• Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) (Acquisition of Farm Equipment or Material) Regulations, 2003
• Journalist Detained, Equipment Confiscated
• Our night of terror
• Mbeki to visit Zimbabwe for talks
• ZNSPCA update 30 November
• JAG PR Communique dated 15 December 2003
• JAG Open Letters Forum No. 206
• JAG Career Opportunities dated 15 December 2003
• China a shining economic example, says Mugabe
• Crackdown On Zimbabwean Striking Doctors Continues
• Reserve Bank Gets Tough On Travellers
• A disturbing message
• Zim diplomacy set to get 'louder'
• How I risked it all with a black armband
• Greener Pastures Create Passport to Corruption
• UK Foreign Office:Zimbabwe Must Generate Political Change
• Zimbabwe Pledges Action on Landlords' Illegal Demand for Rents in US Dollars
• Interest Rates Hit 635pc
• Transport Woes Resurface
• Libya Donates $1,5bn Maize
• State to Construct Houses for Street Kids
• Turn Medical Aid Into Proper Insurance
• Over 200 Bodies Unclaimed At Hospital Mortuary
• Mifumi to Reform Bride Price in Africa
• Mugabe's guest Mengistu tried in absentia
• Sending help home: A Zimbabwean in Vancouver works to save her family

Statutory Instrument 273A of 2003.

[CAP. 10:20

ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS

Section

       1.  Title.

       2.       Interpretation.

       3.       Prohibition on destruction, etc., of farm equipment or material.

       4.       Identification of farm equipment or material.

       5.       Acquisition of farm equipment or material by acquiring authority.

       6.       Valuation of farm equipment or material.

       7.       Compulsory acquisition of farm equipment or material.

       8.       Application for an order to acquire farm equipment or material.

       9.       Payment for farm equipment or material.

       10.       Impersonation.

Title

1.  These regulations may be cited as the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) (Acquisition of Farm Equipment or Material) Regulations, 2003.

Interpretation

2.(1)  In these regulations—

“acquiring authority” means the Minister of Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement;

“designated valuation officer” means a person who is designated as a valuation officer in terms of section 6;

“farm equipment or material” means movables used for agricultural purposes on any agricultural land acquired for resettlement purposes under the Land Reform Programme, including irrigation equipment not embedded in the ground, tractors, ploughs, disc harrows, trailers, combine harvesters, pumps not permanently attached to the land, sprinklers, risers, movable storage facilities, Modrho tobacco curers, chemicals and fertilisers;

“identify”, in relation to farm equipment or material or any item thereof, means include in an inventory compiled in terms of section 4;

“Land Reform Programme” means the Land Reform Resettlement Programme and Implementation Plan (Phase 2), published in April, 2001 (as re-issued and amended from time to time), in connection with the programme of acquiring agricultural land for resettlement purposes which commenced under the terms of the Land Acquisition Act [Chapter 20:10] on the 23rd May, 2000;

(2)  Any word or expression which has not been defined in subsection (1) and to which a meaning has been assigned in any provision of the Land Acquisition Act [Chapter 20:10] shall have the same meaning when used in these regulations.

Prohibition on destruction, etc., of farm equipment or material

3.(1)  No owner or holder of farm equipment or material shall wilfully demolish, damage, alter or in any other manner impair the farm equipment or material, or cause any other person to demolish, damage, alter or in any other manner impair it, without the permission in writing of the acquiring authority.

(2)  An owner or holder of farm equipment or material who contravenes subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and liable to—

       (a)   a fine—

                  (i) equivalent to so much of the amount of the impairment caused to farm equipment or material as is ascertainable in monetary terms;  or

                 (ii) not exceeding level ten;

                   whichever is the greater amount;

              or

       (b)        imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years;

or to both such fine and such imprisonment.

Identification of farm equipment or material

4.(1)  Any duly authorised representative or employee of the acquiring authority may enter any land or premises at any reasonable time and do such acts thereon as are reasonably necessary to ascertain—

       (a)        whether there is on the land or premises any farm equipment or material not currently being used for agricultural purposes on any agricultural land;  and

       (b)   the owner or holder of such farm equipment or material;  and

       (c)   the items of such farm equipment or material on the land or premises;  and

       (d)   the condition of such farm equipment or material and its suitability for agricultural purposes.

(2)  The acquiring authority shall provide each of its authorised representatives or employees with a certificate indicating his or her authority for the purposes of this section and the authorised representative or employee shall produce such certificate to any interested person on demand.

(3)  Upon entering any land or premises the duly authorised representative or employee of the acquiring authority shall, if he or she has reasonable cause to believe that there is any farm equipment or material on the land or premises not currently being used for agricultural purposes on any agricultural land, request the owner or occupier thereof to compile an inventory of such farm equipment or material on the land or premises:

Provided that—

       (a)   the owner or holder of any farm equipment or material shall have the burden of proving, to the satisfaction of a duly authorised representative or employee of the acquiring authority, that such equipment or material is currently being used for agricultural purposes on any agricultural land;

       (b)   if the owner or occupier thereof refuses to compile an inventory in terms of this subsection, the duly authorised representative or employee of the acquiring authority may proceed to compile an inventory of items which, in the opinion of the representative or employee, comprise farm equipment or material not currently being used for agricultural purposes on any agricultural land;

(4)  Any person who, after farm equipment or material has been identified in terms subsection (3), sells, donates, demolishes, damages, alters or in any other manner impairs or disposes of such farm equipment or material without the permission in writing of the acquiring authority, shall be guilty of an offence and liable to—

       (a)   a fine—

                  (i) equivalent to so much of the amount of the impairment caused to, or loss of, the farm equipment or material as is ascertainable in monetary terms;  or

                 (ii) not exceeding level ten;

                   whichever is the greater amount;

              or

       (b)        imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years;

or to both such fine and such imprisonment.

Acquisition of farm equipment or material by acquiring authority

5.(1)  Subject to these regulations, the acquiring authority may, either by agreement or compulsorily, acquire any farm equipment or material not currently being used for agricultural purposes on any agricultural land, where the acquisition is reasonably necessary for the utilisation of that farm equipment or material on any agricultural land.

(2)  The acquiring authority shall give not less than seven days’ notice of the intention to acquire any farm equipment or material to the person owning or holding the farm equipment or material.

(3)  The notice referred to in subsection (2) shall be served in person:

Provided that, where the owner or holder of the farm equipment or material cannot be located after diligent search, the notice shall be published in the Gazette and in a newspaper circulating in the area in which the farm equipment or material to be acquired is situated.

Valuation of farm equipment or material

6.(1)  The acquiring authority may designate as a valuation officer any member of the Public Service who, in the acquiring authority’s opinion, is qualified to carry out valuations of farm equipment or material and to exercise any other functions of a designated valuation officer in terms of these regulations.

