Zim Online
Friday
09 March 2007
By Brian Ncube
BULAWAYO - Zimbabwe's
national intelligence agency on Monday began deploying
its secret agents
within the army and police to purge officers suspected of
backing opposition
plans to revolt against the government, ZimOnline has
learnt.
In a
confidential memorandum seen by ZimOnline and dated 19 February 2007,
Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) Director General Happyton Bonyongwe
expressed concern over the leakage of sensitive information to the
opposition.
The memo titled, "Reversal of Mass Action," was addressed
to State Security
Minister Didymus Mutasa. It blamed the leakage on senior
army and police
commanders who are suspected of working with the main
opposition Movement
for Democratic Change (MDC) party.
"There is
indeed a lot of privileged information on security that is found
with the
opposition and that is alarming. However, I would like to inform
you that we
will start deploying our members within the police and army on
March 5, 2007
and expect to complete the deployments on March 21.
"We will begin by
targeting provincial and district commanders, who pose the
biggest threat as
they are always in possession of vital documents and are
privy to
information that is classified. We expect the teams to have
finished their
task and reported back to us by April 30, 2007," said
Bonyongwe in the
memo.
Last month, the CIO claimed that the MDC was seeking to incite
worker
grievances to incite a public revolt against Mugabe warning that the
revolt
had "all chances of succeeding" unless the government moved to
preempt it.
Our sources said there were real fears within the CIO that
some senior army
and police officers were working with the MDC to leak vital
intelligence
information to the opposition party.
The deployment,
they said, was meant to weed out these senior officers who
are on the
"opposition's payroll".
"Mutasa tasked Bonyongwe to find ways of
reversing the growing influence of
the MDC in inciting the public into
revolting against the government. This
came after concerns that some senior
army officers were involved in leaking
information to the MDC," said one of
our sources who cannot be named for
security reasons.
Morale is said
to have hit rock-bottom within Zimbabwe's security forces
with hundreds of
junior soldiers and police officers having deserted or
resigned over the
past few years because of poor pay and working conditions.
Political
analysts say worsening hunger could at some point force junior
soldiers to
openly revolt or refuse to defend the government should
Zimbabweans rise up
in a civil rebellion.
Mutasa refused to comment on the matter when he was
contacted by ZimOnline
last night.
"Leave me alone, I do not discuss
security matters with the Press," he said
before switching off his
phone.
Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi said there was nothing sinister
in
weeding out "enemies" within the country's security forces.
"The
President's Office is free to do its duty in the way they feel is best
for
them. I am also against members of the force who work against the
government
which pays them," said Mohadi.
Zimbabwe is on a political knife-edge
following plans by the ruling ZANU PF
party to extend Mugabe's term which
was due to end next year by two more
years.
The plan has been met
with unprecedented opposition from some of his closest
lieutenants in ZANU
PF, while outraged opposition parties, churches and
civic groups have
threatened to launch street protests to block the move. -
ZimOnline
Zim Online
Friday 09 March 2007
By Sebastian
Nyamhangambiri
HARARE - Zimbabwe's civic groups and the police are headed
for confrontation
after the latter called for a rally at Zimbabwe Grounds on
Sunday in
defiance of a three-month ban on rallies imposed last
month.
The Save Zimbabwe Campaign, a coalition of churches, students and
opposition
parties fighting for political reforms in the country, called the
rally at
Zimbabwe Grounds, in Harare's working class suburb of
Highfield.
Zimbabwe Grounds was the scene of violent clashes between
Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC) party supporters and the police last
month.
The main faction of the splintered MDC led by Morgan Tsvangirai
said the
weekend rally was meant to officially launch a campaign against
plans by
President Robert Mugabe to extend his term by two more years to
2010.
The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, the Zimbabwe Congress of
Trade of
Unions, the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA), the Zimbabwe
National
Students Union (ZINASU) and both factions of the MDC, all confirmed
that
they will attend the rally.
On Thursday, the NCA, ZINASU and the
Tsvangirai-led MDC, distributed fliers
in Harare asking their supporters to
attend the rally.
"Kindly come and contribute to the push for a
democratic and people-driven
constitution. Come and make a profound
statement against tyranny and
dictatorship," read one of the
fliers.
Nelson Chamisa, the spokesperson in Tsvangirai-led MDC, confirmed
that his
party would attend the rally.
"We are not going to miss any
opportunity that gives us a platform to
liberate our country. The country is
in ICU (intensive care unit) so we
cannot sleep until we rectify the
situation," said Chamisa.
Police spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena said the
police will not tolerate any
unruly behaviour in Harare .
"As you are
aware, there is a ban on such activities until May so we will
not allow any
illegal activity to take place. In fact, we are geared for any
unruly
behaviour," said Bvudzijena.
Police imposed a ban on rallies and marches
around the country following
last month's running battles in Highfield with
supporters of the MDC. The
MDC said the ban on rallies was tantamount to
imposing a state of emergency
with the police arguing it was necessary to
allow tensions to calm in
politically volatile urban areas.
Zimbabwe
is on a political knife-edge as a deep economic recession takes its
toll on
a population grappling with inflation of nearly 1 600 percent,
surging
unemployment and poverty.
The tensions have worsened since last December
following proposals by the
ruling ZANU PF party to extend Mugabe's term by
two more years under an
election "harmonization" plan that will see
presidential elections that were
scheduled for next year coinciding with
parliamentary elections in 2010.
The MDC and civic groups have vowed to
resist the plan saying the country
could not afford to have Mugabe in power
for two more years. - ZimOnline
Zim Online
Friday 09 March 2007
By Tsungai
Murandu
HARARE - Zimbabwe's ruling ZANU PF party is abusing its dominant
position
to manipulate the political process and deny its opponents their
rights,
according to a report released this week by the United States
government.
According to the Country Reports on Human Rights 2006,
released on 6 March,
ZANU PF has wantonly manipulated the political process
to intimidate the
opposition and other groups considered hostile to
President Robert Mugabe's
regime.
"The ruling party's dominant
control and manipulation of the political
process through intimidation and
corruption effectively negated the right of
citizens to change their
government," said the report, compiled by the US
State Department's Bureau
of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour.
The Zimbabwean government could be
immediately reached for comment on the
report last night.
The US
report comes at a time when the government has just banned the
holding of
rallies and demonstrations across the country citing security
fears.
Last month, police clashed with opposition supporters in
Harare after
refusing to grant the main Movement for Democratic Change wing
permission to
hold a rally in the working class suburb of
Highfield.
ZANU PF has used those skirmishes to ban all political
meetings and
gatherings in Zimbabwe, a move critics saw as a ploy by the
ruling party to
stop the MDC from making a head-start in the race towards
presidential
elections tentatively set for 2008.
The MDC had intended
to use the rallies to kick-off its campaign for the
presidential
elections.
The ruling party is seeking to postpone the polls to 2010
after its annual
conference last year endorsed a plan to "harmonise"
presidential and
parliamentary elections.
The US report cited some of
the manipulations by ZANU PF as the use of
excessive force and torture to
intimidate opponents, harassment of human
rights and humanitarian
non-governmental organisations, and interference
with labour
organisations.
High-ranking government officials - most notably Security
Minister Didymus
Mutasa - have made numerous public threats of violence
against
demonstrators.
The latest threat was last month when Mutasa
warned that State would unleash
its apparatus against any persons trying to
create trouble.
Mutasa was responding to an announcement by the Zimbabwe
Congress of Trade
Unions that it was calling for a two-day strike at the
beginning of April.
The US government also accused the Zimbabwean
authorities of using
divide-and-rule tactics by creating splinter
organisations to divert
attention from real problems.
One such case
is the formation of the splinter Zimbabwe Federation of Trade
Unions (ZFTU)
to divide the workers.
The ZFTU comprises ruling party sympathisers and
has been used as an
effective tool to confuse workers.
It is not
recognised as the official labour body in Zimbabwe and has been
left out of
the Tripartite Negotiating Forum, a body representing the
interests of
government, labour and business.
Harare has also indiscriminately locked
up opponents on flimsy charges meant
to weaken its opponents, noted the US
report.
It has also deliberately failed to investigate several cases of
politically
motivated murders and abductions where the perpetrators are
known ZANU PF
supporters. - ZimOnline
Friday, March 09, 2007 4:35 AM
Dear All,
Urgent phoning
appeal
20 WOZA members remain in police custody in Masvingo
tonight -
their third night - in direct contravention
of the 48-hours maximum period
allowed under the
Public Order and Security Act (POSA). Police gave
the
excuse that their equipment was not functioning
properly so they could
not take the statements of all
20 in time. Lawyers also blamed a go-slow at
the
courts for the inability to bring an urgent High Court
application
before a judge to demand their immediate
release. The group was arrested at
noon on Tuesdayand
is expected to appear in court early tomorrow
morning
(Friday).
The 17 women and three men are split between
Masvingo
Central and Chikato Police Station. Please call these
stations
and demand to know why they are insisting on
holding WOZA members illegally.
You can reach them on:
Masvingo Central - +263 (0) 39 62221.
Chikato -
+263 (0) 39 62308
If you have access to fax please also fax your
thoughts
on this illegal detention to Masvingo Police
enquiries on 00 263 39
64026
ACT NOW FOR WOZA!
Lois
Zim Independent
Dumisani
Muleya
THE United Nations has been drawn into the blazing row
between Bubye
Minerals Pvt Ltd and River Ranch Ltd over diamonds amid
allegations that
UN-registered vehicles were being used to smuggle gems out
of the country.
The squabble over United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) cars
gives a new twist to the protracted Beitbridge
diamonds mine saga which has
been rumbling in the courts for a
while.
Top Zanu PF politburo member, retired army commander General
Solomon
Mujuru and former ruling party MP Tirivanhu Mudariki, are River
Ranch
directors, while Zimbabwe's ambassador to South Africa, Simon Khaya
Moyo's
wife, Sibonokuhle, is a Bubye Minerals director.
Bubye
Minerals lawyer Terrence Hussein on Tuesday wrote to UNDP
resident
representative Agostinho Zacarias querying why a UN agency was
allowing its
vehicles to be used by a private company under murky
circumstances.
The letter, titled Use of UN Vehicles at River
Ranch Diamond Mine,
Beitbridge, said there were two UN vehicles being used
at the mine and asked
why UNDP was allowing the vehicles to be deployed
there when it was aware
the mine was a contested property.
Hussein said the two vehicles were a Toyota Land Cruiser VX -
registration
number 200 TCE 666 - and a Toyota Hilux whose number plate is
AAQ 9041. The
Toyota Hilux is said to have been stolen from a River Ranch
employee in
Johannesburg last year.
"A Central Vehicle Registry certificate
shows vehicle AAQ 9041 is a
Toyota Hilux, and the registered owner of the
said vehicle is the UNDP.
Curiously, the record shows that whilst you are
the owner of the vehicle the
address for the said vehicle is River Ranch
Mine, Beitbridge," Hussein said
in his letter to Zacarias.
"The
matter does not end there. A dark blue/black Toyota Land Cruiser
VX bearing
the registration plate 200 TCE 666 is presently being used by
River Ranch
Ltd employees in Harare. The said vehicle is also registered in
the name of
the United Nations Development Programme."
Hussein said he wanted
to know why a "reputable" UN agency had allowed
its vehicles to be used in a
controversial business.
"Of greater concern is how your
organisation's vehicles are being used
by River Ranch Ltd who presently
occupy a diamond mine in Beitbridge on
questionable title," he
said.
Hussein said this was compounded by the fact that River Ranch
was
allegedly involved in the smuggling of diamonds using the UN vehicles
which
could not be subject to search and seizure under UN
conventions.
"As you are no doubt aware, serious questions may be
raised about your
organisation's involvement with River Ranch Ltd in view of
the fact that
vehicles registered to the UN or any of its agencies are by
United Nations
conventions and our laws not subject to search and seizure at
our border
points," Hussein said.
However, River Ranch Ltd CEO
George Kantsouris yesterday said
allegations of smuggling using UN vehicles
were "nonsense". He said there
was nothing wrong with the mine using the
Toyota Land Cruiser 200 TCE 666
because it was being driven by a diplomat
accredited under the African
Management Services Company
(Amsco).
Amsco is a special purpose project of the UNDP and
International
Finance Corporation (IFC), a private sector arm of the World
Bank,
established to address the issue of management and capacity building
in
private sector companies in Africa.
"We have only one
vehicle (Toyota Land Cruiser 200 TCE 666) which is
registered under the
UNDP. It is being used by our chief finance officer Mr
Pradippa Susari who
is accredited under UNDP-Amsco," Kantsouris said. "I'm
also accredited under
UNDP-Amsco. We are fully accredited and entitled to
use TCE number
plates."
Kantsouris said Hussein was trying to "construct a
smokescreen" around
the court battle over the mine, which he had lost. He
said Hussein's chance
to appeal to the Supreme Court after losing in the
High Court last year had
lapsed and he was clutching at straws.
Zim Independent
THE Central
Intelligence Organisation (CIO) has virtually abandoned
the Daily Mirror and
the Sunday Mirror newspapers, forcing them to close
shop this week. The
Daily Mirror failed to publish on Wednesday and
yesterday
Company officials yesterday told a staff meeting that the papers had
stopped
publication due to a financial crisis. Although the CIO had recently
promised to inject fresh capital into the troubled media group, management
squabbles and lack of funds scuttled their plans. The CIO three years ago
wrested control of the two papers and booted out founding publisher, Ibbo
Mandaza.
The two papers - tottering on the verge of collapse
for months -
closed under a weight of debts, estimated at more than $500
million in bank
overdrafts and unpaid bills. Their advertising revenue base
and print run
had shrunk to unsustainable levels, with the Daily Mirror
hardly printing 2
000 copies while the Sunday Mirror was in an equally
precarious position
Workers were on Wednesday told by acting CEO
Tichaona Chifamba, in the
presence of deputy editor-in-chief Alexander
Kanengoni, that there would be
no further editions of the papers due to
shortage of newsprint, origination
material and money for salaries. Workers
had not been paid since last month.
The company no longer has money
to pay Sovereign Printers that had
favourable payment terms.
But sources say management was afraid to tell the employees that the
paper
had closed. The sources also said there was division on the board with
some
members saying the papers should apply for voluntary liquidation while
others believed the business could be saved.
