The Zimbabwe Situation

http://www.sabcnews.com/

March 29 2010 , 6:00:00

Thulasizwe Simelane: Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe's political party negotiators today held what is billed as their
ultimate meeting over the implementation of the country's 2008 truce
agreement. The last round comes amid apparent recapitulation on the part of
President Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF party.

The party insists President Jacob Zuma's visit two weeks ago did not yield
an agreement on specific disputes that have threatened to wreck the fragile
unity government.

Zuma's version of the outcome of a series of meetings with Zimbabwean
leadership, was that the parties agreed on a set of measures to be
implemented concurrently. But Zanu-PF now has a completely different take.
Party spokesperson Rugare Gumbo says during talks with Zuma, there was no
movement at all. He says reports emanating from South Africa about certain
individuals like Gideon Gono being given a package are just speculation.

Ironically, Mugabe sat right next to Zuma when the announcement was made.
But last Friday, he is said to have told his party's central committee that
it is nonsensical for anyone to expect movement on the Movement for
Democratic Change demands, while sanctions remain.

Analysts believe Mugabe is emboldened by the knowledge that the Southern
African Development Community will not raise its voice against him. Lovemore
Madhuku says Zanu-PF knows well that even if they deny what has been agreed
on, they will not be criticised openly.

Madhuku says Zanu-PF is trying to put Zuma to the test and that it will
remain to be seen if the latter will adopt former president Thabo Mbeki's
quiet diplomacy on developments. Zuma expects a report from the negotiators
by Wednesday, but the latest stand-off does not bode well for progress.

No end in sight for Zimbabwe

http://www.nation.co.ke

By KITSEPILE NYATHI, NATION Correspondent
Posted Monday, March 29 2010 at 20:10

HARARE, Monday

Zimbabwe's feuding political parties look set to miss yet another deadline
to conclude talks on outstanding issues from their power sharing agreement
with indications that sharp differences have started to emerge.

South African President Jacob Zuma who was appointed by the Southern African
Development Community to mediate in the negotiations between the three
governing parties in the unity government had given the negotiators up to
March 31 to round off the talks.

President Zuma a fortnight ago raised hopes that the 18 month inclusive
government's reform agenda was back on track when he announced that
President Robert Mugabe's Zanu PF and the Movement for Democratic Change led
by Prime Minister Tsvangirai had agreed on" a package of measures."

Sanctions imposed

But Mr Mugabe on Friday told a meeting of his party's central committee that
there would be no deal in the talks until sanctions imposed on his inner
circle by the West were reversed.

The ageing leader said he was not going to give in to MDC demands that he
must fire his trusted lieutenants heading the central bank and the Attorney
General's office.

He also rubbished reports that he had agreed to swear in MDC treasurer
general Mr Roy Bennett as deputy agriculture minister and a formula for the
appointment of provincial governors.

MDC says it was taken aback by President Mugabe's outbursts because it
believed that the talks were being finalised.

"We are shocked," said MDC spokesman, Mr Nelson Chamisa. "It's a Zanu PF
political summersault and we don't know the motivation for this.

"If they are not politicking, it means we will be going back to President
Jacob Zuma for arbitration."

The political agreement signed between Zanu PF and the two MDC formations
spells out a timetable for elections next year, which will follow a
referendum on a new constitution.

However, progress hinges on the parties concluding the negotiations on time
and implementing key reforms.

Mr Tsvangirai on Thursday is set to present an ambitious plan that would see
government relaxing draconian media and security laws by the end of the year
but analysts say its success would be undermined by the discord in the
coalition.

Western donors have refused to help the one year old unity government revive
the country's battered economy until the power sharing agreement is fully
implemented.

MDC-T shocked by Mugabe claims

http://www.thestandard.co.zw/

Monday, 29 March 2010 09:42

MDC-T has described President Robert Mugabe's claims that the three
political parties in the unity agreement have not reached an agreement as a
"gobsmacking political somersault" which will not be tolerated. Mugabe told
a Zanu PF central committee meeting on Friday that Zanu PF was still
insisting that it would not compromise in the current talks over outstanding
Global Political Agreement (GPA) issues until sanctions imposed by the West
were removed.

His outbursts were at variance with comments by the mediator South African
President Jacob Zuma that the parties had agreed to a package of measures
during his intervention a fortnight ago.

The negotiators met on Thursday and Friday and are expected to round off the
talks tomorrow. A report will be presented to Zuma before the Southern
African Development Community considers a way forward.

MDC-T spokesperson, Nelson Chamisa said his party was shocked by Mugabe who
said Reserve Bank governor Gideon Gono and Attorney General Johannes Tomana
were not going anywhere.

Mugabe also said there was no deal on the appointment of provincial
governors and the status of MDC-T deputy agriculture minister-designate, Roy
Bennett.

"We are shocked," said Chamisa. "We don't know the source of this. It's a
Zanu PF political somersault and we don't know the motivation for this. It's
revisionism."

He said an agreement had been reached that Gono and Tomana vacate their
offices.

There was also an agreement on the re-appointment of provincial governors
among other issues, he said.

"We are gobsmacked by the pronouncements from Zanu PF about the lack of
progress in the talks when we were of the understanding and view that we are
about to conclude all issues," said Chamisa.

He added, "If they are not politicking, it means we will be going back to
President Jacob Zuma (South African President) for arbitration."

BY CAIPHAS CHIMHETE

Zimbabwe Artist in Court After Controversial Exhibit

Peta Thornycroft 29 March 2010

Owen Maseko's painting of the 1987 Unity Accord between Robert Mugabe (ZANU) and Joshua Nkomo (ZAPU) which brought the ZANU-PF party into existence. The painting shows a bloodied Nkomo bending over the accord, while Mugabe is the other individual seated at the table.

Zimbabwe artist Owen Maseko was in court in Bulawayo after the government shut down his art exhibit exploring violence blamed on President Robert Mugabe.

Owen Maseko's exhibition at the national art gallery in Bulawayo focuses on an uprising that was crushed in western Matabeleland after Zimbabwe's independence in 1980. Thousands of civilians were massacred by members of the Shona tribe trained by North Korea and loyal to Robert Mugabe.

The most striking image shows the late Joshua Nkomo and Robert Mugabe signing an accord leading to a unity government. In the painting Nkomo is slumped across the table, blood dripping from his shoulders. Behind the two leaders is a line of men all wearing dark glasses, whom many presume are members of the Central Intelligence Organization.

Joshua Nkomo and Mr. Mugabe helped lead the guerrilla war against white rule in Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe.

Maseko's exhibit was supposed to run through April, but last Friday Maseko was arrested and police blacked out the gallery windows and covered the murals with newspapers.

Maseko is charged with inciting violence, undermining Mr. Mugabe's name, and demeaning Mr. Mugabe's tribe, the Shonas. The charges carry a prison sentence or fines.

Lawyers acting for Maskeo applied for bail at the Bulwayo Magistrate's Court and judgment will be delivered Tuesday. Meanwhile, the artist remains in detention.

Many people in Zimbabwe, particularly in the past 10 years, have been jailed or fined for allegedly insulting Mr. Mugabe.

Last week, photographer Okay Machisa was arrested shortly before his exhibition of photographs of political violence in the 2008 elections opened at a gallery in Harare. Although he was released, all of his photographs were seized by police.

CIO order art gallery to ‘cover up’ Gukurahundi exhibition with newspapers

http://www.swradioafrica.com/

By Violet Gonda
29 March 2010

Artist Owen Maseko appeared in court on Monday for a bail hearing, after
spending the weekend in detention at the Bulawayo Central Police. He was
arrested on Friday for holding the Gukurahundi Exhibition at the National
Art Gallery.

His wife Sharn Maseko said her husband is still in detention and a ruling on
his bail application will only be made on Tuesday.

He is being charged under the repressive Public Order and Security Act, for
allegedly undermining the authority of the President and causing ‘offence to
people of a particular race or religion’.

Voti Thebe, the manager of the gallery in Bulawayo, had also been taken in
for questioning on Friday and asked to report to the police station on
Saturday, but is out of custody.