(2)  The acquiring authority shall provide every designated valuation officer with a certificate indicating his or her appointment and the designated valuation officer shall produce such certificate to any interested person on demand.

(3)  A designated valuation officer shall, at the request of the acquiring authority or his or her duly authorised representative or employee, carry out the valuation of any farm equipment or material identified in terms of section 5.

Compulsory acquisition of farm equipment or material

7.(1)  After the identification and valuation of farm equipment or material in terms of sections 5 and 6 respectively, the acquiring authority may, if there is no agreement for the purchase of the farm equipment or material concerned—

       (a)        acquire the farm equipment or material by making an order compulsorily acquiring the farm equipment or material for compensation equivalent to the value placed on the farm equipment or material by the designated valuation officer;  and

       (b)   serve on the owner or holder of the farm equipment or material a copy of the order referred to in paragraph (a).

(2)  An acquisition order made in terms of subsection (1) shall contain—

       (a)   a description of the farm equipment or material to be acquired;  and

       (b)   the compensation payable for the acquisition of the farm equipment or material.

(3)  An acquisition order made in terms of subsection (1) shall be accompanied by a notice in writing inviting the owner or holder to indicate within fourteen days whether he or she contests the acquisition of the farm equipment or material or the compensation fixed therefor.

(4)  Upon service of an acquisition order on the owner or holder in terms of subsection (1), ownership of the farm equipment or material shall vest in the acquiring authority, who shall thereupon have the power to take immediate possession of the farm equipment or material.

Application for an order to acquire farm equipment or material

8.(1)  Where the owner or holder of any farm equipment or material compulsorily acquired in terms of subsection (1) of section 7 contests the acquisition of the farm equipment or material or the compensation fixed therefor, the acquiring authority shall, not later than thirty days after the acquisition, apply to the Administrative Court for an order confirming the acquisition of the farm equipment or material.

(2)  An application in terms of subsection (1) shall be accompanied by—

       (a)   a copy of the acquisition order;  and

       (b)   copies of the notices served or published, as the case may be, in terms of subsection (2) of section 5 and subsection (3) of section 7.

(3)  The Administrative Court shall grant an order referred to in subsection (1) where it is satisfied—

       (a)   that the acquisition of the farm equipment or material is reasonably necessary for the utilisation of that farm equipment or material on any agricultural land;  and

       (b)   that the farm equipment or material was not, on the date of its identification, being used for agricultural purposes on any agricultural land;  and

       (c)   subject to subsection (4), that the compensation fixed by the acquiring authority is reasonable in the circumstances.

(4)  In granting an order confirming the acquisition of farm equipment or material, the Administrative Court may fix any compensation that it deems reasonable in the circumstances.

(5) Where the Administrative Court refuses to grant an order confirming the acquisition of farm equipment or material, it shall order the acquiring authority to return the farm equipment or material to the owner or holder thereof.

(6)  Where the owner or holder of the farm equipment or material concerned or the acquiring authority is dissatisfied with any decision of the Administrative Court, whether in relation to the acquisition of the farm equipment or material or the compensation fixed therefor, either party may appeal to the Supreme Court against that decision.

Payment for farm equipment or material

9.(1)  The acquiring authority shall pay to the owner or holder of any farm equipment or material acquired in terms of these regulations the compensation offered, agreed or fixed therefor, as the case may be, within a reasonable time and, in any event, where the farm equipment or material is compulsorily acquired—

       (a)   at least one quarter of the compensation payable shall be paid at the time the equipment or material concerned is acquired, or within thirty days thereafter;  and

       (b)   the balance of the compensation payable shall be paid within—

                  (i) five years after the acquisition thereof in the case of farm equipment;

                 (ii) one year after the acquisition thereof in the case of farm material.

(2)  The compensation to be paid to the owner or holder of any farm equipment or material in terms of subsection (1) shall accrue interest at the prescribed rate from date of acquisition thereof.

Impersonation

10.  Any person who, for the purpose of gaining entry into any land or premises, falsely holds himself or herself out to be a duly authorised representative or employee of the acquiring authority or designated valuation officer, shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding level ten or imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years or both.

Media Institute of Southern Africa (Windhoek)

PRESS RELEASE
December 16, 2003
Posted to the web December 16, 2003

Martin Chimenya, a journalist working for the Voice of the People
Communications Trust (VOP), was arrested on 8 December in the city of
Masvingo, 293 km south of the capital Harare.

He was charged under section 79 (1) of the Access to Information and
Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) for allegedly practising as a journalist
without accreditation. Under this section journalists are not allowed to
work without a license from the Media and Information Commission.

The magistrate's court released Chimenya on December 10 on a Z$15 000 bail
(approximately US$19). He was ordered to appear in court again on December
23, 2003. His recorder and tapes are yet to be returned.

Members of the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) picked up Chimenya
from his home in Masvingo on December 8. The agents ordered him to take all
his equipment, which included tapes and a recorder. Since his arrest till
the afternoon of the following day, December 9, Chimenya's whereabouts were
unknown as the police denied his arrest.

Tongai Matutu, a lawyer hired by the Media Institute of Southern Africa
(MISA)-Zimbabwe to find and represent Chimenya was only able to see him on
Tuesday afternoon at the Masvingo Central Police station. Other journalists
in the city informed MISA-Zimbabwe said that Chimenya was handed over to the
police on December 9. CIO agents have no arresting powers under Zimbabwe
law.

The police also accused Chimenya of recording interviews in which president
Robert Mugabe was denigrated. Under section 16 of the Public Order and
Security Act (POSA) it is an offence to denigrate the President.

On his release Chimenya told MISA-Zimbabwe that he was not harassed or
beaten. He added that his interrogators wanted to find out which
organisation he worked for and how they transmit news.

BACKGROUND

VOP is a short-wave radio station based in Zimbabwe. Its offices were bombed
in 2002.

Addis Ababa - Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe lashed out at rich western
countries on Monday and, together with other African leaders, heaped praise
on China as officials from across the continent and Beijing met in Ethiopia
for a Sino-African conference on co-operation.

Mugabe spent much of a keynote speech delivered to an audience, which
included Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and leaders or ministers from
almost all African states, lambasting "the predatory warrior states and
kingdoms of the West."

Today's "dangerous, unipolar world is characterised by the brutal
predominance of America, unconditionally supported by Britain, Australia and
other nations of Europe, recklessly seeking global hegemony under the
convenient but false cover of good governance, human rights and democracy,"
he said.

The West believes "it can make and unmake, dismantle and occupy sovereign
states, loot their economy as it seeks to remake the world after its own
image," he said.

      'The biggest world market, the fastest growing economies, are in fact
in the East'
On the economic front, Africa's "business people have remained under the
spell of a Western sorcerer whose bag of dirty tricks is that of devious
deals and unfair trade practices," said the Zimbabwean president.