The Zimbabwe
Independent in August 2005 revealed details of the
acrimonious take-over of
the papers by the CIO from Mandaza.
The new owners however failed
to turn the paper into a profitable
business. It recently dropped colour on
the front page and cut back on
pagination before it disappeared altogether
from the streets on Wednesday.
Zimbabwe Union of journalists
secretary-general Foster Dongozi said
the closure of the Daily Mirror would
have a devastating impact on the
livelihoods of journalists as it comes on
the back of the closure of other
titles such as the Daily News, the Daily
News on Sunday, the Tribune and the
Weekly Times.
"It's a
result of government meddling in matters that should be
entirely private,"
Dongozi said of the closure.
He said after revelations of the
take-over, there was corporate
resistance in an environment where
"professionalism and ethics had been
thrown out of the window as a result of
government interference in the
running of the paper". - Staff
Writer.
Zim Independent
THE High Court has ordered the Police Gold Unit in Bulawayo to
immediately return 23 kilogrammes of gold bullion worth US$408 104 to Falcon
Gold Zimbabwe Ltd and Golden Valley Mine, which it seized and has kept since
early January pending investigations for possible prosecution of an
official.
Bulawayo High Court Judge Justice Nicholas Ndou last
Thursday ruled
that the Criminal Investigations Department's Gold Unit in
the city
immediately return the gold to the two mining companies for
subsequent
deposit with the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (Fidelity Refineries)
after the
two firms filed an urgent chamber application on the
matter.
On January 8, members of the Gold Unit seized the gold from
Falcon
Gold metallurgist Peter Mark Johnstone while he was facilitating its
delivery to Fidelity through a hired private security firm as per normal
procedure.
Falcon Gold are the officials agents of John Mack
and Company (T/A
Golden Valley Mine) in Kadoma/Chakari district and had
lawfully taken the
gold to Falcon Gold in Bulawayo for further processing
before delivery to
Fidelity.
However, during the course of the
transactions, members of the Gold
Unit seized the gold and went on to arrest
Johnstone on suspicion that it
was destined for the parallel
market.
Police tried in vain to have Johnstone prosecuted over the
allegations
as the area public prosecutor, a Mr Nleya, declined to set down
the case for
lack of evidence.
Despite Nleya's explanation,
police continued to retain the gold,
forcing Falcon Gold to file an urgent
chamber application.
Justice Ndou granted Falcon Gold and Golden
Valley - the first and
second applicants respectively -- an interim relief
pending determination of
the matter that "the gold bullion presently held by
the second respondent
(police) be immediately returned to the first
applicant and to be held and
retained by the first applicant until such time
as the court determines the
final relief sought".
Terms of the
final relief sought are that the respondent show cause to
the court why a
final order should not be made.
In his judgement, Justice Ndou said
it was not clear how the police
would prove their case beyond reasonable
doubt.
He noted that the police had never clearly set out what they
really
wanted to investigate or what precise offence had been committed. -
Staff
Writer.
Zim Independent
UNITY talks between
opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC)
factions have collapsed
irretrievably after their self-imposed March 1
deadline for negotiations
elapsed without a resolution.
The breakdown of the MDC
rapprochement talks leaves the future of the
opposition looking bleak ahead
of the scheduled presidential election in
March next year. The MDC split -
after a damaging dispute over senate
elections - has badly weakened the
party and alienated public support and
international goodwill.
Stakeholders who backed the MDC materially and morally have almost
given up
on the party after witnessing its repeated failure to tackle
internal
differences and behave responsibly.
They have insisted that the
factions must work together if they want
their help. Its missions abroad are
having difficulty sourcing firm
diplomatic and material
support.
Sources said MDC talks have collapsed beyond
recovery.
"The talks have now collapsed irretrievably and there
will no more
negotiations," one source said. The talks collapsed after
exploratory
engagements this year and last.
The spokesman for
the MDC camp led by Morgan Tsvangirai, Nelson
Chamisa, said the committee
dealing with the issue is yet to present its
report to the
party.
"We are waiting for the committee to report back to the
national
executive and national council and we will see what the findings
are,"
Chamisa said. "I'm not aware that the talks have broken
down."
The MDC split in November 2004 after a dispute over the
senate poll.
Last year the faction led by Tsvangirai appointed a committee
chaired by
Samuel Siphepha Nkomo to negotiate with a committee of the group
led by
Authur Mutambara, but negotiations failed to take off, leading to the
collapse.
Diplomatic sources said this week they have ceased to
look at the MDC
in its current form as a viable alternative to Zanu PF and
were exploring
other avenues to see if a reformed ruling party or its
faction working with
both or separate MDC camps in a new arrangement could
provide a new
formation capable of serious leadership.
"The
international community is no longer necessarily looking at the
MDC alone as
the solution. There are countries and stakeholders who now
think a reformed
Zanu PF, working with a faction or MDC camps, would be
better," a diplomatic
source said. "Some actually think that the events in
Zanu PF could provide a
breakthrough in the political and economic crisis."
Although the
Tsvangirai faction has done well in two by-elections, the
MDC factions have
performed dismally in the nationwide rural district
council elections,
exposing their weakness and failure to gain ground in
Zanu PF's rural
strongholds.
Observers say a divided MDC in unlikely to mount a
serious challenge
even against a deeply divided Zanu PF nationally and it
was therefore time
for a new dispensation. - Staff Writer.
Zim Independent
Augustine
Mukaro
THE Zimbabwe Republic Police has gone on the warpath
arbitrarily
arresting and threatening opposition party supporters and
members of civic
groups amid increasing street clashes.
The
renewed crackdown this week resulted in more than 30 trade
unionists,
student activists and opposition supporters being arrested
throughout the
country.
The latest group to be taken in by police were 20 students
from
Hillside Teachers College in Bulawayo, arrested on Tuesday for
instigating a
class boycott which started on March 5.
Students
boycotted lectures to force government to provide solutions
to the deepening
educational crisis in Zimbabwe.
"The arrested students include
Zimbabwe National Association of
Student Unions (Zinasu) secretary-general,
Beloved Chiweshe, Hillside
Teachers College Students Union president,
Tafadzwa Chengewa, Simbarashe
Mkwambo, Trust Nhubu and others from
Hillside," Zinasu said in a statement.
Cosmas Gwature of the United
College of Education was also picked up
from his college
campus.
"The union condemns the continued victimisation of student
activists,
especially the systematic targeting of student leaders," Zinasu
said.
Police on Wednesday released 16 of the students while four of
their
leaders were detained and released on Thursday morning without being
charged.
Zinasu said the class boycott will continue until
government and the
responsible authorities in tertiary institutes met their
demands.
On Saturday police arrested 14 Zimbabwe Congress of Trade
Unions
(ZCTU) activists attending an orientation workshops in Plumtree in
Matabeleland South.
Bright Chibvuri, the editor of The Worker,
the ZCTU's official
newspaper, was arrested on Saturday while attending the
workshop.
"A further 13 activists were arrested while attending a
ZCTU
orientation workshop in Chegutu," ZCTU said in a
statement.
Last Sunday police fought running battles with the
Morgan Tsvangirai
faction of the MDC in Budiriro township.
Budiriro residents said youths barricaded roads into the suburb using
bonfires and burning tyres after police moved in to stop a rally scheduled
for Budiriro 1 shops.
"Riot police used teargas to disperse
people who were gathering for
the rally on Sunday afternoon," a shop
assistant in Budiriro said. "This
incensed people who retaliated by throwing
stones.
The ensuing running battles forced shops in Budiriro to
close down and
street vendors deserted their stalls."
Last
Thursday police had been called in to disperse another political
gathering
in Chitungwiza where they brought in two riot control vehicles
equipped with
water cannons to contain the street battles.
MDC Chitungwiza
provincial spokesman, suspended mayor Misheck Shoko,
said his party had
mobilised people to march from Zengeza 2 shops to
CK-Junction to protest the
deteriorating economy and to demand the holding
of free and fair elections
under a new constitution.
"Police got wind of the proposed march
and blocked it before it could
take place," Shoko said. "Two riot police
trucks were deployed at my house
where they remained until early Wednesday
morning. At 04.30 am they picked
up Philimon Chitiyo, the MDC organising
secretary before calling for
reinforcements to be deployed at Zengeza
2."
Shoko said two riot control vehicles were sent to Zengeza 2
shops in
anticipation of the gathering.
"To avoid
confrontation, people decided to change the meeting place to
Chitungwiza
Hospital. As people gathered, riot police came in and started
beating up
people to disperse them. Running battles ensured from 06.00 am
until about
11.00 am," Shoko said.
Street clashes have increased despite the
ban on rallies and
demonstrations initially in Harare, its dormitory town of
Chitungwiza and
Bulawayo, two weeks ago. The ban has since been extended to
all major
centres, clearly showing rising political tensions in the
country.
The MDC and civic groups have condemned the ban on rallies
saying the
move amounted to a declaration of a state of emergency. MDC has
vowed to
defy the ban.
The ban directive faces a stern test
early next month against the ZCTU's
proposed two-day work boycott planned
for April 3/4 to force the government
to arrest Zimbabwe's eight-year old
economic meltdown.
Zim Independent
Loughty Dube
ZIMBABWE'S chances of resuming ivory trade under
the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) in June
appear dim as a
battle still rages between the government and conservation
organisations
over the actual number of elephants in the
country.
Zimbabwe, together with other southern African countries,
are lobbying
Cites for permission to cull their elephants and sell excess
ivory arguing
that elephant populations in the region are too
large.
However, animal groups argue that the figures quoted by the
governments are inflated.
Zimbabwe claims that it has an
elephant population of over 100 000
against a holding capacity of 45
000.
The animal rights groups are lobbying Cites not to lift the
ban for
southern African countries to continue trade in ivory at the June
conference
to be held at The Hague.
It also emerged that
Zimbabwe is reluctant to submit a bid for
resumption of ivory sales for fear
that its proposal would be treated
politically by the international
community.
But an animal rights group, Zimbabwe Conservation Task
Force (ZCFT),
says government figures are not true as the country has never
held a
cumulative audit in the last seven years.
Johnny
Rodrigues, the ZCFT chairman, said the elephant population was
exaggerated.
"The figures National Parks have are estimates.
There has been no
cumulative audit in the last seven years and, besides,
there is a lot of
movement of elephants from Zimbabwe into Zambia and
Botswana," Rodrigues
said.
He said the elephant population in
Zimbabwe was being decimated by
poaching, killing of elephants to feed
crocodiles and simple mismanagement
of their population.
"There
are serious cases of poaching by professional hunters and
unless Zimbabwe
carries out a cumulative audit National Parks should stop
talking about
figures," he said.
National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority
public relations
manager, Retired Major Edward Mbewe, said Zimbabwe was this
year not likely
to table a proposal before the Cites
conference.
"We are not planning any proposal but we will
participate with other
countries. We will at the same conference defend the
status quo and preserve
what we were allowed to trade in," Mbewe
said.
After years of controversy, Zimbabwe in 1999 obtained
permission from
Cites to sell limited and strictly monitored supplies of
ivory to Japan.
Mbewe defended National Parks audits and said the
noise from animal
rights organisations was due to ignorance over the
elephant situation in the
country.
"Zimbabwe is not culling
elephants at the moment despite the fact that
we have a Cites quota allowing
us to do so and we have carried out audits.
We did a conclusive audit in
2001 where we established that we had an
elephant population of about 90
000.
"The annual growth percentage indicates that there are now
over 100
000 elephants and we also rely on statistics from other
international
organisations that help us with the counts," Mbewe
said.
However, Zimbabwe has so far held back from culling its
annual 500
elephant quota in deference to vocal international animal welfare
lobbyists.
Kenya has led opposition to any resumption of trade in
elephant
products, including ivory, meat and hides, saying this encouraged
smuggling
by poaching syndicates.
Namibia, Botswana, South
Africa and Zimbabwe are part of the
pro-culling lobby.
Zim Independent
IN a move which exposes the failure of Zimbabwe's policies,
government
has launched a massive US$230 million humanitarian appeal for
food.
The 2007 consolidated appeal for Zimbabwe focuses on both
emergency
relief and transitional support to address the causes of
vulnerability of
some sections of the population.
The appeal
shows that government policies have compounded the
humanitarian situation
resulting in the nation seeking assistance in
virtually all sectors. Food,
agriculture and health account for more than
65% of the needs in the
appeal.
It comes as the provincial leadership in the two
Matabeleland
provinces have asked the government to declare a state of
disaster.
The two provinces, together with Midlands province, have
received
erratic rainfall since the planting season began late last
year.
A senior official in the Ministry of Agriculture told the
Zimbabwe
Independent this week that the leadership in the two provinces had
written
to government requesting that they be declared disaster
areas.
Matabeleland South governor, Angeline Masuku, confirmed that
her
province was in a precarious position in terms of food security but
could
not be drawn into revealing whether they had made a representation to
government.
"The issue is still under deliberation," she said.
"The provincial
drought relief committee is meeting this week and they will
come up with
resolutions. The situation is not promising but you will get
more
information on the situation from my office later."
The
Swedish aid agency Sida this week handed over US$6,7 million to
the Zimbabwe
consolidated appeal process.
Speaking at the event, UN resident
representative in Zimbabwe
Agostinho Zacharias said the humanitarian crisis
in the country was serious
and worrisome.
Sweden becomes the
first country to respond to the Zimbabwe 2007
appeal.
"The
humanitarian situation in Zimbabwe is very serious," said
Zacharias. "And it
is worrisome. Humanitarian assistance is meant to be
temporary but here it
has gone on for too long. Your government cannot go it
alone; they require
international assistance so as to address the
humanitarian situation
here."
Swedish Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Sten Rylander, who
officially handed
over Sida's contribution, said Mugabe and his officials
appeared not to
appreciate the humanitarian crisis in the country. He said
they were
directing their energies towards economic turnaround when the real
issue was
political.
The appeal was drafted by government in
conjunction with the United
Nations and its implementing partners. The most
acute humanitarian needs
include those of populations affected by food
insecurity and cholera
outbreaks, as well as mobile and vulnerable people
affected by the
fast-track land reform programme, Operation Murambatsvina,
and more recent
re-evictions, the appeal docoument says.
