Zimbabwe suspends NGOs as possible election looms

http://af.reuters.com

Wed Feb 15, 2012 11:42am GMT

By Cris Chinaka

HARARE Feb 15 (Reuters) - Zimbabwe has suspended 29 non-governmental
organisations (NGOs) in one of its provinces including Care International,
state media reported on Wednesday, raising worries of a crackdown similar to
one that preceded elections in 2008.

President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF party kicked out foreign NGO ahead of the
poll four years ago, making it difficult for the outside world to provide
humanitarian assistance or monitor a vote marred by political violence and
voter intimidation.

The ZANU-PF governor of the southerly Masvingo province, Titus Maluleke,
said the 29 NGOs had been suspended in Masvingo for ignoring demands to
renew their annual registration.

"These organisations have left us with no choice except to suspend them from
operating in the province with immediate effect as they have twice failed to
submit to the requirements of our laws," he told the Herald daily.

Mugabe wants parliamentary and presidential elections this year, despite
having agreed in a 2008 power-sharing deal with the Movement for Democratic
Change that they would not be held until 2013, after a new constitution has
been put in place.

Local regulations require NGOs to register with both the central government
in the capital Harare and with local authorities in the outlying provinces.

A ban in one province does not extend to others, but makes the work of an
NGO more difficult.

Among the suspended organisations are the rights groups Zimbabwe Peace
Project and Zimbabwe Community Development Programme, as well as Care
International, a leading provider of food aid in some of Masvingo's
drought-prone districts.

In 2008, at the height of a severe economic and political crisis, ZANU-PF
outlawed all food aid agencies. The ban was reversed in 2009 after Mugabe,
in power since 1980, was forced into a coalition government with MDC leader
Morgan Tsvangirai.

Mugabe and top ZANU-PF figures are subject to international sanctions for
suspected human rights abuses and vote rigging.

A first draft of the new constitution, expected to be put to a referendum
this year, would significantly limit presidential powers, and bar anyone
from running for president if they had spent 10 years or more in the post.

Debate on targeted sanctions intensifies ahead of EU meeting

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Tererai Karimakwenda
15 February 2012

A crucial meeting of the European Union, scheduled to take place on Saturday
(February 18), has fuelled intense debate among Zimbabweans over the
targeted sanctions that were imposed on Robert Mugabe and his close allies
back in 2008.

The EU is due to review the situation in Zimbabwe and decide whether to
renew the targeted sanctions, remove them completely or initiate a reform
programme leading to their removal.

The United States and European countries decided to impose a travel ban and
freeze assets belonging to Mugabe, his family and closest allies, after a
stolen election that was followed by a brutal campaign of violence, rape and
torture against the MDC and innocent civilians.

The Mugabe propaganda machine has since then sought to portray these
restrictive measures as part of a regime change agenda crafted by Western
and European nations, who want Mugabe removed from power. They refer to them
as “illegal sanctions”.

Initially civil society in Zimbabwe supported the measures and called for
their renewal every year. But recently there appears to be a shift in their
position, with Mugabe and ZANU PF insisting the restrictions are blocking
officials from doing their work and choking the country’s economy.

Former diplomat and political analyst Clifford Mashiri dismissed the idea of
a “rethink” and attributed this new rhetoric to fear. He said civil society
and Zimbabweans know that Mugabe will never implement the GPA, even if the
measures are removed.

“These are people with guns pointed at their heads in Zimbabwe. There is an
obvious tendency to be afraid of what will happen if they were heard or
known to be calling for targeted sanctions on the regime,” Mashiri said.

He explained that those on the ground in Zimbabwe know what has happened in
the past, when people were picked up by “guys in dark glasses” and thrown
into the back of a truck, which will never come back with them alive.

“This consensus to lift the targeted sanctions is coming from people living
in fear. That’s why you will find those of us outside the country able to
speak openly and freely, not irresponsibly,” the analyst said.

According to Mashiri the mere fact that the regime is so vocal about the
travel ban and asset freeze imposed on them shows that they have been
effective.

With no other recourse, the targeted sanctions remain the only punitive
action taken against Mugabe and those who have brought suffering to so many
Zimbabweans.

EU to trim Mugabe sanctions by a third

http://www.zimonline.co.za

by James Mombe     Wednesday 15 February 2012

HARARE – The European Union (EU) is expected to extend for another year
sanctions against Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and his top allies but
will trim down the number of people on the visa and financial bans list by a
third.

International media reports quoting unnamed EU diplomats said the bloc would
also maintain an arms embargo on Harare, while a ban on development
assistance will remain in force for another six months.

According to the reports, 51 of Mugabe’s allies and 20 mostly government
owned or controlled companies will be removed from the sanctions list that
Brussels has updated several times since it first imposed the punitive
measures 10 years ago.

The EU will also suspend visa bans on Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa and
his Foreign Affairs counterpart Simbarashe Mumbengegwi to enable them to
travel to Europe to discuss possible re-engagement with the Brussels.

Brussels, which is expected to announce the decision to extend sanctions on
Friday, first imposed sanctions on Mugabe and his top officials in 2002 to
punish them for allegedly failing to uphold democracy, human rights and the
rule of law.

Mugabe denies the charges and instead says the EU and its western allies
imposed the sanctions in a bid to weaken him and eventually cause his ouster
from power as punishment for seizing land from white farmers.

The Zimbabwean leader also says the sanctions have had a wider impact beyond
the targeted individuals to hurt the southern African country’s economy and
that keeping them in place has damaged efforts by his unity government with
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai to rebuild the economy.

The EU has previously said it recognises significant progress made by the
unity government in addressing Zimbabwe’s economic crisis and improving
delivery of basic social services since the administration came into office
in February 2009.

But the European bloc, whose decision to extend the measures comes against
the backdrop of resurgent political violence and human rights abuses in some
parts of Zimbabwe, has said progress on the social and economic front has
not been matched by equivalent progress on the political front.

