Children denied food in Mugabe election reprisal
By Jane Flanagan in
Johannesburg
(Filed: 14/04/2002)
THE children of destitute
opposition supporters in Zimbabwe are being
refused food aid in the latest
round of reprisals after Robert Mugabe's
disputed election victory last
month.
Pro-government thugs are driving children from feeding centres
in
drought-hit areas because their parents are suspected of supporting
the
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).
Shari Eppel, the director of
the Amani Trust, a civil-rights group, said:
"International food donors are
setting up feeding centres aimed at destitute
families but once the donors
have moved on, the bullies move in and decide
who gets fed and who
doesn't."
Bennie Tumbare-Mutasa, an MDC MP in the mainly
government-supporting
Mberengwa East province, said many constituents have
told him they were
being denied maize. "They say the maize is being sold at
war veterans'
bases, and they're being told to ask their friends in Britain
for food."
Children of MDC supporters are also being denied medical
treatment at
clinics in areas controlled by the ruling Zanu-PF party,
according to civil
rights groups, while "enemy" pupils are being banned from
school. The Amani
Trust is treating a three-month-old boy who was beaten
because his mother
was an MDC supporter. The baby was denied treatment at a
local clinic. "This
is part of a pattern," said Ms Eppel.
More than
600,000 people in southern Zimbabwe are suffering from the
country's worst
drought since 1992. The maize crop has been devastated by
lack of rain and
the effects of illegal land invasions. Shops have not
stocked basic
commodities, such as maize meal, cooking oil and sugar,
for
months.
The only food supplies available in rural areas are
deliveries from the
government's Grain Marketing Board and are often hijacked
by Mugabe
supporters.
Those suspected of supporting the MDC are banned
from buying supplies, said
Wellington Murisa, the MDC administrator for
Chitungwiza province. "They are
even barring whole villages from buying
maize. Even those homes with only
one distant relative who supported the MDC
are being denied food," he said.
The distribution programme run by the
World Food Programme (WFP) is also
vulnerable.
Renson Gasela, the
MDC's agriculture spokesman, said: "WFP officials assured
me that the
programme will not be politicised. But when the organisations go
to
distribute food, everything will appear normal, but on the ground,
our
supporters are starving."
Article
(On behalf of the Commercial Farmers Union)
Danbury Farm -
Mazoe, Mashonaland Central
Danbury Farm owned by the Bayley family is just
30 kilometers from central
Harare. The hilly farm normally has 350 hectares
of seed maize; soya beans
and runs beef cattle. The farm is under a
compulsory notice of acquisition
but the owners are due to argue their case
in administrative court.
The homestead comprises of three homes. The
residents are Thomas Bayley (89
yrs), his wife Bobs (Edith) 79 yrs, Mr and
Mrs Tommy Bayley junior and
tenant who live in another house. Before the
problems began, there were
eighty workers employed on the farm and most
lived there with their
families.
Mrs Bobs Bayley is very shaky with
Parkinson's disease whilst Mr Bayley
senior, walks with a frame and needs
assistance following a hip replacement
operation 2 years ago. They have
been kept isolated from the others as
their house falls under a war
veteran's allocated territory and he is
extremely militant. Members of the
youth militia are on perpetual guard
around their house and only their
cook/assistant is allowed daily access to
them
The young Bayley's
had hitherto been allowed to come and go but the elderly
couple have
remained in the home for the last 32 days. They are fast
becoming a symbol
of determination to the farming community due to their
refusal to leave
their home of 70 years. They came to Mazoe in 1936 from
the United Kingdom
and built up their farm from virgin bush.
Today, the young Bayley couple
had left the farm to assist their tenant to
move due to their eviction by
the war veterans. When they returned to the
farm, early this afternoon they
were refused entry into their homestead.
Police have been called but should
they not be permitted entry the elderly
couple will now be left completely
isolated with only the cook on hand.
Here is a précis of events on
Danbury Farm since the arrival of the 'war
veterans' and their youth
militia. These accounts come from Tommy and Trish
Bayley. It is unfortunate
that the Zimbabwe Republic Police seem unable to
remove the war veterans and
their militia from the farm. Comments made to
the Bayleys by the war
veterans and Police officers have led the Bayleys to
believe that some 'big
shot' wants their farm.
A comment from Jenni Williams, CFU Media
Consultant:
"I realise that this is a lengthy document but I have sent it
relatively
unedited as it best depicts the chaotic experiences farmers
endure on a
daily basis. I am often asked why farmers are not voluntarily
leaving their
farms. I respond by explaining the unique bond between a
farmer and the
land. A bond built over years of carving virgin land into a
thriving
enterprise - a source of pride and livelihood for many a
Zimbabwean. I
could not just walk away from my home of 15
years."
The account begins on Wednesday 13 March 2002.
A gang of
'war veterans', led by David Gendi and Lazarus Mupedzesi (alias
Chenjerai),
beat up the workshop foreman and his two brothers with steel
bars and chains
in order to extract keys to the workshop, tool cupboards
and
diesel
tanks. The workers sustained bruising.
The incident was reported to the
police who were taken to the scene by farm
owner Tommy Bayley, as they did
not have transport. Upon arrival, the
perpetrators were found in the Seed
Maize field, stealing Seed Maize. The
police asked them to return the keys,
but they refused. No arrests were
made.
FRIDAY 15TH MARCH
2002
At approx 4.00 pm two pickup trucks and a car arrived at Danbury
Farm
homestead, cut the chain off the gate and gained access into the
yard.
They
were followed, on foot, by a crowd of about 40
people.
They lit a fire on the lawn near the elderly Bayley's back door
and another
next to the gate and proceeded to create a lot of noise that
sounded as if
property was being damaged. At about 6.00 pm the police
arrived and
escorted Tommy to inspect the yard. Nothing had been damaged or
stolen. On
he way out, the "war veterans" started to group around Tommy and
he asked
the Police to escort him to his house. They agreed, but as they
reached the
gate
they found the war veterans had locked it with their own
lock. A youth
pushed Tommy to one side whereupon he was grabbed by Gendi
and six others
who tried to throw him into the nearby fire. At that point
the police came
to Tommy's rescue. He sustained a burnt leg.
The
workforce were forced into the yard and made to sing and beat drums for
most
of the night, as well come forward and state their grievances against
the
farm owners.
SATURDAY 16th MARCH 2002
Throughout the night the
workers were being told by Gendi to collect their
gratuities and leave. The
war veterans went to the nearby cottage, broke a
window and stole about zd$6
000 of beer and groceries from the tenant's
fridge.
A police Assistant
Inspector came in the late afternoon, but felt he needed
to consult his
superiors before he did anything.
SUNDAY 17 MARCH 2002
The
intimidation continued. The police went to the homestead to charge
Tommy of
being in possession of an antique set of traffic lights. Tommy
is
a
collector and restorer of steel wheel tractors, wagons, carts and
any other
such artifacts, so had acquired the traffic lights legitimately
from the
City of Harare scrap heap in 1988.
