The Zimbabwe Situation

Grace Kwinjeh: Thank-you.

Violet: Now Grace, before we start I just wanted to play for you and also for our listeners an interview that I did with Kembo Mohadi, Monday evening. I asked him to comment about the attacks that are taking place in Zimbabwe right now and this is what happened.

Kembo Mohadi: Hello

Violet: Hello, Minister Mohadi?

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Yes

Violet: Hello Minister, my name is Violet; I’m calling from SW Radio Africa

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Where?

Violet: From SW Radio Africa

Minister Kembo Mohadi: What can I do for you Madam?

Violet: Minster I wanted to find out from you or to get a comment from you about the allegations from the MDC that a lot of their activists are getting arrested and tortured in custody. And, as the Home Affairs Minister, I wanted to find out or to get your comment on this.

Minister Kembo Mohadi: No we don’t arrest anybody and torture people here in Zimbabwe . We arrest criminals and even if they are terrorist criminals we don’t torture them. The law takes its own course, if someone has got a case to answer he goes to Court and he is convicted. Those allegations are false.

Violet: But Minister Mohadi these MDC leaders and activists have actually appeared in Court covered in blood. So how can you explain this?

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Ah no, when was that?

Violet: How can you explain this?

Minister Kembo Mohadi: When was that? When was that? When did they appear in Court covered in blood? That is a wrong statement. When was it?

Violet: The MDC…

Minister Kembo Mohadi: did you see them covered in blood?

Violet: Morgan Tsvangirai…

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Did you see them covered in blood?

Violet: MorganTsvangirai appeared on TV

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Ah no

Violet: He was seen on TV

Minister Kembo Mohadi: He was not even covered in blood. That’s a lie. You come to Zimbabwe and witness this for yourself and don’t be talking about things that you don’t know. And we don’t ban people from coming to Zimbabwe . Why do you have to listen to CNN and Sky News and BBC? Come to Zimbabwe and see for yourself and report correctly.

Violet: But Minister Mohadi you know that….

Sound of the phone line going dead

Violet: Hello? Hello? And we lost connection with the Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi, but I called him back and this is what happened.

Violet: Minister we must have got cut off?

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Yes, I said come to Zimbabwe and report correctly man! We are bombed by the MDC, they are involved in terrorist activities and you don’t report about that! We’ve got a lot of them in custody, we’ve got a lot of them that are going on trial and have been remanded by our Courts. And they are possessing arms of war and you don’t report about that. I say come to Zimbabwe and see for yourself man! We don’t ban you from coming. You come to Zimbabwe you can see it for yourself other than to report from hearsay. I don’t want to be talking to people that get these things from hearsay.

Violet: But that’s why I’m talking to you direct so that we can hear it from you

Minister Kembo Mohadi: No, no, no, you are talking to me directly over the phone. Come to Zimbabwe and report correctly!

Violet: But you know that SW Radio Africa is banned in Zimbabwe ?

Minister Kembo Mohadi: What ban? You come to me, I’m the Minister of Home Affairs and say you want to come and report then you, you you will cover the story that you want, other than talking. I don’t want to be talking to you about rumours please; please can you please leave it alone

Violet: But that’s why I’m talking to you

Minister Kembo Mohadi: No, no, no, can you please leave me alone. There’s nothing like that. I’ve told you that everything is false so what else do you want?

Violet: You have said that journalists can come to Zimbabwe , but how many journalists have been arrested?

Kembo Mohadi: Yeah why don’t you come to Zimbabwe if you, you know who has been arrested?

Violet: Wasn’t there a journalist Gift Phiri, an independent journalist who was arrested last week?

Kembo Mohadi: Who is that? Who has been arrested?

Violet: Gift Phiri is a journalist that’s actually at the Avenues Clinic right now

Kembo Mohadi: Ya but you come to Zimbabwe

Violet: Receiving treatment after he was brutalised by the police

Kembo Mohadi: No you’ve got to, if you come to Zimbabwe you’ve got to register, you’ve got to report that you are a journalist, you are accredited. Don’t just come and report when you are not accredited. Whether you are a freelance or what you get accredited man. We are a sovereign country here. You can’t just come and do things as if you are on a picnic.

Violet: So are you saying…?

Minis ter Kembo Mohadi: We must know what; we must know that you are in Zimbabwe and that you are reporting for that and that paper.

Violet: Minister Mohadi: there are several journalists who…

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Rumour spreader, why do you, why, why ….

Violet: There are several journalists who have been assaulted

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Now there is no journalist that is in jail here in Zimbabwe, can you come tomorrow, fly tomorrow and then phone me, phone me on Wednesday because tomorrow I’m in Cabinet and fly in and come and identify a journalist that is in prison here or that is…

Violet: Gift Phiri is one journalist

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Ya you come and show me. There is no one of that sort, that is…

Violet: He was released just a few days ago

Minister Kembo Mohadi: No, no, that’s not true, that’s not true, that’s not true. That’s not true.

Violet: So what is the truth?

Minster Kembo Mohadi: No, there is nothing. I’m saying that’s all false, we don’t...

Violet: What about Edward Chikomba the ZBC cameraman who was murdered last week?

Minister Kembo Mohadi: He was murdered by who? Was he murdered by the police?

Violet: But is your government investigating to find out who…

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Was he murdered by the police?

Violet : He was abducted in the same way that several opposition activists have been abducted

Minister Kembo Mohadi : Was he… Abducted by who? By who?

Violet: By members of the state security agency

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Abducted by who? Who? Oh no, can you tell me that? Can you come and

Violet: So is your government going to investigate to find…

Minister Kembo Mohadi: No come and look, ah please can you, if you don’t want to talk to me stop giving me false accusations, ah please OK?

Violet: Minister do you understand that…

Minister Kembo Mohadi: No, no, no I don’t want to talk to you

Violet: Minister do you understand that Zimbabweans are frustrated with their daily struggles right now?