The exhibition is about the infamous Gukurahundi, where Robert Mugabe
unleashed the notorious Fifth Brigade on Ndebele people in parts of
Matebeleland and Midlands provinces. More than 20 000 people were massacred
and many were thrown down mine shafts.

Owen’s exhibition shows provocative paintings about this terrible episode in
Zimbabwe’s history. His wife said the exhibition, which is supposed to run
for the whole of April, is still there but that state agents have ordered
gallery staff to cover the windows with newspapers.

Some of the images are painted directly onto the walls of the gallery, so
people walking past on the streets can see the paintings, through the glass
windows of the gallery.

She said: “But they have covered the windows with newspapers so that people
are not allowed to see the exhibition from the streets and also the public
are not allowed access to the exhibition, which is obviously very
disappointing because as an artist you do art for the people. So to deny the
people access to that art has a very negative impact to the art industry and
on Owen as an artist.”

This is the second clampdown on artistic expression in just a few days. The
Delta Gallery in Harare had to close down their exhibition of photographs
showing the state sponsored violence during the 2008 Presidential elections.

Mrs. Maseko said of her husband: “The issue for him is about art and to
freely express himself as an artist and he is disappointed to be prevented
from expressing himself.”

A press briefing was held in Bulawayo on Monday about the artist’s arrest
and it’s reported that scores of people from civil society, the arts and
politics offered messages of support and solidarity. They called for his
release and for the opportunity for Zimbabweans to be able to express
themselves freely, especially around issues of national healing and
reconciliation.

Meanwhile ZAPU’s Communication Director Methuseli Moyo said: “The arrest of
Maseko is in our view an addition to the Gukurahundi crimes against
humanity. The arrest proves that those behind Gukurahundi, Murambatsvina and
other evil operations unleashed on the people by the ZANU-PF regime, are
still unrepentant and ready to scratch and add salt to our wounds. ZAPU
calls on all the progressive forces of Zimbabwe not to be scared by the
latest tactic by the regime. Instead, we should be more determined to get
rid of the regime. And the time to get rid of them is coming sooner than
they realise.”

Concern high as SA’s Malema heads to Zim

http://www.swradioafrica.com/

By Alex Bell
29 March 2010

Concern is being raised this week ahead of a pending visit by South Africa’s
controversial ANC Youth League (ANC-YL) leader, Julius Malema, who is hoping
to learn some lessons on nationalisation from ZANU PF.

Malema, who is at the cenrtre of South Africa’s current ‘hate speech’
debate, is arriving in Zimbabwe on Friday for a three day visit to be hosted
by the ZANU PF Youth League. Malema is set to address a number of rallies
while in the country, where he will also ‘take notes on nationalisation’ and
meet with Robert Mugabe. According to a statement by the ANC-YL, Malema is
on a ‘study tour’ of countries that have failed or succeeded with
nationalisation, including China, Brazil and Cuba.

ZANU PF Youth League national secretary for administration, Leslie Ncube, is
quoted as saying that Malema was visiting Zimbabwe to discuss and share
ideas on ‘youth empowerment’, ‘revolutionary tactics’, ‘agrarian reform’ and
‘indigensation’.

“The ANC is about to expand its land reforms, and we will share advice and
discuss how resources should be equitably distributed to the youth and also
how they can benefit from natural resources such as mining,” Ncube said.

Zimbabwe’s Empowerment Minister, Saviour Kasukuwere, who is spearheading the
country’s controversial indigenisation act, has also lauded Malema’s pending
visit. He told the state’s mouthpiece newspaper that Malema was a “vibrant
young political leader with a passion for genuine development.”

It is little surprise that ZANU PF would extend an invitation to Malema,
whose policies mirror those of Mugabe’s party. He has been advocating for
radical empowerment policies in South Africa, including the nationalization
of mines. He has also stirred up severe racial tensions in South Africa by
singing an apartheid era protest song, ‘Dubula Ibhunu’ (Shoot the Boer),
words which were last week ruled to be unconstitutional.

His choice of birthday-celebration song has heightened tensions in South
Africa, where a wave of attacks on white farmers has been worryingly
reminiscent of Zimbabwe’s land grab chaos. The South African government is
in the process of ‘reforming’ its land policies and there is grave concern
that the ANC led government will follow in ZANU PF’s footsteps.

Zimbabwe Students Arrested As Police Crash Demo

http://news.radiovop.com

29/03/2010 10:26:00

Harare, March 29, 2010 - Police have arrested 15 students in Harare and 10
in Masvingo as they pounced on the students who were preparing for a
demonstration demanding the full implementation of a power sharing agreement
and against the deteriorating education conditions.

The High Court is expected to rule on an urgent application by the Zimbabwe
National Students Union (ZINASU) for permission to march through the streets
of Harare and other parts of the country.

The arrested students in Harare were taken to the Harare Central Police
Station where they are being detained. The police arrested the students
under the notorious Public and Order Security Act (POSA) saying that they
did not have police clearance to be gathered at a public place.

In Masvingo, however, police made a sudden U-turn and withdrew the police
clearance they had issued to ZINASU, only saying that they had "received
orders from Harare to do so". The police arrested 10 students including
ZINASU's secretary for legal affairs, Aleck Tabe.Tabe is also the Students'
Representative Council (SRC) president at the Masvingo Poly-technical
College.

"The action by the police to try and stop students from demonstrating shows
that there is still much to be done in reforming state institutions in
Zimbabwe," ZINASU said in a statement on Monday.

Students said they were converging countrywide to demonstrate in order to
also mark the historic March 29, 2008 elections which saw the opposition
parties getting a majority seat in Zimbabwe's Parliament.

"The behaviour by the police is shocking considering that they were
notified of the protests one week in advance. They are using the notorious
POSA to suppress the students' rights to freedom of expression, assembly and
association. ZINASU President, Joshua Chinyere will hand over a petition to
the three principals of the Inclusive Government in the afternoon," said
ZINASU.

Radio VOP witnessed the police beating the protestors, numbering about 100,
singing protest songs and with placards written, 'Restore
Academic Freedoms' and 'We demand full implementation of the GPA"

The students-among them a few females-were left scampering for cover as the
police rounded up some of them who were on the frontline, including Tabe.
They were whisked away to the police cells immediately.

Acting provincial police spokesperson, Assistant Inspector Prosper Mugauri
confirmed the arrests, but could not release the names of the
other students as he referred further questions to national police
spokesperson, senior assistant commissioner Wayne Bvudzijena.

ZINASU co-ordinator, Mfundo Mlilo, condemned the police behavior, saying it
further curtails the rights of students to assembly as they are 'the voice
of the voiceless'.

"The behaviour by the police is shocking considering that they were notified
of the protests one week in advance."

Leaked police document exposes bias for sacked Bishop

A leaked police document has exposed the brazen police bias for sacked Anglican Bishop Nolbert Kunonga, whose small band of violent supporters have been harassing rival parishioners. Kunonga was excommunicated after trying to unilaterally withdraw the Harare diocese from the Central African Province. A fight over property saw the High Court order both factions to share, while the matter is still being dealt with.

However on the 26th March the Officer Commanding Harare Province, Superintendent A.M Nyakurimwa, issued an 'Operational Order' instructing police to 'ensure that only one church service is conducted - by the Kunonga faction.' The order goes on to map out the deployment of officers for the operation and instructs Police Internal and Security Intelligence officers to be deployed 'for intelligence gathering in their respective areas of policing.'

Co-Home Affairs Minister Giles Mutsekwa said he was 'deeply saddened and disturbed that an order like that had been issued.' He told our Behind the Headlines series that he was surprised because, 'only last week this particular issue was a subject of immense debate in cabinet. Thereafter I had a detailed discussion with the Commissioner General of Police, Augustine Chihuri, and the two of us agreed that there is a judgment in place to be followed by everybody,' he said.

Mutsekwa said the government had since deployed the National Healing Ministers to intervene in the dispute within the Anglican Church. Asked why the courts could not do their job and deal with the pending case Mutsekwa said he believed in judicial independence and as a member of the executive arm of government he could not cross the line and tell them what to do.

