The ZIMBABWE Situation
An extensive and up-to-date website containing news, views and links related to ZIMBABWE - a country in crisis
Please note: You need to have 'Active content' enabled in your IE browser in order to see the index of articles on this webpage
Zimbabwe raises $1.5 mn to release impounded airplane
(AFP) – 9 hours
ago
HARARE — Zimbabwe's government has raised $1.5 million (1.2 million
euros)
to pay off the national airline's debt and have an impounded airplane
released in London, the company chairman said on Thursday.
"The
actual figure is $1.5 million and it was raised and transferred and
that jet
will be released in the next 48 hours," Air Zimbabwe chairman
Jonathan
Kadzura told AFP.
Spare supply company American General Supplies seized
ZimAir's Boeing
767-200 at London's Gatwick airport on Monday over unpaid
fees. AirZim had
to reroute and reimburse stranded
passengers.
Financial problems beleaguering the airline were the result
of unfair
international sanctions against Zimbabwe, Kadzura
said.
"This is a nation under unlawful sanctions and it's difficult for
government
to support its parastatals, so it's not failure on our part, but
punishment
through these illegal sanctions which have affected our
cashflows."
The United States government imposed sanctions on Zimbabwean
President
Robert Mugabe and senior members of his party following
presidential
elections judged flawed by western observers.
The
airline, already struggling to pay its workforce and facing mounting
fuel
shortages, needs about $40 million to clear some of its debts, acting
chief
executive Innocent Mavhunga told state newspaper The Herald this week.
In
June this year, the airline cancelled flights to London and South Africa
after gas companies stopped supplies for non-payment. This month a South
African firm that offers ground handling services seized one of AirZim's
planes over unpaid money.
Angry
Air Zim passengers demand answers
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Tichaona Sibanda
15 December
2011
Harare bound Air Zimbabwe passengers were on Thursday still stranded
at UK’s
Gatwick airport. The plane had been seized at the airport on Monday
over an
unpaid debt, but passengers had still been allowed to check in and
have been
stranded ever since.
Anger towards the national airline
increased as the Christmas travel plans
of over a hundred passengers were
ruined. Tensions erupted anew as
passengers demanded answers, after their
hopes of flying out on Thursday
were dashed.
The airline’s chairman
had said the debt and been settled and this gave
passengers the impression
the plane would be released immediately and allow
them to fly to Harare.
Jonathan Kadzura told the AFP news agency in Harare
that government had
raised $1.5 million to pay off the national airline’s
debt and have the
impounded Boeing 767 released. The long haul aircraft was
seized by spare
supply company, American General Supplies on Monday.
SW Radio Africa
presenter Ezra Sibanda is one of the stranded passengers. He
told us
passengers had nominated him and another man to approach Air
Zimbabwe
officials at Gatwick to seek answers.
‘I think whilst people are
obviously deeply upset about the inconvenience,
particularly at this time of
year, of having their travel plans disrupted,
most of what I am hearing is a
sense of outrage about the way they have been
treated since Monday,’ Sibanda
said.
He added that the passengers were claiming that Air Zimbabwe did
not do
enough to help them and are demanding compensation. He confirmed
tempers
were fraying at the airport after the airline left the passengers on
Wednesday to scramble to find alternative flights, or temporary
accommodation, on their own.
Sibanda said it was the complete lack of
communication and notification from
the airline that has left many
passengers in limbo regarding accommodation
and, more importantly, knowing
when they would fly out to see their families
in Zimbabwe.
David
Mwenga, the airline’s Europe manager, told us the company had done its
best
to find ccommodation for the stranded passengers.
‘Today (Thursday) we
have managed to book them into a five star hotel,
hoping that everything
will be sorted out soon,’ Mwenga said.
Newspaper
staff to face trial over ‘defamation’
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Alex Bell
15 December
2011
Staff from The Standard Newspaper will face trial for criminal
defamation,
after a Harare magistrate dismissed their attempt to have the
matter
referred to the Supreme Court.
Standard Editor Nevanji
Madanhire, and former Standard reporter Patience
Nyangove, are being jointly
charged with Alpha Media Holdings group human
resources Manager, Loud
Ramakgapola.
The ‘defamation’ charges stem from an article published in
late June this
year, titled: “MDC-T fears for missing Timba”.
The
story was based on an MDC-T statement, which said that the party feared
for
the life of its Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office,
Jameson
Timba, after he was arrested for allegedly calling Robert Mugabe a
liar.
The three have been trying to get the case referred to the
Supreme Court for
intervention, arguing that the charges infringe on their
constitutional
rights. This is based on Section 24 (2) of the constitution
which dictates
that, as members of the press, they can disseminate
information “without
fear or favour.”
But Harare provincial
magistrate Kudakwashe Jarabini on Wednesday dismissed
the application and
said the matter should proceed to trial. He remanded the
case to January
24th next year.
Chinese firm
denies abuse at Zimbabwe diamond mine
http://af.reuters.com/
Thu Dec 15, 2011 3:37pm
GMT
By MacDonald Dzirutwe
MARANGE, Zimbabwe (Reuters) - A
Chinese mining group has denied violating
human rights at Zimbabwe's Marange
diamond fields where unlicensed
small-scale miners have clashed with
security forces in the past.
The Anjin group told Reuters on a rare visit
that it planned to boost output
at the high-security mining area, where even
giant Baobab trees sport
surveillance cameras.
Marange, 400 km (240
miles) east of Harare, has generated controversy since
20,000 small-scale
miners invaded the area in 2008 and were forcibly removed
by soldiers and
police.
Human rights groups say up to 200 people were killed during the
process,
charges denied by Harare.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in
August that police and private security
employed by some mine owners were
shooting, beating and using attack dogs
against unlicensed
miners.
"There are no human rights issues here at Anjin," Munyaradzi
Machacha, a
director at Anjin, told journalists during the tour.
Four
companies operate the mines.
Two of them had already said reports of
abuses were false: Diamond Mining
Company of Zimbabwe -- a new joint venture
between the government and Pure
Diamond of Dubai -- and Mbada Diamonds,
another joint venture between the
state and a Zimbabwean investor said to be
close to President Robert Mugabe.
HRW mentioned only Mbada by name but
rights bodies have also accused
Zimbabwean state security agencies working
with Anjin of abuses.
Anjin is a joint venture between the government's
Zimbabwe Mining
Development Corporation and China's state-owned Anhui
Foreign and Economic
Construction Company and is run mainly by Chinese
nationals.
Security is tight at all the fields, with electric and alarmed
security
fences, flood lights and close-circuit television to stop illegal
miners
from sneaking in.
At least five police check points guard the
highway to Marange, there are
mandatory searches and armed guards with dogs
patrol the area.
Rules forbid people from picking anything from the
ground around the mining
area.
SPY CAMERAS
Marange is a hot
and arid place where temperatures soar above 40 degrees
Celsius and it is
home to Baobab trees as old as 200 years.
The mining firms have
transplanted the trees to facilitate mining and Anjin
has put spy cameras on
some of them. The firm says at least five people are
caught each week trying
to sneak into the concession area looking for
diamonds.
The Marange
fields span 71,000 hectares and contain large deposits of
alluvial and
conglomerate diamonds - found in sedimentary rocks - but
companies are only
mining on some 40,000 hectares.
The mining area hums with the sound of
trucks and front loaders digging the
earth and sending ore to processing
plants, which were imported from
neighbouring South Africa.
Anjin's
mine reflects the nationality of its owners with high gates
decorated with
guardian lions and dragons.
Some 210 Chinese are among the 1,700 workers
employed by the company.
Three of the mining firms have been certified to
export rough diamonds by
global regulator Kimberley Process, a scheme that
imposes requirements on
member states to ensure gems were not obtained as
spoils of conflict.
Earlier this month campaign group Global Witness
pulled out of the Process,
saying it was unwilling "to stop diamonds
fuelling corruption and violence
in Zimbabwe".
Anjin chief engineer
Hu Shijie told Reuters he expected production to rise
next year, from one
million carats mined in the first half year of
production from October
2010.
"We are looking at producing between 7 to 10 million carats," he
told
Reuters in an interview on Wednesday through an interpreter when asked
about
the production target for 2012.
"We want to put in a lot of
investment to develop the economy of this
country."
Machacha told
reporters that the mining firm had stockpiled 3 million carats
of rough
diamonds and was now selling them after the Kimberley Process
allowed it to
start exports last month.
He said Anjin had so far invested $310 million
since it started operations
in August last year.
Hu said the mining
firm will commission two new diamond processing plants on
Thursday, bringing
the total to seven.
Tsvangirai calls for reforms before vote
(AFP) – 1 hour ago
HARARE
— Zimbabwe's Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai warned Thursday that
crucial
reforms were needed before credible elections could take place.
President
Robert Mugabe has said he wanted early polls to be held in 2012 as
his
uneasy power-sharing deal with Tsvangirai was coming apart at the
seams.
Speaking to lawmakers, Tsvangirai admitted the coalition had
failed to
deliver on most of its targets and had become
unworkable.
"We have had our success stories but this government largely
remains
dysfunctional," said at his end-of-year address to
parliament.
Tsvangirai led Mugabe, who has ruled since independence in
1980, in the
first round of the 2008 presidential election but failed to win
an outright
majority. He pulled out of the run-off citing intimidation,
handing victory
to Mugabe.
Following an international outcry,
sanctions on the ruling party and months
of arduous negotiations, a
power-sharing agreement was reached in which
Mugabe kept his job and
Tsvangirai became prime minister.
"The year 2012 must not be
characterised by rhetoric about an early election
that is not accompanied by
the necessary reforms that will ensure a free and
fair election," Tsvangirai
said.
"Political stability is key to our prosperity as a nation and only
a free
and fair election can guarantee legitimacy, peace and
stability."
At a conference of his ZANU-PF party last week, the
87-year-old Mugabe said
Zimbabwe should hold a fresh election next year
without fail, arguing that
he power-sharing deal was "undemocratic and
illegitimate."
Court
Orders Mutambara To Step Down As MDC Leader
http://www.radiovop.com
Bulawayo, December 15,
2011- A Bulawayo High Court Judge has ordered
Professor Arthur Mutambara to
stop purporting to be the president of the
Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC), a principal in government and
exercising any functions vested on the
party’s president.
High Court Judge, Justice Lawrence Kamocha in his
judgment at the Bulawayo
High Court on Thursday morning confirmed a
provisional order that was
granted in February this year against Mutambara
directing him to stop
masquerading as the MDC president and
principal.
“The applicants are entitled to the provisional draft order,”
Justice
Kamocha said in his judgment read on his behalf by Justice Nicholas
Mathonsi.
Mutambara had filed papers opposing the provisional order
maintaining that
he is still in charge of the party.
He had argued
that the provisional order granted by the High Court in
February was silent
on the principal issue, arguing that this means he is
the principal in the
Global Political Agreement (GPA).
However, Thursday’s judgment ordered
Mutambara to stop forthwith from
pretending to be the MDC president and
principal.
On February 16 this year, senior Bulawayo High Court judge
Justice Nicholas
Ndou granted a provincial order interdicting Mutambara from
purporting to be
the MDC leader.
Mutambara, who is Deputy Prime
Minister in the inclusive Government, was
further interdicted from
exercising any function vested in the president of
the MDC. He was further
interdicted from in anyway interfering with the
structures and organs of the
party.
Welshman Ncube later approached the court’s seeking an order
confirming the
provisional order and stopping Mutambara from acting as
principal which has
since been granted by Justice Kamocha.
At the
same time, Mutambara filed papers opposing the provisional order
against
him.
The order stops Prof Mutambara from exercising any function vested
in the
president of the MDC.
Ncube was elected MDC president at the
party's congress in Harare in January
this year. That election was later
challenged by a section of the MDC, which
argued that the correct process
had not been followed.
'I fear for my life
but I try not to be paranoid' says activist
http://www.rnw.nl/
Published on : 15 December 2011 -
3:12pm | By RNW Africa Desk
“I receive death threats over the phone and
sometimes I have strangers
following me wherever I go. I am constantly
checking who is in front, behind
and at my side."
By Nkosana Dlamini,
Harare
This is how human rights defender Farai Maguwu describes his case.
Maguwu is
head of the Zimbabwean Centre for Research and Development (CRD),
a
voluntary organisation that contests President Robert Mugabe’s regime by
documenting instances of murder, torture and the forced labour of civilians
at the controversial Marange diamond fields in Eastern
Zimbabwe.
“Life has been extremely difficult. I live one day at a time,”
says Maguwu.
