The Zimbabwe Situation

Our thoughts and prayers are with Zimbabwe
- may peace, truth and justice prevail.

Zimbabwe's 70 alleged mercenaries and one truck
Diversity stars at Liberty restaurant
Proposed Electoral Act Amendments Questioned
Clip of dozing Mugabe an 'indecent spectacle'
Africa's Mugabe stance slammed
Zimbabwe Prohibits Use of Foreign Currency in Country
Zim police concocted 'fiction' in key political murder trial, says judge
DA shows Zim concern
Cops swarm Zim hearing
70 suspected mercenaries ordered held in Zimbabwe after first court
The New Brain Drain from Zimbabwe
Mayor Mudzuri Walks Out of Bogus Hearing
Llandudno residents' small sacrifice is the Zimbabwe nation's gain
Parliament resumes
Fuel queues resurface in Harare
Residents in demo against power cuts
Chinamasa on regime change
Zimbabwe could ban graffiti
Suspicion over Zimbabwe arms sale to mercenaries'
Government to Recommend Acceptable Water Charges

From The Mail & Guardian (SA), 22 March

Zimbabwe's 70 alleged mercenaries and one truck

Harare - Zimbabwe government lawyers said on Monday prison authorities were
unable to ferry 70 alleged mercenaries, accused of plotting a coup in
Equatorial Guinea, from jail to a magistrate's court because the jail only
had one functioning truck. Mary Dube, for the Attorney General's office, was
explaining to High Court judge Tedius Karwi why the government wanted to
hold the first routine court appearance of the 70 men within Chikurubi
prison on Harare's outskirts - and about 15km from the Harare Magistrates'
Court. She added that army and paramilitary escort vehicles needed for an
escort to prevent the "highly trained commandos" from escaping were
unsuitable because they kept on breaking down. When questioned by the judge
what she meant by "commando", she was unable to explain. A decision on the
matter was expected later in the day. Also on Monday, the first allegations
of abuse of the 70 alleged mercenaries emerged as defence lawyer Jonathan
Samkange said that when they were arrested at Harare international airport
15 days ago, "they were assaulted, they were kicked and they were thrown out
of the plane" on to the airport tarmac.

The Zimbabwe government alleges 70 "terrorists" flew out of South Africa on
March 7, aiming for the oil-rich former Spanish colony on the West African
coast where they planned to overthrow President Teodoro Obiang Nguema
Mbasogo. However, the United States-registered aircraft was seized and the
men aboard were arrested when they stopped over in Harare where, the
government said, they had arranged to load a consignment of military
weaponry. Samkange said that after their arrest, members of the group was
also scattered around various police stations in north-east Zimbabwe.
Lawyers had not been able to properly consult with their clients in the 10
days since they have been granted access to the detainees as prison warders
were always present. Prison authorities promised on Monday to allow the
lawyers and their clients some privacy. While warders would still watch,
they would not be able to listen. More information about the alleged
assaults was expected after they had been consulted, he said.

South African defence advocate Francois Joubert told the judge that holding
a routine remand hearing inside the prison would be "like a court martial"
and would violate their constitutional rights to "having justice seen to be
done". Joubert said the "tremendous security" around Chikurubi, including
several roadblocks on the road to the complex, would make it "extremely
difficult" for relatives of the detainees and the media to be able to attend
the hearings. He said it had taken them three hours to get inside the prison
on Sunday. Their vehicle had been stopped at a roadblock. Permission to
continue was denied because it had a foreign registration number. Only after
"a long wait", were they able to continue to the main gate, he said.
Foreigners, including relatives of the men, would have to obtain special
approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs before they were allowed in
the prison complex, he said. Authorities have brought six charges against
the 70, including accusations that they broke United Nations resolutions on
terrorism and plotted to murder the Guinean leader, to violating immigration
and firearms control laws. The government has said it wanted them to face
"the severest punishment, including capital punishment".

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Kansas City Posted on Tue, Mar. 23, 2004 Diversity stars at Liberty restaurant JOYCE SMITH When Martha Bond was growing up in Rhodesia, eating out meant fine dining because there weren't any fast-food restaurants. And home-cooked meals meant meals made from scratch because packaged foods weren't readily available, either. With the diverse ethnic groups in her neighborhood, home-cooked meals also could mean a virtual world palate of foods - Asian, Greek, Portuguese, and more. "There was such a huge variety," Bond said. "We'd learn from our neighbors, their family recipes, and these would become our everyday foods." Bond wanted to use this background to open a pastry shop but then had to leave the country in 1984 after the political unrest that changed it to Zimbabwe. Her family could only take $1,000 out of the country to build a new life in America. "But nowhere else could I start with $1,000 and work to buy a home, pay for it, and travel, my big passion," she said. Now that hard work and savings have helped her realize her dream of a bakery and even more, a restaurant. Bond and her sister Tina Diederiks have opened Martinali Cafe International in Corbin Mill Place at 131 S. Water St., Liberty. Martinali stands for Martha, Tina and third sister Ali Monger, who decided not to become a partner but works as an employee instead. Martha's son Andrew Bond handles the finances. Daily specials include one American dish and one international: chicken enchiladas in cream sauce with sour cream and avocado topping, moussaka, leg of lamb in port, seafood paella, stuffed boneless chicken thighs, and Moroccan chicken casserole, along with desserts such as bread pudding with almond glaze, triple-layer German chocolate cake, and chocolate cream pie "with attitude" - a few drops of chocolate liqueur. The operation is only open for lunch Mondays through Saturdays. Other offerings include sandwiches, soups and salads. "We haven't done any advertising, just word-of-mouth; they're lined up outside when we open, which just amazes me," she said. "I try to meet as many of the people as I can. They want to see the owners and they are interested in our background. And it makes me feel so good when they tell me I'm such a good cook." Martinali's tea room serves teas, coffees, pastries, sausage rolls, watercress and cucumber sandwiches, and homemade pies. Bond also hopes to bring a nephew from South Africa to make his specialty bratwurst. [boerewors, surely??!...]

