Tsvangirai calls on global Zimbabwe community to help rebuild their country

http://www.sokwanele.com/thisiszimbabwe/archives/5322

Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, at a press conference in Cape
Town today (Thursday, December 3), said that he, together with number of
senior representatives from parties that constitute the country's Inclusive
Government, is visiting South Africa to hold a series of meetings with
leading figures from the Zimbabwean Diaspora to discuss ways to fast-track
sustainable economic growth in that country.

Tsvangirai, leading a government delegation, is meeting with prominent
figures in Zimbabwe's Diaspora coming from 14 countries. The meeting
entitled, "The challenges of Economic Reconstruction" began in Franschhoek
earlier today.

The meeting is aimed at facilitating dialogue between the Inclusive
Government and Zimbabweans in the Diaspora.

The meeting is hosted by the Institute of Justice and Reconciliation (IJR),
a South African non-governmental organization that promotes transitional
justice initiatives across the African continent.

Tsvangirai noted that he "recognizes and values Zimbabweans in the Diaspora
and the critical role they can and should play in bolstering sustainable
economic growth in Zimbabwe." The Prime Minister stated that he "wanted to
achieve a closer working relationship with all Zimbabweans in the Diaspora,
many of whom are nfluential Zimbabweans working in leading international
intergovernmental-, business-, and finance institutions."

Dr. Fanie du Toit, executive director of the IJR said that these sessions
were a means to facilitate dialogue amongst Zimbabweans and create
conditions for sustainable economic growth, which is a deliverable of the
Inclusive Government under the GPA.

"The IJR is regularly requested to facilitate these kinds of conversations
across political and social fault-lines. As South Africans, we experienced
the value of conversations such as these which paved the way for our
democracy.

"We have facilitated this engagement at the request of Zimbabweans both
within the country and those outside. The GPA, despite its difficulties,
continues to provide us with a window of opportunity to get certain basic
building blocks of a democratic transition in place. Economic success, for
one, will be vital, not only for democracy, but also for social cohesion."
Du Toit added.

Press Release issued on behalf of the Institute for Justice and
Reconciliation by HWB Communications ( Pty) Ltd.

This entry was posted by Sokwanele on Thursday, December 3rd, 2009 at 8:04
pm

Zimbabwe politics casts shadow over economic recovery

http://af.reuters.com/

Thu Dec 3, 2009 6:02pm GMT

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* Forecast for 4.7 percent growth in 2009 may be optimistic

* Fragile unity govt unsettles investors

* Key Western donors stay away, want reforms

By Nelson Banya

HARARE, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's economy has started expanding again
after a decade of contraction, but uncertainty on the political front
remains a deterrent to crucial foreign donor aid and could dampen long-term
growth prospects.

A unity government formed by bitter rivals President Robert Mugabe and Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai in February to end a protracted political crisis
remains fragile, with tensions simmering over how to share executive power.

Finance Minister Tendai Biti said on Wednesday the coalition government had
nonetheless presided over Zimbabwe's first growth in a decade, with
expansion of 4.7 percent seen this year after the economy shrank by 50
percent between 2000-2008.

In his 2010 national budget speech, Biti projected 7 percent economic growth
for next year. [ID:nGEE5B11GP]

Analysts say the growth forecasts may be overly optimistic, with much
depending on the country's wobbly power-sharing government holding and
pushing through key reforms necessary to attract Western financial support.

"Growth depends on what happens on the political front. The whole budget is
predicated on an improvement on the political situation," said Prosper
Chitambara, an analyst at the Labour and Economic Research Institute of
Zimbabwe. "Nobody really knows what will happen there."

The unity government has managed to stabilise an economy once in free-fall,
replacing a worthless Zimbabwe dollar with multiple foreign currencies to
dramatically bring down inflation from 231 million percent in July last
year.

Biti said annual inflation was seen at -5.5 percent by the end of 2009,
before accelerating to 5.1 percent in 2010.

But the fragile coalition could undermine the progress, with Mugabe and
Tsvangirai feuding over senior appointments, including that of central bank
governor and attorney-general and also bickering over who is to blame for
Western sanctions and the slow pace of media and political reforms.

ECONOMY SENSITIVE TO POLITICS

The economy's sensitivity to political upheaval was most recently
illustrated by the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange's main index, which fell 13
percent in October after Tsvangirai and his MDC party boycotted cabinet,
accusing Mugabe of failing to honour the power-sharing pact.