'People have completely disregarded what the courts have said and as a government of national unity we will do everything by consensus,' he said, speaking of the plans to use the National Healing Ministers.

Last week the caretaker Anglican Bishop of Harare from November 2007 to July 2009, Sebastian Bakare, challenged Christians from other denominations in the country to speak out against the ongoing persecution of Anglican parishioners. Bakare expressed his surprise at the lack of Christian solidarity with persecuted Anglicans in the Harare diocese.

Three weeks ago the High Court dismissed with costs an application by Kunonga seeking to get full control of church properties. The ruling simply re-affirmed an earlier one that property be shared, pending a final resolution. But even the latest ruling is still being defied by both the police and Kunonga's band of thugs who have permanently camped at all the Anglican church buildings in Harare.

NB: The full interview with Co-Home Affairs Minister Giles Mutsekwa commenting on the saga in the Anglican Church will be broadcast this Thursday on Behind the Headlines.

Mpofu faces parliamentary quiz on spending spree

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Alex Bell
29 March 2010

Mines Minister Obert Mpofu is set to face more questions from a
parliamentary committee probing mining operations at the controversial
Chaidzwa diamond fields, in the wake of the minister's property buying
spree.

The minister is said to have acquired at least 27 properties in Victoria
Falls alone over the last few months, in a spending spree that has attracted
the attention of the committee. According to the Standard newspaper, the
properties include a supermarket in Victoria Falls' Chinotimba high density
suburb, three houses in a medium-density area, two cruise boats on the
Zambezi, five houses in Mkhosana high density suburb, three houses in
Chinotimba, two industrial stands, one large stand in Chisuma, one big
industrial stand next to Chinotimba stadium, four industrial stands on the
Airport road, and four medium density plots
The purchases, which are said to have been paid for mostly in cash, are
reported to be valued in millions of dollars. Mpofu has also bankrolled a
new, opulent casino in Bulawayo and has also bought more properties in the
city.

Hwange West MP Gift Mabhena said the alleged buying spree was the talk of
the town.
"People are just talking, but you cannot stop an individual from buying
property, but the way he is buying here is just unusual," Mabhena said. "I
am told in all the transactions, he has been putting cash upfront, and it's
big amounts involved."

Last week, Mpofu told the Chronicle newspaper that the allegations against
him were by elements that were 'benefiting' from illegal diamond mining in
Chiadzwa.

"It is a known fact that I am a businessman and businessmen buy properties.
I do not want to talk about my business," Mpofu was quoted as having said,
adding he would soon name and shame officials who "have been sponsoring
journalists in writing stories to vilify and demonise the ministry."

Mpofu meanwhile has admitted to the parliament committee probing mining
activities in Chiadzwa that he had licensed the two firms mining the
alluvial fields, without following proper procedure. Mpofu also defended
involving 'crooks' in the mining industry in an effort to get 'immediate
cash' to the financially strapped government. Finance Minister Tendai Biti
has however said that no money was coming from Chiadzwa, despite the
government owning more than 50% of the two mining firms licensed to work the
fields.

War vet fired for denouncing Mugabe

http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=28395

March 29, 2010

By Our Correspondent

MUTARE - The Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans' Association (ZNLWA)
has fired one of its top members after he denounced President Mugabe for
continuously holding on to power.

Maxwell Marange, who was the association's chairman in Manicaland Province,
chanted slogans denouncing Mugabe in 2007 at the Meikles Park in Mutare
during a march organized to support the aging leader's presidential
candidacy in the 2008 elections

But Marange took everybody by surprise when he took to the podium and
chanted: "Pasi naMugabe! (Down with Mugabe)."

Marange was among Zanu-PF supporters who felt Mugabe was not the appropriate
candidate to stand on behalf of Zanu-PF in the 2008 harmonized poll.

Mugabe went on to lose to Morgan Tsvangirai, the MDC leader but he refused
to step down on the grounds the victor had not garnered the required 51
percent of votes and therefore there was need for a run-off poll.

The run-off was marred by violence which forced Tsvangirai to drop out of
the contest leaving Mugabe to win the poll un-opposed. But the run- off was
so totally discredited both at home and abroad, forcing Mugabe to negotiate
with Tsvangirai to form a unity government.

Marange was not available for comment but officials from the war veterans'
association confirmed the developments.

However, other war veterans are insisting he must be brought back saying
when he denounced Mugabe he was merely expressing his own personal opinion.

"Marange was just saying what he thought was good for the party," said a war
veteran based in Mutare. "After all he was right because we saw what
happened. We lost the election and by the grace of God we forced a run-off.
It is not healthy for people to think that Mugabe is always right."

But Ephraim Zibuke, the association's vice-chairman in Mutare District said:
"As the hosting district we wrote a report on the issue which we copied to
Zanu-PF provincial chairman, the Provincial Intelligence Officer and
secretary general ZNLWA Manicaland Province. We wonder whether those saying
Marange should be reinstated are saying Marange was right."

A report outlying Marange's charge reads: "On arrival at the Meikles Park
after the march from the Chiefs' Hall, the hosting chairperson of the
province was given the floor to address the gathering.

"Cde Marange chanted his slogan. In the process he was advised by the people
in the gathering to raise his hand in the process of making his slogan. Cde
Marange started afresh and in the process of his slogan he said 'Down with
the President', a move which irked the gathering."

Shamu pledges to bring arrests to an end

http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=28399

March 29, 2010

By Our Correspondent

HARARE - Information and Publicity Minister Webster Shamu on Sunday pledged
to stop the continued harassment of local journalists by the Zimbabwean
government. "We will stop the arrest of journalists," Shamu told dozens of
visiting African journalists in Harare on Sunday evening.

Shamu, a top Zanu-PF politician, was guest speaker at a dinner hosted for
the journalists by his ministry.

The delegates, drawn from 45 African countries, had just completed a
Federation of African journalists (FAJ) congress, in which Zimbabwe Union of
Journalists (ZUJ) secretary general was reelected for another term as vice
president.

In his address, Shamu said Zimbabwean journalists, like everyone else,
should be allowed to carry out their duties unhindered.

"Journalists must not be arrested for telling the truth, for being
constructively critical because it is their duty to inform, to educate and
to entertain," said Shamu.

But his statement was immediately dismissed by some journalists as pure
grandstanding by a minister whose party has been accused of deliberately
delaying the freeing of the media.

One journalist who was also covering the event said Shamu was trying to
curry favour with the foreign journalists who still see Zimbabwe as among
the biggest violators of press freedom in Africa.

The recurrent arrest of Harare-based freelance photo-journalist, Andrison
Manyere while on duty was cited as an example.

Another freelance journalist, Stanley Kwenda, was forced to flee the country
in January after a senior policeman had allegedly issued death threats on
him for exposing his abusive relationship with his now deceased wife.

The policeman has also been linked to last year's abduction and torture of
MDC activists.

Veteran journalist Bornwell Chakaodza, who was the master of ceremony at the
dinner, told the cheering audience that Shamu had made a public commitment
and should be called to account should a journalist be arrested again.

Meanwhile, African journalists have called on the Zimbabwean government to
speed up the freeing of the media in line with the dictates of the Global
Political Agreement.

FAJ President Omar Faruk Osman Nur appealed to Zimbabwe's inclusive
government to speed up media reforms in the country.

"What we are saying to the Zimbabwean leaders is please; please, implement
this agreement so that the people and especially the journalist community of
Zimbabwe benefit from what is expected from this agreement," he said.

Zimbabwe is considered among the worst violators of media freedom in Africa.

Newspapers viewed as critical of President Mugabe's controversial rule have
been closed for alleged violation of the country's repressive Access to
Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) while a dozen independent
have been prosecuted under the law.

Many Zimbabwean journalists have in the past decade been forced to quit
their jobs for often menial but better paying activities such as dealing in
scarce goods, while some have also been forced into the Diaspora for greener
pastures.

During Sunday's dinner, African journalists observed a minute of silence for
the late Sam Mtukudzi, son to local musician Oliver Mtukudzi and Owen
Chimhare, who both died in a car accident two weeks ago.

Oliver Mtukudzi provided entertainment for the evening.

