http://www.zimdiaspora.com
FRIDAY, 11 JANUARY 2013
14:28
By Thamsanqa Zhou in London, UK
Zimbabwe's Minister of
Finance Tendai Biti has told investors in Britain
that his country will have
elections on 29th October 2013.
Minister Biti was speaking at the
ZimInvest London 2013 Forum "Why Zimbabwe
Matters" hosted by Country Factor
at the British capital this morning.
He said upon the elections
Zimbabwe has become a safe and lucrative place
to come and invest, adding
that Zimbabwe is "unambiguously the place to be
by 2015".
The Finance
minister assured investors that Zimbabwe is going to have "make
or break"
elections by 29th October 2013 which needed to be credible,
legitimate and
provide a sustainable end to political conflict. He said his
Ministry was
next week going to provide funds for the registration of voters
to ensure
that the voters' roll was sound and no longer contained " millions
of
deceased people who have a tendency of resurrecting every time we have
elections."
Minister Biti said Zimbabwe was on course to have a new
constitution even if
it meant incorporating into amendment 20, the areas
parties have already
agreed and having a referendum at the same time as
elections on those
contentious issues.
Zimbabwe "is pregnant" with
opportunities in energy, mining, agriculture and
an educated workforce, Mr
Biti added. He said his ministry was working on a
new Diamond law that will
enable a new Agency to be created that will ensure
transparency in the
contentious diamond mining in Zimbabwe. He acknowledged
that "at the moment,
there is a mismatch between production figures and what
the treasury is
getting." He said a new law was needed because Zimbabwe was
likely to be the
world's biggest producer of diamonds within a few years.
He said the iron
ore deposits in the Mwanesi area we worth about USD43
Billion metric tonnes
while coal and methane gas, platinum, gold and "other
marvellous discoveries
I can not disclose at the moment" make Zimbabwe a
place to be for mining
investors.
He added that his ministry was committed to reducing mining
fees by 50
percent but encouraged the Zimbabwe Chamber of Mines to engage
his office
more on what the industry needed.
Minister Biti said since
coming into Government in 2009, he had initiated
the Short Term Emergency
Programme (STEP) that has set Zimbabwe on a growth
trajectory and out of the
economic crisis where inflation had broken all
records known to bring sanity
with an "eat what you kill" policy where "we
sustainably live within our
means."
He said Zimbabwe achieved the highest growth rate in the world in
2011,
which was testimony to efforts to create a 200 billion economy by
2020.
He invited British companies to consider applying for tenders in
energy
because, "we will spend a billion US Dollar in upgrading Hwange Power
Station, need a hydro power station at Batoka and some 20 mini hydro power
stations in Manicaland."
Zimbabwe businessman Mutumwa Mawere,
attending the conference said it was
good to hear of an optimistic picture
of Zimbabwe but encouraged the
Government of Zimbabwe to do more in the area
of ensuring security of
investment.
In the past week, the Ministry
responsible for Lands has committed to
ensuring that all farms that were
covered by Bilateral Agreements were not
going to be part of the
resettlement programme and moved out blacks who had
been allocated a farm in
Mazowe in response to those who feared breach of
their property rights.
http://www.bdlive.co.za
BY RAY NDLOVU, JANUARY 11 2013,
05:33
ZIMBABWE Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai moved on Thursday to deal
with the
bungling that has characterised the start of the national voter
registration
exercise, ahead of elections set to take place this
year.
Mr Tsvangirai, who cut short his holiday in Europe, met officials
from the
Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) in a bid to address the delays
that have
marked the exercise. Voter registration was initially scheduled to
start on
January 3, but commission officials cited inadequate funds as the
underlying
reason for the failure to roll out the
exercise.
Government minister Obert Gutu, a member of Mr Tsvangirai’s
Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC), said on Thursday that Mr Tsvangirai
had decided to
meet the ZEC officials to spur on the process.
Earlier
this week, Mr Tsvangirai met Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa over
the
delays of the disbursement of funding to the commission. The election
body
said it needed $21m to carry out the two-month long exercise. Part of
the
funds will be used to clean up the voters’ roll — which allegedly has
dead
persons on it — and has been presided over by registrar-general Tobaiwa
Mudede, an ally of President Robert Mugabe.
Mr Chinamasa criticised
Mr Tsvangirai for inefficiency and failure to pull
together the required
resources for the registration exercise. In defence of
Mr Tsvangirai, Mr
Gutu said: "The prime minister’s office is not responsible
for funding ZEC,
it is the duty of Treasury to fund it. But in spite of the
misleading
remarks concerning Mr Tsvangirai and concerning the prime
minister’s office
that were attributed to Mr Chinamasa … Mr Tsvangirai met
the ZEC officials
and the relevant stakeholders as plans to capacitate ZEC
continue to gather
momentum."
Political observers said the mudslinging reflected the
challenges that lie
ahead as the country prepares for the
elections.
A threat by Mr Mugabe to unilaterally call for elections in
March appears to
have lost steam as he is away on holiday in the Far East
and expected back
at work next month. Suggestions now gaining ground in
political circles are
that the elections will be held in June — the official
end of Mr Mugabe’s
five-year term.
The referendum on a new
constitution and elections, key events on the
national calendar, are
expected to cost $192m. But Finance Minister Tendai
Biti, an MDC-T member,
has prepared a budget of $50m.
Welshman Ncube, the leader of the smaller
MDC faction, indicated earlier
this month that the country may have to turn
to the Southern African
Development Community and African Union to meet the
election fund shortfall.
But Zanu (PF) has taken umbrage at suggestions of
enlisting the help of
foreign bodies and western-linked nongovernmental
organisations for the
election funds, citing fears of the country losing its
sovereignty.
Meanwhile, Mr Biti this week made an appeal for Canada to
drop the sanctions
it has imposed since 2001 on Mr Mugabe and members of his
top brass.
"The use of sanctions and isolation, I think they’ve outlived
their
usefulness," he said in an address at Carleton University in Ottawa.
http://www.voazimbabwe.com
Thomas
Chiripasi
10.01.2013
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has ordered the
Zimbabwe Electoral
Commission (ZEC) to start carrying out its constitutional
mandate of
supervising the registration of voters rolls by the
Registrar-General’s
Office.
The prime minister on Thursday met with
officials from ZEC and the
Registrar-General’s Office, as well as Justice
Minister Patrick Chinamasa,
acting Finance Minister Theresa Makone and
Acting Constitutional and
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Nelson Chamisa, to
assess progress in voter
education and registration since their group's
inaugural meeting in December
2012.
Details of the meeting are
unclear, but after the meeting, the prime
minister’s spokesman, William
Bango, told journalists that Mr. Tsvangirai
was unhappy that voter education
and registration is running behind
schedule.
Bango said it
was agreed that the Registrar-General’s Office will no longer
handle voter
registration. The Registrar-General’s Office has been accused
in previous
elections of tampering with the voter rolls.
Studio 7, in its own
investigations, has found clear errors in the rolls.
For example, the late
former Prime Minister Ian Douglas Smith is still
listed as an eligible
voter.
When asked about the prime minister’s announcement on Thursday,
Registrar-General Mudede declined to answer any questions.
Joice
Kazembe, deputy ZEC chairperson, said the commission is ready to start
voter
education and registration work as soon as resources are provided by
the
finance ministry. She said her commission requires $13 million to carry
out
the exercise.
Acting Finance Minister Makone said the money required by
ZEC is available
and that voter education and registration will start soon.
However, she did
not provide an exact date for the start of the
exercise.
Prime Minister Tsvangirai, who as head of government business
was tasked by
the unity government principals to oversee election
preparations, cut short
his annual year-end leave to deal, in part, with
delays in voter education
and registration.
The Daily News newspaper
also reported on Thursday that President Robert
Mugabe is expected to return
from his holiday in the Far East on Thursday,
ahead of schedule, to resume
work on revisions to the constitution.
Both Mugabe and Tsvangirai have
agreed that elections will take place this
year after a referendum on the
proposed constitution.
However, Zanu PF party officials have stated
several times that elections
should go ahead with or without a new governing
charter, if differences over
the new draft constitution are not
resolved.
For prespective on this issue VOA turned to Psychology
Maziwisa, the
indigenization ministry’s legal advisor and deputy justice
minister Obert
Gutu of the MDC-T formation.
http://www.dailynews.co.zw
Friday, 11 January 2013 12:11
HARARE -
Zimbabwe’s electoral body has defended its contact with Prime
Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai saying allegations that he is meddling with the
electoral
process are dishonest.
Joyce Kazembe, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission
(Zec) deputy commission
chairperson, said this after meeting Tsvangirai to
discuss modalities for
this year’s referendum and general
election.
Zec is a constitutional body set up after the formation of the
coalition
government in 2009.
It is mandated with running a smooth
and credible election following the
sham 2008 polls and Tsvangirai has been
working closely with the body to
ensure it gets off the ground.
Home
Affairs and acting Finance minister Theresa Makone, Justice minister
Patrick
Chinamasa and Registrar General (RG) Tobaiwa Mudede attended
yesterday’s
meeting.
“The Prime Minister is merely facilitating. He is not meddling,”
Kazembe
said.
Reports in the public media have quoted “analysts”
saying Tsvangirai is now
interfering with Zec processes in the wake of a
series of meetings the PM
has held with the electoral body and related
ministries. Others claimed
Tsvangirai was using the meetings to facilitate
rigging.
Tsvangirai’s spokesperson William Bango told the Daily News that
his boss is
a political facilitator.
“The Prime Minister, as an
interested political player, will recuse himself
from Zec processes as soon
as it is rolled out,” said Bango.
“It is mischief of the highest order
for anybody to suggest that he is
interfering with a process that we all
know he is working hard to push
through. In as much as Zec would want to be
independent of political
intrusion, it still needs resources from the state;
that is where the PM
comes in,” Bango said.
Kazembe said delays by
government in releasing funds for the commencement of
voter registration and
education exercises are stalling the commission’s
work.
“Of course we
are frustrated. We want to be out there in the field, that is
our work and
if we had our way the process of voter education and
registration would have
begun on 3 January,” said Kazembe.
“We are hopeful though that the money
will be released soon. However, soon
is a relative term, it could mean
anything,” Kazembe said.
Makone said she would be meeting with
technocrats at the Finance ministry to
make sure the $13 million required to
kick-start the programme is released
“quickly”.
“The Prime Minister
has assured me that he has been assured by minister Biti
that the funds are
there. I will today meet with staff at the ministry to
make sure it is
authorised and released to Zec,” said Makone.
“It is a fact the money is
there, so we will find out what is causing the
delays,” Makone
said.
Biti last week promised to give Zec $1 million that he said was
required to
begin voter registration and education. Zec has since submitted
a $22
million budget from which the RG’s office will get $13
million.
The remainder will be used by the commission.
Government
has also blamed Zec for delaying the submission of its budget
proposals.
