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by Fanuel Jongwe 1 hour, 3 minutes ago
HARARE (AFP) -
Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe's spokesman Thursday called
reports of a
deal in power-sharing talks "nonsense", but both he and South
Africa said
negotiations over the country's crisis were advancing.
A day after
Zimbabwe's two rival parties issued a joint statement calling on
supporters
to halt violence, Mugabe's spokesman dismissed speculation that
an accord
was imminent.
"All this talk about an agreement that has supposed to have
been reached,
which is being reported, is utter nonsense," George Charamba
told AFP,
saying Mugabe had asked him to relay the message.
"The
talks are going on well, and the people of Zimbabwe shall be informed
in due
course once an agreement has been reached."
Earlier on Thursday, a South
African government spokesman refused to comment
on details of the talks
being mediated by President Thabo Mbeki, saying only
they were moving
ahead.
"The government as mediator won't give details except to say that
the
negotiations are progressing extremely well," Themba Maseko told
reporters.
Power-sharing talks following Mugabe's controversial
re-election began in
South Africa after Zimbabwe's political rivals signed
an accord on July 21
laying the groundwork for negotiations.
The deal
set a two-week timeframe for discussions to be concluded, but
meetings have
extended beyond that deadline.
Talks had broken up on July 29 as
negotiators flew home to consult with
their leaders amid suggestions by the
opposition that discussions on
power-sharing between Mugabe and rival Morgan
Tsvangirai were deadlocked.
They resumed on Sunday at a secret location
in South Africa.
A South African newspaper reported on Wednesday that
Mugabe would have
amnesty from prosecution and a ceremonial role in
government under what it
called a draft settlement to resolve the
crisis.
Opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Tsvangirai
would run
Zimbabwe as executive prime minister under the plan, The Star
reported,
saying it had obtained a copy of the draft.
The paper also
reported that Mugabe, Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara, leader
of a smaller
faction of the MDC, would hold a meeting in Harare later
Thursday.
Mutambara spokesman Edwin Mushoriwa told AFP the three
would meet soon, but
likely not Thursday.
Officials from the main MDC
faction refused comment on Thursday.
Tsvangirai boycotted the June 27
presidential run-off election despite
finishing ahead of Mugabe in the March
first round, citing rising violence
against his supporters that had killed
dozens and injured thousands.
The 84-year-old Mugabe defied widespread
calls to postpone the vote and went
ahead with the one-man poll, handing
himself a sixth term as president.
The rival parties issued a joint
statement Wednesday calling on their
supporters to halt all political
violence in a sign that the power-sharing
talks may have moved closer to an
agreement.
Mushoriwa said the joint statement was agreed upon as part of
the
discussions, which include Mutambara's MDC faction.
Tsvangirai
believes his first-round total gives him the right to the lion's
share of
power, but sources in his party said previously that Mugabe's
negotiators
had so far only offered him one of several vice-presidential
posts.
The ruling party has insisted Mugabe must be recognised as
president as part
of any deal, since he won the June 27 vote.
http://www.monstersandcritics.com
Aug 7, 2008, 16:34
GMT
Johannesburg - Zimbabwe's government quashed reports that President
Robert
Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai were to meet Thursday
to
discuss the details of a power-sharing government, amid reports a
face-to-face meeting is in the offing.
Responding to a report in a South
African newspaper that the two leaders
planned to meet Thursday. George
Charamba, Mugabe's spokesman said: 'I'm not
aware of any meeting which
Robert Mugabe was scheduled to have today. The
president spent the day
feeding chickens at his Norton farm.'
A spokesman for Tsvangirai, George
Sibotshiwe, also said he was unaware of
any meeting Thursday, while adding
South African President Thabo Mbeki had
been trying to organize a meeting
this week.
Mugabe's Zanu-PF and two factions of the Movement for Democratic
Change
(MDC) - the majority faction led by Tsvangirai and a breakaway
faction led
by Arthur Mutambara - have been holding talks since July 24 in
South Africa
on the formation of a unity government.
Mbeki is the
Southern African Development Community's appointed mediator in
Zimbabwe. An
MDC source told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa Mbeki was expected
to travel to
the country at the weekend.
The African Union has proposed a powersharing
government as a solution to
the political crisis in Zimbabwe, made worse by
Mugabe's claim of victory in
a presidential run-off election in June that
Tsvangirai boycotted.
The power-sharing talks resumed on Sunday after being
suspended for six days
last week amid disagreement over who should head the
next government -
Mugabe or Tsvangirai.
The MDC and the West is pushing
for Tsvangirai to be made executive prime
minister on the basis that he
defeated Mugabe in the first round of voting
for president in
March.
Despite last week's hiatus, both sides, and South Africa, have
expressed
satisfaction at progress made in the talks.
On Wednesday, in a
sign the parties were edging towards agreement, their
negotiators issued a
joint statement condemning political violence and
describing it as
'attributable' to both camps.
The MDC claims that more than 100 of its
supporters were killed by
Mugabe-loyal militia and soldiers after March 29
general elections the party
won.
The statement, which fulfills one of the
conditions in the July 21
memorandum of understanding that kickstarted the
unity talks, comes amid
separate claims by the MDC of fresh attacks on its
supporters by Zanu-PF
supporters.
The MDC said Mkululi Ncube, 28, and
Rogers Nyoni, 70, were attacked in
Filabusi in Matebeleland South region on
Wednesday.
Ncube suffered deep cuts in the head and a fractured leg and Nyoni
received
arm injuries, the MDC said.
MDC sources claimed the MDC started
the violence but that their supporters
were overpowered.
http://www.africasia.com
PRETORIA,
Aug 7 (AFP)
South
Africa's government said Thursday power-sharing talks aimed at
resolving
Zimbabwe's political crisis were "progressing extremely well."
"The
government as mediator won't give details except to say that the
negotiations are progressing extremely well," government spokesman Themba
Maseko told reporters during a post-cabinet briefing.
He refused
further comment on the talks.
South African President Thabo Mbeki has
been mediating the power-sharing
talks between Zimbabwe's ruling and
opposition parties following President
Robert Mugabe's re-election in a June
vote widely dismissed as a farce.
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC)
opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai
boycotted the June 27 presidential
run-off, leaving Mugabe as the only
candidate.
Tsvangirai announced
he was withdrawing from the poll five days ahead of the
election, citing
rising violence against his supporters that had killed
dozens and injured
thousands.
The MDC leader finished ahead of the 84-year-old Mugabe in the
March first
round of the election, but with an official vote total short of
an outright
majority.
The rival parties issued a joint statement
Wednesday calling on their
supporters to halt all political violence in a
sign that the power-sharing
talks may have moved closer to an
agreement.
Negotiations followed a July 21 deal signed by the two sides
laying out the
framework for discussions.
A newspaper reported
Thursday that senior members of Zimbabwe's security
forces have travelled to
South Africa to meet mediators in the talks.
Members of Zimbabwe's Joint
Operations Command, a powerful body that
includes President Robert Mugabe's
top security chiefs, met with two South
African government officials
mediating the negotiations, The Star reported.
Mbeki spokesman Mukoni
Ratshitanga said he was unaware of the meeting.
HARARE, 7 August 2008 (IRIN) - Negotiations
for a power sharing deal between President Robert Mugabe's government and
Zimbabwe's main opposition parties have nearly been concluded, people involved
in the talks told IRIN.
Photo:
Waiting
for a deal
An agreement is expected to be signed in the
next few days between both factions of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC)
and the ruling ZANU-PF party, which has been in power since independence from
Britain in 1980.
The parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 21
July, which paved the way for talks and committed the negotiators to a news
blackout. However, speaking on condition of anonymity, a negotiator said: "We
are just dotting the i's and crossing the t's. We should be forming a government
in which we will be sharing power within the next few days."
Morgan
Tsvangirai, leader of the main MDC faction, is expected to return to Zimbabwe
from South Africa, where the talks were conducted, on 8 August; Thabo Mbeki,
appointed as mediator by the Southern African Development Community, is expected
to arrive in the Zimbabwean capital, Harare, the following day for the signing
ceremony. If the power-sharing parameters were concluded in time, the agreement
could be signed on 8 August.