Conversely, said Mugabe, China has been "among the few genuine global makers
of democracy, among the authors of comprehensive human rights, rule of law
and legality."

"It is taking far too long for most of our business people to realise that
the biggest world market, the fastest growing economies, are in fact in the
East, the largest being China," he said.

"It is taking them far too long to realise that the thousands of seasons of
our association with the west have not yielded fair trade terms, technology
transfer or development," added Mugabe.

"Broader partnerships with friendly Third World countries and emerging
markets such as the People's Republic of China and other countries of the
Far East should be the focus and emphasis of our efforts," he said.

"Zimbabwe will not collapse, our struggle will not fail and we will never be
colonised again," he declared.

Zimbabwe, which quit the Commonwealth this month after the grouping of
mainly former British colonies extended its suspension, faces massive food
shortages blamed on both drought and the government's controversial land
reform programme, under which white-owned farmland has been seized and
re-distributed to blacks.

Wen Jiabao told the gathering that global stability depended on boosting
development in the world's poorest countries.

"It is clear that world peace and development cannot possibly be sustained
if the North-South divide grows wider and developing nations grow poorer,"
he said.

The prime minister said "economic globalisation, while bringing development
opportunities, is also posing unprecedented challenges to the developing
world."

"In the face of this fact and truth, China's assistance offer to Africa is
with sincerity and without any political conditions," he said, pointing out
"difficulties Africans are facing with the international monetary agencies
and in their bilateral relations with the western countries."

African states frequently complain about the "conditionalities" attached to
loans offered by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund and blame
the economic policies of these organisations for holding back the
continent's development.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi told the meeting that "China had been
a reliable friend of Africa during the liberation struggle" against European
colonial powers.

"Taking into account our experience of the last three years... I hope the
economic and social development co-operation between Africa and China will
be as fruitful as it had been in the liberation struggle," Meles added.

Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano also expressed hope that cooperation
between Africa and China would continue to flourish.

"In areas of peace and security, agriculture, infrastructure, transport,
human resource development, health, science, technology, trade, and finance,
Chinese entrepreneurs can play a big role," said Chissano, who is also
chairman of the African Union (AU).

African Church Information Service

December 15, 2003
Posted to the web December 15, 2003

Ntungamili Nkomo
Nairobi

Zimbabwean police this week arrested ten more striking medical personnel as
they attended a hearing of seven of their colleagues, who had been charged
with defying a labour court order compelling them to resume work.

This now brings to 17, the number of arrested medical personnel since the
strike started.

Junior and middle-level doctors went on strike about two months ago,
pressing for a whooping 8,000 percent salary increment and better working
conditions.

The government subsequently took them to the labour court, which ruled that
the strike was unlawful, ordering them to resume work..

Under the country's laws, doctors cannot engage in any industrial action
because their services are considered indispensable.

Nurses, who had also gone on strike much earlier but later resumed work,
have again rejoined the doctors in the strike, after the government failed
to fulfil its promises.

Analysts say the situation has done more harm to the country's ailing health
sector, which is already reeling from the shortage of drugs and qualified
health personnel.

A police spokesman here said the arrests would continue until all striking
doctors got behind bars.

But doctors have been hitting back by tendering resignations, while those
who remain in the sector have vowed to remain on strike until the government
addresses their grievances.

Eye-witnesses say there was drama at the courts when some of the doctors
tried to resist arrest, demanding to see their warrants of arrests.

"When our colleagues appeared before the magistrate, we also came in and
settled in the public gallery, but no sooner had we settled down, than the
police pounced on us," said Molefi Ndlovu, one of the doctors who survived
the arrests.

"We don't know how they identified us, but that is what happened. Some
doctors tried to resist but the police dragged them, huffing and puffing
into their van," he continued.

No comment could be obtained from the Hospitals Doctors Association of
Zimbabwe, since the doctors' entire leadership is in police custody. It
however, remains uncertain when they will appear in court.

Junior and middle level doctors currently earn Z$4.5 and 5.7 million (about
US$ 5641 and 6917) a year respectively, but they argue that the money cannot
sustain them, and are pressing for an annual salary of Z$30 million (about
US$ 36,407).

The government has however, indicated that it was not prepared to pay as
much, and has described the demands as unrealistic.

Zimbabwe Independent (Harare)

December 12, 2003
Posted to the web December 15, 2003

Godfrey Marawanyika

THE Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has come down hard on banks in line with
the Exchange Control Regulations pertaining to holiday travel allowances to
financial institutions.

The RBZ has sent a circular to commercial banks informing them that
individual foreign currency account holders should not carry-over to the
next calendar year a maximum US$2 500 in allowances.

Regulatory requirements allow individual foreign currency account holders to
annually receive US$2 500 as their holiday travel allowance.

In the past, holiday allowances could accrue for a period of three years,
but with effect from last month this will no longer be applicable.

In 2001, the then Minister of Finance and Economic Development Simba Makoni
slashed holiday allowances from US$5 000 to the current US$2 500 per annum.

According to a circular Reference Number 453, written last month by the
central bank to financial institutions, there have been amendments
pertaining to holiday travel allowances.

"Exchange Control advises that Directive RE 451 dated 13 November 2003, is
replaced by this directive RE 453, with amendments made on holiday travel
allowance," the central bank said.

"Current Exchange Control policy states that an equivalent of up to US$2 500
may be issued a holiday travel allowance to any one individual per calendar
year. This amount may not be accumulated to another calendar year. The
amount issued must be endorsed in the applicant's passport as evidence to
the exchange control of holiday travel allowance availed to any one
individual year."

The RBZ has already instructed banks to retain 50% of foreign currency from
individual FCAs with effect from November.

The arrangement means that when an individual intends to withdraw foreign
currency from a personal account, half of the money must be exchanged using
the official rate of $824 against the greenback.

The bank has to remit the other 50% of the hard currency to the RBZ.

This development comes in the wake of moves by government proposing to
target individual FCA holders although it was never enforced. Finance
minister Herbert Murerwa said he would be tough on all banks. Banks have now
been ordered to account for foreign currency held in all accounts.

"The holder of a foreign currency account may be issued with additional
funds from his/her foreign currency account for the purpose of travel," the
RBZ said.

"In addition, individuals holding cash may exchange same with travellers'
cheques issued by the authorised dealers. Exchange control further advises
that foreign currency drawn from the individual FCA's for travel purposes,
or foreign currency cash exchanged for travellers' cheques must not be
endorsed in the applicant's passport."

As part of managing the foreign currency shortages in Zimbabwe government
has since formed a special taskforce to address the management of foreign
currency which it says is being abused.