The police wanted Tommy
to accompany them, in their vehicle, with some of
the war veterans, to the
police station. Tommy told them he needed time to
find the receipt issued
when he had purchased the traffic lights, so they
agreed he could follow
them.
On legal advised from his lawyer Tommy was to request a
further
postponement. Police responded to this request by issuing an
ultimatum - he
was to go to the Police Station in 8 minutes or they would
come and get
him.
(The police station is a half hour drive away). Still
fearing for unjust
treatment, Tommy wrote a statement, which was handed over
to them by a
neighbour. Reluctantly they agreed that Tommy could do his
warned and
cautioned statement the following day in the presence of his
lawyer.
MONDAY 18 MARCH 2002
When Tommy tried to leave to go to the
police station, the "war veterans"
had barricaded all the exits to his
house. The Inspector from Marlborough
Police Station arrived at the yard.
He insisted that Tommy should go to
the
yard to speak to the war
veterans.
Tommy went over to the yard in the truck with his wife Trish
and two year
old daughter. Fortunately, the inspector was able to control
the "war
veterans". He told them that Tommy and his family should have free
access
to their houses and the workshop area, however he said it was not up
to him
to get the war veterans out of the yard and suggested that he, the
war
veterans and Tommy go to see the Director of Resettlement in the
Ministry
of
Agriculture, which they did.
The director told them
that everyone should work together and co-operate
and
that the Bayley's
would not get the war veterans off the farm even if they
(the Bayleys) won
an appeal against the acquisition of the farm in the
courts!
Sunday
24 March 2002
The tenant from the cottage below Tommy's house asked
permission from the
"war veterans" to visit the elderly
Bayleys.
They agreed but limited her to a half hour. As she walked in,
the war
veterans started banging their drums and demanded she dance. She
ignored
this, but was clearly unnerved by the experience. This lady is a
recent
cancer victim, currently undergoing chemotherapy.
Monday 25
March 2002
Late on Monday morning, Propol (Provincial Police)
Superintendent
Tanyanyiwa went to the farm and spoke with the "war
veterans", and both the
Bayley couples. They assured the elderly Bayleys
that it would be safe for
them to open their doors and walk in their garden
as well as have visitors.
However
the war veterans remained in the yard
and control the gate to the yard and
Tommy's parents' house.
The
police advised that there had been a misunderstanding with the pegging
of
the farm by Agritex, a government parastatal organisation
responsible
for
allocating plots on resettled farms. For some reason
someone's plot
incorporates part of the yard, so this person feels he is
entitled to be in
the yard (with his team of militia).
TUESDAY 26TH
MARCH 2002
One of the workers, who was beaten with chains and steel bars by
the "war
veterans" on 13 March, died. He was rushed into hospital last
weekend with
suspected Malaria. A post mortem was done and revealed he had
Pneumonia
and bruising in the brain, both of which the doctors linked
directly to the
beating.
There was another death last weekend. The
son of one of the workers had a
mental condition and every so often he would
go off into a world of his
own.
Probably due to stress, he hung
himself.
The District Administrator, three members of the local Lands
Committee and
the Inspector came to the farm to discuss the situation. They
advised the
"war veterans" to vacate the security fenced area and told the
Bayleys
again
that they must co-operate with them. However, the " war
vet" leadership of
the farm was not at the meeting and when they returned,
obviously decided
not to comply.
FRIDAY 29 MARCH 2002
A police
assistant inspector came out to assess the situation. Shortly
after, a Grain
Marketing Board (GMB) inspector came, with two police
details
to seize
most of the remaining maize stored from the 1999 season to feed
the
80
workers.
The war veterans demanded that Tommy's younger sister and her
family, who
live on the next farm, should leave their property.
Two
years earlier, they had been evicted and lived with the Bayleys for
three
and a half months before they were able to return to their farm. The
war
veterans had surrounded Tommy's brother in law and were prodding him
with a
pick handle. They were gloating about two murders on Tommy's farm.
These
people hit Tommy's brother in law over the head 18 months ago and
there was
every reason to believe they would do it again, so the family
evacuated the
farm.
Wednesday 3 April 2002
The Easter Weekend was fairly peaceful
(other than beating of the tom toms
most of each night, outside the elder
Bayley's windows). They were allowed
one visitor a day, each of whom was
limited to 20 or 30 minutes, and was
subjected to a body search and a car
search before entering the gate.
TUESDAY 2 APRIL 2002
Superintendent
Tanyanyiwa arranged for Support Unit to go to the farm to
arrest the people
who beat Simion Pilosi, who died of his injuries last
week. However, they
only arrested two of these people, and not the main
ringleaders. To date
these people are still walking free. The threat of
arrest has not deterred
them as they set upon and beat up another worker
for
walking in what they
call a "no go area", outside the security fence.
WEDNESDAY 3 APRIL
2002
The cruelty inflicted on the cattle by the war veterans is of
increasing
concern. One of the resident "war veterans" hacked the back leg
of a cow
with a machete several times when it strayed too close to his
looted seed
maize.
It is now three weeks since Tommy has been able
to dip his cattle, some of
who are loosing their ears to ear ticks. The
ticks cause an irritation,
the
cattle scratch their ears with their
hooves, and the ear ends up in shreds.
Once there is an open wound, which is
not treated, maggots get into the
wound, which results in huge
sores.
The small amount of Seed maize Tommy managed to plant is being
looted in
broad daylight. Large amounts are carried away in vehicles, some
is being
stashed in the houses of the workers who are in hiding or have
been
evicted,
and some comes to the yard to feed the mob there. Tommy is
a registered
seed maize grower of seed maize. The Seed Company has assisted
in informing
police of the numerous thefts of this vital crop, but no action
has been
taken.
A 30 tonne lorry arrived in the yard and, with the
assistance of the "war
veterans", helped themselves to a lorry load of maize
from the silo. It
was
only by following the lorry that Tommy managed to
ascertain it was destined
for the GMB, it took several phone calls to
confirm this.
Mrs Bayley senior, is a world authority on ferns and has
an extensive
collection of rare ferns, orchids and other exotic plants.
Last week a
woman on an Agritex motorbike was seen driving away with a
number of plants
in the box on the back of her bike. It is suspected these
were looted from
Mrs Bayley's collection.
An elderly neighbour, who
lives on his own, had to flee into Harare the
other night, because he was
tipped off that he was to be murdered that
night. A few days before the
same people had attempted to poison his dogs.
Fortunately the dogs did not
eat the meat they were offered. An alert
security guard recovered it, and
tests confirmed it was laced with poison.
Tommy's sister and family, who
managed to get back into their home on
Friday, after having been evicted
earlier that day, are now barricaded in
their house. Earlier, a mob of
about 20 people cut the chain off their
gate
and moved into their
yard.
Sunday 7 April 2002
It is now 23 days that the elder Bayleys
have been incarcerated in their
house with all the doors and windows locked
and the curtains drawn. They
have not been allowed visitors since 2nd
April.
