The ZIMBABWE Situation
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Zimbabwe Energy Minister Acquitted

http://www.voanews.com

June 28, 2011

Peta Thornycroft | Johannesburg

Zimbabwe's Energy Minister Elton Mangoma, a member of the Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC), was acquitted Tuesday in Harare's High Court of
charges he abused tender procedures.  Mangoma’s arrest in March seriously
threatened the relative stability brought to Zimbabwe by the country's
inclusive government.

Harare High Court Judge Chinembiri Bhunu dismissed charges against Elton
Mangoma, saying the state had failed to provide evidence against him.

He was accused of avoiding tender procedures when securing an emergency $5
million fuel order at a time when the country's fuel supplies were about to
run out.

His lawyer, Beatrice Mtetwa, said although Mangoma has been acquitted of
these charges, there is still another similar case against him which goes to
court on July 18.

When he was released on bail for the fuel charges, he was immediately
arrested a second time and charged with favoring one supplier over another
in the purchase of electrical equipment for the state power authority.

Mangoma’s arrests shocked many Zimbabweans, as he was the first Cabinet
minister in the inclusive government to be arrested since it was sworn into
office in February 2009.

Mangoma is deputy treasurer of the MDC, whose leader Morgan Tsvangirai is
prime minister.

Mangoma, a well-respected accountant, is also one of Tsvangirai’s
negotiators at multi-party talks aimed at fully implementing the 2008
political agreement which brought the inclusive government to power.

Scores of MDC legislators, senators, party officials, and supporters have
been arrested over the past two and a half years, though few of those
arrested end up on charges in court.

Court records show that the handful found guilty as charged have succeeded
on appeal of having the charges dismissed.

Human rights and legal analysts say that Attorney General Johannes Tomana, a
loyal member of President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF party, is orchestrating a
campaign to harass the MDC using police and state prosecutors.

Tomana has denied the accusations in interviews in Zimbabwe’s domestic
press.

ZANU-PF and MDC formed the unity government following the disputed and
violent 2008 elections.  Relations between the parties have been tense, and
many ZANU-PF members have called for new elections as early as later this
year.  The MDC says no elections can take place until reforms are in place,
including a new constitution.


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Zimbabwe removed from Sadc Troika agenda 

http://www.africalegalbrief.com

Monday, 27 June 2011 23:11

ZIMBABWE has been removed from the agenda of the Sadc Organ on Defence,
Politics and Security Co-operation Ministerial Committee because the
political and security situation in the country has normalised.
For the past three years, Zimbabwe, Le-sotho, the Democratic Republic of
Congo and Madagascar have been on the agenda of the Troika's Ministerial
Committee because of political and security concerns posed by their
situations.
But following meetings of the ministerial committee in Maputo, Mozambique
last year and in Lusaka, Zambia, last week, Zimbabwe has been removed from
the agenda.

Secretary for Foreign Affairs Ambassador Joey Bimha yesterday said following
deliberations at the Maputo and Lusaka meetings, Zimbabwe was no longer on
the agenda of the Troika Ministerial Committte.
"In the Ministerial Committee meeting in Maputo last year, the Zimbabwe
situation was discussed and the conclusion was that the situation in
Zimbabwe had normalised to the extent that it did not warrant to be included
on the agenda item of the Ministerial Committee," Ambassador Bimha said.
After the Maputo consultations, the Troi-ka's Ministerial Committee then
decided in Lusaka last Thursday that it would no longer discuss Zimbabwe in
its meetings but leave the Harare issue to the Sadc facilitator, President
Jacob Zuma of South Africa.
"This follows reports that there were no security and political issues (in
Zimbabwe) of concern to Sadc. The reports on Zimbabwe will be submitted by
the facilitator (Presidet Zuma) at summit level," Ambassador Bimha said.
The Sadc Organ on Politics, Defence and Security is made up of two
inter-state committees namely;
l the Inter-State Committee on Politics and Diplomacy and the
l Inter-State Committee on Defence and Security.
These two committees feed into the Ministerial Committee of the Organ, which
in turn reports to the Organ itself, which then briefs the regional grouping
at summit level.
On the agenda of the committees, there is a section dealing with the
political and security situation in the region and Zimbabwe had been
itemised for the past three years until last week's decision.
Currently President Rupiah Banda of Zambia chairs the Sadc Organ on
Politics, Defence and Security and is deputised by President Zuma, with
Mozambican President Armando Guebuza completing the Troika line-up
Last Updated on Monday, 27 June 2011 23:25


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MDC-T condemns continued arrests over policeman death

http://www.swradioafrica.com

by Irene Madongo
28 June 2011

The MDC-T says the police are continuing to arrest MDC-T members over the
death of a police inspector and are using his death as an excuse to arrest
and harass MDC supporters. The party also maintains that the police are
trying to use this killing to portray the MDC-T as a violent organisation.

MDC-T spokesman Douglas Mwonzora says so far 25 supporters have been
arrested since the death last month

Police inspector Petros Mutedza was killed at a nightclub in Glen View,
Harare. Police say he was killed by MDC-T supporters but the party denies
this, saying he was killed after a fight broke out with drinkers at a
shopping centre in Glen View.

“In connection with the latest spate of arrests, the murder of the policeman
is just an excuse to harass MDC activists, especially the youth,” Mwonzora
said. “The arrest of 25 people shows the police do not know who actually
committed the offence, and that is unlikely to improve by arresting more
people.”

Mwonzora pointed to the recent arrest of MDC-T activist Washington
Tirivangani, who was picked up while distributing party newsletters.
Tirivangani is a councillor from Makonde district in Mashonaland West.

On Monday Tendai Chinyama, the MDC-T’s Kambuzuma district organising
secretary was also remanded in custody by a Harare magistrate over the
death. Chinyama was abducted last Thursday at his workplace in Belvedere,
Harare. Also on Monday, the courts postponed the hearing of a bail
application filed by some of the other MDC-T supporters still being held.
They are Councillor Oddrey Sydney Chirombe of Ward 33 in Budiriro, and two
MDC employees, Jepheas Moyo and Abina Rutsito.

Meanwhile the first group of 20 other supporters being held over the death
are still waiting for the court to make a ruling on their bail application,
a ruling which has been repeatedly postponed.


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Another MDC activist remanded in custody

Tuesday, 28 June 2011

Tendai Chinyama, the MDC Kambuzuma district organising secretary was
yesterday remanded in custody by a Harare magistrate.

Chinyama, who is facing allegations of murdering a police officer in Glen
View 3 last month, was abducted on Thursday, last week at his workplace in
Belvedere, Harare. He was found at Matapi police station in Mbare after
lawyers tracked him down. Another activist, Lecture Chiturumani who was
arrested on Thursday on the same charge was released on Monday after being
detained for five days at Matapi police station.

Chinyama’s detention brings to 24 the number of MDC activists who are in
remand prison facing allegations of murdering a police officer. The police
officer was murdered by unknown revellers at a nightclub in Glen View.
Judgment on their bail ruling is yet to be passed by High Court judge,
Tendai Uchena.

Meanwhile, High Court judge, Chinembiri Bhunu yesterday postponed to Friday
1 July, the hearing of a bail application pending trial filed by Councillor
Oddrey Sydney Chirombe of Ward 33 in Budiriro, two MDC employees, Jepheas
Moyo and Abina Rutsito.

The postponement came after Edmore Nyazamba of the Attorney General’s office
requested for more time to respond to the bail application by Moyo,
Councillor Chirombe and Rutsito’s lawyers in which they argued that their
clients were victims of “profiling”, a practice that has been directly
outlawed in certain jurisdictions.

Together, united, winning, voting for real change!!

--
MDC Information & Publicity Department
Harvest House


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Biti flees office

http://www.dailynews.co.zw

By Bridget Mananavire, Staff Writer
Tuesday, 28 June 2011 10:36

HARARE - In yet another sign that President Robert Mugabe’s supporters are
resorting to violence to maintain a grip on power, Finance Minister Tendai
Biti fled his Harare offices yesterday after Zanu PF militants stormed the
premises demanding his resignation.