The taskforce has directed the RBZ to scrutinise all individual FCA
transactions.

However, like all government taskforces, the latter is still to announce
what it has achieved so far.

      The human rights situation in Zimbabwe today is considerably worse
than it was when Zimbabwe was first suspended from the Commonwealth.

      To have readmitted it in the face of that would have been a travesty.

      This Obasanjo realised when he made a recent visit to Zimbabwe. It was
then that he decided, as the conference host, not to invite Mugabe to Abuja.

      At the conference itself he won over seven of the 18 African
Commonwealth countries to vote against South Africa's attempt to unseat the
organisation's secretary-general, New Zealander Don McKinnon, which was a
test run for the bigger contest to come.

      Obasanjo won over the entire West African bloc - Ghana, Cameroon,
Sierra Leone, Gambia and his own Nigeria - plus Kenya, Botswsana and
Mauritius. No vote was taken on the Zimbabwe issue, which had to be decided
by consensus. In the end South Africa was the only country holding out for
Zimbabwe's admission, finally yielding only after Britain's Tony Blair met
privately with Mbeki and presumably uttered a few warnings about the future
of Nepad.

      Now Obasanjo comes away from Abuja specifically charged with trying to
implement the roadmap to get Zimbabwe back in the Commonwealth. It is a
daunting task given Mugabe's stubbornness, belligerence and oversized ego.

      But Obasanjo is an experienced negotiator. He played an important
early role in South Africa's own transition when he came here as co-chairman
of the Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group in 1986 and, after shuttling
between the exiled ANC in Lusaka, the PW Botha regime in Pretoria and Nelson
Mandela in Pollsmoor Prison, enabled that organisation to establish for the
first time that there was the possibility of a negotiated solution.

      He later played an important role in his own country's recovery from
the military dictatorship of General Sani Abacha, who imprisoned and nearly
killed him. More recently he was the key figure in removing the murderous
Charles Taylor from Liberia. Taylor now lives in exile in Nigeria.

      Most important though, is that Obasanjo will almost certainly follow a
different strategy from Mbeki's. We can expect to see him try to expand the
base of African states which have already rallied behind his tougher
position, beginning with the other 11 Commonwealth members.

      His objective must be to try to confront Mugabe with a united front of
African leaders urging him to leave office for the sake of his stricken
country. If he can make progress in this direction, I believe Mbeki will
fall in line with the general trend - albeit quietly, as he has done on the
HIV/Aids issue. He is unlikely to go out on a limb and campaign for Mugabe
if the African tide begins to turn.

      Obasanjo will have another advantage as well. As chairman of the
Commonwealth he will not be as easily thrust aside as his predecessor,
Australia's John Howard. Mugabe dismissed Howard contemptuously as part of
the "racist white" Commonwealth. He cannot do that to the leader of Africa's
most populous nation, and certainly not if Obasanjo can rally other African
leaders behind him.

      Their case must be simple. It is not just a matter of a few thousand
whites being badly treated, although that in itself is a contemptuous
violation of human rights. But Zimbabwe today is a major African tragedy in
progress with an authoritarian government oppressing its people and an
economy in a state of collapse, causing widespread suffering, with millions
of people starving, millions more fleeing into exile, and hundreds of
thousands dying from the interaction of AIDS and malnutrition.

      The longer Mugabe stays, the more that catastrophic situation will
worsen exponentially. Africa must save one of its own.

UN Integrated Regional Information Networks

December 16, 2003
Posted to the web December 16, 2003

Harare

Zimbabweans trying to leave the country in search of economic opportunities
are having to deal with government officials whom they allege are turning
their plight into profit, IRIN has learnt.

Rising incidents of graft by public officials has coincided with Zimbabwe's
worsening economic conditions, according to the anti-corruption watchdog,
Transparency International (TI). It ranked Zimbabwe as among the world's
most corrupt countries in a report released in October.

The organisation claimed corruption was rampant in both the private and
public sectors, but said the perception among ordinary Zimbabweans was
mostly that public office was being used for personal enrichment. The
authorities dismissed TI's findings, accusing the group of partisanship.

Zimbabwe's economic problems took a sharp turn for the worst when
pro-government militants, led by veterans of the country's liberation war,
began illegally invading white-owned farms in 2000. Investors and donors
turned away from the country in protest at the lawlessness, resulting in the
current acute shortages of foreign currency and fuel, and the skyrocketing
prices of basic commodities.

Almost 70 percent of the labour force is unemployed, and the inflation rate,
now officially at 526 percent, is expected to reach 700 percent by the end
of March 2004.

Exactly how many Zimbabweans have emigrated over the past three years
remains unclear, but the queues remain long outside the passport office in
the capital, Harare. It is not uncommon for people to spend the night
outside on the pavement, to ensure at least getting into the building the
following day.

The delays that characterise the application process have been complicated
by corruption.

Twenty-seven year old Anne Kamba told IRIN she had come to the passport
offices for the past five days, but was finding it difficult to obtain an
application form. "Senior authorities here tell us that application forms
are there in abundance, but, surprisingly, when we ask for them from the
relevant offices, we are told that they have run out," she explained.

"What I have since discovered is that some officials are deliberately
withholding the forms as a way of forcing us to buy them from them or their
middlemen. They have formed syndicates with young men who loiter at the
[entrance] gate and approach us, saying they have the forms. But where do
these people think we will get the money from in these times of hardships?"

According to Kamba the "middlemen" asked for Zim $200,000 (about US $250 at
the official exchange rate of Zim $824 to the US dollar) for a passport
application form, which they shared with passport control officials.

"In some cases, passport seekers do not even have to visit these offices.
Everything - from the application to the collection of passports - is done
for them while they are at home. These are the people who are prepared to
pay large sums of money, which sometimes runs into millions of [Zimbabwean]
dollars," she added.

Kamba, a qualified primary school teacher with three years' experience,
hopes to join her sister in the United Kingdom. She told IRIN that low wages
and poor working conditions had made her decide to seek employment abroad.

Zimbabwe is experiencing a debilitating flight of professional and skilled
people escaping the country's economic meltdown, with the health and
teaching professions most affected by the brain drain. Those unable to leave
have turned to "moonlighting" as a way of supplementing their meagre
incomes, while others have seen opportunity in the crisis and are turning it
to their own advantage.

Constable Stan Mapiye (not his real name), a security guard at the central
passport office, is among a handful of individuals who have benefited - he
manages to net almost Zim $80,000 (US $100) daily.

"I am glad this country is going through an economic crisis, because to me
it is a blessing in disguise," he told IRIN. "I am able to make so much
money because there are thousands of desperate people who come here every
day to look for passports in order to seek greener pastures abroad."