"The
more chronic issues affecting vulnerable populations include
inadequate
access to basic social services, insufficient agricultural inputs
and
disrupted livelihoods.
"Further impacting the overall situation in
the country is the
continuing economic decline and the large number of
migrants. The HIV/Aids
pandemic directly affects 18% to 20% of the
population, with an average of 3
000 deaths per week," the appeal
says.
Zimbabwe's population of 11,8 million people includes a
number of
vulnerable groups: people living with HIV/Aids; children who have
lost one
or both parents; people with severe disabilities; the chronically
ill and
food-insecure communities.
Further included in this
grouping are stateless individuals born in
Zimbabwe with disputed
citizenship; refugees; ex-farm workers and those
directly affected by
Operation Murambatsvina.
Inter-agency standing committee members
participating in the
Consolidated Appeals Process expect that the situation
in Zimbabwe will
require substantial humanitarian responses in 2007. The
responses would
mitigate the effects of the declining economy and,
particularly, its impact
on the access and quality of basic services for
already vulnerable
populations.
Among the expected trends in
2007 are: a steady decline in the
availability of basic agricultural inputs;
a significant food gap; a
continued need for assistance and protection of
mobile and vulnerable
populations; continued impact of contentious human
rights and governance
issues; and reduced resources for humanitarian
programming.
This is coupled with continued economic decline
resulting in a
reduction in household purchasing power, decreased access to
basic social
services for vulnerable populations and the severe impact of
HIV/Aids. In
this scenario, the humanitarian community will endeavour to put
mechanisms
in place that will provide transitional support actions at the
household and
community levels.
If fully funded, the projects
in this appeal would serve to provide
food assistance to an estimated 1,9
millionpeople; provide agricultural and
livelihoods support to approximately
300 000 households; improve access and
quality of education services for 150
000 children. It is expected to
provide transitional shelter to
approximately 4 200 mobile and vulnerable
populations and homeless
households.
The resources will also be used to immunise 5,2 million
people through
the expanded programme of immunisation; provide home-based
care for over 120
000 people living or affected by HIV/Aids; assist 2,8
million in mother and
child healthcare programmes.
The appeal
plans to reach three million people with messages to
promote behavioural
change and prevent HIV/Aids; sensitise an estimated 1
million people on the
prevention and management of sexual and gender-based
violence.
It will also provide multi-sectoral assistance to nearly 250 000
mobile and
vulnerable populations; provide assistance to 100 000 returned
migrants;
ensure assistance and psychosocial support to over 30 000 orphans
and
vulnerable children; deliver improved sanitation services to 2,5
million;
and improve access to potable water for an estimated 500 000
beneficiaries. - Staff Writers.
Zim Independent
Loughty Dube/Pindai Dube
SERIOUS divisions
have emerged in Zanu PF's Bulawayo provincial
leadership ahead of elections
that will be held next week, the Zimbabwe
Independent has
established.
Two weeks ago the party's national commissar, Elliot
Manyika, wrote a
surprising letter to the Bulawayo party leadership telling
them to prepare
for fresh provincial elections in the next two
weeks.
Manyika did not give a reason for dissolving the party's
current
executive.
Sources in the provincial leadership told
the Independent this week
that this had led to the emergence of two factions
in the party leadership.
The sources said one faction supports Zanu
PF politburo member, Dumiso
Dabengwa and the other is controlled by former
Bulawayo mayor and senator
for Bulawayo East, Joshua Malinga.
The Dabengwa faction is understood to be against President Robert
Mugabe's
2010 term extension whilst the Malinga faction supports the idea of
Mugabe
staying in power for another two years after the expiry of his
current
term.
At a highly charged provincial coordinating meeting held at
the party's
provincial offices at Davies Hall in the city last week, the
secretary for
gender, Jimmy Nleya who belongs to the Dabengwa faction,
openly declared
that "for the current sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe to be
removed, President
Mugabe should step down as soon as
possible".
It is understood Nleya is running for the deputy
provincial
chairmanship in elections scheduled for next week.
Dabengwa confirmed that at the meeting Nleya said Mugabe should step
down
and they asked him to withdraw the statement but he refused.
"Yes,
at the meeting Nleya said that President Mugabe should step down
but we
asked him to withdraw the statement and he refused saying he was
expressing
the views of most members in the Bulawayo province," said
Dabengwa.
Dabengwa also said he and Malinga were tasked by the
party to work
with the Bulawayo provincial leadership.
"Malinga
and myself were asked by the party leadership to supervise
and work with the
Bulawayo province and not to get involved in their
day-to-day running," he
added.
Nleya said people who are saying that he called for
President Mugabe
to step down were those campaigning for positions in next
week's elections
and wanted to tarnish his name since they are scared of
losing.
"I know people who are going around saying I called for
President
Mugabe to step down. They are campaigning for positions in next
week's
elections and are scared of losing against me," he said.
Malinga confirmed that there were serious divisions within the party
in the
province and said they needed the party's national leadership to
intervene.
"There are serious divisions within the party in the
province which
need the national party leadership to intervene and to tell
the truth. I don't
know what got into the Bulawayo province, there is
confusion all over," said
Malinga.
The party's provincial
spokesperson, Effort Nkomo, confirmed that he
received a letter from Manyika
ordering that the province prepare for
elections in two weeks'
time.
Nkomo said the party's Bulawayo provincial leadership had
written to
Manyika seeking clarification on the issue.
"We
wrote back as a province to Manyika seeking clarification on why
suddenly
there are supposed to be fresh elections," Nkomo said.
On the issue
of Nleya, he refused to comment saying he was not present
at the
meeting.
Party chairman John Nkomo referred the Independent to
Manyika whose
mobile phone went unanswered.
"Talk to Manyika on
Bulawayo provincial elections. I cannot comment on
that," said
Nkomo.
Zim Independent
Itai
Mushekwe/Lucia Makamure
FIRST Lady Grace Mugabe this week
suffered an embarrassing moment in
Ghana when she was barred from entering
the late Sally Mugabe's home in
Sekondi.
Ghanaian-born Sally
was President Mugabe's first wife who died of a
kidney ailment in
1992.
Mugabe's spokesperson George Charamba yesterday confirmed the
incident
but dismissed it as "nothing to write home about". He said the
incident was
a result of a misunderstanding between the presidential
delegation and
members of Sally's family. "There was a small
misunderstanding between the
presidential delegation and some family members
of the late First Lady,"
said Charamba.
"You must understand
that the president is a married man and what
happened is a fairly normal
tension in an African marriage."
Sources travelling with the
president, who was in Ghana for the Golden
Jubilee celebrations, say Mugabe
on Tuesday took the opportunity to make a
three-hour visit to Sekondi, the
late Sally's birthplace, and laid wreaths
at his late son's tomb at
Kansaworodo near Takoradi.
When the presidential party arrived at
Sally's home for a courtesy
call, Mugabe's in-laws barred Grace from
entering.
The sources said Mugabe held talks with Sally's
relatives, including
her mother Mavis Hayfron, but his wife was prevented
from entering the home
and was made to wait in the vehicle until Mugabe
completed his visit.
"It was really embarrassing," sources
said.
"They wouldn't let her enter the house. All attempts by
dignitaries,
including the local government, rural development and
environment minister
Steven Asamoah Boateng, to mediate, failed. The First
Lady had to wait in
the vehicle."
Mugabe later laid a wreath at
the tomb of his son Nhamodzenyika who
was born on September 27 1963 and died
three years later on December 26 from
cerebral malaria. Mugabe was
accompanied by, among other high-ranking
officials, Foreign minister
Simbarashe Mumbengegwi and president of the
senate Edna Madzongwe.
Zim Independent
Ray Matikinye
THE wheels of justice finally
creaked into motion last month when the
trial of eight Zanu PF supporters
charged with the murder of two villagers
for supporting opposition parties
in rural Mudzi in May 2000 resumed in the
High Court on
Wednesday.
Supporters of the ruling Zanu PF unleashed an orgy of
violence against
opposition party members during and after the landmark
general election that
year which saw Zanu PF lose 57 parliamentary seats to
the newly-formed MDC.
The eight Zanu PF supporters, Garikai
Gumbeze, Nyepanai Chipuriro,
Rice Chifodya, Watson Chingwena, Emmanuel
Chifodya, Taurayi Nhire, Crispen
Nyamungu and a nurse at the local clinic,
Enock Kuchiwa, appeared before
High Court judge Justice Chinembiri Bhunu
facing two counts of murder and
three counts of assault each.
They are accused of beating to death Mationa Dzembe and Onias Mushaya
and
severely assaulting Costain Moyosvi, Ephrain Musvote and the deceased's
wives.
The state, led by Joseph Mabeza of the
Attorney-General's Office,
alleges that the eight, led by war veteran,
Andrew Chiparamhandu, connived
to assault as punishment all members of
political parties opposed to Zanu PF
in the Mudzi area.
The
gang apprehended persons perceived to be members of the opposition
and
assaulted them using logs, sticks, booted feet and fists on May 16
2000.
The state has lined up 15 witnesses in one of the landmark
cases,
which confirms wanton use of violence by President Mugabe's ruling
Zanu PF
to intimidate and coerce political support even in areas where it
claims
majority support.
But the party appears to have
abandoned its foot soldiers as the eight
are represented pro
deo.
Attorney-General, Sobuza Gula-Ndebele recently ordered the
trial of
all outstanding cases linked to political violence which occurred
seven
years ago. This will include the CIO agent, Joseph Mwale, responsible
for
the grisly murder in rural Buhera of MDC activists, Talent Mabika and
Tichaona Chiminya.
An estimated 150 people died, among them
white commercial farmers, as
a result of politically-motivated violence
triggered by President Mugabe's
violent land reform programme and fear of
losing support after the
electorate reject a constitutional referendum in
February 2000.
Zim Independent
RESERVE Bank governor Gideon Gono found himself in a dilemma this
week
when his office turned down a prestigious speaking engagement that was
subsequently taken up by Morgan Tsvangirai.
The Foreign
Correspondents Association of Southern Africa, based in
Johannesburg, had
invited Gono to be the keynote speaker at their annual
dinner tonight. A
source at the association said Gono accepted the
invitation last month but
on Tuesday his office said he would not be
available.
The
organisers then contacted MDC leader Tsvangirai who agreed to
stand in. Then
at 10am on Wednesday, the organisers received a call from
Gono to say his
staff had been "too proactive" in cancelling the engagement
and that he
would very much like to speak.
He was told that he was welcome to
attend but would have to do so
alongside Tsvangirai.
He asked
for time to reflect on the dilemma. Yesterday he decided he
wouldn't be able
to speak at the same function as Tsvangirai but told the
organisers he would
like to speak at any future function.
He has agreed to speak at a
breakfast meeting next month.
Tsvangirai will speak on the MDC's
planned campaign of protest, the
FCA said in a statement yesterday. "The
International Crisis Group report
and the growing desperation in that
country makes Mr Tsvangirai's address
both timely and newsworthy," the FCA
said.
The Foreign Correspondents Association dinner will be
held tonight at
the Hyatt Hotel in Rosebank. - Staff Writer.
Zim Independent
Dumisani
Ndlela
THE Zimbabwe dollar this week plumbed new depths on a
thriving
parallel market but was still searching for a bottom on escalating
demand.
Dealers said the central bank was "the mystery mover" on the market
as it
had been buying aggressively from the parallel market to raise cash
for
unspecified commitments.
The local unit plunged to $9 500
to the greenback after touching a
rate of $7 500 to the US dollar last week.
It was at $6 600 to the US unit
the week before.
It weakened
further to $17 500 against the British pound, and to
between $1 300 and $1
350 to the South African rand.
The Zimbabwe dollar had last week
been trading at $1 100 against the
South African rand, from $880 the
previous week.
The local unit had last week hit a low of $15 000 to
the British
pound, after settling at $11 000 against the pound sterling the
previous
week.
The pound had been buying $7 000 in
January.
The feeble Zimbabwe dollar opened the year trading at $350
per rand
and had plummeted to $600 in January.
The local
currency had opened the year trading at $3 000 and $5 000 to
the greenback
and British pound respectively.
"The central bank has been buying
from us for the past three weeks,"
an official with one exporting firm,
speaking on condition of anonymity,
told businessdigest.
The
report was yesterday confirmed by several parallel market dealers
who said
the market had been severely strapped for foreign cash because the
central
bank "was after all the foreign currency in the economy".
"They are
now driving rates on the parallel market," one dealer said.
No
comment could immediately be obtained from the central bank as its
spokesman, Kumbirayi Nhongo, was said to be in meetings.
His
deputy, Tonderai Mukeredzi, requested written questions on the
issue.
The central bank's agencies were said to be sourcing the
bulk of their
foreign currency from non-governmental
organisations.
Zimbabwe is currently battling an acute foreign
currency shortage that
has stoked severe fuel shortages and disrupted normal
economic activities.
Gono in January refused to devalue the local
unit, saying devaluation
was unlikely to result in "planeloads" of foreign
currency into the country.
Eight devaluations since he assumed office had
failed to give any spark to
the distressed foreign currency market, he
said.
He kept the rate fixed at $250 to the benchmark US unit, the
rate he
had fixed in July from $101 to the US unit.
It was not
immediately clear why the central bank had resorted to the
parallel market,
which it has declared illegal.
The movement in parallel market
rates has resulted in uncontrolled
price hikes. The price of a litre of fuel
increased to between $9 000 and
$10 000 per litre from between $7 000 and $8
000 per litre last week. The
commodity cost around $5 600 per litre three
weeks ago.
"Exporters have not been selling since January," a
dealer said,
explaining the central bank's desperation for
cash.
Inflows on the formal market have been dismally low as a
result of the
unrealistic exchange rate.
Independent economists
project Zimbabwe's embattled currency's fair
value to end the year at a rate
of $16 588 to the US dollar on the back of
surging inflation expected to
breach 5 000% year-on-year this year.
The fair value is the
realistic value of the currency taking into
account inflation differentials
between Zimbabwe and its trading partner
countries.
It is not
necessarily the official exchange rate.
Independent economists
project inflation, currently at 1 593,6%, to
reach between 1 700 and 1 900%
year-on-year for February.
