http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Lance
Guma
23 April 2009
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai tried to put on a
brave face Wednesday by
suggesting that talks aimed at resolving outstanding
issues in the unity
government had not reached a deadlock. But events so far
show his optimism
is misplaced. Crippling the coalition are issues around
the fact that Mugabe
stripped off the communications sector from a ministry
controlled by the
MDC, the delay in swearing in Deputy Agriculture Minister
Roy Bennett, fresh
farms invasions, the continued detention of political
prisoners and the
appointment of governors, ambassadors and permanent
secretaries.
On Thursday Mugabe, Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara met as
the three main
principals to the unity agreement and sought to reach an
agreement. This was
after another meeting on Monday drew blanks. The
Minister of State in the
Prime Minister's Office, Gorden Moyo, told us there
was 'progress made' but
that the meeting had been adjourned to Monday next
week. The arrival in the
country of Frank Chikane, the Director General in
the South African
presidency and one of the facilitators to the initial
inter-party talks,
seemed to suggest the talks were in trouble, particularly
in the aftermath
of reports that former South African President Thabo Mbeki
had been called
to Harare to mediate.
But several MDC and government
officials maintain they don't know why
Chikane is in the country and
Newsreel has been told he is visiting on
'personal business'. Tsvangirai
meanwhile has expressed frustration with the
slow pace of progress saying
the issues, 'will be addressed and we are in
the process of addressing them.
We cannot go on for ever and ever, we have
to address those issues.' Pressed
for a time frame he said, 'we have no
specific date but we cannot go on with
outstanding issues always hanging
over our heads.'
MDC sources
privately say that quitting the unity government is still way
off. 'We now
have equal access to intelligence reports and we know they
(ZANU PF) are
determined to make us quit. So yes it frustrating and painful
but we are
determined to hang in there and equally frustrate them too,' an
official
told us. He said even if it came to quitting the coalition, that
would be a
decision for the National Council of the MDC, and not Tsvangirai
alone.
Analysts however feel the party is being totally undermined by a well
thought out ZANU PF plan, which has laden them with responsibility in
government, but no actual political power.
We’ve received more information from a Harare activist giving us an update on
what’s happening to Chris Dhlamini and Ghandi Mudzingwa. To remind you, Dhlamini
and Mudzingwa were both granted bail on Friday last week. Our emailer tells us
that the bail conditions were: “US $1000, report to nearest police station on a Friday between 6 am and 6
pm, and don’t interfere with witnesses. They are to appear in court on 30th
April, 2009 for further remand”. As a result of of receiving bail, the prison guards left the hospital where
both Mudzingwa and Dhlamini are being treated (for horrific torture injuries
inflicted upon them by State agents). Mudzingwa and Dhlamini spent Saturday and
Sunday on their own, unguarded. On Monday 20th, as we reported in
this post here, the two men received visits from three men we named -
Detective Chief Inspector Ntini, Detective Inspector
Muchada, and Detective Assistant Inspector Mukwaira -
our emailer has provided a fourth name and further information on where the men
are based and their roles. See summary below: Detective Chief Inspector Ntini - Harare Central Law and
Order Detective Inspector Muchada - Harare Central Law and Order
(refused Chris Dhlamini food while he was in the cells) Detective Assistant Inspector Mukwaira - Harare Central Law
and Order Chief Superintendent Magwenzi - CID Fraud Squad (one of the
main actors in Chris Dhamini’s torture and waterboarding at Goromonzi) We believe there was a fifth man who visited the men as well, still unnamed,
but when we do get his name we will publish it. As you can see from the summary above, two of the men in particular have
serious questions to answer with regards their treatment of Chris Dhlamini and
possibly other abductees as well. Dhlamini went without proper food for 30 days.
Torture, as we have said before, is illegal in Zimbabwe. These men acting on
behalf of the State are guilty of crimes, but they are walking free and not
being held accountable for what they have done to Zimbabwe citizens who are
entitled to full protection under Zimbabwean law. Our emailer tells us that when
Dhlamini challenged Muchada (on this most recent visit), pointing out that he
was one of the people who denied him food, Muchada apparently responded “Oh no,
things were bad then”. We reported
on Tuesday that after the five men left, they were replaced by eight prison
guards from Chikurubi Maximum security prison (9.30pm). Today we learn that they
were brought to the hospital by Chief Superintendent Tarwirei
who claimed he was acting on “instructions from above”. When it was pointed out
to him that the men had been granted bail and did not need guarding. Tarwirei
asked for proof. The following day, the harassment continued. On Tuesday at 3.30 pm our
emailer tells us that a young man in scruffy clothing was seen wandering around
outside their ward. When he was asked who he was, he identified himself as
Sargeant Jasper Musademba from Harare Central Police Law and
Order section. The on-duty Prison Officer, Gurajera, asked
Musademba why Chris Dhlamini and Ghandi Mudzingwa should be have prison guards
when they had been granted bail and Musademba replied: “it is political, just
keep guarding them”. The next shift of prison guards again asked Chris Dhlamini and Ghandi
Mudzingwa for documents confirming their bail, but the two men did not have
them. The activist who emailed us said that the Prison officer decided to take
the guards out of the ward and sit outside the door. Apparently he did not want
to intrude on their personal space when he did not have proof that in fact they
should still be under guard. The following shift of prison guards did the same
thing. On Wednesday, at around 2.30pm, the prison guards were removed. But by 5pm
Musademba and two Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) operatives had