Hardliner elements from Mugabe’s ZANU PF party and in the military are
accused of stalling constitutional and other reforms.

Under a political pact known as the global political agreement that gave
birth to the Harare unity government, Zimbabwe must first write a new
constitution and implement several electoral reforms before holding new
polls.

But the constitutional reform process is terribly behind schedule, slowed
down by incessant squabbling among the political parties over what to
include in the new charter as well as a shortage of funds

Zimbabweans hope a new constitution will guarantee human rights, strengthen
the role of Parliament and curtail the president's powers, as well as
guaranteeing civil, political and media freedoms. -- ZimOnline

Zimbabwe minister doubts elections this year

AFP – 1 hr 48 mins ago

    Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe is pictured in December 2011.
Zimbabwe's constitutional affairs minister on Wednesday cast doubt on
Mugabe's bid to hold elections this year. (AFP Photo/Jekesai
Njikizana)Enlarge Photo

    Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe is pictured in December 2011.
Zimbabwe's constitutional …

Zimbabwe's constitutional affairs minister on Wednesday cast doubt on
President Robert Mugabe's bid to hold elections this year.

A referendum on a proposed new constitution must take place before the
holding of general elections.

"My assessment is the earliest we can have a referendum (on the
constitution) is August or September," Eric Matinenga told journalists.

"We are in the process of looking at the draft, which is strictly speaking
not a draft but preliminary work in progress. We have looked at four
chapters. There are another 18 chapters and we also have to look at issues
that are outstanding," he said.

Matinenga, a lawyer and member of the Movement for Democratic Change -- the
party of Mugabe's long-time rival Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai -- said
the government would then have to clean up the voters' roll and mark out
constituency boundaries before elections can be held.

"Everybody agrees that we need a good voters' roll before the elections," he
said.

"If we are going to have that after the constitution, you can do your own
calculations and estimate when we are likely to have elections.

"You are also aware that we are going to have a census this year which is
going to assist in the delimitation exercise," he added.

Mugabe and Tsvangirai formed a power-sharing government in 2009 to mend an
economy ravaged by hyperinflation and avoid a descent into civil war in the
aftermath of a bloody presidential runoff election.

They agreed to a raft of reforms, including amending media and electoral
laws, changing the composition of the top officers in the security forces
and drafting a new constitution before new elections.

The constitution-writing process is running behind schedule but Mugabe, 87,
has said new elections would be held this year.

Morgan agrees to early polls

http://www.timeslive.co.za/

TAWANDA KAROMBO | 15 February, 2012 00:21

Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, frustrated by Zimbabwe's
fractious coalition government and the extensive powers it affords President
Robert Mugabe, has agreed to hold early elections this year.

But analysts say Tsvangirai will have his work cut out convincing members of
his Movement for Democratic Change, as well as the African Union and its
Zimbabwe mediator, President Jacob Zuma, of the wisdom of holding a vote
before the necessary enabling environment is in place.

Zuma is to send a fact- finding mission to Zimbabwe but his adviser, Lindiwe
Zulu, would not give exact dates of when it would start work.

Mugabe, 87, and his Zanu-PF party have long argued for early elections,
saying the three-year-old coalition government had reached its sell-by date.

By contrast, the MDC has repeatedly warned that, without a number of key
reforms, elections could be accompanied by widespread violence, as in 2008.

Tsvangirai's apparent turnaround is likely to be sharply resisted by civic
organisations and some within the MDC who have demanded a new constitution
and implementation of crucial reforms before voting takes place.

"The leaders agreed on electoral reforms, especially on the polling
station-based voters' roll, and agreed that the existing system of the
ward-based voters' roll should be maintained," said a government official.

MDC spokesman Douglas Mwonzora, however, denied that his party wanted early
elections, despite senior MDC officials confirming that Tsvangirai now
believed that early elections would be the only way out of the current
impasse in the coalition government.

"Time is not on our side as we move towards the next election. Let us give
momentum to our agreement by facilitating the creation of an enabling
environment [in which] our people can exercise their right to choose their
leaders freely," Tsvangirai wrote to Mugabe this month.

Why Mugabe's cronies are afraid of removal from sanction list

http://www.theafricareport.com

15 February 2012 14:47

By The Africa Report

The European Union is on Friday expected to renew a raft of sanctions
against President Robert Mugabe and his close associates.

However, anxiety has gripped many within Mugabe's Zanu PF party, as the EU
has indicated that it is willing to drop 51 names from the list of those
that are sanctioned and have travel restrictions imposed on them.

The EU imposed sanctions on Mugabe and his associates a decade ago in
response to what the bloc termed human rights abuses and the breakdown of
the rule of law, following the 2000 and 2002 general and presidential
elections respectively.

Mugabe denies the accusations and instead says the EU and its western allies
imposed the sanctions in a bid to weaken him and eventually cause his ouster
from power as punishment for seizing land from white farmers.

Since then the president routinely blames the country's economic problems on
the sanctions.

Renewal of the sanctions comes at a time when Mugabe and his party launched
a spirited campaign to have 2 million Zimbabweans sign an anti-sanctions
petition, in the hope that this will persuade the EU to relax the
restrictive measures.

The country, through its Attorney -General Johannes Tomana, has also
indicated that it had finished drafting court papers to mount a lawsuit
against the EU over sanctions. The lawsuit was viewed as the first legal
step by the government to compel the EU to lift the embargo.

Fear of sanction removal

While the lifting of sanctions on an individual means they can travel to
Europe, many fear that if their names are dropped from the list they may be
viewed as sell outs or at least as people who collaborate, with what Mugabe
has described as enemies of Zimbabwe.

′′Already, details filtering through are that two of Mugabe's right hand
men - Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa and Foreign Affairs Minister
Simbarashe Mumbengegwi might be struck off the list.