Kazembe said government had approved the budget presented
by the commission.
Bango said the Tsvangirai’s office had only received
the proposals from Zec
after the Christmas holidays.
“We only
received the budget on the 2nd of January but everything has now
been
finalised. As soon as the money has been released, it will be up to Zec
to
begin its work.
“I must also say that the Registrar General (RG) is the
custodian of all our
records hence his presence here and during the exercise
that Zec will
undertake. However, the buck stops at Zec’s door. The
commission is now
fully functional and now in charge. It is legally mandated
with monitoring
all the electorally aligned work by the RG’s office,” said
Bango.
Zimbabwe is gearing for a watershed election that has stalled
because of
constant bickering over a new constitution.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona Sibanda
11 January
2013
A senior MDC-T official on Friday raised concern at the continued
absence of
the chairperson of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, saying it
is a serious
impediment to the electoral body’s operations at this crucial
stage.
ZEC chairman, Justice Simpson Mtambanengwe, is reportedly spending
most of
his time in Namibia where he’s an acting Judge of the Supreme Court,
he also
currently heads a Ministry of Health commission of
inquiry.
‘I think you can actually suspect that it’s a ZANU PF strategy
to ensure
that Justice Mtambanengwe is not involved in the nuts and bolts of
ZEC’s
operations,’ the official said.
Mtambanengwe’s absence was also
mentioned in the latest report released by
the Human Rights Watch (HRW). The
rights watchdog said with the Judge based
in Windhoek the electoral body was
effectively being run by Joyce Kazembe, a
strong Robert Mugabe
ally.
HRW accuses Kazembe of being part of the discredited electoral
commissions
that presided over previous elections, which were marred by
violence and
voter intimidation.
Pedzisayi Ruhanya, a political
analyst and director at the Zimbabwe
Democracy Institute, is of the view
that Mtambanengwe is having second
thoughts about staying on in the
job.
Ruhanya told SW Radio Africa’s Election Watch program on Friday that
the
Judge could be thinking of stepping down. ‘He’s of the view that if he
keeps
the job and his commission fails to deliver an independent electoral
verdict, he will tarnish his image and as a lawyer, he would not want to be
tainted,’ Ruhanya said.
It is known that despite the appointment of
new commissioners, the
secretariat staff is largely the same pro ZANU PF
team that worked for
previous commissions.
HRW said several senior
ZEC staff are either serving or retired members of
the security forces drawn
from the Central Intelligence Organization (CIO),
the army, and the police.
11 January 2013
PRESS
STATEMENT BY THE SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE MDC PRISCILA
MISIHAIRABWI-MUSHONGA
The MDC is pushing the Registrar General,
Tobaiwa Mudede, to introduce an
online voter registration system, which
allows voter registrations to be
done on the internet in an effort to boost
registrations, particularly the
youths for the imminent
polls.
Cognisant of the trends the world over, we feel that in this
technological
era, the current system of voter registration in Zimbabwe is
nonsensical.
Registering online allows the kind of privacy and freedom from
pressure that
the current voter registration process lacks. It could also
prove to be a
great motivator for youth voters and
others.¬¬¬¬¬¬¬
While we welcome the introduction of mobile registration
points, the MDC
feels that the process is unnecessarily cumbersome, which
discourages the
younger generation from registering as voters. If
implemented as soon as
possible, we are convinced that we can push up the
dismal 18 percent youth
voter turnout that was recorded during the 2008
elections to a more
significant number in the imminent polls.
With
online registration, queues which are a common feature at most voter
registration points could be reduced. This would also boost the registration
of young voters who do not want the hassle of queuing to
register.
The RG is already doing it with passports and therefore as a
party we call
upon him to introduce a similar system for voter registration.
If complex
applications such as ones for visas can be completed online, what
can be so
difficult about doing this for voter registration?
Findings
by the Zimbabwe All Media Products and Survey (ZAMPS) show that up
to 1.3
million people in Zimbabwe have some form of Internet access, whether
at
home, in office, Internet Café or by mobile phones. The MDC believes that
this is a significant population and should be tapped into as a matter of
urgency.
Today many lower- income Zimbabweans in both rural and urban
areas are able
to secure a mobile phone and a SIM card as prices have
drastically gone
down, unlike in the past when it was a preserve of the
elite.
The internet based system would also ensure that Zimbabweans
living in the
Diaspora are able to register without necessarily having to
travel back
home.
MDC Secretary General
Priscilla Misihairabwi
– Mushonga
http://www.voazimbabwe.com
Gibbs
Dube
10.01.2013
As Zimbabwe inches closer to the next crucial general
election set to end
Zimbabwe’s shaky government of national unity formed in
2009, some
journalists have now abandoned their pens in favour of
parliamentary seats
mostly in Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s Movement
for Democratic Change
(MDC) formation.
One of the potential
parliamentary candidates is award-winning journalist,
Geoffrey Nyarota,
founding editor of the once popular independent newspaper,
The Daily
News.
At least eight former and active journalists and radio
personalities are
expected to contest for parliamentary seats in the MDC-T
and Zanu PF primary
elections within the next few weeks.
They also
include MDC founder and former Zimbabwe Mirror reporter Grace
Kwinjeh,
ex-ZBC anchorman Supa Mandiwanzira and his colleagues – Ezra
‘Tshisa’
Sibanda, Eric Knight and James Maridadi.
MDC-T organizing secretary
Nelson Chamisa told VOA Studio 7 that there is an
unprecedented number of
practicing and retired media workers who want to
participate in his party’s
primaries at grassroots level.
Chamisa said the media personalities will
be subjected to the same grueling
selection process as other potential
candidates.
Nyarota is currently preparing for this tough selection
process set to kick
off within the next few weeks.
The former Daily
News boss, whose newspaper was banned by the Robert Mugabe
government for
allegedly promoting a regime change agenda in 2003, said the
people of
Makoni South have asked him to represent them in the coming
election.
Nyarota, who wants to unseat MDC-T lawmaker Pishai
Muchauraya, is promising
the people of Makoni South more vigorous, vibrant
and knowledgeable
representation in the House of Assembly.
Another
potential candidate, radio personality Sibanda, said he has been
pushed by
what he calls the ‘spirit’ of democracy and the plight of the
people in
Vungu constituency, Midlands Province, to venture full-time into
politics
under Mr. Tsvangirai’s MDC formation.
However, Maridadi, who is the
former prime minister’s wordsmith, said
although he has not yet made up his
mind about contesting in the MDC-T
primaries, he will respond positively if
people in Mabvuku constituency,
Harare, want him to be their parliamentary
representative.
His former ZBC colleague and director of ZI-FM
Radio Station, Mandiwanzira,
believes that journalists now want to influence
political processes through
the house of assembly instead of writing
stories.
He is reportedly eyeing the Nyanga North constituency. Apart
from
Mandiwanzira, two other former journalists - Kindness Paradza and
Makhosini
Hlongwane - are expected to seek nominations under the Zanu PF
ticket.
Paradza, who is a former publisher of Africa Tribune Newspapers
Group, once
represented Makonde constituency while Hlongwane is the current
Mberengwa
East lawmaker.
Some of the potential candidates have
already started their ground
campaigns, though they are facing some
financial challenges.
Sibanda has already committed his savings to a
grassroots campaign in Vungu
constituency.
On the other hand, Nyarota
believes that the grassroots campaign will not be
a costly exercise as
people in Makoni South are expected to contribute “a
few Obamas (US
dollars)” for his electoral activities.
Some of the renowned journalists
who have graced the august House of
Assembly include National Healing
Minister Sekai Holland, Information
Minister Webster Shamu and his Zanu PF
colleagues - Nathan Shamuyarira, Chen
Chimutengwende, Hhlongwane and
Paradza.
Even if these well-known personalities win their primary
elections, the road
to parliament is long and sometimes dangerous.
In
the 2008 poll, more than 200 people, mostly MDC activists, died and
thousands were displaced due to violence allegedly perpetrated by Zanu PF
supporters.
Mr. Tsvangirai, Kwinjeh, Minister Holland and several
other MDC members were
among those who were seriously injured.
http://mg.co.za
11 JAN 2013 08:03 - KENNEDY MAPOSA
The Mujuru
grouping wants to lure Zanu-PF defector Simba Makoni back into
the fold to
add some 'polish'.
The Zanu-PF faction aligned with the late army
general Solomon Mujuru is
said to be courting the former finance minister
and politburo member, who
defected from the party in 2008 to run against
President Robert Mugabe and
Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan
Tsvangirai.
A Zanu-PF source said that the Mujuru grouping feels
strategically
outmanoeuvred by the faction led by Emmerson Mnangagwa, which
has managed to
lure leaders who left with Makoni, or who were suspended,
back to the party.
Another Mnangagwa ally, Daniel Shumba, a former
Zanu-PF Masvingo provincial
chairperson, was readmitted to the party in
2010, despite having led an
opposition grouping, the United People's
Party.
The move to woo Makoni is part of a strategy to strengthen
leadership of the
Mujuru faction following Mujuru's mysterious death in a
fire at his
farmhouse in 2011, a source said.
"Many doubt that under
[party vice-president] Joice Mujuru the faction can
match the tactical
sharpness of the Mnangagwa faction. She is not articulate
on policy issues.
It's the reason Makoni is being looked at," the source
claimed.
"Makoni can come in as a strategist, working under Mujuru to
give the
faction some polish."
However, Makoni denied this week that
he is talking to Zanu-PF about
rejoining the party. His spokesperson, Joel
Mapaura, said: "There is no
truth in these reports. He has not been
approached."
In a move that shook the party just before the 2008
elections, Makoni left
Zanu-PF and formed the Mavambo/Kusile/Dawn (MKD)
movement. The MKD fared
badly in the presidential poll, managing to secure
just 8.31% of the votes,
compared with Mugabe's 43.24% and Tsvangirai's
47.87%.
MKD candidates, including the late Edgar Tekere, Margaret Dongo
and former
education minister Fay Chung, did not win a single parliamentary
seat.
Zanu-PF has recently accepted top members of the MKD movement back
into its
ranks. Among them are former journalist Kindness Paradza, who
returned to
the party last month, and retired army major Kudzai Mbudzi, both
alleged to
be Mnangagwa supporters.
The sources said Makoni's suitors
are being careful not to anger Mugabe, who
is said to have been briefed
about the overtures without necessarily
endorsing them.
Opposition to
Makoni
Some Zanu-PF leaders are also apparently resisting Makoni's
return.
"People like Didymus Mutasa [the Zanu-PF secretary for
administration]
oppose Makoni's readmission. He feels [Makoni] could upset
his possible rise
to a higher position and challenge him as the party's
godfather in
Manicaland," said the source.
"Remember that they once
fought after Makoni tried to oppose him in the
Zanu-PF primaries some years
back."
Key members of Makoni's MKD have deserted the party, notably
Dumiso
Dabengwa, who left in 2010 to revive Zapu.