“At our offices we have state agents parked outside the gates
for most of
the day, monitoring who comes in and out. I fear for my life but
I also try
not to be paranoid about security.”
The rights activist
was jailed for a month earlier this year after allegedly
leaking documentary
evidence of army brutalities to the world diamond
watchdog, the Kimberly
Process. He was soon after labelled an enemy of the
state. For Maguwu, the
human rights situation in Zimbabwe remains terrible.
“Citizens are not
protected by the law,” he explains.
Imprisonment
During his
incarceration, Maguwu fell very ill but doctors were banned from
attending
to him by detectives investigating his case.
“My condition worsened and
for a while I began to smell death,” he explains.
“I cried at one point,
thinking my life was being prematurely terminated.”
Doctors later
performed an operation to remove his swollen tonsils but he
was still forced
to spend two weeks recovering from the effects of the
medical operation
while in a prison cell.
“When I was released from jail, I was under
intense pressure to slow down. I
began to realise the high risks involved in
my work as the surveillance
around me intensified,” he says. “But at the
same time, I had a strong
conviction that told me not to betray my
conscience. I decided to continue
with my work. I have committed my life to
God and I take refuge in his
hands.”
But it is not always gloom for
the rights activist who speaks of cases where
he sometimes shares lighter
moments with his tormentors.
“I joke with a number of security agents.
Recently I met one at an
intersection in Mutare and he shouted, ‘Maguwu,
when will you be arrested
again?’”
Diamonds & blood
Thirty
percent of the world’s rough diamonds are currently mined in
Zimbabwe.
Following a decade long economic crisis, the Zimbabwean government
is keen
to protect this lucrative industry, even if it means turning a blind
eye to
human rights abuses. Maguwu himself has been accused of working as an
agent
for hostile western governments, with the aim of shutting down
Zimbabwe's
diamond trade.
“We are saying that the government should stop brutalising
its citizens in
order to secure diamonds,” argues the outspoken activist.
“Diamonds must not
enrich a few people, as is the case now and for the
foreseeable future, but
rather should benefit the whole country.”
But
for Maguwu, the decision by the Kimberley Process in November to lift
the
ban on Marange’s diamond trade will only serve to line the pockets of a
corrupt minority rather than tackling the serious human rights abuses at
stake. “It is largely a blank check to the privileged few who are making a
killing out of Marange diamonds,” he adds.
Extraordinary
activism
Human Rights Watch recently honoured Maguwu, graduate of the
European
University Centre for Peace Studies, with the Alison Des Forges
Award for
extraordinary activism.
“Being chosen amidst many great
people doing incredible human rights work
around the world is something very
special. I keep asking sarcastically,
‘why me!?” It looks like Maguwu's work
is far from over yet.
Locadia’s sister exposed as
leader of violent militia
Posted by Lance Guma on Thursday, December 15, 2011
Biata Beatrice Nyamupinga
By Lance
Guma
15 December 2011
The woman who
nearly became Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s sister-in-law is today exposed
by SW Radio Africa as having led a violent militia, who terrorized MDC-T
supporters ahead of the presidential run-off in June 2008. It’s also alleged she
instigated the abduction of former TV presenter Jestina
Mukoko.
Biata Beatrice
Nyamupinga, the ZANU PF MP for Goromonzi West, is sister to Locadia Karimatsenga
Tembo, the Harare businesswoman at the centre of a media storm over whether the
PM had married her or not.
SW Radio Africa
has in its possession a dossier detailing abuses committed by Nyamupinga’s
militia and how she has cracked down on any perceived opposition voices in her
area.
In November 2008
Nyamupinga is reported to have left a workshop fuming with anger that Jestina
Mukoko, the director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project, had given a presentation
citing Goromonzi West as having gone through a wave of severe political violence
that year. She warned Mukoko that she would pay for it and a few days later the
former TV presenter was abducted from her Norton home by state security
agents.
SW Radio Africa
understands a car similar to Nyamupinga’s Mazda 626 vehicle was seen at the
scene of Mukoko’s abduction. Our dossier says: “Many victims have reported being
assaulted by the army, based at Domboshava barracks in her constituency,
reportedly at the instigation of the MP.”
During this period
Nyamupinga was campaigning for Mugabe in the presidential run-off. Although
Tsvangirai won the March poll, he withdrew from the run-off citing violence and
the murder of his supporters.
As the MP for the
area Nyamupinga moved around the Domboshava and Chinhamhora communal areas,
accompanied by a troop of ZANU PF militia and suspected state security
agents.
“This team was
always seen driving in two Mitsubishi trucks, followed by Nyamupinga’s car, a
Mazda 626 cream in colour. This group hunted and terrorized MDC-T supporters in
the Goromonzi West constituency,” witnesses said.
SW Radio Africa
has also been supplied with a list of people who fell victim to the abuses
committed by her militia.
On the
29th of May 2008 Ben Mbidzo, an MDC-T activist in Goromonzi West, was
abducted from his home by the ZANU PF militia led by the MP. “They heavily
assaulted him first, destroyed his homestead, took away his household property
and subjected his wife and children to another thorough beating that lasted for
hours.”
Mbidzo was then
taken to the torture base at Chogugudza Primary School for another round of
beatings. He was released after the 27th June elections.
In the evening of
11th June 2008 Nyamupinga’s militia, disguised as a campaign team,
abducted Ishumael Chitunhu who owned a small retail shop at Chinhamhora Growth
Point. These militia were led by Tendayi Maruta and used a car provided by
Nyamupinga.
Chitunhu was
severely assaulted at his shop before being taken to Chogugudza Primary School
base. He was tortured and transferred to another base in Bindura. It was in
Bindura that he later managed to escape and flee to Mozambique, where he sought
refuge until October 2008.
Another victim was
Violet Mubauka, who was attacked at her home on the 17th June 2008 by
the same gang. They accused her of supporting the MDC-T before assaulting her on
the buttocks. Although she sustained severe injuries she was warned not to seek
any medical help or she would be killed.
On the
19th June Nyamupinga and her convoy of three vehicles went to Pote
Primary School in her constituency. Led by Peter Maruta the youths in her group
looked for and apprehended Tito Munyanyi. They assaulted him in the presence of
the MP and she made no attempt to stop them.
Munyanyi was then
taken to the militia base at Chogugudza Primary School where he was further
tortured. It was only when they asked him to collect his MDC-T regalia and bring
it back to the base that Munyanyi picked his chance and fled to
Harare.
On the
28th June the same mob, using Nyamupinga’s car, descended on the home
of Peter Chamhumha in the Domboshava area. Fortunately Chamhumha was told in
advance that the militia was looking for him and managed to leave before their
arrival. This incensed the ZANU PF gang and they destroyed his entire
homestead.
On the same day
the Headman of Chiringa Village, Elias Chiringa, was assaulted by Nyamupinga’s
gang during a meeting the MP was addressing. One of her youths, Reuben Zulu,
pointed to Chiringa and accused him of being an MDC-T activist. Chiringa was
assaulted while everyone at the meeting watched, including the
MP.
Although Chiringa
pleaded with the MP to stop the gang from beating him, Nyamupinga told him it
was his fault and he must go through the ‘cleansing’ process. Efforts by SW
Radio Africa on Thursday to get comment from Nyamupinga were
fruitless.
Next week SW Radio
Africa continues with this dossier and looks at other individuals accused of
directing or engaging in political violence, including: ZANU PF MP’s Saviour
Kasukuwere (Mt Darwin South), Paddy Zhanda (Goromonzi North), Nicholas Goche
(Shamva North), Olivia Muchena (Mutoko South), Edward Raradza (Muzarabani
South), Kudakwashe Basikiti (Mwenezi East) and ZANU PF Secretary for
Administration, Didymus Mutasa.
See:
KISS
FM sues the broadcast authority over radio licenses
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Tererai
Karimakwenda
15 December, 2011
Problems have continued to mount for
the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe
(BAZ), over the board’s recent
decision to award the country’s first two
commercial radio licenses to
Zimpapers and AB Communications.
According to the state run Herald
newspaper, one of the applicants denied a
license has decided to take the
matter to Administrative Court. KISS-FM,
headed by Sharon Mugabe and popular
musician Oliver Mutukudzi, is
challenging the BAZ decision.
This
follows the introduction of a motion in parliament by the MDC-T,
seeking to
nullify the licenses and calling for the reconstitution of the
BAZ board, as
agreed to by the principals in the inclusive government.
Zimpapers
publish the state run newspapers, including the Herald itself, and
AB
Communications is headed by former journalist Supa Mandiwanzira, a
staunch
ZANU PF supporter recently introduced as a potential party candidate
for
Nyanga.
“KISS-FM director and spokesperson Ms Sharon Mugabe said in a
statement that
the decision will be challenged on the grounds that BAZ made
crucial
oversights in its adjudication process,” the Herald said.
The
Herald pointed to Sharon Mugabe’s background and her role in Robert
Mugabe’s
campaign during the 2008 presidential election, plus her links to
Banc ABC,
whose chairman Douglas Munatsi also chairs KISS FM.
Njabulo Ncube from
the watchdog Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA)
said: “It’s like two
bulls from the same kraal fighting. It’s no surprise.
We must not rule out
that there is factionalism within ZANU PF.”
Ncube strongly criticized the
Herald for not dealing with the controversy
surrounding the constitution of
the BAZ board, which was appointed
unilaterally by the Minister of
Information Webster Shamu.
“Apart from the BAZ board being
unconstitutional, they are people that have
a conflict of interest. Whether
they will recuse themselves or whatever
happens, there is still that
conflict of interest.” Ncube explained that the
conflict lay in the board
members’ known links and loyalty to ZANU PF.
Meanwhile the issue of the
BAZ board’s constitution surfaced in Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s end
of year address to parliament on Thursday.
Tsvangirai told the nation
that Information Minister Webster Shamhu has
defied instructions from Robert
Mugabe to appoint a new board, and created
confusion by awarding radio
licenses to Zimpapers and AB Communications.
Mugabe Begs
International Support For Overcrowded Prisons
http://www.radiovop.com
Ntabazinduna, December
15, 2011- Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe on
Wednesday begged for help from
international donor community saying they
should give support to Zimbabwe
prisons, which are still in deplorable
conditions despite formation of a
unity government.
“I call upon churches, international donor community,
civic groups
businesses and others to continue to support our prisons...”
said Mugabe who
was speaking at the graduation ceremony of 514 prison guards
at Ntabazinduna
Zimbabwe Prisons Service (ZPS) training depot just outside
Bulawayo.
Mugabe also said ZPS should utilise farms which the prison
service was
allocated by government recently.
“At independence in
1980 ZPS had 13 farms but now we have you allocated
another 11 to make a
total of 24 and we expect you to utilise these farms,
so that you can be
able to feed inmates,” said the President.
Zimbabwe prisoners die in
their hundreds every month due to mainly a
shortage of food and drugs. Food
shortages in the country’s prisons have
seen an increase in incidences of
pellagra, scabies and other diet related
diseases. Apart from grappling with
food shortages, Zimbabwe’s prisons also
battle with diseases such as
tuberculosis, and HIV/Aids.
Zimbabwe has 55 prisons including
satellites with a holding capacity of 17
000 inmates, according to Zimbabwe
Association for Crime Prevention and
Rehabilitation of the Offender (ZACRO).
ZACRO is an independent prisoner
rehabilitation
organisation.
Among those prisons guards who graduated 368 were male
while 147 were
female, five dropped out before completing the course for
various reasons.
Senate Human Rights Committee Tours Zimbabwe
Prisons
http://www.voanews.com/
14 December
2011
Justice Ministry Permanent Secretary David Mangota recently said
the country
was losing millions of dollars in taxpayer money due to serious
over-crowding in remand prisons
Jonga Kandemiiri |
Washington
Senate Human Rights Thematic Committee Chairman Misheck
Marava, senator for
Zaka, said conditions in Zimbabwean prisons have greatly
improved from 2007
and 2008, when prisoners were often severely affected by
the country's
profound economic woes.
Marava said that since last
year his committee has been touring prisons and
members are currently
investigating conditions in Bulawayo and Matabeleland
North
provinces.
Zimbabwe has 42 prisons with a holding capacity of 17,000
inmates. At
present such penal institutions hold just 14,600 - 3,500 of them
in remand
custody awaiting trial.
Justice Ministry Permanent
Secretary David Mangota recently said the country
was losing millions of
dollars in taxpayer money due to serious
over-crowding in remand
prisons.
Marava told VOA reporter Jonga Kandemiiri that while things were
looking
better in the prisons in general, the needs of female prisoners with
babies
must be met.