For several weeks Mr. and Mrs. Blair, who live in the cottage
below the
house have been threatened with eviction, as has their cook.
Today, when
Mrs Blair, a cancer victim, currently undergoing Chemotherapy,
was on her
own, an aggressive mob came to her gate. They demanded she leave
the
property by noon tomorrow or they would kill her dogs and throw all
her
belongings onto the lawn and burn them.
Mr Blair stopped at
Marlborough Police Station on the way home and managed
to arrange for a
police vehicle to follow him home. The situation was
diffused when the
police instructed the "war veterans" and Mr Blair to
attend a meeting with
Propol next Tuesday morning. It was evident that the
"war veterans" had
been tipped off that the police were on their way to
the
farm.
Friday 12th April 2002 update
As at today, Friday 12th
April, Tommy Bayley's parents have been
incarcerated for exactly four weeks.
The situation has become more
difficult
for them because their cook /
assistant took his wife and belongings to his
rural home on Saturday,
promising to return the next day. He has yet to
return. He had been allowed
to take food to the elderly Bayley's. They are
now running out of
supplies.
Visitors were allowed in on Monday 8th April, two visitors
managed to get
in
because the police arrived at the same time. Once
again the police asked
the Bayleys why they were not walking in their garden
and told Tommy that
he
had free access to his parents. They do not
appear to see why one should
have a problem walking among those who have
recently committed murder and
who are permanently armed with catapults,
knobkerries, steel bars, clubs
and
long knives.
The same people
that take swipes at the little dogs when they are let out
for a run. One
dog has a wound the size of a dollar coin inflicted by a
stone propelled by
a catapult.
A neighbour tried to visit on Tuesday 9th April, but was
denied entry. He
tried again the following day and managed to bribe his way
in with beer and
cigarettes. Today, Friday 12 April, he was turned away and
subjected to
much verbal abuse.
The elder Mrs. Bayley is now
suffering from gout and needs medication
urgently, but when Tommy's sister
tried to get a police escort to take in
medicine and food, she was refused.
The police continue to claim that
there
is free access.
The
workers are also suffering constant harassment. As soon as the
elder
Bayley's cook removed his belongings from his house, it was occupied
and
the
new "owner" is carrying out renovations. A number of others have
been
evicted from their houses and on the night of Tuesday 9th April,
several
had
to spend the night in the bush after a mob went rampaging
through the
village.
The tenants in the cottage were called to a
meeting at the police station
on
Tuesday. The 'war veterans' insisted
that as this house is on their land,
and gave them two hours to vacate. The
police advised the tenants that they
could not protect them and recommended
that they comply. They managed to
negotiate their time to be extended until
the weekend.
It is with relief that we report that the cook/assistant
has returned and
has been permitted to continue to attend to the elderly
Bayley couple. We
also managed through the assistance of kind people to get
medication in
today.
End of account
13th April 2002
For
more information, please contact Jenni Williams
Mobile +263 11 213 885 or
+263 91 300 456
Email jennipr@mweb.co.zw or prnews@telconet.co.zw
A
Photograph of the Bayley's in happier times is available on request.
Zim Standard
Comment
When Mr Robert Mugabe was sworn in as the
first prime minister of
independent Zimbabwe on the night of 18 April 1980,
he was, to virtually all
Zimbabweans and to the outside world, a living
legend.
He was in the mould of Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther
King, and Nelson
Mandela, who was still imprisoned at the time. He appeared a
principled
liberator, a fighter for justice, peace, equal rights, and all
other causes
which made for a just society.
Next Thursday marks the
22nd anniversary of Zimbabwe's gaining independence
from colonial rule, and
this is an appropriate time to reflect on the
developments of the last two
decades, and to decide whether indeed there is
anything to celebrate. The
living legend of 1980 has become one of the most
reviled characters not only
in Zimbabwe, the African continent, but the
world over. He has reduced the
country to levels of starvation, brutality,
lawlessness, and international
isolation that no living person, whatever
their foresight, could ever have
imagined amid the celebrations and feasting
that was taking place on that
historic night.
What went wrong with Mugabe? Observers offer different
theories. The
political uprisings in Matabeleland in the early 1980s offered
the first
insight into Mugabe's true character, where, instead of seeking
dialogue
with his political foe, Joshua Nkomo and Zapu, he unleashed a
vicious army
brigade led by Perence Shiri to massacre thousands of rural
folk. This was
the indication of a man who brooked no threat to his hold on
power as he
consolidated his position. Since then it has been downhill all
the way.
Observers also point to the creation of the executive presidency
in 1987,
crafted by the-then minister of legal and parliamentary affairs, Dr
Eddison
Zvobgo. In fact it has been argued that this move was the most
negative and
dangerous development in post-independent Zimbabwe as it
virtually gave
Mugabe carte blanche to rule the country with impunity, and
the power to
overide any constitutional provisions. He became unaccountable
to anyone,
parliament included; as time progressed Mugabe became so removed
from the
generality of the people as he concentrated on firming his grip on
the
political handle at the expense of running the country.
Another
theory that has been advanced to explain Mugabe's deterioration was
the death
in 1992 of his closest confidante and wife of 30 years, Sally. She
was
generally ackowleged as a mature, honest, and solid character who was
able to
restrain Mugabe, to offer perspectives grounded on civilised human
values and
not on whimsical notions. It is said that Mugabe does not have
the benefit of
that advice now, as observers point to the poor character and
demeanour of
his youthful wife, Grace. Only in the run-up to last month's
presidential
election, Grace publicly used gutter language against the
opposition MDC and
its leaders as she campaigned for her embattled
husband-behaviour totally
unbecoming of a First Lady and which certainly
would have disgusted
Sally.
Mugabe has now surrounded himself with a host of opportunists
and
scatter-brains who have taken advantage of his vulnerability and who
can
offer no meaningful advice. Against the background of his waning
popularity,
they knowingly lie to him in order to ingratiate themselves and
secure their
positions. Mugabe is now clearly confused and
directionless.
The man who was once revered as one of Africa's shining stars
is now held in
such contempt not only for his economic and political
mismanagement of one
of the most promising countries on the continent, but
more for his vicious
brutality against the people. Many ordinary Zimbabweans,
wallowing in
poverty, hunger, and unemployment, have been heard to say they
wish they
were still under a colonial government, and that to them 18 April
is a day
of mourning, rather than of celebration.
So that is the sad
story of Zimbabwe that leads us to ask: Is there is
anything to feast about
on Thursday?
Zim Standard
Starvation gnaws Matabeleland
By John
Makura
BULAWAYO-Barely two months after President Robert Mugabe assured
the nation
that noone would starve, thousands of villages in Matabeleland's
two
provinces are going for days without meals, it has emerged.
The
situation is so bad that the World Food Programme (WFP) and other
non-
governmental organisations have quickly moved into the region to
avert
deaths of hapless villagers due to starvation.