Minister Kembo Mohadi: Hey! Hey Hey Hey! Shut up!

Sound of the phone line going dead

Violet: But as a Minister, how can you even say that?

Sound of the phone line going dead again

Violet: And the Minister hung up again for the second time and when I tried to call him for the third time he would not pick up his phone. Now Grace, can you comment on this?

Grace Kwinjeh: I think it’s such a tragedy for our country to have politicians of such a calibre. Politicians who do not think they have to be made accountable for their actions. Politicians who take journalists or the media for granted, who take the listeners of SW Radio Africa for granted. I think it’s really sad but that is part of the whole problem we have in Zimbabwe now, of a ZANU PF leadership that does not think that it has to account to anybody; its own people, the region, or the broader international community. So everything they do is with impunity.

Violet: Right, now before we go to your experience or what happened to you, Minister Kembo Mohadi said that there are no journalists that are currently in detention and I gave him an example of Gift Phiri who was detained last week and he was tortured and he actually received treatment in a hospital in Harare . And then, is it not a fact that there is another journalist, Luke Tamborinyoka who is now the MDC’s Media and Information Officer who is currently in detention right now?

Grace Kwinjeh: Yes, apart from Luke I can tell you that when we were arrested on the 11 th March we had two journalists with us. We had you know the photo journalist Tsvangirai Mukwazhi and another Reuters journalist who were tortured for the specific reason that they were journalists. There was nothing else, their torturers identified them as journalists who were taking pictures, who were reporting, and tortured them for that. So the brutal assaults on them, which I saw, which I witnessed, are something that you know I think it’s laughable for the Home Affairs Minister to deny that exists. We know journalists are being hunted, haunted in Zimbabwe . We know that they are being tortured and we know that they are being killed.

Violet: And then also coming to Opposition officials and activists who are being arrested and tortured right now. Now you are one of them, one of the Opposition officials that was arrested just recently. Can you tell us what happened to you after you were arrested because the Minister denies that Opposition officials and activists were tortured in custody?

Grace Kwinjeh: We were tortured at Machipisa police station in the fence outside the cells for about four hours by different members of the State Agents. There were CIO’s, there were officials from the Army, there were Riot Police and War Veterans. They all took turns to do whatever they could do to us, from beating us up with baton sticks to punches, to being danced on. Mrs Sekai Holland for instance had one official, a woman War Veteran, dance on her and call her ‘whore’ and all sorts of things. So it cannot be denied that we went through such a horrific experience in the hands of State Agents at Highfields Police Station. And, after that, I was also tortured in the cells and there are witnesses to this in full view of police officials by army officials. That was on the morning of the 12 th of March. And, the Officer who was in charge there at Braeside Police Station, his name is Makore. So again, that’s something real that happened and there are witnesses. And, apart from the witnesses, we have wounds, visible wounds that we are being treated for.

Violet: That’s what I wanted to find out from you

Grace Kwinjeh: Sekai Holland broke three ribs, broke an arm, broke a leg. I have internal head injuries, I have soft tissue injuries. And you know you saw Dr Lovemore Madhuku, you saw President Morgan Tsvangirai, Nelson Chamisa we know what happened to him, even after the 11 th March, what happened to him at Harare International Airport.

Violet: So in your case, what sort of treatment are you receiving? I understand you are in the same hospital with 64 year old Amai Holland, what treatment is she also receiving if you know?

Grace Kwinjeh: Well, a lot of treatment that includes a lot of therapy because what we went through this is really a nightmare and part of what we are receiving is therapy, de-briefing for us to get – to deal with the trauma. And, we are also receiving specialised treatment. For instance, for me it’s the internal head injuries. In Zimbabwe you know they could only scan that I had a swollen brain but did not have the right technology to deal with these. So here again there’s the right technology for them to deal with the head injuries and the dizziness that I’m suffering from. Mrs Holland has had two operations so far and she still can’t walk by the way. She is still bed ridden.

Violet: And in your article recently entitled the ‘Woman in Me’ you said you did not cry or beg for mercy and that none of the other victims on that day when you were arrested on the 11 th March cried or begged for mercy or denounced the Party or in any way tried to negotiate a way out of being brutalised. Now, was this position planned beforehand?

Grace Kwinjeh: Was this?

Violet: was this position planned beforehand that people would not cry and you know…?

Grace Kwinjeh: No, everyone was, didn’t know they would get tortured. You don’t plan torture, none of the people there knew or felt or even could foresaw that we could get tortured. The least we knew was that we would be arrested. The torture and the shock that came with that torture was amazing but not crying really was this just extraordinary strength that just overcomes you. I think it’s just something that comes from God you know because these people are really brutalising you, you know, they want to kill, you know the things that they are doing to you. But, it’s amazing that of the people who were there, the more than thirty of us, none of the people, everyone just withstood the pain because they would take turns around people, especially around the leadership. If they call up Sekai Holland then they are beating her non stop, then Lovemore Madhuku, Grace Kwinjeh, Morgan Tsvangirai and so on. But you know you just get an extraordinary strength from God. You know something just makes you look at evil in its eye, and you just look at it and bear it and of course they did beat us up like that.

Violet: What did they use when they were beating you and can you identify the attackers?

