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4.4  (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

LIFEHOUSE CHRISTIAN RESOURCE CENTRE
88 Lomagundi, Road Emerald Hill

 Is the home of the following Christian organizations:

LifeWords (Formerly Scripture Gift Mission)
Words of the Holy One (Christian literature)
Life Tower (Christian library)
Your Life Magazine
Acts Basket

These are all legitimate non-profit Christian Organizations.

At present life House (Kindly left to Lifewords by the late Ms Audrey
Hickley in her will) is badly in need of some attention and renovation to
make it more user friendly to the public as a Christian resource centre. The
renovation has started, funded thus far by money from our own pockets, but
we (the small group of 5 people involved in the above) have found that our
personal resources are not nearly adequate for the task. Some of the needed
items are great indeed, but we do not wish to underestimate either the power
of God or the generosity of some people, by not asking.

So it is that we humbly approach you the public in an appeal for the
following:

. Funding/general donations.
. Bore-hole (to be drilled)
. Bore-hole pump and motor, piping etc
. Water storage tank
. Plants (palms, cactii, hanging baskets, pot plants etc)
. Garden furniture and benches (prayer/reading/tea garden)
. Garden umbrellas
. Tables & chairs
. Office furniture (Christian internet reference library)
. Lounge furniture (Prayer room)
. Computers (Christian internet reference library)
. Printers
. Wood for book shelving and a carpenter's time and skill (Christian
library)
. Paint
. Christian literature for the library collection.
. Light fittings
. Tiles
. Wrought iron security enclosure (verandah)
. Curtains
. Small rocks/boulders to build a rockery
. Lawn
. Tobacco scrap
. Compost
. Manure
. Plant pots
. Gravel

In fact anything you could give would be most appreciated. If any gift
cannot be used for the revival of Life House to benefit all Christians, it
will be donated to Acts Basket and so still benefit a Christian brother or
sister in need.

Should you wish to make a pledge or donation or ask any questions, please
contact:

Anne Hadingham at LifeHouse on 304127 or 091400751 or email:
wildart@zol.co.zw or Peter Nyangara at LifeHouse on 304124 or 011629218 or
email: wohobooks@zol.co.zw

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

4.5 GACHE GACHE LODGE (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

GACHE GACHE LODGE - across Lake Kariba still have some rooms available for
the Xmas period. Full catering. Children welcome.
Contact: Andrea: 091 208 836 tourleaders@zol.co.zw. New Year is now full.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

4.6 House Boat For Hire (Ad inserted 03/10/06)

MTEPATEPA: houseboat for hire. Sleeps 12, 3 crew, tender boat.  Reasonable
rates.
Phone Kate 067 23112 or 091 356 981.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
5 SPECIALIST SERVICES

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

5.1 Minor Vehicle Repairs (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

Minor vehicle repairs and servicing undertaken by qualified mechanic.
Personalized service and very reasonable rates.

Phone Johnny Rodrigues 336710, 339065, 011 603 213

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------

5.2 (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

Cooking courses for Domestic workers

Training by qualified chef... Also available for small functions birthday
parties etc.

For more information contact Jacques on 011 214 453

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

5.3 (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

G - TECH

Diesel vehicle and plant maintenance.
Site contracting.
Generator and stationary engine instal lation and maintenance.
Tractors.
Hydraulics.