′′Fifty one of Mugabe's allies and 20 mostly government owned or controlled
companies will be removed from the sanctions list that Brussels has updated
several times since it first imposed the punitive measures a decade ago.′′

The restrictive measures are renewed annually in the hope that this will
force Mugabe and about 200 hundred of his close associates to restore
Zimbabwe to democracy.

The current term is set to expire at the end of February.

The bloc began deliberations in January on Zimbabwe that might culminate in
the extension of targeted sanctions on Zimbabwe, citing failure by Zanu PF
to fully implement the Global Political Agreement (GPA).

The EU, which is currently assessing progress made since the formation of
the inclusive government in 2008, had promised to lift the sanctions if the
parties in the GPA implemented all outstanding issues.

"[The] EU is currently busy discussing different options with regard to the
targeted measures," a diplomat said.

"The current situation in Zimbabwe is not the way that we had all hoped,
when it comes to implementation of the GPA.

So it is difficult for the EU to lift the targeted measures. However, at the
same time the EU will like to send a strong message that it would like to
see relations normalised as it is looking at possibly easing some of the
measures."

Zanu PF, despite developing a hard line stance against the EU, seems
desperate to get the West to ease sanctions. "Sanctions are not healthy for
the country and we hope that they would be removed if not reduced in some
way," party spokesman, Rugare Gumbo said.

In 2009 Zimbabwe set a re-engagement team led by Mumbengegwi to explore ways
of normalising relations between Harare and the EU.

Zimbabwe Europe Network (Zen), a consortium of more than 20 non-governmental
organisations (NGOs) in nine countries, says sanctions on Zimbabwe must stay
intact until human and property rights violations stop.

APEX council meets Tsvangirai

http://www.dailynews.co.zw/

By Ngonidzashe Mushimbo, Staff Writer
Wednesday, 15 February 2012 07:37

HARARE - Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai yesterday held a consultative
meeting with APEX Council, a representative body of all civil servants in
the country, to discuss issues affecting their work.

Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) secretary-general Raymond
Majongwe told the Daily News Tsvangirai told APEX Council that he remains
concerned about the plight of civil servants.

“The PM opened up to us and explained on the need to work together for the
betterment of the civil servants and that he remains concerned civil
servants’ plight. This meeting will lead to greater and better things,” said
Majongwe.

Majongwe added that the Premier promised to engage the minister of Finance
and meet the Cabinet task force to deal with issues affecting civil
servants.

Other outstanding issues which were discussed and resolved at the meeting
were the resuscitation and strengthening of the social contract and
harmonisation of labour laws in Zimbabwe.

The consultative meeting was requested by the APEX council to highlight
issues affecting civil servants to the Premier.

The Premier, who reiterated his position that diamond revenue will go a long
way in alleviating the plight of the civil servants, told the union leaders
that he would be going to Chiadzwa on Thursday to appreciate what is
happening at the diamond mining centre.

The PM opened up to us and explained on the need to work together for the
betterment of the civil servants.

ZANU PF loyalists exposed as diamond ‘directors’

http://www.swradioafrica.com

Anhui Foreign Economic Construction Group Chairman Jiang Qingde meeting President Robert Mugabe and an officer in the Zimbabwe Republic Police

By Alex Bell
14 February 2012

A new international report has exposed that several top officials, listed as directors in a diamond firm mining at Chiadzwa, are ZANU PF loyal army and police members.

The report, Diamonds: A Good Deal for Zimbabwe?, was released by the UK based civil society group Global Witness on Tuesday and reveals that several directors of the Chinese owned Anjin mining company are drawn from the Zimbabwean military and police.

This includes; Martin Rushwaya, the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Defense, Oliver Chibage and Nonkosi M. Ncube, both police commissioners and Munyaradzi Machacha, a ZANU PF director of publications. Also listed as non executive board members are Morris Masunungure, a former army officer and Romeo Daniel Mutsvunguma, a retired army Colonel in the Zimbabwe Defence Force.

Mustvunguma is also alleged by Human Rights Watch to have participated in the politically motivated violence in 2008, which saw hundreds of opposition supporters murdered and thousands more tortured and beaten by ZANU PF loyalists.

The Global Witness report goes on to reveal that 25% the Mbada mining firm has been given to a company linked with Robert Mhlanga, a known ally and former employee of Robert Mugabe’s. Mhlanga was allegedly appointed by Mugabe to head the company, which is said to have silent Chinese military partners. In 2010, it was alleged by the UK Daily Mail that the Mbada firm was the public face of a diamonds for arms deals between Zimbabwe and China, with China in effect funding Mugabe’s war chest.

The Global Witness report says that Mbada’s ownership details are far more ‘opaque’ that Anjin’s, with a ‘complex structure’. The report says that Mbada’s associated companies are located in ‘secrecy jurisdictions’ or tax havens including Mauritius, Hong Kong, British Virgin Islands and Dubai.

“The simple question that is raised is, where is the diamond money going? Zimbabwe desperately needs diamond revenues for health and education services, but there is no transparency about who the beneficiaries are,” said the report’s author Nick Donovan.

Donovan also told SW Radio Africa: “Zimbabwe must ensure that diamond mining companies are not used as an off-budget cash cow by ZANU PF loyalists in the military and police. If the next election is accompanied by violence there’s a real risk that any bloodshed will be funded by diamond revenues.”

“Corporate anonymity and the use of secrecy jurisdictions can be used to hide the true beneficiaries of business deals and have the potential to conceal corruption, tax avoidance or off-budget government spending. The Zimbabwean government and Mbada and also Anjin should immediately publish all contracts and details of revenue flows to allay such fears,” said Donovan.

The Global Witness campaigner said that the group’s key recommendations are for the Zim government to pass legislation that bans serving members in Zimbabwe’s security sector from exerting any control over mining companies. Donovan also said that an audit of every concession granted so far in Chiadzwa must be undertaken and the details published “to ensure the beneficiaries of these diamonds become the people of Zimbabwe.”