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Zimbabwe: Proposed Electoral Act Amendments Questioned UN Integrated Regional Information Networks March 23, 2004 Posted to the web March 23, 2004 Harare Civil society in Zimbabwe on Monday condemned a move by the government to amend the Electoral Act, saying the amendment would undermine next year's parliamentary elections. "The planned changes to the Electoral Act will result in the tightening of the operations of the government-appointed Electoral Supervisory Commission (ESC) and unless there are fundamental changes to the process of holding elections, next year's elections would be easily declared not free and fair," chairman of the Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN, Reginald Matchaba-Hove, told IRIN. The Electoral Amendment Bill, published in the Government Gazette last week, proposes changes to several clauses, particularly pertaining to voter registration, the voters' roll and postal ballots. In a move perceived as an attempt to elbow NGOs out of voter education, the Bill proposes that only the ESC be allowed to conduct voter education. Funds for voter education would have to be sourced locally, and foreign funds could only be donated to the ESC, which would then distribute them to organisations authorised to conduct voter education. The Bill, expected to be presented to parliament for debate, also says those eligible for postal ballots would include members of the military away on duty, diplomatic staff and staff away on electoral duty. Matchaba-Hove said the proposed amendments were similar to those sanctioned into law by President Robert Mugabe just before the 2002 March presidential election. Although the laws were later declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, they enabled surviving members of the military, like Brigadier Douglas Nyikayaramba, to be appointed chief elections officer, with members of the army, the police and other civil servants conducting the elections. "The planned electoral amendments are in clear violation of the Southern Africa Development Community, (SADC) Parliamentary Forum on norms and standards for holding elections, which states that no civil servants should conduct elections," Matchaba-Hove said. "Civic society has always called for the creation of an independent electoral commission to run elections, while observers and monitors would be drawn from civic groups. The independent commission would be responsible for the entire electoral process, from registration right up to the counting process," he added. Lovemore Madhuku, chairman of the National Constitutional Commission, which has been agitating for a new constitution, said there was nothing new about the proposed amendments. "We have had these laws before - they are just reproducing laws that we have had before, and have been thrown away by the supreme court, because they violated certain provisions of the constitution," Madhuku told IRIN. The main opposition Movement for Democratic Change has threatened to boycott next year's parliamentary elections, arguing that the playing field was not level. They also alleged that if these elections were held in conditions similar to those of the 2002 presidential poll, it would be easy to rig them. The opposition, along with most Western observers, condemned the 2002 presidential election as flawed.

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New Zimbabwe

Clip of dozing Mugabe an 'indecent spectacle'

INDECENT SPECTACLE: A picture of President Mugabe taken at the G15 summit in Venezuela

MUGABE bows head, eyes closed during summit

By Agencies
23/03/04
SIX African diplomats based in Venezuela have issued a bizarre protest after a satirical television show broadcast a clip of President Mugabe apparently dozing off during the G15 Summit at the end of February.

A letter of protest dated 11 March sent to the General Manager of independent commercial TV station Globovision accused the station of producing an “indecent spectacle” and a “parody concentrating around the figure of President Mugabe."

The letter which described Mugabe as a “respected head of state, over eighty years old and a well known fighter for independence and against racial discrimination” was signed by diplomats from South Africa, Nigeria, Algeria, Egypt and Libya, among others.

“More than a discourteous treatment towards a high ranking foreign dignitary in an official visit to your country, we believe that your network has incurred in what in full display has been a deplorable and reiterated insult to human dignity,” read part of the letter.

“Simply speaking, your network's television viewers have been presented with a very grotesque and indecent spectacle, full of vulgar effects, despicable expressions and many ridicules and gestures full of racist content.

“By the way, this is a behaviour that leaves too much to be desired, about the democratic talent, the manners and the intellectual moral of the producers of this television program.”

Still pictures in possession of New Zimbabwe.com taken at the meeting show the Zimbabwean leader with his eyes closed but it is not clear if indeed he was sleeping.

The television station which openly opposes Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, a close friend of President Mugabe, showed the Zimbabwean leader bowing his head, eyes closed, during a speech by one of the Presidents during the course of the Summit of the Group of the 15, held in Caracas at the end of February.

The clip featured humorous music and studio-generated snoring sounds in the background while the host of "Aló Ciudadano" (Hello Citizen), Leopoldo Castillo quipped that it reminded him of the movie “The Planet of the Apes”. One of the show’s guest, Humberto Calderon Berti, added that the Mugabe incident reminded him “of a little dog falling off a taxicab”.

Berti is a staunch opponent of President Chavez and a former president of the Venezuelan oil company PDVSA. He was head of OPEC for the greater part of the last four decades country for more than forty years, and which are now seeking to oust Chavez.

Globovision is currently engaged in a battle with the government over unpaid taxes and the illegal use of microwave broadcasting frequencies.

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News24 Africa's Mugabe stance slammed 23/03/2004 20:30 - (SA) Dar Es Salaam - German President Johannes Rau on Tuesday criticised African countries for supporting Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe despite his poor human rights record, describing the solidarity as "misconceived democracy." "I understand that it is hard for some African leaders to criticise their neighbours with whom they once fought alongside in the struggle against colonialism, racism and oppression," Rau said in a speech delivered at Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation (MNF) on "Charting Africa's Path into the 21st Century - Reflections from a German Perspective." "But those who, like President Mugabe, have nothing but contempt for principles of democracy and rule of law, and who bring their countries disaster and ruin, have in my view forfeited any claim to solidarity with their neighbours," Rau said. "Misconceived solidarity takes a terrible toll on millions, who find themselves victims of new injustice that destroys their hope, their livelihoods and even their lives," Rau added. He said that Germany would continue supporting Africa to enable it live in peace, prosperity and dignity. "To help, where help is needed, is not only morally justified, but a politically stable and economically prosperous Africa is also in our own interest," he said. Zimbabwe's High Commissioner (ambassador) to Tanzania, Chippo Zindonga, who was among the guests in the hall, walked out in protest following Rau's remarks. Rau arrived in Tanzania on Friday on a six-day state visit to the country, leading an 80-member delegation that includes government officials, businessmen and journalists.

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Zimbabwe Prohibits Use of Foreign Currency in Country VOA News 23 Mar 2004, 18:28 UTC Zimbabwe's central bank has declared it illegal for people to use foreign currency to pay for goods and services within the country. In a statement Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe said the Zimbabwe dollar is the only legal tender in the country. It said it is concerned that some individuals and companies are charging their local customers for goods in a foreign currency. The bank says the practice has become endemic especially for those trading with foreign embassies, international organizations, and non-government groups. Zimbabwe is facing a severe shortage of cash which has caused inflation rates to soar. The crisis has led to a black market, where foreign currency, especially the U.S. dollar, can sell for many times more than the official exchange rate.