Grace Kwinjeh: Yes, I saw two of them in Court when we were in Court later on, on the 13 th March. But they were using all sorts of weapons. I was beaten up, for instance parts of my ear came off, they were using a metal bar about a metre long. You know, a metal bar on my head. That’s really attempted murder. And I couldn’t even see that part of my ear was off until much later when they were secretly transferring us from Machipisa to Harare Central Police Station. So I was bleeding from the head, and I thought it’s my head bleeding and then later I touched and I felt this thing sticking out of my ear and it turns out that part of my ear was off. So they were using all sorts of weapons even army belts and then kicks. You know the woman who danced on Sekai Holland was wearing these thick winter boots so you know this was something they had planned in advance. It’s hot in Zimbabwe right now, we’re in the height of summer and you know she’s in these thick, thick long winter boots, the ones you get in the United Kingdom with fur inside. And, she is dancing on Sekai, she danced on William Bango’s head. So

Violet : Did these people look like they were intoxicated because you can imagine Amai Sekai Holland is, as I said before, 64 years old, and you can tell that she’s a grandmother? Now you know when this woman, this other woman was dancing on top of her and beating her like this, did they look like people who were sober, you know, who really knew what they were doing?

Grace Kwinjeh: It’s not about them being sober but it’s about it, I think, representing the kind of ZANU PF politics that we have to deal with in Zimbabwe . The level of intolerance, the level of brutality when a regime or a political party is challenged. You know what, the kind of venom you get from ZANU PF politicians, what you got now from Kembo Mohadi, that event there just crystallised all that, just shows you what ZANU PF is and what it stands for.

Violet: And also Grace you wrote in your article, and I quote and you said ‘and so, as is the case too often in Opposition politics, the attack on us women was more on our sexuality’. Now what do you mean by this?

Grace Kwinjeh: Yes because it was about our bums, the colour of my hair and different things, being called whores and so on or the husbands, the colour of husbands we have chosen to marry, as in the case of Sekai Holland. But none of the male colleagues were assaulted or insulted in that way. For them it was really political, so if they were beating up Lovemore Madhuku it’s because he’s leading NCA demos and etc. So, the attack on women, you know, the way rape is used as a weapon. Look at what is happening to women in Sudan for instance. Look at what happens in war situations, the way rape has often been used as an instrument. It’sthe way you know the ZANU PF thugs were using our sexuality against us.

Violet: So do you believe that you were brutalised and treated in this way mainly because you are a woman?

Grace Kwinjeh : Yeah

Violet: I mean do you mean there’s a campaign of violence directed against women by the Mugabe regime.

Grace Kwinjeh: Yes. But then, that kind of violence when they call you whores and so on, is also characteristic you know of the misogynistic nature of our environment. The intolerance against women, especially women who come out in leadership or in the public sphere, women who are challenging certain things about the society. And the only way the male colleagues can deal with you is by calling you ‘whore’, then you are finished, you have to shut up. And, unfortunately that kind of politics is not in ZANU PF alone but you find it even in Opposition politics, you find it even with fellow male journalists, you find it everywhere. The only way to silence a woman is by calling her a ‘hure’ (whore) and on this day unfortunately it was in such a violent and brutal manner which was really terrible.

Violet: And you know, in a way violence against women goes against our culture and what boys are taught by their parents. Now, it may sound like a repetition but do you believe that the Mugabe regime has to use particular people like psychopaths or youths high on drink and drugs to commit acts of violence against women in this particular case?

Grace Kwinjeh: Yes, I think for them to perpetrate that kind of violence they have to be intoxicated by something and you could see after the four hours the heart beating. You could see later on at Harare Central Police Station for instance when some of them started to sober up, you could see that they were really afraid of what they had done. And that’s the unfortunate bit of it, that they are used at that moment and once that really – I feel sorry for the youth, the 16 year olds, 18 year olds, 20 year old youth who are involved in the militia who are given drugs and they carry out these acts of violence, these unlawful acts of violence and then later on they have to face the consequences.

Violet: So what was going through your mind when this was happening?

Grace Kwinjeh: Nothing. You just look at them. Nothing you know, nothing happens, you freeze, everything in you freezes temporarily. And for me, I was tortured on that day and then later on they came to torture me again in the cells. Nothing happens. You know, it’s one of those moments that you just stop thinking and look at evil, like I said.

Violet: Now you have made enormous sacrifices, both physical and material, leaving your young family to fight for change in Zimbabwe . Do you wish now that you had taken an easier path?

Grace Kwinjeh: No, not at all, not at all. I think the struggle continues and I think many of the comrades who are in the struggle, many of the comrades I was told that those who are in remand who have been denied bail are actually in high spirits. There’s something about it Violet, when you are there Violet and you are feeling it and going through it, there’s something about it that just gives you enormous strength and that just tells you that God is on your side. And so, I don’t regret it at all, I think that it’s really my fate or my destiny, I had to go, that’s why I had to go back to Zimbabwe, I had to be part of the leadership at this phase of our political history. And I think it’s an important phase because it’s going to lead us somewhere and I think that’s why the regime is panicking.

Violet: And just before you left for South Africa with Mai Sekai Holland you had been released, you know, to a hospital under Riot Police guard and then you were arrested again whilst trying to leave the country to go for urgent medical treatment in South Africa . How do you interpret the actions of the government then and were you very afraid when you were being denied that chance or that right to leave the country for treatment?

Grace Kwinjeh: Yeah it’s scary, it’s really scary. What they did is, we were in a MARS Ambulance, so they actually let us get all the way to the airport and it was at the airport that they turned us back. First we had stopped at Harare Central Police station where our lawyers were talking to them trying to negotiate that we had to leave and that there were no charges against us. If you remember that the State could not present its case to the Magistrates’ Court so there were no charges, everybody was free. But then, we were told ‘no, that was not the case’ So we were brought back under police guard, we had to sleep with Riot Police in front of us with guns and having been tortured, you imagine that the people who tortured you are there in front of you and you are trying to sleep. So it’s a very nasty traumatic experience which I hope never to go through again in my life. So we had them on 24 hour guard from Sunday up to Wednesday. And then on Wednesday when we managed to get a Court Order that we could leave the country that is when they left and on Wednesday night we managed to sleep well.

Violet Gonda: And Grace what about the issue of the way forward? What are your views concerning the regional initiative to bring the political parties together?