According to the negotiator, in terms of the
deal Mugabe would be retained as executive president, while Tsvangirai would
occupy the post of executive prime minister. Arthur Mutambara, leader of the MDC
break-away faction, was expected to be given an influential ministerial post.
We have agreed to adopt a
system which is almost similar to the French model, in which both the president
and the prime minister wield a lot of power
"We have agreed to adopt a system which is almost similar to the French
model, in which both the president and the prime minister wield a lot of power,"
the negotiator said.
The power-sharing deal was expected to last for
five years, after which internationally supervised elections would be held. He
said despite public posturing and claims that there were serious differences on
the formation of a power-sharing government, the opposite was true.
"Generally, we have been agreed on many issues, and that is why we have
almost completed the talks in a short time. Everybody involved in the talks
acknowledges that the people have suffered for too long as a result of the
political and economic hardships caused by the political stalemate."
Amnesty for all
Mugabe had demanded that all
people implicated in politically motivated crimes, himself included, be exempted
from any trials, although the MDC believed there should be some form of
accountability, a senior ZANU-PF official told IRIN.
Mugabe and his
government have been implicated in Operation Gukurahundi (The rain that washes
away the chaff before the spring rain) in 1983 - also known as the Matabeleland
Massacres - when the North Korean-trained 5th Brigade was the vanguard unit in a
campaign against alleged dissidents. At least 20,000 people were killed in the operation.
Operation Murambatsvina in 2005 - also known as Operation
Restore Order, and officially described as a slum clearance programme - left
more than 700,000 people homeless after houses and shacks were bulldozed. United
Nations Special Envoy Anna Tibaijuka, after visiting Zimbabwe, said the
operation had breached both national and international human rights law.
In 2008, ZANU-PF lost its majority in
parliament for the first time since independence and Mugabe came off second best
in the first round of presidential voting. The military, war veterans and
ZANU-PF militia were implicated in the deaths of scores of MDC supporters in the
period before the run-off ballot, which led to Tsvangirai withdrawing his
candidacy in protest.
The talks have gained so much
momentum that it would almost be impossible to abort them. All parties have
increased the number of negotiators and technical committees, while support
staff have been flown in [to South Africa] to prepare for the signing ceremony
expected by Saturday
"The talks have gained so much momentum that it
would almost be impossible to abort them," the ZANU-PF official said. "All
parties have increased the number of negotiators and technical committees, while
support staff have been flown in [to South Africa] to prepare for the signing
ceremony expected by Saturday. As ZANU-PF we have started inviting guests who
should attend the ceremony where the power-sharing deal will be signed."
The negotiator said two key security ministries, defence and
intelligence, were deemed "non-negotiable" by security chiefs, who are believed
to have influenced Mugabe to cling to power after he lost the first round of
voting.
"The MDC responded by saying home affairs, which controls the
police and justice, were 'non-negotiable', as they wanted to safeguard
themselves from possible unfair treatment before the justice delivery system,"
the negotiator said.
"That is why very few people are surprised by
reports that the homicide section of the country's largest police station in
Harare was bombed over the weekend." No one has claimed responsibility for the
bombing, but the blast destroyed the records of investigations into the recent
political violence.
ZANU-PF has offered the opposition the ministries of
finance and trade; the opposition declined the offer but were interested in the
local government and foreign affairs portfolios.
"The MDC felt ZANU-PF
needed to clean up the mess that it had created by running down the economy.
Local government was preferable, as the MDC now controls most of the local
authorities and it would give them influence to consolidate its presence
countrywide."
Under ZANU-PF rule the economy has gone into meltdown,
with the official annual inflation rate estimated at 2.2 million percent -
although independent economists believe it could reach 50 million percent by the
end of August - and unemployment is estimated at more than 80 percent, with
shortages of food, electricity, water and fuel commonplace.
Civil society unhappy
However, civic society
organisations warned that the power-sharing deal could be rejected by the
electorate, as a transitional authority was preferred, with a shorter timeframe
before elections would be held.
The Zimbabwe Human Rights Association
said in a statement: "We humbly suggest that the outcome of the ongoing talks
should lead to the setting up of a transitional authority, headed by nonpartisan
technocrats mandated to come up with a people-driven constitution, as well as
create an environment conducive to the holding of truly free and fair elections
within a period of not more than two years."
McDonald Lewanika, the
spokesperson for Crisis in Zimbabwe, a coalition of 350 civic organisations,
said 'quick fixes' were not a solution to Zimbabwe's crisis.
"We
reiterate our calls for the establishment of a transitional authority with a
specific mandate of taking Zimbabwe to a lasting democracy, as opposed to a
power-sharing Government of National Unity (GNU)," he said.
"A GNU is a stopgap measure
which gives the ruling ZANU-PF party breathing space before reverting back to
its war path on the opposition supporters and the broader pro-democracy
movement," Lewanika commented.
A Government of National Unity
is a stopgap measure which gives the ruling ZANU-PF party breathing space before
reverting back to its war path on the opposition supporters
"The transitional authority must run the
state for a period not exceeding 18 months before going into fresh elections, to
be held under a new constitution and supervised by regional and international
observers."
[ENDS]
[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United
Nations]
Sydney Morning Herald
Sebastien Berger and Peta Thornycroft in Johannesburg
August 8,
2008
ZIMBABWE'S opposing sides were expected to meet yesterday to
discuss a
possible deal that could leave the President, Robert Mugabe, in
charge of
key institutions, including the army.
Under a 50-page draft
agreement, Mr Mugabe would become a ceremonial
president, with the
Opposition Leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, as prime minister
and head of
government until new elections were held. In this form, the deal
could
vindicate the insistence of the South African President, Thabo Mbeki,
on
solving Zimbabwe's impasse through quiet diplomacy.
Zimbabwe's rival
parties issued a joint statement on Wednesday calling on
their supporters to
halt all political violence - a possible sign that they
were close to
agreement.
However, a Western diplomat described the plan, which
effectively amounts to
creating a government of national unity, as a
"shocking outcome" that failed
to heed the will of the people as expressed
in the first round of the
presidential election on March 29, which Mr
Tsvangirai won. Observers said
it could leave key institutions, including
the army and central bank, under
Mr Mugabe's control.
The worst
outcome for the opposition Movement for Democratic Change would be
to join a
government in which it ended up marginalised and powerless, while
allowing
Mr Mugabe to claim legitimacy and receive international support.
"Unless
Tsvangirai has real executive power then the whole thing will break
down
almost immediately," said a constitutional lawyer in Harare. "There is
no
mechanism for this transition to be policed, so who will Tsvangirai
appeal
to if ZANU-PF break out of the deal once they have got their hands on
some
international finance?"
Under the draft agreement, as reported in The
Star, a Johannesburg daily,
ZANU-PF would control the defence ministry,
while the MDC would run home
affairs, which includes police and
prisons.
Other key ministries, including finance, land and justice, would
go to
independents - although finding such people may be
impossible.
The Joint Operations Command, the group of generals that
wields ultimate
power, would be made answerable to a national security
council chaired by Mr
Tsvangirai.
A constitutional amendment would be
required to implement the agreement and
Mr Mugabe would have to appoint Mr
Tsvangirai to the Senate for him to
become prime minister.
In theory,
this would be a transitional government leading to new elections,
which the
MDC wants in two years and ZANU-PF wants to postpone for five.
Foreign
aid has been promised if there were reforms in Zimbabwe, where
inflation
officially runs at 2.2 million per cent. A senior Western diplomat
said: "We
will look at the deal. If it reflects the will of the people as of
March 29,
then fine; if not, then nothing will change."
A senior opposition MP
said: "Unless home affairs, justice and the Reserve
Bank are out of ZANU-PF
hands, there can be no deal that the people can
trust."
The agreement
would give all those guilty of political violence, from Mr
Mugabe to his
loyal thugs, a blanket amnesty.
As news of the deal circulated, the
parties issued a joint statement vowing
"to eliminate all forms of
violence".
Agence France-Presse; Telegraph, London
From The Star (SA), 7 August
Basildon Peta and special correspondent
Members of
Zimbabwe's feared Joint Operations Command - the junta that has
effectively
been running Zimbabwe - were in Pretoria to meet with President
Thabo
Mbeki's emissaries to the Zimbabwe dialogue, it has been established.