"For the current stability to be consolidated, all outstanding disputes
destabilising the government of national unity need to be resolved, that is
the main assumption on which an economic turnaround is premised," John
Makumbe, a political commentator and Mugabe critic said.

"Failure to do that makes all prospects bleak and we can forget about
attracting investment and foreign aid, which is badly needed."

Tsvangirai said on Thursday talks between the two sides on implementing the
conditions of the unity government had made progress. [ID:nGEE5B22HZ]

Western donors, expected to provide the bulk of what Zimbabwe needs to
reconstruct its economy, are reluctant to release aid initially suspended
over policy differences with Mugabe, and insist Harare first implements
broad political reforms.

"The minister (Biti) said this was to be a reconstruction budget, but he has
very limited fiscal space. As a result, there is inadequate spending on
infrastructural projects that are key to recovery," Chitambara said.

"I foresee job action (strikes), given the limited resources for public
service wages, which will not be adjusted in line with next year's projected
year-end inflation of 5.1 percent."

Government, which is the largest employer in an economy where unemployment
is above 80 percent, currently pays its workers an average $150 per month
and has had to fend off strikes by teachers and doctors this year.

In 2005 an estimated 83 percent of the population lived on below $2 a day,
and the situation worsened in the next three years, data shows.

Biti classified 85 percent of Zimbabwe's population as the "submerged and
drowning poor".

Budget shows US$28 million gobbled up in foreign trips

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Lance Guma
03 December 2009

Foreign trips by Robert Mugabe and other government officials gobbled up
US$28 million from state coffers, Finance Minister Tendai Biti revealed in
Parliament during his budget presentation. Biti said this 'disproportionate
share of foreign travel' was a detriment to overall service delivery.

Biti has now ordered a review in the way foreign trips are funded, adding
that "with effect from January 2010, business travel for individual
ministries will have to be managed within the voted amount and the monthly
allocations availed for this purpose." At present the country's Treasury
manages the resources for foreign trips.

The chief culprit of these trips is obviously Mugabe, although Biti did not
single him out. In November for example the ZANU PF leader traveled to Italy
for a United Nations World Summit on Food Security and was accompanied by a
delegation of at least 60 officials. Experts say the total spent on such
trips is enough to pay the entire civil service wage bill for one month.

Economic analyst Lance Mambondiani told Newsreel the foreign trip bill
reflected the fact that Zimbabwe had a bloated government which was created
by the power-sharing arrangement. Some of the officials on these foreign
trips would probably argue that they were traveling to look for money to
help finance the country's economic recovery.

Meanwhile Biti on Wednesday cut the rate of corporate tax to 25 percent from
30 percent. He justified the reduction by saying corporate tax had brought
in only 4 percent of the total revenue and that the cut would encourage
companies to comply and therefore raise collection levels to 10 percent of
revenue. Mambondiani however doubted this would work, arguing the problem
was because most industries were operating at no more than 10 percent
capacity and could not afford to pay this tax.

There was some relief for struggling Zimbabweans when Biti lowered the rate
of personal tax to 35 percent from 37,5 percent and non taxable income was
raised to US$160 per month, from the previous US$150. The Minister also
extended the suspension of duty on imported food items by another 6 months.
Duty on small imported cars was reduced from 40 percent to 25 percent.

Biti criticized the mining sector for contributing only 4 percent of the
Gross Domestic Product. Of that 4 percent, gold accounted for half. His
statement would indicate that only senior army figures and politicians in
ZANU PF are benefiting from the diamonds, mined in such controversial
situations as at Marange, and also from the various gold mines, as the
revenue should be much more than this.

Biti went on to say the country's economy would grow by 7 percent in the
year ahead, on the back of improved performance in the mining,
manufacturing, tourism and agriculture sectors. Commercial Farmers Union
Vice President Charles Taffs however told Newsreel the 'marginal'
improvement in the agriculture sector was down to multinational tobacco
companies funding the industry, rather than any government initiatives. He
said only a return to the rule of law would bring stability in the sector
and help the country meet its harvest targets.

Meanwhile Harare residents are up in arms with the city council over its
proposed 2010 budget. The Combined Harare Residents Association said the
budget had been drawn up without consulting residents and that the city
council was taking them for granted. Deputy Mayor Emmanuel Chiroto however
said the budget was just a proposal and 'consultations are still in
progress.' Under current proposals the city's budget will be upped by over
300 percent, meaning rate charges will certainly increase.