Coltart tackles Zimsec crisis

http://www.thestandard.co.zw/

Monday, 29 March 2010 09:47

ZIMBABWE School Examinations (Zimsec) directors have allegedly launched a
witch-hunt targeting employees after information was leaked that the exams
body is bleeding because of mismanagement, corruption and nepotism. This
comes amid indications Education, Sport and Culture Minister David Coltart
has brought in independent experts to clean up the rot.

A joint audit report by the Comptroller and Auditor General and Ernst &
Young leaked to The Standard a fortnight ago titled Zimsec Capacity
Assessment: November 2009 said the institution's management systems were
weak and its credibility severely diminished.

The report said Zimsec director Happy Ndanga could be making "errant
decisions" because the institution has been running without a board for a
long time.

"A day after the story was published the directorate immediately stopped
salary negotiations with managers accusing them of taking sensitive
information to the press," said a source.

"But the rot is just getting worse, just last week a former temporary worker
was arrested for selling fake exam slips.

"Zimsec has also bought 13 BT 50 trucks for regional managers and the
directors would be taking delivery of the vehicles yet it is said there is
no money for the smooth running of examinations."

The audit raised concerns about the lack of security and the employment of
under-qualified clerks on a temporary basis, which it said impacted on the
credibility of the examination system.

Coltart yesterday said although he had not seen the report he had secured
the services of an independent accounting firm and an expert who is not
attached to Zimsec to address management weaknesses that were already known
before the audit.

He said GTZ, a German organisation, had provided "generous" funding to help
the independent experts who will soon come from the Cambridge University
Overseas Examination Board, which administered the examinations before they
were fully localised in 2002, to investigate how the localisation of the "O"
and "A" examinations could have gone wrong.

"I want to stress the fact that I am not neglecting the problems at Zimsec,"
Coltart said. "We are doing everything possible to rectify the problems
that have been outlined in the report."

Zimsec employees had raised concern that Coltart appeared to be siding with
the directors who have reportedly dismissed the audit report as biased.
Current and former workers at the exams body said the findings by the audit
team were only a tip of the iceberg.

Tobias Moyo, a former human resources officer who retired on medical grounds
in 2008 and has been battling to get his pension, made stunning revelations
about record keeping at Zimsec.

"The human resources office does not keep records of people who are leaving
and those who are being hired," Moyo said.

Moyo said he was told that the processing of his pension was not a priority
and that thousands of other former employees were also in the same boat.

BY KHOLWANI NYATHI

Governors blame sanctions for long travel

http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=28438

March 29, 2010

By Ray Matikinye

BULAWAYO - A provincial governor has blamed international travel
restrictions imposed by the United States and European Union member
countries on President Robert Mugabe and 200 other government officials for
forcing her to commute more than 240 kilometres daily to work at taxpayers'
expense.

Matabeleland South governor Angeline Masuku (Zanu-PF) says in a bid to beat
the sanctions she is forced to drive more than a thousand of kilometres to
work each week in her chauffer-driven government issue Mercedes Benz E280 as
she commutes between a farm on the outskirts of Bulawayo and her offices in
Gwanda.

Masuku has been doing this for the past five years, since she replaced the
late Stephen Nkomo who set the trend while citing lack of proper
accommodation in the capital of Matabeleland South. She is governor of this
province while she lives in Matabeleland North.

Meanwhile, Bulawayo Metropolitan Governor, Cain Mathema, also of Zanu-PF,
travels a similar distance from rural Tsholotsho to the city. The two
government officials jointly clock 2 400km to and from work in a five-day
week.

"The problems we are facing are caused by the illegal economic sanctions
that were imposed by Britain and her allies. Our major buildings in
Matabeleland South are still undergoing construction after many years,"
Masuku said.

Mathema and Masuku each use about 150 litres of fuel a week per vehicle just
to get to work.

Mathema blamed the coalition government for not allocating him a house in
the city so that he could stop shuttling from Tsholotsho to work.

It is not clear how Mathema got to be the governor of a city of which he is
not a resident, in the first place. But the apportioning of governors' posts
is one of a raft of contested issues currently delaying the full
implementation of the Global Political Agreement (GPA).

Western governments have, however, insisted that the travel and other
restrictions imposed on the Zanu-PF elite can only be lifted after the GPA
has been fully implemented. They have extended the restrictions for another
year in an effort to prod partners in the coalition government to accelerate
implementation of the pact.

Officials appeal for funds to combat Zimbabwe measles outbreak

http://www.monstersandcritics.com

Mar 29, 2010, 18:21 GMT

Harare - The Zimbabwean government and UN officials have issued an
international appeal for funds to help contain an outbreak of measles that
has killed at least 183 people - mainly unvaccinated children under the age
of 5.

Dr. Peter Salama, the UNICEF director in Zimbabwe, told journalists in
Harare late Monday that the outbreak was 'symbolic' of the weakened health
system in the poverty-stricken nation.

'It is true that measles in Zimbabwe is now out of control, given that it is
now in all parts of the country,' he said. 'We can now say all children (in
Zimbabwe) are at the risk to die of measles.'

Minister of Health and Child Welfare Henry Madzorera said 8.4 million
dollars are needed to fund a reinvigorated immunization programme.

The disease had initially been mainly confined to families of some religious
groups who refuse conventional medical treatment, but has since spread. Some
1,840 people have been affected countrywide.

Madzorera said the government is working on a law that would make
immunization compulsory, with parents facing prosecution if they fail to
have their children vaccinated.

In 2008, a cholera outbreak claimed almost 5,000 lives in Zimbabwe after
authorities failed to import adequate water-treating chemicals, forcing
people to depend on unprotected water sources for drinking.

Pius Ncube urges support for MDCs

http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=28374

March 28, 2010

By Our Correspondent

BULAWAYO - Former Archbishop of Bulawayo Pius Ncube says Zimbabweans should
rally behind the MDC in order to bring complete change in the country.Ncube,
who resigned as bishop after a sex scandal three years ago, denied
suggestions that he had ambitions of leading a political party.

Recent reports suggested that suspended executive members of the revived
ZAPU had vowed to lead the ouster of the party's interim chairperson, Dumiso
Dabengwa, and were lobbying Ncube to contest for the party's top position at
a congress scheduled for August.

However, in an interview with The Daily News on Saturday, Ncube said he
would not contest for political office, and encouraged Zimbabweans to rally
behind both factions of the MDC.

"I don't have ambitions of leading any political party, I am clergyman and
will remain a clergyman," said Ncube. He was speaking from his new base at
Marist Brothers Roman Catholic Mission in Dete, Matebeleland North.

"At the moment the best is for Zimbabweans to rally behind the two MDC
parties in government because they have a potential of bringing complete
change in the inclusive government," he said.

"Zimbabweans we have suffered for a long time and we need a rest."

Ncube used to be a fierce critic of President Robert Mugabe's before he was
embroiled in an adultery scandal in 2007.

Secretly filmed images depicted Ncube having sexual relations with church
worker Rosemary Sibanda, the now deceased wife of one Onesimo Sibanda.

Sibanda sued Ncube for adultery. The Catholic cleric refused to comment on
his July 2007 adultery scandal saying the matter is in the courts.

Asked, why he was no longer vocal, Ncube said the Vatican had advised him to
keep a low profile. He, however, said it pained him to keep quiet while
Zanu-PF continued to terrorize Zimbabweans.

"I have been quiet because the Vatican instructed me to do so," said Ncube,
"but it pains me to remain silent while my fellow Zimbabweans are suffering.

"In 2008 more than 10 000 people died of hunger after the poor harvests; the
world neglected us because of Zanu-PF's bad behaviour."

Ncube resigned as the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Bulawayo in September
2007 after the adultery scandal.

His position became untenable after the state media published photographs of
what it said was Ncube in a bed with the late Sibanda who worked for his
parish.

The woman's husband has sued him for Z$20 billion. In 2008, he revised the
amount upwards to Z$5 trillion, making it the biggest ever claim for damages
in the judicial history of the country then.

Ncube's lawyers called the allegations an orchestrated attempt to discredit
him.