A strategist for
MKD, Ibbo Mandaza, also exited after disagreements with
Makoni over the
management of funds and donated vehicles.
Zanu-PF spokesperson Rugare
Gumbo said he was not aware of any overtures
being made. "I've been on leave
and I don't know about these talks with
Makoni," he said.
Mutasa said
Makoni would have to seek readmission to Zanu-PF personally.
"Those who
returned pleaded to be readmitted; Makoni has not done that. But
if he wants
to rejoin the party, we will not just admit him like we did with
the others.
A mini-meeting to consider that would have to be held."
Mutasa declined
to explain why such a "mini-meeting" with Makoni would be
required.
http://nehandaradio.com
on January 11, 2013 at 12:42
pm
By Staff Reporter
The notorious leader of the Zimbabwe
National Liberation War Veterans
Association (ZNLWVA) Jabulani Sibanda says
freedom fighters cannot be
separated from Zanu PF, as the two have the same
ideology.
He said there was nothing wrong with revolutionary
ex-combatants aligning
themselves with Zanu PF because its opponents had
former Rhodesian soldiers.
The combative Sibanda also said it was
improper for MDC formations to say
traditional leaders should be apolitical
when the British system recognised
the need to have royal representatives in
all security systems.
“Is it by accident that (David Coltart) is a member
of the MDC? Is it by
accident that (Roy) Bennett and (Giles) Mutsekwa are
members of the MDC-T?
These are former Rhodesian soldiers, who opposed the
revolution that took
them out, yet they are in politics so why shouldn’t
freedom fighters be in
politics,” he said.
(All three MDC and MDC-T
officials have denied this allegation in the past).
“We have to be where
we are because we believe we were set up for a purpose
to overthrow a
settler regime in our country and imperialism that enables
bigger nations to
exploit smaller nations,” Sibanda rumbled on.
“We are politically
conscious and there is no way you can divorce us from
the understanding that
gives us courage to march on and standing for a hard
right against an easy
wrong. We cannot be divorced from Zanu PF,” he added.
MDC-T spokesperson
Douglas Mwonzora however said “Nobody has denied war
veterans the right to
associate politically, in fact in the draft
constitution they are not
prohibited from joining a political party of their
choice.
“What they
are prohibited is to engage in violence or force other
Zimbabweans to think
as they think and to adopt political preferences of
individual war
veterans,” said Mwonzora.
Last year Sibanda embarked on an intensive and
extensive terror campaign in
the Manicaland and Masvingo provinces,
threatening villagers with war if
they do not vote for Zanu PF in the next
elections. His campaigns of
intimidation elsewhere continue with police
taking no action.
http://www.newzimbabwe.com/
11/01/2013 00:00:00
by Staff
Reporter
PROFESSOR Gordon Chavunduka, the former Vice
Chancellor of the University of
Zimbabwe and president of the Zimbabwe
National Traditional Healers’
Association (ZINATHA) has died.
He was
82.
Chavunduka – who published several books about traditional medicine
and
witchcraft – died in Harare on Friday following a brief illness, a
statement
by the Movement for Democratic Change said.
Chavunduka, who
attended the 1979 Lancaster House Conference that led to
Zimbabwe’s
independence as a member of Abel Muzorewa’s delegation, is a
former member
of the MDC-T’s national executive and sat on its Council of
Elders at the
time of his death.
Born to a family of nine, Chavunduka was the only
survivor after he buried
his young brother, Zimbabwe’s first black
veterinary surgeon Dexter Mark
Chavunduka in August last year.
http://www.newzimbabwe.com
11/01/2013 00:00:00
by
Nelson Banya I Reuters
IMPALA Platinum, the world's second-largest
platinum miner, has agreed to
sell a majority stake in its Zimbabwe unit to
local black investors for $971
million to meet black ownership targets set
by President Robert Mugabe.
The deal, which will see the Zimplats unit
lend the money needed to buy the
stake, is Zimbabwe's largest local
ownership transaction and a major scalp
for Mugabe's controversial black
economic empowerment push, the centerpiece
of his campaign for re-election
in polls due this year.
The 88-year-old, who has been in power since
independence in 1980, says the
local ownership policy – as with the seizure
of white-owned commercial farms
since 2000 – is meant to redress colonial
imbalances. His critics dismiss it
as populism by his Zanu PF party in the
run-up to the elections.
"The transaction being concluded today is a
flagship of the policy
objectives of our government's empowerment of
indigenous Zimbabweans,"
Indigenisation Minister Saviour Kasukuwere, leading
the push, said at a
signing ceremony.
Kasukuwere said the transaction
was proof that ordinary Zimbabweans and not
those close to Mugabe were
benefiting.
Under the deal, Implats will transfer 51 percent of Zimplats to
Zimbabwean
investors as follows: 10 percent to the community, 10 percent to
Zimplats
employees and 31 percent to the state-controlled National
Indigenisation and
Economic Empowerment Fund.
The fund, which
officials say has $2 billion of assets, is headed by retired
general Mike
Nyambuya and administered by Kasukuwere, a senior official in
Mugabe's Zanu
PF party.
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's MDC party, which joined Zanu
PF in a
power-sharing government in 2009, has been arguing that the fund – a
rough
equivalent of a sovereign wealth fund – should be housed under the
finance
ministry.
Zimplats will provide a loan to the new
shareholders at annual interest of
10 percent. The debt is to be repaid
through dividends over 10 years while
management of Zimplats will remain
with the company, Impala said.
Implats chief executive Terence Goodlace
said the company had confidence in
Zimbabwe and was committed to a $460
million expansion of Zimplats'
operations.
"I am, during these
uncertain economic times, excited about the future of
Zimplats and platinum
mining in Zimbabwe," he said. "The uncertainty that
has dogged Zimplats
during the negotiations is now hopefully a thing of the
past."
Zimplats said in March it had agreed to sell the stake to
locals, and has
been hammering out the terms of the deal since then. The
transaction should
be wrapped up by the end of June, and looks likely to
lead to other mining
firms concluding deals.
"This was the elephant
in the room. After this everyone will fall into
line," a local banker who
structured the deal said.
Last month, Implats and Aquarius signed another
deal to sell 51 percent of
shares in their Mimosa joint venture to comply
with the black empowerment
law in a transaction worth $550
million.
Anglo American Platinum, the world's largest producer of the
metal, also
agreed to transfer a majority stake in its Unki mine to locals
in a $142.8
million deal last November.
Zimbabwe has the largest
known platinum deposits after neighboring South
Africa although the 51
percent local ownership law has taken the shine off
the country as an
investment destination.
Kasukuwere is also leading a push to force banks
to comply with the
ownership laws, and said at the ceremony that foreign
banks would not be
spared.
http://mg.co.za
11 JAN 2013 10:08 - INYASHA
CHIVARA
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights claims that there appears to be
a police
hit squad that is killing criminal suspects in custody.
The
non-governmental organisation has documented evidence of what appears to
be
a trend - suspects are arrested, tortured, beaten and shot. It has
documented more than a dozen cases in the past two years in which suspects
have died under similar circumstances.
A senior member of the police
told the Mail & Guardian that criminals have
become a "bother and burden
to the state" and the kill-in-custody policy "is
nothing new within the
force", which appears to back up the NGO's claim.
Tawanda Zhuwarara, a
lawyer with the organisation, said they had "noticed
the emergence of a
disturbing pattern and the similarities cannot be mere
coincidence. Suspects
are arrested, injured while in custody [and] suddenly
they are allegedly
shot while allegedly attempting to escape."
Glaring discrepancies in
police reports, government-conducted autopsies, the
testimonies of relatives
and friends, and independent postmortems point to a
possible undeclared
countrywide policy to kill suspected criminals.
"We have noticed an
unusual pattern, especially in the vehicle theft squad.
There is either
gross complicity or, [more] likely, a culture of impunity
towards the death
of suspects in police custody," Zhuwarara said.
M&G investigations
and legal documents reveal that:
The police said they had referred the
matter for an inquest and were not
legally obliged to provide
dockets.
Raymond Matinyenya, a vehicle theft suspect, died in Harare in
police
custody in August 2011. State media reported that Matinyenya died in
a
shoot-out after he "attempted to flee from police", but pictures of his
corpse show a bullet wound under his chin. In a letter, copied to police
Commissioner General Augustine Chihuri, the NGO demanded that the police
inform the family of the circumstances that led to "your officers shooting
and killing Matinyenya" and to provide Matinyenga's docket.
In March
2012, Emmson Ngundu, also arrested for vehicle theft, was shot
allegedly
trying to escape from police custody. Ngundu's family said they
were denied
a copy of the postmortem report.
In a high court affidavit, Dorothy
Chiwaridzo said her son, Tendayi Dzigarwi
(23), was severely assaulted and
died in police custody after he was
arrested for stealing a vehicle in March
last year. Chiwaridzo said she was
denied access to her son.
Later Amison
Ngundu, whose son Emmson was arrested with Dzigarwi, said
both their
children had been shot and killed by vehicle theft officers while
allegedly
trying to escape.
The court ordered a second postmortem, which was
carried out by an
independent pathologist, Dr SR Naidoo. "It is most likely
that the victim
was shot through the back first with a muzzle at a distance
[of less than]
45 to 60cm away from his back, [later] he was shot at close
range with the
muzzle of [the] firearm two to three centimetres away from
the skin on the
right side of the neck," he stated in his
report.
Naidoo noted extensive bleeding under the skin and in the muscles
of his
buttocks, the left lower limb and the right upper limb that "could
have been
caused by blunt weapons or instruments".
His report also
said Dzigarwi may have gone for at least 36 hours without
food, as there was
no food content in his intestines.
Countering the findings of the report,
the acting head of the criminal
investigations department vehicle theft
squad, Lovemore Nxumalo, said the
police postmortem showed that the deceased
had "covered a distance of about
15 to 20 metres" before being
shot.
In September 2012, the police told Wellington Muchadenyika's
family that
he had died in a car accident on the Harare-Mutare road. On
inquiry, the
family was told that there was no docket relating to the
alleged accident at
the traffic department, and the police could not
identify where the accident
had happened.
In a letter to the police,
Wellington's brother, Johannes Muchadenyika,
said the family knew he had
been arrested for allegedly stealing a cellphone
a day before his death and
had been detained at the Dombotombo police
station. When relatives asked
about Wellington's whereabouts, they were told
that he had been in an
accident and was at the Marondera provincial
hospital. But the hospital said
he had never been admitted.
Johannes said Wellington's body had "several
bruises and a broken shoulder
bone. The shoulder was detached and virtually
hanging by the skin". The
family said they never received a postmortem
report.
In Kwekwe in the Midlands province, Blessing Matanda (29) was
arrested on
his way to work in October last year and held at the Munyati
police post for
questioning about a break-in at a shop and theft. On October
4, Matanda's
wife visited him at the police station, where she was told that
her husband
was being interrogated by the criminal investigations
department.