Led by
Emmerson Mnangagwa, the JOC consists of the heads of Zimbabwe's
security
agencies who have been the biggest stumbling blocks to all efforts
to
resolve the Zimbabwe crisis because of their own fears over their
destinies
in any post-Mugabe dispensation. Sources said the JOC members had
met this
week with Local Government Minister Sydney Mufamadi and
presidential legal
adviser Mojanku Gumbi, who are part of Mbeki's mediation
team in the
Zimbabwe dialogue. It was not clear why the JOC had made the
sudden trip
while negotiations were under way. The Star understands that the
JOC
members, who are deeply worried about prospects of future prosecutions
as
they have allegedly been responsible for the state-inspired violence
against
the opposition, wanted to ensure that their interests are catered
for in any
agreement reached in the talks. The JOC is said to have been
fiercely
opposed to any deal that would demote President Robert Mugabe to a
ceremonial role and give executive powers to MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai.
The collapse of the first round of the talks, after Tsvangirai had been
offered the less influential post of third vice-president, was directly
attributed to the JOC. But with the economy in free-fall and the need for a
realistic compromise deal having become imperative, the JOC had been forced
to relent, hence the sudden visit to Pretoria to seek guarantees of its
members' future as it looks increasingly likely that Tsvangirai will walk
away with an executive post in any agreement to be reached in the
talks.
Meanwhile, police officers have been made main suspects in a
bomb explosion
which rocked Harare's main police station last Saturday. The
motive of the
blast has largely remained a mystery. Although police have
flatly refused to
give information on the investigations, The Star
understands that at least
two officers have been arrested in connection with
the bombings and are
under interrogation by police and the country's secret
service, the Central
Intelligence Organisation. One bomb exploded in the
offices housing the
Criminal Investigations Department, while two failed to
detonate. A senior
police officer close to the investigations told The Star
yesterday that what
has made the whole issue strange is that two officers
have already been
arrested, although they have not made any headway in the
probe. "It is a
bizarre investigation, because suddenly police were ordered
to arrest two
young officers in a development which has left many in the
force baffled,"
said the senior officer, whose offices are in the same
complex which was
bombed. "It appears they just want to arrest the officers
and force them
into some kind of an unknown confession."
Meanwhile,
the ruling Zanu PF and opposition Movement for Democratic Change
issued a
joint statement yesterday, calling on their supporters to halt all
political
violence. Five days into their investigation police are keeping
mum on how a
controversial Zimbabwean politician came into possession of a
R1,4-million
Mercedes-Benz, allegedly South African state-owned, writes Alex
Eliseev.
Asked yesterday whether the ownership of the bullet-proof vehicle
had been
established, police spokesperson Captain Julia Claassen was only
willing to
say: "We're investigating that." A senior source in the police is
adamant
the Mercedes-Benz - in the possession of Justine Chiota - is not
registered
to the VIP protection unit. But two independent sources ran the
car's number
plates and engine numbers through the relevant databases and
said they
pointed to the specialised VIP fleet. Last night, police declined
to give
any insight into the case of suspected stolen property under
investigation
by Sandton police.
SW Radio Africa
(London)
7 August 2008
Posted to the web 7 August 2008
Violet
Gonda
South African President Thabo Mbeki was expected to meet
Zimbabwean
political leaders in Harare on Thursday and the red carpet was
rolled out
for him, but it was rolled up again when Mbeki did not show.
Reports now say
he is expected at the weekend.
Iden Wetherell, the
projects editor of the Zimbabwean Independent and
Standard newspapers, said
Mbeki's non arrival indicates that not everything
is entirely in place, and
wants to be satisfied that there is sufficient
consensus. Other reports say
the South African leader is waiting for the
negotiators to brief their
principals. The negotiators for the political
parties were heading back to
Zimbabwe late Thursday.
And so the confusion over the talks continues
- parties are sworn to
secrecy, and journalists have the difficult task of
putting together pieces
of information, that may or may not be true, that
are 'leaked.'
Zimbabwe is in a fragile situation, politically and
economically, and the
lack of information over these critical talks is
potentially very dangerous.
A report doing the rounds claims to be a
draft settlement, making Mugabe
ceremonial President with Tsvangirai in the
position of executive Prime
Minister. It also states that those involved in
the campaign of violence
will have full immunity from
prosecution.
But analysts are highly sceptical about the authenticity of
this 'draft'
saying Mugabe is unlikely to accept the role of ceremonial
president. They
also doubt that the opposition parties would call for a
blanket amnesty on
perpetrators of violence. One senior MDC official,
speaking on condition of
anonymity, said: "It's a difficult one to sell to
our supporters and even to
some of us. The amnesty issue is not even an
agenda item in the MoU."
The main bone of contention at the talks remains
the same - the positions of
power - and this is the major stumbling
block.
Meanwhile, it is understood that the negotiators had separate
bilateral
talks with South Africa's chief facilitator, Minister Sydney
Mufamadi. These
discussions also included other South African
officials.
Sources say negotiators for the Tsvangirai MDC - Tendai Biti,
Elton
Mangoma - plus their support negotiators Lovemore Moyo, Teresa Makone,
Elphas Mukonoweshuro, Innocent Chagonda - met the SA officials on Wednesday
morning.
Negotiators for the Mutambara MDC - Welshman Ncube,
Priscilla Misihairabwi
Mushonga - plus their support negotiators Miriam
Mashaya, Moses Mzila
Ndlovu, Romaldo Mavedzenge, Josphat Tshuma - reportedly
met the SA officials
later on Wednesday.
ZANU PF negotiators, Patrick
Chinamasa and Nicholas Goche, met Mufamadi on
Thursday morning. Emmerson
Mnangagwa, the head of the notorious Joint
Operations Command, was present
at this meeting and so were John Nkomo,
Sydney Sekeremayi, Oppah Muchinguri
and Stan Mudenge. This was the first
time that the ZANU PF had brought in
their additional negotiators.
Speculation is rife that Mnangagwa's presence
is in order to discuss the
attitude of the state's security forces to the
talks.
It is not known what transpired during the bilateral talks but it
is
believed the South Africans wanted to talk to the parties individually to
hear their private thoughts on the progress. Sources say the negotiators
were heading back to Zimbabwe to brief their individual
principals.
But it remains a mystery as to why Zimbabweans are denied any
real facts
about these crucial discussions, that will have such an impact on
their
lives.
SW Radio Africa
(London)
7 August 2008
Posted to the web 7 August 2008
Lance
Guma
Jawet Kazangarare, a notorious war veteran accused of stabbing
to death MDC
activist Tapiwa Mubwanda, continues his reign of terror in the
Hurungwe
District of Mashonaland West, despite the ongoing power sharing
talks.
In April this year Kazangarare killed Mubwanda, a prison guard who
supported
the MDC, and with the help of 300 Zanu PF militia displaced many
hundreds of
people in the area. With levels of violence subsiding and
displaced
villagers trying to come back to their abandoned homes,
Kazangarare is said
to be demanding payment in the form of cattle, goats and
chickens before he
allows them back. Those who refuse to make the payments
are being subjected
to further violence and intimidation.
Because
of food shortages in the country Zanu PF militia are relying on food
confiscated from the victims of their violence.
Despite being briefly
detained by police Kazangarare, who is still a serving
soldier, was released
on the orders of Zanu PF senator Rueben Murumahoko and
former Zanu PF
governor Peter Chanetsa. Newsreel spoke to Gift Konjana the
MDC Secretary
for Mashonaland West who confirmed that violence in the area
continued. Five
families that had camped in Harare after fleeing violence in
the area
attempted to go back home a few days ago, only to come back saying
nothing
had changed.
Further up north in Kariba in the Musambakaruma area,
reports of continued
violence are also still being received. Although most
torture bases in the
area have been dismantled, Zanu PF thugs are said to be
gathering in large
numbers at pre-arranged times before unleashing violence
on suspected
opposition supporters. Other reports from the Zaka area of
Masvingo suggest
violence is also continuing. MDC supporters are being
forced to go to Zanu
PF torture bases and told that despite Zanu PF
candidates losing in
parliamentary and council elections, the MDC would not
be allowed to run
anything in the area. MDC councils have already been sworn
in the area but
this has not deterred Zanu PF intimidation.