Western firms stay away from trade fair

http://www.zimonline.co.za

by Lizwe Sebatha Monday 29 March 2010

BULAWAYO - Only one British company has confirmed participation at the
Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) as Western firms continue to shun
Zimbabwe despite formation of a coalition government that has stabilised the
economy and eased political tensions in the country.

"We only have one small consultant company from the UK that is coming. As
for the US (United States) and other western countries, there is none," ZITF
chairman Bekithemba Ndlovu told journalists at the weekend.

European and American firms have since 2001 boycotted the trade fair in
protest against President Robert Mugabe's human rights record and failure to
uphold democracy and the rule of law.

But the formation of a power-sharing government by Mugabe, Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai and Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara had raised
hopes that Western firms would return to the show especially as Zimbabwe's
economy has shown signs of recovery since last February when the unity
government came into office.

The absence of American and European companies from the trade fair has
however not dampened participation by local firms and businesses from other
countries such as South Africa, India and Iran, with Ndlovu saying 93
percent of space has been sold to 465 local firms and 29 foreign ones.

The ZITF that takes place in the city of Bulawayo from April 20-24.

"We have sold about 93 percent of the space for this year's ZITF. Many of
the participating foreign companies are from S.A. There is one company from
India and another from Iran," Ndlovu said.

At its peak, the ZITF attracted dozens of international exhibitors from the
US and the European Union (EU) and brought together firms from all key
business sectors such as mining, agriculture, hospitality and tourism.

But Zimbabwe's premier business exhibition has lost much of its glamour
after a decade of political turmoil and acute recession drove away foreign
exhibitors while local firms also stayed away from the show to cut costs as
they struggled to remain afloat in an economy marked by hyperinflation,
power, fuel and cash shortages.

Organisers almost called off the show last year after exhibitors started
pulling out in large numbers citing high participation costs. The show went
ahead only after the ZITF Company that organises the fair drastically
reduced exhibition fees. - ZimOnline

Firms submit indigenisation proposals to govt

http://www.zimonline.co.za

by Own Correspondent Monday 29 March 2010

HARARE - Mining giant Zimplats and beverages conglomerate Delta are some of
the big foreign-controlled firms operating in Zimbabwe that have submitted
empowerment proposals in compliance with government's indigenisation
regulations announced last month, the Indigenisation Ministry has said.

The Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act which was gazetted in
February and became effective on March states that foreign firms valued at a
half a billion dollars or more should cede 51 percent of their shareholding
to locals.

The indigenisation regulations gave foreign-owned companies 45 days to
submit proposals to the government on how they plan to bring on board the
locals quota.

Acie Lumumba, an advisor to Indigenisation Minister Saviour Kasukuwere said
at the weekend most of the foreign owned firms were no longer just enquiring
about the law, but were now submitting proposals on how they will meet their
own quotas.

"Some firms have started bringing in their proposals," Lumumba said. "Some
of the proposals are serious, you have other big companies such as Delta,
Zimplats and other small miners that have already brought in their
proposals. The process is now beyond just enquiry but now there is movement
towards compliance."

He could not be drawn into revealing what sort of proposals had been brought
forward.

The indigenisation law affects companies with more than $500 000 of assets,
including Anglo Platinum, Impala Platinum Holdings and Aquarius Platinum,
three of the world's four-biggest producers of the metal who all own mines
in Zimbabwe.

British banks, Standard Chartered Bank and Barclays Bank, as well as Africa's
biggest insurer Old Mutual are some of the big name investors set to be
affected by the empowerment laws.

"You have people who want to be difficult for the purpose of being
difficult," Lumumba said. "Then you have others who want to know and when
they begin to understand the more people you get."

The announcement by Lumumba comes days after Kasukuwere lashed out at
central bank governor Gideon Gono who has voiced concern on the effects of
the law, saying there was need to move away from political expediency.

"We have seen the criticism from the reserve bank governor . . . again and
we will only take note of him when the governor stops his megaphone
criticism," Kasukuwere told local media at the weekend. "When they are ready
to talk we will listen. But in the meantime we will not listen to this kind
of megaphone criticism."

The indigenisation rules have been a source of controversy and besides
dividing the unity government along party lines, they have rattled foreign
investors who analysts say may continue to stay away from the country.

Critics fear Mugabe's ZANU PF wants to press ahead with transferring
majority ownership of foreign-owned companies as part of a drive to reward
party loyalists with thriving businesses. - ZimOnline.

‘Harare must be forced to adopt ILO recommendations’

http://www.zimonline.co.za

by Caroline Mvundura Monday 29 March 2010

HARARE – The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) has called on the
International Labour Organisation (ILO) to force President Robert Mugabe and
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s power-sharing government to implement the
international labour watchdog’s recommendations following an inquiry into
worker rights abuses in Zimbabwe.

An ILO report released just over a week ago said among other violations
Zimbabwe’s state security forces have used arrests and torture of labour
leaders to stifle union activity in the country.

The ILO, which last August dispatched a team of labour experts to Harare to
probe alleged worker rights abuses, urged the unity government to end
anti-union practices by security forces and other state agents.

The world workers’ body also called on the government to speed up creation
of a human rights commission that is expected to defend the rights and
freedoms of Zimbabweans including workers.

But ZCTU secretary general Wellington Chibebe said in a statement at the
weekend the best way to get the recommendations followed would be to force
the administration to embrace them. He did not elaborate.

“Government must be forced to implement recommendations made by the
commission of inquiry,” he said.

“We know the ILO, as a UN agency, has in place mechanisms to ensure
implementation of the recommendations put forward. We urge government to
acknowledge the gravity of the violations that occurred and put into action
corrective measures that will ensure that such violations do not occur
again. Government is ignoring the ILO commission of inquiry,” Chibebe said.

He said the state security agents had not relented in their campaign against
union activists and had in fact stepped up harassment of ZCTU leaders,
months after the ILO team that investigated violations in Zimbabwe left last
year.

For example, Chibebe cited the threats against secretary general of the
General Agricultural and Plantation Workers’ Union of Zimbabwe, Gertrude
Hambira who was forced to flee the country fearing for her life as sign that
the security establishment was determined to suppress trade unionists in the
country.

Both Labour Minister Paurina Gwanyanya and Justice Minister Patrick
Chinamasa were not immediately available for comment on the matter.

The ILO commission of inquiry was prompted by the alleged assault and
torture of top ZCTU officials in September 2006 after state security agents
foiled a workers' protest.

ZCTU chief Matombo and secretary general Wellington Chibebe were among some
of the executives from the labour body who were assaulted and tortured by
the security agents.

Matombo, Chibebe and 14 others later sued Home Affairs Minister Kembo
Mohadi, Police Commissioner General, Augustine Chihuri and several other
police officers implicated in their alleged torture after reports by
independent medical doctors indicated that their injuries were consistent
with torture.

The ZCTU has previously criticised the unity government for its failure to
reform the police to instill professionalism, calling last year for the
immediate resignation of co-ministers of home affairs Mohadi and Giles
Mutsekwa for failing to ensure that police uphold the rule of the law. --
ZimOnline.

ILO Commission of Inquiry emphasizes the role of the process of national healing and reconciliation in ensuring freedom of association rights in Zimbabwe

http://www.ilo.org

    Type Press release
    Date issued 29 March 2010
    Reference ILO/10/11

GENEVA (ILO News) - The Commission of Inquiry's report was noted by the ILO
Governing Body on 25 March 2010. The Government of Zimbabwe was represented
at the session by Ms Paurina Mpariwa, the Minister of Labour and Social
Affairs, who acknowledged that the Government had received the report and
had taken note of its recommendations. She indicated that a full written
response would be provided to the Governing Body within the period of time
as set out in the ILO Constitution, thanked the ILO for its technical
support in the past, and hoped for continued support in the future.