Gwisai’s
trial takes new twist
http://www.dailynews.co.zw/
By Tendai Kamhungira, Court Writer
Thursday, 15
December 2011 15:06
HARARE - Munyaradzi Gwisai’s case yesterday took
a dramatic turn as the key
state witness told the court that the Egypt and
Tunisian revolution videos
purportedly watched by the group and is being
used as evidence was only
watched to pass time.
“The videos were
being shown as a time killer, because the speakers had not
yet arrived,”
said Jonathan Shoko, who was unmasked as a state security
operative in court
by the defence lawyer.
Shoko, who claims he was part of a meeting where
Gwisai and other social
activists were arrested, yesterday admitted under
cross examination that he
had watched the Egypt and Tunisia uprising video
clips on one or two
occasions on TV before he watched them at the
meeting.
The video footage showing political revolutions in Egypt and
Tunisia, which
resulted in the toppling Presidents Hosni Mubarak and Zine El
Abidine Ben
Ali respectively, is being used as evidence against the social
justice
activists.
The state alleges the group was using these video
footage as a template to
mobilise Zimbabweans to revolt against the
government.
Gwisai, 43, is jointly charged with Antonater Choto, 36,
Tatenda
Mombeyarara, 29, Edson Chakuma, 38, Hopewell Gumbo, 32 and Welcome
Zimuto,
25.
The state initially preferred treason charges against the
six but later
settled for a lesser charge of conniving to incite public
violence.
Prosecutor Edmore Nyazamba told the court the six convened a
meeting at
Zimbabwe Labour Centre in Harare, where they connived to disturb
peace in
the country on February 19 this year.
Meanwhile, the issue
of Shoko’s real identity took centre stage in court.
Gwisai’s lawyer Alec
Muchadehama yesterday stated in court that Shoko is
known in 13 different
names and that he is a member of the Central
Intelligence Organisation
(CIO).
“You are known in 13 different relations and this is typical CIO,”
Muchadehama said.
Muchadehama proceeded to produce photographs
purportedly belonging to Shoko,
while he was at an MDC dinner which was held
at Rainbow Towers on September
9 where he allegedly masqueraded as a
journalist using the name Rodwell
Chitiyo.
On some of the photos he
was photographed together with Piniel Denga, the
MDC legislator for Mbare
and journalist, Valentine Maponga, whom Muchadehama
said can be called in to
testify in court.
Shoko rejected charges that he was the one appearing on
the photographs and
told the court he suspects the photos were
doctored.
On November 7, during cross examination, Muchadehama told Shoko
that his
actual name was Rodwell Chitiyo, before producing photographs
showing his
resemblance since the time he was in high school at St Faith’s
Mission in
Rusape and an extraction of his Facebook picture.
Shoko
denied attending St Faith’s Mission and knowledge of the person who
was on
the pictures.
Despite his identity denials, Muchadehama did not stop with
his battle to
prove Shoko was not the witness’ name and that he was not a
police officer
but instead a CIO “operative”.
He went on to produce
copies of Chitiyo’s identity card, passport and birth
certificate. Shoko is
the second state witness after Rinos Chari who
testified on September
14.
Muchadehama continues cross-examining Shoko tomorrow.
Robert
Mugabe makes poll plans to bury power-sharing
http://www.theaustralian.com.au
by: Bruce Loudon
From: The Australian
December 16, 2011 12:00AM
HE is just
two months shy of his 88th birthday, but Zimbabwe's President
Robert Mugabe
isn't giving up.
On the contrary, the most despised of Africa's despots -
to the despair of
adversaries and those who have so long forecast his
political demise - is
preparing to mark the occasion by standing for
re-election for another
six-year term.
Not for him the sort of
retirement at 87 of that most famous of postwar West
German chancellors
Konrad Adenauer, who took office at the age of 73.
Rather, having been in
power almost 32 years, Mugabe, it seems, may be
seeking to emulate the
longevity in office of that other notable central
African potentate, the
Homburg-hatted Hastings Kamuzu Banda, of Malawi, who
was 101 when he died in
1997, three years after he reluctantly left office.
It would be an "act
of cowardice," Mugabe told 6000 cheering delegates of
his ruling Zanu-PF
party during a two-hour, Fidel Castro-style harangue the
other day, for him
to retire now. "It would be wrong, completely wrong, when
the West is still
holding sanctions against us and pursuing regime change,"
he said. "I am not
a coward. I am lucky God gave me this longer life than
others to be with
you."
Free trial
On cue, they nominated him by acclamation as the
party's candidate for the
election Mugabe is determined to hold early next
year, aimed, he says, at
"digging the grave" of the power-sharing deal he
was forced to accept with
opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai.
It was
a powerful performance by the octogenarian demagogue, one that
confounded
critics and those expecting to see him on his last legs. And in
it was a
telling reminder of just how little progress has been made by the
international community in getting rid of Mugabe and dismantling his brutal
regime.
There have been years of opprobrium, isolation, and
sanctions. Even
neighbouring African countries have turned against him. He
has looked
vulnerable. But as he cunningly sets about plotting the
destruction of the
power-sharing government, the old boy has a surprisingly
strong deck of
cards to play.
This was seen during the Zanu-PF
conference when Gwede Mantashe, powerful
secretary-general of South Africa's
ruling ANC, pledged direct help to
ensure the re-election of Mugabe's party.
It is a stance that is
diametrically at odds with longstanding South African
policy to pressure
Mugabe not to hold elections until after constitutional
changes to ensure
they are fair and free.
Given the unique potential
South Africa has to influence events in its
landlocked neighbour, the
assurance of direct ANC help will have been music
to Mugabe's ears. But it's
not his only good news. Amid the moves to bury
the power-sharing government
has come a welter of controversy about the
personal life and loves of
opposition leader Tsvangirai, most dramatically
with an unedifying account
of how he has walked away from a "marriage" that
embarrassingly lasted 12
days - a spectacle he blames on dirty tricks by
Mugabe's notorious spy
agencies.
The "marriage," Tsvangirai said, had been "hijacked" and was a
"dark patch
in my private life." This and other "brief flings" have, it
seems, done
little for his standing. Hence his Movement for Democratic
Change, victors
in the election Mugabe outrageously stole in 2008, is
against the ropes.
As well there is the sudden lifting of international
sanctions on the sale
of "blood diamonds" from Marange, a field estimated to
hold more than a
quarter of the world's diamond reserves and which will
realise a staggering
$2 billion a month, providing the regime with an
unmatchable war chest to
buy votes and crush the opposition.
The 2008
election is acknowledged to have been a travesty. But the outrage
and
sanctions that followed have done little to mend Mugabe's ways. And now
as
he prepares to force an election aimed at destroying the power-sharing
government, the cards all seem to be falling his way.
With his
pretty, 47-year-old wife Grace Marufu (Gucci Grace, to some) on his
arm,
Mugabe exudes confidence that he has years at the helm ahead of him.
That is
both a fearful prospect for long-suffering Zimbabweans, and a sad
comment on
the international community's inability to get rid of one of the
world's
most loathed despots.
Politicians
Implicated In WikiLeaks Have No Case To Answer - Tomana
http://www.radiovop.com
Ntabazinduna,
December 15, 2011 - Zimbabwe’s Attorney General, Johannes
Tamana has said
politicians being investigated for allegedly committing acts
of treason
arising from the WikiLeaks cables have no case to answer as a
number of
reports in the whistle blower website were false.
Treason attracts a
prison sentence of up to 20 years according to Zimbabwean
laws.
“WikiLeaks was considered as any source of information and as
the AG, I had
a duty to investigate thoroughly because the cables pointed to
areas of
violation of the country’s laws which therefore necessitated
prosecution by
our courts.
“We have done our investigation and what
we have found out is that most of
the WikiLeaks information was not true
that is why we have not prosecuted
those who were being investigated on the
basis of the WikiLeaks cables,”
Tomana said on Wednesday in an
interview.
“We cannot just prosecute the politicians on the basis of the
WikiLeaks but
on the basis of evidence that would have been found through
our
investigation. But so far, what we have found does not necessitate
prosecution. We are still investigating though.”
Tomana had set up an
independent panel of legal experts to probe into what
he called “treasonous
collusions” by the country’s high profile politicians
among them, Prime
Minister, Morgan Tsvangirai and other government ministers
for supplying
state information to United States Ambassadors to Zimbabwe.
When the
leaked cables were first published, Tsvangirai and members of his
party were
said to have met with US envoys and suggested that they maintain
targeted
sanctions while publicly calling for their lifting, revelations
that
prompted Tomana to say that he would instigate a probe into what he
called
“treasonous collusions.”
However, WikiLeaks, a whistle blower website
which has caused a sensation by
leaking confidential US diplomatic cables,
later released cables exposing
President Robert Mugabe’s top allies as
hypocrites who supped with the
87-year-old’s enemies by night.
Among
the senior officials in the line of fire are: Vice President Joice
Mujuru,
politburo members Saviour Kasukuwere, Sikhanyiso Ndlovu and Jonathan
Moyo,
Tourism Minister Walter Mzembi, army officials and Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe
governor Gideon Gono among others.
The leaked cables which were published
on the WikiLeaks website released
minutes of meetings held by political
leaders with US government officials
where they divulged sensitive
information about the country and their
respective parties.
Vice
President Mujuru held a secret meeting with the US ambassador and
suggested
more meetings saying they were useful.
Zimbabwe Medical Authorities Warn Consumers Against Fraudulent
Drugs
http://www.voanews.com
14 December
2011
Dr. Douglas Gwatidzo, chairman of the Zimbabwe Association of
Doctors for
Human Rights, said it is proper practice for all medical
practitioners to
only dispense or use medicines approved by the
authority
Tatenda Gumbo | Washington
Zimbabwean medical
authorities are warning consumers not to fall for
popularly advertised drugs
that have not been approved for human
consumption.
Such drugs,
advertised in local media, often promise cures of serious
illnesses
including high blood pressure, diabetes and even HIV/AIDS.
The Medicine
Control Authority of Zimbabwe said it has not approved such ads
which are
considered illegal. Under the law and the guidelines of the MCAZ
all
medicines distributed in the country must be licensed and regulated by
the
authority.
Dr. Douglas Gwatidzo, chairman of the Zimbabwe Association of
Doctors for
Human Rights, said it is proper practice for all medical
practitioners to
only dispense or use medicines approved by the
authority.
Gwatidzo told VOA reporter Tatenda Gumbo that illegal drugs
have become a
challenge as many consumers take them without medical
advice.
He said the many of the counterfeit drugs have not been passed
for
consumption and the long-term side effects could outweigh any short term
health benefits.
In Johannesburg, meanwhile, more than 100 sex
workers, including many from
Zimbabwe, gathered in Johannesburg today to
remember their colleagues who
died while pursuing their trade, and to demand
the legalization of their
activities.
More
farm seizures ahead
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
At least 200 farms will be seized from white farmers
and handed over to Zanu
(PF) supporters, according to a report tabled at the
party conference last
week.
14.12.1108:35am
by Staff
Reporter
About 4000 white-owned farms have already been occupied –
some violently -
by supporters of President Robert Mugabe in the
controversial land reform
programme.
The remaining land now earmarked
for seizure makes up the remaining 10
percent of farms previously owned by
white Zimbabweans.
The plan is contained in a Central Commitrtee report
tabled at the
conference which also states that another 223 white farmers
are facing
prosecution for failing to vacate their land. The government said
nearly
55,000 blacks had received their own commercial plots, while the rest
had
been allocated space on communal land.
War veterans were
guaranteed land if they have not yet been allocated it,
the party resolved
at its 12th annual national people's conference that
ended in Bulawayo on
Saturday. The announcement comes amid unconfirmed
reports that the majority
of farms taken from white owners have been given
to high-ranking party
officials, rather than redistributed to poor
Zimbabweans.
Bulawayo
Mayor insists donated pink bins will be used
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Alex Bell
15
December 2011
Bulawayo’s Mayor Thaba Moyo has insisted the City Council
will be using 20
dustbins donated by a gay and lesbian rights group, amid
media reports that
the Council had deliberately removed the bins.
The
metal bins are pink in colour and bear the name of the group which
donated
them, the Sexual Rights Centre. But according to the NewsDay
newspaper the
bins were “withdrawn” because of complaints from local
residents and civic
groups. The newspaper quoted the Bulawayo United
Residents Association as
saying that the Council should have consulted
residents before accepting the
donated bins.
The Association’s Secretary General Samuel Moyo is quoted
as saying: “The
issues of gays and lesbians is a very controversial national
problem and
council was, therefore, supposed to consult the people as
accepting the
donation could be misconstrued to mean the local authority
subscribes to gay
rights.”