A day later, Matanda's brother was told Blessing had shot
himself. At the
time, the police said Matanda had smuggled a firearm into
the cells.
But an independent pathologist, Dr Salvator Mapunda, who is
contracted to
the NGO, said it was highly unlikely that Matanda's death was
suicidal.
The organisation faces many legal hurdles in its quest for
justice. Under
the Inquest Act, an individual is not allowed to instigate an
investigation
of a death in police custody. It is the prerogative of the
police to report
sudden death to a magistrate. The magistrate may take
steps, if deemed
necessary, to ascertain the cause of death or to bring the
alleged murderers
to justice.
"The problem we are facing is that the
investigation of a death in police
custody is the prerogative of the police,
who are tasked with investigating
themselves. Their actions are not open to
public scrutiny, and they are not
accessible to any aggrieved person because
of statutory impediments,"
Zhuwarara said.
"Once in police custody,
you are at the complete mercy of the state."
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tererai
Karimakwenda
11 January 2013
A ZANU PF legislator, implicated in the
murder of an MDC-T ward official
last year, has reportedly fired all school
teachers in his constituency who
are not ZANU PF supporters and were not
raised in the area.
SW Radio Africa correspondent Lionel Saungweme spoke
to teachers who said MP
Newton Kachepa from Mudzi North, gave orders for all
primary and secondary
school teachers who support the MDC formations to pack
their bags and leave
Mudzi.
The orders were given on Wednesday at a
meeting that was also addressed by a
ZANU PF youth ministry official by the
name of Kativu.
According to Saungweme, at least 15 teachers in the area
had already been
affected before the meeting. Among them is the MDC-T
chairman for Mudzi
West, who was transferred to Muzarabani. The latest
orders are meant to
clear up the remaining teachers who have not yet
moved.
“Kativu addressed teachers in the presence of district education
officers.
He told MP Kachepa it was his duty to empower the youth by giving
them
teaching jobs. But my sources said the youth who have been hired to
replace
teachers do not have qualifications to teach,” Saungweme
explained.
He added: “Some of the staff brought in by Kachepa do not even
have five O’levels.
Among them is a ZANU PF youth named Fungayi Kangora who
is teaching at
Nyamaropa Secondary School.”
Last year MP Kachepa was
accused of transporting ZANU PF supporters who
attacked a group of MDC-T
gathering for a rally at Nyamukoko Business
Centre. The mob assaulted the
rally goers, causing the death of MDC-T ward 1
chairman, Cephas
Magura.
Kachepa was also later linked to reports that Magura’s family had
been
banned from holding a memorial for his death. The late official’s
family
continue to be victimised by ZANU PF thugs and Mudzi remains a no-go
area
for the MDC-T.
Saungweme said most teachers are brought to
remote areas from colleges
outside these constituencies. There are no
teacher training colleges in
Mudzi, so almost every teacher working there
would have come from outside.
Unless they are staunch ZANU PF supporters,
they most certainly will have no
job by the end of the month.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona Sibanda
11 January
2013
Seventeen villagers from Chinyamukwakwa village in Chisumbanje
appeared in a
Chipinge court on Friday facing charges of unlawfully
occupying land owned
by controversial businessman Billy
Rautenbach.
After the state presented its case, at which it also accused
the villagers
of interfering with the sugarcane crop that is used for the
Ethanol plant,
magistrate Waini Makamera remanded the villagers in custody
to Saturday.
The magistrate told the court he would be in a position to
make a ruling on
the bail application after going through both the state and
defence
submissions.
However, the decision to remand the villagers in
custody has been criticised
by the MDC-T, who believe the farmers are being
punished for fighting for
their rights.
Pishai Muchauraya, the
provincial spokesman in Manicaland, told SW Radio
Africa that nationalists
in pre-independence Zimbabwe went to war to fight
whites who had confiscated
their land.
‘The same government that sacrificed the lives of so many
fighters is now
taking that land away from the black farmers and giving it
to single white
businessman. Rautenbach has gone further and illegally
invaded land from the
villagers which the government should look into
urgently,’ Muchauraya said.
The villagers were arrested in Chisumbanje
following clashes with the police
over the protracted land dispute. The
villagers have since last week been
trying to claim back their land, taken
over by Macdom, the company running
the multi-million dollar Ethanol
plant.
This resulted in running battles with the police who ended up
using tear gas
and firing warning shots into the air to disperse the angry
farmers.
Among the 17 in custody are two brothers Jameson and Samson
Mlambo, who the
police claim are the ringleaders in the villagers’ quest to
reclaim their
land.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Alex Bell
11 January
2013
Months after Zimbabwe police launched an intense cleanup operation
to rid
Harare bus ranks of touts and marshals, a fresh clampdown has seen 50
more
people arrested this week.
Last September a police operation saw
about 500 suspected touts and rank
marshals arrested after worsening
violence and intimidation aimed at
commuter omnibus drivers in Harare. The
operation targeted suspected members
of the ‘mandimbandimba’, who were
posing as touts and forcing minibus
drivers to hand over ‘protection
fees’.
The situation had normalised after the mass arrests. But in recent
weeks
touts have started resurfacing.
SW Radio Africa’s Harare
correspondent Simon Muchemwa reported Friday that
the touts have been
particularly active in the early mornings and evening.
He said they have
been seen carrying dangerous weapons like knives,
knobkerries and pangas,
and have been threatening violence to intimidate bus
drivers into paying the
two dollar ‘fee’.
“A group was arrested this week and they were in the
Harare Magistrates’
court today. Most were ordered to pay a US$40 fine,”
Muchemwa reported.
He added: “Last year when the touts were arrested,
many were given short
prison stays. The return of touts now is an indication
to many that the rule
of law has completely broken down.”
The
‘mandimbandimba’ were originally linked to the notorious ZANU PF youth
gang,
Chipangano, who were collecting thousands of dollars a month from the
illegal ‘protection fee’ collection at bus ranks.
But Muchemwa said
Friday that many touts are not necessarily linked to the
gang
anymore.
“In Zimbabwe unemployment is more than 90% and many of these
people don’t
have any other way of making money. Especially in January,
which is a
difficult time and there are even less jobs,” Muchemwa reported.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
Staff Writer
11 January
2013
The Cabinet Committee appointed to finalize the drawing up of a new
constitution will meet on Tuesday next week to look at proposals crafted by
COPAC co-chairmen.
The committee postponed its meeting on Thursday
because one of the key
members, MDC-T’s Tendai Biti, is in London attending
a Zimbabwe-Investment
forum meeting. The chairman of the committee, Eric
Matinenga, the
Constitutional and Parliamentary Affairs is also on leave but
reportedly in
Harare.
There has been an outcry at the slow pace of
progress to conclude the
constitution and Zimbabweans are concerned at the
fact that many of the
delays are caused by the absence of key figures in the
discussions.
Party spokesman Douglas Mwonzora told SW Radio Africa they
will submit their
proposals to a full committee on Tuesday when everybody is
present.
‘Biti will be back in the country on Sunday, therefore we’ve
scheduled our
meeting for Tuesday next week. We couldn’t go ahead with the
meeting on
Thursday because he’s (Biti) a major player in the constitution
making
process,’ Mwonzora said.
The COPAC co-chairmen have reported
progress in their efforts to overcome
differences holding up the
finalization of the country’s new constitution.
It appears all the sides
have made concessions on the four occasions the
co-chairmen have met in the
last two weeks. There have reportedly been
‘intense’ discussions to remove
remaining obstacles to the constitution
making process.
The process
ran into significant difficulties last year with all parties
failing to
agree with six chapters dealing with the devolution of power,
executive
authority, national prosecuting authority, peace and
reconciliation
commission, land committee and running mates.
But the co-chairmen
reportedly managed to iron out everything, with the
exception of the issue
of running mates. This has raised the hope that there
could be a
breakthrough soon if the Cabinet committee endorses the
proposals.
http://mg.co.za
11 JAN 2013 07:03 - FARAI SHOKO
Sharp political differences
are likely to prevent opposition parties from
rallying behind one candidate
in the next presidential elections.
This increases the chances of Robert
Mugabe winning a fifth term.
Diplomatic sources said this week that there
had been moves behind the
scenes, particularly from the international donor
community, to coax smaller
political parties to support presidential
candidate and Movement for
Democratic Change – Tsvangirai (MDC-T) leader
Morgan Tsvangirai, who will
make a third attempt to unseat the Zanu-PF
leader.
The push for other presidential aspirants to rally behind
Tsvangirai hit a
brick wall after Welshman Ncube's Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC-N)
refused to form a coalition, sources said.
Also
complicating matters are reports that Zanu-PF is courting Simba Makoni
of
the Mavambo/Kusile/Dawn (MKD) movement to rejoin its ranks after he
deserted
the party in 2008.
Makoni has rejected suggestions that he may rejoin
Zanu-PF and insists he
will be standing again as the MKD candidate in the
presidential race.
Ncube's spokesperson, Nhlanhla Dube, said Ncube's
party has resolved to
field its own leader instead of forging an electoral
pact with Tsvangirai.
"For our party, there is no deal to be made," said
Dube. "For us, it is
about the ethos and character of Zimbabwe post-Mugabe
and that begins with
voting for change you can count on all the time and
every time.
"For us, principle, truth, fairness and honesty are the
pillars on which our
party and its president, Ncube, are founded. For these
reasons Ncube will
contest for the Zimbabwe presidency."
Dube added
that the overtures to rally behind Tsvangirai were surprising
because "all
along we have been told by Tsvangirai's people that our party
will not
achieve anything measurable".
"We are now suddenly bombarded with pleas
to join hands with Tsvangirai and
assist him to defeat Mugabe. It seems
their focus is not to defeat Mugabe
but, apparently, [achieve] victory for
Tsvangirai."
MDC-T welcomes change
A spokesperson for MDC-T, Douglas
Mwonzora, said the issue of a coalition
against Mugabe had not been raised
in his party but that it would welcome
such moves.
"Zimbabwe is
yearning for change. We would welcome any agent of change," he
said.
Psychology Maziwisa, a Harare-based political analyst and
Tsvangirai critic,
said an opposition coalition that rallied behind
Tsvangirai was very
unlikely in the forthcoming polls.
"There are a
number of issues, not least the plausible accusation that
Tsvangirai has
dictatorial attributes," Maziwisa said.
"But perhaps the most important
has to do with MDC-T's record over the past
four years, one of corruption,
neglect and amoral behaviour.
"Nobody wants to be associated with that,
least of all at election time."
http://www.dailynews.co.zw/
Friday, 11 January 2013
12:11
HARARE - Four officials in Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s
MDC who
allegedly called President Robert Mugabe “a thief” have been
summoned to the
Chinhoyi Magistrates’ Court.