The WFP, which has
pledged to help the starving villagers up to the next
harvest, is currently
distributing 6 000 tonnes of maize as drought relief
assistance in
Matabeleland South, at a cost of $6 million. The Catholic
Development
Commission has also started to provide porridge to feed primary
school
children in Nkayi, Plumtree, Kezi and Tsholotsho, where many hungry
children
have reportedly fainted at schools, raising fears that they may
succumb to
dangers associated with malnutrition.
Villagers say while they are receiving
help from these organisations, they
are not getting anything from the
government .
"The president assured us during the campaign period that we
would not
starve, but it is surprising he is nowhere to be seen now. If it
were not
for these non-governmental organisations, we would have starved to
death,"
said a headman who preferred not to be named.
At Tsholotsho growth
point, villagers told The Standard that after getting
meaningful votes from
the area, they had hoped that Mugabe would ensure that
they would not starve.
"We are all realising that this man should not be
trusted. He only comes to
us when he wants us to back him, otherwise we will
never see him again," said
a woman who had spent three days waiting for
maize.
Matabeleland, unlike
other regions in the country, experiences droughts on a
yearly basis, leaving
villagers to survive on maize bought from other areas,
and assistance from
donor agencies. This year the situation has been
critical since maize is in
short supply countrywide.
Zim Standard
Torture of MDC supporters continues unabated
By
Kumbirai Mafunda
INCIDENTS of torture continue to hound opposition
supporters with 205 cases
recorded within a week.
In its latest report
covering the period 25-31 March 2002, the Zimbabwe
Human Rights NGO Forum
said it was was worrying that incidents of torture
which started in early
2000 continued unabated, even after the country's
controversial presidential
election.
The 205 cases recorded in the six days under review brought the
total number
of such cases this year to 1 085.
Said the coalition of human
rights watchdogs: "It is thoroughly regrettable
that the abuses and political
violence which started as far back as just
before the constitutional
referendum in February 2000 are still continuing.
This is despite the
politicking call by the president for all to work
together.
"The
cumulative total cases of torture are alarming. There is evidence that
after
the elections Zanu PF supporters started a campaign of violence
against
supporters of the opposition with impunity. Notably in rural areas
and
commercial farms, this is accompanied by destruction of property and
cases of
theft, so as to force the owners of the land to flee."
The report said
torture bases used in the run up to the 9-11 March
presidential election were
still operational, with no sign of them being
dismantled.
"It will be
revealed that in most rural areas, a lot of supporters of the
opposition are
still being forcibly displaced. During such incidents the
abuse and violation
of human rights is being carried out with unspeakable
magnitude. It is really
unfortunate that ordinary people are the ones who
are suffering, yet those
who have sought political offices are unaffected.
"Despite most of the cases
being reported to the law enforcement agencies,
very few have resulted in
proper investigations and prosecutions as the war
veterans are behaving like
a law unto themselves," said the coalition of
NGOS.
Two
politically-motivated murders also occurred during the period under
review,
bringing the total cases to 51. Inaction and lack of professionalism
on the
part of the law enforcement agents was also noted in the six days,
with cases
of unlawful arrest and unlawful detention numbering 38 and 27
respectively.
This occurred as Zanu PF sought to quell any dissenting voices
in the
aftermath of the controversial presidential election which has been
condemned
as illegitimate and flawed by local and international observers.
The total
number of people unlawfully detained between 1 January and 31
March 2002 now
stands at a staggering 107, while 137 people have been
unlawfully
arrested.
Zim Standard
Zanu PF officials' wives worry over sanctions
By
Chengetai Zvauya
WHILE Zanu PF officials who have been included on the
list of persons banned
from travelling to the United States and western
Europe have dismissed the
personal sanctions as irrelevant, some of their
spouses are crying foul,
saying the move will adversely affect them and their
families.
The targeted sanctions affect Zanu PF officials, their spouses
and children,
and this is what has irked women who were interviewed by The
Standard.
The women said the move was particularly unfair as it would affect
their
children who are studying overseas. Most government ministers and
senior
Zanu PF officials have kids studying overseas. Last week Ijeoma
Dabengwa,
the daughter of Zanu PF politburo member, Dumiso Dabengwa, was
refused
re-entry into the US as she was returning there for a masters degree
in
business studies.
Tsitsi Sekeramai, the wife of the defence minister,
Sydney Sekeramai, told
The Standard she was worried about her children who
were going to be
affected by the travel ban. "It is only the children who
will be sacrificed
in the process. There is no justification to the whole
issue. However, it is
the powers that be who determine everything and we
cannot do anything about
it," said Mrs Sekeramai.
She was quick to add
that the travel ban would not affect her personally as
she normally travelled
within southern Africa only.
"I have never travelled abroad, hence these
sanctions will not affect me in
any way. If you check my passport you will
discover that I have travelled
regionally," she said.
Sharlotte Msipa,
wife of the Midlands governor and resident minister, Cephas
Msipa, said while
she did not know if her family had been put on the
sanctions list, she
nevertheless thought the move was unjustified.
"It's the order of the day and
we can't do anything about it. I do not know
whether the children will be
affected as well," she said.
Chipo Makoni, the wife of finance and economic
development minister, Dr
Simba Makoni, was quick to dismiss the sanctions as
she rarely travelled.
"It really does not affect me because I rarely travel
to those parts of the
world. I have not put myself to look at it or get
involved in it," she said.
The US slapped travel bans on Mugabe and officials
from his party and their
associates for their role in perpetrating crimes
against humanity in
Zimbabwe. Similar action has also been taken by the
European Union and
Switzerland.
Zim Standard
Zanu PF officials' wives worry over sanctions
By
Chengetai Zvauya
WHILE Zanu PF officials who have been included on the
list of persons banned
from travelling to the United States and western
Europe have dismissed the
personal sanctions as irrelevant, some of their
spouses are crying foul,
saying the move will adversely affect them and their
families.
The targeted sanctions affect Zanu PF officials, their spouses
and children,
and this is what has irked women who were interviewed by The
Standard.
The women said the move was particularly unfair as it would affect
their
children who are studying overseas. Most government ministers and
senior
Zanu PF officials have kids studying overseas. Last week Ijeoma
Dabengwa,
the daughter of Zanu PF politburo member, Dumiso Dabengwa, was
refused
re-entry into the US as she was returning there for a masters degree
in
business studies.
Tsitsi Sekeramai, the wife of the defence minister,
Sydney Sekeramai, told
The Standard she was worried about her children who
were going to be
affected by the travel ban. "It is only the children who
will be sacrificed
in the process. There is no justification to the whole
issue. However, it is
the powers that be who determine everything and we
cannot do anything about
it," said Mrs Sekeramai.
She was quick to add
that the travel ban would not affect her personally as
she normally travelled
within southern Africa only.
"I have never travelled abroad, hence these
sanctions will not affect me in
any way. If you check my passport you will
discover that I have travelled
regionally," she said.
Sharlotte Msipa,
wife of the Midlands governor and resident minister, Cephas
Msipa, said while
she did not know if her family had been put on the
sanctions list, she
nevertheless thought the move was unjustified.