Grace Kwinjeh: I think that’s good for the political parties together. In any war situation, time comes when the warring parties have to get together and come up with a settlement. But, what needs to be understood are the basis upon which those parties are coming together and what they have to come up with. We have had the experience of 2000, we’ve had the experience of 2002, we’ve had you know numerous experiences where ZANU PF will pretend to be doing something, you know to be negotiating in good faith and yet on the other hand they are in reverse gear to what’s being discussed or what is getting agreed upon. So, I think that this time round, and the use of violence as a negotiating tool, I think that is wrong. Because what Mugabe is doing now, he is saying OK I’m going to abduct, I’m going to arrest, I’m going to kill as many people so by the time these folks come and people come round the table you are negotiating and three journalists get killed, not five. You are negotiating that 15 journalists get arrested not 30 and negotiating that the Opposition be allowed to hold rallies under POSA when we know POSA is wrong. So what they are basically doing is raising the tempo so that at the end of the day whatever we get as Zimbabweans, we are so desperate that we say yes this is what we want. But that is wrong.

We want what is basic. We want internationally accepted norms and standards of democratic practice. We don’t want you know, mediocrity, the kind of mediocrity that we’ve been having in Zimbabwe since 2000. I’m here in South Africa ; they are enjoying certain things freely like that. There is an article, for instance, in one of the newspapers today; there is a woman who is complaining that she got her passport after six weeks. This is a passport after six weeks; the public is outraged. In Zimbabwe having a passport has now become a privilege. So we are saying in Zimbabwe we want to live well like in other countries in the region and other countries internationally. But butchering us into succumbing is really wrong and I hope that President Mbeki this time round realises that no, we have to have certain solid understanding of what we want to achieve. Otherwise, like the efforts in 2000 and 2002 nothing much is going to be achieved.

Violet Gonda: Thank you very much Grace Kwinjeh.

Grace Kwinjeh: Thank you

Audio interview can be heard on SW Radio Africa ’s Hot Seat programme (Tues 10 April 2007 ). Comments and feedback can be emailed to violet@swradioafrica.com

Publius Pundit Filed under: Africa

"The structures of sin [are] rooted in personal sin, and thus always linked to the concrete acts of individuals who introduce these structures, consolidate them and make them difficult to remove. And thus they grow stronger, spread, and become the source of other sins, and so influence people's behaviour."

Pope John Paul II wrote the above in 1987 on the cusp of the collapse of the Soviet Union. Western leaders of liberty Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher were driving home a campaign to hasten the evil empire's demise from abroad, but the Pope had something unique that they couldn't have hoped to match: a direct connection with the more than 90% of people who were professed Catholics. Besides the fact that he himself was Polish, the church itself could connect with people in a way that even the ideas of freedom coming from Western leaders never could. Religiosity can transcend borders, fear, and even death itself.

What matters most is that by the 1980s, Catholicism and the church's organizational structure had completely permeated Polish civil society. The Pope's message of resistance -- his identification of the inherent evil in the totalitarianism of the Soviet-sponsored state -- passed through the ears of the cardinals, from their mouths to the ears of the archbishops, and so on to the ears of the laity. For example, significant support had been given to the Solidarity movement, which was crucial to filling its ranks.

The Church was also instrumental in preaching non-violent struggle; using its organizational structure to ensure compliance with this tenet. Father Jerzy Popieluszko, the unofficial spiritual adviser to Solidarity who became a martyr following his murder by state security officers, constantly urged millions of believers not to be goaded into violence. Doing so would only recreate the same structures of inhumanity that they currently lived under, whereas mass non-violence would ensure a peaceful transition from oppression.

Do not struggle with violence. Violence is a sign of weakness. All those who cannot win through the heart try to conquer through violence. The most wonderful and durable struggles in history have been carried on by human thought. The most ignoble fights and most ephemeral successes are those of violence. An idea which needs rifles to survive dies of its own accord. An idea which is imposed by violence collapses under it. An idea capable of life wins without effort and is then followed by millions of people.

The fight against foreign communist occupation was one such wonderful and durable struggle, and it succeeded in transposing that regime with new, democratic one based on respect for human rights and dignity. This was able to occur precisely because of the doctrine of non-violence. Its adherence by both the leaders and people of the new Poland created a new structure from which opportunity and freedom could flow rather than corruption and destruction. An idea capable of life grew out of the people who had created the new structure.

Even the security services, whose very nature was based on the violent protection of the previous regime, would not fight the millions of countrymen, neighbors, and families who stood in their way. The price of participation had become too high, and it dissolved away.

In Zimbabwe, where President Mugabe has ruthlessly oppressed his own people, religiosity has begun to take on an increasing light in the social sphere. Whatever is left of civil society takes place very often in the sanctuary of the country's churches. With nearly a quarter of the population identifying with Roman Catholicism, and many more clamoring for spiritual leadership against oppression, the church is in a significant position to lead the people of Zimbabwe in their quest for freedom.

Church involvement in Zimbabwe has been going on for quite some time already. But as the country reaches the height of its crisis, its organizational outreach has also sought new levels.

Over the Easter holiday, the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops' Conference, which includes the nine archbishops and bishops of the country, released perhaps the most condemning pastoral letter since the struggle for independence. Titled, "God Hears The Cry Of The Oppressed", it was posted to congregation bulletin boards, distributed roundly, and read aloud all over Zimbabwe, with people scrambling to know its content. In the letter, the bishops call Mugabe's regime exactly what it is, using the same quote by Pope John Paul II above. Additionally, it relates the current struggle to another that all Zimbabweans know dearly: the one for independence.