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Daily News Zim police concocted 'fiction' in key political murder trial, says judge 23/03/04 THE the media spotlight on the high-profile treason trial of Zimbabwe's opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, little attention has been paid to a crucial case in Bulawayo featuring a murdered war veteran, six accused opposition activists, high political intrigue and gross miscarriages of justice. Politics rather than the law have dominated the case of Cain Nkala, Bulawayo chairman of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans' Association, a paramilitary group at the frontline of President Robert Mugabe's violent campaign against the opposition and chaotic land reform. The state claims that Nkala was slain by Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) activists - including Member of Parliament Fletcher Dulini-Ncube - in November 2001 in retaliation for the disappearance the previous year of one of their polling agents. The MDC says he was killed by the ruling Zanu PF party, as he was about to implicate its local leaders in the agent's death. Earlier this month - in a victory for the accused men - the trial judge ruled key aspects of the police's case to be "works of fiction". The exhumation of Nkala's body from a shallow grave on 13 November 2001 was captured live by state television and broadcast repeatedly under the title "Fighting Terrorism". It prompted the mass arrest of MDC activists ahead of the March 2002 election, and the burning of MDC offices. The six accused men are: Dulini-Ncube; MDC director of security Sonny Masera; Army Zulu; Remember Moyo; Kethani Sibanda; and Sazini Mpofu. They deny the charge, claiming that they are being politically persecuted and that some were tortured by police to write false confessions. The activists have been treated very badly, held for years in dreadful prison conditions. Court orders obtained at various stages for the release of the accused, including one from Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku, have been ignored by the police and prisons. Prison authorities have refused two of them medical treatment - Dulini-Ncube for diabetes (he lost an eye as a result); and Remember Moyo, who became ill with hepatitis recently. One of his lawyers, Raymond Moyo, said last month his client was seriously ill, losing weight, having difficulty eating and in great pain. All efforts to secure treatment have been thwarted: "It is unbelievable that the prison authorities can afford to watch him suffer like that". The state's evidence hinges significantly on the testimony of Sibanda and Mpofu, two MDC accused who were paraded on television "discovering" Nkala's body. They admitted his murder in statements that they retracted days later, saying they had been made under torture. In the video footage, Sibanda's shirt is torn and appears blood-spattered. Earlier this month High Court Judge Sandra Mungwira ruled that confessions by three of the accused could not be admitted as evidence as they were made under duress. She also forbade the submission of the video. In a "trial within a trial" Justice Mungwira found police accounts to be fraught with inconsistencies and state witnesses to have: "...conducted themselves in a shameless fashion and displayed utter contempt for the due administration of justice to the extent that they were prepared to indulge in what can only be described as works of fiction, as is especially illustrated by the state of (the) investigations diary". It was a victory for the defence team, hinting at possible acquittal of the "Bulawayo six" when the year-long trial finally reaches a conclusion. The Nkala saga began nearly four years ago, a week before the June 2000 general elections. Patrick Nabanyama was abducted by war veterans, including Nkala, on 19 June and never seen again. He was a polling agent for David Coltart, a human rights lawyer, MP and MDC shadow justice spokesman. Nabanyama's disappearance occurred in the context of the violent oppression by Zanu PF of a new but growing opposition, which went on to win nearly half of the popular vote in the 2000 general election, which the international and regional community slated as unfair and unfree. The routine intimidation, abduction, torture and murder of mainly MDC supporters continues today. The MDC had a good idea of who abducted Nabanyama, and Coltart pushed hard for the police to prosecute. Several war veterans were arrested, Nkala among them, and charged with kidnapping. Not long afterwards, says Coltart: "We started receiving information that Nkala was fed up with being prosecuted when he had in fact handed Patrick over to senior Zanu PF guys. He wanted to spill the beans". The veterans' kidnapping trial was repeatedly remanded during 2001 and on 5 November Nkala was also abducted from his home. An intensive investigation was launched by the police. A few days later the government declared Nkala's disappearance to be an MDC plot backed by a white MP - Coltart, who Mugabe later branded a "terrorist" at Nkala's funeral in Heroes Acre in Harare on 18 November. But he was out of the country at the time and so in the clear. Ten MDC activists were arrested on 11 November and that evening, Zimbabwe's vice president appeared on television again accusing Coltart of being behind Nkala's abdudction. The next day Coltart's campaign manager, Simon Spooner, was arrested and held in solitary confinement for five weeks. On 13 November - within hours of the arrest of MDC staffer Kethani Sibanda - the police, Sibanda and fellow suspect Mpofu, a pathologist and ZTV television crew set off for a farm near Solusi University outside Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second city and a hotbed of opposition support. Sibanda claims that he was tortured and paid to "point out" Nkala's grave and to confess: police say his statement was voluntary. The defence argues that police already knew where the corpse lay - they notified the pathologist to travel to Bulawayo before obtaining Sibanda's "confession". Nkala's widow, Sikhumbuzo Mguni, was unable to identify the MDC activists as among the eight men she says drove up to their home after Nkala returned at 8pm on 5 November, called him out into the street and abducted him. She was kept under tight security, unable to talk to the media. On 15 November, a private aircraft in which Coltart was traveling from Harare to Bulawayo was ordered back under threat of being shot down by the Air Force. He and the pilot were detained for some time by armed police and intelligence agents before being allowed to proceed. Soon afterwards Coltart and his family fled their home after threats that it would be attacked. According to news reports, the next day Zanu PF militia marched to the MDC's Bulawayo offices and burnt them down. The mob was escorted by police, and prevented the fire brigade from fighting the blaze. MDC supporters retaliated, clashing with police and setting fire to a building belonging to a Zanu PF official. In the townships, houses were stoned and burned as Zanu PF supporters launched reprisals against suspected MDC supporters. At this early stage there were already reports suggesting that Nkala could have been killed by his colleagues. The Standard, a respected independent weekly newspaper, reported members of the Nkala family saying they believed the murderers were Zanu PF stalwarts threatened by the war veteran leader. Other relatives said he was killed by fellow war veterans. One said Nkala had been preparing to flee to Britain because he believed his life was in danger for opposing the use of violence during Zanu PF campaigns. Another said Nkala called out the names of his abductors, who were known to be local war veterans. Another said that other veterans who were anti-violence had also been targeted for attack by hard-line fellow veterans. In May 2002 the trial of war veterans involved in Nabanyama's disappearance got underway. But they were charged with murder, not kidnapping. They admitting helping to kidnap the polling agent but said they handed him over to the late Nkala: in the absence of Nkala and contradicting evidence, all were acquitted. The Nkala trial began in February 2003. The "trial within a trial" was held to determine whether police had forced three of the accused - Sibanda, Moyo and Mpofu - to make confessions and "lead" police to Nkala's body. In their evidence police denied exerting undue influence. In her judgment on 2 March this year Justice Mungwira said the evidence of state witnesses lacked coherence, and she labeled some liars and others unreliable. She also found that fears expressed by the defence, although at times exaggerated, were reasonable: "The failure by the police to conduct any investigations which might have corroborated, or alternatively proved unreliable the facts of the complaint, it is argued, is suspicious and indicative of a failure to carry out simple standard police procedure, and point(s) to the probability that it was deliberate and designed to ensure that no evidence came to light that might exonerate the accused." This column is provided by the International Bar Association - an organisation that represents the Law Societies and Bar Associations around the world, and works to uphold the rule of law. For further information, visit the website www.ibanet.org