The South
African Council of Churches has meanwhile said if violence in the
country is
not curbed it could undermine the legitimacy of any agreement
between Zanu
PF and the MDC. The groups President, Tinyiko Maluleke, said a
political
agreement served no use if ordinary people 'are living in the
midst of
death.' The council said it was alarmed at the frequent reports of
atrocities, including the hacking off of opponent's limbs. 'Zimbabweans are
suffering, they are dying and Robert Mugabe's government has the primary
responsibility to act immediately and decisively to halt the violence,'
Maluleke said.
ZANU-PF militia violence, despite the imminent signing of a GNU deal,
continues unabated across parts of Zimbabwe, esp. here in Mash. West
Harare -- In May this year when Mugabe and ZANU-PF first unleashed the
ZANU-PF militia on the populace during the infamous Operation Mavhotera Papi,
Tipiwa Mubwanda, a Zimbabwe Prison Services (ZPS) guard, was killed. Mubwanda, a father of two, accused of being not only a member but an activist
of the MDC, was savagely attacked one night. His assailants, tortured and
stabbed him on the chest multiple times with whetted knives. He died of profuse
loss of blood. Mubwanda was attacked in Hurungwe North, here in Mashonaland West province.
His assailants were Jawet Kazangarare and Pvt. Peter Madamombe, a militia of the
Zanu-PF and soldier of the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) respectively. Police took no action against these two murderers and their other
accomplices. Upto now, Kazangarare and the ZANU-PF militia unit he leads, have
continued their campaign of terror on the purported suporters and activists of
the MDC. Immitating Col. Mzilikazi and Cmdr. Joseph Chinotimba who are operating in
Manicaland Province, Kazangarare has led his units without regard of the
political situation in the country. The GNU talks between the MDC and ZANU-PF
hasn't made him stop his reign of terror. Recently, Kazangarare, now calling himself 'commander kaz,' was briefly
detained by the Mashonaland West provincial police, but was immediately released
at the intervetion of ZANU-PF senator Rueben Murumahoko and
former Zanu PF governor Peter Chanetsa. His release by the police has seen Cmdr. Kaz resume his reign of terror in
the area. With levels of violence subsiding and displaced villagers trying to
come back to their abandoned homes, Kazangarare is said to be demanding ransom
from the poor villagers. As payment for their safe return to their homes, Cmdr.
Kazangare demands live cattle, goats, chickens, pigs and anything else edible.
Failure to pay Cmdr. Kazangarare and his ZANU-PF militia units results in one
being refused returning to their homes, tortured as sell outs or assaulted. Drought has hit most parts of the country, including Hurungwe. Like a true
guerrilla army, the ZANU-PF milia units are living off the land, stealing food
from the villagers, commandeering food supplies from MDC supporters and through
general banditry.-- Harare Tribune Field Report
http://www.iol.co.za
August 07 2008 at
02:34PM
Johannesburg - Violence in Zimbabwe might undermine the
legitimacy of
any agreement between the two parties may reach unless curbed,
the SA
Council of Churches said.
"While encouraged by the
increasing signs that the talks might soon
lead to agreement, we are
concerned about reports of persistently high
levels of violence in that
country. It could undermine the legitimacy of any
political settlement
reached," said SACC president Tinyiko Maluleke.
The council was
pleased that Zanu-PF and the Movement for Democratic
Change had at last
managed to come to the negotiating table.
"But of what use is a
political agreement when the people are living
in the midst of
death."
The council said it was especially alarmed by increasingly
frequent
reports of atrocities, including the hacking off of opponents'
limbs. They
urged leaders on both sides to appeal for peace and
tolerance.
"Zimbabweans are suffering, they are dying and Robert
Mugabe's
government has the primary responsibility to act immediately and
decisively
to halt the violence," Maluleke said. - Sapa
http://www.swradioafrica.com/pages/mashwest070808.htm
Mashonaland West Situation Report 06
-08-08
Hurungwe North
Persecution of MDC supporters still
continues but on a smaller scale. In
Kazangarare area, near the town of
Karoi Malberiegn Kauchivenga, a 53 year
old MDC supporter was seriously
assaulted by Jawet Kazangarare on 25 June
2008. The victim had approached
Kazangarare at his homestead claiming money
for a goat allegedly forcefully
taken from him by the perpetrator as a form
of punishment and sign to show
that he had repented from being an MDC
supporter. Kazangarare was detained
briefly by the Zimbabwe Republic Police
in Karoi but was later released for
reasons still unclear. Rueben
Marumahoko, Senator for Hurungwe, and Peter
Chanetsa, previous governor of
Mashonaland West and now MP for Hurungwe
North were seen entering Karoi
police station shortly after Kazangarare's
arrest and ordering his release.
The police complied despite the many crimes
he has committed.
The notorious Jawet Kazangarare, a "war veteran" is
known in Mashonaland
West for spearheading the murder of Tapiwa Mubwanda, a
MDC activist murdered
in cold blood on the 12th of April 2008, and for
organizing and leading the
violent persecution of MDC supporters and accused
sympathizers. Returning
residents, who had been displaced when the violence
peaked, are being forced
to pay cattle, goats and chickens by Jawet
Kazangarare for them to be
readmitted into the community. Those who are
failing to do so are being
subjected to further violence and intimidation
and the threat of being
permanently chased away from their homes and
livelihoods. Confiscated
animals and grain are the major source of food for
the unemployed Zanu PF
youth and "war veterans".
Kariba
In
Musambakaruma area reports of continued violence are being received.
Cosmetically, torture bases in the area have hurriedly been dismantled in
recent weeks but the perpetrators have now resorted to a "new" strategy. It
is reported that they gather up in large numbers after a short, prior
arrangement and descend on unsuspecting victims, unleashing an orgy of
violent beatings and arson.
The remaining provinces have reported
that violence has died down but that
distribution of food aid and maize meal
from the Grain Marketing Board (the
only source of the staple food) is still
being controlled by ZANU PF
councilors and chiefs who are denying any known
MDC supporters access to the
scarce commodities
The violence
experienced in the province of Mashonaland West has displaced
close to 100
MDC supporters with many being left homeless as their houses
and property
burnt or destroyed. Three known deaths of MDC activists have
been reported
and many more injured.
http://www.sokwanele.com/thisiszimbabwe/archives/1471
There is a distinct lack of $100 billion notes
available: in Bulawayo there
appear to be almost none and in Harare very
few, this is corroborated by the
fact that these notes are not being
dispensed from automatic tellers or from
the main withdrawals at the
banks.
Inside word is that Gideon Gono is taking all these high
denomination notes
(nobody has yet seen the high currency new notes) and he
is buying as much
gold as possible. Rumours and speculation are rife that he
is preparing the
ground for himself and the upper echelon to do a
runner.
Everyone knew that there was new currency in the wings planned to
be
launched at some point. It was widely believed in 2007 that the currency
was
set to be released to coincide with the 2008 March 29th elections. It
was
understood that the let's smokescreen the economic situation Zanu
campaign
strategy was to ensure that a loaf of bread would cost just $1 just
before
elections. However, it is believed that the strategists did not
expect the
run-on inflation and their timing was way out, so the launch
planned for
March was scuppered.
The cash withdrawal limit that has
been creating anger among Zimbabweans
could not be increased because
previously the Reserve Bank simply did not
have the notes available - this
was exacerbated by the Giesecke & Devrient
refusal to supply paper for
notes. So Gono was therefore forced to mount the
new monetary launch last
week, increase withdrawal limits and re-introduce
coins in order to prevent
wide-scale rioting. This honeymoon will NOT last.
This entry was
written by Still Here on Thursday, August 7th, 2008 at 11:55
am
http://www.sokwanele.com/thisiszimbabwe/archives/1477
Now that cash is in the system
again, buying forex on the streets is in
demand again.
On 4 August
the street rate for buying South African Rands rocketed to
25billion
($2.50). Previously the street rate remained significantly lower
than the
RTGS rate because nobody had available cash to buy. But the gap
between the
two rates is closing.
The Zimbabwe dollar cash situation will dry up
again fairly soon and with
that it is expected that the RTGS rate will go up
again. Some unscrupulous
business people are cashing in on the market: they
are buying at street rate
and then selling at RTGS rate, or they are buying
fuel at street rate for
cash and selling the fuel at RTGS rate.