Contact Graham at gtech@zol.co.zw or call 011 406023, 091 286657, 04 741001,
075 2264

------------------------------------------------------

5.4 (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

1. The Power People
Radium Africa stocking 2.5Kva, 5.5Kva, and 16Kva Generators. 40's and 60's
on the water. Larger units available on request.
Assessments, Installations and servicing available. Full spares backup.
Phone Office: 04 335848 Cell Derrek 011611717
Email: radiumzw@africaonline.co.zw

2. Need to use your FCA? - Radium Africa
Harrow discs 24" 26" and 28", Generators, Silage Machines in stock. Other
agricultural equipment imports available on request.
Phone Office: 04 335848 Cell Sean 011600389 Keith 011800859
Email: radiumzw@africaonline.co.zw

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

6 PETS CORNER
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.1 Wanted (Ad inserted 05/09/06)

I'm looking for 2 German shepherd dogs aged round about 3 years old, which
will go to a VERY loving and VERY good home. Please phone 302138, Kathy
Hull.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

6.2 Puppies for Sale (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

3 female and 2 male Blue Australian Heeler pups. Contact Priscilla on
083-2805057.
I can deliver anywhere Bulawayo or Beitbridge area

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------

6.3 Home Wanted (Ad inserted 12/09/06)

Superb brindle Labrador/staffy dog looking for kind and loving home. Approx
3 years, lovely nature would make an excellent companion and protector. Tel
Michelle (Terrier Rescue) on 884294 or 011602903 or e-mail me on
gandami@mweb.co.zw

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

6.4 Puppy Wanted (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

A puppy (jack russell, jack russell cross, maltese or maltese cross, or
similar) late November/early December

Please contact sandeman@zol.co.zw or call 011 630 803 or Harare 746408

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

6.5 Dog Sitter Required (Ad inserted 26/09/06)

Homes wanted. We have recently relocated to Europe. Due to various
circumstances we are unable to bring our two dogs (Black Retriever and
German Shepherd) as yet Once we have settled in and have reasonable space we
will call for one or both of our pets.  In the mean time we are looking for
an elderly couple that would be willing to baby sit/ look after, or possible
adopt our two dogs. Due to the situation it is difficult to put an exact
time period required. They are good security dogs and are extremely loving.
They would suit a couple as the shepherd enjoys the company of females and
the Retriever, enjoys being around Men. We would be prepared to supply food
etc as an when required to the approved " new home For any further
information or enquiries, please contact cmhch@yahoo.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
JAG Hotlines:
+263 (011) 610 073 If you are in trouble or need advice,
 please don't hesitate to contact us - we're here to help!
+263 (04) 799 410 Office Lines
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----
To advertise (JAG Members): Please email classifieds to: jag@mango.zw with
subject "Classifieds".

Protesters want law firm to cut links with Mugabe

Zim Online

Thursday 05 October 2006

            JOHANNESBURG - A group of about 100 Zimbabwean exiles on
Wednesday protested at the offices of a major law firm here and demanded
that it stops representing the Zimbabwe government in a court case involving
businessman Mutumwa Mawere.

            The protesters said no law firm or any business for that matter
should engage in commercial dealings with the "Mugabe regime" over its
appalling human rights record.

            However, a representative of the law firm Brink Cohen Le Roux,
Devilliers Kgafe, declined to accept a  petition from the protesters saying
the Zimbabwe government had urged them not to entertain the protesters.

            "Though we had earlier on agreed to accept your petition, I'm
sorry that I'm not in a position to accept it now as our client who is the
government of Zimbabwe has instructed our company not to do so," said Kadfe.

            "The government of Zimbabwe is saying whoever has a case against
them should hand in the petition to them and because of that I will not take
it."

            Kadfe, however, listened attentively as Siros Chikohwero,
chairman of the Friends of Zimbabwe Coalition (ZOC), which organised the
demonstration, read out the petition outside the posh offices of the law
firm in plush Houghtoun suburb.

            "South African lawyers, stop supporting this menace," said
Chikohwero in reference to Mugabe.

            Chikohwero accused Mugabe of trying to seek endorsement of his
property "grabbing" legislation in foreign courts and urged South African
law firms not to help him achieve that endeavour.

            Chikohwero urged South African law firms and other South African
companies to follow the examples set by major five star hotels like the
Westcliffe and Hilton hotels that have previously refused to book in Mugabe
and his delegations before to protest his human rights abuses.

