Daily News
Residents petition against evictions
12/2/2002 (GMT +2)
From Ntungamili Nkomo
Kamativi
residents have resolved to petition the High Court to stop
the Hwange Rural
District Council (HRDC) from evicting them from the
compound of the abandoned
mine to make way for members of the Zanu PF youth
brigade.
The
residents are represented by F J Mazhame-Magazi, a legal
practitioner.
Mazhame-Magazi confirmed that the residents were petitioning
the court and
challenging the legality of the HRDC eviction order. She
refused to give more
details saying that might prejudice the matter before
it has gone to court.
But she said the evictions were illegal, and that the
notice period the
residents had been given was too short for them
to
relocate.
"I cannot say much about that, but it is
true I am representing the
residents.
"But I won't say any more
than this because I am afraid that might
prejudice the whole process," she
said. The residents were given until
Saturday to vacate the premises, but
were not given an alternative
relocation site. When the eviction orders were
issued last month, only
suspected MDC supporters were told to vacate the
centre, but the order took
a new twist last week with everyone being told to
leave.
Zanu PF is establishing a training base for its youth
brigade,
derisively known as the "green bombers", at the compound. It is,
however,
not clear what type of training the youth will be undergoing.
Nkosilathi
Tshuma, the area's MDC provincial secretary, said the residents
would not
leave until the issue was resolved in the courts. Tshuma said: "We
are
taking the issue to court because we are really worried about the
evictions.
We won't allow the ruling party to treat people in such a manner.
"Zanu PF
is not considering the harm it is inflicting on the people."
Daily News
UN official warns of refugee influx
12/2/2002 11:23:48 AM (GMT +2)
From Our
Correspondent
ZIMBABWE could soon be home to thousands of Rwandan
nationals who are
set to be expelled from Tanzania, a United Nations official
warned last
week.
The Rwandans, predominantly from the Hutu
ethnic group, have been
staying in Tanzania as refugees since
1994.
The Tanzanian government will, within the next three weeks,
begin to
forcibly repatriate thousands of Hutu refugees to Rwanda in what is
feared
could lead to an exodus of the refugees to either Zimbabwe or South
Africa.
"We are preparing a big budget for that," said an official
from the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' (UNHCR) office in
Harare.
The official said the UNHCR office was on high alert for a
possible
influx of thousands of Rwandan refugees who will be expelled from
the East
African country.
Reports emanating from Tanzania say
the government of President
Benjamin Mkapa has resolved to forcibly remove
all Rwandan refugees from
their soil on the grounds that peace has now
returned to the tiny Central
African country.
There are more
than 30 000 Rwandan refugees in Tanzania. Most of them
are staying at Ngara
Camp, which is near the borders of Burundi and Rwanda.
Officials
from the UNHCR in Harare last week said there were strong
indications the
Rwandans would trek down to Zimbabwe because of alleged
retribution by the
Tutsi-led government.
Zimbabwe is seen as a safe haven for asylum
seekers from Rwanda,
Burundi and the Democratic Republic of
Congo.
The Rwandan government is said to have launched a massive
witch-hunt
for individuals suspected to have participated in the 1994
genocide which
left about one million Tutsis and moderate Hutus
dead.
"The Rwandan government is demanding that the refugees be
brought
back," said a diplomat based in Harare.
"Instead of
going back, they will go to South Africa or Zimbabwe where
conditions are
better.
"In Zambia and other countries conditions are bad. Besides,
Zambia is
too close to Rwanda."
A Tanzanian diplomat based in
Harare said: "The Rwandan refugees
should go back to their country. We have
been feeding them for a long time
now. They must go back and solve their
problems."
The anticipated influx of thousands of the refugees will
impact
heavily on the country's national budget.
The government
is struggling to cope with the needs of 10 000 refugees
staying in
Zimbabwe.
Isaac Mukaro, the commissioner for refugees, declined to
comment on
the matter.
John Adu, the head of the UNHCR office in
Zimbabwe, said he needed to
research more on the matter before making a
comment.
29 November 2002
Dear Business Report Viewer
The Weekly Newsletter
Foul weather ahead?
According to sources, a number of US analysts and investors view South
Africa’s economic and political developments over the past months as a
forewarning of disaster.
Among those is the outspoken Robert Chapman, a retired stockbroker and
editor of The International Forecaster.
In a commentary published in early November on Kitco.com's precious metals
information website, Chapman stated that he felt South Africa's charter on black
empowerment in mining was mere theft.
"Now that it's agreed and has become law the ANC government is taking 26
percent ownership in South African mines.
"That theft having been completed, South Africa's minerals minister
Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka [went] to London to perform a dog and pony show to
convince the Royal Family that the theft was justified and thereby restore
international investor confidence," he said.