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News24 DA shows Zim concern 23/03/2004 18:19 - (SA) Cape Town - The Democratic Alliance is deeply concerned by Zimbabwe's ruling Zanu-PF party's latest attempt to manipulate the outcome of the next parliamentary election in Zimbabwe, DA national chairperson Joe Seremane said on Tuesday. "Concerns arise from recent moves by Zanu-PF to amend the Electoral Act, giving the Electoral Supervisory Commission (ESC) extensive powers with regard to the funding and provision of voter education," he said in a statement. Non-government organisations (NGOs) and other interested parties involved in voter education in Zimbabwe had reacted with outrage, arguing that proposed amendments to the Act were calculated to reinforce Zanu-PF's "iron grip on power". The proposed amendments included that no person could embark on voter education unless he or she was a Zimbabwean citizen and that people involved in voter education should do so in accordance with a programme of instructions issued by the ESC. Any person or organisation found guilty of not complying with these instructions would be liable for a fine or imprisonment. Foreign funding can only be distributed by the ESC, and all direct foreign funding to NGOs are banned. Postal ballots are limited to Zanu-PF functionaries such as diplomatic staff and military personnel. Seremane said the proposed amendments gave Zanu-PF the power to control the form and content of voter education, a "terrifying prospect given the ruling party's history of using state resources and state-sponsored violence to quash any possible resistance to its rule. "The DA calls on the South African government to take proactive measures to ensure that Zanu-PF knows that making nonsense of the principle of free and fair elections and the protocols of the African Union, Pan-African parliament and the Southern African Development Community, will not be tolerated." The South African public would view any defence of Zanu-PF's tactics by South Africa as tacit support, or at the least extreme political naivety. South Africa deserved a government that would do everything in its power to protect democracy in its most important regional neighbour, Seremane said.

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News24 Cops swarm Zim hearing 23/03/2004 20:31 - (SA) Kodzevu Sithole Harare - A heavy presence of military, intelligence, plainclothes policemen and prison officers characterised the first public appearance of the 70 mercenaries for their hearing at Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison on Tuesday. Despite the hearing being held behind the imposing walls of Zimbabwe's most fortified prison complex - which houses the hardcore criminals of society - security was beefed up, with military tankers sprinkled around the interior perimeter walls of the complex. Armed guards on horseback rode around the perimeter fence. Hoards of prison officers, some armed, manned the three checkpoints into the prison complex, where one had to register and provide personal details. At the third and final checkpoint, a notice stuck on the wall advised prison officials that there would be no shopping on Tuesday, as all officers were to report for duty. Press and the mercenaries' legal team had to endure body and weapons detection searches before registering for entry. South African Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Jeremiah Ndou, dismissed the prison officers determination to search him, saying he carried no weapons. "You better trust me on that one. I carry no weapons and I will not be searched," Ndou said. A workshop was converted into a courtroom for the hearing. Presiding magistrate Mishrode Guvamombe hardly took 30 minutes to record the charges being filed against the 70 mercenaries, who were remanded in custody to April 13, 2004. The men, some in sandals, slippers or barefoot, were in leg irons. Their handcuffs were removed just before the magistrate entered the courtroom. More than 100 prison officers were in attendance in the courtroom, with members of the Central Intelligence Organisation, officials from the Zimbabwe Republic Police's Law and Order section and ordinary police offers also in attendance. Representing the state, chief law officer Mary Zimba-Dube read out the charges: Simon Francis Mann and 69 others for contravening the Firearms Act through a conspiracy to purchase and possess firearms without a firearms certificate and conspiracy to purchase and possess ammunition without a firearms certificate. Jaap Niel Steyl and 66 others for contravening the Aviation (Air Aviation) regulations by making a false statement or declaration to an official of the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe. Simon Mann and 69 others for contravening the Public Order and Security Act by conspiring and attempting to possess dangerous weapons (two counts) and contravening the Immigration Act. Jonathan Samkange, one of the lawyers representing the 70, said the charges against his clients carried a maximum fine of Z$200 000. "Where the legislature has prescribed a fine and then a prison sentence as an option, it is obligatory for the court to first sentence one to the fine, and that will be the case in this incident," Samkange said.