See Global Witness newsletter

See full report Diamonds: a good deal for Zimbabwe?

Mugabe ouster plot thickens

http://www.dailynews.co.zw/

By Farai Mutsaka and Thelma Chikwanha
Wednesday, 15 February 2012 12:00

HARARE - President Robert Mugabe has summoned his party's co-chair to the
Constitution Select Committee (Copac) reportedly to explain how a clause
that could effectively bar him from standing in future elections passed
through a first draft that has just been made public.

The 87-year-old veteran leader has decided to tackle matters on his own as
it emerges that he might be fighting a bigger war for survival as fellow
Zanu PF party members intensify a plot to oust him.

To get to the bottom of the matter, Mugabe yesterday summoned Copac co-chair
Paul Mangwana to report on the controversial retirement clause and other
issues such as homosexuality and the land which have torn his party apart.

Mangwana was busy preparing a report to hand over to Mugabe yesterday
morning, but the Zanu PF leader also wants verbal answers from him, sources
said.

Copac is a parliamentary body driving the crafting of a new constitution.
Mangwana co-chairs Copac with Douglas Mwonzora of Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai’s MDC and Edward Mkhosi of the smaller MDC faction.

A source close to the developments confirmed that Mangwana had indeed been
summoned for a meeting by the President.

“Mugabe has received a lot of information and I think he wants to whip
Mangwana into line over the issue of the ‘retirement’ clause. The fact that
the clause was supported by Zanu PF members of the select committee points
to a deliberate effort not to protect Mugabe and that should have got him
mad,” said one of the sources.

Efforts to obtain a comment from Mangwana failed as he was said to be in a
meeting at the time of going to press.

Mugabe’s spokesperson George Charamba was also not available for comment as
his mobile phone kept cutting off.

A text message to his number went unacknowledged.

The clause that has got Mugabe and his loyalists running scared reads: “A
person is disqualified for election as President if he or she has already
held office for one or more periods, whether continuous or not, amounting to
10 years.”

Mugabe has served as President since 1987 and his loyalists fear it might be
used to target him in future elections.

The clause, which passed with the consent of Mugabe’s own party members, has
caused serious rifts within the former ruling party.

Zanu PF has already endorsed Mugabe as its candidate in the next elections.

Mugabe says he wants the elections this year. But coalition partners insist
on the implementation of reforms agreed to under the power sharing Global
Political Agreement.

The reforms include the crafting of a new constitution, viewed as a key step
towards holding credible elections after the disputed 2008 presidential poll
runoff.

Zanu PF has 10 members in the Select Committee, the same number as
Tsvangirai’s MDC.

Professor Welshman Ncube’s MDC formation has two members meaning the party
could have argued against the clause but chose to endorse it. So fierce are
the fights that Copac has moved meetings from Harare to the eastern resort
of Vumba where the Mugabe “retirement clause” will come under fresh debate.

Douglas Mwonzora, the MDC Copac co-chairperson, told the Daily News that the
move to Vumba was meant to “secure the lives of co-chairpersons” who are
receiving threats as well as “to avoid unnecessary political and media
interference”.

A source within Copac told the Daily News that the clause and others on
homosexuality and the land were discussed in several Select Committee
meetings attended by Zanu PF representatives before they were included in
the first draft.

“Those clauses were agreed to by all Select Committee members. No one
opposed these particular clauses, even members of Zanu PF,” said a source.

On Monday, Mangwana’s technical advisor Goodwills Masimirembwa walked out of
a Copac meeting after members of the Select Committee refused to start the
process afresh.

Masimirembwa accused Mangwana of being a “sell-out”, a label often reserved
for Mugabe’s worst enemies.

Recent information suggests that many within his inner cabal support him
only in public but secretly are working on ways to force him out.

Secret meetings between Zanu PF and United States diplomats exposed by
whistle blower website WikiLeaks suggested that top party members who
publicly claim to be Mugabe’s biggest backers no longer had confidence in
his leadership.

Several high ranking politburo members including, former Information
minister and serial political flip flopper, Jonathan Moyo, Youth Minister
Saviour Kasukuwere, Tourism Minister Walter Mzembi and Vice President Joice
Mujuru met with US diplomats and talked about the possibility of a
post-Mugabe Zimbabwe.

Some, such as Moyo who was later described by US diplomats as a “useful
messenger”, told the diplomats that Mugabe was suffering from throat cancer
and was therefore unfit to remain as President.

The actions of these party members forced Mugabe to tell Tsvangirai that he
felt betrayed, according to an account of the Prime Minister.

Mugabe, who claims he lost the 2008 election first round voting to
Tsvangirai because of divisions within Zanu PF, has previously spoken
publicly about this betrayal by people he considered loyal.

During a cross party anti-violence indaba last year, Mugabe warned party
officials not to repeat an internal 2008 plot code named “bhora musango”.

The plot saw Mugabe getting fewer votes than his MPs and councillors in some
areas after officials campaigning on the ground advised supporters to vote
for a Zanu PF candidate for the MPs and councillors but not for Mugabe.

Court dismisses acquittal application by ‘video watching’ activists

http://www.swradioafrica.com/

By Alex Bell
15 February 2012

A Harare court on Wednesday dismissed an acquittal application by a group of
activists arrested a year ago for watching footage of the people’s
revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia.

The six, including former MDC-T MP Munyaradzi Gwisai, were among more than
40 people arrested last February after watching the video at an academic
meeting, which was raided by police. After their initial arrest some in the
group, including Gwisai, were tortured in police cells and kept in solitary
confinement at Chikurubi maximum security prison in Harare for weeks.

The whole group was charged with treason and originally held for more than
two weeks, but eventually 39 of the activists were released without charge.
However Gwisai, Hopewell Gumbo, Antonater Choto, Welcome Zimuto, Eddson
Chakuma and Tatenda Mombeyarara are still facing charges, although the
treason charges have been dropped.