            Previous press reports said regular guests at the two hotels had
threatened never to return to these facilities if they ever found Mugabe and
his people booked in.

            Chikohwero said no sane international company should do business
with Mugabe's illegitimate regime.

            The demonstration follows the opening of a court case at the
Johannesburg High Court involving Shabani Mashaba Mines (SMM) Holdings and
Southern African Asbestos Sales, both previously owned by Mawere.

            The government has since taken over SMM Holdings via a
reconstruction order after accusing Mawere of stealing and externalising
money from the asbestos producer.

            Now SMM Holdings is pursuing more than US$20 million debts it
claims it is owed by SAS for asbestos exports that were not repatriated back
to Zimbabwe.

            Mawere is vehemently opposing the claims.

            Yesterday's demonstrators said the manner in which the
government wrestled control of SMM Holdings from Mawere was unacceptable.

            It would undermine regional standards of corporate governance if
Mugabe was allowed to pursue court cases relating to seized companies like
SMM Holdings in foreign courts.

            The protestors carried placards denouncing Mugabe and the white
law firm that is representing his government.

            It is not clear whether Mawere himself was behind the
demonstration. He was not present although the protesters, who gathered
under heavy police guard, were promoting his cause. - ZimOnline

'Russian delegation to tell true Zim story'

The Herald

Herald Reporter

THE visiting Russian business delegation would be in a position to expose
the lies by Zimbabwe's detractors as the 48 members of the entourage would
judge for themselves and tell the Zimbabwean story from an informed
perspective, a Cabinet minister said yesterday.

Speaking in Harare during a meeting he held with 17 Russian journalists who
are part of the delegation, Acting Minister of Information and Publicity Cde
Munyaradzi Paul Mangwana said the truth shall set Zimbabwe free.

Secretary for Information and Publicity Cde George Charamba and other
officials also attended the meeting.

"We believe this visit will enable you to judge for yourself about Zimbabwe.
You will be able to tell the Zimbabwean story from a clear perspective. That
will expose the lies of enemies of our country. Sanctions were imposed after
we took our land and they lie that those were targeted against the leaders,"
said Cde Mangwana.

He explained the history of Zimbabwe's liberation struggle and the merits of
the land reform programme that saw thousands of blacks being economically
empowered.

Cde Mangwana said Zimbabwe fought a protracted war to realise its freedom
and independence and Russia played a big role by supporting the liberation
movements in the country.

"We remain indebted to the Russian people for the efforts they gave for us
to win our independence.

"We were fighting to regain land stolen from us by colonisers. In 1979, we
were promised that we would get our land. We gained our independence in
1980, but for 20 years we waited for the fulfilment of that promise, but the
British government broke the promise," he said.

Cde Mangwana said Zimbabwe then compulsorily acquired the land for
resettlement and Western media started writing horrific stories alleging how
barbaric Zimbabwe was.

"The media portrayed a government that did not respect human rights, a
government of bullying and raping, taking companies and a country in turmoil
where there was no development at all," said Cde Mangwana.

The minister said the illegal sanctions were affecting the livelihood of
ordinary people in the country and the economy as well.

Said Cde Mangwana: "We don't produce oil so we import every litre using
foreign currency. We are not then able to supply sufficient fuel. We also
import electricity and our industry is a net importer of materials needed to
manufacture."

He said the country's detractors also made sure that Zimbabwe did not get
balance of payments support from lending institutions.

Tourists, he said, had also been discouraged from visiting Zimbabwe and
citizens of different countries have also been influenced against investing
in Zimbabwe.

Answering a question from the journalists on what Zimbabwe would do in the
event of an attack by its powerful enemies, Cde Mangwana said: "We will
fight to the last person if they attempt to attack us. We are not a country
of cowards."

He said in his opinion, he did not think that the international community
would allow such bullying on people fighting for what rightfully belonged to
them.