The Commission found that there had been systematic, and even systemic,
violation of Conventions Nos. 87 and 98 in the country. In its report, it
noted a systematic targeting of trade union officials and members,
particularly in rural areas, through significant violence, unjustified
detentions, the routine use of the police and army against strikes,
widespread interference in trade union affairs and anti-union discrimination
in employment, in what appeared to be a calculated attempt to intimidate and
threaten Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) members. It also noted
with particular concern the failure to guarantee judicial independence and
the rule of law, resulting in a situation of impunity for those perpetrating
atrocities. This conclusion was based on what the Commission saw as a clear
pattern of arrests, detentions, violence and torture of trade union leaders
and members by the security forces that it believed indicated that there had
been some centralized direction to the security forces to take such action.

The Commission undertook two missions to Zimbabwe during May and August 2009
when it met with over 300 persons including Government officials, leaders
and members of trade unions and employers' organizations, and
representatives of civil society organizations.

"Looking to the future, and in a spirit of confidence building and
reconstruction", it believed that the implementation of its recommendations
would be "helpful to Zimbabwe". The Commission recommended that:

    * relevant legislative texts are brought in line with Conventions Nos 87
and 98;

    * all anti-union practices - arrests, detentions, violence, torture,
intimidation and harassment, interference and anti-union discrimination -
are ceased with immediate effect;

    * national institutions continue the process the Commission had started
whereby people had been heard, in particular referring to the Zimbabwe Human
Rights Commission and the Organ for National Healing and Reconciliation;

    * training on freedom of association and collective bargaining, civil
liberties and human rights is given to key personnel in the country;

    * the rule of law and the role of the Courts are reinforced;

    * social dialogue is strengthened in recognition of its importance in
the maintenance of democracy; and

    * ILO technical assistance to the country is continued.

The Commission of Inquiry concluded its report by recording that in the
progress of its work it had witnessed a country in crisis. It felt that
Zimbabwe faced a challenge in building a "bridge from division and social
tension to a peaceful and just future". The Commission stressed that the
move towards truth, reconciliation and justice needed to be sustained and it
hoped that its report would contribute to this process.

The three Commissioners appointed in November 2008 by the Governing Body of
the ILO were: Judge Raymond Ranjeva, former Vice-President of the
International Court of Justice; Dr Evance Kalula, Professor of Employment
Law and Social Security and Director of the Institute of Development and Law
of the University of Cape Town; and Dr Bertrand Ramcharan, former Acting UN
High Commissioner for Human Rights and UN Under Secretary-General.

De Beers dismiss looting allegations

http://www.newzimbabwe.com/

28/03/2010 00:00:00
by Gilbert Nyambabvu

DIAMOND mining giant, De Beers has dismissed as "outrageous and incredible"
allegations by the Zimbabwe government that the firm looted the Marange
diamonds for 15 years without notifying authorities of the discovery.

Mines and mining development minister, Obert Mpofu early this month claimed
that De Beers had extracted tonnes of diamonds from the area while giving
government the impression that they were only prospecting and carrying out
tests.

"Everyone knows that the diamonds at Chiadzwa are mined from the surface and
De Beers was for the last 15 years alleging that they were doing prospecting
and carrying out tests when in actual fact they were looting diamonds from
Chiadzwa," Mpofu said.

The government says De Beers only pulled out of the country after government
launched a probe into the company's activities in the area.

However De Beers has dismissed the allegations as outrageous saying it was
impossible to conduct mining activities for 15 years without attracting
attention.

"If we had been mining 'tonnes' of diamonds, over a 15 year period, there
would be a very large hole indeed left behind in Marange. Industrial mining
of this magnitude would have been impossible to disguise, let alone keep
secret," De Beers spokesperson Lynette Gould told an industry publication,
Rough & Polished.

Gould said the company started prospecting the Marange area in the early
1990s but left the country in 2006 after concluding that the deposits were
not in line with the firm's other activities elsewhere across the continent.

"Amongst the reasons for relinquishing the Marange licenses back to the
government were: most significantly, after carrying out sampling across the
area we concluded that the deposit did not fit the profile of our other
activities elsewhere in southern Africa.

"De Beers' exploration focus is on primary deposits and our view was that
our resources would be better invested in other prospective areas more
suited to our commercial objectives; in addition, the (Zimbabwe) government
had created an environment of uncertainty regarding the status and future of
the concession and by 2006, the area was being worked by unmanaged,
itinerate diggers," Gould said.

The De Beers spokesperson ruled out any future interest in the Zimbabwe
diamond sector saying the company was focussing its exploration efforts on
Botswana, Canada, Angola, South Africa and India.

Following De Beers departure from Marange, junior resources group African
Consolidated Resources (ACR) took over the claims but government has since
cancelled the company's licence.

The state-owned Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC) has since
entered into joint ventures with two private companies to exploit the
deposits.

ZSE rebounds

http://www.zimonline.co.za

by Own Correspondent Monday 29 March 2010

HARARE - The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) has rallied on the back of
positive news that the government was considering adjusting some provisions
of its controversial empowerment regulations, Kingdom Stock Brokers has
said.

Kingdom said the visit by South Africa President Jacob Zuma, who announced
that the country's three political players had agreed to a package of
measures to deal with a power-sharing dispute holding back the unity
government, had also helped set the ZSE on the rebound.

According to Kingdom, the ZSE last week posted its finest rally for the year
to date which saw the industrial index gaining by 8.97 percent, while the
mining index gained 5.44 percent.

"The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange was on the rebound this week on the back of
unconfirmed developments on the political front following the visit by
President Zuma, the SADC appointed mediator, last week," Kingdom said in its
report for the past week.

"There has however been speculation on what transpired during President Zuma's
deliberations with the principals and other stakeholders concerning
outstanding issues and it is on the back of such developments that the
equities market found its rhythm again."

Zuma had a three-day working visit to Zimbabwe earlier this month and met
with President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Deputy
Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara to try to nudge the Zimbabwean leaders to
complete implementation of their power-sharing agreement.

However statements by Mugabe last weekend that he had not agreed any package
of measures with his former opposition foes could again hit trading at the
ZSE this week.

Trading on the ZSE had been weak since the beginning of March following
announcement by Indigenisastion Minister Saviour Kasukuwere of the
empowerment regulations compelling foreign-owned firms to cede controlling
stake to indigenous Zimbabweans over the next five years.

Kingdom said the bourse was showing signs of recovering from Kasukuwere's
shock announcement following reports that government "will set up
inter-ministerial sub committees for possible adjustments of some provisions
of the indigenisation and economic empowerment regulations".

"He (Kasukuwere) also said negotiations between his ministry and the ZSE
were underway concerning the listed companies but said the regulations must
apply with equal force to all listed companies," the stock broking firm
said.

The indigenisation law affects companies with more than $500,000 of assets,
including Anglo Platinum Ltd, Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd and Aquarius
Platinum Ltd - three of the world's four-biggest producers of the metal that
own mines in Zimbabwe.

British-owned Standard Chartered Bank and Barclays Bank as well as Africa's
biggest insurer Old Mutual Plc are also among big names that are going to be
affected by the empowerment regulations.

The regulations that are championed by Mugabe's ZANU PF party requires
foreign-owned firms operating in Zimbabwe to transfer majority stake to
local blacks within five years.

But the regulations do not provide a clear formula for the transfer of
shares

to black Zimbabweans and are also silent about where impoverished locals
will get the money to finance the company takeovers.

Critics say Mugabe wants to press ahead with transferring majority ownership
of foreign-owned companies as part of a drive to reward party loyalists with
thriving businesses.

Investment analysts say the empowerment programme could see Zimbabwe being
shunned by investors again who fear a repeat of the land seizures, at a time
the new government is out to attract foreign investors to help grow an
economy that was in decline for the last ten years. - ZimOnline

Impala wants clarity before US$500 mil investment

http://www.newzimbabwe.com

29/03/2010 00:00:00
by Gilbert Nyambabvu

IMPALA Platinum has approved a US$500 million expansion programme at
Zimplats but says implementation depends on clarification of the country's
indigenisation laws and resolution of a debt owed by the central bank (RBZ).

Company executives told an analysts' briefing that the second phase
expansion programme at Zimplats which is expected to add expand underground
mining capacity by 2 million tonnes a year is now ready for implementation
once the two issues have been addressed.