Instead the group is now being charged with ‘conspiracy to commit public
violence’, with alternative charges including ‘inciting public violence’,
‘participating in a meeting with a view to inciting public violence’, and
‘breach of peace’.

The defence was waiting for the state to finish its case before applying for
acquittal last month. But a magistrate dismissed this application on
Wednesday.

One of the activists, Hopewell Gumbo, told SW Radio Africa that the
Magistrate’s decision has come as a real blow, explaining that he and his
co-accused, as well as their families and supporters, were all confident
that things would turn out differently.

“It is a sad moment today and we are in a bit of a depression. But we remain
optimistic,” Gumbo said.

The trial will continue and has been postponed until February 27, when the
defence will launch its case and start cross examining witnesses.
“There is no evidence is the defence’s case which has concluded, so we will
remain in high spirits,” Gumbo said.

SA urged to prosecute Zim officials over crimes against humanity

http://www.swradioafrica.com/

By Alex Bell
15 February 2012

South Africa’s government will be in court next month in a landmark case,
which seeks to compel Jacob Zuma’s administration to investigate and
prosecute high level Zimbabwean officials accused of crimes against
humanity.

The Southern Africa Litigation Centre (SALC) and the South Africa based
Zimbabwe Exiles Forum have launched the case, which will be heard next
month. They are asking the High Court to review and set aside a decision
made by South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority and the police not to
investigate Zimbabwean officials linked to acts of state-sanctioned torture.
This followed a police raid on the headquarters of the MDC in 2007.

“The decision not to pursue credible evidence of crimes against humanity was
taken for political reasons, it ignored South Africa’s clear obligations
under both international and domestic law,” said Nicole Fritz, Executive
Director of SALC.

She told SW Radio Africa on Wednesday that the High Court in South Africa
now has an opportunity to “set an important precedent, which will ensure
that South Africa lives up to its legal responsibilities to prosecute the
perpetrators of international crimes.”

Fritz explained that by ratifying the Rome Statute of the International
Criminal Court, South Africa committed itself to prosecuting the
perpetrators of serious international crimes, regardless of where they are
committed. But she added that this case is the first time that a South
African court will have the opportunity to “provide guidance on the scope
and nature of the obligations placed on South African authorities by signing
up to the ICC.”

This case started with a detailed docket submitted to the NPA’s Priority
Crimes Litigation Unit in March 2008, which documented acts of torture
committed after the Zimbabwean police raid on the MDC’s Harvest House. Fritz
explained that as soon as the NPA was in possession of the docket, South
Africa’s obligations to investigate with a view to prosecuting those
responsible were triggered.

Fritz continued that, because South Africa is legally bound to arrest and
prosecute perpetrators of international crimes if they enter South Africa, ”the
Zimbabwean officials identified in the docket should have been arrested when
they set foot in South Africa or at the very least questioned,”

“But no effort was made to initiate an investigation despite credible
evidence. A formal decision not to investigation was only made in 2009 and
no reason was given as to why this decision was made,” Fritz said.

Fritz added that continued impunity in Zimbabwe “does not bode well for
constitutional reform and the possibility of free and fair elections.” She
continued that “South Africa cannot afford to be seen as a refuge for
international criminals the world over. It is in its own best interests to
ensure that these types of criminals are brought to book.”

The case will be heard between 26 March and 30 March 2012.

Gono’s New ‘Political Party’

http://www.radiovop.com/

Harare, February 15, 2011 - Gideon Gono, the Reserve Bank governor, intended
to form his own political party because he felt President Robert Mugabe and
his party, Zanu (PF) were now so weak and no longer relevant to the country
according to the latest Wikileaks cables.

The whistle blowing website quotes former United States ambassador to
Zimbabwe James McGee:

“Governor Gideon Gono told me earlier this week that he believes Zanu PF and
Mugabe are so weak that he intended to start his own party,” McGee said.

It emerged this week that Gono wanted to form his party in 2008 to challenge
for political office because Mugabe and Zanu (PF) had become too weak.

Gono reportedly made the revelations after Mugabe had just won a disputed
presidential elections run-off election in September 2008 and his party was
negotiating a settlement with both factions of the Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC).

But the former US top diplomat said while he was sceptical of Gono’s plans
to form an alternative party because he was too close to Mugabe; the
revelations indicated that all was not well in Zanu (PF).

“While we are sceptical that Gono will start an alternative party, he is
among Mugabe's few confidantes, and his appraisal of Mugabe and Zanu PF is a
strong indication that all is not well within the party,” McGee said.

British Ambassador Tells Zanu (PF) To Commit To Constitution Drafting

http://www.radiovop.com/

Bulawayo, February 15, 2012- British Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Deborah
Bronnert, has said Zanu (PF) should be committed to the drafting of the
country’s new constitution.

Speaking to journalists on Tuesday after touring King George VI School for
the disabled in Bulawayo, Bronnert said Zanu (PF) should follow the Global
Political Agreement (GPA) by getting committed to the process.

On Monday, Zanu (PF) threatened to pull out of the writing of a new
constitution in protest against a clause which says President Robert Mugabe
should be barred from contesting future elections.

“The constitutional drafting process is something that all the parties
committed themselves to when they signed the GPA," Bronnert told journalists
here. “This is part of the GPA which they signed up to and therefore we
expect them to be committed to the writing of the new constitution.”

According to the first draft of a new constitution "a person is disqualified
for election as President if he or she has already held office for one or
more periods, whether continuous or not, amounting to 10 years”.

If adopted, the clause would block Mugabe, who turns 88 this year and has
ruled the country since independence in 1980, from running again.

The veteran leader was nominated by Zanu (PF) as its candidate for elections
the party is demanding must be held this year despite concerns over his
advanced age and reported failing health.