The
effect of all this is the fuelling of free-fall inflation.
This entry was
written by Still Here on Thursday, August 7th, 2008 at 4:01
pm
http://www.radiovop.com/
BULAWAYO, August 7 2008 - The Reserve
Bank of Zimbabwe's coin mint
plant in Bulawayo which had stopped operating
following the loss of coin
value, is now fully operational after the Central
Bank lopped off ten zeros
and redenominated the currency last
week.
The coin manufacturing plant was constructed at a cost of
$500 million
and commissioned by President Robert Mugabe in 2001. Zimbabwe
has not been
using coins since November 2004. Sources at the coin mint plant
in Bulawayo
told Radio VOP on Thursday that production of coins at the plant
has resumed
in earnest following the reintroduction of coins by the Central
Bank last
week. "We started producing coins in March this year. The plant
had been
lying idle since 2004' said a worker at the bank who refused to be
named for
fear of victimisation. The worker said previous attempts to mint
for
regional countries has not been successful due to a shortage of copper
and
silver, critical components in the manufacture of the coins.
Presenting his Mid-term Monetary Policy Statement on Wednesday last
week,
RBZ Governor Gideon Gono re-introduced 10, 20, 25, 50cent, $1 , $2, as
well
as $5 coins.
http://www.zimbabwetoday.co.uk/2008/08/its-official--.html#more
The government endorses a
whole new way of paying for what we want
Roll up, roll up, for a grand
auction here in Harare this coming Friday.
Leading auctioneers Hammer and
Tongues are putting cars and other valuable
goods up for knock-down sale.
And the official currency for the event is the
petrol coupon.
This
new purchasing phenomenon has the blessing of the government. It has
been
advertised on television here, with the slogans: "Homegrown solutions
for
Zimbabweans!" and "Now we are selling in litres, not dollars."
Under the
system proposed by the auctioneers, potential purchasers will have
to put
down a deposit of 1,000 litres of fuel coupons before they can make
their
bids. At the current prices that amount of coupons is worth about
$US1,500.
The balance will be paid - again in coupons - when the sale goes
through.
But that auction is not the only aspect of life in Zimbabwe
which is being
run on the barter system..
Workers in private
businesses and state departments are also being paid, at
least in part, in
essential food stuffs, while in their dealings with the
public many
companies are accepting monetary payment only in US dollars - a
practice
that remains illegal.
Private schools, currently sending out invoices to
parents, are quoting
their fees in petrol coupons. One school I know of is
asking for petrol
coupons to the value of a hundred litres per term. These
the school
authorities will exchange for hard currency on the black
market.
For a while, then, the petrol coupon may seem to be helping
stabilise
commercial life here. But not for long. Already the value of a
coupon is
beginning to soar. And it becomes clear again to the meanest
intelligence
that such stop-gap and off-the-cuff moves will do nothing to
salvage our
wrecked economy.
Posted on Thursday, 07 August 2008 at
19:08
CHITUNGWIZA, 7 August 2008 (IRIN) - When
the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) announced its decision to revive old coinage,
Samuel Mapuranga, 29, of Chitungwiza, a dormitory city 30km south of Harare, the
capital, had something to smile about.
Photo:
Antony Kaminju/IRIN
No paper
to print notes
Without enough money to buy even
a loaf of bread for his two school-going children, he borrowed a pick and a
shovel from a neighbour and rushed to a nearby informal garbage site.
"I
used to work as a till operator for a local shop owner who gave me coins to
throw away because they had become useless. I followed his instructions ... Now
that they [the coins] are back in circulation, I have something to smile about,"
Mapuranga told IRIN.
Coins last used in 2001 were brought back into
circulation on 1 August. Gideon Gono, governor of the RBZ, has introduced new
coins as well as new notes to replace the old bearer cheques, from which and 10
zeroes were removed.
On the first day Mapuranga dug up enough coins to
transform himself into a "trillionaire" in the old currency. "I found about nine
trillion dollars [Z$9,000 in the new currency, about US$60] on the first day of
my secret treasure hunt, and half of that the following day, but the 'gold mine'
is drying up now," said Mapuranga, whose windfall amounted to more than a
quarter of a school teacher's monthly salary.
Resuscitation of the coinage
has brought cheer to Zimbabweans likes Mapuranga, struggling to make ends meet
in a collapsed economy. Even though he is not as lucky as he was on the first
two days, he is able to find the odd stash of coins in dumping sites dotted
around the city, "And that makes me the envy of many people who put on a jacket
and tie six days a week and yet get peanuts from their employers."
I have been struggling to put money on the table
for years, but in the past four days the sun has been shining brightly through
my window, thanks to the return of the coins
Shops
and informal traders sometimes refuse to accept his coins because they are too
blackened with dirt, but that does not worry him because he can still go to the
bank and exchange them for new notes.
These days, Mapuranga can afford
basic commodities like sugar, washing soap and maize-meal, and even manage to
have a drink with friends at the local liquor shop.
"I have been
struggling to put money on the table for years, but in the past four days the
sun has been shining brightly through my window, thanks to the return of the
coins," he said. "I can now give my children money to spend at school and I have
even managed to pay up the top fees that the school was
demanding."
Play money
Fortunate Kanhukamwe,
19, a housemaid who also lives in Chitungwiza, has suddenly found joy in the
coins she used to use as play money to cheer up her employers' two-year-old
son.
"My employers throw these coins everywhere and when they are away
at work I look in every hidden corner - even madam's underwear closets - for
them. They don't know it, but I have managed to gather about three times the
salary they give me a month in a short space of time," Kanhukamwe told
IRIN.
In her free time she searches the alleys and streets for coins,
but is careful not to let her employers know, fearing they might take them away
from her. "Sometimes we fight over the coins that we find in the streets, but
that [the fights] is a lot of fun in these hard times."
However, there
are fears that the joy brought by the reintroduction of the coins could be
short-lived, and Mapuranga and Kanhukamwe admit that "We have to make as much
hay as possible while the sun shines."
Innocent Makwiramiti, a
Harare-based economist and past chief executive officer of the Zimbabwe National
Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC), told IRIN: "The coins are bringing back temporary
joy. In two weeks or so they will be despised, because they would have been
rendered useless by the hyperinflationary environment we are operating under."
Inflation is officially estimated at around 2.2 million percent, but
independent analysts have put it as high as 15 million percent. Makwiramiti said
the RBZ had been forced to reintroduce the coins because Giesecke and Devrient,
the German company supplying the paper used to print notes, had decided to stop
doing so in protest of the political violence in the recent
elections.
Elton Mangoma, secretary for economic affairs in the
opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), said in a recent statement that
"no amount of tinkering with currency denominations will address the Zimbabwean
crisis", and described Gono's new measures as "the usual
nonsense".
"Allowing people to scrounge for old money from their drawers
will make it impossible to know how much currency is on the market," he pointed
out, and this "could further push up inflation, which has now hit stratospheric
levels".
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent
Societies (IFRC) has appealed for about US$26.6 million to assist 260,100 people
in need.
More than 5 million Zimbabweans will suffer food insecurity by
the height of the hungry season between January and March 2009, according to a
crop assessment forecast released on 18 June by the Food and Agricultural
Organisation (FAO) and World Food Programme (WFP).
"This figure [5.1
million] represents approximately 45 percent of the country's population," said
Peter Lundberg, the head of the IFRC's delegation in Harare. "It gives a clear
indication of how severe the situation is, and could become. We are very
concerned."
[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United
Nations]
FROM THE ZIMBABWE VIGIL
Media advisory
Olympics Demonstration in
London - combined protest by Burmese, Sudanese,
Tibetan and Zimbabwean
activists
8th August 2008
It's been confirmed that Kate Hoey, Chair of
the All-Party Parliamentary
Group on Zimbabwe, athlete and former Sports
Minister, will be attending the
combined protest opposite the Chinese
Embassy in London to mark the opening
of the Beijing Games on Friday, 8th
August.
Four countries trashed by China are to stage a joint
demonstration outside
the Embassy. Representatives of Burma, Sudan, Tibet
and Zimbabwe will lay
flowers in mourning for the deaths of millions of
victims of dictators
supported by China. All four countries are victims of
China's use of its
veto in the UN Security Council to protect human rights
abusers.