On elections, Cde Mangwana said in line with the present Constitution, the
presidential vote would be conducted in 2008 while parliamentary polls would
be held in 2010.

Cde Mangwana also told the journalists that the Government was making moves
to liberalise the electronic media sector and there were a number of
newspapers published in Zimbabwe that were opposed to the Government.

"We strive to solve our problems such as health, drugs and education. We
have programmes to assist orphans, SMEs (small to medium enterprises), the
disabled and others. We try with limited resources and this is why the
country has remained intact," said the minister.

He explained that previously over 70 percent of arable land had been in the
hands of about 4 000 whites but the Government had now acquired 80 percent
of the land and redistributed it to more than 300 000 people.

"That was not nationalisation as such. About 800 white farmers are still in
the country and some blacks are doing very well and agricultural production
is going up. However, others still require finance and technical
assistance," he said.

Within the next five years, said Cde Mangwana, agricultural production
should be 10 times more than what was being produced by white farmers.

Cde Mangwana said Britain sponsored the MDC with a view to reversing the
land reform programme.

"The opposition say if they come to power, they will reverse it. This is why
they have failed dismally to garner support and they now realise that the
people are behind the ruling party," said the minister.

Land covered by bilateral investment agreements, he said, was not affected
by the land reform programme.

"We will comply with our commitments to such international agreements in
full. Through the programme, we don't touch any land bought for investment
purposes. That land remains protected by the Constitution," said Cde
Mangwana.

Cde Mangwana also explained that not every white person had land acquired
during the programme as there were still about 800 white farmers in the
country.

He said Zimbabwe was rich in natural resources such as gold, platinum,
chrome, coal deposits and natural gas besides good weather and good soils.

"Infrastructure is intact and, above all, there is peace and tranquillity.
Despite the challenges, we have soldiered on and we are pleased to receive
you as long-term friends who will help us to overcome our challenges," said
Cde Mangwana.

He said Zimbabwe had also undertaken successful military peacekeeping
operations in places such as Kosovo, Somalia, Rwanda, the Democratic
Republic of Congo and Mozambique.

The minister said Zimbabwe's relations with neighbouring countries were good
and the country had solidarity with them particularly through the Southern
Africa Development Community.

The Russian journalists are part of a 48-member delegation that arrived in
the country on Sunday for bilateral meetings to implement investment
proposals between Zimbabwe and Russia.

The week-long visit will also see the Russian journalists engaging in
exchange programmes with their Zimbabwean counterparts.

The delegation comprises 31 businesspeople and the 17 journalists from
Russian newspapers, television and radio stations.

Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Dr Gideon Gono has been to Russia on two
occasions.

He has, however, chosen to be discreet about the details of his visits,
making announcements only at the conclusion of agreements.

Meanwhile, the journalists visited Zimpapers Group's Harare premises to get
an insight into the operations of the company.

Zimpapers Harare branch general manager Mr Walter Chipwaya and other senior
managers took the delegation through the different departments at the branch
and explained the various stages of newspaper production up to printing when
the paper becomes ready for sale.

The Russians went on a conducted tour of The Herald, Sunday Mail, Kwayedza
and Travel Magazine departments to see how journalists at the newspapers and
magazine work.

After the tour, head of the Russian delegation Mr Michael Sakolov expressed
satisfaction with the extent of Press freedom in the country.

"We are happy to see that in Zimbabwe you have real freedom of the press
because views of the Government and the opposition are both catered for so
that people can get information from both sides," he said.

He said it also showed that the situation in the country was normal and
people got true information about issues of concern to them.

Some members of the delegation also toured the Zimbabwe Broadcasting
Holdings' Pockets Hill studios.

Zimbabwe power giant gets funding for refurbishment

People's Daily

      The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has put in place a funding package of 30
million U.S. dollars for major refurbishment of Hwange Power Station, the
country's power giant, the official The Herald reported on Wednesday.