The raid on Biti’s offices, coming days after the arrest of a top aide to
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and “subversive” statements by an army
general, has worsened fears that Zimbabwe is back to the anarchy of 2008
when more than 200 MDC supporters were murdered in cold blood after
Tsvangirai defeated Mugabe in contested presidential elections.

The belligerent militants, who sang Zanu PF war songs and praised Mugabe,
invaded the new government complex at the corner of Fourth Street and
Central Avenue where Biti’s offices are housed.

They blocked the entrance to Biti’s office and in the process held hostage
those who were inside.

The atmosphere around the office complex was tense as the aggressive
militants, some of them war veterans, also blocked all entrances into the
building and intimidated pedestrians and drivers who were keen to get out.

Those stationed at Biti’s 6th Floor office entrance locked doors, demanding
to see the minister.

Biti managed to flee the complex in the afternoon through a back door. And
unaware that their target had slipped away, the angry mob maintained a heavy
presence at his office door and at the entrance to the government complex
until late in the day.

The beleaguered finance minister later told the Daily News that the attack
was yet another attempt by Zanu PF to force the collapse of the inclusive
government.

“Quite clearly, and as the Prime Minister said in Bulawayo at the weekend,
there are some people who are hell bent on breaking apart this government –
and because of my position as the Minister of Finance I am targeted,” he
said.

“In the past seven weeks there have been consistent attacks on me and all
sorts of bombardments at my offices. We will remain resolute and we will
look the beast in the eye.

“We didn’t get into this government because of Zanu PF but for the people of
Zimbabwe. If you read the book of Exodus, you will realise that Moses did so
many things for the children of Israel that surprised Pharaoh despite his
mighty.

“The MDC is in that phase and we promise the people of Zimbabwe that there
will soon be a Passover,” a defiant Biti said.

The militants were displaying placards demanding Biti’s resignation, saying
he was defying Mugabe’s orders. Other placards labelled him a puppet of the
West.

“Biti resign immediately for defying President Mugabe’s directive. President
Mugabe represents Zimbabweans; Biti represents EU and the West,” read one of
the placards.

Some of the women among the rowdy raiders imitated war movements crawling on
the ground, while their male counterparts sang and danced.

Police officers who were at the scene did not intervene and merely watched
the anarchy, as the militants took charge of the building.

Yesterday’s raid by the militants follows the petition that they sent to
Biti’s offices last week demanding that the minister award civil servants a
salary increase this month.

“The defiance by the Minister of Finance Tendai Biti to award civil servants
a salary increment by June 2011 as has been promised by the head of state
and government has prompted the war veterans to ask whose orders the
minister follows if he disobeys those that come from the cabinet,” read the
petition.

“This state of affairs should be condemned and as war veterans we are not
amused by his stance and behaviour on national issues hence we call for the
Minister to relinquish his post if he does not want to serve the people of
Zimbabwe,” it added.

The siege on Biti’s office yesterday also comes barely a week after
Brigadier General Douglas Nyikayaramba told the state media that Tsvangirai
was a “security threat”.

Two days later, Timba was arrested days after serial political flip flopper
and Zanu PF politburo member Jonathan Moyo demanded his arrest.

Moyo also demanded the arrest of Tsvangirai who at the weekend scoffed at
the threats.


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Plot to arrest journalists

http://www.dailynews.co.zw

By Thelma Chikwanha, Community Affairs Editor
Tuesday, 28 June 2011 17:37

HARARE - A sinister plot being orchestrated by a Zanu PF politburo member to
arrest and silence top journalists from the country’s independent media has
been uncovered with the Daily News among the top targets.

Sources told the Daily News yesterday that the politburo member, who feels
that the independent media is working to undermine his supposed ascendency
to the apex of power in Zanu PF, is persuading the system to immediately
arrest the journalists. Two other independent newspapers are targeted.

It has been established that Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) senior
journalists have been briefed “to get ready” for the imminent arrest of the
journalists, perceived to be preventing the highly ambitious politburo
member from becoming a heavyweight in Zanu PF.

He is however, said to be using the excuse that they are being used to
demonise President Robert Mugabe by Jameson Timba, the Minister of State in
the Prime Minister’s office who himself was arrested at the instigation of
serial political flip flopper, Jonathan Moyo.

“If the journalists are arrested as is being plotted in the next few days,
it is this politburo member  who is so ambitious he believes that he can
take over presidency in this country one day. He has briefed senior
journalists from ZBC who have been told to get ready for the scoop when the
journalists are eventually arrested.

“We are worried about the development because obviously it puts President
Mugabe in bad light in the eyes of Sadc and the international community. How
will the president benefit from arresting journalists?

“This guy revealed to us that he wants to fix the journalists who are
writing stories about him. But he says he will justify the arrests by
claiming that they are working with Timba and the MDC to destroy Mugabe,”
said a top ZBC official.

The state controlled  media has been running with stories alleging that the
Prime Minister’s office received three million pounds from the British to
fund privately owned media to de- campaign Mugabe.

In an article dated 24 June 2011, ZBC ran an article  on their website
entitled “Cheque Book Journalism Exposed” which stated that Timba had been
distributing the funds to senior journalists who in turn have recruited
other  journalists to denigrate Mugabe.

“Investigations by ZBC News into the MDC-T’s 3 million pound project being
managed by Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office Mr. Jameson
Timba to tarnish the image of President Mugabe and Zanu PF show that some
senior journalists from the private media have been given VISA cards to
access their hefty earnings anywhere in the world, especially in South
Africa and Zambia,” ZBC reported.

The Zimbabwe Union of Journalists secretary general Foster Dongozi said the
continued harassment of journalists and the latest plot reminded him of the
brutality they suffered in 2003.

“When we hear that there may be predators out there who are against
journalists, we get surprised. We as a union are aware that the profession
has been affected by almost 10 years of operating in a hostile environment,”
Dongozi said.

Media Institute of Southern Africa(MISA) director Nhlanhla Ngwenya said if
the plot succeeds, it would have the effect of  silencing the media through
self-censorship.

“They may not swoop on everyone but they will cherry pick a few then set an
example,” Ngwenya.

He said  there should be an overhaul of all repressive media laws which the
government continues to use on innocent journalists going about their normal
duties.

“As long as we have repressive laws the existence and sustainability of
private media is threatened. This is what we were talking about when people
were busy celebrating the granting of licences,” he said.


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Harare City Council Threatens Property Seizures Over Unpaid Water Bills

http://www.voanews.com

27 June 2011

Harare Mayor Masunda said the City Council seeks to recover $80 million in
unpaid water and other utility rates by attaching and selling property
unless residents and companies quickly pay arrears

Gibbs Dube | Washington

The residents subject to attachment and sale of properties are mostly in the
populous suburbs of Mbare, Kuwadzana, Kambuzuma, Tafara, Highfield and
Mabvuku, whose residents are feeling the economic pinch most

Following a ruling by the Zimbabwean High Court that the Harare City Council
can seize and sell property to cover unpaid municipal service bills, local
officials said they will now move against 5,000 residents and 500 companies
owing some 80 million dollars.

City Mayor Muchadeyi Masunda said the council decided such action was
necessary to recover at least part of US$170 million owed by households,
companies and the national government, though in the latter case it is not
clear what action it can take.

Masunda said the residents and companies can avoid seeing their property
attached by making payment plans with the local authority.

The residents subject to attachment and sale of properties are mostly in the
populous suburbs of Mbare, Kuwadzana, Kambuzuma, Tafara, Highfield and
Mabvuku, whose residents are hardest hit by the country's lingering economic
crisis.

Masunda told VOA Studio 7 reporter Gibbs Dube that while the council is
aware of the economic conditions facing residents, it has no choice if
services are to be provided.

Warren Park resident Trevor Murari said the city should negotiate with
defaulting rate payers. Highfield resident Angeline Kumwenda said the
Council should forbear.

Harare Residents Association Chairman Simbarashe Moyo said affected
residents should approach his organization for help if the city moves
against their properties.


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Anonymous Hackers Leak Zimbabwe Government Data

http://www.securitynewsdaily.com/

Jun 28, 2011 | 11:42 AM ET | By Matt Liebowitz, SecurityNewsDaily Staff
Writer

The Anonymous hacking group has launched attacks on government websites in
Zimbabwe to protest the controversial president of that southern African
country, Robert Mugabe.