"It's the order of the day and
we can't do anything about it. I do not know
whether the children will be
affected as well," she said.
Chipo Makoni, the wife of finance and economic
development minister, Dr
Simba Makoni, was quick to dismiss the sanctions as
she rarely travelled.
"It really does not affect me because I rarely travel
to those parts of the
world. I have not put myself to look at it or get
involved in it," she said.
The US slapped travel bans on Mugabe and officials
from his party and their
associates for their role in perpetrating crimes
against humanity in
Zimbabwe. Similar action has also been taken by the
European Union and
Switzerland.
Zim Standard
Zanu PF officials' wives worry over sanctions
By
Chengetai Zvauya
WHILE Zanu PF officials who have been included on the
list of persons banned
from travelling to the United States and western
Europe have dismissed the
personal sanctions as irrelevant, some of their
spouses are crying foul,
saying the move will adversely affect them and their
families.
The targeted sanctions affect Zanu PF officials, their spouses
and children,
and this is what has irked women who were interviewed by The
Standard.
The women said the move was particularly unfair as it would affect
their
children who are studying overseas. Most government ministers and
senior
Zanu PF officials have kids studying overseas. Last week Ijeoma
Dabengwa,
the daughter of Zanu PF politburo member, Dumiso Dabengwa, was
refused
re-entry into the US as she was returning there for a masters degree
in
business studies.
Tsitsi Sekeramai, the wife of the defence minister,
Sydney Sekeramai, told
The Standard she was worried about her children who
were going to be
affected by the travel ban. "It is only the children who
will be sacrificed
in the process. There is no justification to the whole
issue. However, it is
the powers that be who determine everything and we
cannot do anything about
it," said Mrs Sekeramai.
She was quick to add
that the travel ban would not affect her personally as
she normally travelled
within southern Africa only.
"I have never travelled abroad, hence these
sanctions will not affect me in
any way. If you check my passport you will
discover that I have travelled
regionally," she said.
Sharlotte Msipa,
wife of the Midlands governor and resident minister, Cephas
Msipa, said while
she did not know if her family had been put on the
sanctions list, she
nevertheless thought the move was unjustified.
"It's the order of the day and
we can't do anything about it. I do not know
whether the children will be
affected as well," she said.
Chipo Makoni, the wife of finance and economic
development minister, Dr
Simba Makoni, was quick to dismiss the sanctions as
she rarely travelled.
"It really does not affect me because I rarely travel
to those parts of the
world. I have not put myself to look at it or get
involved in it," she said.
The US slapped travel bans on Mugabe and officials
from his party and their
associates for their role in perpetrating crimes
against humanity in
Zimbabwe. Similar action has also been taken by the
European Union and
Switzerland.
Zim Standard
Engage the west, say banks
By Kumbirai
Mafunda
MOST of Zimbabwe's banks have slammed the government's skewed
macroeconomic
policies and its confrontation with multilateral funding
institutions and
international trading partners.
Commenting on their
recently released results, bank chairmen collectively
agreed on the need to
engage aid and lending institutions, and the
implementation of sound
macroeconomic policies in order to help the country
to rise from its economic
abyss.
"Zimbabwe's current economic status has been written and commented
upon the
world over. The consensus is that it is in bad shape for a variety
of
reasons and a turn around is necessary," said Commercial Bank of
Zimbabwe
(CBZ) chairman, Richard Wilde.
He said the turn around had to
centre on the foreign currency crisis and the
need to engage the
international financial markets and community.
In February last year,
government reduced interest rates from 70% to around
15% and this resulted in
flight of capital from the money market to the
stock market and other areas.
However, government has consistently defended
the low interest rates saying
it enables the productive sector to access
cheap funds and remain in
business.
Paddy Zhanda, the NMB chairman, said the formulation of a new
exchange rate
and of interest rate policies as well as the engagement of
lending
institutions, were essential for economic recovery. "In order to
steer the
economy back onto the recovery and growth path, the following
factors are
pertinent: formulation and implementation of exchange rate and
interest rate
policies, containment of money supply growth and the
re-establishment of
links with the IMF, World Bank and other multilateral
lending institutions,"
said Zhanda.
Although a Zanu PF member, Zhanda said
price controls would impact
negatively on investor confidence.
"The
inclusion of more products on the controlled price list will, if it
goes
unchecked, have an adverse impact on both local and foreign
investment," he
said.
However, Mugabe's government has consistently maintained a rigid
command
economy characterised by price controls which many say are
responsible for
the current food shortages.
First Bank Corporation
chairman, John Mkushi, said uncertainty surrounded
the resumption of ties
with donor agencies given the limited forex
available. "It is not certain
when foreign donors led by the IMF are likely
to resume any kind of dialogue
with Zimbabwe. Foreign investment will remain
low whilst domestic investment
is unlikely to be high given an average
savings rate of 10%," said
Mkushi.
Trust Bank Corporation chairman, Tichaendepi Masaya, lamented the
low
interest rate regime maintained in 2001 and the pegged exchange rate.
"The
low interest rate environment maintained throughout 2001, did, however,
put
some constraints on the level of savings in the economy as the upsurge
in
inflationary pressures effectively culminated in highly negative
real
returns to savers. Numerous submissions by industry representatives
to
authorities on the way forward do not appear to have been adopted,"
said
Masaya.
The country recorded an historic inflation level of over 115%
against a
background of erratic supplies of foreign currency, dwindling
foreign direct
investment and waning donor support in 2001.
Lack of
foreign credit lines, as well as an acute shortage of foreign
exchange, had a
severe impact on the income-generating capabilities of many
banks.
"It is
unfortunate that as I report, the prevailing macro-economic
and
sociopolitical conditions are not conducive for proper business planning
and
overall economic prosperity. The current problems cannot be wished
away.
There is need for all stake holders to pull together in the best
interest of
the economy. Added to this should be concerted efforts to
repair
international relations and the country's image abroad through
both
bilateral and multilateral engagement," Masaya said.
The donor
community, led by the IMF, withdrew its monetary support because
of a debt
which had been mounting since 1999.
President Mugabe was recently quoted as
saying that his new friends were now
the Libyans and that he would do away
with assistance from the west.
Last year, he took his begging bowl to
Thailand and Vietnam, but came back
empty-handed. He had even failed to meet
the Thai prime minister.
This week, his government announced a 10-point
economic plan which hinges on
the current land reform programme.
Simba
Makoni, the minister of finance and economic development, last year
came up
with a Millennium Economic Recovery Programme (MERP) which was
partly hailed
by economic analysts, but which never saw the light of day.
Instead, price
controls were introduced which led to doubts of government's
commitment to
its own recovery programmes.
Last week, sources within the banking industry
said they were all set to
begin consultations with the government on the low
interest rate policy
which has been largely seen as responsible for asset
price inflation and
other market distortions.
Zim Standard
What has Tony Blair to do with it?
Local Insight By
Chenjerai Hove
OFTEN, when Africans do not want to solve their problems,
they look for
someone whom they can blame for those
problems.