positioned themselves outside the ward in their place. We are advised by the
acivist who emailed us that a further six CIO operatives were in the car park of
the hospital. Our emailer said “Fortunately lawyers and other visitors were
present and remained in the ward for some hours” - implying that their presence
possibly helped keep the men safe. At 6.20 pm Musademba and the CIO operatives
were replaced by two policemen from Harare Central. As the activist who emailed us wrote: “The modus operandi of the CIO and Law and Order operatives is well known and
sinister. The physical security of Chris Dhlamini and Gandi Mudzingwa is at
great risk and their continued harrassment by these State Agents is an
indication that their intention is to abduct and eliminate Chris Dhlamini and
Ghandi Mudzingwa.” It is very important that we all monitor this story closely, for the safety
of the men. Please email the details to everyone you know, and if you know
people in the media, please bring this story to their attention. High publicity
will make it harder for the two men to ‘disappear’ with impunity. Memorise the names of the perpetrators
- they must known in no uncertain terms that they will be held accountable if
something happens to these two men. We must remind you that around the same time all the abductees were first
adbucted, seven other people were taken too. The names of those who have
survived to tell the tale are becoming well known to many of us. We must
remember the names of those who are still missing, possibly murdered. Someone is
responsible for their absence and that person must be held accountable for what
they have done. Don’t forget the names of Gwenzi Kahiya – abducted 29 October 2008 in Zvimba Ephraim Mabeka – abducted 10 December 2008 in Gokwe Lovemore Machokoto – abducted 10 December 2008 in Gokwe Charles Muza – abducted 10 December 2008 in Gokwe Edmore Vangirayi – abducted 10 December 2008 in Gokwe Graham Matehwa – abducted 17 December in Makoni South Peter Munyanyi – abducted 13 December 2008 in Gutu South
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona Sibanda
23 April
2009
The MDC MP for Chipinge South, Mathias Mlambo, was on Wednesday
granted bail
by a Chipinge Magistrate, after he was arrested for allegedly
defeating and
obstructing a police officer during the discharge of his
duties.
Mlambo denies the charges and the MDC claims he is being
victimised for
defeating a ZANU PF candidate in last year's elections.
Mlambo, who was
arrested during the Easter holidays, was ordered to pay
US$20 bail and to
continue to reside at his given address and not to
interfere with State
witnesses.
Mlambo's brush with the authorities
began on the 11th April at a funeral
gathering for an MDC activist in
Chipinge. That gathering was disrupted by
the police who stormed the funeral
in search of an unidentified 'suspect.'
A statement from the Zimbabwe
Lawyers for Human Rights said police accused
Mlambo of inciting some MDC
youth members, during his address at the
funeral. The youth allegedly then
became hostile and police said that the
hostility blocked them from picking
up their suspect. Mlambo is expected to
appear in court for a hearing on the
4th May.
http://www.ituc-csi.org/spip.php?article3404
Brussels, 23 April
2009: The ITUC has expressed alarm over the reported
intimidation of
potential witnesses to an International Labour Organisation
Commission of
Inquiry by Zimbabwe's notorious Central Intelligence
Organisation (CIO). The
Commission, a high-level procedure of the UN agency
which deals with labour
issues, was initiated due to the appalling track
record of the Mugabe regime
on labour and trade union rights, which has
singled out the country's trade
union movement for especially forceful
repression over a period of several
years.
Potential witnesses to the Inquiry have been approached by CIO
operatives,
seeking to intimidate them in order to stop them testifying to
the Inquiry.
One trade unionist was detained by the CIO and subjected to
threats.
Following this person's release, they were shadowed by unidentified
persons.
"A pattern of harassment and intimidation is emerging, and we
have genuine
fears for the safety of the potential witnesses. The regime, or
rogue
elements under its direct responsibility, appears to be trying to
undermine
the conduct of this highly important Inquiry. It must stop doing
so
immediately, and the international community must take the steps
necessary
to ensure that those concerned are able to testify without fear
for their
own safety or that of their families and colleagues," said ITUC
General
Secretary Guy
Ryder.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The
ITUC represents 170 million workers in 312 affiliated national
organisations
from 157 countries and territories.
http://www.youtube.com/ITUCCSI
For
more information please contact the ITUC Press Department on: +32 2 224
0204
or +32 476 621 018
http://www.africasia.com
WINDHOEK,
April 23 (AFP)
A
regional tribunal based in Namibia on Thursday halted the eviction of a
70-year-old black Zimbabwean commercial farmer by the government in
Harare.
Luke Tembani became one of Zimbabwe's first black commercial
farmers shortly
after independence in 1980, but faced eviction on May 21
after the national
agricultural bank sold his farm to recoup a
loan.
Documents filed with the tribunal of the Southern African
Development
Community (SADC) said that the farm had been sold in 2000,
without any court
hearings, even though he was still living on
it.
The judges in Windhoek ruled that Tembani can stay on his farm until
the
tribunal makes a ruling on the case, with the next hearing set for
June.
"No interference may take place with the farmer's peaceful stay on
the
farm," Justice Ariranga Pillay ordered. "Nor may any eviction happen
until
the application is heard and determined."
Zimbabwe had objected
to the hearing and has yet to reply in the case.
Tembani, who did not
attend the hearing, had taken a loan more than a decade
ago from the
Agricultural Bank of Zimbabwe (ABZ) to expand his operations.
According
to court documents, he defaulted on part of his repayments when
interest
rates soared in 1997, when Zimbabwe's economic crisis unfolded.
"ABZ
could not give Tembani exact figures on the money he owed as he wanted
to
sell off a small portion of his farm to clear the loan, which was
approved,"
his court application said.