The four, MDC
Mashonaland West deputy chairperson Eddy Ndirayire, Hurungwe
North district
youth organising secretary Gabriel Japan, ward secretary and
treasurer
Luxmore Zintambila and Abel Kasure are jointly charged with
undermining the
authority and insulting the President as defined in Section
33 (2) (a) of
the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform Act).
They will appear in court
on January 23.
According to summons from Chinhoyi police, it is alleged
that while
addressing party supporters at Nyamakate Business Centre on
September 1,
2012, Ndirayire, Kasure, Zintambila and Japan made statements
about the
President saying “Jealous Mateyesanwa imbavha pamwe na president
wacho
imbavha”, meaning that both Mugabe and Mateyesanwa are thieves
.
Mateyesanwa is a Zanu PF councillor for ward 7 in Hurungwe North
Constituency.
Police said the statements were made “with the
knowledge or realising that
there was a real risk or possibility that the
statement is false and that it
may engender feeling of hostility towards or
cause hatred, contempt or
ridicule of the President”.
MDC organising
secretary for the province Wilson Makanyaire said the deputy
chairperson and
three youth assembly officials will appear in court in
Chinhoyi on
allegations of insulting the President.
“I cannot say anything more since
the matter is now before the courts,” said
Makanyaire.
Several people
including top MDC officials such as the party’s
treasurer-general Elton
Mangoma and spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora have been
hauled before the courts
to answer charges of insulting the president.
Mwonzora said the action by
the police was part of an ongoing harassment of
MDC leadership by the state
which is meant to slow down his party’s
penetration of the
province.
“This insult law is meant to keep the playing field tilted in
favour of Zanu
PF by ensuring there is no public criticism of Mugabe yet
Zanu PF officials
denigrate his opponents especially Tsvangirai,” said
Mwonzora, adding that
the only way his party could compete against Mugabe
politically is to
criticise him.
“This law has been challenged in the
Supreme Court for the past decade and
the court is sitting on the
challenges.
“It fails to appreciate that some of us are against Mugabe’s
continued
presidency and we cannot campaign against him without criticising
him,”
Mwonzora added. - Staff Writer
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
09.01.13
by Nelson
Sibanda
Corrupt traffic police officers manning roadblocks have devised a
new
strategy to defy government anti-corruption efforts.
In
connivance with commuter omnibus crews, the traffic police have adopted a
system known as ‘Airtime’ to sustain their shoddy deals. The sophisticated
scheme involves bus crews paying bribes before arriving at
roadblocks.
This follows the recent arrests of corrupt traffic officers
by the
government anti-corruption unit. President Mugabe, at the Zanu (PF)
conference held in December, rapped the police for being corrupt, resulting
in the Zimbabwe Republic Police leadership intensifying operations against
bribe-taking officers on the roads.
“To beat anti-corruption
officials masquerading as commuter omnibus crews at
roadblocks, we have
devised a smart way of collecting bribes from commuter
omnibuses,” bragged a
traffic police officer.
According to the officer, registration numbers of
commuter omnibuses plying
a particular route are compiled each morning. The
register, together with $5
per vehicle, is forwarded to police officers
manning the roadblock along the
route.
“The strategy is smart enough
to beat any anti-corruption detective. As the
buses approach the roadblock,
police officers check from the register if the
vehicle paid the ‘clearance
fee.’ Commuter omnibuses with something amiss
and not appearing on the
‘clearance’ list will be forced to pay a spot fine
without any
negotiations,” said the police officer.
He said this would give a false
impression to onlookers that police were no
longer corrupt. In the past,
bribes changed hands in full view of the
public.
Commuter omnibus
crews interviewed by The Zimbabwean along the
Marondera-Harare road
confirmed the development.
“Yes, we are always a step ahead of the
government anti-corruption drive,”
said a bus driver who only identified
himself as Jah.
He said if a particular route had several roadblocks,
each bus would
contribute $5 for every police check point.
ZRP is
considered one of the most corrupt police establishments in southern
Africa.
According to a recent report by the Anti-Corruption Trust of
Southern
Africa, corruption by ZRP traffic officers has become
commonplace.
“Corruption by Zimbabwe Republic Police traffic officers is
worsening to the
extent that culprits were shamelessly demanding bribes in
public,” reads the
report.
In a bid to intensify the fight against
corruption in the force, police use
lie detectors.
“Lie detectors
will fish out corrupt officers. Those who fail the lie
detector tests will
be dealt with accordingly,” former Chief Police
spokesperson, Senior
Assistant Commissioner Wayne Bvudzijena, said.
Police Commissioner
General, Augustine Chihuri has vowed to fight corruption
among the police
rank and file, even though reports abound that the top
leadership of ZRP is
also involved.
http://www.newzimbabwe.com
11/01/2013 00:00:00
by Staff
Reporter
PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe said 2013 is “bad luck” for his
rivals as he
returned from his two-week annual vacation.
The number 13 is
considered an unlucky number in some cultures and for
Mugabe, due to fight
possibly his last election this year, it spells doom
for his
rivals.
“The figure 13 is bad luck for others, not us,” he said in brief
comments to
journalists after touching down at the Harare International
Airport.
The Chinese ambassador to Zimbabwe Lin Lin joined Vice President
Joice
Mujuru, Defence Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa and State Security
Minister
Sydney Sekeramayi at the airport to welcome Mugabe.
Mugabe
has stated his desire to call general elections in March, but delays
in
finalising a new constitution and a stalled voter registration programme
have cast doubt on Zimbabwe’s readiness for the key vote.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tererai
Karimakwenda
11 January 2013
A global campaign linked to Valentines’
Day has been launched to help end
violence against women, after statistics
showed that one in every three
women will suffer some form of violence in
their lifetime.
The world has a total female population of about 3.5
billion, so at least
one billion of them will be the victim of physical
violence in their lives.
The global campaign, called One Billion Rising,
refers to that figure and
hopes to involve everyone who cares to do
something on Valentines’ Day.
Activist Rumbidzai Dube, from the Research and
Advocacy Unit and a legal
advisor for the women’s online portal HER
ZIMBABWE, said Valentines’ Day was
chosen because it is a time to show love
and compassion and these values
should be present in
relationships.
“Zimbabwe is a very patriarchal society and women are not
treated very well.
One of the challenges is violence, and political violence
is also a serious
problem around elections. It doesn’t know about age,
color, status or
economic background. You can be a child, teenager or
adult,” Dube told SW
Radio Africa.
She said the idea is for people to
help the campaign in any way they can, by
organizing events, building
shelters for victims or even just writing a blog
to highlight the crisis.
Protecting a child or walking away from an abusive
relationship is also a
way to end violence.
According to Dube, the global campaign this year
also involves dancing on
Valentines’ Day, because this is one way that women
can reclaim ownership of
their bodies and is an easy thing to do. Events
with music and dancing are
taking place worldwide on February
14th.
According to the Research and Advocacy Unit, 2,400 children were
raped in
Zimbabwe in the last 10 months. Dube said this is one of the
reasons HER
ZIMBABWE has partnered with the One Billion Rising campaign,
which was the
brainchild of Eve Ensler, an American activist and
award-winning playwright.
http://www.newzimbabwe.com
11/01/2013 00:00:00
by Sports
Reporter
ZIMBABWE cricket was on the cusp of a new race row this week
after the
convenor of selectors Givemore Makoni accused Sports Minister
David Coltart
of “promising fellow racists to restore the old order” by
shutting out
blacks from the game.
The shock attack on Coltart came
after he directed that from February “all
national sport associations whose
national team selection is conducted by
national selectors shall ensure that
such selectors have the requisite
experience and skills. In particular, no
person shall be appointed as a
selector unless they have represented
Zimbabwe in the particular sport.”
Cricket is the only sport in which the
team is picked by selectors and not
the coach.
Makoni, who is the
Zimbabwe Cricket convener of selectors, did not play for
Zimbabwe and would
be required to stand down from the role.
The directive could also have
dealt a blow to Steve Mangongo’s quest to
coach the national side when Alan
Butcher stands down in April.
In an intemperate outburst, Makoni claimed
Coltart wanted to “get rid of
everyone who fought for equality” – reference
to the 2004 mass exodus of
white players in a race and politically-charged
protest.
Makoni blasted: “Coltart was the mastermind of the black armband
protest by
Andy Flower and Henry Olonga (in the 2003 Cricket World Cup in
South
Africa).
“We fought for equality in the game because as blacks
we were not getting
equal opportunities as our white
counterparts.
“Coltart promised fellow racists to restore the old order once
he got into
office and his grand plan is coming to its fruition now, but we
will not
allow that.
“Coltart was a member of the ‘royal family’ of
untouchables who wanted to
make sure black players were excluded. We fought
that system and now we are
giving everyone equal opportunity and they want
to reverse the gains of the
prevailing peace.”
The minister denies
his directive, which was communicated through the Sports
and Recreation
Commission, is designed to disadvantage blacks.
He told the Zimbabwe
Independent: “We have had problems in the Warriors and
we have had problems
in bowls. We want to have the right people in coaching
positions in football
and also cricket and other sports.
“I don’t think the people who are
making such allegations have gone through
the whole document.
“I don’t
think it’s true that we had any black players who could have
represented
that were denied opportunities in the last 32 years. But we have
people like
Ethan Dube and Tatenda Taibu to name just those who can be
national team
selectors.”
Responding to Coltart, Makoni claimed that had it not been
for the system
which excluded black players, he and many others would have
played for the
national team.
“We played club cricket for Takashinga
and we used to beat teams that the
likes of Heath Streak and Grant Flower
represented but we were never picked
for the national team,” said
Makoni.
“It is not our fault that we didn’t play for the national team.
It was
because of the system and we cannot be further disadvantaged. What is
so
special about the game that somebody who has club cricket will fail to
comprehend?
“We rebuilt cricket from scratch when white players
walked out without any
help from Coltart and now that he realises that the
coalition government
tenure is running out, he wants to leave a piece of
regulation that returns
control to the very same people who at one time
attempted to collapse
cricket simply because they were opposed to
transformation.”
http://mg.co.za/
11 JAN 2013 07:51 - NKULULEKO SIBANDA
About
1.6-million Zimbabweans, most of them in rural areas, urgently need
food aid
because of low rainfall and a drop in agricultural production.
Labour and
Social Services Minister Paurina Mpariwa said that the number of
those in
need is expected to rise in the next few months if the country
continues to
experience poor rains.
"These people require urgent food aid to avert
disaster," Mpariwa said.
The government's official food reserve
institution, the Grain Marketing
Board, is working to find ways to help the
vulnerable, she said.
Other initiatives include food-for-work schemes, in
which people are given
food in exchange for working on government
projects.
The Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee (ZimVac) said
that, by the
end of last year, the reported number of people in need of
assistance had
increased by 60%.
The World Food Programme (WFP) and
other aid partners are planning to
intensify their operations.
"Food
security prospects for Zimbabwe for 2012-2013 are the worst in three
years.