I am tired of hearing the former colonial powers being
blamed for everything
our governments have done badly. I actually think it is
old-fashioned
nonsense to think the former colonisers are about to invade us
again in huge
planes. It's high time we had a good inward look at ourselves
and admitted
honestly to what we have done wrong to ourselves.
As far as I
am concerned, Tony Blair did not order all those killings in
Zaka, Gutu,
Bikita, Gokwe and other such places. It was an African problem
caused by
African brutality, and Tony Blair had nothing to do with it.
Tony Blair
did not order Africans to strip people naked in front of school
children, to
rape women and to close down schools. It is a case of
uncontrolled African
brutality caused by our leaders' lack of vision for the
country.
Now
the country has no food-that has nothing to do with Tony Blair but
has
everything to do with the minister of agriculture. He lied to the
nation
after flying over the land, inspecting maize leaves from the air,
and
concluding that the amount of leaves he saw equalled the amount of food
we
have in our country. The British have nothing to do with that. Once in
a
while, we have to be honest with ourselves and point out our own
political
mistakes.
When elections happen in Britain, or any other
European country, not even a
chicken is killed for political reasons. But
when the same kind of elections
happen in Zimbabwe, many bizarre things
happen to innocent people-killings,
rape, torture, intimidation and sexual
abuse of innocent women. That has
nothing to do with Tony Blair and his
government. It has everything to do
with uncontrolled African brutality and
lack of commitment to the electorate
or the dignity of our
people.
When, for example, did Tony Blair instruct anyone to close
schools and abuse
teachers? Our government must accept responsibility for the
many abuses of
the past two years. And it was not Tony Blair who sent our
army to the DRC
to fight a war which we cannot even afford.
By the
way, the new laws which have been put in place are an insult to the
citizens
of our country. And it was not Tony Blair who sent anyone to write
bad laws
against the people of our country.
The people of Zimbabwe deserve much
more than the lies which we are
subjected to everyday. They need a leadership
with a long-term vision for
our destiny, not this incessant blaming of the
British for all our problems.
The current government has so abused our
constitution that it is beyond
recognition. How, for example, can a whole
government decide to make so many
laws against the freedoms of the people? As
far as I understand, the purpose
of government is to empower the people, not
to take away power from them. If
the people are all of a sudden told that
they can not criticise their own
president, who then should they blame for
the problems of the country? And
all this has nothing to do with Tony Blair
and his government. It has all to
do with the lack of conscience of our
current leadership.
All we need is a leadership with a vision for our
country, not an obsession
with power simply for the sake of power. By the
way, we all have a history
to account to in the not-so-distant future. Any
leader who abuses the people
must know that the future is not very far away
and the books of our past are
being written now. If we mess up our own future
and the future of our
children, Tony Blair will not appear in the history
books as part of our
problem-it is our current political leadership which
will appear in our
history of missed opportunities.
* Chenjerai Hove
is a renowned Zimbabwean writer.
Zim Standard
Crackdown at Libyan embassy
By Chengetai
Zvauya
THE Libyan embassy in Harare is desperate to plug leaks which have
been
releasing damaging information to The Standard.
According to
sources, a receptionist was fired last month after she was
suspected of
leaking out information about sexual allegations against Libyan
ambassador,
Mahmound Azzabi.
The Standard understands that another employee, who is a
Libyan, is also
facing the chop after being asked by the ambassador to write
a report
explaining how the press got wind of the sex scandal involving a
former
employee, Jane Mutasa. The employee, who works in the embassy's
security
department, had compiled a report on Mutasa's allegations against
Azzabi
after she was dismissed last year.
In January, The Standard
revealed that the ambassador was at the centre of a
sex scandal after he was
accused by Mutasa of forcing her to perform oral
sex with him in exchange for
money.
Following publication of the story, the ambassador was summoned to
Tripoli
to explain his case. But he failed to convince his boss, Muammar
Gaddafi,
compelling the Libyan strongman to second an official to Harare to
carry out
further investigations.
On his part, Azzabi is alleged to have
launched a crackdown to plug the
source of information leaks.
"The
ambassador suspects that some of his employees at the embassy are
providing
information to the press about the activities at the embassy. We
are even
afraid of receiving telephone calls and having visitors," said an
embassy
source.
"Since the story came out in the paper, the situation has become
tense and
we expect many people to be fired as the ambassador is now
suspecting
everyone."
The Standard failed to get a comment from Azzabi who
was said to be out of
the country.
Zim Standard
Kunonga travel ban hailed by Anglicans
By Trevor
Muhonde
CHURCH leaders and parishioners of the Anglican church have come
out in full
support of the travel ban imposed by the United States on
Harare's Anglican
bishop, Nolbert Kunonga.
The church leaders said by
his partisan stance, Kunonga had stepped away
from his role as a church
leader.
A fellow bishop within the Anglican church urged Kunonga to leave
office if
he was unable to stop diverting biblical sermons into political
ones.
"Of late he (Kunonga) hasn't been preaching, but urging people to grab
land
and I do not sympathise with him," said the bishop.
The former
vicar-general of the diocese, Reverend Tim Neill, told The
Standard on Friday
that he applauded the decision by the US government as it
could serve to rein
in Kunonga. "This should keep him quiet. Kunonga is a
disgrace to the church.
He should be brought to a tribunal as he has broken
the cannon laws through
his wedlock with the ruling party. It is an offence
under the laws to become
associated with a party which kills innocent
people. The laws of the church
should take due course," Neill said.
Father Petros Nyatsanza, who once served
in the diocese but left in protest,
also applauded the ban. "The mistake he
(Kunonga) made was so simple, it
could have been avoided. He became vocal
when he could have kept quiet. He
showed his foolishness by endorsing the
illegitimate polls which means he
won't stop his political marriage with the
ruling party," Nyatsanza told The
Standard.
A priest within the Anglican
church who declined to be named said: "The
action by the American government
was the right one. This man went overboard
by being patriotic to the ruling
party. He could have stayed out of trouble
if he had been impartial. Instead
of building bridges for peace, he was
destroying them."
A parishioner with
the church, Henry Chuchu, said the specification could
stop any possible
attempts by Kunonga to conduct Zanu PF business abroad.
"He was going against
the teachings of the church and if he had not been
specified, he might have
been used by his party to do business on their
behalf under the cover of
church business," said Chuchu from Chitungwiza's
St Monica parish.
Godfrey
Kakono, a parishioner with St Joseph's Church in Dzivarasekwa, had
this to
say on the issue: "He was fanning violence as if it was not
affecting his
church.The best thing for him to do is to resign from the
church and become
part and parcel of the party he loves," said Kakono.
Father Kenneth Makamure
of the Zimbabwe Catholics Bishop Conference said
Kunonga deserved the travel
ban because of his partisan stance.
"His comments in support of Mugabe are
not what we expect to hear from a man
of cloth but from politicians. He
betrayed his church by pursuing Zanu PF
politics ahead of church business,"
said Makamure.