Black Zimbabweans today fight for the same basic rights they fought for during the liberation struggle. It is the same conflict between those who possess power and wealth in abundance, and those who do not; between those who are determined to maintain their privileges of power and wealth at any cost, even at the cost of bloodshed, and those who demand their democratic rights and a share in the fruits of independence; between those who continue to benefit from the present system of inequality and injustice, because it favours them and enables them to maintain an exceptionally high standard of living, and those who go to bed hungry at night and wake up in the morning to another day without work and without income; between those who only know the language of violence and intimidation, and those who feel they have nothing more to lose because their Constitutional rights have been abrogated and their votes rigged. Many people in Zimbabwe are angry, and their anger is now erupting into open revolt in one township after another.

The people are growing in their revolt. Even the security forces, loyal to Mugabe only because of the paychecks, are torn in their actions. Underneath the oppressive regime is the development of an alternative structure to supersede it. This structure must continue to be nurtured and led, with a focus on mass non-violence, so that Mugabe's replacement does not follow his lead.

For this reason, the Catholic Church at the highest levels should become involved. Generally, it has yielded to protecting its flock, which at times has meant forgoing resistance under the threat of a severe crackdown. At other times, such as in Poland, it has resisted when its flock comes under the great pressure of totalitarian or atheistic ideas.

The time for that resistance is now. In his "Urbi et Orbi" Easter address, Pope Benedict XVI spoke all too briefly of the impending crisis: "Zimbabwe is in the grip of a grievous crisis and for this reason the Bishops of that country in a recent document indicated prayer and a shared commitment for the common good as the only way forward."

More can be done. The mantle of Pope John Paul II needs to be taken up. Pope Benedict is in the position to endorse the bishops of Zimbabwe, aid them, and speak to them and their congregation directly. He can fly in, preach resistance to a huge crowd in the middle of Harare, and even Mugabe wouldn't be able to touch him. (If he did, he'd really be in trouble).

The international community cannot be relied on, or trusted, to pressure Mugabe to leave power and dismantle his regime. Many countries driven by the ideology of freedom, such as the United States, simply do not have enough influence and organizational structure with the people of Zimbabwe. Other governments that are much closer and influential, such as South Africa, have proven that they do not feel the moral imperative to act on the behalf of simple human dignity alone; only proving that its leadership is of a similar kinship. Denying him would be denying themselves.

The considerable influence, not to mention moral and spiritual authority, of the Catholic Church and its leaders may be the only thing standing in the way of Mugabe. At this critical point in the country's history, these brave souls who are already in the thick of this struggle for freedom need all of the support and guidance that they can get. It is only right, indeed only moral, that the church's doctrine of resistance to oppression not lay solely on the square of the shoulders of the laity, but on those of pontiff as well.

There need not be martyrs, just the belief in the eternal righteousness of human liberty and the desire to see it made. In this, the church can help Zimbabwe save itself.

Comments

Sokwanele says:

This is an interesting article, Robert - especially the idea of this: "[Pope Benedict] can fly in, preach resistance to a huge crowd in the middle of Harare, and even Mugabe wouldn't be able to touch him." What a truly amazing day that would be!

The history of the Catholic Church in Zimbabwe under Mugabe is possibly more loaded than most realise.

In the early 1980s - a mere two years after Mugabe took power - the Catholic Church played a critical role in gathering testimony from victims tortured during the Gukuruhundi and from the relatives of the many murdered. As many as 20,000 CIVILIANS were killed in Mugabe's post-independence political purge. When you think that the figure believed to have died during the civil war leading to Independence was around 30,000, an additional 20,000 civilian deaths at the hands of a liberation 'hero' after independence is breathtaking.

One of Mugabe's biggest critics - definitely hist most outspoken bluntest critic - is the Catholic Archbishop Pius Ncube. He recently said he was ready to face bullets if necessary to remove Mugabe from power. A fearless, incredible man.

During the Gukuruhundi, curfews and movement restrictions were placed over the areas where the 5 Brigade operated so many people didn't know what was going on. The Catholic Church, through priests, mission staff and doctors locked within the curfew boundaries of rural Matabeleland, were caught up witnessing and recording some of the most barbaric crimes ever committed against Zimbabweans. They recorded events, noted troop numbers and movements, and did what they could to protect people and bring an end to the atrocities. Given the level of isolation and extreme sadistic cruelty, I am in awe of what these decent people tried to do for ordinary people.

The brutality was carried out by a special section of the army, 5 Brigade, directly answerable to Robert Mugabe and whose training , by the North Koreans, was organised BEFORE Mugabe took office (he knew what he was going to do).

A report into the atrocities was written jointly between the 'Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace' and the 'Legal Resources Foundation'. It's called 'Breaking the Silence" and it was published in 1997. A full version was recently made available on the web via David Coltart's website here.

http://davidcoltart.com/archive/1997/159

I would encourage anyone who wants to understand exactly what kind of man Robert Mugabe is to read this report.

I'm going to post a link back to your article via the comments section of our blog.

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10 dead in Zim bus crash

IOL

April 11 2007 at 06:55PM

Harare - At least 10 people were killed and around a dozen injured on
Wednesday when a bus overturned in southern Zimbabwe, state television
reported.

A police spokesperson told the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation that
six people died on the spot while four others died on the way to hospital
after the accident in in the Mashonaland east province.

Survivors said the bus was heading to the capital from the border town
of Beitbridge when it veered off the road and overturned outside the town of
Featherstone, 65 kilometres (40 miles) south of Harare.

Other passengers said the bus, which was carrying mostly cross-border
traders, was overloaded.- Sapa-AFP

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Zimbabwean Government Taxed Over Levying Duties in Hard Currency

VOA

      By Carole Gombakomba
      Washington
      10 April 2007

A new regulation issued by the Zimbabwean government requiring import duties
on vehicles and other luxury goods to be paid in hard currency is drawing
criticism.

Experts say it runs counter to the national constitution which says the
Zimbabwe dollar is legal tender for all purposes. Economists say the new
rule, which took effect Friday, signals government desperation to bolster
official foreign exchange receipts.