The problems emerged as Zimbabwe President
Robert Mugabe was embarking on a
violent and often chaotic scheme to
resettle black farmers on white-owned
lands.
The SADC tribunal in
November ruled against the land reforms, saying 78
white farmers could keep
their land because the scheme amounted to racial
discrimination. Mugabe's
government rejected the ruling, but the new unity
government says it wants
to resolve the problems on the farms.
After the land reforms, Zimbabwe's
agricultural production plunged. Now more
than half the population depends
on international food aid for survival.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Alex Bell
23 April 2009
As the
wave of farm invasions continue across the country, violent threats
against
innocent farm workers are escalating, with more workers suffering
injuries
at the hands of invaders this week.
In Chegutu, five workers from Twyford
farm are recovering from injuries they
received after brutal beatings by a
gang of thugs, working for the ZANU PF
Senator that has forcibly taken over
the land. Senator Jamaya Muduvuri has
led the campaign against the farm
owners since February when he moved onto
the property, and ongoing looting
and large-scale theft has continued ever
since. On Tuesday, Muduvuri's hired
thugs rounded up all of the farm's male
workers and seriously beat one of
them, leaving him in a serious condition.
The Sentator's gang then viciously
beat four more workers on Wednesday.
The beatings come as two Stockdale
farm workers are still recovering from
gunshot wounds, after police opened
fire on them on the property on Tuesday.
The workers had accompanied
Stockdale's owner, Peter Etheredge to inspect
the farm, which has been taken
over by the President of the Senate, Edna
Madzongwe. The Etheregdes and most
of their staff have been forced off the
land by Madzongwe, who has led an
often violent campaign of harassment
against them. She has vowed she will
not leave the farm and has posted
police officers on the land to prevent the
Etheredges from returning.
Etheredge, his brother and some of his workers
had been inspecting the
plantation of oranges on Stockdale when they were
met by police officers,
who randomly opened fire on the group, seriously
injuring two of the
workers. Etheredge's brother was able to flee with the
injured workers, but
Etheredge himself was hauled into custody and has
remained behind bars ever
since.
Meanwhile on Mount Carmel farm, all
the workers have remained in hiding
after land invaders launched a vicious
attack on them earlier this month.
The attack, which was supported by and
even involved several police
officials, left one of the workers with a
fractured skull. Ongoing
harassment and threats by the invaders means the
workers are too afraid to
return to the farm that has been all but
completely taken over. Large-scale
theft has also continued on Mount Carmel,
with all the produce being
illegally sold.
The escalating number of
attacks against the workers comes mere days after
last week's ministerial
visit to the Chegutu farming community, which
resulted in Deputy Prime
Minister Arthur Mutambara ordering all land
invasions to stop. But Chegutu
police have continued to support the
invasions, completely ignoring not only
the complaints of farm owners, but
also court orders and the direct
ministerial orders for the invasions to
cease.
http://www.apanews.net
APA-Harare (Zimbabwe)
Zimbabwe's Investment Promotion Minister Elton Mangoma
has left for the
Netherlands where he would brief European Union officials
on efforts by
Harare's new coalition government to turnaround the troubled
economy, APA
learnt here Thursday.
A statement from Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's
office said Mangoma left
Harare Wednesday night and his first engagement
will be as guest of honour
at a meeting organised by the Netherlands
Institute for Multiparty Democracy
in The Hague on
Friday.
Thereafter, the Zimbabwean minister would address a public
discussion on
Saturday which would focus on the EU's international
cooperation policy and
would be opened by the Netherlands Minister of
International Cooperation
Bert Koenders.
"The meeting and the public
discussion will look into what forms of
assistance the European Union and
the Netherlands can give to promote
Zimbabwe's economic and political
turnaround," the statement said.
The visit is part of efforts by
Zimbabwe's newly formed unity government to
market the country as a safe
investment destination once again following
nine years of political
instability.
Mangoma has since his appointment in February led Zimbabwean
delegations to
South Africa where he sought to entice business people from
the continent's
largest economy to invest in Zimbabwe.
JN/nm/APA
2009-04-23
http://www.radiovop.com/
HARARE,
April 23 2009 - Former Personal aide to Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai
Gandhi Mudzingwa claims security agents robbed him his valuables
last year
in December when he and several other Movement and Democratic
Change (MDC)
activists were abducted and subsequently detained for allegedly
plotting to
topple the Robert Mugabe government.
Mudzingwa told
RadioVOP in an exclusive interview from his Avenues
clinic bed, in Harare on
Wednesday, that he lost his valuables to
unidentified security agents who
abducted him last December, and up to now
had not received
them.
"Upon my abduction some unidentified men took my black
pair of shoes,
driver's license wallet with USd 320 and some businesscards
in it, belt, and
my car. When we got to Chikurubi Maximum Prison I lodged a
complaint and we
made an application to the police through the Prisons
Officer-In-Charge, who
called my police investigating officer who up to now
has not given me any
response as to who took my valuables and where they
are."
"I am not a bitter man, despite the abductions and
torture I went
through which include denial of medication and food which I
am confident
were clear attempts to eliminate me for belonging to MDC. I
believe this
nation needs national healing and I think I should also play my
part in that
process. I also want to warn those who are anti-the inclusive
government to
respect the will of the people and allow Zimbabwe to move
forward," added
Mudzingwa.
Mudzingwa and Kisimusi Ndhamini
are still detained at the private
clinic after they were last Friday
released on bail.
The two including Zimbabwe Peace Project
Director and former ZBC
newscaster Jestina Mukoko and freelance journalist
Shadreck Manyere were
together with several other MDC activists abducted in
December last year and
later charged and detained at Chikurubi Maximum
Prison being accused of
plotting to topple the Mugabe led
Government.