Paul Mangwana, Zanu (PF)’s representative on Constitutional Parliamentary
Committee (COPAC) leading the writing of the new constitution has said
Mugabe would never sign off the new charter if it blocked him from
contesting the new elections.

Zimbabwe is writing a new constitution as part of a raft of reforms expected
to lead to the new elections.

Police in violent disruption of WOZA Valentine’s Day demo

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk

The Zimbabwe Republic Police violently disrupted a tenth anniversary
demonstration by human rights group Woman of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) in Harare
yesterday.
15.02.1207:35am
by Kingstone Ndabatei

In an interview with The Zimbabwean while scurrying for cover from police
wielding button sticks Jenni Wiliams the fiery National Coordinator of WOZA
said the ZRP does not know its mandate.

“They have persecuted us for the past ten years beating and jailing human
rights activist but we are not intimidated.

“This parliament here is our and when democracy finally comes home there is
need to re-educate our police force so it reflects and is aware of what the
people want,” Williams said

She said WOZA are celebrating ten years of struggle and nothing has changed
in the manner in which the ZRP views demonstrations in Zimbabwe.

Magodonga Mahlangu WOZA Programs Coordinator called on South African
President Jacob Zuma and specifically his chief advisor Lindiwe Zulu to
urgently attend to the issues of violence in Zimbabwe.

“As you can see the police are here in full force and disrupting our
peaceful demonstration, we have not done anything illegal.

“We are calling upon Lindiwe Zulu to impress upon the partners in the Global
Political Agreement (GPA) to remember that they appended their signatures to
the agreement and undertook to uphold its tenets.

“Article 18 of the GPA is specific on the need to respect human and people’s
rights and that includes the right to demonstrate and assemble,” Mahlangu
said.

Meanwhile freelance photojournalist journalist Anderson Shadreck Manyere was
snatched by state security agents while taking pictures of the
demonstration.

Manyere is no stranger to being arrested in as he was arrested in December
2008 and held incommunicado for 11 days amid allegations of torture and
jailed at Chikurubi Maximum prison for almost half a year.

Harare police spokesperson Inspector James Sabau refused to comment on the
issue.

“Normally I do not give comments to freelance journalists before I see them
so I would need t see you and verify you press card first,” Inspector Sabau
said.

Over two hundred women marched to parliament brandishing placards denouncing
the police and calling on Zimbabweans to send tough love to their leaders.

WOZA has since it came into the political picture ten years ago had running
battles with the police, its members have been in and out of jail while the
duo of Jenni Williams and Mahlangu have had broken limbs and bruises after
run ins with police.

Zimbabwe's Jan inflation slows to 4.3 pct y/y

http://af.reuters.com

Wed Feb 15, 2012 12:45pm GMT

HARARE Feb 15 (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's inflation slowed to 4.3 percent
year-on-year in January compared with 4.9 percent in December, the national
statistics agency said on Wednesday.

On a month-on-month basis, inflation quickened to 0.5 percent from 0.2
percent in December.

Zimbabwe tobacco output seen up, but shy of target

http://af.reuters.com

Wed Feb 15, 2012 12:20pm GMT

By Nelson Banya

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's tobacco production is set to continue its
recovery this year, but output might be short of the projected 150 million
kg due to limited funding and erratic rainfall, farmers said as the auction
season opened on Wednesday.

Tobacco, which earned Zimbabwe about $400 million in 2011, has fallen behind
mining as the country's leading foreign currency earner, after President
Robert Mugabe's seizure of white-owned farms saw production of most major
crops plummeting.

Tobacco output declined to 48 million kg in 2008, from a peak of 236 million
kg in 2000.

Small-scale farmers have led a rebound, aided by the use of stable foreign
currencies adopted by the government to replace a local unit destroyed by
hyperinflation, and funding from China - which now dominates a market
previously controlled by Western merchants.

The Tobacco Industry Marketing Board (TIMB), which regulates the sector in
Zimbabwe, says it expects production to reach 150 million kg this year, up
from 131 million kg previously, but farmers say that target is not likely to
be achieved.

"We will be happy if we could match last year's production. The rains were
patchy and many growers dropped out due to lack of funding, so we are
unlikely to see such a significant leap in output," Zimbabwe Farmers Union
vice president Berean Mukwende told Reuters during a ceremony to mark the
official start of the auctions.

Over 50,000 mostly small-scale black farmers have taken over production of
the bulk of the crop, once the preserve of white commercial farmers

Tobacco farmer Elphanos Mashingaidze said although output was unlikely to
change from the previous year, farmers expected firmer prices this time
around.

"Today's opening prices, for what is typically lower grade tobacco, give us
confidence that this year prices could be better," Mashingaidze said. "We
need an average price of $4.50 per kg to farm profitably."

He said while Chinese firms were funding some farmers under contract growing
schemes and purchasing about 75 percent of the crop, many farmers were still
struggling to get bank loans to finance their operations.

Can a new constitution end Mugabe’s reign?

http://www.swradioafrica.com/

By Tichaona Sibanda
15 February 2012

Robert Mugabe may well be facing very serious resistance from within his
ZANU PF party not to contest the next general election, a leading
pro-democracy activist has said.

Dewa Mavhinga, the regional director for Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition, told
SW Radio Africa’s Hidden Story program that several attempts to stop the
ageing Mugabe from contesting have failed and as result people in his party
are using other routes to try and stop him.

He gave as an example the first draft of the new constitution ‘leaked’ to
various organisations that says ‘a person is disqualified for election as
President if he or she has already held office for one or more periods,
whether continuous or not, amounting to 10 years.’

ZANU PF has strong representation in COPAC and its members did not stop this
clause from being included in the first draft, including its co-chairperson
Paul Mangwana.

‘It’s a shrewd move by people who have run out of options on how to contain
Mugabe on the way of democratically barring him from running again for the
presidency. It maybe ZANU PF elements calling out for help that through a
constitutional amendment Mugabe may be stopped from contesting the next
election,’ Mavhinga said.