The United States and the European Union recently slapped a
travel ban on
President Mugabe, his cabinet ministers and service chiefs and
their
immediate family members. The list, which is is constantly being
reviewed
now includes Zanu PF sympathisers like Kunonga.
Zim Standard
Tax breaks for tourism industry
By Paul
Nyakazeya
TO revive the once vibrant tourism industry, which has declined
by over 70%
since 2000, government has adopted new measures which include tax
rebates
for investors.
Speaking with The Standard on Thursday, the
minister of environment and
tourism, Francis Nhema, said the new incentives
had been presented to local
tourism companies and were already in full
swing.
Said Nhema: "Some of the the incentives include tax rebates, the
provision
of a reliable transport network and full marketing of our major
tourist
destinations such as Victoria Falls, the Eastern Highlands, Kariba
and
Gonarezhou."
Nhema said his ministry had appointed attachés for the
United States and
other European countries to ensure the success of the new
venture. "We are
taking a leaf out of the tourism recovery plan adopted in
2000. We have also
appointed attachés, who will represent the country well
where ever they go,"
Nhema said.
He attributed the current move to the
deep recession which has been
pervading the tourism industry since
2000.
General political instability has been cited as the major cause of
decline
in Zimbabwe's tourism industry.
"We believe that the tourism
industry will always be one of the country's
major foreign currency earners.
With the right attitude and combined effort,
the tourism industry will be
back on its feet again very soon," said Nhema.
Zim Standard
Tax breaks for tourism industry
By Paul
Nyakazeya
TO revive the once vibrant tourism industry, which has declined
by over 70%
since 2000, government has adopted new measures which include tax
rebates
for investors.
Speaking with The Standard on Thursday, the
minister of environment and
tourism, Francis Nhema, said the new incentives
had been presented to local
tourism companies and were already in full
swing.
Said Nhema: "Some of the the incentives include tax rebates, the
provision
of a reliable transport network and full marketing of our major
tourist
destinations such as Victoria Falls, the Eastern Highlands, Kariba
and
Gonarezhou."
Nhema said his ministry had appointed attachés for the
United States and
other European countries to ensure the success of the new
venture. "We are
taking a leaf out of the tourism recovery plan adopted in
2000. We have also
appointed attachés, who will represent the country well
where ever they go,"
Nhema said.
He attributed the current move to the
deep recession which has been
pervading the tourism industry since
2000.
General political instability has been cited as the major cause of
decline
in Zimbabwe's tourism industry.
"We believe that the tourism
industry will always be one of the country's
major foreign currency earners.
With the right attitude and combined effort,
the tourism industry will be
back on its feet again very soon," said Nhema.
Zim Standard
Chidyausiku blacklisted
By Chengetai
Zvauya
CHIEF Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku, who is widely believed to be
sympathetic
towards Zanu PF, has become the latest high profile official to
be included
on Washington's list of persons barred from the United States,
The Standard
has learnt.
The news of Chidyausiku's inclusion came
as the US widened the list of
affected individuals which now also includes
Elliot Manyika, the minister of
youth, gender and employment creation. His
exclusion from the initial list
had surprised many as Manyika leads the
notorious youth militia blamed for
gross human rights abuses during the run
up to last month's presidential
election controversially won by President
Mugabe.
But it is Chidyausiku's inclusion on the list of specified persons
that is
bound to send alarm bells to anyone connected to the ruling party
which has
been condemned internationally for crimes against humanity. The
chief
justice becomes the first member of the judiciary to be targeted
for
personal sanctions by the US and this stigma comes barely a year after
his
controversial promotion to head of the judiciary.
The chief justice
could, however, not be reached for comment. When The
Standard telephoned his
home yesterday, a woman who identified herself as
his wife said she would
call back if Chidyausiku had any comment to make on
the travel ban.
"He is
away, but you can leave your telephone number and I will phone you
back,"
said the woman.
Chidyausiku's catalogue of controversy dates back to 2000
when he was
appointed head of the highly partisan Constitutional Commission
which did an
extensive outreach programme and then unsuccessfully tried to
push through a
draft constitution which did not reflect the views of the
majority.
During the commission's tenure, Chidyausiku, who was then judge
president,
was involved in an embarrassing wrangle with fellow commissioner,
Gloria
Mukombachoto. After initially authorising a hefty payment for her
services,
he then rescinded his decision claiming that he had authorised the
payment
in "a moment of weakness".
As judge president, Chidyausiku had a
skirmish with the Supreme Court in
2001 when he tried to reverse the court's
ruling over a land issue involving
Samson Mhuriro.
Since his appointment
as chief justice, Chidyausiku has made a number of
controversial judgments in
favour of Zanu PF, including one which allowed
President Mugabe to override
an earlier Supreme Court ruling on the Harare
and Chitungwiza municipal and
mayoral polls. The court had ruled that the
polls be held in early February,
but Mugabe declared that the polls be run
concurrently with the presidential
election, a decree Chidyausiku allowed to
stand.
On the eve of the
presidential election, he also inexplicably postponed
indefinitely an urgent
application by the MDC which sought to stop the use
of the controversial
supplementary voters role in the elections.
The voters role, which is alleged
to have been secretly compiled to
accommodate Zanu PF supporters, comprised
about 400 000 names, a figure
similar to President Mugabe's winning margin in
the presidential poll.
The imposition of personal sanctions on Zimbabwean
officials was made
possible by the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery
Act 2001 signed
into law last December by President George W Bush, in
response to evidence
of human rights violations perpetrated on opposition
supporters by Zanu PF
thugs with the assistance of members of the security
forces and police.
The Standard understands that Washington is in the process
of informing
affected individuals through a letter from the State Department.
The letter
is signed by the US assistant secretary of state for African
affairs, Walter
Kansteiner.
Apart from the US, other countries to react to
the Mugabe regime's violation
of human rights include the 14-member European
Union and Switzerland, which
have all taken similar action. The Commonwealth
has reacted by suspending
Zimbabwe from its council meetings for a
year.
Zim Standard
ZBC's water supplies cut over debt
By Chengetai
Zvauya
THE ZBC's Mbare Studios went for 24 hours without water last week,
as the
newly elected Elias Mudzuri-led executive made good its promise to
clamp
down on defaulting Harare residents.
Supplies to the Mbare
studios were cut off at about 10am on Thursday and
restored on Friday after
the state-owned corporation had settled its $37 000
bill, sources at the ZBC
told The Standard.
Radio Zimbabwe, formerly Radio Two, operates from the
Mbare Studios under
the management of Alan Ndoro.
Employees spent the
whole of Thursday without water while ZBC managers made
frantic efforts to
have supplies restored, but the city fathers pledged to
restore the water
only after the bill had been settled.
Some elements, however, accused Mudzuri
of trying to 'fix' the ZBC for the
negative publicity it had been giving to
his party, the MDC. They claimed
that the mayor was just trying to show his
power, an allegation flatly
denied by Mudzuri.
"There is no politics here.