During the peak hunger period of January to March 2013, some
1.7-million
will be in a condition of food insecurity, a significant
increase from
1.3-million last year," said the WFP.
"This [figure] represents some 19%
of the rural population. The worst
affected areas are Matabeleland North and
South and Masvingo."
The body attributed the situation to lower
agricultural production, with
late rains, prolonged dry spells and poor
access to crop inputs leading to
cereal production dropping by a
third.
It said government efforts are having little effect owing to low
coverage of
its grain loan scheme.
It added that WFP assistance to
poor and vulnerable households between
October 2012 and March 2013 is
expected to ease cereal shortages in
drought-hit areas, but food prices are
also expected to rise as the lean
season approaches.
"Below-normal
rainfall is forecast for the southern regions of Zimbabwe
throughout the
coming season, which may aggravate conditions in regions hit
by last
season's drought," said the WFP.
http://mg.co.za
11 JAN 2013 10:02 - M&G
CORRESPONDENT
Zimbabwe's hospitals are being forced to carry out
fundraising activities to
keep afloat owing to low budget disbursements from
the finance ministry.
Referral hospitals are struggling to sustain their
operations, with rural
and provincial hospitals also hard hit.
The
Mail & Guardian understands that Mpilo Central Hospital in Bulawayo and
Harare Central Hospital – two of the country's largest referral health
centres – are faced with critical shortages of health consumables such as
drugs, detergents and food for patients.
Mpilo Central Hospital
recently held a fundraising drive, during which the
hospital invited
private-sector companies to donate money and health
consumables to ease
shortages in the wards and to repair dilapidated
infrastructure and
equipment at the facility.
In the country's 2012 budget, Mpilo hospital
was allocated $4.1-million, but
health officials at the institution recently
reported that only $1.1-million
of that amount had been made available to
the hospital.
Hospital officials said the abolition of user fees has
reduced the
hospital's cash flow from about $200 000 to $60 000 a
month.
In terms of the health transition fund, which is being implemented
by the
United Nations Children's Fund and Zimbabwe's ministry of health and
child
welfare, pregnant women and children are treated for free.
The
idea behind the project is to reduce maternal mortality by encouraging
women
to give birth in public health institutions. According to the
2010/2011
Demographic Health Survey, more than 30% of women deliver outside
of health
facilities. Following the collapse of the economy in 2008, many
women could
not afford the fees charged by private and public hospitals,
resulting in an
increase in deaths from complications related to home
births.
Low
budget disbursements have also impacted negatively on the operations of
Chegutu District Hospital, about 200km outside Harare. The hospital, which
serves the mainly farming community of Chegutu, recently held a fundraising
dinner at which musician Selmor Mtukudzi was a drawcard.
Lack of
funds cripples operations
Insiders at Harare Central Hospital said that the
treasury had disbursed
$958 000 from the 2012 budget to the facility,
whereas its operations
require over $25-million per year.
The
chairperson of the Harare Central Hospital board and the Zimbabwe
Medical
Association's secretary general, Dr Douglas Gwatidzo, said the
situation at
Harare hospital and most public health institutions is dire
because of a
lack of funds.
"Most of these public health hospitals have budgets of
about $30-million to
$40-million a year of recurrent expenditure," said
Gwatidzo.
"The treasury is supposed to fund about 10% of that budget, but
it sometimes
does not even come through with that percentage and this
cripples the
operations of most of these hospitals."
Gwatidzo added
that, as public institutions, most affected hospitals are not
permitted to
charge market rates for their services to enable them to fund
their
operations.
'Find alternative financing': Govt
The health minister, Dr
Henry Madzorera, said Zimbabwe's underperforming
economy and low tax
revenues have led to the health sector as well as other
ministries not
receiving adequate funding from the treasury.
Although the 2013 budget
allocation for the health sector is higher than
last year's, the money set
aside for operational expenses has been reduced.
As a result, health
institutions are likely to be in a far worse situation
this year than they
already find themselves.
Madzorera encouraged health institutions to seek
private funding, citing the
example of the Kwekwe and Gweru hospitals, which
recently held fundraisers.
Gweru Provincial Hospital, about 400km outside
Harare, raised about $260 000
in one day from the initiative.
He said
health institutions must look for "alternatives ways of financing
their
operations and fundraise within their communities and from the
corporate
sector, businesspeople and municipalities, because the treasury
has no
money". – M&G health correspondent
http://www.irinnews.org
HARARE, 11 January 2013 (PlusNews) -
Chronic shortages of generic and
antiretroviral drugs, stock-outs, high
medication costs, and long distances
to clinics are some of the hurdles
people face in their quest to access
essential medicines in
Zimbabwe.
At any given time, public health facilities in much of Zimbabwe
have in
stock only half of a core set of critical medicines, according to
findings
from civil society groups working to improve access to medicines in
Southern
Africa.
Zimbabwe is still recuperating from a drastic
decline in health services
caused by sub-optimal investments in healthcare
and an unprecedented
economic crisis in 2008, during which the local
currency crashed.
To make matters worse, over 80 percent of the country's
drugs are externally
funded.
“Unsustainable”
A poorly
resourced local pharmaceutical industry can barely provide the
country with
its essential medicine requirements, and government-backed
institutions,
such as the National Pharmaceutical Company of Zimbabwe
(NatPharm), which is
mandated with securing drugs and healthcare products on
behalf of state
institutions, are struggling to survive.
“NatPharm is government funded,
and we are supposed to procure medicines for
onward supply to health
institutions, but this is not happening because our
shareholder, the
government, has not been able to fund us lately," NatPharm
director Charles
Mwaramba told IRIN/PlusNews. “We just woke up one day in
2009, and we did
not have any money for operations.”
Since then, government has not been
able to pay NatPharm. In the 2013
national budget, NatPharm did not even get
an allocation, and has been
forced to make ends meet by storing medicines
for NGOs and other clients for
a fee.
Itai Rusike, the executive
director of the Community Working Group on
Health, a network of civil
society organizations, warns that depending on
donors to supply the country
with medication is "unsustainable.”
“The health sector is severely
crippled by all sorts of problems, not least
of them poor government funding
and skewed priorities. Where is our voice as
civil society when NatPharm is
not being funded? We need a strong voice in
the health sector because health
is a fundamental human right. We must not
be cowed into silence, fearing
authority will come down us,” Rusike said.
A regional problem
But
Zimbabwe's ailing pharmaceutical sector is not alone.
Recent surveys
conducted by the Southern Africa Regional Programme on Access
to Medicines
and Diagnostics (SARPAM) in the Southern African Development
Community
(SADC) region have found evidence of market failures resulting in
uncompetitive drug pricing and unstable availability of medicines, which
compromise the health and well-being of people living in the
region.
Civil society groups are hoping the roll-out of the Tendai - an
acronym for
Tracking Essential National Medicines and Diagnostics Access
Initiative -project will monitor the availability of medications at
healthcare facilities and gradually bring about some improvement. Under the
initiative, community health workers from a network of civil society
partners use mobile phones to collect data on the availability of medicines
at points of access in participating countries, which include South Africa,
the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zimbabwe.
SARPAM coordinates the
data collection using customized open-source survey
software. The software
allows monitors to capture many types of instantly
accessible data,
including digital surveys, voice recordings and photos that
provide insight
into real issues at the community level. The data can be
shared immediately
with social networks and mailing lists.
“SADC is an epicentre of
illnesses, yet policymakers and governments are
still not prioritizing
medicines,” said Daniel Molekele, the SARPAM civil
society
coordinator.
Although Tendai is still in its infancy, data generated in
the pilot stages
have been helpful in identifying problems, monitoring
interventions,
building awareness and adding to the dialogue around access
to medicine,
Molekele added.
[This report does not necessarily
reflect the views of the United Nations]
Courageous human rights
defenders and disappointing compromises
Biannual Human Rights Report
2/2012
In the second half of 2012, civil society and political activists
continued
to be harassed, as peaceful protestors were unlawfully arrested
and human
rights lawyers were hindered in carrying out their duty.
Particularly
affected were activists of Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA), The
Gays and
Lesbians of Zimbabwe and the Counselling Service Unit, among many
other
non-governmental civil society organisations that are offering vital
services to vulnerable Zimbabweans. As 2012 drew to a close a warning bell
was rang on the annual ZANU PF Congress, and within days, the police began
raiding human rights organisations’ offices, arresting human rights
defenders. The Biannual Human Rights Report 2/2012 documents these human
rights violations and assaults on civil society. The full report is
available on the Forum’s website.
The report also covers developments
in the making of the constitution and
civil society’s discontents with draft
documents that have been long in the
making. These discussions relate also
to debates on a national referendum to
adopt a new constitution (originally
scheduled for November 2012) and
national elections to take place in 2013.
Civil society organisations
pointed out that voters’ lists remained to be
extremely inaccurate,
including a substantial number of ‘ghost voters’ and
that there was a need
for reform of the Electoral Commission.
The
report also reflects discussions about the appalling economic situation
in
Zimbabwe and transparency issues in the usage of revenues created in the
exploitation of natural resources.
Despite these setbacks, it is the
Forum’s view that Zimbabwe is in a better
place today than it was 2008. All
the credit is due to the Human Rights
Defenders who have tirelessly worked
on the ground as well as our regional
and international partners and without
whose input the country could have
descended into lawlessness. The
attainment of democracy is a process not an
event and indeed Zimbabwe is
currently in transition although that
transition is fraught with unnecessary
detours and compromises. However such
compromises, disappointing as they may
be in the short run, may aid the
transitional process in the long run.
PART THREE : HUMAN REMAINS – RECOMMENDATIONS ON THEIR POSSIBLE RECOVERY
Interviews with civilians resident in Matabeleland North and South made it clear not only that there are mass graves in these parts of Zimbabwe as a result of the 1980s disturbances, but also that this is an issue of concern to residents and affected families.
It is also known that there are likely to be unrecovered bodies in the Midlands.
The full nature and causes of the disturbances have been covered elsewhere in this report. This section will therefore concentrate on the likely types of human remains at this point and in how best to deal with them.
1.`DEAD’ AND` MISSING’
In this report, people are referred to as “Dead” if their deaths were witnessed. In most cases in Matabeleland North, this also means that what happened to their remains is known, even if all that is known is that the bodies were taken away on trucks. While the current location of the remains of the “Dead” is often known in Matabeleland North, this is less often the case in Matabeleland South.
“Missing” refers in most cases to people who were known to have been taken from their homes at night in mysterious circumstances, or known to have been detained, and never seen again. (See interview , page for an example). There is no indication in these cases as to where bodies might now be.
As the vast majority of victims can be classified as “Dead” rather than “Missing”, the possibility of identifying and recovering human remains for many victims is positive. In this Zimbabwe is more “fortunate” than for example Argentina, where approximately 10 000 disappeared, or Guatemala, where 50 000 people disappeared in recent decades.