Zim Independent
LABOUR and Social Welfare minister Nicholas Goche was last week roped
in to
rescue Reserve Bank governor Gideon Gono's faltering proposal for a
social
contract after stakeholders recommended that it should be championed
by the
Tripartite Negotiating Forum (TNF) and not President Robert Mugabe's
office.
Goche, who has always chaired the TNF as the Public
Service minister,
had been sidelined by Mugabe from leading talks for the
social contract
because of intense bickering within cabinet on the
issue.
Plans for the social contract were being handled directly by
Mugabe's
office under the supervision of Misheck Sibanda, the Chief
Secretary to the
President and Cabinet.
Sibanda had already
appointed Mike Bimha, the past-president of the
Employers Confederation of
Zimbabwe (Emcoz), and Lancester Museka, the
permanent secretary in Goche's
ministry, to constitute a sub-committee
expected to champion negotiations
for a social contract.
Both Bimha and Museka have been officially
designated "champions of
the social contract" by the National Economic
Development Priority Programme
(NEDPP), a government project spearheading
the country's economic revival.
There are fears this arrangement
could scuttle any chances for the
social contract since Goche would be
expected to report to his accounting
officer Museka under the
arrangement.
A stalemate had also appeared imminent between parties
to the TNF
after some stakeholders had initially refused to have Goche
chairing the
TNF, saying a neutral person had to be found to lead talks for
the social
contract, proposed by Gono on January 31, sources
said.
Businessdigest is informed that Goche was finally roped in
after it
was established that the International Labour Organisation (ILO)
has decreed
that governments should lead social contract projects and after
the
stakeholders agreed that it would be difficult to find a neutral person
to
lead the TNF.
The TNF is scheduled for a meeting on Friday
next week, with sources
indicating that a deal was unlikely to be hammered
out soon due to divergent
concerns among stakeholders.
Sources
suggested government was developing cold feet because of
increasing calls
for the adoption of the Kadoma Declaration, a document that
seems to suggest
wholesale changes in the way Mugabe's regime runs the
economy.
Government was also becoming unsettled by growing calls from partners
for an
immediate freeze of all unbudgeted expenditure, including a cessation
of
money printing.
Sources said government could break its budget
within the next two
months due to intensifying inflationary pressures and
was uncomfortable with
private sector and labour calls.
Business and labour are also said to have serious differences over the
issue
of incomes, with labour calling for a review of wages and salaries in
line
with the poverty datum line. Industry insists on productivity-linked
adjustments.
Most of the country's industrial operations are
running at below 30%
capacity.
But Johnson Manyakara, the Emcoz
president, said business had already
"pysched itself to taking the pain
necessary to have this 'baby' delivered".
"Business is very
committed to playing its part in all processes
necessary to delivering a
social contract for this nation in as short a time
as possible," Manyakara
told a breakfast meeting on the issue last week.
But if
stakeholders successfully hammer out a social contract, they
will still have
to overcome internal wrangles within Mugabe's
administration.
Businessdigest reported two weeks ago that the social contract had
failed to
win the backing of Mugabe's cabinet, with sources indicating that
various
government ministers were balking at buying into several targets
Gono had
prescribed for them under a holistic turnaround package announced
in Gono's
monetary policy.
Businessdigest reported then that government
ministers were angry with
Gono's prescriptions to ministries, saying any
suggestion for ministerial
targets should have been made in private
consultations rather than through a
monetary policy statement.
Most of the cabinet members, embroiled in a bitter succession battled
in
Zanu PF, perceive Gono's prescription of targets to ministries as
presumptious. - Staff Writer
Zim Independent
By
Admire Mavolwane
ACCORDING to the Consumer Council of Zimbabwe
(CCZ), a family of six
required $686 115 to cater for their basics in the
month of February. The
organisation attributed this to profiteering by the
business community
noting that ".business people sought to cushion
themselves from the proposed
price and wage freeze by unjustifiably
increasing prices of most basic
commodities".
Whilst the
justifiability - which in our view is found in the same
statement - or
legality of price increases is debatable, we can all figure
out what sparked
off the hike in prices which pushed the cost of living for
a family of six
by 49,5% from $458 986.
The classical definition of hyper-inflation
is a monthly inflation
rate of more than 50%. As the nation begins to live
with this reality, the
importance and use of certain variables as any sort
of accurate measure
becomes questionable. Taking February as a base and
converting into hard
currency, the same CCZ February figures would be much
higher if calculated
using the unofficial depreciation of the local
currency. For instance, using
an Old Mutual implied rate of $4 887,81 to the
US dollar at the end of
January and taking its February rise to $8 088,86
would mean that the family
of six would require $759 578,11. The use of the
parallel market rate would
result in steeper increases still.
A
good number of Zimbabwean households, for cultural reasons, comprise
more
than five or six members. As such, their personal experience of
inflation is
much higher than what is measured on average. The fact that the
standard of
living has "on average" halved in one month does not mean very
much since on
the ground the extent is different for everyone. The situation
is summed up
by the statement: "There was a man who drowned crossing a
stream with an
average depth of six inches."
Labour disputes, go-slows and
industrial actions that have dominated
press headlines since the year began
are a direct result of the disparity
between experienced inflation and
measured and generally used inflation
statistics. On one hand, employers are
using these statistics as a drunken
man would use lampposts - for support
rather than illumination, whilst
employees are doing the
reverse.
The question is; which figures and ways of measuring
inflation have
more relevance than others? We are not in a unique position
in this, as the
same issues have arisen in South Africa, the United States
and the United
Kingdom. The only difference is that those guys have the
luxury of debating
a two or three percentage point disparity. In Zimbabwe an
already
insufferable problem is set to worsen as the inflation hurricane
reaches top
speed.
Another concern is the abuse, or massaging,
of the statistics by those
in the position of authority. The main reason is
that statistics are used
both for planning and measuring performance. For
example, politicians and
central bankers whose performance rating depends on
their success or failure
in meeting set inflation targets have a vested
interest in conforming to
previously published figures. As Mark Twain once
said, "figures do not lie
but liars figure".
In a few days
time, the focus of the dispute will shift from the
amount to be paid, to
when it is paid. Time value of money grows in
importance because unless it's
in hard currency it will be losing value by
the minute. The moment one buys
an asset, or commodity, the exchange itself
means the holder of currency
starts losing value as soon as the money is in
his hand whilst hopefully the
asset is gaining or at least maintaining,
value.
Exacerbating
the bad effects of inflation are those decision makers
who do not appear to
grasp the full impact of the scourge and are not
willing to change their
ways. Although the business community has been
accused of all sorts of
crimes, you have to hand it to them for being
pro-active and adjusting their
terms of trade to suit the environment.
Most manufacturers' charges
are now not based on the product but the
order or job. At the same time
credit terms have been shrunk to cash.
Prepayments are not accepted because
by the time the goods are delivered the
manufacturer would have been
prejudiced.
Oddly enough, the investment market, as represented by
the Zimbabwe
Stock Exchange which is supposed to be the playground of those
who claim to
fully appreciate the vagaries of inflation, still operates as
it did eons
ago. The stock market still settles after seven days and
dividends declared
are still payable within a period of a month and a
half.
With inflation racing as it is doing now the seller of shares
or
receiver of dividends is disadvantaged, as by the time the money comes in
after seven or 30 days it would have lost most of its value. In other words,
unless he/she would have managed to fix the price of asset to be purchased
the seller of shares would not be able to acquire the intended commodity and
neither can he/she reinvest the money on the same basis because the price
would have moved against him.
We have not had any moves by the
exchange to reduce the settlement
terms to a more reasonable period. We
would also like to believe that a
three-day settlement period can easily be
managed by the whole trading
system.
This would be a huge
improvement but not the best as instantaneous
exchange would be more ideal.
If trading conditions do not change in the
near future we envisage trading
on the stock exchange to become constrained.
Selling shares today would make
one look foolish tomorrow as the price would
have moved. Worse still after
seven days the proceeds from the sale would be
virtually worthless.
Zim Independent
Paul
Nyakazeya
GOVERNMENT domestic debt has soared to a fresh high
of $211,1 billion,
spurred largely by huge interest payments on borrowings
through treasury
bill instruments issued last year.
The debt
stock had touched its previous high of $195,2 billion on
February
2.
Statistics from the Reserve Bank this week indicated that the
domestic
debt stock, which consists of government stocks, treasury bills and
central
bank advances, had risen by $15,9 billion inside two weeks to $211,1
billion
on February 16.
Economic analysts warned that
accelerating inflation, currently at 1
593,6% for January and expected to
touch between 1 700% and 1 800% in
February, was likely to push government
domestic debt higher of renewed
appetite for funds due to escalating
expenditure requirements.
High interest rates had helped swell the
level of government debt,
analysts said, indicating that this had forced a
major restructuring of debt
last year from short term debt to long term
debt.
That strategy had been carried forward into the current year,
with the
central bank flooding the market with long-dated treasury bill
papers of one
year or longer tenors.
Indications are that the
restructuring exercise was unlikely to be
unsuccessful due to the market's
lack of appetite for long term investments.
Last year, government
borrowed aggressively from the local market to
finance a huge budget
deficit, stoking inflation which touched a record high
of 1 281,1%
year-on-year during the year.
With inflation expected to touch over
5 000% this year against
official projections of between 350% and 400%,
market watchers said the
market had to brace for the worst as the budget
deficit out-turn could
surpass forecasts by significant margins.
Zim Independent
Pindai Dube
TOURISM industry players are set to meet
the Reserve Bank Zimbabwe
governor Gideon Gono next week to discuss issues
affecting the tourism
sector, businessdigest established this
week.
Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) chief executive, Karikoga
Kaseke,
told businessdigest that they had decided to engage the RBZ after
realising
that most tourism service products were being overpriced due to
the
overvalued local currency on the official market.
"The
authorities have engaged the central bank after realising that
there was a
lot of indiscipline in the sector. The governor has agreed to
meet us next
week. There are many issues we are going to discuss with him
that affect the
tourism industry," said Kaseke.
He said foreign currency
externalisation, profiteering and the
exchange rate were some of the issues
to be put on the agenda of the
meeting.
"We are going to be
frank in discussing issues plaguing the sector,"
Karikoga said.
In his monetary policy statement in January, Gono said the tourism
sector
was "one area where the country has potential to earn significant
foreign
exchange to support the turnaround efforts".
"Meaningful upturn in
this sector is, however, seriously being
constrained by pricing distortions
that are making the country highly
expensive to tourists," Gono
said.
Using the example of water, Gono said a 750 ml bottle of
mineral
water, costing $2 800 then, yielded an effective price of
US$11,2.
"(This) is way too expensive, compared to the regional and
international price of the same product at around US$2," Gono
said.
"The same extremity of the distortion in the tourism sector
is
reflected in the fact that at a price of $25 000, a plate of sadza and
stew
in a hotel translates to a hard currency price of US$100 per plate. As
a
country, therefore, we are overpricing ourselves out of the tourism market
through our internal price distortions."
Zim Independent
PLANS
for a multi-billion dollar drug manufacturing plant in Zimbabwe's
second
largest city Bulawayo have been stalled by an acute foreign currency
crisis
in the country, businessdigest established this week.
The drug
manufacturing project, which was conceived three years ago,
is being
promoted by the Medical Wholesalers Association of Zimbabwe (Mwaz).
"Mwaz came with plans but have failed due to the high cost of
importing the
raw materials to start the project and the unavailability of
foreign
currency," a source told businessdigest, indicating that the
institution's
application for foreign currency from the Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe had been
unsuccessful.
Zimbabwe is currently going through its worst
economic crisis in
history, characterised by an acute foreign currency
shortage and runaway
inflation which have resulted in shortages and an
escalation of prices for
essential drugs.
Mwaz chairman, Cephas
Mweya-Mweya, confirmed the organisation's plans
to set up the drug
manufacturing ploants but refused to give further
details.
"We
are setting up a drug manufacturing project, yes, but I am sorry I
can't
reveal more details about this project. What I can tell you is that we
are
working with the Minister of Health (David Parirenyatwa) to see that the
project takes off," said Mweya-Mweya.
"If I reveal details it
means that I am pre-empting everything which
we are doing and that would not
make sense at the end of the day," he
added. - Staff Writer.
Zim Independent
Shame Makoshori
ECONOMIC and social
stakeholders have called for the adoption of the
Kadoma Declaration in talks
for a proposed social contract. Businessdigest
today summarises some of the
key points contained in the document and
reproduces a cocktail of suggested
solutions to heal the economy.
The Kadoma Declaration, which was
drafted after negotiations held in
Kadoma by the Tripartite Negotiating
Forum (TNF) on August 20 2001,
identified the causes of Zimbabwe's high
country risk factor and suggested
measures needed and to be undertaken by
the three social partners -
government, labour and business - to deal with
the risk and improve the
country's image.
The declaration
defined country risk as "a premium that is attached by
nationals, residents,
foreigners and international bodies on residing in,
visiting and/or doing
business with a particular country" and identified its
manifestations as
economic and unsustainable macro-economic variables, as
well as commercial
such as trading partners lacking confidence.
The mistrust and
intolerance in the expression of political views in
the country, which had
given rise to political instability and apprehension
from foreign
governments in engaging freely with the country, was also noted
as a
manifestation of the country risk factor.
The elements of the risk
identified in the Kadoma Declaration included
low confidence and/or pride in
one's country; lack of patriotism; lack of
trust in institutional systems;
failure of the nation to supply basic human
needs; lack of social cohesion;
real or perceived selective observance of
the rule of law; insecurity; and
real and perceived lack of political
tolerance.
The social
partners identified the following as causes of Zimbabwe's
country risk
factors:
* The failure by some of the institutions of governance to
function
effectively;
* Mismatches between policy and
action;
* Delays in policy implementation;
* That the
overall (imbalance in the) spread of wealth in the country
and continued
racial imbalance in the ownership of the means of production;
*
Irresponsible utterances by politicians;
* The activities of civil
groups and pressure groups as forces
affecting governance;
*
Lack of political tolerance between the ruling party and members of
the
opposition;
* Corruption;
* Contradictory statements
by and among social partners;
* Lack of meaningful response to
positive government, labour and
business policy initiatives;
*
External interference in the country's affairs and;
* Lack of
respect for human rights in the world of work and society in
general.