HARARE, 23 April 2009 (IRIN) - Zimbabwe
could slide back into chaos, the International Crisis Group (ICG), a
Brussels-based non-profit organisation committed to preventing and resolving
deadly conflict, warns in a new report.
Photo:
Flikr/Umsoto
President
Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai
After months of negotiations
between Robert Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF and opposition parties, brokered by the
Southern African Development Community (SADC), it was hoped that the Global
Political Agreement (GPA) signed in September 2008, and the formation of the
unity government on 11 February 2009, would mark Zimbabwe's renaissance.
However, Western donors have cast a jaundiced eye on the unity
government, while Mugabe, who is still president, is blamed for the
anti-democratic practices that turned one of the region's most successful
economies into a begging bowl.
"If the international community,
regretting the inadequacies of the power-sharing arrangement, stands back with a
'wait-and-see' attitude, the likely result will be that Mugabe and/or the
military establishment will entrench themselves again, with a corresponding
return to violence, repression and catastrophic economic policies. It is time to
promote change," the ICG said in a report, Engaging the Inclusive Government.
Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) and appointed prime minister of the unity government, has conceded
that the GPA has shortcomings, but said it was vital that the unity government
received support to reverse a decade of catastrophic economic decline.
John Makumbe, a political scientist based in Harare, the Zimbabwean
capital, said ZANU-PF's commitment to the unity government was far from
satisfactory, and cited Mugabe's grab of an MDC ministry, ongoing farm
invasions, and the delay in the appointment of provincial governors.
A return to chaos is the plan
"Those from
ZANU-PF are demonstrating amply that they are ready to return to the decay they
presided over for so many years, and a relapse into chaos could happen overnight
if those in the inclusive government and the international community do not play
their cards well," Makumbe told IRIN.
"Once sanctions are lifted and the economy
is performing well again, Mugabe and his hardliners are likely to create an
environment that leads to the collapse of the inclusive government. They would
arrest or fire the MDC leaders from the government and suspend the planned
constitutional referendum, and go back to their old ways of looting and
repression," he said.
Those from ZANU-PF are
demonstrating amply that they are ready to return to the decay they presided
over for so many years, and a relapse into chaos could happen overnight if those
in the inclusive government and the international community do not play their
cards well
The US and the European Union (EU) have said they
will lift sanctions targeting Mugabe and the ruling ZANU-PF elite, including
travel bans and frozen foreign assets, when they see a commitment to democracy
by the old guard, which has ruled since independence from Britain in 1980.
The ICG sees the fragility of the unity government as a consequence of
resistance by ZANU-PF hardliners, who fear that greater transparency could
reveal years of graft and self-enrichment.
"Some old-regime elements
seek to cause the new government to fail out of fear of prosecution, loss of
power and its financial sinecures, hatred for Tsvangirai or the MDC, or a
genuine belief that they are the guardians of the country's liberation," the
report said.
"They are thus continuing to provoke and frustrate the MDC,
as shown by such actions as continuing arrests and detention of MDC activists,
refusal of police to carry out some government orders, efforts to drive out the
last few hundred white farmers by continued farm invasions, and stalling on the
appointment of provincial governors, as well as reconfiguration of ministerial
powers."
The ICG said there was "a real risk of a coup" and a
possibility of Tsvangirai being assassinated, despite the support of the army's
middle and lower ranks for the unity government.
Although a delegation
of ministers from all parties attempted persuade the EU and the US to remove
sanctions, the ICG said this might be "premature", and that the SADC should work
with Zimbabwe "to help make the reform process irreversible".
Deconstructing the security apparatus
To speed
up the possible lifting of sanctions, the ICG said, a strategy should be put in
place to "retire virtually all members of the security sector senior leadership"
— in the army, police and state intelligence - which are seen as the architects
of human rights abuses.
Persuading them to retire, amid fears of
recrimination in the post-Mugabe era, may require "leverage with a law that
offers immunity to senior generals from domestic prosecution for past political
crimes", the ICG said.
Such a course should combine transitional justice
mechanisms, including a truth commission similar to that established after the
demise of apartheid in neighbouring South Africa, the report recommended.
"The US, EU and others could, in accordance with their laws, sweeten the
deal by removing targeted sanctions on those who would accept and comply," the
ICG said, while South Africa should warn them that if they remained defiant,
they risked prosecution.
The ICG urged donors to pursue a "humanitarian
plus assistance strategy" that supported an emergency economic recovery
programme promoting the "revival of the education, health and water sanitation
sectors, as well as a functioning civil service and reconstruction of basic
infrastructure."
Countries in the SADC, particularly South Africa,
should also provide direct assistance. The regional bloc has pledged more than
US$8 billion in aid to Zimbabwe but most of its members are too poor to give
their neighbour any meaningful support.
HARARE, 23 April 2009 (IRIN) - Freelance
journalist Anderson Manyere, 45, was detained in Zimbabwe in December 2008 and
released in April 2009, after spending most of his time in solitary confinement
at a variety of police stations, as well as the feared maximum security prison,
Chikurubi, in the capital, Harare.
Photo:
IRIN
Anderson
Manyere
Manyere was arrested with two
opposition activists: Ghandi Mudzingwa, former personal aide to Morgan
Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and now Prime
Minister, and Chris Dlamini, the party's chief of security. They were all
accused of training militias in neighbouring Botswana to topple President Robert
Mugabe's government.
Manyere and the two MDC members were released on 17
April, but 48 hours later the two MDC members were again arrested and the police
are actively seeking Manyere. On the run, he told IRIN his story.