      Zimbabwe Power Company Managing Director Norbet Matarutse said the
power station is one of the projects to receive such priority under the
National Economic Development Priority Program.

      In addition to the central bank, the company was also looking at other
investors in the region. "We are also pursuing power purchase agreement
financing with other utilities in the region alongside funding from the
central bank. Negotiations are currently in progress on this issue,"
Matarutse said.

      The power station has not been operating at full capacity due to coal
shortages, plant breakdowns among other operational constraints.

      Coal shortages have also made three small thermal power stations lying
idle for a long time.

      Source: Xinhua

Zimbabwe journalists face 'propoganda' probe

Mail and Guardian

      Fanuel Jongwe | Harare, Zimbabwe

      04 October 2006 10:17

            Zimbabwean authorities have once again locked horns with the
country's independent media after a state watchdog accused the journalists'
union of disseminating propaganda against Robert Mugabe's regime.

            The latest complaint was filed against the Zimbabwe Union of
Journalists days after a case against an independent radio station was
thrown out by a court in Harare last week.

            "We were given a set of documents by the MIC [Media and
Information Commission] chairman accompanied by a letter expressing what he
read to be political overtones to what ZUJ is doing and we are reading the
documents to ascertain their authenticity," said information ministry
permanent secretary George Charamba.

            "ZUJ has been trying to reach us to forge a good working
relationship. It would be a sad day if what the MIC chairman is saying turns
out to be true."

            The journalists' union dismissed the complaint, saying it
appeared to be yet another step in what it charges is a concerted campaign
to silence reporters.

            The Zimbabwe government passed tough media laws in early 2002
which have been invoked to expel foreign correspondents and muzzle the
country's once-vibrant independent press.

            Although charges against the Voice of the People (VOP)
independent radio station for operating without a license were dismissed
last week, few independent media outlets are managing to operate.

            "As a union we have never been party to an anti-government lobby
as [MIC chairperson Tafataona] Mahoso wants the world to believe," said the
union's secretary general Foster Dongozi.

            "After killing off Daily News, the Daily News on Sunday, the
Tribune and the Weekly Times, Mahoso is now targetting the ZUJ and any other
organisations working for a free press."

            The four independent newspapers were all shut down by the
commission for alleged breaches of the media laws.

            In his letter to the information ministry, Mahoso claimed that
the union was actively working to discredit the government of President
Mugabe who has been in power since Zimbabwe's independence in 1980.

            "There is need for further investigation of the leaders of this
organisation," said Mahoso.

            "ZUJ is part and parcel of the anti-Zimbabwe lobby. We have
confidential information that ZUJ uses threats of donor sanctions to silence
journalists and editors questioning its stance," according to the letter
which was published in the state-controlled Sunday Mail.

            Police were also investigating Nunurai Jena, ZUJ's provincial
secretary in Mashonaland West Province, on allegations of stringing for the
United States government-funded Voice of America, the paper said.

            The regime in Washington has been particularly outspoken in its
criticism of the Mugabe government, with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
describing Zimbabwe as an "outpost of tyranny".

            Following the closure of the independent publications, the only
dailies still in circulation are the state-run Herald and Bulawayo-based
Chronicle as well as the privately-owned Daily Mirror which has close links
to the government.

            In addition, Zimbabwe has four radio stations and one television
station which are all controlled by the government. - Sapa-AFP

Saudi Arabian Firm Eyes Investment in Kariba

The Herald (Harare)

October 4, 2006
Posted to the web October 4, 2006

Zvamaida Murwira
Victoria Falls

THE Government's Look East Policy is bearing fruit amid revelations that a
Saudi Arabian company is eyeing investment in Kariba and Gonarezhou national
parks.

Rani Resorts, an Asian company which already has interests in mining,
tourism, and wildlife in Zimbabwe, has shown interest in investing in the
two national parks.