The 88 year-old Mugabe was nominated by his party as its candidate despite
concerns over his advanced age and reported failing health. Some in ZANU PF
have already blasted the proposal as a personalized attack on Mugabe.

But in a panel discussion on Wednesday with journalist Pedzisayi Ruhanya and
analyst Dr Maxwell Shumba, Johannesburg based lawyer Mavhinga said some in
ZANU PF may well be orchestrating Mugabe’s downfall

‘There is precedence that, in those cases where political parties are unable
to stop an overpowering dictator from running again for the office of
president, the avenue to use is through a constitution that bars the
incumbent.’

He continued: ‘This may be the route that ZANU PF is taking with Mugabe, and
it has happened before in Zambia, Malawi and Namibia. It could turn out to
be the only way to prevent Mugabe from being a life president in Zimbabwe.’

Already recriminations have broken out in ZANU PF over this attempt to bar
Mugabe from seeking another term in office. Politburo member Jonathan Moyo
and Mangwana are openly at odds over the draft.

‘Debate within ZANU PF has been stifled and therefore they are venting their
frustrations and looking at other avenues outside of the party, to effect
the same position, which is to bar their leader from running again,’
Mavhinga added.

Democracy at work – in varying degrees

http://www.iol.co.za/

February 14 2012 at 12:16pm

Peta Thornycroft and Peter Fabricius

Foreign Service

The biggest concern of most SA opposition members of Parliament this week
was whether to wear traditional or Western for Thursday’s opening of
Parliament. Most seemed to opt for Western modern, if the fashion pictures
in the newspapers are to be trusted.

Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe’s big decision of the week seemed to be
whether or not he should go public with his partner, Gugu Mtshali. He did.
The two of them were photographed on the red carpet leading into Parliament
in dark outfits which the Cape Times described as “dignified”.

The 21-gun salutes rocked the Mother City, the military guards drilled in
accurate ranks and the SA Air Force jets roared over in perfect formation in
a disciplined and efficient salute to democracy.

President Jacob Zuma delivered a State of the Nation address in which he
duly gave himself a pass mark for performance over the past three years,
which the DA and other opposition parties duly disputed.

Legitimate questions were asked about whether Zuma’s announcements of huge
infrastructure projects were seriously intended to boost the economy and
provide sorely-needed jobs – or were just pork-barrel politics of the worst
kind in a year in which he desperately needs the support of his own ANC
constituency to be re-elected as party president at Mangaung in December.

Nevertheless, this was a display of parliamentary democracy pretty much as
it should be, even if it masked some worrying concerns about corruption
going all the way to the top and a ruling party as a result becoming
steadily less patient with media scrutiny and criticism.

Now pan the cameras a little to the north, to our neighbour Zimbabwe. There
“opposition” MPs have more existential concerns. So, too, do even members of
Zanu-PF, who are effectively still ruling, who dare to challenge the power
of President Robert Mugabe.

This week the Harare High Court struck down the conviction for kidnapping of
an MP from eastern Zimbabwe, Meki Makuyana, of the Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC), who was sentenced to 18 months in prison in 2009.

Makuyana had been arrested in politically volatile Chipinge near the
Mozambique border when he was taking two people to a local police station.

The Harare High Court this week found that Chipinge magistrate Samuel Zuze’s
management of the case had been “unsafe”.

Others in the legal community put it more bluntly, saying that the police
and magistrate had both simply been incompetent and partisan. Magistrate
Zuze was a full Zanu-PF functionary at the time of Makuyana’s trial, and had
forcibly taken over a white-owned farm. He later died on the bench in court.
But for Makuyana it was a tough time. All MPs sentenced to more than six
months in prison lose their seat in parliament.

He was just one of more than 20 percent of MDC MPs who have been arrested
and flung into filthy cells and then charged with various crimes since
Zimbabwe’s so-called “inclusive government” was formed from Zanu-PF and the
two MDC parties three years ago.

Meanwhile, Zimbabwean Deputy President Joice Mujuru also had more sombre
matters on her mind this week than what to wear to parliament.

Mujuru had just sat through a gruelling inquest into the suspicious death of
her husband, General Solomon Mujuru, who had died in a fire in his farmhouse
in August last year.

The Mujurus were known to lead a more moderate Zanu-PF faction hoping to
succeed the ageing Mugabe as Zanu-PF leader, in competition with other, more
hardline pretenders to the throne. The inquest produced no hard evidence of
the foul play widely speculated to be the cause of Mujuru’s death. But it
did not satisfy many of Mujuru’s supporters, leaving too many questions
unanswered.

Being in opposition to the hard men of Zanu-PF is a hazardous occupation for
anyone. For MDC MPs it has occasionally been a matter of life and death, but
more often of constant harassment by the police and the prosecutors.

That’s because Mugabe and his Zanu-PF cronies remain firmly in charge of the
police and the judiciary – controlling the “hard power” even though they and
the MDC are supposed to be partners in a government of national unity which
is three years old this month.

Many legal analysts in Zimbabwe saw Zanu-PF’s rush to arrest MDC MPs after
the inclusive government was formed as a way of eroding the MDC’s tiny
majority in Zimbabwe’s parliament.

After his acquittal this week, Makuyana said: “How could the police even
consider charging me with kidnapping when all I did was transport two
Zanu-PF guys who had stabbed an MDC activist to a police station?”

He said the Zanu-PF candidate he had beaten in polls a year earlier had
motivated the case against him.

He also said the case had robbed his

constituency of his attention and the struggle for his acquittal had cost
him a “great deal of money”.

In the same province and at nearly the same time, another MDC MP, Mathias
Mlambo, was arrested at a funeral and accused of “inciting violence” even
though the pastor who conducted the service gave evidence exonerating the
accused legislator of any illegal behaviour.

Mlambo was sentenced to eight months in prison, which caused him him to be
expelled from parliament.