 

Pressure mounts on Zanu-PF, MDC

http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=25589

December 3, 2009

By Our Correspondent

HARARE - SADC secretary-general Tomaz Salomão sneaked into Harare Wednesday
amid reports of mounting pressure on Zanu-PF and the MDC parties to conclude
their negotiations before the lapse of a deadline set by the regional body
last month.

Government sources have revealed that Salomao flew into Zimbabwe on
Wednesday night aboard a South African Airways flight.

"He came around 9pm yesterday (Wednesday) night on a South African Airways
flight," said the source, "He was not being accompanied by any official."

But parties in the inclusive government denied any knowledge of his visit.

"I am not aware of any visit by Salomao," said Justice Minister Patrick
Chinamasa, who is leading the negotiations from President Robert Mugabe's
Zanu PF.

"Ask Salomau himself what he has come here for," Chinamasa said.

He also refused to shed more light on the progress of current negotiations
between his Zanu PF and the two MDC parties.

"We are meeting the whole day today (Thursday), the whole day tomorrow and
Saturday and I can comment beyond that."

Similarly, Industry and Commerce Minister Welshman Ncube, secretary general
and party negotiator in the Arthur Mutambara led MDC, said he was not aware
of any visit by Salomao.

"I am not even aware that he is here," Ncube said.

He however said there was progress in the ongoing talks.

"We are still talking. As you know that we have a very long agenda. If there
was no progress we will not be talking."

Zimbabwe's parties to the GPA are under pressure to finish the negotiations
in line with the directives of a SADC Troika in Mozambique early last month.

Parties deny they are under any pressure. They claim the timelines set by
the Troika were only meant to guide the South African President and new
Zimbabwean facilitator, Jacob Zuma on when to report to the chairperson of
the SADC troika on the progress or lack of, of Zimbabwe's talks.

The low profile visit by Salomao ,who flew in via Johannesburg where Zuma is
based, coincided with a report to the South African president by his
facilitation team.

Zuma dispatched his three member facilitation team he appointed last week to
visit Zimbabwe between last Saturday and Tuesday to gather facts on how the
feuding parties have progressed in their sluggish talks.

The team, which comprised Zuma's political adviser Charles Nqakula,
anti-apartheid struggle veteran Mac Maharaj and Lindiwe Zulu, International
Affairs Adviser to the South African leader, met the three leaders in the
coalition government but refused to comment on any issues regarding their
visit.

Media reports says the team has since presented its report to Zuma who is
himself expected to come to Zimbabwe on December 5, the day when the last
SADC deadline expires.

Zimbabwe's parties to the current inclusive government are still deadlocked
on some outstanding issues to the GPA.

Key among the issues is the unilateral appointment by President Mugabe, of
party loyalists to executive government posts. The GPA stipulates that
parties must first agree before making any such appointments.

Tsvangirai's MDC wants Mugabe to reverse his unilateral appointment of top
allies to head Zimbabwe's central bank and the attorney general's office.

The MDC also wants Mugabe to swear in its nominees to five of the country's
provincial governorship posts to suit the voting patterns by Zimbabweans
last year.

Mugabe has also refused to swear in Tsvangirai ally Roy Bennett as deputy
agriculture minister.

The MDC is also unhappy by what it says is selective application of the law
to target its activists and officials.

On the other hand Zanu-PF, which insists that it has met all its obligations
under the GPA, accuses the MDC-T of not living up to a promise to lead a
campaign for lifting of Western sanctions against Mugabe and members of his
inner circle.

Zuma not visiting Zimbabwe ‘soon’ but will deliver report to SADC

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Tichaona Sibanda
3 December 2009

South African President Jacob Zuma will not visit Zimbabwe any time ‘soon’
to engage the leadership over outstanding issues in the Global Political
Agreement, his spokesman said on Thursday.

But the South African leader will deliver a report compiled by his
facilitation team, to Mozambican President Armando Guebuza, in a few days
time. Guebuza is the current chairman of the SADC Troika, the regional trade
bloc’s organ on politics, defence and security.

Vincent Magwenya told SW Radio Africa from Pretoria that reports the
President was scheduled to visit Zimbabwe were incorrect and misleading.

‘How can he visit Harare when he has just sent a team there? Asked Magwenya
who added that ‘the media was working on assumptions rather than on correct
information or there was a misunderstanding somewhere.’

An analyst told us the delay by Zuma to visit Harare could imply that he
sees the need for another Troika or a full SADC summit to deal with the
contentious issues. Negotiators resumed their talks in Harare on Thursday
and are expected to finish on Saturday. They will present their report to
the principals who will meet Monday next week to deliberate on the findings.
Only when the principals declare a stalemate will Zuma come in to mediate, a
source told us.