The company owns Stanley and Livingstone Hotel in Victoria Falls and is part
of Victoria Falls Game Reserve.

The Government gave the company custody of four rhinos last weekend.

A local director of the company, Mr Tirivanhu Mudariki, told The Herald that
a feasibility study was already underway to see how it could invest in
Kariba and Gonarezhou national parks.

"This is a clear indication that the Look East Policy initiated by the
Government is bearing fruit and once all the modalities have been worked
upon, necessary announcements would be made," said Mr Mudariki, who is
former Member of Parliament for Harare East.

Chairman of Rani Resorts Mr Adel Aujan, who flew into the country at the
weekend, said his company was not only committed to tourism but to
conservation of wildlife as well and would do all it can to assist Zimbabwe
emerge out of the current challenges.

"We view wildlife conservation as an investment in the resources of the
country so that future generations can share in the natural resources that
should remain part and parcel of everybody's life," said Mr Aujan, at the
official handover of the four rhinos over the weekend in the resort town.

The company has already made substantial investment in effort and money into
the Victoria Falls private game reserve by way of introducing various
species of animals like eland, sable, zebra, giraffe and wildebeest, among
others, said Mr Aujan. With the assistance of the Government, he said, they
looked forward to introducing roan antelope and nyala into their private
reserve.

"What does this mean for us? It means we are committed and we are optimistic
about tourism in Zimbabwe. This is why we continue to invest in the
country," he said.

Department of Immigration Hit By Fuel Shortage

The Herald (Harare)

October 4, 2006
Posted to the web October 4, 2006

Harare

A CRITICAL shortage of fuel has hit the Department of Immigration and
effectively crippled its operations at the various border posts.

Some border posts have gone for more than a week without fuel and officers
were reportedly failing to patrol border posts and travel to some airports
to clear arriving and leaving tourists.

The department has to clear travellers at the country's small airports such
as the Grand Reef in Mutare, Gweru, Beitbridge and Masvingo.

In Plumtree, immigration officials are failing to get to Tsesebe Railway
Station, 30km away, to clear people travelling by train before they get to
the border post.

The arrangement is meant to ease congestion at the Plumtree Border Post.

Chief Immigration Officer, Mr Elasto Mugwadi, yesterday confirmed there was
no fuel at all border posts, adding that the department had been
experiencing erratic supplies since the beginning of the year.

"The situation is critical and if we do not patrol our border posts we could
see an influx of cases of smuggling and human trafficking," Mr Mugwadi said.

He said the department is being under-funded and now owes the CMED Private
Limited $20 million for fuel, mileage and vehicle maintenance.

"In the last budget we were given $2 billion in old currency, which lasted
us two months and for the last supplementary budget we were given $6 million
and by then we had owed CMED $10 million. We paid them the whole amount and
were left with a $4 million balance," Mr Mugwadi said.

He said they have since been receiving services from CMED on a credit term
basis.

"We need to clear our debt with CMED and have since written to the treasury
requesting that they bail us out with something around $50 million."

Mr Mugwadi said border posts that include Plumtree, Beitbridge, Victoria
Falls, Kanyemba and Maitengwe in Plumtree were hardest hit while immigration
offices in Gweru and Masvingo had no vehicles to use for their operations,
which include investigations.

The deputy chairperson for Tourism Image and Communication, Mrs Margaret
Sangarwe, said her taskforce has had several meetings with all departments
operating from the border posts.

"Issues pertaining to shortages of vehicles were raised by the police and we
made arrangements that vehicles impounded by Zimra be used for activities at
the posts.

"Immigration department has not informed the taskforce of their problems
with fuel and being the most important sector in terms of providing security
to the country, we could have approached the resource mobilisation taskforce
for an urgent solution," Mrs Sangarwe said.

She said the taskforce was going to pursue the issue of fuel to see what
could be done urgently.

However, Mr Mugwadi said weaning off the department from being a Government
entity to an authority would be a good option that could enable the
department to deal with various operational challenges.