The social partners noted somberly that the risk
factors had impacted
negatively on the country's economy, pointing out at
the prolonged economic
depression, the skewed macro-economic fundamentals
and hyperinflation, low
savings and domestic investments, premiums on doing
business with the
outside world, capital flight, reduction in foreign direct
investment and
donor support, lack of lines of credit and
de-industrialisation, high
unemployment and underemployment and the brain
drain.
The declaration noted that 75% of the population was now
poor because
of the poorly performing economy and that poverty had resulted
in increased
crime and that the gap between the rich and the poor was
rising.
"Poverty has significantly increased fatalism among a
significant
proportion of Zimbabweans. Prostitution by increasingly younger
people has
continued unabated inspite of HIV and Aids," noted the
declaration.
It added: "Many countries in the world perceive
Zimbabwe and
Zimbabweans in very poor light. Zimbabweans are ill-treated and
abused at
various immigration points in some countries and Zimbabweans are
discriminated against when trying to make commercial transactions
abroad."
Zim Independent
ZIMBABWE food prices will surge further beyond the reach of
consumers
as worries over another failed summer crop grow, adding new
pressure to the
country's sky-high inflation rate, farmers and analysts
said.
President Robert Mugabe's government has branded inflation,
at nearly
1 600%, the country's number one enemy and says only a hike in
farming
production would ease price pressures.
Inflation is
part of a wider debilitating economic crisis, marked by
food shortages,
unemployment of around 80% and some of the most drastic
contractions in per
capita income ever recorded in a country not at war,
according to the World
Bank.
"As farmers we had done our part but we were let down by
rains in some
parts of the country... the dry spell between December and
January did have
a major effect on crops," Silas Hungwe, the head of the
black Zimbabwe
Farmers Union said yesterday.
The farmers and
the government have not given a crop forecast for this
year but the US
Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service
projected the
country's maize harvest at 850 000 tonnes, less than half
domestic
needs.
The UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Thursday a
prolonged dry
spell had ravaged crops in southern parts of the
country.
WFP spokesman for southern Africa Mike Huggins told
Reuters the WFP
was feeding 1,5 million people in Zimbabwe "many of whom are
malnourished,
in school or affected by HIV/Aids", adding that an assessment
to determine
food harvest could be carried soon.
"Parts of
Zimbabwe are of particular concern as early indications are
that cereal
crops in much of the southern half of the country have been
decimated by a
long dry spell in January and early February," the WFP said
in a
statement.
Analysts said a bad agriculture season would see food
prices
spiralling further and worsening the economic crisis.
"We will see another round of prices going forward as it becomes clear
that
we have not managed to produce enough food to meet domestic
consumption,"
economist James Jowa said.
"The consequences for inflation are
enormous as prices increase on
demand and imports put pressure on the
currency because the government has
to use scarce foreign currency to buy
food," Jowa added.
Food, which has been in short supply since 2001,
accounts for a third
of the consumer basket used to calculate inflation. -
Reuters.
Zim Independent
Paul
Nyakazeya
THE Tobacco Industry Marketing Board (TIMB) said this
week it would
open tobacco auction floors on Wednesday.
Deliveries had already started trickling in from farmers anxious to
sell and
pay back loans, an official told businessdigest.
Traditionally, the
auction floors open in April but farmers had
lobbied for an early start to
the selling season, arguing that they were
through with harvesting and
wanted to sell to liquidate bank loans secured
to grow the
crop.
The farmers also feared that rampant inflation could wipe off
profits
should the harvested crop stay in the barns for too
long.
They said it was illogical to keep the harvested tobacco
until the
opening of floors in April because the rise in interest rates on
loans
secured to finance tobacco growing and the rise in input such as
fertiliser
and chemicals could curtail preparations for the next season if
they failed
to buy the inputs early.
About 80 million kg of
tobacco are expected to go under the hammer
this season, from 55,5 million
kg sold last year.
Farmers had planted on a total of 40 000
hectares this season.
Zimbabwe Tobacco Growers Association (ZTGA)
president, Julius Ngorima,
said the hectarage planted had been very low due
to the shortage of
essential inputs such as fertiliser and diesel for
tillage equipment.
"About 80 million kg are expected from the 40
000 hectares planted. It
would be an improvement from the 55,5 million kg
which went under the hummer
last season," Ngorima said.
Officials from TIMB said bookings for delivery started arriving this
week
and auction floors would open as scheduled.
"Farmers are looking
forward to a better price of at least US$4 per
kg. Farmers are proposing a
special exchange rate of $500 to the greenback.
The current exchange rate of
$250 to the US dollar is too low," Ngorima
said.
The average
price last year was US$1,99 per kg.
The early opening of the
auction floors comes at a time when the
central bank had proposed zero
balance foreign currency accounts for tobacco
growers with local
banks.
A meeting between banker and the central bank is expected
today to
come up with the finer details of the facility.
Bankers are understood to be pushing for a minimum bank balance of at
least
US$200 per account.
The zero balance foreign currency accounts
would allow growers, who
are now expected to retain 15% of their earnings in
foreign currency, to
open the accounts without a deposit.
Tobacco production in Zimbabwe has declined by a total of 170,63
million kg
between 2000 and 2006, from an all-time high of 236,13 million kg
recorded
in 2000 to 55,5 million kg last year.
Zim Independent
Shakeman Mugari
THE failed take-off of the
proposed social contract last week is
probably one of the biggest non-events
since Zimbabwe's economic downturn
began over six years ago.
The frenzied dramatisation of the initiative since central bank
governor
Gideon Gono's proposal in January has not been matched by the
desperation in
some quarters to get it off the ground.
The run-up to the so-called
March 31 deadline was characterised by
scandalous price hikes and false
anxiety, all triggered by misconceptions
about a social contract both in
definition and operation.
In a hype reminiscent of the Y2K
phenomenon, businesses sought
"compliance" through preemptive price
increases ahead of the proposed price
and wage freeze.
But in
the end the deadline turned out to be a damp squib. There were
no price
freezes on March 1 not because the deadline was missed but simply
because
there was no social contract in the first place.
The social
contract did not fail to take place because it was delayed
but simply
because it was not there at all. Parties to the contract only had
a
preliminary meeting to discuss the issue a day before the "deadline".
There
will be no other meeting on the issue until next week.
The
perceived failure to meet the implementation deadline did not
however stop
the disastrous effects caused by the false alarm raised among
people and
business. Prices of almost all commodities are now pegged at the
anticipated
inflation rate, foreign currency rate and conditions that
businesses expect
to prevail by June.
Sadly, while it does not seem like the social
contract will
materialise anytime soon, Zimbabweans will have to live with
the price hikes
created by the "deadline". Some businesspeople now say they
were not
responding the proposed price freeze but the foreign currency rate
on the
parallel market.
Businesses said they were merely taking
a cue from the Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe governor Gideon Gono's monetary
policy when he proposed the March 1
deadline.
"The effective
start date of the social contract freeze would be from
1 March, 2007,
through to 30 June, 2007, at which time social partners will
renew the need
for mutually agreed realignment," Gono said.
That statement seems
to have done most of the damage because of its
declaratory tone which gave
the impression that there was a date agreed on
by the social partners -
labour, business and government.
What is however clear is that
there was never going to be a social
contract by March 1 as the social
partners had not agreed on the framework
and operations of such a
programme.
A social contract by its nature is not made by the
central bank alone
but rather it is an agreement between the key economic
partners.
It is supposed to be signed by the social partners after
consultation.
Those consultations have hardly begun.
Labour
economist Prosper Chitambara said it was shocking that business
and
parastatals were making concrete business decisions on the basis of a
proposal that had not been discussed.
"What Gono announced in
the monetary policy statement was merely a
proposal and not a policy of
action," said Chitambara.
"The central bank is only part of
government which is one of the three
social partners. It (central bank)
cannot make a decision on the social
contract," he said. "Business was
preparing for a process that they had not
agreed to."
He said
it was surprising too that people were already bracing
themselves for a
social contract before the key elements of Gono's proposal
were
implemented.
At the time of writing, none of the 14 requirements
set by Gono for
the social contract had been met.
Gono said
before a social contract could start working, the National
Economic
Development Priority Programme (NEDPP) had to be "reconstituted" to
include
labour and consumers. The NEDPP is still a programme driven by
government
and politicians.
Government has not moved on the proposal to carry
out a survey on
incomes and prices - a key aspect that needs to be done
before a social
contract is implemented.
There has been no move
to come up with investor-friendly regulations
in the mining sector,
indigenisation policy and ensuring protection of
foreign investment under
Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection
Agreements as proposed by
Gono.
Other issues which Gono said should be addressed included the
need for
government to spend within its means, removal of price distortions
and
restructuring of the public sector debt.
The foreign
currency policy is supposed to be liberalised while
subsidies are to be
removed for the social contract to work.
But the social contract
goes way beyond the 14 points that Gono
suggested in the monetary policy.
Before it can be implemented, the partners
must sign protocols agreeing to
policies such as incomes and pricing,
empowerment, and anti-corruption and
labour law reforms.
They must agree on how to deal with
productivity, foreign investment,
public confidence and image
promotion.
Most of these protocols have not even been
written.
Labour economist Godfrey Kanyenze said the protocols could
only be
written and signed if the partners agree on the causes of the
problems in
the economy.
"Government, labour and business must
agree on the major causes of the
problems for them to find a common solution
to the crisis," said Kanyenze.
The problem with Zimbabwe, said
Kanyenze, was that there was no
consensus on the causes of the current
crisis.
Government is still wrapped in its discredited excuse that
the crisis
is caused by sanctions imposed by Western countries in response
to the land
reform.
This blame shifting still manifests itself
in the speeches of
government officials including President Robert
Mugabe.
According to government, inflation is caused by
unscrupulous
businesspeople who hike prices randomly. Lack of industrial
capacity
utilisation is blamed on companies sabotaging the economy to push a
regime
change agenda. Government still believes that shortages of basic
commodities
are caused by hoarding.
Although they differ on the
quantum of the pay cheque because of their
conflicting constituencies,
labour and business have a consensus on the
causes of the
crisis.
They believe the main causes of the crisis are not
sanctions but the
poisoned political environment which makes it difficult to
operate business.
They blame the high risk profile caused by
government's human rights
record, lack of respect for the rule of law and
property rights.
They point to the foreign currency management
system, government's
policy flip-flops and hostile measures like price
control that hurt
business.
"The main challenge is for the
social partners to at least agree on
the causes of the crisis. It will be
difficult to achieve this consensus,"
Kanyenze said.
There is
now a danger that the proposals might suffer the same fate as
the Kadoma
Declaration of 2001 which was not signed following differences
between
government and labour over continued violence.
History shows that
government, business and labour rarely agree on
anything. Even if they do
agree for sometime the relationship is never
sustainable.
The
social contract that now seems like a new concept has been on the
table for
the past 11 years.
It started in 1996 when labour came up with a
document titled "Beyond
Economic Structural Adjustment Programme" which
suggested social dialogue to
solve the problems. That document was never
followed through.
The Tripartite Negotiating Forum, which was
another attempt towards
some form of social contract, has been battling to
take shape since its
formation. The National Economic Consultative Forum,
another attempt to
create social dialogue, is almost dead.
In
short, there will be no social contract until there is a political
solution.
And that is still a long way off.
Zim Independent
By Martin
Tarusenga
THERE'S no doubt we all yearn for the day this
economy will begin to
turn around. Events like unexpected water and power
cuts to outright shoddy
service in the financial system and transport sector
continuously remind us
of an economy in shambles.
Work ethics
with no explicit competitive targets, no minimum standards
of delivery,
systems to ensure that any set competitive targets and bottom
lines are
complied with have precipitated this bad state. There's no
motivation,
incentive, consciousness or commitment to quality service - just
laissez-faire. Only in environments deficient of honesty, accountability and
transparency standards can this prevail.
There is simply no
excuse for the rude, shoddy emergency taxi service
experienced in the
transport sector. Equally, no excuse for the infirmity
reflected by the
Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce's sudden policy
change from lobbying
the central bank for currency devaluation to a
compromised concurrence not
to devalue.
The central bank inexcusably takes no responsibility
for the
catastrophic failure of Project Sunrise and previous monetary
policies,
pointing instead at stakeholders - Zimbabweans have to shoulder
it.
A whole train of similar corporate events come to mind, from
insurance
companies and pension funds rendering pensions valueless, failed
banks -
people losing jobs, depositors losing deposits, shareholders losing
out,
securities management houses running inappropriate investment policies
losing monies for investors.
All sorts of tactics to counter
attempts to institute accountability
are deployed including tactics to
remove attention from deeply ingrained
incompetence and greed. In
consequence the economy continues to chart a
downward trend, "free fall" as
others would put it.
It's sensible to consider how differences in
work ethics have
contributed to the large disparities between our declining
economy and those
of the developed economies. How then has Western work
ethics contributed to
their achievements? Complete with luxury cars (that we
so covet), planes -
long lists of achievements.
Very simply
Western work ethics overriding themes are set to achieve
explicit targets
subjected to established standards. These must be met
without failure by
everyone from the chairman of the board to the most
junior person in
corporations and public offices.
It is not uncommon for people at
all levels to lose jobs whenever
targets are not met - subsequent
reorganisations to reflect management
deficiencies leading to these failures
invariably follow. Effective systems
to hold everyone accountable for such
failure exist. Competitive targets are
set in agreement with
stakeholders.
The work ethics necessarily call for constant review,
by management,
of all potential threats impinging on achievement of set
targets, if their
careers are to last. This means everyone contributing to
the achievement of
the target must engage in this exercise and ensure that
their respective
targets and hence the aggregate target is met without
failure.
Identification and control of these threats, firmly
focuses management
on the targeting and with high degrees of
certainty.
The threats are technically referred to as risks, hence,
risk
management - with credit risk management in banks, price (market) risk
in
treasury management, operational risk in modern business environments,
hyperinflation risk which central banks should avoid, solvency risk in
insurance companies and pension funds. A whole range of risks are emerging
with the changing dynamics of economic environments.
Real-time
risk management in these economies pervade entire economic
systems.
Governments actively prescribe and enforce its explicit practice
via
effective supervisory and regulatory practices - not just rhetoric!