Zuma’s spokesman also clarified what has long been assumed was a deadline
set by SADC, for the negotiators to resolve their differences before a
30-day timeline.

‘The SADC Troika communiqué makes it clear those political parties signatory
to the GPA should engage in dialogue with immediate effect within fifteen
days and not beyond 30 days. This was never a deadline but a timeline for
the negotiators to resume talks, which they are currently doing now,’
Magwenya said.

Magwenya added; ‘The correct position, as far as President Zuma is
concerned, is that his facilitation team which is back home engaged with all
the parties in Zimbabwe. They have since delivered their report to the
President who will in turn forward that report to President Guebuza.’

‘The report will only be made public once President Guebuza has received and
dealt with it, otherwise it will be unfair to pre-empt its contents before
the SADC Troika studies it,’ Magwenya said.

On the 5th November last month, Guebuza hosted a SADC Troika summit in
Maputo to consider the political situation in Zimbabwe. Following a day long
meeting, the Summit urged ZANU PF and the MDC to fully comply with the
spirit and letter of the GPA and SADC Summit decision of 27 January 2009.

The Troika also urged Robert Mugabe, Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara
not to allow the situation to deteriorate any further and to engage in a
dialogue in order to find a lasting solution to the outstanding issues
towards the full implementation of the GPA.

With South Africa preparing to host the FIFA World Cup finals in 2010, Zuma
will be under the spotlight from the region, continent and the international
community over whether he will be able to broker a lasting solution in
Zimbabwe.

Analysts have said that he seems to have moved away from Mbeki’s ‘quiet
diplomacy’ to a more robust and open mediation effort. Although to the
average suffering Zimbabwean, there seems little to suggest anything has
changed, as they are denied access to information about the talks.

 

Tsvangirai says progress in Zimbabwe talks

http://uk.reuters.com

Thu Dec 3, 2009 6:10pm GMT

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's two political parties made progress on
implementing the conditions of a unity government, Zimbabwean Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai said on Thursday.

A unity government formed by Tsvangirai's MDC and President Robert Mugabe's
ZANU-PF in February came close to falling apart last month, but the two
sides agreed on further talks to settle their differences.

"I want to assure you there is progress," Tsvangirai told a media briefing
in Cape Town.

He said negotiations covered the positions of central bank Governor Gideon
Gono and Attorney General Johannes Tomana, both Mugabe loyalists whom the
MDC and Western donors would like to see removed from their posts.

The MDC, which began boycotting cabinet meetings with ZANU-PF in a dispute
over implementation of the power-sharing deal, ended the boycott last month
and gave Mugabe a month to implement the agreement fully.

"Now that these issues are being attended to, we want to open a new chapter
and say that the inclusive government is consolidating and that we need to
build momentum to ensure we can reconstruct the country," Tsvangirai said.

The fragile unity government is battling to rebuild an economy officially
estimated to have contracted by 50 percent between 2000 and 2008.

The economy is on track to expand for the first time in a decade this year
and to grow by 7 percent in 2010 as agriculture and mining start to recover.

"An increase in the capacity of mine manufacturing from 10 percent to 30
percent will have a direct impact on the growth the minister (Finance
Minister Tendai Biti) is anticipating and I think it can be achieved,"
Tsvangirai said.

(Reporting by Wendell Roelf; Editing by Elizabeth Fullerton)

Selective justice prevails as PM’s bodyguard jailed

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Alex Bell
03 December 2009

The worrying trend of selective justice has continued to prevail, with
Tuesday’s jailing of three MDC activists, including Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai’s bodyguard.

The trio was jailed for 18 months for public violence, committed during the
run-up to the 2005 parliamentary elections. Tsvangirai’s bodyguard, Peter
Chigaba, former Masvingo councillor Francisca Sheya, and Ackim Chigarire,
were each sentenced to a 26 month jail term, with 8 months conditionally
suspended for five years. Former Masvingo central legislator Silas Mangono
and four others were acquitted on similar charges.

The entire group was accused of leading violent clashes in November 2005,
during an MDC rally at the Masvingo Civic Centre. The accused were allegedly
denied entry to the venue and violent clashes subsequently erupted. At least
one person was injured and several windows in the civic centre building were
shattered as rival factions of the then MDC candidates clashed during the
run up to the 2005 parliamentary polls. The magistrate on Tuesday ruled that
Mangono and the four others did not participate in the clashes, but ruled
that Chigaba, Sheya, and Chigarire committed the offence.