Mapiye, a junior police constable, earns an official gross monthly salary of
Zim $140,000 (US $175). For around Zim $10,000 (US $12), Mapiya is willing
to move a person to the front of the long queue of passport seekers. "These
days, it's your money that talks. There is no need for you to sleep in a
queue in order to get your passport," he said.

A senior passport officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it was
difficult to monitor the activities of subordinates because of pressures of
work.

"Even though we condemn corruption in the strongest terms, there is no
guarantee that employing people to monitor the situation at the gate and in
the corridors will help, as these people might end up collaborating with the
rotten eggs in our midst," she said.

John Makumbe, Transparency International's local representative, attributes
escalating corruption to a "breakdown of the justice delivery system".

He said because of poor remuneration, the police, magistrates and judges
were resorting to bribes in order to make ends meet.

"The whole justice system, right from the Supreme Court to the lowest
courts, is in shambles. There are no monitoring and retributive mechanisms
to ensure that those who would have been found on the wrong side of the law
are punished. The situation is made even more pathetic by the fact that
those who should enforce and interpret the law are also corrupt," Makumbe
alleged.

He called on the government to create an independent anti-corruption
commission to tackle graft in both the public and private sectors.

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

      Copyright © 2003, Dow Jones Newswires

      LONDON (AP)--Political change in Zimbabwe must come from within,
supported by the international community, a Foreign Office minister said
Tuesday.

      The minister, Chris Mullin, told Parliament the U.K. would seek to
extend European Union sanctions against Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe's
regime when they are up for renewal in February.

      "In the end, what is going to bring an end to this regime are the
internal dynamics," he said. "It is not possible to run a country for very
long on 80% unemployment, 700% inflation and when foreigners are having to
help feed half your people."

      "Inevitably this state of affairs is going to come to an end sooner or
later," he said. "What we have to do is make sure that it comes to an end in
a dignified and orderly manner and one that does not inflict even greater
damage on the much put-upon people of Zimbabwe."

      Zimbabwe's often-violent land redistribution program, coupled with
erratic rains, have crippled Zimbabwe's agriculture-based economy. The
country faces rampant inflation and acute shortages of food, gasoline and
other essentials.

      Zimbabwe withdrew from the Commonwealth Dec. 7 after the 54-nation
bloc voted to extend the African nation's 18-month suspension from the
organization's decision-making councils. The suspension followed accusations
Mugabe used intimidation and fraud to win re-election.

      (END) Dow Jones Newswires

      December 16, 2003 09:50 ET (14:50 GMT)

The decline in value of the Zimbabwe dollar has led some property owners to
demand rent payments in U.S. dollars. Zimbabwe authorities have done little
to curb the illegal practice. But as Tendai Maphosa reports from Harare the
government says it is going to take action.
The government says it has an obligation to protect the majority of
Zimbabwean tenants who do not have the capacity to pay their rents in
foreign currency

The state-owned Herald newspaper quotes ruling ZANU-PF member of parliament
David Chapfika as saying landlords and other people quoting prices of goods
and services in foreign currency are heading for a serious clash with the
government.

Mr. Chapfika, who is the chairman of the parliamentary committee on finance,
said the government will not sit by and allow the practice to continue. He
did not specify what action would be taken against those caught demanding
dollars.

A senior police spokesman told the Herald that several homeowners have
already been arrested for illegally demanding dollars for rent payments. He
did not say what penalties they face.

Zimbabwean law allows only safari operators and those in the hotel and
tourism industry to quote fees or prices in foreign currency, and only to
foreigners.

A real estate agent, who spoke on condition he is not named, said property
owners are asking for rent in foreign currency as a hedge against inflation,
which stands at more than 500 percent. The agent says otherwise the
landlords would have to raise rents every months in order to be able to pay
their expenses.

For months, some landlords have openly demanded rentals in U.S. dollars.
Many landlords even advertise in the newspapers asking to be paid in U.S.
dollars.

The majority of Zimbabweans who do not have access to foreign currency have
been squeezed out of some up-market neighborhoods, resulting in an increase
in foreigners taking up residence in those areas.

The practice has not been limited to housing. Cars and electronic goods are
among the many items advertised and sold in U.S. dollars.

In addition, some goods sold for Zimbabwe dollars are priced far above
government limits. Gasoline is one of the main examples, as private
companies, which received permission to import fuel earlier this year, all
charge prices far above the government price.

The private importation of fuel was allowed after the government failed to
ensure uninterrupted supplies.

Ranking members of the ruling ZANU-PF party have set up some of the oil
importing companies, and their prices are among the highest. None of the new
oil importers has been prosecuted.

The Herald (Harare)

December 16, 2003
Posted to the web December 16, 2003

Brian Benza
Harare

INTEREST rates on the money market have soared to high levels of as much as
635 percent for the overnight instruments on the back of persistent
shortages despite an injection of $150 billion into the market by the
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) last week.

Shortages of around $175 billion on a daily basis have continued to push
deposit rates upwards particularly for the short-term instruments such as
the call and overnight deposits which will mature before the announcement of
the new monetary policy by the central bank chief, Dr Gideon Gono.

"Deficits on the money market have reached large figures with mainly
short-term instruments firming by higher margins than the 90-day Negotiable
Certificates of Deposits (NCD) and bankers acceptances on a similar tenure.

"Investors are reluctant to invest at the long end of the market ahead of
the forthcoming monetary policy statement," said a money market dealer in
Harare.

On Thursday last week, 90-day NCD rates were indicated at levels around 150
percent. In the previous week, as a result of the deficits, 90-day NCD rates
were indicated in the 180 to 200 percent range.

Call rates traded at levels around 360 percent and interbank overnight rates
were indicated in the 550 to 635 percent range.

The over $170 billion daily shortages on the market have been caused by the
corporate tax payments, which were due on November 30 coupled with salaries
and bonus payments as well as the absence of Treasury bill (TB) maturities
during the week under review.

Meanwhile, Royal Bank and Standard Chartered Bank have also hiked minimum
lending rates to 230 percent and 208 percent respectively.

In the previous week, Trust Bank had announced new rates of 281,5 percent,
Barclays at 220 percent, First Bank at 250 percent and the Jewel Bank at 215
percent. Despite the negative impact on the productive sector, the high
rates possess some advantages in terms of containing borrowings, which fuel
inflation particularly consumption borrowing.

On the issue of speculative borrowing, experts said the prevailing high
borrowing costs would be prohibitive to those dubious arbitrageurs who
borrow money to finance the parallel market.

However, the pending announcement of a new monetary policy is set to shake
the financial markets in the country as Dr Gono is expected to come up with
a tighter policy to contain wild interest rate regimes.

The Herald (Harare)

December 16, 2003
Posted to the web December 16, 2003

Harare

HUNDREDS of commuters from Budiriro, Glen View and Highfield and those along
Willowvale Road in Harare were yesterday morning left stranded as commuter
omnibus operators withdrew their services in protest against the police
clampdown on those charging fees above those gazetted by the Government.