Failure to comply attracts deterrent penalties. The supervisee, the
regulated, the supervisor and the regulator, apply it within overall
management frameworks of transparency, accountability, honesty and
responsibility - herein good corporate governance.
Senior
management must be skilled and experienced with the practice if
they are to
deploy appropriate skills and direct the targeting effectively -
no room for
delegation which amounts to dereliction.
The design of risk control
frameworks must therefore incorporate
features to ensure achievement of very
competitive targets. This
competitiveness is increasingly determined at
international levels,
influenced by globalisation trends.
Risk
frameworks are therefore increasingly international with only
slight
justifiable variations to reflect special circumstances of individual
economies. Established international risk frameworks with associated
standards are operational.
Examples include Basel II in banks,
Basel Core Principles being the
bottom lines, insurance systems and
securities management risk frameworks
supported by standards espoused by the
International Association of
Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) and International
Organisation of Securities
Commissions (IOSCO) respectively, Enterprise Risk
Management applicable in
enterprises in general.
An
international financial system risk control framework recognising
these and
other frameworks dubbed the "International Financial Architecture"
is
operational. Notwithstanding controversies about its detailed
application,
economies that do not attempt to comply with its specifications
are
isolated.
The architecture specifies, among other standards, 12 key
standards
that economies must aim to comply with. They are grouped into
transparency,
financial sector and market integrity standards - Basel Core
Principles,
IAIS and ISCO standards falling in the Financial Sector
group.
The African Peer Review Mechanism of Nepad is emerging as a
variation
of this financial architecture to suit African
circumstances.
The application of risk control in such frameworks
to target
organisational outcomes help explain disparities between our
economic
development and theirs.
An adoption of similar work
ethics can redeem our economy from the
free fall - curb failures in the
likes of the ZNCC, the central bank, right
down to that of the emergency
taxi services. In this framework, the need to
deploy appropriate skills and
experience, automatically arises, in all
business activities including
delivery of water, electricity,financial
services, housing, transport and
all.
* Martin Tarusenga is principal consultant with Systemics
Consulting.
Zim Independent
Comment
HEADLINE on South Africa's Independent Online website,
"Mugabe savages
IMF, bites Pretoria", over the weekend poignantly reflects a
new form of
desperation from Zimbabwe's besieged autocrat.
President Mugabe's attack on the IMF - renewed during last week's
visit to
Namibia - has become legendary. In fact, we have never really
expected him
to kiss the cold noses of the Breton Woods institutions.
Worrying though is
the fact that he seems to go against the grain of
informed opinion on what
is required to put right this economy.
Mugabe told the business
community in Namibia that "if you follow the
IMF you will not go anywhere.
They will always prescribe for you.
"When we don't have that
capacity, then we are like economic slaves.
We go begging. There are still
countries in Africa which go begging for
money to pay their civil servants,
and they got independence in the 1960s,"
he said.
He said the
solution to this is for African countries to "help each
other among
ourselves".
The point that Mugabe has always missed in the all
discourse to do
with the IMF is that Zimbabwe requires international
assistance to emerge
from the economic rut. The quest for notoriety in
splendid isolation has
only added to the ostracism of Zimbabwe, and with it
the current decline.
His anointed emissary of economic turnaround, Reserve
Bank governor Gideon
Gono, does not appear to subscribe to Mugabe's
dangerous rhetoric. Gono has
instead actively promoted dialogue with the IMF
and has in successive
monetary policy statements tried to cajole his master
to engage with the
West. But he is losing the battle in a rather
embarrassing fashion.
Mugabe, who feels cornered by the political
refrain from the
opposition and from within his party to leave office, has
now resorted to
lashing out at everything around him. South Africa, which
has been
criticised for its softly-softly approach on Zimbabwe, now finds
itself on
the receiving end.
South Africa's crime, according to
Mugabe, is that it is imposing
regional trade restrictions through the
Southern African Customs Union in
which the country has a dominant role. He
said countries which had been
adversely affected by South Africa's policies
included Botswana, Swaziland
and Lesotho.
"All countries need
to grow (economically). We don't want to remain
small. Countries in the
region should be allowed to enter into trade
agreements without
restrictions." He added: "Where there is bigness, there
is usually a claim -
inherited, historical claim - for the large partner to
want to continue to
be large and to want the small ones to continue to be
small. I'm not saying
this is what is happening," he said.
Then what are you saying, Mr
President?
Mugabe's discomfort with South Africa's dominance in the
region is
understandable. He would have loved to be in the high seat but the
state of
our economy can no longer afford him that role. Mugabe's persona as
the
father figure in the region has over the years been diluted by his raft
of
obtuse policies which he is having problems vending. The lack of response
during last week's visit to Namibia illustrates that. His peers from the
liberation eon have all given way to younger leaders, leaving the
octogenarian like a beached whale at the heart of the regional bloc.Mugabe
is aware that Zimbabwe is no longer South Africa's largest trading partner.
Mozambique has taken over that accolade. Zimbabwe is now looking to Zambia
where it is exporting grocery items and basic equipment like
ploughs.
Under his leadership, Zimbabwe can no longer claim to hold
the
agriculture portfolio in the Sadc region. Zimbabwe is now easily the
largest
importer of grain in the subcontinent.
While Mugabe
tries to ingratiate himself with regional heads by
portraying South Africa
as the bully-boy in the hood, the same leaders are
aware of the contagion
effect Zimbabwe's collapse has on their economies.
One would ask
what is more likely to scare away investors from the
region: South Africa's
trade dominance or exportation of Zimbabwe's brand of
land reform to South
Africa, Botswana and Namibia? But as has become the
norm, Mugabe never runs
out of enemies to blame for the mess created by his
Zanu PF
government.
Zambian Foreign Affairs minister Mundia Sikatana on
Tuesday spoke
frankly about the Zimbabwe situation. "We should not pretend
that all is
well in Zimbabwe," said Sikatana. "There is a serious problem
and
ostracising Zimbabwe will not help solve the problems
there."
Zambia, which assumes the Sadc chair in August, should walk
the talk
and engage in some home truths on the Zimbabwe situation. Mugabe
should not
be allowed to blame others when his backyard is
burning.
Zim Independent
Editor's Memo
By Vincent Kahiya
THE train accident
which killed 35 people in Dzivaresekwa on Tuesday
has been blamed on the
driver of the bus. Police forensic investigation at
the crash site has
already concluded that the driver did not stop at the
rail crossing,
resulting in the collision with the train.
The state, through the
civil protection unit, in a measure of
rehearsed benevolence, helped to bury
the dead. Politicians were at the
crash site on Tuesday declaring a state of
disaster and condemning the
carnage on the roads. The politicians visited
the injured in hospitals. In
such instances, our rulers usually fall over
each other to portray
themselves as a concerned and caring lot to cover
their culpability in
tragedies of this nature.
In Dzivaresekwa,
the politicians came face-to-face with the country's
decaying infrastructure
and neglect. Did Local Government minister Ignatious
Chombo see the good job
Sekesai Makwavarara was doing cutting tall grass at
intersections? There are
no signals at level crossings to warn of
approaching vehicles of danger
because these have been vandalised. NRZ area
manager Stanley Murenje aptly
captured the attitude of government towards
infrastructure development. "We
can repair the signals today and tomorrow
you find them gone," he
said.
This is not true of course because there has not been any
attempt to
repair signals at the dangerous Paisely Road level crossing in
Southerton or
in Braeside where fatal accidents have occurred before. Why
can't the police
or the NRZ station law enforcers at the rail crossings to
physically warn
motorists and to also protect the signalling
equipment?
The railway signals where this particular accident
occurred have not
worked for more than a decade.
Deputy
Transport minister Hubert Nyanhongo prescribed humps to solve
the problem.
But what's really required at our level crossings are
overpasses. Legend has
it that the one erected along Bulawayo Road just
before Kuwadzana owes its
existence to a close encounter between a
locomotive and the longest
motorcade in Africa. The motorcade unfortunately
uses a few select routes
where surfaces are manicured. Ever used Carrick
Creagh of late?
Politicians who were quick to blame human error for the accident
should also
realise that they are part of the problem. A driving aberration
can cost
lives but there are also phenomena called political errors. These
are
manifest in the Zanu PF government and are responsible for a number of
deaths on our roads and trains.
* To digress a bit from the
accident, two weeks ago, the state media
carried a celebratory story in
which a government transport company, CMED,
was said to be seeking a
Mercedes-Benz franchise. This project has nothing
to do with national
development but will simply facilitate government's
easier access to
Mercedes limos to pamper hapless politicians using the
little foreign
currency available.
Transport and Communications permanent
secretary George Mlilo, who is
also responsible for CMED, told a
parliamentary portfolio committee on
Monday that the country's roads were in
a poor state of repair because there
was no forex, and engineers were
leaving in droves. His ministry would
rather have a Merc plant than
construct an overpass.
But such capital projects do not come cheap.
For a country like
Zimbabwe, this is where co-operation with rich countries
is paramount. Donor
funds, grants and loans were mobilised to build roads
and bridges shortly
after Independence.
The money is gone now
largely due to serious errors of judgement by
the government, and yet our
ruler has the nerve to describe the IMF as
"nonsense". Which road has
Zimbabwe completed using budgetary allocations in
the last
decade?
Meanwhile, as Mlilo said this week, existing infrastructure
is
decaying faster than we can repair it.
Failure to maintain
physical infrastructure invites accidents. But the
same is also true of
political edifices. In the face of the current
presidential term fiasco,
immediate steps must be taken to update and repair
our frayed and outmoded
democratic infrastructure. The country has suffered
enough democratic
accidents already.
As long as we fail to repair our political
infrastructure, elections
will continue to be administered as amateurish
exercises in partisan
self-interest and our rulers will continue to become
even more oligarchic
Just like that of our roads and rail,
democracy's infrastructure has
been grossly neglected over the years. We
have been employing Nyanhongo's
methods of dealing with the problems -
erecting humps before hazards. It's
called papering over the
cracks.
Not surprisingly, we are paying the price. Think of it as a
massive
bridge that is creaking and groaning. What is our solution to it?
Cut the
grass around it and erect humps to its approaches - a fatal mistake
because
that won't stop the bridge from collapsing.
Zim Independent
Muckraker
CHIEF Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku made some contentious
remarks last
week about the role of the judiciary. He said in a speech read
on his behalf
at a ceremony marking the handover of equipment by the UNDP,
reported by the
Herald, that a shortage of financial resources and technical
capacity had
reduced the ability of the judiciary to deliver justice to an
extent never
experienced before.
This challenge,he said, was
compounded by issues arising from
government's implementation of the land
reform programme and polarisation of
Zimbabwean society along partisan lines
after the 2000 parliamentary and
2002 presidential polls.
"These developments were accompanied by legitimate calls from certain
sections of society for the transformation and indigenisation of a
colonial-inherited judiciary to reflect the new sense of social justice and
an appreciation of the centrality of the wishes of the majority in relation
to issues such as land in the development of the country and its people,"
Chidyausiku said.
"There was a sense that a judiciary inherited
from the colonial system
was cast in the mould of that system of justice and
could not deliver
justice to the majority, especially as they related to
land ownership."
While the legal status quo was called into
question by these new
forces, to others these considerations amounted to
politicisation of the
judiciary. This made the Zimbabwe judiciary the
subject of both national and
international discussion from varied
perspectives, Chidyausiku said.
It is useful to have these views
discussed. And, as the Chief Justice
points out, there will be many with
opposing views. Firstly, it is not the
function of the judiciary to give
effect to majoritarian impulses. That is
the function of the legislature.
The judiciary should confine itself to
upholding rights set out in the
constitution in the way Chief Justices Enock
Dumbutshena and Antony Gubbay
unambiguously did. Where the views of the
electorate were tested on the land
issue in 2000, government's populist land
policy was decisively
rejected.
So who are those "certain sections of society" who
believe the
judiciary should reflect the "new sense of social justice and an
appreciation of the centrality of the wishes of the majority in relation to
issues such as land."?
Mostly, it must be said, spokesmen for
Zanu PF. Justice minister
Patrick Chinamasa made similar statements about
indigenisation of the bench.
But anybody with an ounce of legal sense would
have understood this exercise
to be about securing a pliant judiciary, not
one concerned too much with the
law!
Let's bear in mind that
Chief Justice Gubbay was chased from his post
by Zanu PF thugs visiting him
in his chambers. No protection was extended to
him.
Since 2000,
judges, some in caravans, have been beneficiaries of a
government policy
that has seen the seizure of land in lawless and violent
circumstances. They
have then been asked to rule on land issues. It must be
evident that anybody
holding a land lease from a minister is compromised.
The International Bar
Association can see that but some of our judges can't.
Chidyausiku
spoke of reduced capacity on the bench. We understand that
whereas in 2000
some 300 cases a year were being processed by the Supreme
Court, that figure
today is about 50. Some judges are simply not working.
Furthermore, of the
19 High Court judges currently on the bench, only five
have actually
practised law.
So when we talk about capacity we are not
necessarily talking about
technical assistance. We are talking about
competence.
Also airing his views last week, deputy Information
minister Bright
Matonga was boasting of how government had jammed foreign
broadcasts to
Zimbabwe. He was responding to a parliamentary question on why
government
was jamming independent radio stations attempting to broadcast to
Zimbabwe.
He said he was in fact glad that the opposition had noted
that
government had the power to jam broadcasts of propaganda against the
state
from outside the country and indeed was jamming those broadcasts, and
he was
also pleased that those people who received those broadcasts were no
longer
able to do so.
He went on to state that the UK did not
receive broadcasts from
foreign countries.
This is of course
nonsense. There are hundreds of stations beaming to
the UK and you can
listen to whatever broadcast you like in that country.
Matonga knows that
perfectly well.
His boss Sikhanyiso Ndlovu was suggesting over the
weekend, in
response to US sanctions, that Britain and the US were mistaken
in believing
Zimbabwe would reverse its land reform programme.
Ndlovu knows that US sanctions are the result of political violence
and
misrule, not land reform. The only thing the US and Britain have ever
asked
on land is that government should show the UNDP a workable plan in
order to
secure international backing.
Sanctions are about individuals
undermining democracy. That includes
the right to receive and impart
information.