A Twitter post from AnonymousIRC late Monday night (June 28) read:
"Currently uploading about everything about Zimbabwe Government on Internet
there is to know. Who actually likes Robert Mugabe? #AntiSec"

Anonymous uploaded the file, called Zimbabwe .gov SQL Dump, to the Hong
Kong-based file-sharing site Megaupload.com.

This marks the second time Anonymous has launched online campaigns against
the Zimbabwean government. The first attack came in early January, when, to
protest Zimbabwe blocking its citizens from accessing WikiLeaks, Anonymous
knocked www.tunisia.gov.tn offline as part of "Operation Payback."

Before Anonymous hit Zimbabwe this time, the group leaked passwords and user
names from government servers in Brazil, Anguilla and Australia. In each
Twitter announcement, Anonymous used the "Anti-Sec" hashtag, referencing
"Operation Anti-Security," the anti-government hacking campaign spearheaded
June 19 by LulzSec.

With these leaks, Anonymous resumed its place as the most prominent hacking
group now that LulzSec has announced the end of its operations.

But as many security experts have speculated, the two groups may have not
been so separate after all.

Just prior to releasing the Zimbabwe cache, Anonymous wrote: "Yes, my
fellows. We may be not quite as funny, but we can assure you: We sail in the
same spirit. LulzSec = Anonymous. Who did NOT now [sic]?"

Anonymous said it is also planning to release data pertaining to major U.S.
companies.


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Impunity fuelling Zim violence

http://www.zimonline.co.za

by Edward Jones     Tuesday 28 June 2011

HARARE – Zimbabwe’s continued failure to investigate past torture crimes
such as during the Gukurahundi era and run up to the 2008 violent elections
could fuel a repeat of violence and torture in future elections because
perpetrators will know they will go unpunished, a local rights group said.

Human rights groups say up to 20 000 people were killed during the infamous
Gukurahundi campaign in Matabeleland and Midlands provinces in the early 80s
as President Robert Mugabe’s government led a military crackdown to quell an
insurgency.

The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum said it was the failure by the
government to punish perpetrators that was worrisome, adding that precedence
may have been set where the offenders could continue with violence and
torture against their opponents.

“The failure by the government to investigate and prosecute perpetrators of
murder, torture, abductions and politically motivated violence threatens the
prospects of holding any free, fair and credible election. In the past
torture has been used to influence voting patterns,” the Forum said in a
statement.

“It is the responsibility of any state to protect its citizens by taking
reasonable steps to prevent human rights violations.”

Political violence has scarred Zimbabwe’s past elections and Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Party (MDC) party says up to 200
of its members were killed by Mugabe’s ZANU-PF supporters who were helped by
members of the security service in the 2008 elections.

Mugabe was retained into office after a run-off vote which Tsvangirai
boycotted, citing the violence against MDC supporters. The two were forced
into a unity government by regional leaders but the coalition has failed to
prosecute the perpetrators.

The new government has not investigated cases of violence, which worsened
from 2000 and a national healing programme meant to ease political tensions
has failed so far.

Zimbabwe’s security service, especially the intelligence service, army and
police continue to be linked to cases of political violence, torture and
inhuman treatment of Mugabe’s political opponents.

The Forum said political detainees had given accounts of indignities,
torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment endured in police
custody.

In 2008 intelligence agents abducted broadcaster-turned rights activist
Jestina Mukoko from her home and illegally held her for more than a month
without her whereabouts being known by her lawyers and family.

The state was barred from prosecuting her by the Supreme Court, which heard
how she was tortured and denied medication. State security agents have
always denied that they torture suspects even when it has been confirmed by
medical experts.

“State agents have reportedly used torture as a means of illegally
extracting confessions from accused persons. Political activists have
allegedly also used it, either with the support or acquiescence of the
state, to obtain information from political opponents,” the Forum said.

“The likelihood of organised violence and torture being used at any future
election is apparent as past perpetrators continue to enjoy impunity,” the
forum said.

Political tensions are on the rise again in Zimbabwe, fueled by talk of
fresh elections meant to end the current unity government, which has raised
fears of more political violence in the southern African state.

The Forum said the government should ratify the United Nations Convention
against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment and ensure perpetrators of past violence were brought to
account. -- ZimOnline


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Air Zimbabwe Breaks Aviation Records Again

http://www.radiovop.com/

Harare, June 28, 2011 - Air Zimbabwe has once again broken aviation records
by transporting 13 passengers on one of its domestic routes as the crisis
bedevilling the troubled national airline worsens.

Informed sources told Radio VOP on Tuesday that Air Zimbabwe ferried 13
passengers on one of its long haul planes from Harare to Johannesburg on
Monday morning which has a carrying capacity of 203 passengers.

The airline was forced to service the Harare-Johannesburg route with one of
its Boeing 767-200 aircraft which services Far East destinations such as
China after Zambezi Airlines re-called its aircraft which it had been
leasing to Air Zimbabwe after the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe
condemned some of its long haul aircraft as unfit to fly because of old age.

“Things are bad here. We are making losses and this (flying) doesn’t make
any business sense,” said a source at the national airline.

Air Zimbabwe acting chief executive officer Innocent Mavhunga refused to
comment when reached by Radio VOP insisting that he was in a meeting.

The fresh crisis adds to the woes bedevilling Air Zimbabwe which recently
grounded some of its aircraft owing to fuel shortages.

The airline’s disgruntled pilots and other staff members have deserted the
airline to seek greener pastures abroad.


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Jabulani Sibanda rips ZANU PF apart in Masvingo province

http://www.swradioafrica.com/

By Tichaona Sibanda
28 June 2011

War Vets leader Jabulani Sibanda has become a hate figure among his own ZANU
PF party in Masvingo province, following his destructive campaign strategy.

Sibanda has been in and out of the province for the past six months now,
making several visits, mainly to Bikita, Zaka and Gutu districts. These are
areas where ZANU PF lost dismally to the MDC-T in the 2008 election.
Masvingo has 26 parliamentary seats from the seven districts in the
province.

The MDC-T had one parliamentary seat prior to the harmonized elections but
managed to grab 13 more constituencies, to make 14 in total to ZANU PF’s 12.

A highly placed source in Masvingo told SW Radio Africa on Tuesday that
aspiring parliamentary candidates from ZANU PF were hiring Sibanda to
campaign for them in the hope they would dislodge sitting legislators from
the MDC-T.

‘Sibanda is in Masvingo not on a ZANU PF approved campaign program, but is
representing certain individuals within the party to whip up support for
them in anticipation of elections. But his campaign methods of intimidating
and threatening villagers with death has had a disastrous effect on ZANU PF,’
our source said.

He added; ‘If you study his movements, he’s mostly seen in areas where ZANU
PF lost seats to the MDC. The aspiring candidates there are queuing up to
pay for his services, including settling his hotels bills at Flamboyant
hotel, which he uses as a springboard to launch his campaigns.’

But his actions have pushed a lot of people away from ZANU PF and scared the
provincial leadership.This forced the ZANU PF provincial co-ordinating
committee, led by chairman Lovemore Matuke, to last week expel Sibanda from
the province. They argued Sibanda had overstayed in the province and it was
time to leave.

Sibanda though has defied this order and declared he will only leave
Masvingo in a coffin.

Sibanda’s modus operandi involves forcing villagers to attend his illegal
meetings in districts such as Gutu and Bikita, threatening them with
violence if they do not vote for Robert Mugabe and his ZANU PF party in the
next elections.


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Firms submit share transfer plans

http://www.zimonline.co.za

by Tobias Manyuchi     Tuesday 28 June 2011

HARARE – Nearly 200 foreign mining firms have submitted plans to Zimbabwe’s
indigenisation ministry on how they intend to dispose majority stake in
their local units to blacks, the government said on Monday.

Under a controversial black economic empowerment programme that has divided
the Harare coalition government while raising fears among foreigners about
the safety of their investments in Zimbabwe, foreign-owned mining firms have
until September 30 to their plans to surrender 51 percent of their local
shares to local blacks.

A statement issued said 173 companies had submitted indigenisation proposals
in a bid to beat the deadline, still three months away.