The demonstration will start at 10 am and there will be a media
presentation
at 11 am when the Zimbabwean, Burmese and Sudanese dictators
will be seen
bowing down to a figure representing China. The masks used
were widely
shown at the Europe / Africa summit in Lisbon last December. A
black coffin
will be on display representing those who have died in the
liberation
struggles of these countries. Tibetans wearing gags will be
representing the
216 Tibetans who have been killed in demonstrations since
March this year.
The protest will culminate at 13.08 when the Tibetan
flag will be raised,
accompanied by the national anthems of the four
countries. We will be
joined by the Falun Gong who have been protesting in
support of freedom
outside the Chinese Embassy for many
years.
Contacts: Zimbabwe Vigil: Rose Benton 07970 996 003,
07932 193 467,
Dumi Tutani 07960 039 775
Burma
Democratic Concern: Myo Thein 07877 882 386,
020 8493
9137
Tibet Society: Philippa Carrick 020 7272
1414
Sudan Organisation against Torture: 020 7625
8055
Venue: RIBA, 66 Portland Place, London W1B 6AD (opposite
Chinese
Embassy)
Map link:
http://www.architecture.com/Files/RIBAHoldings/Premises/66PortlandPlaceMap.pdf
Underground:
Regents Park, Great Portland Street, Oxford Circus.
Zimbabwe Vigil
Co-ordinators
The Vigil, outside the Zimbabwe Embassy, 429 Strand,
London, takes place
every Saturday from 14.00 to 18.00 to protest against
gross violations of
human rights by the current regime in Zimbabwe. The
Vigil which started in
October 2002 will continue until
internationally-monitored, free and fair
elections are held in Zimbabwe. http://www.zimvigil.co.uk
http://zimbabwemetro.com/featured/what-is-going-on/
By Eddie Cross August 7, 2008
In my last letter I said that
progress was being achieved at the talks in
South Africa. My main reason for
saying so was that we had not walked out of
the talks and this signalled
that our core demands were being met. MDC
promptly walked out of the talks
the next day!
Because of the complete embargo on what is going on at the
talks we have
very little information. However there was one leak which
basically said
that Zanu PF had tabled a demand that the status quo prevail,
Mugabe remains
President until he finishes his 5 year term but that MDC join
a Zanu PF led
government with Morgan Tsvangirai as one of three vice
Presidents.
I can only assume that when they did that the MDC simply said
that there was
no point in continuing with the dialogue and walked out. Mr.
Mbeki was at
pains to say that the talks were going well and there was no
impasse but I
think that was purely for public consumption - in fact the
deadlock was not
resolved for a week and the talks only resumed on Sunday. A
week was wasted
as a result and the mediators had to intervene and get the
problem sorted
out.
Clearly it was sorted out or the talks would not
have resumed. Last night a
journalist on the Star newspaper in South Africa
informed us that he had a
draft agreement - all 50 pages of it and that this
showed what was on the
table. I have looked at the article this morning and
it appears to be a
draft proposal from the mediators to both
Parties.
The draft has a titular Presidency - occupied by Mugabe, an
executive Prime
Minister - to be Morgan Tsvangirai, with two deputies - one
from Zanu and
one from MDC. One aspect that will prove difficult is a
blanket amnesty for
all who have committed human rights violations in the
past. That will be a
tough call to make - especially as we have thugs still
inflicting terrible
injuries on people and the State withholding food from
the people - itself a
recognised crime against humanity.
The Star
reports that Mbeki is traveling to Harare to hold talks with the
main
principals on the draft. These talks are expected in the next day or
so -
then the final draft will go to the Parties for their OK and then to
the
SADC summit on the 16th August - after that I would expect Parliament to
be
called and for the required legislation to be passed and the process of
implementation started.
These developments are totally consistent
with what we have felt were the
fundamentals - the final deal may well stick
in our collective gullets but
so long as the MDC takes the drivers seat and
is clearly in control, we
should be able to live with it. Talks are taking
place on the sidelines to
decide what will happen to the key players in the
present regime. This
collection of monsters should in fact simply go from
their offices to the
ICC in the Hague. Then what about
corruption?
Despite the talks, the regime has still not lifted the ban of
the
distribution of food aid - some 200 000 tonnes of aid are locked up in
warehouses around the country. More is stored at the Ports and still more is
at sea and due to arrive shortly. The NGO's who have been handling this vast
operation (feeding nearly 5 million people) have all been idle - staff on
full pay and doing nothing for two months. The suffering among the people is
horrific - many children and elderly are dying from hunger.
To me
this is a clear crime against humanity and should be treated as such.
Goche
- the Minister responsible should be told that if the ban is not
lifted
immediately he would be the subject of an ICC prosecution. I am sure
that
would get his attention. With the UN as one of the mediator team, this
should not be difficult.
While all of this is going on we are
watching the circus in South Africa
with increasing apprehension. At the
moment the spectacle of Jacob Zuma
trying to evade justice for a whole range
of criminal acts, is hardly
credible. The case against him is solid, no one,
not even Zuma, disputes
that - but he is using the legal system to try and
delay the process until
he can get into Union Buildings and then deal with
the problem from that
lofty perch. In any other democracy Mr. Zuma would not
get within a 100
kilometers of the Presidents office.
Its got nothing
to do with his ability or popularity - I think he might make
a good
President and help unify a deeply divided country, but the charges of
corruption, racketeering and other misdemeanour mean that in ordinary
circumstances he should go to jail for a long time. That alone should
eliminate him from the position of a contender for the highest post in the
land. Instead we are faced with demonstrations outside the Courts and the
support of many key ANC leaders for the campaign to squash the charges. The
ANC is maintaining its commitment to the rule of law - but only
just.
While all this is going on the Zimbabwe economy continues its
downward
spiral. Inflation is running at 18 million per cent. It is
difficult to
maintain any sort of understanding of what that means in the
markets.
Somehow the informal sector keeps up and they seem to know, almost
by
osmosis, what prices and exchange rates are doing. Many people are simply
working in US dollars or Rand. Business that relies on the local markets is
not coping and many are almost closed down.
In tandem with the rapid
inflation in prices, all services are in a very
poor state. Urban roads have
all but collapsed, water supplies in the urban
centers are very short and
their quality dubious. Public transport is very
expensive and in short
supply while all basic foods are virtually
unobtainable. Our schools and
hospitals are barely functioning and hundreds
of thousands of our people are
on the move to greener pastures.
The decision last week to chop another
10 zero's off our currency and to
issue a new currency was simply an act of
desperation. The Reserve Bank had
run out of paper to print money and had no
choice but to issue the new
notes - manufactured actually in 2006, to meet
the demand for cash. They
brought back the coins - suddenly everyone was
scrambling to find the coins
they had in every drawer.
I guess that
will last a week and the new currency will be totally devalued
in a month.
What does Gono do then? Rumor has it he has decided to
retire -not a day too
soon in my book. But he better retire somewhere far
away and very quiet,
because you can be sure, his recent past is going to
catch up with
him.
Eddie Cross is the MDC Member of Assembly elect for Bulawayo
South,and the
MDC Policy Coordinator he writes in his personal capacity.
http://www.diamonds.net
By Jeff Miller
Posted:
08/07/08 15:09 [Submit Comment]
RAPAPORT... Police in Zimbabwe have
arrested more than 9,600 diamond panners
and dealers in the country since
the year began, according to a World News
Connection report. Authorities
have recovered about 1,912 diamonds and
impounded 148 suspected stolen
vehicles used by the dealers to illegally buy
the gemstones.
The
report suggested "diamonds worth quadrillions" of Zimbabwe dollars were
collected, but it did not provide a dollar figure of the siezed gems.
Zimbabwe's currency has fallen in value so much that it is difficult to
value against world currencies.
Authorities intensified efforts to
curb diamond smuggling and mining at
Chiadzwa in the Marange area of
Manicaland.
The government declared Chiadzwa a protected area and houses
the Zimbabwe
Mining Development Corporation's diamond plant.