By boasting of government's violation of that right,
Matonga is
advertising the regime's delinquency. Ndlovu should understand
that and stop
misleading the public. He said while touring Zimpapers this
week that it is
the journalists' obligation to seek to understand why our
country is under
siege.
He is quite right. It is the duty of
every journalist to expose the
pattern of electoral violence and
manipulation that has led to Zimbabwe's
isolation.
Meanwhile,
the minister can draw comfort from the partisan reporting
of the official
press. The Herald last Thursday deserves an award for this
appalling piece
of reporting: "MDC faction leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai lived
up to his
stooge image by reporting back to Western diplomats soon after his
party
unleashed an orgy of violence in Harare last weekend."
Does the
person who wrote that really call himself a journalist? It's
about as
unprofessional as it gets. This, we can safely assume, is all OK
with the
minister.
Telecel has been congratulating itself on attaining
ISO9001:2001
status. The most important reason for attaining this standard,
the company
said, was to ensure their business operated efficiently to meet
customer
expectations.
Has anybody tried calling a 023 number
recently? It is virtually
impossible. "Network busy" is the usual response.
Or "the subscriber you
have dialled is unreachable".
We would
love to know who dishes out these standards. They obviously
never have to
make calls!
And did you know that one of the new services
introduced by Zimpost is
the sale of newspapers on behalf of Zimpapers? You
can imagine the stampede
by excited customers!
And then
there was Nathaniel Manheru celebrating the nation's poverty
because it was
nationally-owned.
"We would rather have low GDP per capita as long
as it is of our own
making."
But do the victims of this
delinquent nationalism agree? And Manheru
should quote Nkrumah accurately:
"We would rather misgovern ourselves than
be governed properly by others,"
he said when introducing the one-party
state.
Manheru is over
the moon following President Mugabe's state visit to
Namibia. At least
there's somewhere he can go! And Equatorial Guinea.
But what we
noticed was how President Hifikepunye Pohamba declined to
respond to
Mugabe's exhortations on land reform at the state dinner.
Indeed,
Namibia's welcome was polite rather than enthusiastic and
Mugabe was given
no opportunity to climb on his soap box. "Don't try that
here," seems to
have been the message from Windhoek, as everywhere now.
Let's see
how Ghana goes.
By the way, the Ghanaian ambassador should not
mislead gullible
columnists like Sifelani Tsiko. Ghana was not "the first
African country to
achieve independence" in 1957. Sardc.net and the Herald's
Itai Musengeyi got
it wrong as well. Sudan, Tunisia, and Morocco became
independent in 1956.
And Ethiopia was never colonised except for the brief
Italian occupation
(1936-41). Perhaps we can say Ghana was the first
sub-Saharan African
country to gain independence after
Liberia.
This week the "private media" was on the receiving end
of Tendai Chari's
infantile rantings for not reporting "correctly" on the
violence that
occurred in Highfield after police stoped an MDC rally two
weeks ago. His
complaint was that the private media focused too much on
"police brutality"
and ignored what he called the "mayhem which had been
unleashed by MDC
supporters."
It would be difficult of course
for the private media to report on MDC
supporters unleashing mayhem on the
police which they didn't see. It is a
new brand of journalism that has been
invented by the state media in which
hungry unarmed civilians become the
aggressors. Did Chari experience the
confrontation other than through the
mediation of the Herald and the Sunday
Mail we wonder?
Interestingly, Chari, a media studies lecturer, says nothing about the
police violating a court order granting the MDC the right to hold its rally.
You would expect a media lecturer to know better the implications of
violating the law with impunity.
Throughout the article Chari
refers to the Zimbabwe Independent of
March 23 2007, an amazing feat indeed.
But then we are no workers of magic.
It simply shows one can't
trust the guy to get more intricate facts
right.
As
mentioned earlier, newly-appointed Information minister Sikhanyiso
Ndlovu
has joined the threadbare self-contradictory assertion by Zanu PF
that the
US targeted sanctions are "a non-event". He told the Herald this
week that
Zimbabwe would not be intimidated by the renewal of the sanctions.
"To us the sanctions are a non-event," said the minister. "The
sanctions
have been there and we have lived with them."
Proceeding there on,
Ndlovu remarked: "They (sanctions) are just meant
to cause upheaval among
our people, but Zimbabweans are intelligent enough
to identify the people
actually causing their suffering."
So why would "a non-event" cause
an upheaval Cde Ndlovu? As for
Zimbabweans knowing what the cause of their
suffering is, he is dead right
and we know who is afraid. It explains why
the nation is under a virtual
state of emergency.
As for the
claim that the sanctions are illegal, it is as ridiculous
as it is
illogical. What authority is supposed to legitimise them outside
the US
congress?
We loved the Sunday Times cartoon this week. It
derived its
inspiration from the award-winning film, The Last King of
Scotland, about
Idi Amin. Vrot is the Afrikaans word for
rotten.
Mugabe, seated on a throne and dressed in a kilt, his
country in
flames behind him, is styled "The Last King of
Vrotland".
"Assured, Urbane, Insane", the cartoonist
suggests.
His advisors, one looking suspiciously like George
Charamba, lie
prostrate as they give him the news: "Sire, the peasants are
revolting,"
they announce. "You can say that again," the king
replies.
Zim Independent
By Eric Bloch
LOCAL Government
minister Ignatius Chombo stated that the government
was committed to
promoting investor confidence. He said the government's
strategy to achieve
this is to ensure enactment of laws that facilitate the
speedy establishment
of businesses and their subsequent growth.
None can credibly deny
that such legislation is a motivant to
investors, be they domestic or
foreign, but it is long overdue for the
government to recognise that as
important as it is to remove legislative
hurdles to investment, and to
facilitate the initial, and ongoing,
development of business, much, much
more is needed if there is to be
substantive, greatly needed
investment.
Regrettably, the government record of recognising and
addressing the
key needs and expectations of investors is abysmal in the
extreme.
Instead of creating an investment-stimulating environment,
and one in
which potential investors are constructively motivated, the
government's
performance has been a dismal one of disregarding investor
needs, of failure
to provide an investment-conducive environment, and of
arrogant disregard
for the fundamentals of attracting and facilitating
investment.
Admittedly, the elimination of bureaucracy and
excessive, unnecessary
red tape is of significance, and is in need of very
urgent, governmental
attention.
However, of vastly greater
importance is that investors be instilled
with confidence as to the security
of their investments, and with conviction
that investments will be viable
and successful, giving an ongoing fair
return on the capital, effort,
technological and other inputs which
constitute the
investments.
Unfortunately, little or none of that presently exists
in Zimbabwe
and, as yet, there is virtually no evidence of the government
even
recognising the need to meet those investor expectations, let alone any
endeavour to do so.
The first facet of pronounced investor
security is prompted by
endless, inexplicit, but usually very
confrontational, statements by the
Zimbabwean political hierarchy on the
issue of indigenous economic
empowerment. Almost all, if not all,
non-indigenous potential investors
concur that there must be widespread
economic empowerment of the Zimbabwean
population.
But, having
witnessed the widespread expropriation of rural lands
without compensation,
but with aggression, disregard for law, justice,
equity or human rights,
with violence and vandalism, and founded upon
spurious, mythical contentions
of prior land theft, and of British reneging
of agreements, those who would
normally contemplate investment are
inevitably fearful of future similar
actions against those engaged in
mining, tourism, industry, and other
economic sectors.
This fear is exacerbated by the recurrent
foreshadowing by the
president and many of his ministers of imminent
empowerment legislation in
respect of the mining industry, suggestive that
non-indigenous investors
will be restricted to minority investor
participation, while being required
to provide all, or most, of investment
capital, and with a great likelihood
of not even being vested with any
discretion in the selection of
co-investors.
Perceptions of
possible non-indigenous, domestic and foreign investors
are that they may
well be forced into accepting the government, parastatals
and the
politically favoured as their co-investors, irrespective of their
suitability as investment partners.
And those recurrent state
enunciations, relative to the mining sector,
are seen by many as being
precursors to not only such mining sector
legislation, but thereafter to any
and all other economic sectors. This
disabuses all possible non-indigenous
investors, or almost all, of any sense
of investment security, motivating
domestic investors to refrain from
investment, and foreign investors to
focus upon alternative investment
destinations, including almost all of
Zimbabwe's neighbours.
However, the causes of investor
apprehensions as to investment
security extend further. No investment can be
secure in an economy which is
in continuing decline, as has been the case in
Zimbabwe since 1997, and
especially so when not only is there not any
indication of that decline
being halted, but that there are many signs that
the government is
unwilling, or unable, to take necessary actions to reverse
the collapse of
the economy and that, therefore, a continuing contraction of
the economy is
almost inevitable.
These very strong investor
concerns and reservations are intensified
when the government not only
disregards long and tried, well-proven,
economic fundamentals, when its
economic policies are determined without
consideration of economic needs,
but only in alignment to political
ideologies, entrenched self-empowerment
and hierarchical advancement.
Moreover, it is untenable to
potential investors that the economy in
which they would invest is
excessively regulated by the state, with a
monolithic range of authoritarian
regulation, and particularly so when such
regulations are enforced with
grossly excessive strong-arm tactics,
inclusive of arrests, prolonged
imprisonment prior to trials, and like
actions.
Investors seek
economic environments which have a minimum of
regulation, focused only upon
the protection of national security, health
and morals, upon economic
conduct consistent with international norms of
ethics, integrity, and good
and sound socio-economic practices.
In contradistinction, Zimbabwe
has pronounced unrealistic, price
controls, exchange controls and
regulations, excessive state monitoring,
labour legislation unconducive to
good labour relations and unwarranted,
bureaucratic interference into
business practice and economic conduct.
An intending investor also
recognises that 21st century economic
circumstances are such that no
country's economy can function viably when
isolated from the global
economies.
Economic viability and security is contingent upon
bilateral trade,
upon foreign direct investment as well as domestic
investment, upon access
to developing technologies, to operational inputs,
to specialist skills, to
lines of credit, and to active responsible
participation in international
finance, as well as good and sound,
wide-ranging international relations.
In contradistinction,
Zimbabwe has not only alienated the goodwill of
the majority of first-world,
developed countries, but derives an almost
masochistic glee in insulting and
berating those countries, and makes no
genuine attempts to achieve
reconciliation and harmonious ongoing
relationships.
It
endlessly, and without foundation, alleges that such countries seek
the
destruction or enslavement of Zimbabwe and its people. It castigates
them
for supposed illegal sanctions, notwithstanding that such sanctions as
are
imposed are not illegal, for they are not in breach of any law,
notwithstanding that most of such sanctions are only imposed upon 126
Zimbabweans, in consequence of their disregards for international law, human
rights, or association with a political grouping that fails to accept the
precepts of such laws and rights.
The only other sanctions are
non-provision of finance, and Zimbabwe
cannot expect such finance when it
defaults in repayment of its debts, and
in compliance with standing,
universal policies of the financiers.
Zimbabwe unhesitatingly
criticises bodies such as the International
Monetary Fund, World Bank and
the European Union and, in so doing, worsens
its credit repute and ratings,
its international image and, therefore, any
possibility of it being regarded
as desirable investment destination.
Its self-promoted conflicts
with the world at large, and its total
emphasis upon a Look East policy
yielding very little of substance, cannot
inspire investor confidence, be
the investor in the Far East, the Middle
East, Europe, South Africa, or
elsewhere. Instead, they intensify the
absence of investor confidence in
investor security, thereby deterring the
investment that Zimbabwe so
desperately needs.
Opposition must understand strategic
management
I WRITE this letter after a realisation that the forces of
change in
this country are failing to employ standard strategic management
tools to
dislodge the regime led by one King Bob.
This message
is directed specifically to Morgan Tsvangirai, Arthur
Mutambara and the
NCA's Lovemore Madhuku. Strategy is about winning. Period!
In this regard,
there is need for them to understand the four main
ingredients of successful
strategies:
* Goals that are simple, consistent and
long-term;
* Profound understanding of the competitive
environment;
* Objective appraisal of resources; and
*
Effective implementation.
I wish to focus on the second element;
profound understanding of the
competitive environment. While the advocates
of change have identified the
main competitor, that is Zanu PF, they have
not clearly identified the
competitive edge that it has over them, or if
they have, they have not done
much to attach that advantage. In view of the
fact that the resort to
stayaways has not yielded anything, they should be
considering other options
given the brute force that meets those who dare to
go into the streets.
It is against this background that I am
offering free advice to these
forces of change.
One way of
hitting the current major competitor is attacking where it
hurts most; that
is the mouthpieces that are used for propaganda purposes.
Not attacking in
the physical sense, but to ensure that the Nathaniel
Manherus, Mahosos and
Hunis do not get the platform for churning falsehoods
and other forms of
propaganda.
If a call to boycott buying the daily Pravda for at
least two days for
a start, I am convinced that the direct impact on
viability would force the
editors to respect the customer. After an
assessment of such an impact is
done, the boycott can be extended to a
week.
The beauty about this is that the police, CIO and other
security
forces cannot come and teargas us to go and buy the papers. The
same can be
extended to TV and radio where people will simply not pay the
fees for as
long as possible. This would ensure that the Reubens and Judiths
are also
denied the chance to poison us. I am sure many people are waiting
to be
galvanised along those lines.
For the public to support
such calls there is need for the forces of
change to articulate more clearly
their goals, not only in respect of the
constitution, but economic
turnaround issues. Those of us who are more
discerning are looking beyond
mere removal of the current regime, but at
what is on offer beyond
that.
The issue is not about faces but what would be brought to the
table.
If the current opposition and other forces are failing to steer the
country
along these lines, then we might need change in their
structures.
Don't mourn, organise.
Little
Dorit,
Harare.
---------------
Zanu
PF still the same
WHEN I look back, I am left wondering whether
the Zanu PF
government will ever transform. What we see today in their style
of
leadership has not changed an inch; utter disregard of court orders,
police
brutality, poor policies, corruption, intolerance of dissenting
voices, and
an inclination towards a one-party state among a host of
ills.
We all know what happened to Morgan Tsvangirai two
weeks ago.