While some have argued the sentence is a fair application of the law given
the trio’s actions, observers argue it is another example of the selective
nature of the course of justice in Zimbabwe. Their jailing comes just days
after co-Home Affairs Minister Giles Mustekwa ordered the arrest of Joseph
Mwale, who is accused of murdering two MDC activists at Murambinda Growth
Point in 2000. Mwale has evaded arrest for the brutal murder of Tichaona
Chiminya and Talent Mabika, despite a High Court order to have him charged.
Robert Mugabe’s regime, openly flouting the courts, instead promoted him
within the Central Intelligence Organisation ranks.

At the same time, the perpetrators of last year’s extreme post election
violence meted out against MDC supporters in the aftermath of Tsvangirai’s
election win are yet to face court action. More recently, Chiadzwa’s victims
of the police and army led massacre at the diamonds fields last year, are
also awaiting justice that will likely never come. Both cases are supported
by piles of evidence, including eyewitness reports, but the perpetrators
have to date escaped any legal action.

Any form of legal recourse meanwhile, against opposition activists, has in
contrast been swiftly dragged to the courts, with the cases often being long
and drawn out. Critics say this is an effective ZANU PF strategy as it ties
up the opposition in time and money. The case against MDC Treasurer General
Roy Bennett is just one example, with the state seemingly intent to drag the
case out as long as possible. At the same time, more than eight MDC
legislators have faced court action this year on often trumped-up charges,
while any MDC affiliate is a likely target for arrest. The party’s Transport
Manager Pascal Gwezere has remained behind bars after he was abducted and
tortured by state security agents. He’s facing theft charges, but despite
being granted bail, has remained behind bars at Chikurubi maximum security
prison.

The MDC has previously expressed concern about the selective persecution of
its members, but despite being in the so-called ‘unity’ government, there
has been no change to this state of affairs.

Meanwhile, violence in the Chimanimani area is said to be increasing, with
ZANU PF members apparently upping their efforts to intimidate opposition
supporters.  Most recently the nine year old son of an MDC activist in the
area was abducted in an effort to force his parents to switch their
allegiance to ZANU PF. The child was later abandoned in the bush, unhurt.

The boy’s father, Sibonile Marwirana is quoted by news service Voice of the
People describing the attack by ZANU PF supporters, allegedly led by the
ZANU PF youth league Secretary For External Affairs, Joshua Sako, and a
security guard, Colert Mutimwa. The group apparently broke into the family’s
hut while they were sleeping, demanding that Marwirana change his party
allegiance.

“Mutimwa grabbed my son by the hand and said they were going to return him
on condition that I renounce my MDC membership,” said Marwirana in the VOP
report.

Marwirana said he and his wife followed the abductees and they discovered
their son abandoned in the middle of the bush after alerting other
villagers.
Marwirana said he reported the incident to Chimanimani police station but no
arrests were made.

 

SOUTH AFRICA: Reintegrating Zimbabweans is a hard sell

Photo: Lee Middleton/IRIN

Displaced Zimabweans find refuge at on a sports field in De Doorns

DE DOORNS, 3 December 2009 (IRIN) - More than two weeks after the attacks that drove some 3,000 Zimbabwean migrant workers from their homes in an informal settlement called Stofland, outside De Doorns, a farming town about 140km from Cape Town, South Africa, the mood among the displaced remains grim.

"The situation seems like we must go back to Zimbabwe," farm worker Taphiwa Mheva told IRIN. "You don't know with these people - maybe one of these days they think about killing us. We would go now, but we have no money."

Mheva is one of the lucky ones. She is one of 282 Zimbabweans given accommodation on the farm where she works, and plans to return to Zimbabwe after the grape harvesting season ends in April.

Another 1,200 Zimbabweans are living in 190 tents provided by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), pitched on the De Doorns sports field. On weekends that number swells to around 1,600, when spouses and partners working in other areas come to visit. Almost all the displaced are seasonal labourers on the area's wine farms, an industry worth over US$400 million annually.

Every evening hundreds of workers disembark from trucks returning from the farms and wait while security guards check their papers and possessions before entering the safety site. Red Cross volunteers check registration lists, and distribute food around the camp.

"We are trying to avoid a situation where this becomes an overcrowded area, and where people are coming from other areas," said UNHCR Regional Protection Officer Monique Ekoko.