But the City Mayor told SW Radio Africa on
Thursday that the bins were never
removed, they had just not been placed for
public use yet. He said the bins
were still being kept at the City Council’s
Cleansing Department in
Thorngrove, which is near Khami Clinic.
“We
really welcome this donation and we are busy trying to arrange to put
them
in strategic places that receive a lot of traffic,” Mayor Moyo said.
He
added that the claims that the city was bowing to pressure from upset
local
groups was “rubbish,” saying that the Council is “desperate for any
assistance in clearing refuse.”
“We don’t regret receiving this
donation and we won’t listen to anyone who
disagrees with having them on the
street,” Moyo said.
The Bulawayo Council is in the middle of trying to
deal with a serious waste
removal crisis across the City, which SW Radio
Africa’s correspondent Lionel
Saungweme has described as a “health hazard.”
The Mayor said on Thursday
that plans are in place to start dealing with
these issues, including buying
new refuse compactors. He said they are
hopeful the funds to buy these
compactors will be available
“soon.”
Saungweme meanwhile explained that the dustbins were donated last
Tuesday,
specifically to coincide with the ZANU PF conference in Bulawayo
last week.
The party and its leader Robert Mugabe are harshly opposed to gay
rights,
despite some of the senior ZANU PF members alleged to be
gay.
On the other hand, MDC-T leader and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
has
previously called for gay rights to be enshrined in a new constitution.
Saungweme said the timing of the bins being donated was done deliberately to
highlight the differences between the two parties.
Mugabe's
huge gamble
http://www.dailynews.co.zw
By Bridget Mananavire, Staff Writer
Thursday, 15 December 2011
09:35
HARARE - President Robert Mugabe is set to become the oldest
presidential
candidate in the history of elections, thereby taking a huge
gamble that
could spectacularly backfire on him and his staggering party,
analysts and
Zanu PF MPs said yesterday.
The analysts said
Mugabe was taking a huge gamble by running for another
term of office at a
time he is plagued by obvious ill-health associated with
old age, he has
increasingly lost support even in his former strongholds in
rural
areas.
Mugabe, at least according to whistle blower website WikiLeaks and
quoting
his own people, has become a liability to the
party.
Briefings to the Daily News yesterday showed that while Mugabe was
endorsed
at the party’s rubber-stamping conference last week, discord
continued to
prevail as nobody dared challenge the 87-year-old.
Zanu
PF MP’s, who cannot be identified for fear of victimisation, expressed
fears
that Mugabe’s bid for life presidency could virtually destroy the
party if
it loses elections expected in the next two years.
“President Mugabe said
we are not going, and we are also not going. There
must be no primaries for
all of us (Zanu PF MPs), we just want to contest.
“What is also clear is
that President Mugabe will cost us elections like he
did in 2008 so the MPs
are saying let’s repeat the bhora musango (the
process where some Zanu PF
officials urged their supporters to vote for a
party Parliamentary candidate
but vote for Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
or Mavambo leader Simba Makoni
in the last presidential poll).
“There is no doubt that President Mugabe
no longer has the energy, there is
no doubt that he does not have a clear
message and in any case, what new
things does he want to bring on the
table.
“The voters are very clever and Mugabe’s candidature is
catastrophic,”
charged one MP.
“Zanu PF chairman Simon Khaya-Moyo
defended Mugabe and said: “The issue of
presidency has nothing to do with
age. He (Mugabe) was elected at our
congress last year. It is only the
congress which has the mandate to choose
the president of the party, our
constitution is very clear when it comes to
the president and presidential
candidature.
“It states that whoever is the president of the party during
that period
automatically becomes presidential candidate.”
Khaya-Moyo
denied that Mugabe wanted to be life president: “We don’t have
such a policy
as life president; it is the mandate of the people who go to
the congress
and choose the leader of the party.
Khaya-Moyo said even if elections are
held in 2014, as long as Mugabe is the
president of Zanu PF.
Analysts
who spoke to the Daily News believe that Zanu PF cannot come up
with any
other viable candidate besides Mugabe notwithstanding his advanced
age.
They said even if they had an alternative, there was simply no
one who could
muster enough courage to tell him to step aside. But in secret
briefings
with American diplomats, top Zanu PF officials have openly spoken
about
their desire to see the old man step aside.
University of
Zimbabwe political scientist Professor John Makumbe said
Mugabe wanted to
die in office.
“Though he does not have any chances to rule, this is an
attempt to die in
office. He will be 90 in the next two years. All he is
doing is creating a
platform for humiliation from Tsvangirai,” Makumbe
said.
Makumbe said Mugabe’s party does not have the capacity to
“rejuvenate”
itself.
“Zanu PF does not have an alternative for a
President, there are some who
would have wanted but no one has enough
courage to stand against him. They
endorsed an old man whose health is not
the best and who might struggle to
campaign. Zanu PF is failing to renew its
leadership and revive itself as a
party,” he said.
Political analyst
Charles Mangongera said at his age, Mugabe will find it
difficult to mount a
campaign due to his advanced age. Mangongera said he
feared Zanu PF will
once again attempt to use violence to win the poll.
“I cannot imagine how
he would run a country at 90,” Mangongera said. “He
wants to die in power
unlike the thoughts of some elements in Zanu PF who
are hoping he will
retire and pass on the baton that is if he wins, which
again is
unlikely.
“At 88, I doubt he will have the energy to mount an election
campaign but
the Youth League will do it for him and this would mean a
heavily
militarised campaign.”
Former Zimbabwe’s ambassador to China
Chris Mutsvangwa, a strong Mugabe
supporter, insisted the 87-year-old
President is in good shape and Zanu PF’s
strongest candidate.
“He is
a tried and tested leader and in good health, it is not about how
many years
he has but how much he can offer the country and the party,”
Mutsvangwa
said.
Mutsvangwa further told the Daily News that Mugabe’s candidacy was
roundly
endorsed by all the 10 provinces, and if his party wanted him to be
life
president, so be it.
“If anybody feels he should not be
President, then they should work hard and
win the elections. If they feel he
is a weak candidate, they should call for
elections as soon as possible, if
they are not afraid.”
The MDC has rejected Mugabe’s plan for a snap poll,
saying the inclusive
government must first complete the necessary democratic
reforms. Sadc, who
are guarantors to the Global Political Agreement (GPA)
which brought about
the GPA has also insisted on reforms before
elections.
Chinese companies under scrutiny in
Zimbabwe
Ten years into the Look East policy, Zimbabwe is showing
itself to be a not-so-satisfied customer of Chinese investment.
About the author
Andrew Mambondiyani has covered illegal mining in
Zimbabwe for more than five years and is worried that a very few people are
benefiting from the diamonds.
About a
decade ago, the government of Zimbabwe launched the much-hyped
“Look East Policy” in an attempt to offset the loss on western investments
in the wake of the country’s economic collapse. The government wanted to
capitalise on the fast growing Asian economy after the relationship between
Harare and US and EU countries went sour following the Zanu PF government’s
chaotic land reform programme in
2000.
The initial policy leaned towards Malaysia and it later
shifted towards China. But is
the Look East Policy, which has resulted in China’s effective colonisation of
the country, the panacea to Zimbabwe’s socio-economic
problems?
Although complaints most commonly voiced in Zimbabwe are
about the poor quality of Chinese goods, the flip side is that low prices have
made many types of goods accessible to people who could not have dreamed of
owning them before, even though the ownership experience is relatively
short.
Because of the poor quality of Chinese products,
Zimbabweans have termed them “Zhingzhong”. But this has not deterred the Chinese
businesspeople, who have spread their tentacles to various sectors of the
economy, from mining down to the stalls at flea markets, thereby effectively
bootinga locals out of business. Local manufacturers cannot compete with cheap
products from China and observers are worried that the aggressive Chinese are
slowly taking over the country.
MDC-T legislator, Obert Gutu recently
warned the Zimbabwe government
that “modern-day China is a capitalist nation and the majority of its
corporations may be state-owned, but they are fiercely capitalistic in both
their mode of production and marketing”.
“They are first and foremost, profit-driven. There are
absolutely no meaningful benefits to be derived by Africa if small and weak
African nations continue to enter into fragmented and uncoordinated bilateral
economic contracts with China,” claimed Gutu a renowned legal
expert.
The operations of Chinese companies in Zimbabwe have
come under scrutiny amid reports that the Chinese companies
were ill-treating and exploiting local employees.
Against this backdrop, a high-level delegation
from the Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee (OCC) of the National People’s
Congress of China came to Zimbabwe in June this year to encourage Chinese
nationals to live harmoniously with locals in an effort to boost relations
between the two countries.
The
leader of the Chinese delegation, Yu Linxiang, who is the chairperson of the OCC
however, said trade between the two countries was increasing and now amounted to
more than $500 million despite the reports of poor relationships between Chinese
companies and their Zimbabwean employees.
However, hardly three months after the visit by the
high-powered delegation, Chinese companies have yet again been accused of
physically abusing, overworking and underpaying employees. In the eastern border
city of Mutare in Manicaland, a labour wrangle exploded recently at a
Chinese-run construction company, Sogecoa Zimbabwe (Pvt) Company- where workers
took their employer to the Labour Court accusing the company of exploiting them
and violating their rights. Sogecoa is a sister to the diamond company, Anjin,
one of the companies awarded licences to mine Marange diamonds. The workers said
they were being paid a measly US$4 a day for working long
hours.
The $4 a day was far below the gazetted Zimbabwe
National Employment Council (NEC) Construction rates. The National Employment
Council rates for the construction industry vary between US$1, 06 and $1, 51 per
hour with a 44 hour week.
Workers at another local construction company in Harare
were recently up in arms against their Chinese employer whom they accuse of
ill-treating them.
Shanxi Corporation workers were accusing their employer of charging
them exorbitant rentals for sub-standard company accommodation, according to
media reports.
The National Union of Quarry Workers of Zimbabwe early
this year also accused Chinese employers at Ngezi Mine in Zvishavane in Midlands
Province of allegedly ill-treating and underpaying their workers. Union leader
Onias Munenga was quoted in the press as
saying the Chinese miners were not abiding by the country’s labour
laws.
And on September 2, 2011, the Zimbabwe Construction and
Allied Workers’ Union chairperson Enjula Mpofu told delegates at the Build It
Expo in Harare that the union had problems with Chinese employers ill-treating
workers.
“We are trying to
work to address these issues and we are engaging the Ministry of Labour
regarding these matters. We have problems with Chinese employers who are
ill-treating workers. They do not give them protective clothing: they work in
tattered overalls. The Chinese say nothing can be done to them because they have
government immunity,” she
said.
The Confederation Industry Federation of
Zimbabwe president Philip Chiyangwa told the same expo that he
was not amused by the level of cruelty by the Chinese:
“We have failed to put heads together and make sure
those who come, do not eat first before us. We have laws that protect us, but
there are people who are making sure they give preference to Chinese who are
even beating up workers here. Along Borrowdale Road (in Harare), they start working at
4am until 12midnight with some lights on in the middle of the night and the
Chinese monitoring the Zimbabweans
working.”
But the inaction by the government is baffling as
unscrupulous Chinese companies continue to ill-treat employees with
impunity.
Last year, the government said it was probing Chinese
companies for ill-treating workers and violating health and safety regulations.
Zimbabwe Labour minister Paurina Mpariwa told a local newspaper last year that the
National Social Security Authority (NSSA) had instituted the probe after
receiving reports that the Chinese were ill-treating workers to the extent of
even physically assaulting them. Initial findings, she said, were that some of
the companies were not even registered.
“National Social Security Authority through its
Occupational Safety and Health Division conducted the necessary investigations
through site visits to ascertain the accurate position. Of the companies visited
so far it was established that eight companies were violating health and safety
regulations. The major violated regulations,” she said, “included lack of toilet
provisions, poor electrical installations, lack of personal protective clothing,
absence of personal guards on moving machinery and non registration of the
companies. NSSA suspended operations at the sites until all safety requirements
are met. Where fatal accidents occurred, the authority recommended prosecution
and the prosecution procedure is being
followed”
But a year on, nothing has so far been done to improve
the welfare of employees working for Chinese companies.