The indigenisation ministry headed by Saviour Kasukuwere from President
Robert Mugabe’s ZANU (PF) party in Zimbabwe’s shaky unit government is
spearheading the controversial empowerment drive which Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai has decried as looting by a “greedy elite”.

According to the list published by the ministry, some of the companies that
have submitted empowerment plans include Anglo American Corporation, which
operates Unki mine in central Zimbabwe that began producing platinum last
December.

Rio Tinto, which owns Murowa diamond mine, Mwana Africa, which owns Bindura
Nickel Mine and Freda Rebecca gold mine and Zimbabwe’s largest gold miner
Metallon Gold Zimbabwe are some of the companies that have submitted
indigenisation plans to the Harare government.

Firms that fail to disclose their share-transfer plans within the stipulated
period face prosecution, according to the empowerment regulations that have
thrown the lucrative mining sector into turmoil.

While the indigenisation programme targets the entire economy, Mugabe has
said it will begin with the mining sector, the mainstay of the economy after
the veteran President’s controversial land reforms destroyed agriculture.

Analysts say neither the cash-strapped government nor impoverished blacks
will be able to raise money to buy shares in large foreign-owned mines or
factories.

Kasukuwere has in the past said Harare would not pay any money for the
mining stakes but would base any payment negotiations on the state's
ownership of the southern African country's untapped mineral wealth. -- 
ZimOnline


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Harvesting Water for Food Security

http://www.ips.org/

By Busani Bafana

GWANDA, Zimbabwe, Jun 28 (IPS) – Earth mounds running across her field hold
back the water that Caroline Ndlovu uses to grow maize, pumpkins, beans and
watermelons long after the short rainy season in this arid part of Zimbabwe.

Ndlovu, a mother of three who trains other farmers, is one of over 100
smallholder farmers practising the water harvesting technique of using earth
dams. The water collected in the field allows farmers to increase their crop
yields, which ordinarily are poor in this region.

Almost four years ago Ndlovu harvested one 50-kilogram bag of maize from her
1.5 hectare piece of land, which sits on an undulating slope. Thanks to
harvesting water, Ndlovu's maize yield has quadrupled and her neighbours
wonder what she is doing they are not.

"For a long time I was worried about poor harvest because of low rainfall
until I heard about water harvesting," Ndlovu, told IPS pointing to full
granary of maize. "The poor rainfall limitsed me to grow shorghum and millet
but that was not for me because I am not able to (protect) the crops from
the birds. I grow maize and have realised good harvests because of
implementing water harvesting."

The secret to water harvesting is hard work and a passion for farming,
Ndlovu revealed. "I work hard and put to practise the skills I have learnt
on pegging and digging the contours in the most suitable location to ensure
that they hold the water after the rains," said Ndlovu.

"I have encouraged other farmers to try water harvesting and some of them
wonder if I am using a tractor when they see my harvest yet it all about
learning the technique and applying it correctly."

Dead level contours are a useful technology for farmers farming on sloping
fields to harvest rainwater. The trenches, around 50 centimetres deep and 1
metre wide, are dug across the slope. During rainfall, they capture run off,
which is then slowly released to the field below over the next few weeks,
giving crops moisture during dry spells.

Farmers have faced the challenge of not having the tools to dig the contours
as well as not having the labour involved in making the contours. So
communities in Sizhulube village work together to dig the contours. While
older or disabled members look after the children and help prepare food.

Gwanda, 180 kilometres north of Bulawayo, is tucked away in the southern
part of the country and is classified as a natural region suitable for semi
extensive farming as it receives up to 400 millimetres rainfall annually.
Farmers have learnt and practise rainwater harvesting to survive the long
dry spells.

Village head and ward coordinator for the water harvesting project in
Sizhubane village, Phineas Maphosa, said the project has empowered farmers
in the area. Following a training workshop in 2006, 15 economic groups were
identified in the six villages that make up the ward, which prioritised food
security using water harvesting.

"Our rainfall is really pathetic and each year farmers get nothing from
their fields. But now we see a difference in the harvests," said Maphosa. "I
practise water harvesting and train other farmers on using it because I have
improved my harvest as a result."

Maphosa said at first some farmers were sceptical and lazy to adopt the
technique. But ‘look and learn’ tours were used to encourage them and some
now grow pumpkins and beans.

International non-governmental organisation Practical Action has trained
farmers to use water harvesting techniques.

Rockwell Matengarufu, the district facilitator for Practical Action's
‘Enhancing Livelihoods and Food Security in Vulnerable Semi-Arid Areas of
Matabeleland South’ programme, told IPS that water harvesting techniques are
an insurance against the uncertainty of rain-fed agriculture in a changing
climate. Practical Action has trained farmers to use improved farming
methods and extension services they can share at village level in Gwanda.

According to the Southern and Eastern Africa Rainwater Network (SearNet)
hosted by the World Agroforestry Centre in Kenya, most sub-Saharan African
countries are currently using at most five percent of their rainwater
potential. By recognising and incorporating the greenwater — the water
ignored in hydrological planning — it may be possible to improve the food
insecurity situation while also protecting the environment.

"There is an overdependence on rain-fed agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa
and not enough ways to deal with the effects of dry spells and droughts,"
said Maimbo Malesu, the World Agroforestry Centre's water-management
programme coordinator for Eastern Africa writing on the SearNet website. "As
a result, grain yields are below one tonne per hectare in most of the
region. This has mistakenly been blamed on physical water scarcity. But it
is not physical as much as it is economic. There is simply a lack of
investments to both capture and boost water storage."

(END/2011)


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The day over 8 villagers were massacred by ZANU PF militias

http://www.swradioafrica.com/

By Lance Guma
28 June 2011

Every Tuesday SW Radio Africa looks back at some of Zimbabwe’s unsolved
cases of political violence, torture, murder and other forms of abuse, by
people in positions of authority. Today we look back at the horrific
massacre, 3 years ago, of over 8 villagers in the Chaona area of Chiweshe in
Mashonaland Central.

On the evening of 5th May 2008, three days after Mugabe’s regime finally
released the official results of the March 29th election, over 200 ZANU PF
militias rampaged through the Chaona village, killing 8 perceived opposition
supporters. It was to be one of the bloodiest scenes of political violence
in the past decade and some commentators believe there may have been more
than 8 deaths.

ZANU PF militants and men in army uniform, led by Major Cairo Mhandu and
Major Maravadza, brutally beat to death Tapiwa Meda, Joseph Madzuramhende,
Alex Chiriseri, David Tachiwa Mapuranga, Arthur Matombo, Patson
Mudzuramhende and Jeff Jemedze and others. Women were stripped and beaten so
viciously that whole sections of flesh fell away from their buttocks.

The militias also resorted to genital mutilation in their attacks. The
postmortem report for Chiriseri for example listed, ‘crushed genitals’ as
one of the causes of death. The militia and soldiers inflicted serious
injuries by dipping their knobkerries and sticks into paraquat, a deadly
herbicide, before beating their victims. This meant the wounds did not heal
and many died months later, in agony.

In the same area another 3 MDC-T members were shot dead at point blank
range, bringing the total number killed to well over 11 within the same
week. We spoke to local MP Shepherd Mushonga who reminded us that Councillor
Chironga and his two brothers were shot in front of a crowd in the area
while three other family members were seriously injured.

When Mushonga was addressing mourners at the funerals in 2008 he noted the
gruesome condition of the corpses and said he believed soldiers trained in
torture were behind the killings and not the less sophisticated militias or
war vets.

Mugabe and his ZANU PF party faced the humiliation of losing to the MDC-T in
the March 2008 harmonized presidential and parliamentary elections. A group
of over 200 senior army officers deployed to the provinces later coordinated
a murderous campaign of retribution where, according to the MDC-T, over 500
supporters were killed, tens of thousands tortured and hundreds of thousands
displaced.

 


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Service in support of Zimbabwean victims of torture – 26th June 2011

FROM THE ZIMBABWE VIGIL

 

Service in support of Zimbabwean victims of torture – 26th June 2011

 

The London chapel of John Wesley – one of the founders of the Methodist Church – resounded to the sound of drums and African singing and dancing as exiled Zimbabweans and supporters gathered on 26th June to mark the UN international day in support of victims of torture.