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My Telus Tuesday, Mar 23, 2004 70 suspected mercenaries ordered held in Zimbabwe after first court appearance CHIKURUBI PRISON, Zimbabwe (AP) - A magistrate on Tuesday ordered 70 men accused of plotting a coup in Equatorial Guinea to remain in custody at their initial appearance in a makeshift court set up in prison. Dressed in green shorts and shirts, the men, some of them manacled and shackled, sat on benches as Magistrate Mishrod Guvamombe presided from behind a table at the front of the room in the maximum-security Chikurubi prison. The suspects, who include South Africans, Namibians, Angolans, Congolese, a Zimbabwean and a British national, were arrested when their aging Boeing 727 landed at Harare International Airport on March 7. Most are former members of South Africa's apartheid-era military forces. Authorities allege that Spanish-based rebel leader Severo Moto offered them $1.8 million US and oil rights to overthrow the government in Equatorial Guinea, a former Spanish colony. Another 14 suspected mercenaries have been detained in that west African country. The men say they were on their way to security jobs at mining operations in eastern Congo. Prosecutor Mary Dube said a three-member advance team led by Simon Mann, a former member of Britain's elite Special Air Service regiment, had tried to buy weapons from the state arms manufacturer. She said they handed over a $90,000 advance on Feb. 8 toward $180,000 worth of machine guns, anti-tank weapons and ammunition. When the plane with its 64 passengers and three-member flight crew landed, it refuelled and taxied over to a nearby military airfield to collect the weapons, she said. It was then impounded by Zimbabwe authorities. Five charges were read out to the suspects Tuesday, including conspiring to carry out a coup with weapons purchased in Zimbabwe. They were also accused of violating Zimbabwe's immigration, firearms and security laws. If convicted, they could face life in prison. Allegations they conspired to murder Equatorial Guinea's President Teodoro Obiang Ngeuma and his bodyguards were dropped at the last minute, along with subversion and terrorism charges. The men were not asked to enter a plea before they were ordered held until their next appearance April 13. A handful of relatives at the hearing waved and smiled at the accused, but they weren't allowed to get close enough to touch them as they were hustled out of the room. Security was tight for the hearing, even though it took place inside the prison, with its nine-metre-high walls topped with razor wire. Police mounted on horseback guarded the gates with automatic rifles, and the some 200 spectators were carefully searched. Defence lawyer Jonathan Samkange said his clients had been "professionally handled" since being handed over to police March 10, but he complained about their treatment by soldiers who initially detained them. He said some of the men were assaulted and thrown off the aircraft and denied food and water. Defence lawyers had asked Harare's High Court to order authorities to try the men in open court, but the request was turned down Monday. Prison authorities argued the men were a flight risk and said there was only one truck to drive them about 25 kilometres to Magistrate's Court. © The Canadian Press, 2004

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SOUTHERN AFRICAN MIGRATION PROJECT (SAMP)

Press Release

SAMP wishes to announce the publication of its latest Migration Policy
Series Paper (No. 29) entitled "The New Brain Drain from Zimbabwe."
The
paper can be ordered from:

Southern African Migration Project
Southern African Research Centre
152 Albert Street
Queen's University
Kingston ON K7L 3N6 Canada

email: samp@post.queensu.ca

fax: +613 533-2171

or downloaded for free at: http://www.queensu.ca/samp/Publications.html

Summary:

All signs point to the existence of a renewed exodus of skilled Zimbabweans
from the country. Although the precise dimensions and impacts of the
Zimbabwean brain drain have yet to be determined, the education and health
sectors appear to be the hardest hit although professionals in other sectors
have also been leaving in large numbers.

SAMP recently undertook a representative survey of skilled Zimbabweans
living in Zimbabwe to determine their level of dissatisfaction with living
and working conditions in their home country and to assess the future
emigration potential of skilled people who still remain. The respondents
were interviewed to obtain information on personal and household economic
circumstances; attitudes towards current and future economic, social and
political circumstances; likelihood of emigration in the future; and
attitudes towards measures designed to keep them in the country.

The first significant finding is that 57% of the sampled population have
given a great deal of thought to emigrating from Zimbabwe (with another 29%
having given the matter some thought). Only 13% have given it no
consideration. A comparison with South Africa is germane since that country
is widely believed to be undergoing a crippling brain drain. In South
Africa, only 31% of the skilled population have given a great deal of
thought to emigrating, with 31% having not thought about it at all.

In terms of gender breakdown, more women than men have given a great deal of
thought to emigrating (62% versus 54%), which is the opposite of the South
African scenario. In age terms, it is Zimbabweans in the 25-35 age group
who have given most thought to emigrating. Nevertheless, levels of
dissatisfaction are so high that the majority in each age group have given
at least some thought to leaving. Thinking about leaving and actually doing
so are not the same thing. The survey sought to establish the extent to
which skilled Zimbabweans have made a mental commitment to leaving within a
certain time frame.   Over a quarter (27%) said it was likely or very likely
that they would leave in six months. Fifty five percent were committed to
emigrating within the next two years. And 67% said they were committed to
emigrating within the next five years.

The firmest indication of migration potential is whether a person has acted
on their desires by applying for emigration documentation. The survey found
that nearly 20% of the resident skilled population had either applied for or
were in the process of applying for a work permit in another country.

These are sobering statistics, unmatched in any other country in the region
in which SAMP has done similar research on the brain drain. They suggest
that the pool of future emigrants in Zimbabwe remains massive.

Another question concerns the permanence of emigration. Are people so
disillusioned that they wish to leave forever or would they return if
conditions improved for them at home? The survey found that only 25% wished
to leave temporarily (for less than 2 years). As many as 43% said they
would leave for more than 5 years.

Why are so many skilled people planning to leave?   The survey sought to
obtain the opinions of skilled Zimbabweans themselves, to statistically
measure levels and forms of dissatisfaction and disillusionment and relate
these to high emigration potential.

The survey discovered extremely high levels of dissatisfaction with the cost
of living, taxation, availability of goods, and salaries. But the
dissatisfaction goes deeper than economic circumstances to include housing,
medical services, education and a viable future for children.   Asked about
the future, there was deep pessimism amongst skilled Zimbabweans, with the
vast majority convinced that their personal economic circumstances would
only get worse. They were also convinced that social and public services
would decline further.

The respondents were also asked about their perceptions of political
conditions in the country. Here, too, there was considerable negativity and
pessimism. Ratings of government performance were extremely low.

Various measures have been mooted in Zimbabwe with a view to keeping skilled
people in the country, including compulsory national service and bonding. A
coercive approach to the brain drain has not worked particularly well
elsewhere. The survey showed that such measures would only add to the
burden of discontent and for around 70% of respondents would make absolutely
no difference to their emigration intentions.