Political
violence perpetrators and their crimes
http://www.swradioafrica.com
Aquilinah Katsande : Mudzi West
Constituency
Aquilinah Katsande is the Zanu PF MP for Mudzi West
constituency, MDC
supporters in Mudzi district have terrible stories to tell
about her
brutality. She orchestrated a reign of terror in the period April
to June
2008, she was so thorough in her persecution of known MDC activist
that she
personally moved around the entire Mudzi district hunting for her
quarry and
was present when most heart rending punishments were meted out on
MDC
activists in her constituency. At the height of the Presidential run
off
campaigns in 2008 , her son George Katsande joined in the fray, he
teamed up
with the notorious killer Bramwell Katvsairo and took to the
perpetration of
violence like a duck to water , and has never stopped
since.
On January 1, 2010 George Katsande now a seasoned killer was
roaming the
area armed with a gun, following in the footsteps of her equally
vicious
mother Aquilinah, attacked Bennizah Nyapfunde Mutize atRukondeSchool
in
Mudzi. This group of assailants was reported to be very ruthless they
indiscriminately bashed Nyapfunde, even his children were not spared, they
were beaten up as George Katsande in the true spirit of his mother displayed
his wrath of aggression. George was accompanied by Asmore Simoko, Tichafa
Kativhu, Josiah Nyamuda, Punzu Charles , Martin Mutaundi, Daniel Chitedega,
Misheck Pengapenga, Dinga David, Solomon Chingwete, Tonde Chipwanya and four
other unknown men. The group is now revisiting the victims at night and many
MDC activists are sleeping in the bush and going back to their homes in the
morning. Aquilinah through her son George is sponsoring this new wave of
terror; George has vowed to shoot all MDC supporters in Mudzi
West.
Many of Aquilinah Katsande’s victims have reported their cases to
the police
and despite the glaring evidence linking her to the horrible
offences she
has remained untouchable and continues to seat in the house of
assembly.
She apparently has manifested a complete disregard of the GPA and
will
continue to maim and displace people with impunity, whilst the nation
solemnly preaches the gospel of national healing reconciliation and
integration. Some of the details of reported acts of politically motivated
violence directly linked to Aquilinah Katsande are narrated
below
April 6, 2008
Aquilinah Katsande and Peter Nyakuba the local
Zanu PF councilor called for
a rally at Bensen Mine where the MP for Mudzi
West Aqualinah Katsande
informed Zanu PF supporters that they should assault
all MDC supporters who
had campaigned for Morgan Tsvangirai in the March 29
elections. She added
that,” these beatings were meant to compel them to
rejoin Zanu PF, if any of
the MDC supporters foolishly resist kill them
all, we have been granted
authority by the president to kill MDC
supporters”. Immediately after this
rally Zanu PF youths and war veterans
went on the war path, many MDC
supporters were brutally assaulted, homes
were destroyed and livestock
forcibly taken for food, to feed comrades at
the torture bases.
June 1, 2008
George Katsande and Tawanda
Mazunze leading a gang of Zanu PF militia
abducted Fianda Katiyo onJune 1,
2008. They took him to Nyahondo torture
base using a vehicle provided by
Aquilinah Katsande. Fianda Katiyo was
subjected to a terrible bout of
torture through out that night and was
released the following morning. The
group had worked him over so seriously
that he was terribly frail and died a
week after his release
June 1, 2008
Tafadzwa Meza was accussed by
the local Zanu PF militia of transporting MDC
supporters to rallies using
his pick up truck. Bramwell Katsvairo in the
company of George Katsande and
three unknown people looked for Tafadzwa and
could not get him for several
days. They finally caught up with him at
Nyamuyaruka Business centre near
Kotwa on1 June 2008. Tafadzwa tried to flee
but Bramwell Katsvairo shot him
in the leg ,Tafadzwa jumped off his truck to
hide under some bushes close by
as it was getting dark probably hoping that
the killers would not find him.
George and the band of killers set Meza’s
truck on fire and the resultant
light from the flames betrayed Tafadzwa’s
hiding spot, they dragged him to
their vehicle then took him to the Broken
bridge in the Nyamanyora Area,
where Tafadzwa’s body was recovered the
following morning. Witnesses
reported that George Katsande using his mother’s
gun , shot Tafadzwa Meza at
close range killing him instantly. George is
reported to have boasted about
his shooting skills for quite some time after
Tafadzwa Meza’s death and
Aquilinah Katsande have always used Tafadzwa Meza’s
death as an example at
all her meetings in Mudzi a habit which led to
Tafadzwa’s mother suffer a
stroke in 2009 she however survived the stroke
but has reported that she is
always reminded of her son’s death each time
the Katsandes addresses a
rally.
June 28, 2008
DK an MDC ward official was abducted from
his home on 6 June 2008. He was
bundled into Aquilinah Katsande’s truck and
taken to Nyamanyora base. There
he was assaulted by Nyamaromo, Mangwende,
George Katsande and other Zanu PF
supporters. They kept on assaulting him
for several days before releasing
him, he never recovered from the injuries
inflicted on him and passed away
at his home on28 June 2008.
July 5,
2008
On 5 July 2008 Aquilinah Katsande in the company of Peter Nyakuba
caught up
with Gwindiri Mutadza an MDC activist they had tried to capture
before the
27th June elections but had failed. Witnesses say Gwindiri
Mutadza had
returned from hiding on the assumption that since the elections
were now
over the coast was clear. But alas Aquilinah and company had other
plans for
him, they quickly descended on him in full view of all the people
who had
gathered at Chimukoko Business Centre. Aquilinah Katsande, Peter
Nyakuba and
assisted by two other unknown men heavily assaulted Gwindiri
Mutadza with
fists and booted feet they bashed him all over the body , he
passed out and
died on the spot. On realizing that Gwindiri was dead,
Aquilinah and gang
jumped on to their double cab truck and sped off from the
murder scene.
August 8, 2008
Tambadzi Gombe who was coming from a
meeting that had been organized by
Aquilinah Katsande met Winnet Makaza
whose name had been mentioned by
Aquilinah Katsande as amongst MDC activists
still on the wanted list.
Tambadzi accused Winnet of being an MDC supporter
and started assaulting her
with fists and booted feet. The assault was so
severe that Winnet is
reported to have screamed only once, she collapsed and
died during the
attack. Relatives reported the incident to the police but
nothing was done ,
they did not even care take the corpse to the mortuary.
Tambadzi Gombe is
still a free man in Makaza village. Aquilinah Katsande
issued an order
forcing the Makaza family to bury Winnet without delay or
they would also
meet with the same fate. .
Biata Beatrice
Nyamupinga – MP Goromonzi West Constituency
Biata Beatrice Nyamupinga is
the member of parliament for Goromonzi West
constituency. During the run up
to the presidential run off elections in
June 2008 , MP Nyamupinga moved
around the Domboshava and Chinhamhora
communal areas campaigning for the
Zanu PF presidential candidate. She was
always accompanied by a troop of
Zanu PF militia and suspected CIO agents.
This team was always seen driving
in two Mitsubishi trucks, followed by
Nyamupinga’s car a Mazda 626 cream in
color. This group hunted and
terrorized MDC supporters in the Goromonzi West
constituency. The names of
the people listed below fell victim to the
atrocities of the Nyamupinga
militia.
May 29, 2008
Ben Mbidzo
an MDC activists in the Goromonzi West Constituency was abducted
from his
home on 29 May 2008 by the group of Zanu PF militia led by
Beatrice
Nyamupinga . They Heavily assaulted him first, destroyed his
homestead, took
away his household property and subjected his wife and
children to another
thorough beating that lasted for hours. They then took
Ben away to their
Base atChogugudza Primary School for another round of
torture and beatings
he was released after the 27 June elections.
June 11,
2008
Ishumael Chitunhu who owned a small retail shop at Chinhamhora
Growth Point
was abducted in the evening of 11 June 20089 from his shop. The
people who
attacked him were all members of the Zanu PF campaign team. These
militia
were led by Tendayi Maruta and was using a car provided by Beatrice
Nyamupinga the MP. Ishumael was severely assaulted at his shop before being
taken toChogugudzaPrimary School base; he was tortured and transferred to
another base in Bindura (Mashonaland Central). He managed to escape from the
Bindura base and fled toMozambique where he sought refuge until October
2008.
June 17, 2008
Violet Mubauka was attacked at her home on
17 June 2008 by a gang of Zanu PF
Militia sent by Beatrice Nyamupingu. They
accused her of supporting the MDC,
they assaulted her on the buttocks and
she sustained severe injuries. She
was warned not to seek any medical help
for they would kill her for doing
so.
June 19, 2008
Beatrice
Nyamupinga and her convoy of three vehicles went to Pote Primary
School in
her constituency. The youths in her group were led by Peter Maruta
who
looked for and apprehended Tito Munyanyi , they assaulted him in the
presence of the MP and she never stopped them from carrying out this
barbaric act. They even went on to take him in their vehicles and deposited
him at their base atChogugudzaPrimary School. Tito was tortured at the base
and was later instructed to go and collect his MDC regalia and bring it to
the base, Tito grabbed this chance and fled toHarare.
June 28,
2008
A group of Zanu PF youths using a party vehicle that had been
availed to
them by Beatrice Nyamupingu descended on the home of Peter
Chamhumha in the
Domboshava area looking for him. Fortunately Peter had got
wind that the
militia was looking fro him and had managed to leave before
their arrival.
This incensed the Zanu PF gang that they destroyed his entire
homestead to
the ground.
28 June 2008
Elias Chiringa the
headman of Chiringa village was attending a meeting
addressed by the MP,
when Reuben Zulu pointed him out that he was an MDC
activist . Zanu PF
youths who were accompanying the MP manhandled him and
assaulted before all
the people gathered at the meeting. He pleaded with the
MP to stop them but
she said it was his fault and that he should go through
the cleansing
process.
November 2008
Biata Beatrice Nyamupinga was reported to
have a left a workshop fuming with
anger , that Jestinah Mukoko the
director of ZPP, had given a presentation
which cited that Goromonzi West
constituency had gone through a wave of
severe political violence in the
period preceding the June 27, 2008
elections. She warned Jestinah that she
would pay for it and surprisingly
enough Jestinah was abducted from her a
few days later. She was only
produced by the state a few days before
christamas. Unconfirmed reports say
a car similar to her mazda 626 was seen
at the scene of Jestinah’s
abduction. Many Victims have reported being
assaulted by the army based at
Domboshava barracks in her constituency
reportedly at the instigation of MP
Beatrice Nyamupinga.
Changara
Kasekete – Traditional Chief Muzarabani District
Chief Changara Kasekete
is a paramount traditional leader in the Dande
communal areas of the
Muzarabani District. As a traditional leader Kasekete
is the custodian of
traditional customs and culture, his subjects looks up
to him for guidance
in conflict resolution. His manner is in sharp contrast
to these popular
expectations. Chief Changara Kasekete’s weird character has
puzzled the
communities in Muzarabani district.
On assumption of his chieftainship
Kasekete was a very popular and promising
leader instrumental in attracting
developmental projects into the semi arid
region. Little did the people know
that they were celebrating the
installation of a monster that was to devour
them and their children.
Whenever there is a gathering in his area Changara
Kasekete declares undying
loyalty to President Robert Mugabe and the Zanu PF
party. He promised that
MDC was never going to be allowed in Muzarabani and
over the years Kasekete
has proved to be a man of his word, many MDC
supporters have been butchered,
maimed, tortured and displaced in
Muzarabani. Though Kasekete has gained
notoriety due to his determination to
ban the MDC from Muzarabani through
political violence, the intensity of his
fierce concentration and commitment
to the perpetration of political
violence in 2008 was overwhelming.
Kasekete teamed up with a high profile
Zanu PF terror squad that included
Edward Raradza (MP), Luke Mushore(MP),
Jenia Manyeruke( Senator),
Kamusengezi (ZNA), Yahwe (CIO), Chief Chiweshe,
Proud Pfotso, Godfrey
Katsiru, Chibau (Zanu PF district chairman) and Avozhi
Chibedebede. This
team was in command of a group of over 400 Zanu PF militia
and armed
soldiers. Chief Changara Kasekete and his accomplices were
responsible for
the abductions and murder of MDC ward officials namely the
late; Tennyson
Manyimo, Titus Goho, Canaan Dzamwarira, Clemence Chirozva,
Learnmore
Chingani, Muzumbe, Taurai Chamboko, Ratidzayi Dzenga , Freddy
Macheka and
Biggie Zhuwawo.
On 3 June 2008 Chief Kasekete addressed a
rally atHoyaPrimary School and
ordered all Zanu Pf supporters and militia to
burn all MDC supporters’ homes
that Saturday night. That instruction spelt
disaster for MDC supporters in
Muzarabani, Zanu PF went on the rampage homes
went up in flames, men women
and children were ruthlessly assaulted and
tortured, broken bones and
lacerated wounds were the order of the day. Roads
were blocked and victims
were not allowed to seek medical help, many
suffered in silence and only
managed to access help several weeks later,
some with their conditions
having developed complications due to the delays,
others have consequently
suffered permanent disabilities.