 

The Vigil supplied the choir and drummers, who were energized by management team member, Patson Muzuwa, himself a survivor of torture. 

 

The service was organised by the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum and our host at the Methodist world’s ’cathedral’ was the Reverend Jennifer Potter who has ministered in Botswana and Zambia and is Methodist ‘companion’ for Zimbabwe, visiting there every year. Jennifer prayed for a new dawn in Zimbabwe and reached out to Anglican friends in Zimbabwe who, she said, seemed to be particularly persecuted.

 

The service was addressed by two visitors from Zimbabwe: Irene Petras, Director of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights and Kudakwashe Chitsike of the Research and Advocacy Unit (Zimbabwe). Kudakwashe said women were particularly affected by violence in Zimbabwe – especially during elections and in rural areas. Nevertheless a recent survey had shown that they would prefer elections rather than continue with the current government. She added that the situation had corrupted people so much that 9% of respondents to the survey said that violence should be part of elections.

 

For her part, Irene condemned the prevalence of torture in Zimbabwe despite the government’s agreement that it would be ended. The organ of national healing had failed and the rule of law had been so degraded that victims of crimes were arrested instead of the perpetrators. She said what was necessary was to bring in professionals to reform the police and the prosecuting authority. As it was, a whole generation had lost faith in justice. Zimbabweans must speak out about it or be complicit, and perpetrators must be brought to justice.

 

The service ended with Husani Husani reading his poem ‘I stand accused’.

 

I stand accused

For asking for my rights

For exercising my right to live

For choosing the party of my choice

For choosing which leader to lead my country

I stand accused

 

I stand accused

For demanding proper health care

For demanding better education

For demanding freedom of speech

For demanding freedom of association

I stand accused

 

I stand accused

For belonging to a political party of my choice

For being ungrateful to war mongers posing as war veterans

For asking how a state minister becomes a millionaire overnight

For asking why some people are above the law

I stand accused

 

Thanks to Josie Zhuga who led the choir and to the other choir members: Priscillah Chakanyuka, Melinda Chikanya, Handsen Chikowore, Fundai Chiname, Hasani Hasani, Epiphania Kamuruko, Jonathan Kariwoh, Shamiso Kofi, Fungayi Mabhunu, Petronilla Masango, Wilbert Matambanadzo, Gladys Hellen Meck, Nqobizitha Moyo, Alfred Moyo, Liona Moyo, Mercy Muranganwa, Penelope Musemburi, Sakhile Ncube, Pauline Nyikadzino, Luka Phiri, Elizabeth Puwai, Margret Tandi.

 

For pictures of the event, check: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zimbabwevigil/.

 

Vigil co-ordinators

The Vigil, outside the Zimbabwe Embassy, 429 Strand, London, takes place every Saturday from 14.00 to 18.00 to protest against gross violations of human rights in Zimbabwe. The Vigil which started in October 2002 will continue until internationally-monitored, free and fair elections are held in Zimbabwe: http://www.zimvigil.co.uk.

 


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NGO job vacancies in Zimbabwe

http://www.kubatanablogs.net/kubatana/?p=6294
 
 

Work in and for Zimbabwe. Help grow our nation. Check out the vacancies below. If you’d like to receive this sort of information, as well as civic and human rights updates, by email each week drop us a note saying “subscribe” to info [at] kubatana [dot] net Please note that the job vacancies we carry are related to the NGO and civil society sectors only.

Project Officer – Makoni Food and Livelihood Security Support Project: GOAL
Deadline: 1 July 2011

Applications are encouraged from individuals with suitable qualifications to fill the following position within the organisation.

General description of role:

The Project Officer is responsible for the overall implementation of the project in line with the project documentation and agreements signed between GOAL and the institutional partner in the district assigned. S/he actively guides the physical implementation and on going monitoring of the project. S/he also contributes to the continuous review of the project with a view to improving the anticipated project outcomes. The Project Officer support and line manages the Field Officers and the data capture clerk who work on the project.

Qualifications and skills:

-    A minimum of a degree in Agriculture/Social Science or equivalent related field
-    2+ years’ solid experience in a middle senior capacity in managing livelihoods projects
-    Proven experience of using participatory methodologies such as Training for Transformation and/PRA techniques with rural communities
-    Good understanding and previous experience of using monitoring and evaluation tools and methodologies
-    Proven human resource management, organizing and planning skills
-    Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines
-    Excellent oral and written communication skills
-    Evidence of maturity and good community approach skills
-    Computer literate in Microsoft products i.e. Word and Excel
-    Motor bike riding experience an added advantage

Qualified female candidates are encouraged to apply.

Only candidates meeting the criteria will be called for an interview. Interested candidates should submit an application letter, a CV with names and addresses of contactable referees and certified copies of certificates. Please indicate the post on the application envelope and submit no later than 1st July 2011 to:

The HR Co-ordinator, GOAL Zimbabwe, 3 Lezard Avenue, Milton Park, Harare or P. O. Box 4370, Harare.

Laboratory Technician: MSF
Deadline: 4 July 2011

Based in Beitbridge

-    Degree/Diploma in Medical Lab Sciences
-    Specialist Diploma in Immunology is an asset
-    Current registration with Medical Laboratory and Clinical Scientists Council of Zimbabwe
-    Minimum 2 years’ work experience post-qualification
-    Knowledge of HIV/AIDS screening and diagnosis is a must
-    Fluency in English is a must
-    Knowledge of Ndebele, Shona or Venda is an asset
-    Proficient knowledge of MS Office

Send CV to: Admin – MSF-SPAIN, 165 Tower Lane Baobab, Beitbridge or MSFE-beitbridge [at] barcelona [dot] msf [dot] org

Several (41) positions: Population Services Zimbabwe
Deadline: 4 July 2011

Population Services Zimbabwe (PSZ), an affiliate of Marie Stopes International (MSI), is a market focused and result-oriented non-governmental organization. We develop the efficient, effective and sustainable family planning and reproductive health programmes, with particular emphasis on the lower and disadvantaged communities in Zimbabwe. What we do makes a real difference to people’s lives, so it’s absolutely crucial that we fill our organisation with passionate people.

Opportunities have arisen in the following areas:

Programme Assistant – Harare

Job Summary:

Under the overall supervision pf the Country Director, the Program Assistant is responsible and accountable for providing technical, clerical and administrative support for assigned programme areas; and coordination procedures for scheduling and monitoring programme related activities.

Key duties:

-    Provides effective support to the Country Director in all aspects of program budgeting, implementation, monitoring, including country support activities related to programme management
-    Management of Country Director’s daily and monthly itineraries, drafting of routine correspondences, presentations, faxes, memoranda and reports in accordance with Country Director’s requirements
-    Assists on preparing work plans and budgets for all program activities
-    Provision of weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual reports outlining results of specific programs

Qualifications and experience:

-    Degree in Social/Behavioral Sciences, or related field
-    A minimum of two years’ work experience in programme or personal assistant role
-    Excellent interpersonal, communication and computer skills
-    Experience in development and implementation of policies and procedures for all administration procedures

Centre Team Leader – Harare

Key duties:

-    Ensures the clinic’s team has adequate stocks, equipment and staff for smooth delivery of service
-    Ensures clinical standards are being followed at the centre and offer high quality services
-    Markets PSZ products and services in liaison with the Marketing department
-    Provides consultation, counseling of clients and advice on various methods of contraception to enable the client to make an informed decision
-    Dispense drugs to clients

Qualifications and experience:

-    BSc in Nursing Science
-    Post graduate qualification in Midwifery
-    Forensic Licence (M.C.A.Z)
-    Diploma in Health Administration/Community Nursing an added advantage
-    Family Planning training
-    At least 5 years post qualification experience, of which 2 years’ must have been in a supervisory position
-    Computer literacy
-    Clean Class 4 driver’s licence

Outreach Team Leader x 2 – Masvingo and Chinhoyi

Key duties:

-    Ensures the clinic’s team has adequate stocks, equipment and staff for smooth delivery of service
-    Ensures clinical standards are being followed at all outreach sites
-    Markets PSZ products and services in liaison with the Marketing department
-    Provides consultation, counseling of clients and advice on various methods of contraception to enable the client to make an informed decision
-    Dispense drugs to clients

Qualifications and experience:

-    BSc in Nursing Science with post graduate qualification in Midwifery
-    Diploma in Community Nursing
-    Forensic Licence (M.C.A.Z)
-    Diploma in Health Administration advantageous
-    Family Planning training
-    At least 5 years post qualification experience, of which 2 years’ must have been in a supervisory position
-    Computer literacy

Administrator Assistant – Mutare
Locum Administrator Assistant x 12 – Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru, Mutare, Kadoma, Gokwe

Duties:

-    Welcomes clients and/or visitors to the clinic and attend to inquiries
-    Receipts and banks all income on a daily basis
-    Manages the clinic’s petty cash
-    Records performance statistics as required
-    Maintains client records, to be organized and available as necessary
-    Orders clinic supplies to ensure proper
-    Stock management and voucher filing

Qualifications and experience:

-    3 ‘A’ Levels with Maths and English at ‘O’ Level
-    Secretarial Diploma
-    2-3 years post qualification experience
-    Advanced computer literacy in Microsoft Office Packages

Locum Nurse Provider x 12 – Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru, Mutare, Kadoma, Gokwe

Key duties:

-    Assesses client’s reproductive health needs
-    Counsels clients and provide advice on family planning, sexually transmitted infections and other sexual reproductive health services
-    Maintains accurate and confidential client records
-    Provides cover for Centre Team Leader inn their absence

Qualifications and experience:

-    Diploma in Nursing, preferably a Degree in Nursing Science
-    Forensic Licence (M.C.A.Z)
-    2-3 years post-qualification professional
-    Certificate in Basic Life Support is an added advantage
-    Family Planning training

Locum Nurse Aide x 12 – Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru, Mutare, Kadoma, Gokwe

Duties:

-    Provides cleaning services, including laundry and storage of linen
-    Sterilization and preparation of instruments before use in treatment rooms
-    Safe disposal of all clinical waste

Qualifications and experience:

-    5 ‘O’ Levels with Maths and English
-    At least 3 years experience in a hospital environment
-    Current First Aid Certificate with a recognized institution
-    Knowledge of family planning methods is an added advantage

If you would like to be considered for any of these roles, please submit a covering letter and CV, outlining your experience to date and the location you wish to be considered for, to:

The Human Resources Officer
Population Services Zimbabwe
9 Bisley Circle
Belvedere
Harare

Or send an email to: recruitment [at] pszim [dot] com quoting the job title in the subject line.

Interview date is week commencing 25 July 2011. Start date is ASAP.


Country Representative: Zimbabwe Hand in Hand Southern Africa
Deadline: 8 July 2011

Hand in Hand Southern Africa is an NGO affiliated to Hand in Hand International and shares the same focus targeting the poorest of the poor in its aim to create sustainable and replicable poverty reduction models. Hand in Hand Southern Africa welcomes applications from appropriately qualified and experienced people for the position of Country Representative in Zimbabwe.

Key responsibilities:

-    Set up HiH operations in Zimbabwe
-    Provides strategic leadership of HiH SA’s program in the country
-    Takes the lead in representing HiH SA within the country (including media and lobbying and advocacy work)
-    Builds relationships and develops networks
-    Analyses policy and policy environment in Zimbabwe and its impact on the country programme
-    Manages the country: staff, budget, funding and the program
-    Works with Country Leadership Team to ensure that minimum standards are met in the country: for program, program management, HR, finance, security, health and safety etc
-    Write proposals and design logical frameworks for a variety of donor requirements and indicators
-    Co-ordinates with the Regional Leadership Team, to identify new funding sources and negotiate funding to support program implementation

Skills and competencies:

-    Senior management experience in leading the development, and ensuring the delivery of organisational strategy
-    Proven analytical skills and ability to think strategically
-    Experience in leading and motivating multi disciplinary, geographically remote teams, a high degree of self-awareness
-    Experience in representing an organization with partners, government agencies, private sector organizations and donors
-    High level financial management skills to steer the operational budget
-    Experience of fundraising from diverse institutions, both local and international
-    Excellent written and verbal communication skills to motivate, influence and negotiate

Qualifications:

-    A degree in Development Studies or Economics or Social science or Business Management is required
-    Professional qualifications in management or MBA is an advantage
-    Over 5 years experience in senior management position

To apply, please send a brief motivational letter and CV to info [at] handinhandsa [dot] org or P. O. Box FM790, Famona, Bulawayo. HiH SA will communicate with shortlisted candidates only.

Southern Africa Sub-regional Funding Officer (Malawi and Zimbabwe): Progressio
Deadline: 13 July 2011

Based: Harare, Zimbabwe, with occasional visits to Malawi
Contract: Full-time, two-year contract
Salary: US$2,000 gross per month

Please note that the successful candidate will be required to speak and write fluent English and Shona and/or Ndebele.

Progressio has been leading the way on practical international development issues for more than forty years. Whether through placing development workers overseas, or in our policy and advocacy achievements, Progressio has a track record of making a difference. We work with people of all faiths and none.

We are looking for a highly motivated and resourceful individual with a genuine commitment and track record of fundraising for international development. The post holder will play a leading role in increasing the funding for Progressio’s programmes and advocacy work in the Southern Africa Sub-region (Malawi and Zimbabwe). The post holder will be responsible for researching new funding sources in the region and beyond, preparing specific funding bids/ reports for submission to institutional donors (this will involve liaising with the Fundraising Team, plus other staff in the UK, Malawi and Zimbabwe), donor relationship management, and maintaining up-to date information systems.

Educated to degree or with an appropriate qualification in a relevant discipline, the successful candidate will have had fundraising training; a successful track record in securing funding from institutional donors (based in the Southern Africa region and beyond), and proven experience of: networking/ building/ managing relationships with donors, writing successful funding proposals and reports, and report writing (narrative and financial).

Experience of maintaining grant management systems; a flexible approach to managing and prioritising a high workload and multiple tasks in a fast paced environment with tight deadlines; sound knowledge of institutional regional and international funding sources and trends; excellent interpersonal, communication and networking skills, including the ability to develop and manage effective relationships with current and new donors; demonstrable numeracy skills, including the ability to prepare and interpret financial information, and competence in spreadsheet accounting, and good team-building skills and consensus led approach to work are essential. As are excellent organisational and time management skills, with ability to work on own initiative, prioritise and meet deadlines; excellent attention to detail, accuracy, ability to assimilate and analyse information quickly; flexibility, problem solving skills and ability to adapt to a changing environment and to approach work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude; excellent oral and written skills in English and Shona and/ or Ndebele; full employment rights in Zimbabwe; strong personal commitment to Progressio’s vision, values and goals, and ability to put them in to practice; openness to work with different partners (eg secular, faith-based) and to work with diverse and marginalised groups; cultural sensitivity and ability to work as a member of a multicultural team spread across different countries, and the ability and readiness to undertake road travel in the region and for short stays, and to work outside office hours and during weekends.

It is essential that you complete Progressio’s application form in full, as very specific information is required and will be used to decide whether or not you will be short-listed for an interview.

For further information and an application form visit www.progressio.org.uk/jobs

Interviews: Week of 18 July 2011 in Harare

Please return the completed application form to: Recruitment [at] progressio [dot] org [dot] uk

Governance & Human Rights Programme Assistant – Zimbabwe Office: Trócaire
Deadline: 14 July 2011

Trócaire is a Development Agency of the Irish Catholic Church.  The Agency works in Zimbabwe under an MoU with the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops Conference. A vacancy for a Governance & Human Rights Programme Assistant has risen within its Zimbabwe Office. The successful candidate will work in close collaboration with the GHR Programme Officer. The key deliveries for the position include supporting the Governance & HR Programme in Zimbabwe to ensure it is implemented to the highest standards possible.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

Supporting the Governance and Human Rights Programme Officer in:

-    Developing a strategically focused programme on Governance and Human Rights in Zimbabwe, which is coherent with the Zimbabwe Country Strategy.
-    Constructively supporting partners’ management of Governance & Human Rights projects.
-    Managing EU co-financed projects and other co-financed projects that may come up.
-    Building partners’ capacity individually and collectively through training and accompaniment in areas of programme development, organizational governance, institutional development and financial management.
-    Ensuring that partners provide timely and quality reports to Trócaire; both narrative and financial and reviewing these reports.
-    Developing policy & advocacy positions for Trócaire, working in collaboration with partners and like-minded organizations and networks as appropriate.
-    Working with the country representative to deliver advocacy on Governance and Human Rights relevant to Zimbabwe, working with the Regional Office and Trócaire head office to reach advocacy targets in the Southern Africa region, in Ireland and in the EU.