"When
I was kidnapped by state security agents on December 13, 2008, I did not think I
would ever see my family again because of the manner that I was abducted by the
armed men.
"I was in my home town, Norton, about 40km south of Harare,
when I received a call from an anonymous caller who said he needed to see me for
urgent business. When I arrived at the scene, two trucks drove up and sandwiched
my car.
"Men brandishing AK-47
rifles and pistols jumped out, dragged me out of my vehicle, handcuffed and
blindfolded me, before throwing me into the back of one of the trucks. They
forced me to lie down and face downwards."
Men brandishing AK-47 rifles
and pistols jumped out, dragged me out of my vehicle, handcuffed and blindfolded
me, before throwing me into the back of one of the trucks
"While the state security
agents were driving me around, they started torturing me mentally and
emotionally; they did this by playing loud music by different local musicians.
"One song is titled, 'You thought you were a hero', another was a
funeral dirge about how death is a final and lonely journey, while in another
song the message is that jails are a place where people die.
"While in
solitary confinement I would only be given two litres of water a week and some
strange leaves, which I had no option but to eat. I saw fellow inmates who were
like skeletons at Chikurubi.
"In between, I would be tortured through
assaults. When they told me that I had been recruiting people to undergo
military training, I told them they were mad, crazy.
"When they said
they had found weapons at my house, I told them the arms were theirs, and that
they were trying to set me up. They were riled and even beat me up some more.
"We should ensure that anybody who violates human rights should get a
taste of their own medicine through the courts.
"It will take time to
forgive or forget."
http://www.herald.co.zw/
Elita Chikwati
23 April
2009
Harare - SOME farmers may not grow wheat this season because
they have
failed to secure funding for the 2009 winter cropping
programme.
Government has stopped giving handouts and from this
season onwards, with
farmers now expected to finance their operations and
secure assistance from
banks and other financial institutions.
The
challenge, however, being faced by many farmers is that only a few
companies
are willing to contract the growers while the banks do not have
adequate
cash to sponsor the winter programme.
Wheat growers in Goromonzi said the
abrupt removal of subsidies had affected
preparations. Others were already
thinking of growing other crops such as
potatoes and tomatoes while some had
turned to barley production.
An affected wheat grower said some farmers
were not too dependent on
Government but only needed a bit of time to adjust
to the new way of doing
business.
"Inputs, seed and fuel may be there
on the market but we cannot procure them
because of inadequate cash,"
complained one farmer.
Goromonzi farmer Mr Paddy Zhanda said while the
removal of price controls
encouraged production, there was need for sound
financial structures to
assist farmers.
"Fertilizers and machinery
should be provided for them but farmers should be
careful and avoid being
over-dependent on the Government.
"While the Government provides
necessary assistance, farmers should on the
other hand be striving to
sponsor their operations, " said Mr Zhanda.
Seed companies recently
assured farmers of adequate stocks of winter seeds
both maize and wheat but
fertilizer companies said they did not have enough
capacity to meet the
national demand to produce 60 000 hectares of winter
wheat this
year.
Fertilizer firms require US$21 million to increase production
levels.
Meanwhile, the Government plans to mobilise financing through
a combination
of traditional contract farming facilities and own resources
of farmers and
loans.
The funds are expected to ensure production of
at least 80 percent of the
country's maize and wheat requirements as well as
the production of other
crops.
Farming experts said the country
required US$90 million to finance the
winter wheat cropping programme.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/
Thursday, 23 April
2009
Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change in South
Africa
is "shell-shocked" at Gauteng local government MEC Dorothy Mahlangu's
verbal
attack on Central Methodist Church Bishop Paul Verryn.
"For
Mahlangu to accuse a man of God, Bishop Paul Verryn of exposing
Zimbabweans
to danger when he is in actually providing us shelter is very
regrettable,"
said MDC spokesman Sibanengi Dube.
"At least thousands of our people
have somewhere to lay their heads
where no rain can soak. We now have a roof
over our heads, isn't [that]
better than sleeping in the streets?" he
asked.
On Friday, Mahlangu said that Zimbabwean refugees should not be
allowed to stay at Johannesburg's Central Methodist Church and that she
thought Bishop Paul Verryn was exposing them to more danger.
"I
don't think its helpful for the Bishop to continue to do what he's
doing
under the guise that he's simply helping vulnerable people," said
Mahlangu.
"We are not condoning what he is doing. We condemn it,"
she said.
Verryn responded by saying Mahlangu's comments were out of
place.
"It is most unfortunate at this time for us to enter a
mudslinging
match. There's plenty of mud lying around," said
Verryn.
"[Mahlangu] hasn't had the decency to pick up the phone and
call me."
Dube said: "We appeal to South Africa's senior government
officials to
desist from the habit of making inflammatory statements which
could trigger
a second round of xenophobic attacks.
"We expected
the provincial government which Mahlangu is serving to
complement and not
complicate the efforts being made by Verryn," Dube said.
"Mahlangu
should know that when ANC cadres fled to Zimbabwe under the
heavy pursuit of
apartheid operatives, we did not close our doors in front
of them, but took
them in our houses. We don't expect a senior ANC member of
Mahlangu's
stature to exhibit clear insensitivity to the plight of
Zimbabweans."
Sapa
http://www.chronicle.co.zw
Thursday,
April 23, 2009
Entertainment Editor
KWEKWE has gone for almost
two years without television reception with
relevant authorities claiming
they were not aware of the problem.
Transmedia is responsible for signal
carriage in Zimbabwe.