Regulations requiring foreign-owned businesses worth at least US$500 000 to
cede 51 percent of their equity to locals took effect at the beginning of
March but government officials have indicated parts of the legislation may
be reviewed after widespread concern among existing and potential investors.

Impala holds a controlling 87 percent interest in Zimplats which owns three
underground mines and a concentrator at Ngezi as well as the Selous
Metallurgical Complex (SML).

In addition, the company also holds a 50 percent interest in Mimosa platinum
mine located in the Midlands town of Zvishavane.

A prior indigenisation deal reached with the government in 2006 saw the
company give up 36 percent of its Zimbabwe resource-base in return for 19.5
percent empowerment credits.

The company was also supposed to get US$51 million in cash from the
government or an additional 10 percent in empowerment credits if the cash
was not forthcoming while further credits would be granted for in return for
infrastructure and social spend.

Company executives told an analysts briefing last Thursday that
implementation of a key second-phase expansion programme at Zimplats
depended on "satisfactory" clarification of the government's new empowerment
regulations and settlement of a US$34 million debt owed by the Reserve Bank
of Zimbabwe.

"The Phase Two expansion project was recently approved subject to
satisfactory resolution of some issues.

"Issues to be resolved include clarity of implementation of the recently
gazetted indigenisation/empowerment regulations; assumption by the
government of Reserve Bank (of Zimbabwe) debt of US$34 million and
additional profits tax dispute," the company said in a statement.

The project will see processing capacity expand to 2 million tonnes per year
and includes the construction of a 9 km over-land conveyor belt, a dam and
more than 1100 employee houses.

The company also announced that its Phase One expansion project at Zimplats
has been successfully completed at a cost of US$349 million.

Key aspects of the project included expansion of annual production to 180
000 ounces of platinum per year which was achieved in June 2009.

AfriForum embarks upon a civil sanction campaign

Media Briefing
AfriForum - Pretoria, South Africa
26 March 2010

The Government of the Republic of Zimbabwe has been at war with its own
people for longer than 10 years.
During this war against its people, white farmers have been targeted and
deprived of not only their property but also their dignity, while hundreds
of thousands of farm workers have been left to the mercy of ZANU-PF militia
and warlords.
The Zimbabwean economy has disintegrated. The poor are becoming poorer while
the wealthy government officials and beneficiaries of the land
redistribution program get richer.
In these desperate circumstances, AfriForum was approached last year by
Messrs Deon Theron and Louis Fick of the Commercial Farmers' Union for
assistance.
"Bloodmilk"-campaign
AfriForum's campaign started when it became known that an international
dairy company purchased milk from a farm that was confiscated by the Mugabe
regime and transferred to Mr Mugabe's wife, Ms Grace Mugabe. AfriForum
undertook an extremely successful international media and internet campaign
and international pressure lead to a decision by the dairy company not to
purchase milk from the said farm.
The fate of South African farmers
Mr Louis Fick is a South African citizen, farming on Friedawil in the
Chinhoyi district. His farm was earmarked for land redistribution and he was
effectively chased off his farm last year. At the moment, Mr Fick stands
trial on criminal charges that he "failed to co-operate with the Zimbabwean
land reform program". If found guilty, he can be sentenced to two years in a
Zimbabwean jail. Mr Fick could not join us today as he is on Friedawil this
week to try and recover his remaining personal movable assets from the
homestead, after the home was broken into and apparently looted.
Last year when it became known that the South African Government was on the
verge of entering a bilateral investment agreement that would exclude South
African farmers from protection, AfriForum assisted Louis Fick in an attempt
to obtaining an interdict against the signing of such a discriminating
treaty.
The matter was settled, and the South African Government recommitted itself
to the protection of South African farmers as well as to the upholding of
the ruling of the SADC tribunal of November 2008 where the land reform
policies of Zimbabwe were found to be racist and unlawful.
AfriForum regards it as our duty to hold the South African government to
these commitments. More particulars of future legal and civil action will be
announced in due course.

The SADC Tribunal rulings
In November 2008 the tribunal ruled in favour of Mr Michael Campbell and 78
Zimbabwean farmers that the land reform program was racist and unlawful. In
his reaction to this, President Robert Mugabe described the ruling as
"nonsense and of no consequence" to Zimbabwe. The tribunal followed up its
ruling with a contempt ruling and costs order in June 2009.
On 26 February, the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria registered these
rulings. They are now rulings of a South African court and as such the cost
order is an executable judgement.
Four Cape Town properties in Zonnebloem, Kenilworth and Wynberg were
identified. The Sheriff of Cape Town visited these properties on 11th March
2010 to attach movables. We have received his confirmation about the current
state of the properties: Three of the properties are vacant and one is being
leased to third party tenants. Since the properties are therefore of a
non-diplomatic nature, they can be attached.
A writ of execution of immovable property will therefore be issued in the
North Gauteng High Court, today and served early next week.
The attachment of immovable properties in Cape Town will be the first step
in what AfriForum describes as its "Civil Sanction Campaign".
This campaign is our gesture of hope and support for the millions of
Zimbabweans waiting in despair for a better life.
ENDS
For further information:

Willie Spies (Legal Representative: AfriForum
Cell: +27 83 676 0639 (South Africa)
E-mail: willie@hurterspies.co.za

Ben Freeth (SADC Tribunal Watch)
Cell: +263 913 929 138 (Zimbabwe)
E-mail: freeth@bsatt.com

Brief information on AfriForum
AfriForum is an independent initiative of the South African trade union
Solidarity. It is a non-profit institution which endeavours to eradicate the
cycle of withdrawal. The process motivates minorities to participate
constructively in public life and debate by means of:
. Campaigns for the protection and consolidation of civil rights
. Establishing functional forums in various spheres of life
. Creating a future vision for minority communities
. Promoting co-operation between civil institutions.
. Liasing with the rest of the world
. Liasing with the authorities.
AfriForum offers a forum for the constructive activation of minorities to
participate in public debate and action, in order to ensure a future for all
in Africa. www.afriforum.co.za

Sparing a thought on The Zimbabwean Woman: The 2010 International Women`s Day

`Would you start Dreaming a Female Zimbabwean President?`

``Female leadership and management style is much more careful and concrete.
The woman, being a mama, is generally warm, kind, and caring!``

As I find time to reflect on the International Women`s day, 8 March, my
heart bleeds on behalf of the ordinary Zimbabwean woman. A woman who is
raped everyday, a woman who is beaten up by her husband for wearing what she
desires; a mini skirt, a short, a sleeveless top. A woman who struggles to
get promoted at work even if she qualifies. In order to get promoted she has
to sleep with the boss. A woman who struggles the whole day to tend for her
HIV positive kids with no support structures; no financial support
(popularly known as maintenance) from her man, who is running 3 small
houses, and as if that is not enough is still chasing after more small
houses. A woman who has no access to medical care, no food, no soap; the
list would go on and on.

And yet this is a day we should be celebrating what is supposed to be the
advancement of the woman, and also highlight the need for continued
vigilance and action.

If the truth is to be told, since the promulgation and adoption of the
Zimbabwean National Gender Policy in March 2004 by the government, gender
inequality still largely haunts the Zimbabwean woman. What a disgrace!

And yet still, it need be emphasized that it should not so much be an issue
of inequality but, quality. Which leads us to the question, are the few
women in Zimbabwe's power corridors quality stuff? Are they the women who
can deliver? Are they doing the work we send them to do? Or have they been
swallowed in the sweetness of power?

The Zimbabwean female leader has to bring not only visible but concrete
change too, for the benefit of the woman in the grassroots. The woman should
not allow herself to drown in the sweetness of power and forget what she
promised the woman voter; to champion and address the problem bedeviling the
ordinary Zimbabwean woman. The female leader needs to understand that there
is a lot more to the assumption of office than having a bigger wardrobe.

As Zimbabweans look forward to the drafting of a new constitution, the
starting point for the woman would have been to participate at the same
level as the man. In this regard, it is only but logical that rapporteurs
and the thematic teams reflect gender balance. Without the equal
participation of women, it is hard to imagine how the woman`s issues can be
fairly covered and articulated.