"We have
tightened security at the diamond fields and the public should be
warned
that there are 24-hour dog and horse patrols by armed officers. So we
want
to warn the public that we will not hesitate to use minimum force to
apprehend any culprits," police inspector Makomeke was quoted as
saying.
He also appealed to the locals not to assist dealers and panners
anyone
involved in opperations faces arrest.
Additional reporting by
Dialog NewsEdge.
http://www.radiovop.com
HARARE, August 7 2008 - Prominent human
rights lawyer, Andrew Makoni,
who skipped the country at the height of
election violence in the run-up to
the June 27 presidential run-off, is back
in Zimbabwe.
Speaking to RadioVop this week, Makoni said
colleagues advised him
that the environment had changed in the wake of a
negotiated settlement
between the country's main political
parties.
"I had to come back at some point and I think I am
ready for anything
now. My life was under threat then but I think a lot has
changed now. I will
live each day as it comes," said
Makoni.
Makoni, one of Zimbabwe's most prominent human rights
lawyers who has
represented hundreds of opposition activists in court, fled
to South Africa
two months ago after receiving tip-offs about the security
officials
intention to kill him.
The Southern Africa
Litigation Centre (SALC) then revealed that
several other high-profile human
rights lawyers from Zimbabwe were also
targeted.
Makoni's
sources indicate that the secret security operatives'
strategy was to
eliminate at least one prominent human rights lawyer to
deter others from
defending victims of the post-election political violence.
They
claim that a special team of security agents had been assigned to
the police
station nearest his home to execute the assassination.
Alleged
Zanu PF militia killed scores of opposition supporters in the
violence that
ensued during the run up to the June 27 presidential run-off
election.
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
Date: 07 Aug
2008
MUSINA, SOUTH AFRICA, Aug. 7 (UNHCR) - For Absalom Moyo* the
relief in
getting his asylum seeker permit is obvious. "It's like a dream
come true,"
exclaims Moyo, who recently entered South Africa illegally,
fleeing violence
in his native Zimbabwe.
"Receiving this so quickly
has taken me by surprise and it has definitely
made up for the horrible
experience I went through when coming to South
Africa," he says, displaying
the permit he says has allowed him to relax and
not always be on his
guard.
Moyo is one of hundreds of Zimbabweans to recently benefit from a
Department
of Home Affairs' (DHA) initiative to process Section 22 asylum
seeker
permits in Musina, just 12 kilometres away from the Beit Bridge
crossing
where so many force their way through a weak link in the border
fence town
to enter South Africa illegally. Previously they risked arrest or
deportation as they made their way 500 kilometres or more to Pretoria or
Johannesburg to register.
"What we saw here as increasing numbers of
Zimbabweans came into the town in
need of international protection was that
there was an urgent need for
improvement in access to the asylum
procedures," explains Camilla Kragelund,
UNHCR Protection Officer assigned
to Musina.
Just ask Moyo what a typical asylum seeker has to go through.
He fled
threats to his life at the hands of Zimbabwe's Zanu PF youth in
recent
weeks, only to run into more torment moments after his illegal
"border
jumping."
Like many Zimbabweans crossing illegally into South
Africa through vast
tracts of bush, Moyo fell victim to the notorious
Gumaguma gangs - groups of
marauding armed men bent on exploiting the
vulnerability of their countrymen
and women. Moyo was set upon by seven
Gumaguma who stripped him of what
valuables he had hidden on his
person.
"They gave me some old shoes and an old maize meal sack to wear
to continue
my journey to Musina," he recalls with anger and frustration.
"All my money
including $57 U.S. and a few Zimbabwe dollars, gone just like
that!"
Moyo's dignity was somewhat restored by a sympathetic vegetable
stall owner
who took pity on him as he approached the town of Musina and
gave him a pair
of trousers and a shirt. He then lay low at the Anglican
Church in
Nancefield, a township some 3 kilometres outside Musina, to avoid
detection,
arrest and deportation at the hands of the South African police
and
immigration officers before getting his asylum seeker permit.
He
was fortunate to be able to get it in Musina, though. Previously asylum
seekers entering South Africa through Beit Bridge had to go to Pretoria, 500
kilometres away, to apply for refugee status.
"That's far if you've
come here with nothing and it's really far if you've
entered the country
illegally and don't have any documentation at all," says
UNHCR's
Kragelund.
Refugees and asylum seekers traveling to Pretoria or
Johannesburg have
always been at a very high and very real risk of being
arrested and
deported. UNHCR has long advocated for improved and easier
access to asylum
procedures in Musina, and with an increase in arrivals of
Zimbabweans in
Musina, the DHA opened a refugee reception office in July
this year.
"They responded remarkably quickly," says Kragelund. Four
refugee reception
officers and four refugee status determination officers
were recruited from
Pretoria and Johannesburg and in a matter of three
working days they had
established a functional office that started
processing asylum applications.
"It was impressively fast and what we've
seen since then is that they can
process about 300 asylum applications per
day," adds Kragelund. "It's quite
a high turn-out and they're working very
efficiently."
The only concern for UNHCR at this point is that the asylum
system in Musina
is being clogged by people who do not qualify for refugee
status.
"There are people who have lived in Musina for a number of years
who are not
refugees," says Kragelund. "They have not fled persecution, but
arrived in
South Africa several years ago, seeking employment. Many don't
have legal
status and they're trying to use the asylum system to legalise
their stay in
the country."
Moyo considers himself one of the lucky
few. Making his way to the
Nancefield Roman Catholic Church where he hopes
to receive a blanket and a
food parcel, courtesy of the UN Refugee Agency,
he is already planning his
next move.
"Now I need to find a piece job
to make some money," he says walking
energetically to the church. "It will
mean I can try and continue with my
life maybe in Johannesburg or Cape
Town!"
By Pumla Rulashe in Musina, South Africa
*Name changed for
protection reasons
Lance Guma
Producer/Presenter
SW Radio Africa
Mobile: +44-777-855-7615
Full broadcast on Shortwave: 4880khz and 12035Khz. Also available 24 hours on the internet.
You can also access archives at http://www.swradioafrica.com/pages/archives.php
Email: jag@mango.zw; justiceforagriculture@zol.co.zw
Please
send any material for publication in the Open Letter Forum to
jag@mango.zw with "For Open Letter Forum" in the
subject
line.
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------------------------
POEM
FOR THE DAY
"HAKA YAMUKA!!"... "The Pangolin has risen!!"
"MAKE OR
BREAK SEASON".... So says Gumbo, "the foot" ready to put the
final
boot!!
"THE MOTHER OF ALL SEASON'S HAS JUST MISCARRIED"...declares
The EU
Ambassador!
So it's back to cents, not common sense, that's for
sure!!!
From "Hero to Zero", he's done it again, Gono,
only this time he
really is clutching at zeros,
Ten in all, and all for nought...
this fast
track out of trillions is no cure...
but at least the money looks real and of
course those coin have made a
comeback!
"Haka yamuka"... "the pangolin has
risen!!!"
I wonder how long that will last?
Indeed the nation is now truly
scavenging....
In Dzvirasekwa I saw a family raking patiently through the
grass grown
rubble of "Murambatsvina",
In the long hours since dawn they
had found five by five dollar pieces, less
than one an hour,
Not enough
for the day's bread, this is what we call scratching a living...
or is
it?
I stopped and gave the man a cubby-hole full of gathered "wadges",
now
normally saved for the ever present street kids, past my endurance to
cash
in or spend. The man grinned and I drove on saddened by his joy
and
gratefulness... I had just visited a friend who cares for five
orphans...
crammed into two small rooms... neat and cheerful... both house
and
occupants...a fridge in the corner only a few bottles of water inside,
saved
to quench the thirst from interrupted supplies, a stove, spotless from
lack
of use, the oven empty, no fresh baked smell here, to fill the tummies
of
hungry children. Only a TV, ZBC, full mostly with vitriol, drivel
or
propaganda, hardly food for the soul... fortunately punctuated by
regular,
long, irregular power cuts... this last one two solid days, not even
soccer
to view at the weekend!
Mostly she cooks outside, under a few
sheets of corrugated asbestos, careful
to make sure the quick burning split
gum is used efficiently... it costs 100
billion a meal just for the wood for
one pot of sadza. She smiles and tells
me, "Life is like in the 'Bible',
lived one day at a time"...truly trusting
that the Father who sees the
sparrow fall will not let her down or the kids
now kicking a bundled plastic
ball around the dusty street, grins and waves
everywhere, " Ona murungu"
again and again as I drive off....