The ideal candidate will have:
-    Third level qualification in Development Studies, International Relations, Human Rights Law or similar.
-    Minimum 1 year development experience  -preferably in a partnership context.
-    Participated in advocacy initiatives on Governance & Human Rights issues.
-    Experience in Governance /Human Rights programming.
-    Excellent written, oral and presentational communications skills (for purposes of reporting, advocacy and sharing learning).
-    Strong commitment to human rights and social justice.
-    Commitment to Trócaire values.

In return we offer a competitive salary and package commensurate with education and experience.

Full job description available on request from: ntaderera [at] trocairezw [dot] org

To apply: Email your cover letter and detailed CV to ntaderera [at] trocairezw [dot] org with “Governance & Human Rights Programme Assistant” in the subject line.

Interviews will be held on Wednesday 20th July 2011

 
 


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OPINION: Beyond Livingstone

http://www.zimonline.co.za/

by Brian Raftopoulos     Tuesday 28 June 2011

The excitement over the resolutions of the SADC Troika meeting in
Livingstone, Zambia, at the end of March 2011, was largely focused on the
stronger stance taken by the organ over the abuses of the Mugabe regime, and
more particularly the continued obstacles placed by the latter over the
implementation of the GPA.

In effect however, the Livingstone resolutions brought into effect the major
strength of the SADC mediation, which has been to lock the Mugabe regime
into structures of accountability. Whatever the weaknesses of the GPA, and
there are many, it has forced Zanu PF into closer accountability for its
behavior at different levels including cabinet, parliament, JOMIC, the
constitutional reform process, SADC, the AU and its relations with the West.

For authoritarian parties like Zanu PF, all these forms of having to answer
to various fora are anathema, as they provide varying means of eroding the
monopoly of power that the regime has become completely accustomed to.

The accumulation of small reforms and the slow dispersal of power provide a
major challenge for such structures of authoritarian power, as they provide
the possibility of a cumulative momentum of dissent that can be very
difficult to control. When combined to the major challenge of the succession
problem in Zanu PF, now an very urgent issue in the light of Mugabe’s waning
health, these factors have pushed Zanu PF into emergency election mode.

The challenge for Zanu PF since the signing of the GPA, and more urgently
following the Livingstone meeting, has been to decide on what strategies to
deploy in the next election campaign. The party’s recidivist impulse to
return to violence is clearly very strong, particularly given the increasing
control of the party and the state by the securocrats.

Moreover the reports of various human rights organization have shown growing
evidence of the low level, pre-election intimidation emerging in the country
designed to pre-empt any forms of opposition activity in the public sphere,
with the specter of North Africa clearly haunting the calculations of the
military-political elite.

The Zanu PF election campaign message has concentrated on the dual issue of
the indigenization and anti-sanctions campaign, with the connection being
that both are designed, in the party’s view, to confront the continuing
threats to national sovereignty.

However whereas in the period between 2000-2008 the message around the land
had some purchase both in the country and the region, the recent attempt to
reload the message in a different form, has proved much more hollow both
nationally and regionally.

The stern rebuke of SADC at the Livingstone meeting placed the issue of Zanu
PF violence and coercion at the forefront of its resolutions. Moreover the
resolution to appoint a team of officials to work with JOMIC to ensure the
monitoring, evaluation and implementation of the GPA, was a direct challenge
to the Mugabe regime’s persistent rhetoric on national sovereignty.

The frantic, angry and strategically stupid attacks by Zanu PF spokespersons
to the Livingstone position, SADC, and the South African President,
indicates the very real threat that the SADC position holds for Mugabe’s
party. The once taken- for- granted regional solidarity against the West is
no longer so easily available, and at a stroke a key part of the Zanu PF
strategy over the last decade has been placed under threat.

The vehement lobbying by Zanu PF representatives ahead of the full SADC
summit in Sandton on the 11-12 June was another indication of the panic that
the recent SADC position has caused in Zanu PF.

Moreover the resolutions of the Sandton meeting, notwithstanding the claims
of the state media in Zimbabwe, largely confirmed the resolutions of the
Livingstone summit, even if the language of the communiqué was calibrated in
more moderate terms.

More particularly the SADC summit in South Africa confirmed the Livingstone
resolutions through the facilitator’s situation report, confirmation of the
decision to appoint SADC representatives to join the JOMIC team, and through
its commitment to the election roadmap.

Both the Livingstone and Sandton meetings thus confirmed the central purpose
of the mediation and the GPA, namely the establishment of conditions for
generally acceptable elections in order to settle the central problem of
state legitimacy in Zimbabwe.

Notwithstanding the continuities in the objectives of the mediation from the
Mbeki to the Zuma administrations, the one major difference between the two,
as South African analyst Siphamandla Zondi has noted, has been that while
Mbeki’s emphasis was placed on building consensus amongst the primary actors
in Zimbabwe, Zuma has complemented this by his concentration on building a
stronger regional consensus against the obstructive behavior of the Mugabe
regime.

In particular Zuma has developed closer relations with the Angolan president
who always felt slighted and marginalized by former President Mbeki. Zuma’s
strategy was also determined by Zanu PF’s attempts to undermine the ANC in
the region in order to ensure the solidarity of the region. There has now
been a shift in this regional balance that has also been affected by the
more effective lobbying in SADC by both MDCs, and the greater respect they
have earned in the region since 2008.

The fact that the West was largely marginalized in the SADC mediation, also
allowed Zuma to build a more effective African consensus to take a stronger
stand against the abuses of Zanu PF.

This factor is one of the key differences with the current situation in
North Africa, the Middle East and particularly Libya, where Western
intervention, both diplomatic and military, has clouded the issues much more
for the opposition. Western intervention in the Middle East is of course
dictated by the major issue of oil reserves, its strategic military
positions in the region, and the position of Israel, all of which dwarf the
West’s interests in democratization in this part of the world.

The Mugabe message peddlers have not been slow to point out the duplicity of
the West on the democratic agenda, but Zanu PF’s depravity on this issue has
removed the sting from any critique it once offered in this area.
Progressive anti-imperialism abroad cannot long outlast vicious repressive
practices at home.

SADC and the democratic forces in Zimbabwe must now move to ensure a broad
consensus with the West in implementing all key aspects of the GPA, with the
regional body leading the construction of such a consensus. Zanu PF must be
left with little doubt that any further attempts to forestall the GPA
through violence and repression, will be met with a more unified
condemnation that will leave little room for continued unilateral actions.

Such pressure may also lead to more realistic political discussions between
the parties that will deal not only with elections processes but the
possibility of transfer of power, in which area both the mediation and the
GPA has been very weak.

Thus the role of the security sector has to be dealt with by SADC, even if
it is unrealistic to expect major security sector reform in the pre-election
period. Such reforms are a long-term process, but at the minimum the role of
the security sector in the elections process and pre-election violence, must
be placed under close enough scrutiny to make it a non-viable election
strategy for Zanu PF.

*Professor Brian Raftopoulos is a leading Zimbabwean scholar and activist.
Formally an Associate Professor of Development Studies at the University of
Zimbabwe, he moved to Cape Town at the end of March 2006 and is currently
the Director of Research and Advocacy in the Solidarity Peace Trust, an NGO
dealing with human rights issues in Zimbabwe.


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Swimming with sea horses

http://mg.co.za/

KATE KELLAWAY Jun 28 2011 18:06

Two years ago I received an email from a woman called Amanda ­Retzlaff. Her
story sounded extraordinary: she and her husband had fled Robert Mugabe's
Zimbabwe with 104 horses, which they had rescued during the land invasions
and taken across the border to Mozambique.