Chapman said he found the acceptance of the charter by local mining
companies distasteful.
"When the 26 percent, 10-year offer was made, we puked as white-owned
mining companies rushed to give their blessing saying the theft was achievable.
Not one of these lily-livered jerks said a thing in opposition to the
nationalization.
"The 10 billion dollars needed to pay for the forced takeover will simply
be [provided] by the World Bank. After this episode you'd have to be a total
moron to keep your funds in South African gold shares," Chapman said.
Strongly worded statements such as these once prompted cowboys to reach for
their weapons and drawl: "Them’s fighting words."
Chapman's comments drew a response from Dr Clive Roffey, a leading South
African independent market analyst and strategist.
"Although he [Chapman] may have lived in South Africa and thus lay a
tenuous claim to knowing the country, that was 30 years ago and his vitriolic
ultra-rightwing views may have been the norm at that time but in today’s climate
are so far from reality that it is embarrassing," Roffey said.
Roffey said Chapman's comments gave the impression that there would be an
'immediate takeover' of South African mining interests.
"What Chapman fails to [reveal] is that the transfer of the 26 percent has
to be paid for at full asset value, if this is his emotional 'theft' then he
needs to reread his thesaurus."
"The truth of the matter is that black business groups for some time have
had a significant shareholding in most of the large mining houses. Thus the
effect of the mining charter is merely to rubber stamp a social movement that
has been in place for several years," Roffey said.
Another bone of contention
Chapman has been rather unfazed by Roffey’s commentary. That is to be
expected from someone that holds such strongly rooted views about investment
prospects in South Africa, I suppose.
In fact, Chapman went on to respond to Roffey's rebuttal of his analytical
work.
"There is nothing misleading about our comments regarding investment in
South Africa and our claims of knowing the country are not tenuous," Chapman
said.
"Our views are not vitriolic, they are measured and well researched. We are
assisted in that endeavour by our many South African subscribers with whom we
are in touch with on a daily basis by phone and through the wonder of E-mail,"
Chapman added.
Chapman said his bleak view of events in South Africa stemmed from a lack
of faith in the government and the abilities of black people now being empowered
to run companies.
"It is fortunate for the black Africans to take interests in companies but
it is unfortunate for shareholders as at this point in their development as a
people they can add little to running large companies," Chapman said
"They [black people] presently can't effectively run their own government.
Our opinion is black empowerment will eventually bring chaos...owners and
investors have to come to grips with the fact that eventually everything will be
black owned.
"It could happen in a year or 15 years. You don't want to be invested there
when it does happen," Chapman said.
The crunch
Chapman's comments are undoubtedly partially motivated by his strong lean
to the right of the political fence. What I find troubling is that a similar
bleak outlook on South Africa’s economic future is growing in some international
circles, and local business and government seem to have done very little to
appease foreigner investor's fears.
It points to either a lack of concern for foreign investment or misguided
attempts to address concerns and misinformation of foreign investors on the part
of these parties.
Philip Devine
Channel Editor
Business Report Online
BOTSWANA-ZIMBABWE: Government denies tensions with Botswana
JOHANNESBURG,
2 December (IRIN) - Zimbabwe on Monday said a decision to recall its high
commissioner to Botswana was part of a broader government reshuffle and had
nothing to do with President Festus Mogae's recent criticism of the country's
political and economic policies.
"A number of ambassadors have been
affected by the changes and reports suggesting that the commissioner in Gaborone
was recalled because of some kind of worsening relationship between Zimbabwe and
Botswana is simply not true," political counsellor at Zimbabwe's High Commission
in Botswana, Tamuka Muranga told IRIN.
But one analyst said Mogae's
comments would have certainly angered Zimbabwean authorities and the removal of
High Commissioner, Zenso Nsimbi, from Gaborone was evidence of that.
Last
month Mogae told the London-based African Business magazine that Zimbabwe's
deepening political crisis was due to a "drought of good
governance".
"Mogae is the only African president who has publicly raised
concern over the political upheavals in Zimbabwe. By recalling the high
commissioner from Botswana, President Robert Mugabe certainly wants to send a
clear message to Gaborone that Harare will not tolerate criticism," a senior
researcher at the Institute of Security Studies Chris Maroleng
said.
Meanwhile, the Botswana Guardian reported that Nsimbi had been
recalled following his inaction regarding complaints that Zimbabweans fleeing
economic hardships in their country were being ill treated by Botswana
authorities.
Responding to the accusations, Mogae was quoted as saying:
"This is a humanitarian crisis. We are trying to handle it as humanely as
possible. But within the limits of our capacity, of our resources. We have no
choice."