In an interview, residents in the city said they last
watched ZBCtv about
two years ago and raised concern that they were finding
it difficult to get
current news.
Ms Anna Nyeve, a resident of Mbizo
said, all along they were relying on SABC
and BTV for news and other
entertainment programmes.
"But there comes a time when you want to watch news
from home and watch
soapies that you can relate to . . . we also want to
watch Studio 263," she
said.
Ms Nyeve said, they did not lose the signal
at once, but it went gradually
until they could not watch television and
thought the problem would be fixed
in time.
"It started with us getting
audio, without visual effects or vice versa and
this was accompanied by lots
of showers. It's not all of us who can afford
satellite dishes. Surely the
authorities should see to it that this problem
is solved," Nyeve said.
Mr
Leonard Dube, from Mbizo Section 13 said, almost two years down the line
they are still to get used to the idea of reading newspapers in the morning
when the possibility of them getting the news the previous day could be made
a reality.
"They are definitely losing revenue from possible television
licence payers
in the greater Kwekwe area," he said.
Contacted for
comment, the spokesman for Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings
(ZBH), Sivukile
Simango said, they used infrastructure of third parties to
broadcast and
they had nothing to do with the problems that the country was
experiencing
as far as television reception was concerned.
He said they had experienced
similar problem with connecting to Bulawayo due
to the breakdown of TelOne's
fibre optic link at the beginning of the year,
but the problem has been
rectified.
He said in order for them to transmit they relied on three
companies -
Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority, TelOne and
Transmedia.
He also added that: "Broadcasting Services Act of 2001 clearly
states that
ours (role) is to broadcast whilst signal carriage is the
responsibility of
Transmedia."
He said the failure of these entities to
fix the problems, have seen the
delivery of television service to the
country compromised .
Simango said, they had engaged Transmedia and they had
promised to rectify
the problem.
"TelOne has also assured us that they
will rectify the problem," he said.
The Acting Chief Executive Officer of
Transmedia, Cloud Nyamundanda said he
was not aware of the problem in
Kwekwe, but would get in touch with his
technical team to verify these
claims.
"I have to establish where Kwekwe picks its signal from. I am not
sure where
the problem is coming from, but if Kwekwe picks its signal from a
booster in
Kadoma, there shouldn't be a problem, as we placed a new one two
months ago,
unless there are physical barriers like hills and tall buildings
that may
block the signal's pathway," he said.
He also said Kwekwe may be
picking its signal from a private booster
belonging to ZISCO and since it
was private, he was not aware if it was
functional or not.
He said the
ZISCO booster in Redcliff, picks its signal from Gweru and then
re-transmits
to areas around it including Kwekwe. He added that due to the
city's
proximity, television sets should be able to pick the signal.
Meanwhile, the
Southern Africa Parliamentary Support Trust (SAPST) has
introduced a live
weekly television programme titled Parliament Alive, whose
first episode
will air tonight between 7pm-8pm.
SAPST said the programme aims to, among
other issues, improve public
awareness on the role and functions of
Parliament.
It was also meant to increase interaction between civic society,
the public,
legislators and ministers and also increase visibility of
Parliament in the
eyes of the public.
First to appear on the programme
will be the Speaker of Parliament
Honourable Lovemore Moyo.
He will spell
out his vision for the seventh Parliament and discuss other
pertinent issues
around constitution making and how to make Parliament
effective within the
context of an inclusive government.
http://www.radiovop.com/
HARARE, April 23 2009 -
The Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings has
reshuffled its news production team
with its loyalists being given
managerial positions while suspected Movement
for Democratic Change (MDC)
sympathizers and experienced long serving
journalists were sidelined.
The state controlled
broadcaster, headed by war veteran and
anti-opposition Happison Muchechetere
last week announced the promotion of
news managers, bulletin managers and
executive producers, as well as news
editor and an assistant news
editor.
ZBC Editor-In-Chief and chief propagandist, Tazzen
Mandizvidza was
promoted to the position of General manager of news and
current affairs. War
veteran Allan Chiweshe who was formerly the General
Manager for Radio, is
now General Manager for Programming responsible for
both Radio and
Television, while a senior army official identified as
Brigadier Kasu is now
the General Manager for Finance and
Adminstration.
According to sources Mandizvidza later promoted
O'Brian Rwafa to the
position of Manager News and Reporters. Rwafa is
currently under police
investigation on allegations of making a false report
after recently
reporting that he was kidnapped in Kuwadzana suburb by MDC
supporters, yet
he was allegedly involved in a love triangle with a married
woman.
Masvingo Bureau Chief Lillian Muungani was appointed
News editor and
the little known policeman who is on a three months
probation Albert Chekai
was appointed Assistant news
editor.
A source within the newly promoted team said
Mandizvidza recently
bragged during an editorial meeting that he had no
respect for the
government of national unity and vowed to clean the newsroom
of all those
not loyal to Zanu PF.
Johannes Nyamayedenga
who joined the state broadcaster more than 10
years ago and has rounded all
the country's provinces as a bureau chief was
recently re-called from
Mashonaland Province for allegedly being embedded
with former governor Ray
Kaukonde, was not given any position. Several other
experienced journalists
such as Reuben Barwe, Terrence Mapurisana, Rugare
Dobbie, Ishmael Ndlovu,
Walter Mupfanochiya, Tendai Munengwa and Janet
Munyaka were also
sidelined.
RadioVOP has it on good authority that another
propagandist and
Diplomatic correspondent Judith Makwanya was offered the
position of News
Editor and rejected it because she still wants to travel
with the
President on international trips where she gets several thousands
of dollars
in travel and subsistence allowances every year.