Zimbabwe faces an immense challenge in stemming the exodus to other
countries within Africa and oversees. The basic conclusion of this study is
that coercive measures will not work and that the best way to curb the high
rates of skilled labour migration lies in addressing the economic
fundamentals of the country which will ultimately improve living standards.
Regrettably, skilled Zimbabweans seem very pessimistic that this will happen
in the foreseeable future.

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Sent: Tuesday, March 23, 2004 9:05 PM

Subject: MDC PRESS: Mayor Mudzuri Walks Out of Bogus Hearing

MDC PRESS

23 March 2004
Mudzuri Walks Out of Bogus Hearing

Suspended Executive Mayor of Harare, Engineer Elias Mudzuri, was today summoned to appear before a committee that was constituted by Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, Dr. Ignatius Chombo to inquire into the allegations of misconduct against him. However, the committee refused to provide a copy of the report upon which the allegations of misconduct arose. Chombo has previously ignored a request for the same report by Engineer Mudzuri.

Engineer Mudzuri felt that the hearing could not proceed without him having had access to a copy of the report raising the allegations of misconduct against him, as he would not be in a position to assist the committee without knowing the allegations that are being levelled against him. The committee decided to continue with the hearing in the absence of Engineer Mudzuri.

It is puzzling why both Chombo and the committee would deny Engineer Mudzuri a copy of the report which contains the allegations levelled against him. We are, therefore left with no choice but to conclude that the suspension of Engineer Mudzuri is a political ploy by the failed Zanu PF regime to discredit the MDC and its officials and run the affairs of the City of Harare through the back door.

Within a short space of time after his election, Engineer Mudzuri embarked on a clean-up campaign to bring back Harare’s Sunshine City status, much to the applause of the residents of Harare. All major roads were repaired and council was in the process of putting in place systems that would ensure efficient delivery of service.

All the gains made during the term of office of Engineer Mudzuri have been eroded and the city has relapsed into a state of decay as large volumes of waste go uncollected, potholes have resurfaced, residents continue to experience incessant water cuts, while street lighting has not been repaired as a result of Chombo’s interference which is aided by Sekesai Makwavarara.

Chombo should be reminded that the residents of Harare cannot be taken for a ride, and should be warned against his continued tempering with the people’s democratic choice by fabricating charges against a legitimately elected leader.

We would want to warn all elements of oppression that one day the will of the people will prevail, and that some citizens will be called upon to account for their actions.

Paul Themba Nyathi

Secretary for Information and Publicity

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Comment from The Cape Times, 23 March

Llandudno residents' small sacrifice is the Zimbabwe nation's gain

By John Scott

All those Llandudno residents upset at the idea of Robert Mugabe's finance minister setting up mansion in their suburb, or even Mugabe moving in himself, should realise theirs is a small sacrifice to make for the greater benefit of Zimbabwe. The more Mugabe and his cabinet can be encouraged to settle in the Cape, the better the chances of Zimbabwe recovering from the last few years of dictatorship. Let them all live here, and try to rule in exile. Zimbabwe's people will be eternally grateful to us for helping them regain their own freedom, and we'll hardly notice the politicians who have caused them so much grief. They'll probably use their new luxury quarters to entertain our country's leaders, in gratitude for their being so quietly diplomatic. Christopher Kuruneri, newly appointed by Mugabe to spearhead Zimbabwe's economic recovery, has begun by spending an estimated R30 million on the palatial seaside home at Llandudno. The idea is to show the world how much foreign capital Zimbabwe really has, so long as nobody brings it into the country. All those top businessmen charged with exporting currency from Zimbabwe made the mistake of importing it first. Kuruneri demonstrated the correct procedure. You acquire the money in another country, and invest it straight into South Africa, thereby avoiding the tiresome business of involving Zimbabwe at all. So we score as well. It's a win-win situation.

I spoke to a senior Zimbabwean government official about the Llandudno mansion. "I'm particularly interested to know why it's got eight bathrooms," I said. "Eight seems a bit excessive." "Not at all," said the man I shall call Max. "You cannot have too many bathrooms when you keep having to wash your hands to prove they are clean." "And the R1.5m-stereo system?" I asked. "It's chiefly to drown out the sound of protest and other unwanted noises, seeing that we can't beat up people here who offend us," Max explained. "Then why settle in the Cape, where you have to put up with democracy and the rule of law?" I persisted. "Surely it will cramp your government's style?" "We like the peace here," said Max. "We won't have the masses demanding land that we have already reallocated to ministers, generals and other VIPs. There's lots of petrol available, there aren't starving millions who blame us for the collapse of agriculture, and with permanent South African residence we'll be able to travel again. "In fact it would be perfect if only the newspapers didn't report what we are up to. At home we would just close them down, but here will try to persuade your government to act against the media on our behalf." "How will you do that?" "A bit of quiet diplomacy. How do you think we set this all up in the first place?"

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The Herald Parliament resumes Herald Reporter PARLIAMENT resumes sitting today after a short break and is expected to deliberate on a number of issues and motions of national importance. The House is expected to take note of the first report of the Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Welfare as well as the first report of the Portfolio Committee on Youth Development, Gender and Employment Creation on the national youth service training centres. Members of Parliament are also expected to debate President Mugabe's opening address at the official opening of the Fourth Session of the Fifth Parliament of Zimbabwe mid-last year that touched on a number of issues affecting the country. Before adjourning last month, Parliament passed the Land Acquisition Amendment Bill, which is now law. The Bill sought to remove some bottlenecks in relation to the acquisition of land for resettlement. It generated heated debate in the House with ruling Zanu-PF MPs supporting it while opposition MDC legislators were against it. Parliament also ratified the African Union Peace and Security Council , which has been set up to end conflicts that ravage the continent. In addition to the AU Peace and Security Council, the Pan-African Parliament was inaugurated last week in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Five Zimbabwean MPs, together with 180 others from 36 fellow African countries, were sworn in to sit in the continental parliament last week. The five legislators are Zanu-PF chief whip Cde Joram Gumbo, Mt Darwin South MP Cde Saviour Kasukuwere (Zanu-PF), Chivi South MP Cde Charles Majange (Zanu-PF), Gwanda North MP Mr Paul Themba Nyathi (MDC) and Mufakose MP Ms Paurina Mpariwa (MDC).