The recovery and identification of those who died in the 1980s might also be more easily accomplished than for those who died in the 1970s civil war in what was then Rhodesia, as many of these victims went missing outside of the country, or were killed and buried in regions in Zimbabwe far from their own districts. In spite of the difficulties, many victims of the 1970s war have been successfully recovered and reburied in the years since independence, and the reburial exercise continues.
The establishing of a pre-mortem data base on all “Missing” victims, containing as much physical information on each victim as possible, would dramatically improve chances of identification. The structure of the computer data base currently used in Argentina could be adapted to the Zimbabwean situation.
2.THE BEARING OF PERPETRATOR ON BODY DISPOSAL
Murders in the 1980s were perpetrated by both government agencies and dissidents. The case studies in Part Two illustrate that approximately 98% of deaths and disappearances in the communal lands were at the hands of government agencies, and 2% were murders by dissidents. In Tsholotsho, for example, 18 murders by dissidents were claimed by civilians, while a further 900+ deaths and disappearances, mainly perpetrated by 5 Brigade were identified, most occurring in February 1983.
In addition to murders in communal lands, dissidents murdered people living in the sparsely populated commercial farming areas. Approximately 70 deaths in these regions were at the hands of dissidents, not government agencies.
Dissidents would typically murder one or two civilians in the communal lands in any one incident, almost invariably people they believed to be sell-outs. The victims would be murdered and the dissidents would then make a hasty departure before the authorities arrived. This meant that families of victims were able to give their deceased traditional burials.
Other dissident victims were typically commercial farmers and their families or employees, who would also be murdered in hit and run raids or ambushes. These victims too would be left behind and were accorded proper funerals.
There are a few notable exceptions here, namely the six tourists who were abducted and buried in shallow graves, in July 1982. There was also an abduction of two commercial farmers in Bubi, one of whose remains were only recovered years later. Such cases of abduction were not common. In both these cases, remains were ultimately recovered and identified.
Those in mass graves, and those who were not given decent burials are the civilians killed by state agencies, in particular the 5 Brigade. Part Two, III, indicates 1437 killings and 354 disappearances in which the names of victims are known. Of these, 1134 deaths and 169 disappearances were by 5 Brigade.
These figures are known by researchers to be incomplete, with substantial indications on record of large numbers of dead in areas not extensively researched for this report, in particular in Lupane and Nkayi, where mass graves and bodies in mine shafts have been reported. Matabeleland South, including Matobo, Gwanda and Bulilimamangwe also have mass graves and reports of bodies down mine shafts.
3.DISPOSAL OF BODIES
It has been previously stated in this report that it was a characteristic of 5 Brigade to insist that there was no mourning for the dead. In some cases the family of the dead victims were themselves shot because they wept. It was also characteristic, particularly of the early weeks of 1983, for victims to be buried in mass graves. In some cases, 5 Brigade would shoot people and pass on with no concern for what happened to the dead, and in these cases, families were able to bury their own dead, although full burial rites and full attendance by family members were not possible because of the prevailing conditions in those weeks.
This part of the report will concern itself with cases in which no proper burial took place. The way in which bodies were disposed of in such cases can be categorised as follows:
1.Bodies left where they were killed and burial forbidden. 2.Bodies buried in mass or individual graves in villages but not in the culturally accepted place or manner. 3.Bodies left inside huts in cases where people were burnt to death in huts. 4.Bodies buried in mass or individual graves at 5 Brigade camps. 5.Bodies dumped into mine shafts.
4.CHANCES OF RECOVERY IN EACH CATEGORY
1. Burial denied: in Lupane in particular, but also in parts of Tsholotsho (see Pumula Mission section), burial was on occasion forbidden, and relatives of the dead were reportedly forced to observe the remains of their dead rotting away and being scavenged. In these cases, bones were sometimes buried months or years later, and in other cases, bones were removed by the 5 Brigade, who came past in trucks and collected them. In cases where bones were removed by 5 Brigade, chances of recovery now are almost non-existent.
2. Mass graves: there are reports of mass graves throughout most of Matabeleland North and South. Compilers of this report personally visited a few such sites. Photographs and video clippings also exist of these graves. What is notable is the careful way in which these graves have been demarcated by civilians in the area: they have often been fenced off with logs, or covered with boulders. In some cases most or all of the actual victims in a grave are still known to those in the area, and in other cases, those buried were strangers to the area, and are completely unknown. In most cases, victims in mass graves were shot dead.
If it was the will of affected communities, relatives of the deceased and the authorities, such graves would provide ideal sites for forensic investigations. The possiblity of identifying at least some, or even all, of the victims in such cases would be extremely high. It would also be likely that cause of death could be established.
3. People buried under huts: there are several incidents of people burnt to death in huts in Tsholotsho, and also reports that this happened in Lupane. In Tsholotsho, there are on record, nine cases where people were burnt to death in huts (see Pumula Mission section). Numbers of victims ranged from 1 to 30, with at least two villages experiencing hut burnings involving large numbers of people. These bodies were not removed from the huts, but were given a makeshift burial where they lay, with soil being mounded over the remains, and the area then being fenced. It is not clear how many hut burnings resulting in deaths happened in Lupane, although at least two are on current records.
If it was the will of affected communities, relatives of the deceased and the authorities, these hut sites would also provide ideal cases for forensic investigation, although cause of death can be harder to establish in the case of burnings (See “cause of death” following).
4. Graves in 5 Brigade camps: those detained at Bhalagwe in Matobo, report the existence of burial grounds within the camp. Ex-detainees, particularly from the early weeks, report the daily digging of graves as one of their chores. Almost every interview about Bhalagwe alludes to daily deaths in the camp, as a result of beatings or shootings. Who victims were is not clear, or exact numbers (see previous discussion on page for more details). However, it seems clear that some, if not all, of the graves at Bhalagwe were dug up and the bodies removed, while the camp was still in operation.
The policy of disposing of bodies changed, or became supplemented within a few weeks, with the throwing of bodies down mine shafts. Visits to Bhalagwe in November of 1996 showed the grave sites to have been dug up, although the position of the graves is still clearly visible. Eye witnesses involved in the burial procedure recount how at the time of burial, bodies were covered with asbestos sheeting before the soil was added, and then further sheeting demarcated the graves clearly. Pieces of this sheeting are still in the now-empty graves (see photo, page ). This could suggest that the graves were only ever intended as a temporary measure, and were designed in such a way as to facilitate later identification of the sites and removal of the bodies. Certainly, the use of the asbestos sheeting is not a normal burial procedure in Zimbabwe, nor was it used in Matabeleland North, where people had been murdered by 5 Brigade the previous year.
5. Mine Shafts: there are reports of human remains in mine shafts in both Matabeleland North and South, though these are more common in Matabeleland South where such shafts abound. In two instances in the 1990s, human remains have been found in mine shafts. In the first instance, they were found in “Old Hat Mine No. 2″, in Silobela in the Midlands, and then remains were also found at Antelope Mine, near Bhalagwe camp in Matobo. Interviews on record, both archivally and recently, refer to the nightly departure of trucks from Bhalagwe, taking away bodies. Accounts by villagers living near the mine confirm that this was the destination.
Those interviewed in Matabeleland South also mentioned Legion Mine, near Sun Yet Sen in the far south of Matobo, as a possible site for the dumping of bodies. Sun Yet Sen was used as an interrogation and detention centre by 5 Brigade in 1983 and 1984.
“Old Hat Mine”: bones were found here in 1992, and CCJP attended their exhumation. Unfortunately, this was not done by forensic anthropologists, and the bones were disturbed by the police, thus destroying potential evidence. The identification of 8 individuals was possible, 2 women and 6 men, but their precise identification was not possible.
Bodies are known to have been thrown down mine shafts in the 1970s, by the Rhodesian army, and the first response of the government to finds in the 1990s was that these were Rhodesian victims. However, coins minted post-Independence and found in the pockets of the deceased, dated the remains in Antelope Mine to the 1980s.
It is unlikely that positive identification of particular victims would be possible if bones were exhumed from mine shafts. This is a consequence of the fact that so little is known about precisely who was dumped into particular shafts. However, such exhumation could be important in terms of validating historical claims.
Evidence of peri-mortem trauma (ie trauma at point of death) might be detectable on the remains. Items such as coins could also help date time of dumping. It is not unlikely that any extensive exploration of mine shafts would also result in the exhumation of victims from the 1970s, although again, precise identification of victims would be difficult.
REGIONAL DIFFERENCES IN BODY DISPOSAL
There seem to be regional differences in body disposal between Matabeleland North and South. In 1983, killings in Matabeleland North were more open and the repression was generally more visible, but in 1984 in Matabeleland South the modus operandi became more clandestine, with victims more frequently dying in 5 brigade camps than in the village setting. There were also fewer killings in 1984.
The disposal of bodies seems to reflect this change in strategy. In 1983 in Matabeleland North, bodies were more commonly disposed of in individual or mass graves in or near villages, or inside burnt huts. At the end of 1983 and in 1984 in Matabeleland South, bodies were disposed of in mine shafts and mass graves located inside 5 Brigade camps, in particular at Bhalagwe, but also at Sitezi and other bases.
The change in body disposal suggests that the 5 Brigade modus operandi deliberately became more secretive in 1984 than it had been in 1983, particularly where killings were concerned. This change in strategy might have been related to growing pressure from local and international press and human rights groups, including from CCJP who were operating within the country, and had made several appeals to government by this stage. This observation might be modified in the light of future evidence.
To summarise the regional differences:
1.”Burials forbidden” is reported to date only in Matabeleland North.
2.”Mass graves” in village settings are reported in all districts, but are more common in Matabeleland North.
3.”Hut burnings” resulting in deaths have to date only been reported in Matabeleland North, mainly from western Tsholotsho and Lupane.
4.”Deaths in 5 Brigade Camps” are reported in all areas, but in Matabeleland North such deaths are not common: method of disposal in Matabeleland North is also not clear. In Matabeleland South, deaths and temporary burials mainly at Bhalagwe and also at camps in Gwanda and Bulilimamangwe are reported.
5.”Mine shaft disposal” is reported mainly in Matabeleland South, but there are also reports of this in Matabeleland North.
5. OBJECTIVES OF EXHUMATION AND RECOVERY OF HUMAN REMAINS
- Exhumation assists the relatives of the victims in their right to recover the remains of their dead or missing loved ones, so that they can carry out the customary funeral rights and mourn their dead. Families and affected communities may see the procedure of identification of their dead, or even the willingness to attempt this, as a necessary step towards their own emotional healing.
- Exhumation can provide physical evidence to help in the historical reconstruction of events, and to validate one version of events over another. Forensic investigations can end historical controversies.-
The evidence can be used in court if necessary.
National awareness and acknowledgement of events would follow revelations from the exhumations, which could further help the process of healing for survivors.