In May 2010
two MDC supporters who were victims of 2008 violence reported
that, they
were dragged before Chief Kasekete’s court , their crime was that
they had
approached one of the perpetrators who took away their cattle in
2008 to
return them. Chief Kasekete accused them of talking about political
issues
and insulting the complainant who is a Zanu PF official . They were
initially fined US$30 each and were handed over to the police where they
were charged with public nuisance and paid an admission of guilty fine of
US$5 each. The perpetrator now the complainant armed with copies of the
receipts from the police instituted a civil suit against the two victims.
The case was presided over by Chief Kasekete himself; he awarded the Zanu PF
perpetrator damages of three cows and two goats. The cattle and goats were
forcibly taken away from the victims’ homes by Kasekete and handed over to
the perpetrator as compensation for the pain caused by the accusation and
insults.
During the campaign period towards the presidential run off
elections in
June 2008 chief Kasekete was personally involved in numerous
incidents of
political violence some of which are outlined
below;
April 1, 2008
On 1 April 2008 a group of Zanu PF militia
led by Chief Kasekete abducted
Biggie Zhuwawo from his home. Biggie was
subjected to a heavy and brutal
assault such that he passed out and died on
the spot.
April 16, 2008
Chief Kasekete and his gang of Zanu PF
militia abducted Liven Mapfumo who
operated a small general dealers shop in
the area. They assaulted him all
over the body and destroyed his entire
home. Chief Kasekete then ordered
Mapfumo to supply groceries for
theIndependence celebrations.
April 26, 2008
Eric Chinzima
reported that a large group of Zanu PF militia led by Chief
Kasekete got to
his home during the day. They accused him of supporting the
MDC and
viciously assaulted him he lost his upper teeth after being kicked
in the
mouth with a booted foot.
May 1, 2008
Zanu Pf militia apprehended
Simbarashe Manzizi on his way home , they
accused him of voting for the MDC
in March and started beating him up there
and then as punishment for his
support of MDC. They then took him to his
home where they destroyed all the
huts there and left him in the open. He
noted that among the group was Chief
Kasekete who was giving the orders.
May 2, 2008
The local Zanu PF
youths around Hoya school accused Freddie Matonhodze of
campaigning for
Tsvangirai in the area. On 2 May 2008 Chief Kasekete and his
band of thugs
destroyed Matonhodze’s entire homestead, his family fled and
sought refuge
with relatives away from the area. Their clothes, property and
utensils were
all burnt.
May 1, 2008
On 1 May 2008 Chief Kasekete ordered Lucky
Mutengwa to be brought before
him. Lucky was accused of supporting the MDC
they harassed and tormented
him, kasekete threatened him with death if he
continued living in
Muzarabani. Mutengwa deserted his family and property
and lived in another
district until after the June elections.
May 1,
2008
Chief Kasekete in the command of more that 50 Zanu PF youths and war
veterans attacked Christopher Mondera at his home. They heavily assaulted
him, looted and destroyed his home.
May 1, 2008
The Zanu PF
supporters in their orgy of violence on 1 May 2008 caught
Wanzirai Magodo at
his home. They heavily assaulted him with a variety of
weapons and he
sustained serious injuries all over the body. Having worked
him over to
their satisfaction they turned their anger on his property
destroying
anything in sight. All the family’s clothes were burnt, Magodo
lost his only
tractor that was burnt in the attack. Magodo identified
amongst others Chief
Kasekete, Edward Raradza, Luke Mushore and Avhozhi
Chibedebede .
May
2, 2008
Saymore Gweru was abducted and interrogated by chief Kasekete, he
was
accused of refusing to divulge information on where his brother was
hiding.
He was assaulted and tortured for a longtime before he was released
. His
abductors confiscated 2 goats from his home for food at their
base.
May 2, 2008
A large group of Zanu Pf supporters attacked
Dzikamayi D Gono at his home
during the night . Some of the assailants were
in military uniform, they
destroyed the whole homestead. Gono identified
some of the perpetrators as
E . Raradza, P Pfotso,T Diamond, O Sosono, C
Chiringa, CP Mutonga Njiva, B
Mazhuwana, P Chashaya and Chief
Kasekete,
May 2, 2008
Zanu PF youths in the company of senior
party officials surrounded Clemence
Chirozva’s homestead
nearChamindaPrimary school. They ordered him out of his
house and started
assaulting him with a variety of weapons. Clemence
sustained serious
injuries that never healed until he passed away in 2009.
The group that
killed Chirozva included MP Raradza, MP L Mushore,
Manyeruke, Chief
Kasekete, Chief Chiweshe, Pfotso, Katsiru, DCC Chibau, and
Chibedebede
May 3, 2008
A group of Zanu Pf stormed Siiraishe
Charunda’s homestead they interrogated
and assaulted him .The gang destroyed
his house and property the property
destroyed includes bed, radio, food,
clothes.The people where Raradza, Luke
Mushore, J Manyeruke, Chief Kasekete,
Chief Chiweshe, Pfotso, Katsiru, DCC
Chibau and Chibedebe
May 6,
2008
Chief Kasekete leading his gang of Zanu PF militia wielding axes,
iron bars
and guns surrounded Angelina Ngorima’s homestead during the night.
They
ordered her out of the hut she was sleeping in and set it on fire. All
the
structures were demolished , she lost everything she had.
May 7,
2008
Lucky Mutemaunga got wind that ZNA officers were looking for him and
that he
had been targeted for elimination by the local Zanu PF leadership.
Lucky
never wasted time he bolted out of the area and walked on foot through
out
the night. He only boarded a bus the following morning toHararewhere he
sought refuge for the whole of 2008. The army was being assisted by
Madhongi, Chief Kasekete, Norman Chizeya, Paramanzi and Kanhutu.
May
3, 2008
Luke Mushore, Edward Rraradza, Chief Kasekete and the other
members of Zanu
burnt the home of Sunungurai Musengeni. They beat him up to
a pulp and as if
that was not enough they drove away his three cows for food
at the base.
They burnt what ever was in sight at his homestead, and he lost
everything.
May 1, 2008
Chief Kasekete accompanied by a large
group of Zanu PF youths some of them
in army fatigue, assaulted Obert Tayi
at his home. They destroyed his huts
and took away 9 cattle, 4 sheep and 3
goats.
May 5, 2008
Prisca Mutizwa was beaten up by local Zanu PF
youth who accused her of
supporting Morgan Tsvangirai. She reports that
after the assault Chief
Kasekete took away 2 tonnes of maize and 4 bales of
cotton as punishment for
her supporting the MDC.
Christopher
Hatikure Mutsvangwa – Losing Candidate ; Norton Constituency
Christopher
Mutsvangwa was the Zanu PF candidate for the Norton house of
assembly seat
in the March 2008 general elections. He lost to a little known
MDC-T
candidate and it appears Mutsvangwa was heavily humiliated and
terribly hurt
that he immediately unleashed a reign of terror in the small
town.
Christopher Mutsvangwa a former director of the infamous Central
Intelligence Agency (CIO) still commands respect and support from this spy
agency. His links with the CIO in his campaign of violence were manifested
in the fact that about 60% of political violence cases in his constituency
were reportedly perpetrated by CIO agents. Mutsvangwa once served as the
chief executive officer of the ZBC were he persecuted workers who failed to
toe the party line thus constantly singing praises for Zanu PF and its
Leader Robert Mugabe. Christopher Mutsvangwa is well known for his hate
speeches towards Morgan Tsvangirai Leader of the MDC and has never failed to
sing praises for Robert Mugabe and his party. He has appeared on national
television an enumerable number of times as a so called independent analyst,
where he has invariably churned out horribly biased analyses. Of particular
note is when in 2008 at the height of political violence he appeared on
ZBC-TV vehemently denying that there was any political violence in the
country, calling the MDC spokesperson a damning liar, hell bound on
destroying the image of Zanu PF and yet Mutsvangwa himself was personally
involved in the hue, murder and plunder. In August 2009 he is reported to
have shot and killed Costa Matete and two other people inHighlands. The
widow of one of the victims has since filed a law suit against Mutsvangwa
for the cold blooded murder of her husband. She claims the murder was
politically motivated as against Mutsvangwa’s robbery allegations he is
citing in his defence. Despite these serious murder charges he is facing,
President Mugabe has appointed him to sit on the Zimbabwe Media Commission.
Some of the known and reported acts of violence directly linked to
Christopher Hatikure Mutsvangwa are listed below.
1 May
2008
Gibson Nyandoro a war veteran who fell off with his comrades after
he had
openly campaigned for the structures of the MDC in Norton. Reports
from
locals note that his activities in the MDC incensed the Zanu PF
leadership
in Norton that they summoned him to appear before a kangaroo
court comprised
of Zanu PF party stalwarts that was chaired by Christopher
Mutsvangwa as the
senior member in the constituency. He was reportedly
warned about his links
with the MDC activities in Norton and it appears
Gibson could not be
deterred as he continued to pursue the new path he had
chosen. Two weeks
later Gibson Nyandoro was reported missing by his
relatives and his body was
discovered floating in a local dam a few days
later.
12 June 2008
On 12 June Mutsvangwa addressed Zanu PF
militia teams at the local community
hall and during the evening following
the meeting a group of youths
including Oliver Tembo, Ian Kazungu, Wilson
Asau and Adas Kudiwapfava and
accompanied by local CIO agents abducted Moses
Mutandwa to the hall where he
was heavily assaulted with sticks under the
feet and all over the body. They
detained him at the hall for two days after
which they were released
together with other detainees, when Mutsvangwa
visited the base and assigned
the militia on other missions.
12 June
2008
On 12 June 2008 Oliver Tembo one of Mutsvangwa’s campaign team
member led
Zanu youths who abducted Chris Kakanga to the local Zanu offices
in Katanga.
Where he was savagely assaulted with steel bars and logs until
he sustained
a fractured arm and leg. His tormenters told him that his MDC
activities in
Norton were nauseating their chief Christopher Mutsvangwa and
had therefore
send them to deal with him once and for all.
12 June
2008
Moses Mutandwa was taken from home to a campaign meeting held at
the local
community hall, where he was heavily assaulted with sticks under
the feet
and all over the body. Witnesses note that as the prisoners were
being
tortured, Mutsvangwa personally delivered food supplies to be used at
the
base. The perpetrators were noted as Oliver Tembo, Ian Kazunga, Wilson
Asau,
Adas Kudiwapfava and many other unknown armed people.
13 June
2008
After the 29 March harmonized elections Christopher Mutsvangwa was
reported
to have held a meeting with his campaign team at a house in Norton
where
they agreed to set up torture Bases at some of the Zanu PF officials
houses.
Mutsvangwa supplied the tents that were pitched up at Matambo’s and
Knowledge Ndiya’s houses respectively. These were subsequently used as
torture and detention centers. On June 13 2008, John Kwangware reported that
CIO operatives broke into his house and blindfolded him. They took him to
Matambo’s house where they severely assaulted him and his left eye is
permanently damaged as they allegedly tried to remove it.
18 June
2008
David Mupandasekwa was an MDC polling agent in the March 29
elections, and
was targeted by the Zanu PF militia attacks . On June 18,
2008 Zanu PF
supporters chanting Zanu slogans and holding Mugabe and
Mutsvangwa campaign
posters abducted David from his house and hauled him
blindfolded to some
place where CIO agents heavily assaulted him and left
him for dead.
21 June 2008
Theresa Kamasula was abducted to
Knowledge Ndiya‘s house, where a tent had
been pitched by Mutsvangwa’s team.
On arrival she was taken into the tent
and was subjected to a terrible
assault and torture, the youth who assaulted
her threatened to kill her if
they wanted. They informed her that they had
orders to kill from Mutsvangwa
and it was up to them either to kill or spare
her. She was then ordered to
report to Ndiya’s house everyday to carry out
household chores until after
the 27 June Election.
21 June 2008
On 21 June 2008 a team of Zanu
PF youths riding in Mutsvangwa’s twin cab
truck driven by a local CIO agent
known only as Simba , broke into Brian
Takaruza’s house in Maridale Norton ,
They ransacked the house and stole
some personal items , destroying
furniture and kitchen utensils. They took
all the MDC regalia and used the
register to track and assault MDC members.