They were trying to piece together a new life and start a riding-holiday
business from scratch. Would I like to come visit?

I tried to forget about Retzlaff's invitation, but from time to time I would
check her website. And, at the beginning of this year, I realised I could
hold out no longer: I had to swap my armchair for a saddle.

The Retzlaffs met me in the last week of March in the tiny, shambolic
(though being expanded and refurbished) airport of Vilanculos -- a seaside
resort 750km north of Maputo. They are what my grandmother used to call
"real people". Mandy is warm, talkative, good company. Pat is ­quieter and a
fine horseman: he makes his own saddles, shoes his horses and escorts all
the rides.

Mozambique, unlike Zimbabwe, is uncontroversially peaceful now. I spent the
first night in Archipelago Lodge, a resort of self-catering chalets on the
ocean south of Vilanculos. Each chalet is spacious, with a thatched roof and
a view of the Indian ocean.

It is a serene, reasonably priced base for a Vilanculos riding holiday.
Mandy and Pat are open to riders of all abilities and can customise rides.
It is too hot to ride all day -- two to three hours at a stretch feels
right. They proposed riding out on the afternoon I arrived. And that ride
was a revelation.

Personal and magical
The beaches of Vilanculos are wide -- they go on forever when the tide is
out -- and bordered by mangrove swamps and the Indian Ocean. I ride
regularly and have had several holidays on horseback, but Mozambique has to
be the most outstanding beach riding destination. I have never been allowed
such freedom on a horse holiday.

Here we were not herded or bossed, though Pat was mindful of safety. The
atmosphere was personal, ad hoc and magical. The heat was intense but there
was a constant breeze coming off the sea. The silk on my hat kept
threatening to blow away.

The sea, in many variants of turquoise, was calm, though it rushed into the
mangroves at speed. I had forgotten how the African sunlight transforms
everything. And nothing could be more wonderful than speeding along the sand
past egrets, herons, a solitary ibis. You might dodge a bed of shells, a
rock or the rope securing a fishing boat, but otherwise there were no
obstacles. We rode along the north beach and up a red dune to a place
nicknamed Fingerprint of God. He, I observed, seems to have had his hands
all over this place.

Time and money
In Mozambique, everything happens in its own time. There is a saying that in
the West we have money; in Mozambique they have time. The truth is that
Mozambique needs our money: its tourist industry has huge potential but the
country is still (blessedly for visitors) not a major destination.

And it is perhaps also true that we need its time. My timetable involved
nothing more challenging than leaving Vilanculos for a 20-minute boat trip
to the bewitching Bazaruto archipelago.

First stop was Benguerra island, 14km from the mainland, where a half-dozen
of Pat and Mandy's horses live and rides are overseen by Lucy Campbell
Jones, an engaging Englishwoman who first came to Mozambique as a volunteer.

The plan was to sample the varied pleasures of Benguerra and neighbouring
Bazaruto islands. My life has not featured many luxury hotels, but I
adjusted with indecent speed to Benguerra Lodge and being waited on by the
Byronic Sergio in his floor-length white gown and scarlet ­cummerbund. There
was no resisting his ability to produce iced tea at the double, summon a
dhow or string up a shady hammock.

When I lay in the hammock, I reasoned that everyone deserves to visit this
country once. I walked down from Benguerra Lodge to a barbecue on the beach
one night, where a fire was burning and its smoke, driven by breeze, poured
out horizontally -- it reminded me of our beach riding as it vanished
rapidly alongside the sea.

Other pursuits
The riding on Benguerra is out of this world: the horses are safe, well
schooled and fit. One late afternoon, Lucy and I cantered along the beach
and trotted inland past beautiful freshwater lakes where there were
cashew-nut trees (the toxic husks are used to brew liquor), wild orange
trees and gatherings of flamingos.

On Benguerra I was introduced to non-riding pursuits too: fishing and
snorkelling. I think of fishing as a wait at the edge of a dreary English
pond and had not realised it could be so active. At one thrilling moment,
guided by expert fisherman Graham Pollard, I caught a ladyfish which, with
unladylike athleticism, promptly flung herself back into the sea. At
another, I hauled in satisfactorily a majestic green spot trevally.

From the boat we saw several dolphins and a turtle (I was thrilled to catch
its beady eye on camera). Sometimes it is also possible to see humpback
whales and dugongs in these waters.

The next day I went snorkelling above a coral reef and was entranced by the
shoals of parrotfish, the finest of which was maroon with traces of gold -- 
like swanky hotel upholstery. I also saw powder-blue surgeonfish and
goatfish -- white with inky dark spots. I could not believe how unfazed the
fish were, as though we were of their company, just larger and more
cumbersome with our rigid flippers.

I stayed one night in the immaculate, modern Marlin Lodge (also on
Benguerra), where I was treated to a memorably over-the-top "bush bath"
scattered with hibiscus petals in an outdoor playpen made of palm leaves. At
Marlin Lodge they toss their flowers about freely -- like confetti for the
many ecstatic honeymooners who fetch up there.

I spent another night on Bazaruto island, a mile or two north, at Indigo
Bay -- a magisterial hotel for those who prefer not to give modern life the
slip altogether (air conditioner, computer room and, a rarity in Mozambique,
sparkling mineral water).

But what I most enjoyed was an outing with Indigo Bay's Mozambican horseman,
Domingo, who took me up a 100m sand dune called the Pelican. Going up was
easy enough, but then I had to descend an almost vertical sandy slope. It
seemed impossible but I just had to trust that the horses knew what they
were doing -- and they did.

Abandoned and forgotten
Back on the mainland in Vilanculos, I decided the time had come to find out
more about Mandy and Pat. I already knew their story had not been one of
five-star luxury. They were victims of the 2001 looting of farms in
Zimbabwe's Chinhoyi ­district.

As the land invasions spread, thousands of horses were abandoned on the
farms or destroyed. Many ­veterinary surgeons, depressed by the relentless
slaughter, left the country altogether.

The Retzlaffs took in horses from miles around and moved from one leased
farm to another as the land invasions intensified. Often, they would have to
pack up and move on in less than four hours. After their sixth eviction,
they went to Mozambique, by which time, they had to acknowledge, the horses
were becoming "a huge burden". Mandy was starting to panic: "What on earth
are we going to do with all these horses?"

Pat replied: "We are going to start a horse safari."
He took his horses off the truck at 4pm one day and was taking guests on
rides the next morning: "I went up the beach and found a few paths. The
customers loved it."

And the horses themselves were "delighted by beach life -- as though they
were on holiday". It was then that Pat realised he had "never ridden
anywhere as beautiful".

But on February 22 2007, two months after they'd settled into this new life,
disaster struck: a cyclone flattened Vilanculos. "We didn't get a single
customer for six months." Did they think then of giving up? "No, because the
horses had become part of our lives. There was no question of deserting
them."

More tragedy
They got by with help from volunteers from overseas but, on November 14 last
year, disaster struck again. They had moved 26 horses to an area where there
was fresh drinking water and grasslands. "We thought we were being clever
but we weren't. The horses ate a rare poisonous plant called Crotalaria and
started to die. We lost a horse every three days. We were pulling dead
horses around in a Land Rover and digging pits to bury them."

They had to hide this tragedy from clients and "paste smiles on our faces"
while weeping behind their backs. "We had been through so much together,"
Mandy told me with tears in her eyes.

On my last morning, the plan was for a swim on horseback after a final
gallop along the beach. By this stage, any attempt at equestrian propriety
had gone and I was, like my hosts, riding in Crocs (practical, as it turned
out). As I rode into the sea, I registered, suddenly, an uncanny
weightlessness as the water lifted half a tonne of horse and me. The horse
was swimming horse paddle, moving like a stocky dolphin. It was wonderful. I
laughed at the absurd joy of it -- this was the ride-swim of a lifetime.

And then it was time to say goodbye. The previous night I did my last-minute
packing with reluctance. I noticed that I was behaving as though there were
all the time in the world. And that, I now realise, is because Mozambique
makes you believe that there is. -- © Guardian News & Media 2011
For more information, see mozambiquehorsesafari.com

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