The commuters could be seen milling at their respective pick up points as
late as 8:30am.

"I have been here since 6am but there is absolutely nothing on the road to
take me to town and what time will I get to work?," said Mr Admire
Muchemeranwa of Glen View.

Police recently launched a blitz against commuter omnibus operators, who are
overcharging.

They were doing this in a bid to make operators stick to gazetted fares.

Those caught flouting the regulations are made to pay a fine of $25 000 for
every passe- nger.

The Government recently gazetted fares for commuter omnibuses which range
from $400 to $1 000 depending on the distance.

As a result of the high fares charged by the minibus drivers, commuters were
now resorting to pick-up trucks as their only available transport.

Police said they increased fines for omnibus operators caught overcharging
from $10 000 to $25 000 for a passenger on board.

According to Statutory Instrument 192 of 2003 police have the powers to
increase the fines.

Since the launch of the operation, police have since issued more than 300
tickets to operators who were caught overcharging.

The Herald (Harare)

December 16, 2003
Posted to the web December 16, 2003

Harare

LIBYA yesterday donated 6 000 tonnes of white maize worth $1,5 billion to
Zimbabwe.

The maize, which translates into 120 000 50kg bags, was handed over to the
Minister of Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement, Cde Joseph Made, by
Libyan ambassador to Zimbabwe Mr Mahmed Azzabi in Harare.

It will be distributed by the Grain Marketing Board through its depot
network countrywide, particularly in the rural areas where food relief is
most needed.

Cde Made said Libya has been trading with Zimbabwe in many areas especially
its assistance on fuel and the food aid, which had been given at the hour of
need.

"The fact that the government of the People's Republic of Libya has taken
all the effort to move the donated maize to Zimbabwe is proof of the
friendship and comradeship which exists between our two countries since the
liberation struggle," said Cde Made.

The minister said he would seek discussions with his Libyan counterpart to
look at Zimbabwe's needs in agricultural production such as farm equipment
and machinery, fertiliser and chemicals, and irrigation and horticulture
infrastructure development.

"In turn Zimbabwe will intensify agriculture exports to Libya particularly
beef, coffee, tea, cotton, sugar, tobacco, soyabeans and horticulture
products," said Cde Made.

Mr Azzabi said his country would always be by Zimbabwe's side as they had
shared strong ties since long back.

He said Libya was grateful for the wisdom and leadership of President Mugabe
who stood by his country when they also needed assistance.

Zimbabwe and other countries in the region that normally produce substantial
quantities of maize have been seriously affected by drought and this has
seen Zimbabwe having to import maize since February 2000.

The Herald (Harare)

December 16, 2003
Posted to the web December 16, 2003

Harare

THE Ministry of Health and Child Welfare has urged communities to adopt
children living in the streets.

Addressing 450 underprivileged children and guests at a Christmas party held
for the less-fortunate children at Gwinyai Primary School in Mbare East
constituency, Minister David Parirenyatwa said: "All communities must adopt
children living in the streets as the Government shall also construct
half-way houses to reduce the number of kids that are living in the
streets".

The minister challenged the children, especially girls, to fight against
abuse by reporting to their immediate guardians when abused by anyone and to
remain virgins till they got married to curb the spread of Aids.

"Girls must remain virgins till the time when they get married and they must
also report to their immediate guardians if ever they are abused. Such
children are being abused starting from the age of two months by friends and
relatives," Dr Parirenyatwa said.

He thanked former Mbare East MP Cde Tony Gara for organising the annual
function for the underprivileged that are regarded as outcasts in society.

Dr Parirenyatwa urged Cde Gara to assist in forming a supplementary feeding
group that would help the underprivileged. "I am glad to know that there are
other men who think about children, Alderman Gara has led by example and we
expect all men to emulate that," Dr Parirenyatwa said.

The party for the underprivileged children has been held annually for the
past seven years.

"I urge community leaders to identify children orphaned by Aids and the
underprivileged so that they come and enjoy annually. I thank Innscor for
their consistent annual sacrifice in sustaining the underprivileged," Cde
Gara said.

Owing to the harsh economic conditions, Christmas has become a dream to
many, with the most affected being the underprivileged children.

The Herald (Harare)

EDITORIAL
December 16, 2003
Posted to the web December 16, 2003

Harare

ALL private doctors have now decided that from next year they will charge
all their patients cash and those patients on medical aid will have to seek
reimbursement of the standard rate from their society.

The doctors have given just one reason, that it can take up to 60 days for
medical aid societies to make payments after claims have been submitted, and
that this wait has now become intolerable in times of high inflation.

They are thus moving their cashflow problems to their patients and
simplifying their administration, which can only be justified if this
results in lower fees, or at least in rises lower than the rate of
inflation.

But there is obviously another reason.

Many doctors have already been exceeding the rates agreed with medical aid
societies.

The co-payments doctors charge have varied considerably between practices
and have been rising rapidly as the actual fees rise faster than the fees
agreed with the societies.

Switching to pure cash will allow doctors to set fees without having any
negotiations with the societies or even recognise that the societies exist.

Some will simply charge what the market will bear. The medical aid societies
say their ability to pay is limited to the contributions their members make.

These are roughly a fixed percentage of salaries and, unlike doctors, many
people are unable to proof their income against inflation. The changes are
very sad.

Up until a year or two ago, almost all doctors had a system whereby patients
saw them and paid nothing directly.

The accounts and claim forms were sent monthly to the medical aid societies
and in due course the doctor was paid in full.

Indeed, there was a rule that doctors could not charge more than the agreed
rate, otherwise they would be paid nothing.

The first change was the introduction of co-payments.

This had the disadvantage that a patient had to have some money in cash to
see a doctor, but the bulk of the payment would come, as before, from the
medical aid society. But there were several advantages.

The first was to those insured by medical aid societies.

People now had to think, just a little, before seeing the doctor.

Abuse of the system declined noticeably as fewer people saw a doctor just to
get a day off work or for some trivial ailment.

This kept medical aid subscriptions within reasonable bounds.

The co-payment system also relieved doctors of some of the worst effects of
poor cashflows. In general, co-payments had more positive effects than
negative effects although more sophistication in the medical aid system was
still required.

Medical aid was founded as a form of insurance.

It developed into a sort of national health scheme for those in formal
employment.

In most insurance schemes, the insured bears the first part of each claim
and limits are exceptionally high, with no-claim bonuses for those who claim
very rarely.

Medical aid societies did it the other way round.

They paid all claims in full, up to set limits, which in some cases were
very low. Thus, patients received routine medical care for the price of
their monthly payments but had to beg for help and find cash for more
serious ailments.