He also had the charges against him overturned by the high court later.

Another MDC MP and cabinet minister, Elton Mangoma, was arrested for two
different crimes and in both cases the state was humiliated as prosecutors
were forced to abandon the cases.

Yet another cabinet minister, Moses Mzila, loyal to the much smaller MDC-M
led by Welshman Ncube, is out on bail but awaiting trial for attending a
church service commemorating about 20 000 people who were killed on Mugabe’s
orders in the 1980s by a North Korean-trained brigade he created to crush
the Zapu party, then in opposition.

Another seven MPs loyal to Morgan Tsvangirai were arrested on instructions
from army general Douglas Nyikayaramba. One later went on trial and was
convicted and sentenced to 18 months in prison and thus also lost his
parliamentary seat.

He also was later exonerated when the high court quashed the charges. Many
lower ranks in the Zimbabwe National Army privately admit they despise
Nyikayaramba.

He was given one of Zimbabwe’s most efficient, small, white-owned farms
about 30km north of Harare after effectively running the disputed 2002
presidential poll which declared Mugabe the winner. He claimed at the time
that he had retired from the army. He played a direct role in drastically
cutting down the number of polling stations in Tsvangirai’s Harare
stronghold so that thousands of MDC voters were unable to cast their vote.

Soon after the poll he resumed his army career. Nyikayaramba has regularly
made unprofessional statements about Tsvangirai, declaring that he would not
serve him.

Last December Mugabe promoted him from brigadier-general to major-general
without consulting Tsvangirai – in defiance of the SA-mediated political
agreement, which brought the inclusive government to power.

That Global Political Agreement, which all three parties signed under former
president Thabo Mbeki’s mediation in September 2008, obliges Mugabe to
consult the prime minister on the appointment or reappointments of such
senior civil servants.

The Home Affairs ministry, which has overall control of the police, is
jointly run by Zanu-PF and the MDC in the inclusive government, but Theresa
Makone, the MDC co-minister, says the police hierarchy, including recently
reappointed commissioner-general Augustine Chihuri, will not even meet her
for discussions.

“I try to catch him at social occasions,” she told Saturday Star last year.
Chihuri was also unilaterally reappointed last week by Mugabe after his
contract had expired. The justice minister is also Zanu-PF, and Johannes
Tomana, the attorney-general, who is also a member of the cabinet, does not
even pretend to be neutral, regularly and openly confirming his loyalty to
Zanu-PF.

Mugabe appointed him, also without consulting Tsvangirai, two months after
he signed the Global Political Agreement.

Mugabe and Tsvangirai met on February 8 in Harare and agreed that Chihuri
and several other top policemen whose contracts have expired are merely
“acting” in their positions and have not been “unilaterally” appointed.

Tomana and his prosecutors have an almost 100 percent failure rate in
hundreds of cases against MDC legislators, cabinet ministers and ordinary
supporters since his appointment, even though the higher courts are also
dominated by judges aligned to Zanu-PF.

But MDC officials say Tomana and Mugabe’s aim is not so much to secure
convictions – though that would be the first prize. It is to continue
harassing the MDC, sabotaging its ability to function as a political party.

MPs expelled from parliament and then acquitted by the higher courts
eventually do get back into the House of Assembly, which has 210 seats,
although only 207 were fought in the 2008 elections, as three candidates
died before the poll.

About 30 MPs have died since the last election.

Chinese nationals in Zim admit to animal cruelty

http://www.swradioafrica.com/

 

 

Four Chinese nationals have pleaded guilty to contravening the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act Chapter 19-09.

THE ZIMBABWE NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS (ZNSPCA)

15th February 2012
Harare, Zimbabwe

CHINESE NATIONALS ADMIT TO ANIMAL CRUELTY

The four nationals Zhang Hong Yuan, Chen Caijan, Lin Guibin and Shi Jiahua resided at Chiwara Homestead located near Gambakwe Village in Bikita. These individuals had procured Bells Hinged Tortoises from the local community for personal consumption.

The Bells Hinged Tortoise is listed under CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) Appendix II and its numbers in the wild have dwindled significantly over recent years.

On the 28th December 2011, following reports from the local community, Scouts from the National Parks & Wildlife Management Authority together with The Save Valley Conservancy Anti-Poaching Unit conducted a raid at the residence of the Chinese. The Raid recovered 13 live tortoises together with the skeletal remains of a further 40.

The tortoises had been stored in two empty 200ltr steel drums with no provisions for food or water. Stagnant water and fecal matter was evident as was overcrowding. Written statements from members of the community stated that the tortoises were dropped into boiling water whilst alive in order to separate the shell from the meat. Tortoise meat was also recovered during the raid. The extreme cruelty of such actions are a clear violation of the Animal Welfare Act as defined.

The Save Valley Conservancy Anti-Poaching unit notified the Tikki Hywood Trust who in turn contacted the ZNSPCA.
Inspectors were dispatched to Bikita in order to undertake investigations into the matter. As a result of the investigations, charges of cruelty were laid against the four Chinese Nationals. When interviewed the four Chinese all admitted guilt in contravening the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act. The Chinese were consequently arrested and fined.
Further investigations revealed that these accused nationals had been employed locally without relevant immigration documentation. The four men have since been arrested are now detained in a state security prison pending deportation.

The ZNSPCA would like to commend the joint efforts undertaken by the Zimbabwe Republic Police, National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, The Tikki Hywood Trust and The Save Valley Conservancy Anti-Poaching Unit which resulted in these arrests.

As an organisation, the ZNSPCA is greatly concerned with the increasing cases of cruelty to all animals within Zimbabwe.
Our wildlife remains a legacy for future generations of Zimbabweans and we should jealously guard their future wellbeing.
In accordance with our mandate we will vigorously pursue and prosecute any individuals found guilty of contravening the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.

 

U.S. awards Self Help grants to Zimbabwean schools and orphans