Economist Godfrey Kanyenze of the Labor and Economic Development Research
Institute in Harare said the government needs to devalue its currency again,
noting that it is ironic for Harare to trumpet its sovereignty when it
demands that local taxes be paid in British pounds, U.S. dollars or South
African rand.

Economist John Robertson told Studio reporter Carole Gombakomba of VOA's
Studio 7 for Zimbabwe that Harare has penalized itself with an unrealistic
exchange rate.

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Zimbabwe Ruling Party Could Foil South African Mediation, Analysts Caution

VOA

      By Ndimyake Mwakalyelye
      Washington
      10 April 2007

In the two weeks following the Southern African Development Community summit
that appointed South African President Thabo Mbeki mediator of the Zimbabwe
crisis, the headlines have been dominated by news of the Harare government's
crackdown on political and civic opponents rather than peace overtures and
discussions.

Many analysts express skepticism as to Mr. Mbeki's chances of success based
on the results to date of his approach of "quiet diplomacy" with President
Robert Mugabe, but say they intend to give the South African leader the
benefit of the doubt - for now.

One argument in favor of more decisive action by Mr. Mbeki, they say, is
that the crisis in Zimbabwe has become a more apparent liability for South
Africa, which has seen a key export market shrivel while a wave of
Zimbabwean emigrants floods south.

But analysts warn that Mr. Mbeki could face many pitfalls in dealing with
Harare and Mr. Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF party which is loath to relinquish
power, and that if he fails it is likely be because of a lack of commitment
by the ZANU-PF leadership.

Despite reports that top figures in the ruling party were anxious to see Mr.
Mugabe step down, ZANU-PF endorsed him as its presidential candidate in
March 2008.

Reporter Ndimyake Mwakalyele of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe sought the views
of two Zimbabwe-watchers about the possible outcomes to Mr. Mbeki's
mediation: Glen Mpani, a student of democratic governance at the University
of Capetown, South Africa, and Brian Kagoro, a Nairobi-based human rights
lawyer and activist.

Mpani said Mr. Mugabe and his party are likely to resist Mr. Mbeki's
mediation.

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SA doctors plead for Zimbabwean opposition

Business Day

11 April 2007

Chantelle Benjamin

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

SOUTH African doctors have called on President Robert Mugabe's government to
stop human rights abuses and intimidation of doctors in Zimbabwe, following
reports of medical staff being prevented from treating injured opposition
members.

Their message came as Catholic bishops in Zimbabwe took the unprecedented
step of using their annual Easter message to urge Mugabe to end oppression
and leave office through democratic reform or face a mass revolt.

The plight of doctors and nurses struggling to survive on their salaries
amid growing inflation and a lack of medical supplies has been highlighted,
but doctors recently reported that they were being prevented from treating
citizens regarded as "politically unacceptable" by the Zimbabwean
government.

This emerged during recent attacks on members of the opposition Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC) in which about 600 people were injured.

The South African Medical Association (Sama) said in a statement that
"doctors must be allowed to ... practise medicine without the fear of
violence".

"The allegations relating to denial of access to health care are serious
since this is a fundamental human right and entitlement of every person,"
said Sama chairman Kgosi Letlape.

He urged Zimbabwe to uphold the United Nations Charter and the Universal
Declaration on Human Rights, to which the country is a signatory.

The Catholic church also joined the chorus of voices calling for an end to
the violence in Zimbabwe, where several thousand people gathered in Harare
alone to attend Mass on Sunday.

The majority of Zimbabwe's Christians - including Mugabe - are Catholics.

The bishops' letter, which was entitled "God hears the cries of the
oppressed", said: "Many people in Zimbabwe are angry, and their anger is now
erupting into open revolt in one township after another.

"In order to avoid further bloodshed and avert a mass uprising, the nation
needs a new people-driven constitution that will guide a democratic
leadership chosen in free and fair elections." With Sapa-AP

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Zim gets maize boost from Malawi

iafrica.com

Wed, 11 Apr 2007

Malawi, swamped with surplus maize from two bumper harvests, will export
400&nbsp000 tonnes of the staple to cash-strapped Zimbabwe, the head of the
state-run strategic maize reserve agency said on Wednesday.

"Malawi has had two good years of bumper maize harvest and is in surplus of
about 1.1 million tonnes," Nasinuku Saukila, general manager of the National
Food Reserve Agency (NFRA) told AFP.

"Zimbabwe has been shopping around for maize. We will be exporting 400 mega
tonnes of maize following a demand from that country.

"The general picture in the region is that there is a problem and there is
demand for our maize and we will export on first come first served basis,"
the NFRA chief said.

Saukila said maize exports this year would give "local farmers and traders a
steady market for their surplus maize."

Millions of Malawians depend on maize for their food needs, which is grown
on small plots.

"Maize traders were looking for a market and if we buy from them, it will
have a multiplier effect as rural farmers are also likely to benefit,"
Saukila said.

The poor southeastern African nation, which annually needs two million
tonnes to feed its 12 million people, had a maize surplus of 500&nbsp000
tonnes last year and is set for a bumper harvest in 2007 of three million
tons, a 22 percent increase.

Good rains to thank for surplusl
The surplus is due to subsidised fertiliser and prolonged periods of
rainfall, agriculture experts say.

Malawi, where food security is a pressing issue with about 60 percent of the
people living below the poverty line, met its food needs for the first time
in seven years in 2006 with a harvest of 2.2 million tonnes.

Famine threatened up to five million people in 2005 following drought and
the government spent over $100-million to import more than 400&nbsp000
tonnes of food to avert hunger.

Zimbabwe, once the breadbasket of the region, recently announced it would
need to import hundreds of thousands of tonnes of maize.

Harare blames the shortfall on lengthy drought but critics say its
agricultural policy, including depriving hundreds of white commercial
farmers of their land, is largely at fault.