My heart wonders back to the days when for
me the laughter and waves of
like children were a regular part of my day as I
drove about my business on
the farm ... now long gone but ever a sore in my
heart.... a loss I grieve
still, never quite able to pass the triggers of
memory without a pang.
Still, I guess the joy I see here comes from never
having, living truly in
the present, trusting in God's
providence...
Yesterday I attended the 65th annual congress of the
Commercial Farmer's
union, it was a sorry occasion, the President, Trevor, in
a dark black suit
and white shirt tried to instil hope in a battered
constituency, more like
an undertaker at the funeral of an old friend. There
were quite a few there,
smiling old past presidents, doyens from a bygone era
CG, Jim, John, Allan,
Andrew, Bob and Colin.
All I guess as saddened by
the ongoing decline occasioned by the never
ending "Chimurenga" being waged
on the country's last few white producers.
Seven straight years of decline,
like Pharaoh's dream, our nightmare!!!
The questionable presence of a
questionable Minister prompting still less
confidence from the gathered
audience of farmers, long shattered into the
landed and the evicted,
semi-evicted and the currently under "Jambanja" ,
all longing for relief. Not
all with the same focus. Some wanting assurance
to go on, some to go back,
others to get paid. A divided agenda by farmers,
split by the devious divide
and rule tactics of a government bent on "100 %
empowerment!" Now the tactic
taken to the extreme, with three ministries
each responsible for a different
part of our
destruction...Agriculture...Land...and Mechanisation...open and
closed doors
at the same time, serving only the interests of a lost ideology
and a bunch
of people determined to reap where they have not sown, and sow
where they
should not reap...with the disguise of the law. No wonder we
are
scavengers!! Perhaps I can live without a farm but Zimbabwe sure as
hell
can't live without farmers.... let's hope those negotiating don't
forget
that... I guess we will just have to learn to trust God whilst we
scavenge!!
By
Mujakaranda
05/08/08
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1.
Cathy Buckle
A letter from the diaspora
2nd August2008
Dear
JAG,
One week ago, Sunday July 27th. the SA Sunday Times carried a report
that
Thabo Mbeki had finally told Mugabe that he had to talk to the
opposition.
The report went on to quote verbatim Sydney Mafamadi's words
to the
Zimbabwean 'leader'. "You don't have a government. You can't summon
your
parliament. You have no legitimate president - thus you have no cabinet.
You
cannot behave as you have been doing. Real talks have to
start
straightaway." So, the article concluded, it was South Africa who had
forced
Mugabe to enter negotiations with the opposition parties, the two
MDC
parties. On the very same day, The UK Sunday Telegraph claimed that it
was
Mugabe's other ally, China, who had forced the old man to 'behave
himself'
because his actions were bringing the Chinese hosting of the Olympic
Games
into disrepute.
Well, who cares whether it was South Africa or
China, I thought; at least
it's some kind of movement. So great is my
distrust of Robert Mugabe and
Zanu PF that I had no real hope anything would
come out of the talks but -
hope springs eternal! As the week went on, press
reports on the progress or
lack of it at the talks between the two sides
became wilder and more
confusing by the day. Were the talks on or were they
off? Were the two sides
deadlocked or was there real progress being made? Was
it true Tsvangirai had
been offered the crumb of the vice-presidency? With a
complete media
blackout and no official spokesperson appointed to give the
public the real
news, the print media was filled with speculation, rumour and
often just
plain gossip. It was only on Tuesday July 29th that Mbeki himself
announced
that the talks had adjourned for the negotiators to return to
Zimbabwe to
consult their leaders, as indeed the MOU had made allowance for
them to do.
The South Africa president insisted that the talks were going
well and would
resume on Sunday, August 3rd.
Like many others I
suspect, I decided early on in the week that my blood
pressure would not
stand any more of the surges of hope and despair as each
contradictory report
came out. Direct news from Zimbabweans at home in the
form of phone calls and
emails was a much more reliable source, I decided
and the story they told was
one of increasing despair as daily life becomes
more intolerable. The bloody
violence continues, food is still being used as
a political weapon and the
economy continues its descent into previously
unheard of depths. "Can I send
you money?" I asked a friend. "No point," she
replied, "I can't get more than
100 billion out of the bank and a loaf of
bread is going for 200 billion. Any
cash you send is just going straight to
Gideon Gono."
And right on
cue, in rode the knight in shining armour to rescue Zimbabwe
from the dragon
of inflation. It was none other than Gideon Gono, the
Reserve Bank Governor,
plump cheeks glowing with health and sporting a huge
buttonhole of fresh
flowers. For the third time he offered the same solution
to the nation's
problems: knock off the naughts! He did it in 2005; he did
it in 2006 and now
he's doing it again in 2008. But this time it is a
massive ten naughts that
will be removed, surely the dragon will truly be
slain this time? Ten billion
is now worth just one dollar and a trillion has
become one hundred Zim
dollars. Gone are the days of Zim billionaires - for
the time being anyway.
And, that old jar of coins you had been saving
because you didn't know what
else to do with them, now they are back as
legal tender. My friend in Murehwa
laughed over the phone as he told me,
"You remember that box of coins you
left, P. Well, they're real money
again!" Will they be enough to buy a loaf
of bread I wondered.
In the Herald, Gono is reported as saying that he
wants a six-month wage and
price freeze and it is every citizen's duty in
terms of the Social Contract
to abide by the new conditions. "We will soon
have no economy to talk about
if daily, hourly price increases continue."
Gono is quoted as saying and he
adds almost as an afterthought that the fight
against inflation will also
need increased agricultural output and reduced
fiscal expenditure.
Meanwhile in a separate report the Herald tells us
that the judges have all
been given new top-of-the-range Mercedes Benz, 32
inch plasma screen TVs,
(the Chief Justice and Judge President each get a 42
inch set) generators
and satellite dishes - even though other people are
having their dishes torn
down. Explaining it all, the Master of the High
Court, Mr Charles Nyatanga,
tells us that the judges get a new Merc every 5
years as one of their
conditions of service. As for the generators; well the
poor dears, the
judges I mean, have to take their work home with them and in
view of the
regular power cuts they need light to illuminate their
deliberations as they
write their learned judgements. In addition to the
Mercedes the judges have
Isuzu and Toyota trucks issued to them because
explained Mr Nyatanga, "It is
not desirable to drive their Mercedes on rough
terrain to their farms" No
comment!
And who is paying for all this?
Why none other than Gideon Gono! The Central
Bank purchased and will install
all these new 'goodies' for the judiciary.
So much for fiscal discipline!
Now let's see if the MPs, cabinet ministers
and other assorted government
lackeys will agree to a six-month pay freeze.
It is every citizen's duty
after all.
Yours in the (continuing) struggle.
PH
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2. Anonymous
Dear JAG
You can send SPCA to my place to witness
cruelty. At least one calf dies
every day, today, two. I cannot get food for
them - I paid for food in May,
and have been pulled around by the crooks
since that day.
The price of milk does not allow me enough money after a
month to buy one
ton of stock feed. Stock feed is quoted in US dollars - we
get paid in Zim
dollars.
So tell me SPCA, do I just slaughter all my
calves now, and all calves at
birth?
Anonymous farmer trying to get
through till something, whatever,
however,
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3.
Tracey Liles
Dear JAG,
I am an actress currently involved in a
devised project based on the crisis
in Zimbabwe. I am researching the land
issue and am looking to hear from
people with the following
experiences:-
who have previously owned land in Zimbabwe and lost it who
still own land in
Zimbabwe and their experiences of having land in the
current climate
farm workers who worked the land and lost their jobs as a
result of land
invasions
families who have been affected as a result
of the land invasions anyone who
has tried to legally challenge the loss of
their land
I would be most grateful for any experiences shared and thank
you in advance
for your generous assistance. My e-mail address is traceyliles@hotmail.com
best
wishes
Tracey
Liles
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All
letters published on the open Letter Forum are the views and opinions of
the
submitters, and do not represent the official viewpoint of Justice
for
Agriculture.
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