Sources also said Makwanya who is Lillian Muungani's mentor has urged
her to
also reject the news editor post saying it is a hot political
position. The
position was held for several years by Patrice Makova who was
fired last
year by Muchechetere on allegations of contributing to Zanu PF's
loss during
last year's March 29 harmonized elections which were won by the
MDC. Several
other journalists were also fired on allegations of being
sympathetic to the
MDC.
Mandizvidza also promoted Clifford Mfiri to the position
of Manager
Current Affairs, with Moses Charedzera who was deputy editor in
chief being
demoted to manager online, a non-existent
department.
Other appointments in the same news department are
those of
Matabeleland North Bureau Chief, Freedom Moyo who has been
re-called to be
the news bulletin Manager, television news presenter
Shamiso Mataire is now
in-charge of all weekend news bulletins, while Sheila
Rusere former lunch
time ews Executive producer is now the head of News
hour and lunch time
bulletins.
Jonathan Marerwa was also
promoted to Chief Executive producer for
Radio news, while trade unionist
and suspended ZUJ Vice President, Jacob
Phiri was promoted to Chief
Executive producer for Television.
Efforts to get an official
comment from the broadcaster were fruitless
as the Public Relations Manager
Sivhukile SImango's cell phone was not
reachable while his office land line
went unanswered several times.
Radio VOP is also informed that
most of the Net One phone lines
which were given to ZBC managers have
since been blocked, a possible reason
for our failure to get in touch with
Simango.
http://www.kubatanablogs.net/kubatana/?p=1683
I was pleased to see the Media Alliance of
Zimbabwe and the Voluntary Media
Council of Zimbabwe speak out about an
upcoming All Stakeholder Media
Conference being organised by the Ministry of
Media, Information and
Publicity.
The conference is themed "towards
an open, tolerant, and responsible media
environment." Its objective is "to
review Zimbabwe's current media
environment and policies in order to guide
the Government's media policy."
It replaces an event planned for March which
Deputy Minister of Media,
Information and Publicity Jameson Timba called
"the first consultative step
by the ministry as it reviews Zimbabwe's media
environment and policies with
a view to advising the inclusive government on
its new policy."
But the substance of the two events seems quite
different. As MAZ and VMCZ
point out, many of the speakers in the revised
programme are the same people
who have blocked media freedom and opposed
liberalisation of publishing and
broadcasting over the past ten
years.
The 15-minute presentation on "Being seen to be free and fair:
Media and
electioneering" is hosted by Sekeramayi, which doesn't exactly
inspire
confidence. Web 2.0 publishing gets 15 dedicated minutes - under the
topic
"New media and accountability: The role of ghost sites and blogs." Way
to be
progressive, interim government.
How are the same people who
closed off Zimbabwe's media environment, and
made it characterised by
intolerance, irresponsibility and propaganda going
to be the ones to open it
up and make it more tolerant and responsible?
This entry was posted on
April 23rd, 2009 at 4:52 pm by Amanda Atwood
http://www.radiovop.com/
HARARE, April 23 2009 -
Germany Ambassador to Zimbabwe Dr Albrecht
Conze says Zimbabwe needs
re-branding to give it a positive image.
Dr Conze,
who was speaking to Radio VOP during the sidelines of a
Germany society
meeting in Harare, said: "For this re-branding drive to
succeed the country
needs to generate a positive story first. You cannot
have one person
talking of the re-branding of the country's image and at the
same time there
are reports of fresh farm invasions. We have always told
Zimbabweans that
the international community is sensitive to human and
property rights and
respect."
He said he had however noticed visible progress so
far of the
government of national unity.
"We have always
said we are not here to change Zimbabwe. Zimbabweans
should change their own
country through home grown solutions. As the
international community we can
only give advice and Zimbabweans should
determine their own destiny," he
added.
To show its commitment and support to the inclusive
government Germany
on Monday announced its decision to lift travel warnings
from its citizens,
a move which was likely to increases the number of
Germany tourists in the
country.
Germany is one of the
European countries including the World Bank,
International Monetary Fund,
and United Nations which on March 20 in
Washington, D.C.met to discuss how
best to support the people of Zimbabwe
after the formation of the
inclusive government.At the meeting these
countries and institutions agreed
to work with Zimbabwe and wrote a
statement on the
recommendations.
"We commend the reform efforts undertaken by
the transition government
and the progress achieved to date towards these
goals. We urge the
government to take additional steps to demonstrate its
commitment to reform
such as the immediate release of all political
prisoners, the end of farm
seizures, the cessation of politically-motivated
violence, the establishment
of a credible and transparent Central Bank team,
an end to harassment and
intimidation of the media, and a commitment to
credible elections in a
timely manner. Provided positive developments in
regards to these political
and economic reforms, the donor community is
ready to support Zimbabwe 's
rebuilding with development assistance," reads
part of the statement.
ZINASU President Statement of
Solidarity with the deferred, arrested and
suspended students
I note
with grave concern the continued persecution, arrests, suspensions
and all
forms of victimization to all of you as our National Campaign
against
Privatization of Education in Zimbabwe (NACAPEZ) gathers momentum.
It is
sad that such barbaric acts continue despite the fact that an
inclusive
government which among its responsibilities, was supposed to open
up the
democratic space, allowing freedom of assembly, association,
expression as
well as academic freedoms.