The department is currently hit by staff shortages particularly at the
Victoria Falls border post.

Lack of computerisation has also been cited as one of the key reasons why
fraudulent activities involving tampering with documents was on the
increase.

Mr Mugwadi blamed poor remuneration for the exodus of graduates employed by
the department in the last two years.

A Zimra office orderly gets more than $80 000 while a senior immigration
officer gets $25 000.

Mr Mugwadi said on average, various border posts net foreign currency of up
to US$5 000 a day except for Victoria Falls, which is a favourite for
tourists and gets not less than US$15 000.

Police raid The Zimbabwean newspaper distributor

      By Tererai Karimakwenda
      4 October 2006

      In what observers have described as continued harassment of government
critics, state agents this week raided the Harare office of the distributor
of The Zimbabwean newspaper. The UK-based publisher of the paper Wilf Mbanga
told us four detectives from the Law and Order section of the police visited
the premises of the distributor asking questions about the paper and how it
is brought into the country from South Africa. Mbanga said they also wanted
to know whether duty had been paid. The detectives took away documents
pertaining to this information. Mbanga stressed that his organisation has
done nothing wrong and will not be intimidated by these tactics.

      The government has intensified the campaign against its critics in
recent months as civic, religious, political and student groups have united
to pressure the government for a new constitution and free and fair
elections. There have also been several demonstrations organized by some of
the targeted organizations, including Combined Harare Residents Association
(CHRA) and the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) whose offices were
raided by police last week. There has also been the threat of mass protests
as the economy continues to deteriorate.

      A story in last week's edition of The Zimbabwean seems to have been
the focus of the police raid. Mbanga said although they did not specify
which article they were concerned with, they asked many questions about last
week's front page story, headlined "ZNA top brass slam corrupt ZRP". The
piece exposed the tensions between the army and the police following the
arrest of former army Colonel Muvhuti for alleged corruption at the Grain
Marketing Board. Mbanga explained that they detailed the corruption and must
have raised eyebrows among top chefs in the government. He said the
intimidation only serves to expose the government further and strengthen his
resolve to tell the truth.

      State agents also descended on the offices of the Zimbabwe Congress of
Trade Unions over the past week following protests organized by the umbrella
labour group. Offices of the Combined Harare Residents Association were also
raided following several protests by residents who dumped raw sewage at
their local district offices in Budiriro and other high density suburbs of
Harare. The connection between active criticism of the government and police
harassment has become glaringly obvious.

      SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news

Statement from Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe

Statement from Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) relating to the
recent meeting in Kariba between officials of the Government of Zimbabwe and
CBOs
      Dated: 4th October

      In an effort to help open up spaces in which civil society can tackle
government about the deteriorating human rights situation in Zimbabwe, the
Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) supported the recent UNDP meeting in
Kariba between government representatives and CBOs, on one condition that it
not be used as a vehicle for the setting up of a National Human Rights
Commission. At this stage, it is not another puppet commission that we need
but a commitment by government to desist from brutalising its population, to
uphold the rule of law and to foster an all-inclusive human-rights culture
in Zimbabwe.

      GALZ, alongside many other groups, feels that, given its track record,
government cannot be trusted to come to the table in good faith. In this
regard, GALZ raised the question about whether government might set
preconditions and question the presence of gay and lesbian people in the CBO
delegation. On the day before the meeting, we had our question answered:
government objected to the presence of GALZ.

      GALZ, along with many other human rights groups, declined to attend
the Kariba meeting, unconvinced that government would not try to use it as a
rubberstamping exercise for its commission. But whether or not GALZ decided
to participate, government had no right to question our presence in the CBO
delegation. Gay and lesbian people are one of the most stigmatised groups in
Zimbabwe and it is about time that government started to address our issues
in a positive manner.

      Keith Goddard
      Director (GALZ)

SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news