1. Cause Of Death: forensic anthropologists only deal with skeletal remains. Therefore, if the cause of death did not affect the skeleton, then there is no way of establishing the cause of death with certainty.
For example, in cases of hut burnings, it may well be that not all, or even none, of the skeletons will show signs of burning. However, some hut burnings were allegedly accompanied by shooting of victims trying to escape, in which case there might be skeletal evidence of bullet wounds. There will also be circumstantial evidence, such as testimonial evidence and the finding of burned elements associated with the remains, such as charred clothing.
Fatal gunshot wounds are likely to involve human bones, particularly shots to the head or thorassic regions, which is where fatal gun shot wounds are typically found. However, shots to the abdominal region will not necessarily cause skeletal damage, and can cause death.
2. Identification of Human Remains: the process of identification of victims is a physical one. Physical or `pre-mortem’ information about the victims when they were alive (such as height, age, dental records) and `peri-mortem’ information relating to the time of their death obtained from those who witnessed their death, can be compared with exhumed skeletal remains. For example, if a certain person was witnessed to die from a shot to a particular part of the body, and a skeleton shows corresponding damage, this helps differentiate this victim’s skeleton from others in the same grave.
In cases where there are no existing dental records for victims, and no witnesses to help with precise causes of death, it is very difficult to identify bodies. Bodies exhumed from 5 Brigade camps and bodies from mine shafts would have a poor chance of positive identification, as there are no witnesses who can say with certainty who was buried where.
In the case of bodies in mass graves and burnt huts, the prospect of identification is high, as names of victims are largely known already, and deaths were witnessed. There should be good peri mortem or circumstantial evidence to confirm cause of deaths.
6.FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY AND HUMAN RIGHTS INVESTIGATIONS – A BRIEF HISTORY AND OUTLINE
Forensic sciences are a group of interrelated disciplines which utilise different scientific methods to analyse physical evidence related to legal cases. When working on legal cases involving skeletal remains forensic anthropology is among the main disciplines involved. Considering the time elapsed and the condition of burial sites recently observed, forensic investigation could be useful in Zimbabwe.
Forensic anthropology consists in the application of methods and techniques from physical anthropology and forensic medicine to legal cases in which skeletal or mainly skeletonised remains are involved. It is considered a branch of physical anthropology. The physical anthropologist applies his/her knowledge about how bodies vary over time and place to a legal or forensic context.
There are several other disciplines involved in this task. In order to recover the remains in the proper way, the use of forensic archeology is crucial. This simply consists of the “application of standard archeological techniques slightly modified to meet the requirements of crime scene processing where a skeleton(s) or buried body(ies) is present.” Other skills involved are: forensic pathology, odontology, ballistics, radiology and genetics, among others.
The use of forensic anthropology in the investigation of human rights violations started in Argentina in 1984. Argentina returned to democracy in December 1983. The newly elected President Dr. Raul Alfonsin, created the National Commission on the Disappearance of Persons (CONADEP). The Commission established that at least 10 000 people had been disappeared under the previous military regime (1976-1983). Bodies had been dumped from aeroplanes into the sea, illegally cremated or buried in anonymous graves in cemetries.
In order to ensure impartiality and expertise, a group of American forensic scientists under the leadership of Dr. Clyde Snow was assembled, and several forensic teams in South America were trained over the next ten years. These are the Guatemalan Forensic Anthropology Team, the Chilean Forensic Anthropology Team and the Argentinian Forensic Team.
In the USA, the Physicians for Human Rights and the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences (AAAS) continue to promote and assemble teams of experts for specific missions. They work internationally in interdisciplinary teams, as expert witnesses or international consultants invited by local judiciaries, or by intergovernmental bodies such as the United Nations War Tribunals and the United Nations Commissions of Inquiry, to help resolve human rights issues.
These teams of forensic anthropologists are all non governmental and non-profit making.
Since 1984, forensic anthropology has been used in investigations in Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, El Salvador, Guatemala, Panama, Honduras, Haiti, Mexico, The Philippines, Iraqi Kurdistan, Romania, Croatia, Bosnia, Rwanda and Ethiopia.
PROCEDURE USED IN FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS:
1. Preliminary Investigation:
i) This involves the gathering of historical information about the case under investigation, including official records, eye witness accounts etc.
ii) Pre-mortem data collection: collection of physical information about victims, such as medical and dental records, old X-rays, height etc. Peri-mortem information is also gathered, that is information on injuries sustained at the time of death.
2. Archeological Work:
The archeological approach provides a rational way to recover and reconstruct events, ensuring evidence is not damaged, recovery is complete, and that documentation is adequate.
3.Laboratory Analysis:
Using techniques from physical anthropology and medicine, it is possible to establish stature, sex, age at death, ancestry, pathologies and lesions, dental features etc of the exhumed skeletal remains.
Pre-mortem and peri-mortem data is then compared with skeletal remains to try to establish their identities. In countries where the affected populations are largely poor with little access to medical and dental check up and where there is therefore little pre-mortem data, new genetic methods involving the extraction of DNA material from remains and comparing them with DNA material from likely relatives can help identify victims.
7.RECOMMENDATIONS
1.The Will of Affected Communities: it is essential that no steps be taken without consultation with communities and relatives of the deceased. Some may wish for exhumation, while in adjacent areas, others may not, for cultural or personal reasons.
2. Judicial Proceedings: Exhumations should be done through the intervention of judges in order to keep a legal record of the proceedings and findings, even in situations where no legal prosecutions are to follow on findings (such as in Zimbabwe).
3.Exhumations must be professionally done: There are teams of forensic anthropologists and organisations around the world who are expert at this type of work. They have accomplished successful exhumations in several Latin American countries, and also in the former Yugoslavia, Iraq, Ethiopia, Rwanda, among other places.
A short exploratory mission: a first mission by an international forensic team, lasting two or three months, would ideally include different types of cases to fit the categories of human remains listed above. For example, one burnt hut and one mass grave could each be excavated. A mine shaft identified as having a high likelihood of remains could be excavated, and a 5 Brigade camp could be examined.
4.Depository for Human Remains: in cases where exhumed remains are not identified:
a.) establish a general data base in the hope that identification might ultimately be possible, and keep the remains available at a specific centre and under control.
b.) if it is not possible to keep remains unburied, do not rebury underground, but keep them in an above-ground sepulchre, so that remains will not be affected by the organic activity of the soil. If this is not possible, due to economic or cultural constraints, remains should be reburied in the hardest possible container so that they could be retrieved and re analysed if necessary.
6. Protection of the sites: sites should be protected from tampering. Those living close to sites should know who to inform if there is a sudden interest in them.
7. Establishment of a Symbolic Shrine: the existence of a place where the remains of missing or disappeared or unidentified people are buried or commemmorated has a symbolic value in many countries. Relatives of victims often express the strong need to have a place where they can remember their loved ones, pray, or follow other cultural practices of mourning. Communities in Zimbabwe may – or may not – decide after consultation that they would like to establish such a shrine, or shrines.
The establishment of such public places has, in other countries, implied a social and national recognition of what happened: in Zimbabwe, the current clandestine or “abandoned” graves do not allow for this. The lack of broader acknowledgement is apparently a source of deep disturbance for the relatives and witnesses of the tragic events.
Such a shrine would break the secrecy. The unspeakable, currently limited to secret memories, would be brought out into the realm of historical and social reality.
In summary, the process of exhuming and identifying human remains is one that should aim to show a respectful acknowledgement of events, and to commemmorate the suffering of the survivors. The process also serves as a testimony to other sectors of the population and is a reminder to future generations. The suffering of victims and survivors should also be placed in a broader social and historical arena.
REPORT ON THE 1980S DISTURBANCES IN MATABELELAND AND THE MIDLANDS Compiled by the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace in Zimbabwe, March 1997
http://www.cathybuckle.com
January 11, 2013, 12:50
pm
Last week I said that voter registration had begun, I was wrong. The
process
has once again been postponed and the reason, of course, is lack of
funds.
‘Miracle’ money is clearly not going into ZEC’s bank
account!
‘Miracle money’ is just what ‘Prophet Angel’ has been promising.
In a
tactfully worded statement, the Minister of Finance challenged false
prophets who promise ‘gold from the skies’. Not to be outdone, Prophet Angel
Mudzanire responded by saying that “Miracle money was not meant for those
who dipped their fingers into the national coffers or who failed to run the
national economy.” He went on to prophesy even greater miracles in the
coming year and certainly Zimbabwe could do with a few miracles to solve its
many problems. At least, hopes that diamond wealth would fund worthwhile
causes have been realised with the news that diamond firms are bankrolling
farmer training. That is good news for the future of Zimbabwe’s agriculture
but an election is looming and it is money to fund the election that is the
immediate problem. Attempts to get funding from SADC and the AU appear to
have failed. With no new constitution in place and no funding, it seems
unlikely that elections can take place in March. That has not stopped Zanu
PF from issuing new Mugabe stickers for motorists to display on their
vehicles. Failure to display the president’s image, as Zimbabweans will
remember to their cost, can lead to all sorts of unpleasantness and
violence.
Meanwhile, Tendayi Biti and Welshman Ncube are in London
with the purpose of
attracting investors - unlikely with the farm invasions
still going on
despite BIPPA agreements. Indeed, Germany has threatened to
boycott the
World Tourism Conference if their properties continue to be
invaded. Biti
had previously been in Canada where he appealed for the
lifting of
sanctions, saying that they no longer served any purpose. It
seems that the
MDC are singing from the Zanu PF hymn book since the
formation of the Unity
Government. The Daily News in Zimbabwe reports that
Zanu PF and the MDC have
struck a deal over the constitution; it seems all
sorts of deals are being
stitched up during this period of ‘Unity
Government’ without the people
being consulted. Coalitions, by their very
nature tend to lead to
compromising of principles; how else can one explain
the fact that under a
coalition government, Obert Mpofu, the Minister of
Mines, has loaded mining
bodies with his Zanu PF cronies, apparently with
not a whisper of protest
from his MDC partners in government? Being in power
seems to have silenced
the MDC’s ability to speak truth to power.
The
replacement for Reg Austin who resigned from the Zimbabwe Human Rights
Commission is likely to be another example of Zanu PF getting its own way,
though Zanu PF and human rights do not exactly go together. Only this week,
the partisan police used tear gas to disperse villagers who were
demonstrating over the loss of their land to the Ethanol project which is
backed by Billy Rautenbach, millionaire and noted Zanu PF supporter.
Slaughter on the roads, chaos at the border post, unrest in the civil
service, desperation among the thousands of unemployed and an army which is
intent on intimidating villagers to vote for Zanu PF, not to mention debts
of $11 million, these are just some of the problems facing the country.
Worse still is the evidence of corruption in education and inside the court
system itself, all symptoms of moral decay that not even ‘miracle’ money can
cure.
Yours in the (continuing) struggle, Pauline Henson.