People are coming to take advantage of what is happening here - that itself will create a problem

More worrying is that people are coming from as far away as Port Elizabeth, in South Africa's Eastern Cape Province, and even straight from Zimbabwe. "People are coming to take advantage of what is happening here - that itself will create a problem. We want to maintain the temporary nature of this site, and to ensure that people move as soon as the conditions are right," Ekoko told IRIN.

She also noted the importance of dealing swiftly and effectively with the situation. "The longer we keep this site here, the chances increase that it might spur other people to take similar actions [xenophobic attacks]. Integration efforts are key, and not only to send a message that people have to live side by side." 

Unfriendly environment

According to Martin van Rooyen, a member of the De Doorns Displacement Crisis Committee, 11 December has been set as the starting date for reintegrating displaced people into their original communities.

"We have various processes unfolding to create an enabling environment," Van Rooyen said, citing an interfaith prayer service on 29 November, and ongoing meetings with local government, religious ministers, and the police.

The people living in the camp have given no indication of being willing to leave. "For me there is no option to go back in the community. I've got three kids and a wife - I managed to escape with only a few blankets," Doubt Chinomera, a Zimbabwean labour contractor, told IRIN.

"It's only an option if our security is guaranteed ... because last time when they attacked us the police were there." Chinomera's sentiment was echoed by many, and the perception that the police did nothing to protect them remains vivid.

"The police were just accompanying the South African people. When they were busy destroying the shacks the police were there behind them, looking at them, not arresting them," said farm worker Siyabonga Nkomo.

Superintendent Desmond van der Westhuizen, commander of the De Doorns police station, said the police had been aware that some people in the townships of Stofland and Ekuphumleni had intended some kind of action against the Zimbabweans.

"It was established that the community wanted to stop [Zimbabweans] to go to work the next day, and then they indicated that they would try to dismantle some of the shacks," he told IRIN.

Van der Westhuizen said he had requested support from Worcester, the nearest large town, and Cape Town, as his force was too small to handle the situation, but the distance of those stations from De Doorns meant the additional police officers did not arrive until it was too late.

"At that stage [when the Zimbabweans were blocked from going to work and the looting began] we were trying to do it on our own. It was not obvious whose property was whose. There were 12 officers; police had to use discretion. The crowd was so big - there was chaos, actually - they didn't make arrests earlier because of the manpower shortage."

South African rules

"There is still resentment on the part of South Africans," committee member Van Rooyen said, referring to allegations that the Zimbabweans worked for less than the minimum wage of R60 ($8) per day, thus "robbing" South Africans of jobs.

"Now, the latest resentment is that you're getting services on this site, when we are told to be patient [and to wait for water, sanitation and electricity] by our same government," Van Rooyen said.

People were also angry about the 24 arrests after the attacks - 12 of those arrested were released for lack of evidence, and a bail hearing has been set for the remaining 12 on 5 December.

The Zimbabweans insist that they are not working for less, a claim strongly supported by Agri Western Cape and the Hex River Valley Table Grape Association, umbrella associations to which all the producers in the region belong.

Photo: Lee Middleton/IRIN South African residents of Stofland: no open arms for Zimbabwean migrants

"With regards to the allegations that workers are paid less than minimum wage, Agri Wes-Cape would like to challenge the organisations and individuals that are making these allegations to provide the Department of Labour with the necessary proof, so that those allegedly responsible can be investigated," the association said in a recent press release.

According to Agri Wes-Cape statistics, during the harvest season nearly 9,000 seasonal workers swell the ranks of 5,337 permanent workers; of the total workforce of some 14,000, just over 1,500 are Zimbabwean.

Agri Wes-Cape also noted an independent study in 2008 by the Labour and Enterprise Policy Research Group at the University of Cape Town, whose findings indicated that most workers in the De Doorns area, including the Zimbabweans, were earning R10 ($1.40) a day above the minimum wage.

Nonetheless, local South Africans persist in their belief that Zimbabweans are taking their jobs. "The farmer comes with a truck, says, 'I need 100 people.' Those Zimbabweans, they go like sheep; so our citizens stay behind and don't have bread in their house," Manghozi, a resident of Stofland, told IRIN.

Manghozi and his friends also complained that the Zimbabweans worked on Sundays and holidays. "They must respect our labour rules," he said. Then we can live together."

Residents shocked by Announcement of Harare City 2010 budget …as they profess ignorance of any consultations being made

New inquiry: DFID’s assistance to Zimbabwe