AFP

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Imports keep Zimbabwe inflation hot

Business Report

April 11, 2007

Harare - Zimbabwe's annual rate of inflation was expected to touch the 2 000
percent mark when the latest figures are released by the central statistical
office on Wednesday.

Inflation has been on a roller-coaster ride since December 2004 when it shot
up to 622.8 percent and now stands at 1 729.9 percent - the highest rate in
the world.

Victor Zirebgwa, an economist with the financial thinktank Techfin Financial
Research, said all indications were that the upward spiral would continue.

"We expect inflation to be between 1 900 - 2 115 percent," Zirebgwa told
AFP.

"The pressure is coming from imported inflation because most of the basic
goods we use in the country are imported.

"The importation of goods has a negative bearing because most of the money
used to buy these goods is sourced from the black market."

The IMF has warned that inflation could end this year at over 4 000 percent.

Central bank governor Gideon Gono last month compared Zimbabwe's inflation
rate to the AIDS pandemic and warned it cannot be tackled by government
alone. - AFP

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Zim Aids drug prices soar in financial crisis

Zimbabwejournalists.com

11th Apr 2007 17:31 GMT

By Ian Nhuka

BULAWAYO - The price of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) in Zimbabwe has almost
quadrupled in the past three months, it has been learnt. The cycle of
increases was pushing the life-prolonging drugs beyond the reach of many
ordinary people.

Resultantly, scores of patients are dying since they can no longer
afford to buy the life-prolonging drugs, said Benjamin Mazhindu, head of the
Zimbabwe Network for People Living with HIV and AIDS (ZNNP+). In January, a
month's course of ARVs cost around Z$80 000, but a Zimbabwejournalists.com
survey conducted yesterday revealed that the drugs now cost a staggering
Z$300 000.

Interviewed yesterday, Mazhindu painted a bleak state of affairs for
the country's estimated 1,8 million HIV positive people. Although he could
not disclose figures, he said, "it was common cause that a good number of
our members are dying since they cannot continue taking their drugs because
of high prices."

Noting that the majority of his organisation's members are out of work
because of ill health and as such lack money to buy the drugs, he made an
impassioned appeal for government to scale up treatment and for employers to
provide the therapy to their workers.

"Like I said, it is not a secret that the country is losing scores of
people who could otherwise have been productive if the drugs were cheaper.
My appeal to the government and employers is for them to work out mechanisms
to provide workers with the drugs, because as it is they are not beyond the
reach of many of them," said Mazhindu.

Of the 1,8 million people living with HIV and AIDS in the country, only
about 65 000 are provided with subsidised ARVs by the Government. This means
that about 1, 73 million have no option but to buy the costly medication,
rely on handouts from non-governmantal organisations or simply go without
it, literally marking time. Foregoing the medication or stopping it
mid-stream is very common in the country as people's incomes continue to be
eroded by soaring inflation.

An average worker earns about Z$400 000 per month. However, the prevailing
economic crisis, manifesting itself in the world's highest inflation of 1
700 percent and blamed on President Robert Mugabe's ruinous policies, has
made health services inaccessible to the majority poor.

"Only a few us of are accessing drugs from public health institutions.
That coupled with the high prices of the drugs at pharmacies means just a
few of us have access to treatment," said Mazhindu, who spends Z$600 000 on
ARVs per month. In January, pharmacists in Bulawayo raised the price of ARVs
from an average of Z$30,000 to about Z$80,000, saying the review was an
inevitable response to the country's economic woes, which has seen inflation
surge to more
than 1, 700 percent, and foreign currency shortage bite.

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Hitschmann's Application for Bail Thrown Out Again

The Herald (Harare)

April 11, 2007
Posted to the web April 11, 2007

Harare

FOR the fifth time, former Rhodesian soldier Peter Michael Hitschmann's bid
to have his freedom back failed at the High Court after his application for
bail was thrown out.

Hitschmann had sought bail pending trial arguing that there were changed
circumstances to warrant the court to release him after his trial failed to
resume in Mutare during the just ended High Court session.

But Justice Alfas Chitakunye on Thursday last week found no merit in the
argument by Hitschmann's lawyer Advocate Eric Matinenga and dismissed the
application.

Making his ruling, Justice Chitakunye accepted the prosecution's contention
that Hitschmann, who is currently on trial, was not suitable for bail saying
were he granted bail, he could abscond in view of the strong evidence
against him.

Hitschmann is on trial for allegedly keeping dangerous weapons and
attempting to assassinate President Mugabe and other Zanu-PF officials in
Mutare.

He was arrested in Mutare together with four MDC members and four serving
police officers following the discovery of an arms cache on his premises.

The prosecution, however, dropped charges against the police officers and
the MDC members but said the case could still be pursued by way of summons.

At the time his trial was adjourned last year, the High Court -- on circuit
in Mutare -- advised Hitschmann's lawyer to apply for bail if the trial
failed to resume during the first term of the High Court session which began
in January.

However, the term ended last Thursday without continuation of the trial,
prompting Hitschmann to make a fresh bail application.

The trial is now expected to resume in July during the second term of the
High Court circuit for Mutare.

Ms Fortune Kachidza of the Attorney General's Office appeared for the State.

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Crisis in Zimbabwe

OhMyNews

      [Analysis] As situation deteriorates, is there a solution?

      Ambrose Musiyiwa

     Published 2007-04-11 12:05 (KST)

International Monetary Fund (IMF) Deputy Director Siddharth Tiwari described
the state of the economy in Zimbabwe as "tragic" and "grim."

"It has faced three, four, five, six years of continuous output decline, a
rise [in] prices at these rates over several years, increase in poverty, a
decrease in public services, increasing HIV/AIDS rates. It is a tragic
situation, frankly, and prospects are grim; they are not bright," he said.