Armed with a High Court order allowing him to proceed with a
rally, the
police made sure the rally never took place. This is reminiscent
of what
transpired in the 1980s, when Tsvangirai was arrested after issuing
a
statement condemning the closure of the University of Zimbabwe during the
days of Arthur Mutambara and Munyaradzi Gwisai who were SRC leaders then.
The duo had been arrested for allegedly writing and issuing a subversive
document to fellow UZ students.
When Tsvangirai was
denied access to his lawyers, the High Court
ordered the CIO to grant him
that access and also ruled that his detention
was unlawful. Soon after
release the Zanu PF government ordered his
redetention, again the High Court
ordered that he be released. Upon release
he was redetained again with fresh
trumped up charges! Tsvangirai spent
almost a month in custody because the
recklessly immoral government did not
heed High Court orders to release
him.
As for Zanu PF's historic intolerance of what it views
as
dissent, Edgar Tekere is a good case in hand. When he told Mugabe that he
was a protector of the corrupt and that he should be removed from the
presidency after the Willogate scandal, Tekere was fired from the
party.
Now years later we realise that we have not progressed
in terms
of democracy and all its tenets. Tekere has again been pushed out
of Zanu PF
for telling what he thinks is the truth. I pray that one day we
wake up to a
new political dispensation.
J
Kaseke,
Murewa.
----------------
Zim can learn a thing or two from
Kenya
KENYA is worlds apart from Zimbabwe. For
example, they
have a vibrant press - it seems like at least four major
English-language
dailies, none of which seems to pull any punches. For
example, last week one
of them had a headline: "Who is lying, Kibaki or
Raila?" (Note that Kibaki
is the president, so in the Zimbabwean context it
is like having a headline:
"Who is lying, Mugabe or Tsvangirai?" That could
easily merit a jail
sentence or worse in Zimbabwe.)
They even have 16 FM radio stations in Nairobi, of which
probably only three
are government-run. One of these 16 is the infamous BBC
World Service, which
broadcasts in Kenya 24 hours a day on FM.
Yes, under
Daniel arap Moi (darling of Margaret Thatcher
and succeeding British
governments) the Kenyan economy and infrastructure
deterioriated horribly,
but since Kibaki got in, the economy has gone in one
direction only -
upwards. It doesnt mean that Kibaki is 100% clean, it just
means that Moi
was 100% dirty. It doesn't even mean that the Kenyans have to
re-elect
Kibaki - just elect anyone (even a baboon, as the late Simon
Muzenda once
stated) who isn't 100% dirty.
What lesson for Zimbabwe?
Moi seems to have negotiated
some kind of amnesty - no-one seems to want to
touch or pursue him - he
lives comfortably and safely in Kenya and even goes
to functions which are
also attended by Kibaki. Mugabe should have a chat
with Moi and work out the
same kind of deal. And Morgan should have a chat
with Kibaki and work out
how to turn around a declining economy with
shattered infrastructure.
Alex
Weir,
Nairobi.
-------------
Please revamp
NRZ
THE Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU)
joins the
nation in mourning the sad loss of 35 lives in the Dzivaresekwa
bus and
train accident. The ZCTU extends its heartfelt condolences to the
families
of the victims and wishes those injured a speedy
recovery.
It is disheartening to note that the country
continues to
lose its citizens to such avoidable
accidents.
We welcome government's move to declare the
accident a
national disaster but, sadly, this will not bring back the lost
lives.
However, we would like to urge the government of
Zimbabwe
to seriously look into the railway system of the country to avert
more train
accidents. There is need for a revamp of all the National
Railways of
Zimbabwe train systems so that innocent lives are not
lost.
Wellington Chibebe,
ZCTU secretay-general,
Harare.
-----------
No
conspiracy there Mahoso
THE article by Tafataona
Mahoso (Sunday Mail, February 25)
refers. It has become typical of Mahoso to
vilify anybody who stands up to
the Zanu PF
government.
Teachers went on strike to pressure for a
meaningful
return for their labour and expertise. By any stretch of
imagination, this
action does not constitute "regime change". Teachers are
stuck between a
rock and a hard place. They have already lost the dignity
and respect that
goes with the profession.
Mahoso's
article is pregnant with waffle and could never
stand the test of an
objective analysis. For instance, where or what is the
link between a party
orgy (Goromonzi 2006) and the teachers' industrial
action? Paranoia and
senility must be wreaking havoc on Mahoso. He is
obviously blind to the
reality that teachers are struggling to make ends
meet. Can he not simply
accept that it is not a coincidence that doctors and
nurses have also been
on strike? All Mahoso sees are conspiracies, plots and
sub-plots. What a way
to sing for your supper!
Joseph
Mhlanga,
Harare.
----------
Nhara's arrest: Zanu PF breeding corrupt
sharks
By Nelson
Chamisa
THE arrest of William Nhara, a senior
official in the
President's Office and Zanu PF's Harare province spokesman,
for attempting
to smuggle diamonds out of the country provides ample
evidence that
corruption can be traced squarely to the doorstep of Zanu
PF.
With Zimbabwe losing US$80 million every week to
smugglers
and racketeers, it is now quite clear that the ruling party
provides the
breeding ground and the perfect sanatorium for those whose
preoccupation is
to waylay the economy by plundering national
resources.
The MDC believes that Nhara is but a small
fish in a
bigger pond replete with corrupt sharks. Nhara is only a drop in
an ocean of
kleptocracy. He is a sacrificial lamb on the altar of political
expediency.
We have seen such tokenism before where
Zanu PF pretends
to act on small corrupt players leaving the senior
officials to go
scot-free. Many people have gone unpunished including the
emperor of the
regime. The multiple farm owners in the Utete report, the
looters of the
farm input scheme and the big names in the Harare
International Airport
tender scam are pertinent
examples.
Nhara's arrest is an indictment on the regime
and a
confirmation of what we have always said that Zanu PF is the breeding
ground
of corrupt tendencies and practices.
The
Zanu PF president is the chief culprit in the game of
corruption. His
ministers and senior officials are the star players in the
pitch of
corruption.
Mugabe recently admitted that his cabinet
is corrupt and
that his counterparts in the politburo, the party's supreme
organ, were
involved in corrupt and shady deals, yet the culprits have never
been fired
or arrested. In short, Mugabe runs a government of economic
saboteurs,
gangsters and racketeers.
Most Zanu PF
officials have shadowy companies which are
used as conduits for
asset-stripping and raiding national wealth.
Mugabe's
assemblage of corrupt people in both the party
and goverment means that he
is himself the chief player in Zanu PF's
favourite game of unmitigated
graft. Mugabe should be held personally
responsible for this craze of
avarice and personal aggrandisement.
The MDC believes
that only a new government with the
undisputed mandate of the people will be
able to effectively deal with
corruption. Only a political solution whose
major signpost is a new,
people-driven constitution will bring comprehensive
political reforms and
new value systems where both ordinary people and those
in leadership
positions should be able to respect and value the ethic of
hard work and
honest living.
In the new Zimbabwe
that we envisage, the MDC will make it
mandatory for all public officials to
declare their assets and sources of
income, which will be subjected to
annual audit.
* Nelson Chamisa, MP, is MDC secretary
for information and
publicity.
------------
Stop blaming whites for
woes
MAX Hastings needs to be challenged on his opinion
piece
(Zimbabwe Independent, March 2).I think the time has come to stop
making
derogatory statements about the white community in Zimbabwe and
blaming them
for what has happened here.
It has
become a fashionable trend in many articles to
first criticise whites before
criticising the current regime. I agree they
(whites) made very stupid
mistakes and did some unforgiveable things but
their knowledge, hard work
and taxes built the infrastructure of this
country despite all the criticism
and they had a small but very efficient
public
administration.
I think Hastings obviously spent most
of his time as a
journalist in Zimbabwe in some safe hotel where all he saw
was a small nasty
microcosm of the white community.
It is a blatant lie to label the whole of the past or
present white
community people with beer guts arrogantly proclaiming they
were guardians
of civilisation in Africa. Perhaps that was what Hastings
expected or hoped
to see. Any open-minded person can look at films or photos
of that era to
dispel that image.
The truth was rightly or wrongly
most whites had seen what
had happened in the rest of independent Africa and
did not want it to happen
in Zimbabwe.The real reason for our problems here
is much harder to stomach.
The blame for Zimbabwe's
current situation and Africa's
can be laid squarely at the door of its own
indigenous people who allow
themselves to be used and manipulated by their
own leaders. From the most
junior councillor to the top politicians if you
want arrogance and total
lack of sympathy and respect for their fellow man
look no further than the
average African leader.
Most blacks with the necessary skills and ability to do
something have left
to live comfortably in the lands of the former
colonisers and their only
contribution to Zimbabwe is letters to this paper
from the safety of these
havens.
Realist,
stone@mweb.co.zw
Zim Online
Friday 09 March 2007
By Batsirai
Muranje
HARARE - Every day at 5am, 43 year-old Chiedza Marufu wakes up to
catch a
bus to Mbare Musika, a sprawling vegetable market in Harare's
working class
suburb of Mbare.
At 22, Marufu's oldest son, Nicholas,
is unemployed leaving the widowed
mother with the onerous task of feeding
and fending for her small family of
four alone.
But her task is made
more difficult sometimes as Harare's municipal police
often raid her market
stall in Warren Park and confiscate her goods.
It is on such days that
she sometimes has to go back home empty-handed,
wondering what to give to
her crying toddlers, too young to appreciate their
mother's daily
struggles.
For millions of Zimbabwean women, bearing the brunt of a
severe eight-year
old economic crisis, the International Women's Day
commemorated on Thursday
passed off without any notice.
With the
world's highest inflation of nearly 1 600 percent, widespread
unemployment
and poverty, and husbands retrenched from their jobs,
Zimbabwean women
appear so overwhelmed with the tough task of fending for
their families
through vending or cross-border trade.
"Women are carrying the cross of
the national crisis," says Lucia Matibenga,
the chairperson of the women's
wing of the main opposition Movement for
Democratic Change
(MDC).
Matibenga said a survey conducted by her party's research
department had
established that 67 percent of national households were
headed by women.
"The tragedy is that there are no deliberate policies by
the government to
empower women or to recognise their important role in
society," she said
adding that there must be a paradigm shift in society's
perception of women.
Matibenga said the political violence that rocked
the country over the past
seven years had seriously affected women with
studies conducted by her party
showing that 143 401 women had either been
beaten up or raped between 2000
and 2005.
The figures are much higher
that the 69 773 cases of men who had been beaten
up in politically related
cases.
Matibenga blamed most of the political violence against women on
President
Robert Mugabe's ruling ZANU PF party supporters.
Jenni
Williams, the chairperson of the Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA) civic
group
that is calling for political reforms in Zimbabwe, said the eight-year
old
crisis had seriously affected women.
"It is women who have to fend for
food. Traditionally, they are the
custodians of our morals and filial unity
and these responsibilities are
becoming difficult to fulfill every day that
this economic crisis remains
unresolved," she said.
"There has to be
a political solution to the crisis to give the crisis-weary
women some
respite," she said.
Tariro Makanga, a Zimbabwean journalist specialising
in women's issues, said
the current crisis had made it difficult for
Zimbabwean women to mark
International Women's Day as most women were
struggling under the twin evils
of poverty and political
violence.
"There is virtually no reason for the Zimbabwean women to
celebrate the day.
Apart from the high cost of basic commodities, women have
other special
needs such as sanitary pads which they are failing to
access.
"The pads have almost become a luxury because of their cost when
they are
supposed to be a basic necessity for every woman," she
said.
With the average Zimbabwean worker earning about Z$100 000 a month,
sanitary
pads are at the lowest rung of an average family's priority
list.
As the rest of the world marked International Women's Day with
flowery
speeches and marches on the important role of women in society
yesterday, it
was business as usual for hard-pressed Zimbabwean women such
as Marufu. -
ZimOnline
The Raw Story
dpa German Press Agency
Published: Thursday March 8,
2007
Harare- Zimbabwe's Information Minister Thursday dismissed
as
a "grandiose flight of imagination" claims by a Brussels-based
think tank
that President Robert Mugabe's iron grip on the country
was being challenged
and could result in political change by next
year.
In a report released
earlier this week, the International Crisis
Group (ICG) said Zimbabwe's
situation was reminiscent of the last
stages of Mobutu's (Sese Seko) reign in
the Congo.
"After years of political deadlock and continued economic
and
humanitarian decline, a realistic chance has at last begun to
appear
in the past few months to resolve the Zimbabwean crisis," the
report
said.
It suggested that powerful factions in the ruling party
were
against the 83-year-old Mugabe's plans to extend his rule by
two
years by pushing through changes to the constitution that would
allow
presidential polls to be held in 2010 instead of 2008.
"These
ruling party factions might soon be willing to explore a
deal that would see
Mugabe retire and be replaced by moderate party
leaders who would negotiate a
transitional arrangement with the main
opposition Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) and civil society,"
the ICG said.
The report appeared to
have aroused the anger of some in
government. Recently-appointed Information
Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu
said in a statement that the author was guilty of
more than political
hallucination.
"No one within its (the ruling
party's) ranks is poised to betray
the national liberation legacy that binds
the ZANU-PF government with
the masses," Ndlovu said, in a reference to the
1970s war for
independence from white minority rule in which Mugabe and
senior
party officials fought.
The minister insisted that the
government of Mugabe - in power
since 1980 - had always been
people-centred.
Tensions have been rising in Zimbabwe, where an economic
crisis is
deepening. Already this year, the authorities have been forced
to
find vast sums of unbudgeted-for cash to fund salary hikes for
doctors
and teachers whose strikes had all but paralysed major health
institutions
and some schools.
As shoppers become grimly accustomed to near-daily
price hikes,
annual inflation in January reached a record 1,593.6 per
cent.
Analysts predicted Thursday that the February rate could top
1,700
per cent.
Meanwhile the UNs World Food Programme (WFP) painted a
gloomy
picture of food prospects for many Zimbabweans in the next
few
months, warning that cereal crops in much of the south of the
country
had been decimated by poor rainfall.
In its report, the ICG
warned that the declining economy, rising
discontent among the police and
armed forces and a new willingness
among government opponents to engage in
protests had increased the
risk of sudden major violence.
But the
information minister claimed that Zimbabweans were united
more than at any
other time.
© 2006 - dpa German Press Agency