2009 saw a new crop of Zimbabwean females take some decision making
positions. The ordinary woman still awaits to grab the yield from this crop!
However, even at this point it is sad to note that little voice is coming
out of them, in the face of the continued injustice on the woman. One would
expect for instance calls for tougher sentences on rapists, on fathers who
are neglecting their families and not paying the so called maintenance among
many other burning issues. I am emphatic on the issue of Zimbabwean men who
neglect their kids being brought to book, because I have seen its
effectiveness in other countries. Or are the men higher up the ladders
thwarting any meaningful changes our female leaders would like to usher in?

Or does the solution lie in having a Female Zimbabwean President? One of
ours who would then institute a holistic approach to all these problems.

And yet another message to Zimbabwe`s Government of National Unity; The
International Women`s Day deserves to be declared a National Holiday! This
can go a long way to show the Zimbabwean Government`s commitment in fighting
for the woman`s cause.

Would that bring a difference?

Article by Tapuwa Bridget of BritaVoice

http://britavoice-zim-girl.blogspot.com/2010/03/sparing-thought-on-zimbabwean-woman.html

She is reachable at britavoice@gmail.com

Bill Watch 12/2010 - 28th March [Zimbabwe Media Commission]

Members: Godfrey Majonga [chairperson], Nqobile Nyathi [deputy chairperson], Lawton Hikwa, Miriam Madziwa, Chris Mhike, Millicent Mombeshora, Henry Muradzikwa, Chris Mutsvangwa and Matthew Takaona.

No requirement for ZMC to be Sworn in: Neither the Constitution nor any other law requires ZMC members to be sworn in before assuming office, although the delay setting up ZMC was attributed to this.

First meeting: The Commission met for the first time on Thursday 18th March. A short press statement by chairperson Godfrey Majonga pledged “expeditious fulfilment” of the Commission’s mandate, but did not go into detail on when it will tackle pending applications for registration of media houses and journalists. The following day Mr Majonga, his deputy and three other commissioners had a meeting with the Prime Minister at which the Prime Minister urged them to ensure the speedy registration of new media houses.

The ZMC was established by section 100N of the Constitution, enacted by Constitution Amendment No. 19 in February 2009, which states it must have a chairperson and eight other members appointed by the President from a list of nominees submitted by Parliament’s Committee on Standing Rules and Orders. The Committee interviewed candidates and submitted its list of nominees in August 2009. The final list announced on 21st December is considered a party-political compromise with its members’ sympathies balanced or with a slight weighting towards ZANU-PF. The list was only made official in the Government Gazette of 19th February specifying five-year terms effective from 11th February. There was another delay caused by the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary’s misapprehension that members had to be sworn in by the President. The new ZMC finally had its first meeting on 18th March, coinciding with President Zuma’s visit to Harare.

· to promote and enforce good practice and ethics in the press, print and electronic media, and broadcasting

· to ensure that the people of Zimbabwe have equitable and wide access to information

· to ensure the equitable use and development of all indigenous languages spoken in Zimbabwe

· to exercise any other functions that may be conferred or imposed on the Commission by or under an Act of Parliament.

On 19th March, the day after the first ZMC meeting, the chairperson, deputy chairperson and three of its members met the Prime Minister. The Minister [Shamu], Deputy Minister [Timba] of Media, Information and Publicity, and Permanent Secretary Charamba were also present. The Prime Minister emphasised that the purpose of the ZMC is to ensure that freedom of expression is advanced and the people are heard, and assured the commissioners that:

· ZMC is an independent Commission, not under the control of any organization or individual, and has the responsibility to ensure that the media environment in Zimbabwe reflects multiple voices and views

· the role of the Ministry is to act as a conduit for the Commission to get access to Treasury and Parliament

· ZMC should engage its own Secretariat and if it is to use the Secretariat of the defunct Media and Information Commission to expedite processing of applications, then it may do so on the basis of new short term contracts with them before ZMC determine their own structure and staffing

· ZMC should immediately respond to the expectations of Zimbabweans by ensuring new media houses and newspapers are registered to operate as soon as possible

ZMC chairperson Majonga responded by saying ZMC would “work all hours to meet the enormous expectations of the people”. He also said that one of the functions of ZMC is to advise government on which laws and regulations should be reviewed in order to fulfill the ZMC’s role of promoting freedom of expression.

The Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act [AIPPA] as amended January 2008 confers functions and powers on a “Zimbabwe Media Commission”. But the Zimbabwe Media Commission which the amended AIPPA provided for was a statutory commission, not a constitutional commission. That statutory ZMC was to have replaced the notorious Media and Information Commission [MIC], but members were never appointed to this Commission. In fact the members of MIC apparently continued in office as if MIC were still in existence, which, legally, it was not. In February 2009 Constitution Amendment No. 19 provided for the establishment of the present constitutional ZMC but there was no amendment of AIPPA to make it refer to the new body. Hence it can be argued that the new constitutional ZMC cannot exercise any powers under AIPPA, because those powers could only have been exercised by the never-appointed statutory ZMC.

But there is a counter-argument: that Constitution Amendment No. 19 must be taken to have “impliedly” amended AIPPA, meaning that references to “the Commission” in AIPPA must now be read as referring to the new constitutional ZMC. It is obviously the counter-argument that has, understandably, appealed to the Prime Minister, as it would enable the carrying out of Article 19 of the GPA, in which it was agreed the government would ensure the “immediate processing by the appropriate authorities of all applications for re-registration and registration” in terms of AIPPA. There is however a snag to accepting this argument – the new ZMC would have to apply AIPPA as it stands and some provisions are very restrictive – which could make it difficult for would-be media houses and broadcasters to fulfil them. Also, if the new commission took on the mantle of the statutory commission referred to in AIPPA its decisions could be challenged in court on the basis that it is not in fact the commission referred to. A far better solution would be to amend AIPPA forthwith to enable the new constitutional ZMC to fulfil its brief under the Constitution listed above – in particular “to uphold and develop freedom of the press”.

If the constitutional ZMC chooses to exercise the powers of the statutory commission under AIPPA, how far would it be able to go in upholding and developing press diversity and freedom? Under the provisions of AIPPA:

· no one may operate a mass media service [e.g. a newspaper or a broadcasting station] in Zimbabwe unless it has been registered by the ZMC [section 66(1)] and no mass media service or news agency may employ a journalist unless he or she has been accredited by the ZMC [sections 78(4) & 79(7)]. The procedures for registration and accreditation are fairly tortuous, and the ZMC has no power to simplify them.

· only citizens are allowed to own mass media services, and non-citizens are not even allowed to hold shares in mass media services [section 65]. Only the Minister may grant exemptions from this; the ZMC may not do so. This provision makes it difficult, if not impossible, for Zimbabwean mass media services to get foreign financing.

· only citizens and permanent residents are allowed to be employed as journalists; aliens and non-residents may be accredited by the ZMC for not more than 60 days [sections 79(3) & (4)]. The ZMC does have power to extend the period of accreditation of foreign journalists, but only for “a specified number of days”, and even local journalists are accredited for a year at a time [section 84].

· journalists and owners of mass media services who publish false information can be imprisoned for up to two years, in the case of journalists [section 80] or three years in the case of mass media owners [section 64]. The decision to prosecute in any particular case rests with the police and the Attorney-General, not with the ZMC.

These provisions cannot be altered by the ZMC, because they are set out in the Act. So if the constitutional ZMC decides to function under AIPPA, and even if it tries to carry out its functions with the best will in the world, there is little it can do to liberate the press in Zimbabwe. The only way to achieve a free, diverse press in Zimbabwe is to repeal the restrictive provisions of AIPPA.

The 2010 Budget allocates an amount of US$ 47 000 for ZMC operations for the whole of 2010, under Vote 22: Ministry of Media, Information and Publicity. No additional funds for ZMC are listed under the Vote 7: Vote of Credit [when the Minister of Finance presented the 2010 Estimates and Budget proposals he explained that he envisaged the Vote of Credit being funded by donors, with other Votes being funded by revenue]. So ZMC will not have much money at its disposal.

Veritas makes every effort to ensure reliable information, but cannot take legal responsibility for information supplied.

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