The prospects are so grim that nearly a third of the country's 12 million
people have fled, some to escape the poverty and others to escape the way in
which President Robert Mugabe's regime deals with dissent. Since coming to
power in 1980, the regime has routinely destroyed or appropriated political
opponents' homes and possessions and "redistributed" them to ZANU PF
officials and supporters. Dissidents risk losing lives, homes and
livelihoods.

Operation Murambatsvina, the government's controversial urban slum clearance
program, created over half a million internally displaced persons and
destroyed the livelihoods of close to 10 percent of the population. Eighty
percent of the country's population is unemployed. The IMF estimates that
the rate of inflation, which currently stands at over 1,700 percent, could
reach an unprecedented 4,000 percent this year. The average life expectancy
in the country has dropped to 37, possibly the lowest in the world.

The infrastructure is crumbling. Basic food commodities, transport, foreign
currency, fuel and power are in short supply. Water treatment plants break
down frequently and outbreaks of cholera in urban areas are claiming many
lives every year. Nearly a quarter of the population is dependent on food
aid in order to survive.

These concerns have led to waves of industrial action, political
demonstrations and protest marches. If it is not college and university
students, it is women's rights groups, the constitutional reform movement,
trade unions, or one or both factions of the main opposition political
party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) who are taking to the
streets.

Each wave of protests is dealt with ruthlessly. It starts with public
threats of violence by senior government officials and the deployment of the
country's secret police, the Central Intelligence Organisation, to harass
organizers, civic leaders and political opponents in an attempt to instill
fear, to prevent the planning of protests, and to stop planned protests from
going ahead.

On numerous occasions activists like Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe
(PTUZ) Secretary General, Raymond Majongwe, have been harassed and severely
assaulted by the police for organizing peaceful protests. Others -- like
civil rights activist and Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) national
coordinator Jenni Williams -- have been told by the country's security
agents that they will pay with their lives if they continue organizing and
taking part in demonstrations and protests. Some activists, like University
of Zimbabwe student leader Christopher Giwa, have died in accidents
involving military personnel, prompting speculation that their deaths were
nothing short of political assassinations. No public inquiries into their
deaths were ever held.

The free hand and impunity with which security agents harass, detain and
torture ordinary citizens, trade unionists, civil rights activists and
members of opposition political parties is not the only problem. The
Government has introduced a battery of repressive legislation such as the
Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) of 2002 and the
Interception of Communications Bill of 2006, which is expected to be passed
shortly, in an attempt to curtail citizens' rights to organize, express
their grievances or protest against the way in which they are being
governed.

Critics of the regime have to contend with being placed under constant
surveillance by the country's security agencies. They also risk being placed
under a travel ban: in 2005, the country introduced laws allowing government
agencies to withdraw passports from people who threaten the country's
national interests and security. People on the government list whose
passports are to be withdrawn include opposition political party officials
Paul Themba Nyathi and Grace Kwinjeh; human rights lawyers Beatrice Mtetwa
and Gabriel Shumba; and journalists Geoff Nyarota, Nqobile Nyathi, Lloyd
Mudiwa, Basildon Peta and Caroline Gombakomba.

However, in spite of bans on demonstration and political rallies and in
spite of the repressive laws and the heavy-handedness with which security
agents deal with dissent, industrial action and protest marches are going to
continue until a solution is found to the crisis in Zimbabwe.

Lord Hamilton of Epsom recently asked, "If it is right to invade Iraq to get
rid of the tyrant Saddam Hussein, who was making life hell for the citizens
of Iraq, why is it not right to invade Zimbabwe to get rid of the tyrant
Mugabe?"

Such a move would be unfortunate.

It would only serve to make the situation worse for the ordinary man, woman,
and child in Zimbabwe and would further undermine the democratic process in
the country. It would give credence to Robert Mugabe, who accuses the MDC
leadership of being puppets of the West and who has repeatedly said that the
crisis in Zimbabwe is because of efforts by Britain and the U.S. to
overthrow his government. As has happened with Saddam Hussein in Iraq,
invading Zimbabwe to get rid of Mugabe would turn him into a martyr and
would lead to the unnecessary deaths of innocent and unarmed civilians.

The solution to the crisis rests with the people of Zimbabwe.

For a number of years now, independent newspaper publisher Trevor Ncube has
been calling for a "third way" -- sentiments that have been echoed recently
by the International Crisis Group in its March 2007 report, "Zimbabwe: An
End to the Stalemate?."

In an interview with Chipo Chinembiri (Institute for War and Peace
Reporting, Dec. 13, 2005), Ncube said, "We should find the middle ground --
that is, we should find the good people in Zanu PF and good people in the
MDC. We should find good people from across the board to speed up our
nation's aspirations. Let's start afresh."

It remains to be seen whether this third way will be found any time soon.

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Back to Index

Zimbabwe inflation data postponed "indefinitely"

MDC says hundreds of activists abducted in crackdown

Mugabe, churches set for fresh confrontation

Tandare family under siege

MDC reports arrests of Bulawayo activists

Interview: Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi & Opposition Official Grace Kwinjeh

Press Freedom Falls Prey to Arrests And Torture

Living under "Operation Go to Sleep"

Peace movement backs day of action for Zimbabwe

Zim to get SADC rescue package - report

African family must face up to its fools

Mbeki must condemn state violence

The Catholic Church Can Save Zimbabwe

10 dead in Zim bus crash

Zimbabwean Government Taxed Over Levying Duties in Hard Currency

Zimbabwe Ruling Party Could Foil South African Mediation, Analysts Caution

SA doctors plead for Zimbabwean opposition

Zim gets maize boost from Malawi

Imports keep Zimbabwe inflation hot

Zim Aids drug prices soar in financial crisis

Hitschmann's Application for Bail Thrown Out Again

Crisis in Zimbabwe