26 June 2008
Opah
Mukweni was abducted on 26 June 2008 from her house and taken to Ndiya’s
home to the tent used as the torture base. She was told that the MP
(referring to Mutsvangwa) had identified her as the pivotal MDC activist in
the constituency and had instructed that she be punished, she was taken
through a terrible torture and re-education session that lasted the whole
day. The major perpetrators identified were Fungai Garapo ,Tarirai Javangwe
under the instruction of four unidentified but armed men.
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s End-Of-Year address to Parliament
Harare
15 December
2011
Introduction
Mr Speaker Sir, it
is with great pleasure that I stand before this august House to make a year-end
statement to the honourable members on my reflections for the past year and to
give a projection of government priorities for the coming
year.
In the spirit of
accountability, the executive should periodically come before this House of
elected people’s representatives to update the people on key issues and the
challenges that government is facing.
The State of the Inclusive
Government
We have had our
success stories but this government largely remains dysfunctional, perhaps
mainly because we sought to engage and preoccupy ourselves with more issues than
a coalition government can reasonably deal with.
With the benefit
of hindsight, it would have been more prudent and practical to concentrate on
the GPA issues and those issues that guarantee economic stability and guarantee
a free and fair election without chewing more than what a government of
ideologically opposed players can achieve.
However, even
within the limitations of a coalition government, we have managed to make some
notable progress in areas such as health, education and provision of clean water
in most cities and towns.
Like any
coalition, there are no shared values and no shared vision and we have worked on
the minimum understanding that collectively, and despite our political
differences, we need to get this country working again.
Mr Speaker Sir,
more could have been done, particularly in dealing with the GPA issues that have
remained outstanding three years after it was signed.
We are no longer
talking about selected outstanding issues.
The entire GPA is
largely an outstanding issue with key matters remaining unresolved despite
Cabinet adopting an implementation matrix with time limits.
Key reforms such
as electoral reforms, political reforms and media reforms as agreed in the GPA
remain unimplemented.
Mr Speaker Sir,
non-implementation of agreed issues has been the major challenge confronting
this government and because of the nature of our coalition where various
political parties seconded their people into government, it is impossible to
take decisive action on errant Ministers some of whom have resorted to open
defiance.
Government Work
Programme
The Economy
- 1.
Considerable progress has
been made in the following areas;
- Macro-economic
stability
Inflation has been
contained at 4.2 per cent which is a reasonable figure compared to the
hyperinflationary environment before the consummation of the inclusive
government.
- Economic growth
Economic
growth has been projected at 9.3 per cent in 2011, up from 8.1percent in
2010 and is projected to go up to 9.4 per cent in 2012.
Mining has been
the biggest contributor to growth while capacity utilisation stands at 57 per
cent, up from 44 per cent in 2010
- Infrastructure
The rehabilitation
of road infrastructure, especially in local authorities has been commendable but
more needs to be done to expedite progress on the main trunk roads. Water
infrastructure has also registered a significant improvement in both urban and
rural communities.
- Social service
delivery
This has improved
at the back of development assistance largely from the EU, UK and USA, with
$370m realised by end of September mainly in the areas of health, education
social protection.
In the past year,
I launched the Education Transition Fund and the Health Transition Fund which
have changed the face of the health and education systems in the country, thanks
mainly to development partners.
Mr Speaker Sir,
due to these two critical interventions, the health delivery system has largely
seen a positive transformation while every pupil in all our primary and
secondary schools is now assured of textbooks in the core
subjects.
As Cabinet, we
have also discussed and agreed that we need to have a comprehensive input
support scheme to support our farmers and not the current ad hoc system
which has caused confusion and misunderstanding.
On Chiadzwa, we
agreed to resettle the displaced families in the area and to ensure that the
proceeds arising from the sale of diamonds benefit all the people of
Zimbabwe.
The green fuel
from Chisumbanje will provide a major boost to the country and we agreed that it
must be made available to the people subject to meeting government conditions
through the relevant Ministry.
The one-stop shop
which the government launched this year, has also become a major convenience for
prospective investors as it reduces transaction time for those people who have
shown confidence in our economy.
The launch of the
Medium term Plan in July also helped set out the growth trajectory of the
economy over the next five years and provided a framework for government
operations.
Mr Speaker Sir,
ICTs are a critical enabler to growth and economic development and the
fibre-optic cable and the phenomenal growth in internet and mobile phone usage
is a positive sign for the future of this country
- 2.
Despite the notable
successes, more could have been done in the following
areas:
a.Investment and FDI
promotion
Mr Speaker Sir,
there has been stagnation in this area mainly due to the way we have handled the
indigenisation policy as well as the political discord arising from the slow
implementation of the GPA. The indigenisation policy has largely been turned
into political rhetoric which has intimidated investors as some political
players sought to make cheap political gain out of this
policy.
We need a new
thrust that creates jobs and protects investors while at the same time promoting
investment and empowering the ordinary person.
- b.
Fiscal revenue
performance
Diamond revenue
has been disappointing at $122m in 2011. Recurrent expenditure has been
crowding out the capital budget hence service delivery is
suffering.
Employment cost at
63% is the biggest culprit. We have an untenable situation where deficits are
being funded from reallocations of expenditure.
- c. Infrastructure
The power deficit
(target of 1600mw versus actual output of 1105mw) means that industry could not
perform to capacity, thereby affecting projected growth targets. Slow delivery
on irrigation and public works infrastructure owing to poor cash flows has also
been a major let-down.
- d.
Social service
delivery
The high salaries
bill means that little was left for social service delivery which also meant
over-reliance on development partners.
- e. Civil servants condition of
service
Notwithstanding
the unbudgeted salary increase in excess of $400m, the conditions of service for
civil servants remain a challenge that we have to deal with.
Going into
2012, the following is critical;
- Improving revenue performance through transparency with diamonds revenues; the
promised additional $600m from diamond sales in 2012 following the KPCs
certification of Zimbabwe diamonds was allocated to specific social programs.
This means that to a large extent, our ability to deliver as a government
depends on the performance of this industry. In this respect, we call for
greater transparency in the sale of diamonds and full accounting of the proceeds
thereof so that we can be able to fund critical projects.
- Civil
servants’ conditions of service
While there is no
provision for an increase in the current budget, the only hope is that diamond
revenues will exceed the budgeted $600m, with the surplus being put to improving
conditions of service for civil servants.
Today, I want us
to salute our civil servants; the unsung heroes and heroines of this country;
the men and women who have chosen to work for their country for a
pittance.
We expect that
with increased inflows from the diamond sales revenue, we must be able to make a
meaningful adjustment to civil servants’ salaries and conditions of
service.
- Social service
delivery
There
is need to improve the business environment so that
revenue performance and cash flow improvements will support timely
implementation of the budgeted programs especially in the rehabilitation of
education and health infrastructure.
We have started on
a good note in terms of social services and we hope to put more effort in
ensuring that people access quality and affordable services especially in health
and education.
- 3.
Legislative
reforms
There has been
very slow progress in bringing Bills to Parliament and significant improvement
is needed in this area. There is no seriousness by the various Cabinet ministers
to bring forward the bills before Parliament and this is an issue that I have
raised with the President.
For example, for
the third session of Parliament, the Legislative Agenda outlined 24 Bills but of
these, only seven were introduced.
What is only
commendable is that of those seven Bills, key Bills were brought before
Parliament and these include the Electoral Amendment Bill and the Zimbabwe Human
Rights Commission Bill. However, these Bills need to be finalised before the
first quarter of 2012 to enable these Constitutional Commissions to become
operational.
Important Bills
which were supposed to be brought before the third session include the Media
Practitioners’ Bill, the Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill and the Criminal Law
(Codification and Reform.) No explanation has been given for why these important
Bills have been given as to why these Bills have been dropped off the
Legislative Agenda.
Even though the
Legislative Agenda for the fourth session was enunciated in September 2011, we
are now in December and the principles of four key Bills have not yet been
introduced before Cabinet. These are: The Referendums Amendment Bill, the
Diamond Bill, the State Enterprises Restructuring Agency Bill and the Zimbabwe
Investment Authority Bill.
- 4.
Constitutional
Commissions
Although the
Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC), the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) and the
Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission were appointed in 2010, and the Anti-Corruption
Commission in 2011, none of these have been highly effective as they have been
under-funded.
The Bills for ZEC
and the ZHRC have not yet been finalised in Parliament and this has severely
affected the ability of the ZHRC in particular to operate. The ZHRC has no
offices, no staff and no equipment.
Without a
legislative framework for the ZHRC, this Commission remains a Commission only in
name.
The funding given
to all four Commissions in the current budget budget is only $5 million. This
falls far short of the budgets submitted by each Commission averaging $30
million per Commission as the amount they need to execute their respective
mandates. There will be need for a revision mid-2012 to add more resources to
these Commissions, otherwise crucial work in the area of democratic reforms will
continue to lag far behind.
- 5.
Media Reform
(Board appointments and Licences)
To all intents and
purposes, this has become a national joke.
One of the key
reforms as envisaged in the GPA and as agreed by the Principals is the issue of
comprehensive media reforms, which includes introduction of more and diverse
players in both the print and electronic media as well as the immediate
cessation of hate speech.
To date, there has
been outright arrogance and intransigence from the responsible Minister and his
officials.
The appointments
of the BAZ board, the board of the Mass Media Trust and the ZBC board have not
been effected despite adoption by Cabinet and agreement by the Principals in
2010. The editorial policies of the State newspapers and the State broadcaster
has remained partisan and unreformed, and the media field remains dominated by
the same partisan State players.
The current
illegally constituted BAZ board is now adjudicating and approving broadcasting
licences unlawfully. The current BAZ board needs to be directed to stop
operating immediately and the licences it has dished out immediately
revoked.
The Minister of
Media, Information and Publicity should finalise appointments of all the media
boards.
- 6.
National Security
Council
The NSC had one
major output in 2011 and this was the production and adoption of the National
Security Sector strategy.
However, this
strategy is still outstanding and the issues arising from a security sector that
is not realigned to the principles of the GPA adversely affects the operations
of the inclusive government. This compounds the perception of the country as
undemocratic.
- 7.
Constitutional
Reform
The progress in
Constitutional reform has been slow and painful. Challenges have been both
political and financial. However, it would be remiss of me not to mention the
commendable role played by development partners, through the UNDP, in supporting
our Constitution-making process.
However, donor
funding cannot be the sole source of funds. There is a perception that the
government is not putting sufficient resources into democratic reforms and we
hope that with the projected increased revenue from the sale of diamonds,
Treasury can have enough room to fund some of these important
processes.
Way forward for
2012
The year 2012 must
not be characterised by rhetoric about an early election that is not accompanied
by the necessary reforms that will ensure a free and fair election as agreed by
the parties under the facilitation of SADC.
Political
stability is key to our prosperity as a nation and only a free and fair election
can guarantee legitimacy, peace and stability.
Mr Speaker Sir, in
the coming year, we need to implement what we agreed, to poise this country for
growth and above all to guarantee peace and give confidence to Zimbabweans, the
region, Africa and the broader international community that we are able to
conduct a free election.
The all-party
indaba that we recently held in Harare should find meaning in our citizens that
indeed the leadership of this country is truly committed to tolerance, peace and
non-violence.
Mr Speaker Sir,
the next year must register growth, set a firm foundation for a free and fair
poll and above all, give every Zimbabwean hope that indeed, the future of this
country is our shared concern.
Mr Speaker Sir, I
have traversed the whole country and the issue of food security is a national
emergency. We should make sure that no one starves and as government, we will
put in place a mechanism to move grain from the surplus areas to vulnerable
communities.
Lastly, I wish to
commend the people of Zimbabwe for their patience as we navigate this delicate
transition.
We leave you a
message of hope that we remain alive to your concerns and that 2012 should bring
better prospects for peace, tolerance, growth and prosperity.
I wish you all a
merry Christmas and a prosperous new year.
Indeed, may the
good Lord bless you and your families and expand your
territory.
God bless
you.
And God bless
Zimbabwe.
I thank
You
Tomana is not fooling anyone about Wikileaks
Clifford Chitupa Mashiri,15/12/11
Zimbabwe’s Attorney General Johannes
Tomana should not think that we are
fools by making a u-turn on WikiLeaks
just because the accused are now
Zanu-pf top brass.
Right from the
outset, it is important to clarify that nobody should be
prosecuted for what
is in the Wikileaks cables as they have already been
punished by the
publicity of their secret liaisons. That includes people
from all
parties.
However, we disagree with the Attorney General Johannes Tomana
in his latest
attempt to spin the truth in order to save the reputation of
his fellow
Zanu-pf allies.