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The Herald Fuel queues resurface in Harare Herald Reporter FUEL queues have resurfaced in Harare as a result of the failure by some companies to get foreign currency on the foreign currency auction floor, the Petroleum Marketers' Association of Zimbabwe spokesperson, Mr Masimba Kambarami, said yesterday. He said some of the fuel importing companies have had their bids turned down at the auction floor, thereby leaving them without the means to import fuel. "The majority of bids by fuel suppliers to get foreign currency from the auction have been turned down and those that are selling fuel are some of the companies that got foreign currency. "Another reason is that filling stations are charging different pump prices and obviously motorists buy from those filling stations that sell the fuel at a cheaper pump price," Mr Kambarami said. He said the queues at some filling stations would disappear as soon as more fuel importers get foreign currency. Mr Kambarami said his association was looking at establishing a "Special Purpose Vehicle Company" that would access foreign currency on behalf of all the other fuel importing companies. "Currently each fuel company gets its foreign currency directly from the auction and some are failing to get the required foreign currency to import fuel. "The Special Purpose Vehicle Company will aggregate the requirement of foreign currency for all the fuel-importing companies and place orders for the different companies each week or every month," Mr Kambarami said. He said plans to implement the Special Purpose Vehicle Company were at an advanced stage and it is hoped that the company would get preferential treatment at the auction floors. He said there were different pump prices at the filling stations because of the variables in landing costs. "Those companies that import via the pipeline would sell their fuel at a cheaper price than those who import through the road vehicles. However with the new system fuel would be obtained in bulk and at a cheaper price," Mr Kambarami said. Bids are turned down for a variety of reasons at the auction floors, one of them being that a bidder may offer a price lower than the accepted levels. The introduction of the foreign currency auction system at the beginning of the year was envisaged to benefit the critical fuel importation sector. A survey by The Herald revealed that there were few filling stations selling petrol at between $2 750 and $3 000 a litre.

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The Herald Residents in demo against power cuts KUWADZANA residents on Sunday staged a demonstration against power cuts that have been affecting the suburb for the past month. Scores of angry residents impounded a Zimbabwe Electrical Supply Authority vehicle in a stand-off with technicians who had come to repair a transformer. The rowdy crowd vowed not to let the technicians leave the area with their vehicle until they had restored supplies. Ms Cynthia Ndlovu said: "I have gone for many days without ironing my clothes. I work for a very reputable company." A Zesa official said power cuts experienced in Kuwadzana this month were due to oil that vandals drained from a transformer at one of the sub-stations in Tynwald South. "We replaced the transformer and last night a technical fault, which resulted in the power cut occurred in that transformer," said the official. "A technical team is working flat out to rectify the fault." "We have been experiencing black-outs on a daily basis. The situation is now unbearable considering the huge amounts we are paying for electricity every month," said an irate Mr Charles Chimuka. Mr Aleck Bonzo said: "We are paying $40 000 but we are not getting adequate service for our hard-earned money. They must take into consideration that we bought paraffin for $15 000 per family for the past week." Zesa appealed to residents to work with its theft squad to curb vandalism of its equipment. "We keep getting reports of vandalism of Zesa equipment especially transformers," said Mr Chimuka. "We think the company should act by tightening up its security in areas where these transformers are situated." - New Ziana.

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The Herald Chinamasa on regime change Herald Reporter POWERFUL countries that design regime changes for Zimbabwe like what was recently done in Haiti and was to happen in Equatorial Guinea, will do so at their peril as they will face certain defeat, a Cabinet Minister has said. The Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Cde Patrick Chinamasa, was speaking at the 60th Session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in Geneva, Switzerland last week. Cde Chinamasa said Zimbabwe would vigorously reject the use of human rights as a tool for overthrowing its Government so that Western countries could rebuild the country as they wished. "We recall and say these things in order to expose the hypocrisy and double standards that characterise the attitude of the British and their Western allies over issues of human rights," said Cde Chinamasa. He said such countries proclaimed themselves paragons of virtue, champions and practitioners of human rights and yet they were the worst violators against people of colour. Said Cde Chinamasa: "They say they are democrats and that their mission is to promote democratic principles. "And yet in the dead of the night they allow their intelligence services to sponsor, finance, instigate and inspire political assassinations and bloody mercenary coups against democratically elected governments especially on the African continent in order to effect regime change." Cde Chinamasa said the story of Zimbabwe was that of land, but the land question had disappeared from the Western countries' discourse unless if it highlighted the plight of the former white land owners and to blame food shortages and the economic difficulties in the country on the land redistribution programme. "The Western world is all too ready to tell all those who care to listen about Zimbabwe's economic problems, without disclosing the fact that the once vibrant economy has been destroyed by the illegal economic sanctions imposed by Britain, the United States and their Western allies," he said. When the country embarked on a land reform programme to compulsorily acquire back its land from the white minority for redistribution to the landless blacks, the same forces that opposed Zimbabweans during the liberation struggle were confronting the country today. The minister said in Zimbabwe, there were self-proclaimed human rights organisations and defenders who were all inspired and sponsored by the British and Western governments whose major thrust was to demonise the Government of Zimbabwe, defy the law and pursue a programme of regime change. Cde Chinamasa said Zimbabwe remains committed to the goal of full enjoyment of human rights by all its people without regard to their station in life.

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Business Day Zimbabwe could ban graffiti ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- A POPULAR outlet of political expression in Zimbabwe, graffiti, may be banned this week. Proposed amendments to the Electoral Act, which include giving the state control over voter education, were contained in a bill published last week and due to be debated in parliament, the Zimbabwean state-run daily Herald newspaper has reported. According to the Herald, the bill also seeks to make writing political graffiti in public places an offence punishable by a fine or imprisonment of up to five years. Zimbabwe's city walls are full of graffiti, much of it in support of the opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). Graffiti is also a social voice, used to register complaints about poverty and injustice. It has been one of the last means of political expression for Zimbabweans, as access to more formal forums, such as a free press and the legal distribution of political leaflets, is denied. The proposed amendments to the Electoral Act, which include giving the state control over voter education, were contained in a bill published last week and due to be debated in parliament, the Herald reported. The announcement comes at a time when the MDC has threatened to boycott next year's polls unless certain conditions, including an independent electoral commission, are met. The proposed amendments include the banning of foreign donations for voter education unless they are made through the state-appointed electoral supervisory commission. The opposition has demanded more than a dozen conditions be met before it is willing to participate in next year's elections, including that the poll be held in accordance with standards set for the region, and the repeal of strict press and security laws. A spokesman for the MDC, William Bango, says the proposed electoral laws fly in the face of the opposition's demands that the laws be reformed. Instead, they are set to become even more biased in favour of the ruling party, the MDC says. Mar 23 2004 07:31:15:000AM Sarah Hudleston and Sapa-AFP Business Day 1st Edition