Maroleng said Nsimbi's replacement would certainly be a "ZANU-PF
hardliner, somebody who could be tougher when it comes to defending the
government's human rights record abroad".
"It is unlikely that there
would be total breakdown in diplomatic relations between Zimbabwe and Botswana
as there are diplomatic channels through which these tensions can be discussed.
But what Mogae's comments makes clear is that not all African leaders support
what is going on in Zimbabwe," Maroleng said.
ZIMBABWE: Steps taken to protect women refugees against
abuse
JOHANNESBURG, 2 December (IRIN) - Steps have been taken at
Zimbabwe's Tongogara refugee camp to stamp out allegations of sexual abuse
following two incidents at the camp earlier this year, David Mlambo, UN High
Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) administrator at the camp told IRIN on
Monday.
The camp, in Chipinge, near the border with Mozambique, provides
assistance to around 800 refugees, about half of whom are women.
In June
allegations of sexual abuse by humanitarian workers saw two employees of the
International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) dismissed.
They had
allegedly requested sexual favours in return for items like sanitary towels and
blankets sent to the camp for distribution.
"We have brought in a female
social worker and are trying to employ female officers instead of men," said
Mlambo. "We want the women to be dealt with by women."
He added: "We have
also asked for extra police involvement and they are on site. Everything is
under control now," he said.
Liberian refugee Mary Browne told IRIN:
"These days things are much better. The social worker deals with women's
problems and they are opening up more to her than to a man."
The Zimbabwe
incidents came after similar incidents in West Africa after which the UNHCR
introduced a wide range of measures and operational guidelines to protect
refugees against sexual abuse and inform them of their rights.
ZIMBABWE: Two die in cholera outbreak near Beit Bridge
JOHANNESBURG, 2
December (IRIN) - Two people have died of cholera in an outbreak in Tongwe, near
Zimbabwe's Beit Bridge, forcing authorities to close the local school to contain
the spread of the disease.
In addition, 24 people in the area have tested
positive for the illness since 1 December, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF)
spokeswoman Muriel Mafico told IRIN on Monday.
The Minister of Health had
seconded additional staff to the district to help, and UNICEF would send urgent
help where required, Mafico said.
It was not yet known what had caused
the outbreak.
The Daily News reported that the Health Ministry had set up
control teams at Tongwe School and in major business centres, and were
disinfecting boreholes in the area.
The Tongwe outbreak comes after a
similar outbreak in nearby Masvingo province in August, which Mafico said had
now stabilised.
A number of oganisations, including the Red Cross have
been supporting the government's efforts and funding was currently being
finalised to provide a cholera specialist for the government.
The World
Food Programme warned, however, that Masvingo was one of a number of provinces
experiencing severe food shortages.
Inadequate nutrition and poor water
sources are known to fuel the disease which can also leave families too weak to
tend to important food crops.
GLOBAL: Donor support for education fast-track
ABIDJAN, 2 December (IRIN)
- International donors have agreed to support a fast-track education programme
in seven developing countries including Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mauritania and
Niger, the World Bank reported. The other countries are Guyana, Honduras and
Nicaragua.
Donor representatives, who met in Brussels on Wednesday,
agreed to work with the seven countries to close a funding gap, currently
estimated at approximately US $400 million over the next three years
2003-2005.
"This agreement under the Education For All Fast Track
Initiative (EFA - FTI) will begin the process of ensuring that developing
countries reach the UN millennium development goal to provide every girl and boy
with a complete primary school education by 2015," the bank added.
According to the bank, the programme would educate 4 million girls and
boys who are currently out of primary school, support those who could otherwise
drop-out, finance teacher training, pay teachers' salaries, build new schools,
help education systems respond to HIV/AIDS and ensure quality primary education
for all children.
"The seven countries are the first to benefit from the
EFA - FTI, launched in June [when] donors invited 18 developing countries that
had completed full poverty reduction strategy papers and had on-going education
sector programmes to participate in the FTI," the bank said.
"India,
Pakistan, Bangladesh, DR Congo, and Nigeria - significant for their large
numbers of out-of-school children, especially girls, were invited to carry out
additional policy work so they can join the FTI in the future. These 5 countries
account for 50 million of the estimated worldwide total of 113 million children
out of school."
The FTI initiative offers donor financing for countries
willing to prioritise primary education for all children and embrace policies
that improve the quality and efficiency of their primary education
systems.
Alongside the seven countries, the other 11 countries invited to
join the FTI are: Albania, Bolivia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mozambique, Tanzania, The
Gambia, Uganda, Vietnam, Yemen, and Zambia - which are considered to be on the
right track and to enjoy donor support, the bank added.