We want everybody to pay his dues to the
council, regardless of their
political belonging. Unfortunately, some people
want to politicise every
decision that I am making with my council," Mudzuri
told The Standard on
Friday night.
The mayor, who was installed amid pomp and fanfare on Friday,
said he would
be relentless in his pursuit of sacred cows formerly exempted
from paying
rates by the government-appointed Chanakira Commission which ran
the
council's affairs for over three years.
"We will have a special
council meeting to deliberate this debt issue
because the council is owed
millions of dollars by ratepayers," said
Mudzuri.
"Government is our
biggest debtor and we want them to pay up their bills."
The Zanu PF
government, which has surrendered the running of Harare to the
opposition MDC
after it was trounced in mayoral and municipal elections in
March, owes the
city council in excess of $300 million.
Mudzuri has promised to exhaust all
efforts to recover this huge debt.
Zim Standard
Stamps' return uncertain
By our own
Staff
UNCERTAINTY surrounds the return to duty of health and child
welfare
minister, Timothy Stamps, who is still recovering from a stroke he
suffered
last year.
While government sources told The Standard that the
minister's doctors had
ruled out his return to government duties, his wife,
Cindy, insisted that he
was still awaiting clearance from his
doctor.
"He is not fully fit, but there are signs that he is
recovering. He is
undergoing specialist treatment," Mrs Stamps told The
Standard yesterday.
She dismissed rumours that her husband had gone to the
United Kingdom for
specialist treatment.
"That is rubbish. As you know,
this is a city of gossip-my husband is with
me here and he is having his
breakfast. He has never travelled to the UK for
treatment."
Stamps, a
medical doctor by profession, is Africa's longest serving health
minister,
having been at the helm of the country's health delivery system
since
1990.
President Mugabe, who was controversially re-elected to office last
month,
is expected to announce a new cabinet soon, and it is unlikely that
Stamps
will retain his post, due to his ill health.
Dear General D,
I write to thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience in areas of
conflict and the current crises within Israel of which I received yesterday 12th
April via a human rights group your letter dated 12 January 2002 and addressed
to Secretary of State, Colin Powell.
My heart and love is for a nation and it's people of all colours of the
rainbow, of all tribes, of all nationalities and religions consisting of
approximately 12 million Zimbabweans. There are countless innocent men, women
and children in Zimbabwe who as I write this letter to you are suffering daily
of hunger, persecution, rape, torture, disappearance, illegal imprisonment,
taken to detention camps to be tortured and raped. These training camps too are
spread through out the length and breadth of Zimbabwe for indoctrination and
training of militia and so-called war veterans supported by the Central
Intelligence Organisation (CIO), the police and military.
The countless and repeated human rights violations perpetrated and
orchestrated by the state which is the Zanu-PF regime headed by it's present
illegitimate president Robert Mugabe which continues to act with impunity. The
vast majority of peaceful and defenceless black African's now approximately
60-70 percent un-employed, with inflation between 116-120 percent. The cycle of
looting and destruction of homes in urban and rural areas continues
unabated.
The dire consequences in decline of ecotourism for Zimbabwe and the
southern African region as a whole are due to the wildlife reserve fences being
torn down with many species being poached among them the big five consisting of:
lion, elephant, buffalo,leopard, hippo. The farming community in Zimbabwe the
backbone of the economy which consistently exported to other African
neighbours has totally collapsed due to farmers being illegally forced off their
land, beaten, murdered, raped and persecuted. These farms may I add where bought
legally both before and after the 1980 period.
The humanitarian aid given by the International community is being run on
the basis by the regime that should individuals belonging to and or are
supporting or assisted/assisting the opposition party, a non-violent democratic
party the Movement for Democratic Change. No food or assistance is there fore
given to starving men, women and children. The government failed to engage with
willing donor countries who knew mass starvation was imminent due to the fact
that the storage of grain was rapidly being depleted.
The present government is and has been systematically dismantling any and
all impartial legislative services and systems. The present draconian policies
of repression of freedom of movement, of speech, association, assembly and
broadcast are now firmly entrenched in their policies and procedures.
Robert Mugabe's close ties with North Korea is long and
protracted one. With the North Korean's going to Zimbabwe in the 1980's at
Mugabe's request to train the 5th Brigade which systematically killed
approximately 20,000 men,women and children in a genocide known as the
''GUKURAHUNDE''. Needless to say the pain and suffering of these civilians still
remains very painful knowing it is continuing with lower intensity ready to
erupt at any moment.
The Libyan involvement too is of great concern as
this goes back many years with Mugabe and Gaddfi close allies with many
parallels evident in personality and acts. The Libyans have many personal in
Zimbabwe as Mugabe has sold/given off stakes in the Rainbow Tourist Group,
Commercial Bank of Zimbabwe (CBZ) and the National Oil Company, Libyan
investment in fuel infrastructure and distribution.
Zanu-PF and (ZDF) Zimbabwe Defence Forces have and are exploiting and
plundering approximately 33 million hectare logging operations expected to make
profits of US$300 million deal in the Democratic Republic of Congo
(DRC). Effectively creating one of the world's largest logging
concessions. Zimbabwe's armed forces General Vitalis Zvinavashe, Zimbabwe's
Minister of Agriculture Joseph Made, Zimbabwe's Speaker of Parliament and
Minister of Information Emmerson Mnangagwa and former chief of CIO Central
Intelligence Organisation during the genocide during the 1980's and many others.
There are many individuals,organisations, companies and countries world-wide
colluding with these despots. Mugabe himself is now believed to be one of the
richest people on earth, while the majority of Zimbabweans live in abject
poverty.
Sincerely Albert Weidemann
1 Ambrose Road
Ripon, North Yorkshire
HG4 1SH
England.
13th April 2002.
Home telephone 01765-607900
Zimbabwean Opposition Leader Urges Supporters to Remain
Vigilant
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Xinhuanet
2002-04-15 02:34:10
HARARE, April 14 (Xinhuanet) --
Zimbabwe's opposition Movement
forDemocratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan
Tsvangirai urged his supporters
here on Sunday to remain vigilant despite
last month's defeat in the
presidential election by incumbent President
Robert Mugabe.
Addressing more than 20,000 MDC supporters in
Highfield, Harare,he
expressed optimism that he would rule Zimbabwe and the
present illegitimate
government would not survive.
"You should
remain confident as victory is certain," said Tsvangirai.
He called
on his supporters to be disciplined when the time of taking
action against
Mugabe's regime comes. He did not elaborate what action his
party intended to
take.
Accusing Mugabe of rigging last month's election, Tsvangirai
said his
party had used the dialogue with the ruling Zimbabwe African
National
Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) as one way of securing an election
re-run.
The ZANU-PF adjourned their conciliatory talks with the MDC
last week to
May 13. The talks were initiated by South African President
Thabo Mbeki and
Nigerian President Ulusegun Obasanjo.
Tsvangirai
also urged student unions, Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions
and the National
Constitutional Assembly to unite with his party to achieve
the goal of
removing Mugabe. Enditem