The co-payment system could have been adapted, and even the proposed
cash-only system should be adapted, to turn medical aid into a proper
insurance scheme, allowing co-payments or even cash for occasional modest
care but retaining the claim system for very expensive care.

We hope that the societies, doctors and hospitals will be willing to think
about and debate such a switch.

If they do so successfully the change to cash at the general practice level
can be tolerated.

If they cannot make their system more suitable for modern times, then
patients will suffer even more than they do now.

The Herald (Harare)

December 16, 2003
Posted to the web December 16, 2003

Harare

MORE than 200 bodies lie unclaimed at Harare Central Hospital mortuary,
which is almost double the mortuary's carrying capacity.

A mortuary attendant at Harare Central Hospital said 243 bodies are
unclaimed as their relatives were not aware of their whereabouts.

He could not say for how long the bodies have been lying unclaimed, but
sources said some could have been there for several months.

The attendant said the Harare Central Hospital mortuary has a capacity to
carry 150 bodies.

The attendant added that the large number of bodies that have been left
unclaimed were of those cases brought to the hospital's attention by the
police.

"The deaths and the increased number of bodies in the mortuary are mostly
those brought by the police and not a result of the strike by doctors and
nurses as the hospital is only admitting few patients due to the shortage of
health staff," said the mortuary attendant.

Only senior doctors, health staff from the uniformed forces and student
nurses are attending to patients at Harare Central Hospital owing to the
ongoing strike by junior and middle-level doctors.

Harare Central Hospital is said to have closed its surgery and gynaecology
departments and is referring all cases to Parirenyatwa Hospital.

Junior and middle-level doctors went on strike in October pressing for a
monthly salary of $30 million.

Nurses went on strike last month also demanding a review of their salaries
from the present $167 000 a month.

There was not much activity at Parirenyatwa Hospital yesterday as the
available staff was only attending to emergency cases.

No comment could be obtained from Parirenyatwa Hospital officials on the
number of unclaimed bodies.

New Vision (Kampala)

December 16, 2003
Posted to the web December 16, 2003

Alice Emasu
Kampala

FLORENCE Nyayuk, 42 and Solomon Oboth, 66 tell their love story with
confidence and excitement. Oboth went to jail two years ago for Nyayuk, then
his new catch.

Oboth, a widower with 15 children opted to wed Nyayuk, who was formerly
married and divorced. But when their first wedding announcements were made
in Church, Nyayuk's former husband had Oboth arrested and jailed.

Nyayuk was customarily married. Oboth spent three nights in jail and was
released on condition that he refunded a cow and two goats, which the
claimant had paid to Nyayuk's parents as bride price. Oboth and Nyayuk's
wedding was instantly stopped pending refund of the bride price.

"My arrest took me by surprise. Neither Nyayuk nor her parents had told me
she had been married and that the bride price was not refunded after
divorce," says Oboth, a peasant.

"I felt so devastated, especially after the law enforcement authorities
threatened to re-arrest me on failure to raise the bride price on the agreed
date," he adds.

He says he loved Nyayuk but had started thinking of dropping her for fear of
being re-arrested.

Nyayuk says she felt like committing suicide due to frustration from her
marriage. "I was so disappointed with my former husband. I felt like it
would be better if I died."

Nyayuk divorced after six years of suffering domestic violence. Her former
husband, she says used to batter her to the extent that if she ran to her
parents for help, he would beat up all of them.

She says although her parents accepted her back, they encouraged her to find
another husband to refund the previous bride price since they were unable to
do so.

Today however, there is cause to smile for the couple. When Mifumi, a
Tororo- based Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) in eastern Uganda heard
about Oboth's case, they intervened through lobbying and sensitising the
local communities and law enforcers against the commercialisation and refund
of bride price. Oboth was then set free.

Mifumi's domestic violence health counsellor in Kirewa sub-county Mary Asili
says the couple is free to proceed with their wedding arrangements.

Asili says Oboth and Nyayuk are some of the few villagers who have benefited
from the Mifumi 2001 referendum campaigns launched in the district.

She says although there is still resistance from most communities, Mifumi is
working with bride price stakeholders at all levels to ensure that bride
price is not used to exploit poor people, particularly the women.

With financial support mainly from the Comic Relief and the German Technical
Corporation, Mifumi has taken the bride price campaign up to international
levels.

The organisation has won a five-year contract to campaign against the
commercialisation and refund of bride price or dowry in Africa, following
its bride price campaigns.

Mifumi will operate in nine African countries which include, Kenya,
Ethiopia, Ghana, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Malawi, South Africa and Zambia. The
countries will sustain the campaign across the continent.

They will develop strategies for lobbying international Human rights
institutions including the African Charter on human rights, African Court of
Justice and the International Court of Justice.

Currently, Mifumi is organising a three-day international conference on
bride price for 150 participants from Africa, to be held in Kampala in
February 2004. Some participants will come from the United Kingdom, Europe
and America.

Atuki Turner, the Director of Mifumi, says the conference will be the first
meeting for the participants to lay strategies on how to effect reform on
bride price.

"The conference will also examine issues like poverty, wife inheritance,
women's health and early marriages," she says adding that many girls are
'pulled' out of school by their parents or guardians to fetch bride price.

Atuki asserts that some parents in Tororo, encourage their daughters to quit
marriages they went into without bride price and marry them off to partners
with the required amount.

She also sighted cases where husbands and in- laws grab property belonging
to the bride's parents, relatives or new husband.

Atuki says her organisation faces many challenges as many men continue to be
jailed for failing to refund bride price. Mifumi records 300 incidents of
domestic violence related to bride price annually.

Mifumi's study on the evolution of bride price states that although
originally the giving and receiving of bride price as a token for bringing
up the girl was acceptable, many communities especially, in eastern Uganda
make it a contract that binds partners in marriage.

It stresses that many women are forced to stick to abusive marriages because
they cannot refund the bride price. Women who resist abusive marriages and
return to their parents, risk having either their parents or their new
lovers imprisoned.

It blames commercialisation of bride price to the weak and outdated laws
governing the marriage institution. It points out that Uganda, like other
African countries, has a dual system of law (customary and formal) but the
formal one pre-empts customary law. It further says that the principles of
the formal law inherited from colonial powers, are unknown to the majority
of women whose rights are defined by local customs.

"The central feature of both laws is the subordinate status of women
underscored by the tradition of bride price," quotes the study. It alleges
that bride price, "allows a man to treat a woman as he pleases, which is why
although domestic violence is widespread, it has traditionally been
perceived as a private problem beyond the scope of the state
responsibility."

In most parts of Uganda where bride price has been commercialised, the groom
should be compensated in kind or in cash equivalent of what he paid in the
event that he seeks to end the marriage.