I am aware that students at the National
University of Science and
Technology, NUST have been denied access to the
exam room on the grounds
that they did not pay tuition fees. On the several
occasions where students
protested against this form of apartheid being
orchestrated by the
authorities, scores have been arrested. As if that is
not enough, thirteen
including the SRC president Kurayi Hoyi, Secretary
General Samson Nxumalo
and former SRC Secretary General Vivid Gwede have
been suspended pending
hearing, becoming the first group of students to be
suspended pending
hearing. I condemn this fascist behavior.
In
Masvingo over thirty students were arrested this week alone as protests
intensify. ZINASU Secretary for Legal Affairs, Courage Ngwarai addressed
students on Monday the 20th of April 2009, got arrested, and released the
same day as students invaded the police station. On Tuesday, he was arrested
again and is still languishing in police cells. We demand his urgent release
and that of all students currently in detention.
The situation is the
same at the Midlands State University, MSU as
university administration
threatens to chase students out of the exam room
if they fail to settle
their fees before the start of the exam session.
I wish to express my
heartfelt solidarity to all affected students and urge
you to remain
resolute. I can assure you, if we remain united, steadfast and
fearless,
victory is certain.
To all the victimized students, I share with you the
pain and distress.
An injury to one is an injury to
all
Resolute,
Clever Bere
National
President
Zimbabwe National Students Union
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona Sibanda
23 April 2009
An
economic analyst on Thursday urged the country's parliamentarians to
institute a commission of inquiry, to investigate the Reserve Bank Governor
for arbitrarily raiding private accounts and those of aid donors, for hard
currency to finance the ZANU PF led government.
London based
economist Isaac Dziya said Gideon Gono is no longer fit to
remain as the
central bank governor, because he abused the trust of his
office when he
misappropriated other people's funds.
This week Gono admitted in a
statement that the RBZ took hundreds of
millions in foreign currency from
private accounts, to provide up to US$2
billion in loans to state-owned
companies, for power and grain imports. He
said the government still had to
repay about $1.2 billion to the central
bank, which would allow it to repay
money it owes private accounts.
In a statement that would be unthinkable
coming from most central banks,
Gono appeared to be issuing a plea to keep
his job in the face of growing
criticism, especially from Tendai Biti, the
Finance Minister from the MDC-T.
Not one to mince his words Biti once
described Gono as 'the number one enemy
of this country, and not
inflation.'
'He has been stoking the fires of inflation through
quasi-fiscal activities.
In other countries if a central bank governor
admits to printing money he
will face the firing squad. Gono is the number
one economic saboteur,
terrorist and Al Qaeda,' Biti said.
But Gono,
fighting for his job, said in the state run Herald newspaper that
it was
time 'to let bygones be bygones' now that Zimbabwe has a new
coalition
government dedicated to reversing its economic decline.
Dziya disagrees
saying, 'This is a man who took the law into his own hands
and stole
billions from personal, private and company accounts. He should
explain his
actions to a court of law if he wants to clear his name.'
After taking
over the governorship of the central bank, Gono implemented a
host of
highly-criticized policies. The main criticism comes from the
complete
failure of his policies to reverse the economic decline in the
country.
Dziya said since Gono became governor, the country faced
numerous problems
from cash shortages, fuel and food scarcity and a crisis
of inputs for
agriculture.
He also waged a personal war against
leading businessmen who were arrested
by the police and army on his orders.
Some Zimbabweans have become fugitives
or have languished in prison, notably
James Makamba and David Butau, as a
result of Gono's vindictiveness against
his perceived enemies.
His malpractices initially surfaced last year when
the international aid
agency, Global Fund, threatened to cut off all future
funding for AIDS,
tuberculosis and malaria unless money taken from its
account was returned.
The central bank returned US$7.3 million to Global
Fund.
The central bank also took hundreds of millions of euros from
private bank
accounts, including 300,000 euros from a bank account belonging
to Hivos, a
Dutch development organisation. Corina Straatsma, the director
of Hivos'
regional office in Harare, says 90,000 euros is still missing,
although the
rest has been paid back.
Dziya said the theft from the
bank accounts must have been sanctioned by
Robert Mugabe and Gono's
admission of guilt, is now an attempt to hold on to
his job.
In
September last year, just before an inclusive accord was agreed with the
MDC, Mugabe reappointed Gono to a second five-year term as central bank
governor. However, since Tsvangirai's MDC joined the inclusive government in
February, there has been considerable pressure on Gono to
resign.
Gono is also renowned in Zimbabwe for his blatant display of his
own
personal wealth.
LET'S NOT MAJOR ON THE
MINORS
I note with concern as a peace loving Zimbabwe how
polarization can affect
our politics .Firstly on the issue of drafting of
the new constitution NCA
is making unnecessary noise. In this error and age
we have a representative
democracy so what is a people driven constitution.
Who represents the people
if members of parliament are not representing the
people? Its naďve for
civic organization to claim they represent the people
alone. I would have
understood if there were clamouring to be involved in
the process not to
force to spearhead the processes and claim its coming
from the people. If
constitutional making processes is coming from the
people then we can have
an election such that people can choose their own
committee is it feasible.
The hogwash utterance by Madhuku is just a venom
from people that want to be
retrogressive .NCA must just contribute in their
own way not to come up with
academic arguments. The issue of MP cars must be
resolved if Biti does not
have cars to give Ministers then he must talk to
Gono and the issuing of
cars became officialized .We must understand the
plight of MPS and besides
who gave ministers their cars .We should move
forward tackle outstanding
issues in GPA and show commitment towards the
agreement .Academic arguments
are fine but are not important at this
juncture.So GNU give us a break
TAFARA MUKWANI
IS A CANDIDATE
ATTORNEY
BASED IN JOHANNESBURG