There should not have been any WikiLeaks
investigation in the first place if
Jonathan Moyo with the help of the
Zanu-pf orientated state media had not
criminalised MDC President Morgan
Tsvangirai. People expected the rule of
law to extend to
Zanu-pf.
According to RadioVop, Thursday 15 December 2011, Tomana said
politicians
being investigated for what he alleged as acts of treason
arising from the
WikiLeaks cables have no case to answer because he claims
that most of the
information was not true.
“We have done our
investigation and what we have found out is that most of
the WikiLeaks
information was not true that is why we have not prosecuted
those who were
being investigated on the basis of the WikiLeaks cables,”
Tomana said in an
interview with RadioVop.
However, Tomana should tell the truth - that “we
were just trying to wind-up
the opposition and buy time by pretending to
probe Zanu-pf officials.”
In any case, had Tomana proceeded to prosecute
his henchmen for alleged
treason, how many members would Zanu-pf have
remained with given that it now
has five hundred thousand members (including
ANC SA and forced army
recruits?) in a population of about eleven million
people?
The AG should stop deluding himself into thinking that every
utterance made
by any Zimbabwean regardless of political persuasion
constitutes treason
because the views expressed are critical of Robert
Mugabe’s dictatorship and
overstaying his welcome.
Tomana’s climbdown
on prosecuting Zanu-pf top brass for treason was
obviously expected given
Zanu-pf’s culture of impunity and double standards.
We have not forgotten
how Jonathan Moyo threw all the toys from his cot and
cried treason until
his voice went horse on learning that the early cables
had allegedly
implicated the MDC President Morgan Tsvangirai.
However, the Zanu-pf “law
of treason” had to be suddenly revised if not
temporarily suspended when
Jonathan Moyo and his fellow Zanu-pf politburo
and central committee members
became the centre of WikiLeaks cables. Moyo
confessed having sleepless
nights.
Not that we seek to criminalise people who go about expressing
their
opinions freely, but simply want fair play and justice rather than
hypocrisy
and waste of taxpayers money by intimidating the opposition in
order to
appease tyrant Robert Mugabe who may not be paying any taxes of
significance
in the first place.
Johannes Tomana should be reminded
that he risks possible prosecution and or
civil lawsuit for among other
things, alleging that “most of the WikiLeaks
information was not true”,
possible abuse of office and the misuse of
national resources for partisan
wars.
What if the State Department initiated an indictment against Tomana
for
suggesting that American diplomats were filing false information? Also,
how
can Tomana justify the accusation he makes or aspersion he casts on the
WikiLeaks website?
Can Tomana show cause why he should not step down
as the AG having failed to
serve in an inclusive and non-partisan manner in
the administration of
justice in the Republic of Zimbabwe by using his
position to arguably
terrorise the opposition?
Knowing how much
Tomana wants to sound big with high profile cases which
always collapse e.g.
Bennett’s and the almost aborted lawsuit against the
European Union for
sanctions before it even started, nobody was worried
about his WikiLeaks
probe.
Tomana is not fooling anyone about WikiLeaks, except
himself.
The only advice to give the learned Attorney General of Zimbabwe
is that,
when you are in a hole, you should stop digging.
Clifford
Chitupa Mashiri, Political Analyst, London,
zimanalysis2009@gmail.com
Court Watch 4/2011 [Press Freedom Cases - The Independent and Standard Appeals to the Supreme Court]
COURT WATCH 4/2011
[December
2011]
There are several important current court cases involving press
freedom. The Constitution enshrines
press freedom in the Declaration of Rights in section 20. The State has taken several cases against
reporters, editors and owners of the independent press. Zimbabwe Independent staff were charged
two and a half years ago and their appeal on constitutional grounds has still
not been decided. More recently there
has been another case involving Standard journalists and their
application for an appeal to the Supreme Court has just been turned down – this
rejection will probably be appealed.
There is also likely to be an application for another Standard case to be referred to the
Supreme Court. These cases call into
question the constitutionality of provisions of the Criminal Law Code which affect freedom of
expression. There has long been a call,
as part of the law reform agenda paving the way for free and fair elections, to
amend sections of the Criminal Law Code affecting both freedom of expression and
of association. In the meantime, until
such reforms take place, it is important that the Supreme Court decide these constitutional cases promptly – as the
country’s highest court, whose decisions are binding on all other courts, it is
its responsibility to provide legal guidance, not only for the press, but also
for magistrates, prosecutors and police, the legal profession and members of the
general public.
Case Against the Zimbabwe
Independent Journalists
State v Chimakure and Kahiya
This case has dragged on and on.
It started in May 2009. It came
before the Supreme Court in June 2010 and nearly eighteen months later the
Supreme Court’s decision has not been delivered.
Background: An
article was published in the Zimbabwe
Independent of 8th-14th May
2009
titled "CIO, police role in
activists' abduction revealed" It was
written by Constantine Chimakure; Vincent Kahiya was the Independent editor at
the time.
The article covered an impending criminal trial in the High Court
which was set down to begin on 29th June 2009, involving a group of MDC-T
activists who had been reported missing in late 2008 but had been brought court
on criminal charges just before Christmas.
The article purported to rely for its facts on public documents –
indictments and State case summaries already served on the accused activists,
revealing that the activists were either in the custody of the CIO or police
during the period they were reported missing and referring, with names, to the
roles played by police and intelligence agents in their abduction, unlawful
detention and mistreatment.
11th May 2009: Journalists’ arrested: The police had looked for Mr Kahiya and Mr Chimakure unsuccessfully at the newspaper’s offices on 9th
May, so they presented themselves at the
Law and Order Section of Harare Central police station on the morning of 11th
May 2009, in the company of their lawyer Innocent Chagonda.
They were interrogated for several
hours, signed warned and cautioned statements and were then arrested
and detained in police cells overnight.
The finance director of the Independent’s publishing company, Mr
Mike Curling, was called to the police station to represent the company as the
third accused, but was not detained, merely warned to attend court the next
day.
Charge: The police complaint was that the names of
and roles played by police and intelligence agents in the abduction, unlawful
detention and mistreatment of the persons accused in the High Court indictment
had been falsely reported in the story.
Although the accused denied that any of the information published was
false, charges were brought against Kahiya and Chimakure in their personal
capacities and against Curling as representative of the company. The charge was contravening section 31(1)(b)
of the Criminal Law Code, which makes it an offence to publish a false statement
intending to undermine confidence in a law enforcement agency.
12th May: Magistrates Court bail hearing
After their night in police cells the two journalists were taken to
court, where they were joined by Mr Curling.
Harare Magistrate Catherine Chimanda granted all three bail of $200 and
placed them on remand to face trial. The
bail conditions were that they must report to the police Law and Order Section
once a week and to come to court periodically for further remand [remand usually
lasts 14 days at a time unless a longer period is accepted by an accused
person].
30th July 2009: Application for referral to Supreme Court
granted: At a remand hearing on
30th July 2009 the magistrate
granted a defence application to refer the constitutionality of section 31(1)(b)
of the Criminal Law Code to the Supreme Court for a definitive ruling. Under section 24(2) of the Constitution, if a
possible infringement of the Declaration of Rights is raised during court
proceedings, the presiding magistrate or judge must refer the case to the
Supreme Court if requested to do so by a party, unless the request is considered
frivolous or vexatious. At the same time
Curling was discharged. Kahiya and
Chimakure, however, remained on remand.
Their criminal trial was indefinitely postponed pending the Supreme
Court’s decision.
3rd June 2010: Case at last in Supreme
Court: The case took nearly a year to come up for
hearing in the Supreme Court.
Hearing in the Supreme Court: June
2010
There were five judges on the bench: Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku, Deputy Chief Justice Luke Malaba and Justices Vernanda Ziyambi, Misheck Cheda and Paddington Garwe. For Chimakure and Kahiya, their lawyer
Innocent Chagonda delivered a powerful argument
attacking the constitutional validity of section 31 of the Criminal Law
Code. Although the State opposed the
appeal, observers in court assessed the State presentation as an ineffective
counter to Mr Chagonda’s argument. At the conclusion of the hearing the court
reserved judgment. Nearly eighteen
months later the Supreme Court’s decision is still awaited.
The defence argument for the nullification
of section 31 as unconstitutional can be summarised as follows:
· section 31 infringes the constitutional
right to freedom of expression enshrined in the Declaration of Rights, section
20 of the Constitution [The State prosecution did not contest this point];
· although the right to freedom of expression
is admittedly not absolute, the only infringements permitted by the Constitution
are those which are authorised by a law, are imposed for certain limited
purposes specified in the Constitution and are reasonably justifiable in a
democratic society;
· section 31 does not qualify as a “law”
because it lacks essential qualities of a law, i.e., the degree of certainty and clarity which enables persons affected by it
to know what conduct is prohibited and what is not;
· section 31 does not fall within the
permissible purposes claimed by the State which were the interests of defence,
public order or public safety;
· section 31 is not reasonably justifiable in
a democratic society.
The argument was backed up by citation of cases decided in many
jurisdictions, several of them decided by the Supreme Court itself. In one Zimbabwean case cited, the judgment
had been written by Chief Justice Chidyausiku.
Present Status of the Case: The Supreme Court reserved judgment. Nearly eighteen months later its decision has
not been delivered. On 18th March the
magistrates court, with State acquiescence, removed both Kahiya and Chimakure
from remand, relieving them of the burden of repeated court appearances. Depending on the Supreme Court decision, the
State is free to renew the charges by issue of summons.
Case Against Standard
Journalists
State v Madanhire, Nyangove and Ramakgapola
Standard Editor Nevanji Madanhire, reporter Patience Nyangove and Alpha Media Holdings HR manager Loud
Ramakgapola have since 30th June 2011 been facing trial for criminal defamation
over a Standard story published the previous weekend, stating that there were
fears for the safety of MDC-T Minister of State Jameson Timba after his arrest
by a “notorious” named senior police officer.
Police claimed the named police officer had not been present or involved
in the arrest of Mr Timba. All three Standard staff were interrogated, but
only Mr Madanhire was detained for the night in police cells – the others were
allowed to go, on condition they reported back to police the next day. Taken to
court, they were granted bail and placed on remand on charges of criminal
defamation under section 96 of the Criminal Law Code. Section 96 makes it an offence for anyone
who, intending to harm another person’s reputation, publishes a false statement
which causes serious harm to that other person’s reputation or creates a real
risk of such harm; the penalty is a fine of up to $5000 or 2 years imprisonment
or both. After further remand hearings the defence lawyers on Monday 12th
December applied for the constitutionality of section 96 of the Criminal Law
Code to be referred to the Supreme Court for a ruling. As was done in the Chimakure and Kahiya case,
their lawyer invoked section
24(2) of the Constitution which says that if a possible infringement of the
Declaration of Rights is raised during court proceedings the presiding
magistrate or judge must refer the case to the Supreme Court if requested to do
so, unless the request is considered frivolous or vexatious.
Application for referral to Supreme Court dismissed: In a surprise decision handed down on 14th December the magistrate
dismissed the application and remanded both accused for trial on 24th
January. The only ground on which such
an application can be dismissed is if it is
considered to be frivolous or vexatious.
The options now open to Mr Madanhire and Ms Nyangove are either:
· to undergo trial in the magistrates court, and, if convicted, to
appeal against conviction and raise their constitutional arguments as part of
their appeal, or
· to take immediate steps to apply to the High Court for review and
correction of the magistrate’s decision, or
· to make a direct application to the Supreme Court challenging the
magistrate’s decision as being itself a denial of their constitutional right to
protection of the law.
Another Application for Referral to the Supreme
Court?
Case 2 against Standard Journalists
Standard Editor,
Nevanji Madanhire, reporter Nqaba Matshazi and company representative Loud Ramakgapola were
arrested and detained by police on 15th November 2011. They were charged with criminal defamation
under the Criminal Law Code, section 96, and theft of documents from the
complainant, an influential businessman.
The criminal defamation allegation is based on a story in the Standard about financial problems
alleged to be facing a medical aid society run by the complainant. The accused spent a night in police cells
before being taken to court on 16th November, when a magistrate freed them on
$100 bail and placed them on remand for trial in due course. It was a bail condition that they surrender
their passports. Notwithstanding the
rejection of their application on 14th December to have the constitutionality of
section 96 in their other case referred to the Supreme Court, the defence intend
to make an application to the magistrate’s court for the constitutionality of
section 96 to be referred to the Supreme Court in this case.
Veritas makes every effort to ensure reliable information, but cannot
take legal responsibility for information supplied.