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Business Day Suspicion over Zimbabwe arms sale to mercenaries' ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- Harare Correspondent HARARE State-owned Zimbabwe Defence Industries (ZDI) has been under pressure to clarify its role in a murky arms deal that involved the sale of a large consignment of weapons to the alleged mercenaries held in Harare. Although officials in Harare claim ZDI sold the weapons as part of a trap to net the suspected mercenaries, potentially embarrassing questions are being asked over the state arms manufacturer's role in their capture. It is suspected that ZDI was ready to sell weapons to the suspects but backtracked after the suspects' plane had been intercepted by Zimbabwean officials after a tip-off from SA. ZDI insiders say that the firm had been involved in a number of direct arms sales and brokerage on behalf of third parties. While there has been no public admission that ZDI sold the weapons to trap the alleged mercenaries, the firm's involvement in the Sri Lankan arms disappearance case in 1997 has fuelled suspicion that this latest episode could be another deal gone wrong. A ship carrying a ZDI consignment of 32398 mortar bombs disappeared in 1997, allegedly on its way to Sri Lanka with arms for that country's army under a US6m government-togovernment deal. However, investigations into the fate of the ship, Stillius Limasol, which was supposed to be carrying the military hardware, revealed that there was no ship registered by that name. Claims that the rebel Tamil Tigers intercepted the weapons failed to stick. Officials in Colombo accused senior officers in the Sri Lankan army and ZDI of arranging the disappearance to defraud the Sri Lankan government. ZDI denied the charge. Burundi's FDD rebels were in Zimbabwe a few years ago looking for arms, ammunition and defence uniforms. ZDI sold the suspected mercenaries a consignment of 61 AK47 assault rifles and 45000 rounds of ammunition, 10 Browning pistols and 500 x 9mm rounds of ammunition, and 20 PKM light machine guns plus 30000 rounds of ammunition. It also sold 100 RPG-7 antitank weapons, two 60mm mortar tubes, 80 60mm mortar bombs, 1500 grenades and 20 flares. Meanwhile, it was confirmed yesterday that the 67 suspects and three plane crew members held in Harare would appear in court today. Defence lawyer Jonathan Samkange said his clients would appear in court at Chikurubi maximum security prison, where they are detained, at 9 am. High court Judge Tadias Karwi ruled yesterday that the trial should be held in prison but in open court. The suspects have been in detention since their arrest in Harare on March 7 allegedly on their way to Equatorial Guinea to oust President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo and install rebel leader Severo Moto. Six charges have been laid against them: conspiring to possess weapons of war, conspiring to murder Obiang, possession of weaponry, violating Zimbabwe's immigration laws, and attempting to overthrow a foreign government. Mar 23 2004 07:31:15:000AM Dumisani Muleya Business Day 1st Edition

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--> Government to Recommend Acceptable Water Charges The Herald (Harare) March 22, 2004 Posted to the web March 22, 2004 Harare GOVERNMENT is today expected to make a ruling on water charges to be levied on residents of Harare, Chitungwiza, Norton, Ruwa and Epworth following complaints by residents of the towns over huge water bills running into hundreds of thousands of dollars. The Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, Cde Ignatius Chombo, confirmed to The Herald yesterday that the Cabinet committee on infrastructure, water and energy would meet today to recommend acceptable charges. He said the meeting would comprise representatives from all the affected satellite towns and the Zimbabwe National Water Authority. Harare residents pay far less than those of the smaller towns, an issue that has raised the ire of the residents in those areas, who argue that they were being made to subsidise Harare residents. Harare currently sells water to the four towns at $3 952 per cubic metre. The towns charge an extra 25 percent handling fee. Harare's wholesale charges would be increased to $7 904 in April, $15 000 in July and $31 316 in October. Cde Chombo last week directed Harare Governor Cde Witness Mangwende to find a solution to the water charges variance. Last month some residents in Chitungwiza received shocking water bills, with amounts ranging from $300 000 to $800 000 bill. The residents said the charges were unrealistic and resolved not to pay the bills. Meanwhile, inept council officials have been blamed for the high cost of water treatment as it emerged that the officials, who were responsible for the construction of Firle 5 sewage treatment works, approved a defective sewage plant to be commissioned. At least $2 billion is now needed to rehabilitate the plant. Sources in council said officials responsible for the construction of Firle 5, a plant that has been condemned because of massive defects, allowed the commissioning of the plant before ascertaining whether it was up to standard. "Some of the defects are resulting in the pollution of our water sources, hence the high budget for water treatment chemicals," said the source. In 1998 the water budget was $400 million but it has shot up to $815 billion in the 2004 estimates. The sources said sewage digesters at the plant have never functioned from the date the plant was commissioned. The sources allege that some of the equipment to monitor oxygen levels were never installed although they were allegedly purchased. Accusations are that the effluent pumps that were installed on the plant only functioned for two years yet their minimum life span should be 10 to 15 years. The pumps were not designed for sewage treatment but for water reticulation purposes. The sources said the responsible engineers should have checked whether the job was done to specifications. The checks were supposed to be done before the plant was commissioned. Firle 5 is supposed to receive 72 megalitres of raw sewage and should dispose 65 megalitres into the water bodies as treated sewage. But because the plant is defective the 65 megalitres disposed into the river system does not comply with the Zimbabwe Water Authority's discharge regulations. The sources said the reporting structure in the water management system was allegedly changed to suit the plant supervisors. Instead of the chief chemist reporting to the engineer, it was altered with superintendents now reporting to engineers. "In the whole world the treatment process of water and sewage is supposed to be controlled by an engineer whose qualification is normally in chemical engineering or a chemist." a source said. An engineer with Harare City Council said if the situation was allowed to continue it could result in water shortages. Town Clerk Mr Nomutsa Chideya said council had a plan to rehabilitate the plant and was currently sourcing money to do the job.

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