By newzimbabwe.com staff
16/12/03
WHILE Ethiopia's fugitive former leader Mengistu Haile Mariam wakes up to
the comfort afforded by his despotic friend Robert Mugabe in his exile
hide-out downtown Harare, hundreds of miles away in the Ethiopian capital
Adis Ababa, a court has begun hearing harrowing tales of human rights abuses
under his rule.

The court trying Mengistu in absentia began on Tuesday hearing defence
witnesses called by other top soldiers accused alongside him of genocide and
human rights violations.

Suspects could face the death penalty if convicted at the trial which began
in December 1994, part of a series of hearings that are among the largest of
their kind since Nazi leaders were tried after World War Two.

Tuesday's hearing was the latest stage in a process that has lasted almost a
decade. Some 37 former top soldiers accused of genocide during Mengistu's
17-year rule are on trial together with their former commander who fled to
Zimbabwe when he was toppled in 1991.

Presiding Judge Medhim Kiros ruled the court in Addis Ababa would hear
witnesses for seven of the accused while a schedule is worked out for how
the rest will present their witnesses.

The trial was adjourned last month after the accused argued that they had
run out of money. They also complained that many of their witnesses were
dead or had fled the country.

On Tuesday, one of the accused said he would not be able to assemble a
defence.

"It is almost 30 years since the alleged crimes were committed," Colonel
Abate Mersha said, standing straight and sombre in the court. "I hereby
inform the court that I have waived my right to call witnesses in my
defence."

Mengistu, who is being tried in absentia, emerged as the most powerful of a
group of Marxist military officers who ousted Emperor Haile Selassie in
1974.

He was in turn ousted when the Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic
Front seized Addis Ababa in 1991.

Human rights groups have expressed alarm at the amount of time the trial is
taking. The prosecution says the complex nature of the evidence has
increased the trial period.

Since 1994, more than 5,000 people have been tried or await trial in
Ethiopia on charges of murdering thousands of people during Mengistu's
iron-fisted rule and "Red Terror" purges.

Sending help home A Zimbabwean in Vancouver works to save her family

A Zimbabwean expatriate in Vancouver seeks to save her relatives by raising
money to buy them chickens to farm

12/16/03

DEE ANNE FINKEN

VANCOUVER -- Dorothy Wright remembers a respectful, charitable society when
she grew up in Zimbabwe, where a youngster answered an elder with a polite
"Yes, sir," and a father guarded his daughter's well-being.

She remembers a beautiful homeland, where youngsters like her attended
school dressed in neat, clean uniforms, and tourists visited from far and
wide to see the spectacular Victoria Falls and to go on safari.

But that has all changed since AIDS, crime and political corruption have
spread misery and killed millions of people in this south African country,
prompting people to turn to desperate measures to get money for food,
including offering their daughters for sale for sex.

Now a resident of Vancouver, Wright, 44, is attempting to help her family
become self-sufficient in this faraway world where about one out of every
three adults is HIV-positive, food is scarce, jobs are few, and inflation,
according to news reports, tops 500 percent.

Wright has formed the nonprofit Distant Cry Fund to raise money for her
family to buy 1,000 chickens to set up a business they hope will sustain
them as the economy continues its nosedive. Her family's plight in Africa
has prompted coworkers in Vancouver city government and local schoolchildren
to join her effort.

The project is the only hope Wright has for her family: her 69-year-old
mother; her 70-year-old father; two sisters, ages 47 and 38; a brother, 43;
a nephew, 10; and three nieces, 19, 14 and 7. The family also cares for the
daughter of another brother who died of AIDS complications four years ago.
Wright's younger sister, Jane, is HIV-positive.

While Wright notes that conditions are desperate throughout the nation, her
family's situation is not as bad as that of others. Her sister's health
fluctuates, but the nine family members still live together in the small
home where Wright grew up, just outside Harare, the capital.

But until they can get a business running, members of her family will have
to continue to depend on Wright, a receptionist for the city of Vancouver,
for their livelihood. The situation is worsening.

Each month, Wright sends whatever money she can -- usually more than half
her take-home pay -- to her family, the only income they have.

"Now it is really bad," Wright said. "Whenever I hear the phone ring, I'm
praying that it's not that someone is sick."

In Zimbabwe, soaring prices on everything from food to fuel to school
tuition are adding to the burden of having to provide for 10 people.
Unemployment in the high-plateau country hovers near 70 percent, and latest
estimates from United Nations relief organizations report more than 6
million people in Zimbabwe need food aid.

Maria Kosmetatos, an HIV nurse-practitioner in Portland and volunteer with
Africa AIDS Response, a Portland Sister City program, said medical care in
Zimbabwe is almost nonexistent. Health care providers have left because
there is no money or medicine. Good nutrition, such as a family might be
able to get from a chicken ranch and its proceeds, are important in fighting
disease, Kosmetatos said.

Wright said she hates to ask for a handout -- even to keep her family alive.
A singer, she recorded a CD of African poems and songs. She has sold 60
copies, raising $700.

In the holiday spirit, Vancouver friends are helping, too. Employees and
volunteers with the city's Community Mediation Services have adopted
Wright's family for the holidays, said department coordinator Debbie Nelson.

One of the volunteer mediators is a McLoughlin Middle School teacher who
encourages her students to participate.

"We're calling our project '1,000 chickens,' " said Marcia McReynolds, whose
students are getting an education about life in Africa in exchange for
helping Wright's family. McReynolds said her students have begun doing odd
jobs, such as mowing lawns, to raise money for the chicken business. Their
big fund-raising efforts will begin after the first of the year, once
holiday activities slow.

"They know about how poor people are in Zimbabwe and how kids there can't go
to school because they have to pay tuition and there is no money for
tuition," said McReynolds, who met Wright when she replied to Wright's
newspaper advertisement offering African fabric for sale.

"Dorothy is one of my best friends," said McReynolds, who like Wright is a
singer. "We were born on different continents and upside down from one
another -- she in the southern hemisphere and I in the northern
hemisphere -- and she is black and I am white, but we're like sisters.

"We sing well together, and we're in the same groove. We laugh . . . and we
fight like sisters. And we watch each others' backs."

Wright left Zimbabwe permanently four years ago after falling in love with a
visiting American who asked her to marry him and come to the United States.
Wright is separated from her husband but remains here on a visa, and she
will be able to apply for citizenship in 2004.

Wright has priced 1,000 baby chicks -- as well as supplies and materials,
including wood, roofing, fencing, feed and mash -- at $5,000. Inflation has
pushed the price up from the $2,000 estimate she first obtained three months
ago for the Distant Cry Fund.

But Wright is determined to get the chicken business going as she worries
about what will happen to her family if she gets sick or isn't able to work.

"If something happened to me or if I don't have a job," she said, "they're
all dead."