Foreign migrants and refugees fear attacks after tournament
http://www.zimonline.co.za/
by Own Correspondent Monday 17 May
2010
HARARE - Zimbabwe's chaotic land reform programme assumed a new
twist last
week amid reports that only 10 white farmers would be allowed to
remain in
the country's Mashonaland Central province under a new plan
hatched by
hardliners from President Robert Mugabe's ZANU PF party in the
province.
The Commercial Farmers Union (CFU), which represents the
interests of the
besieged Zimbabwean white farmers, said some of its members
were being
invited to "a provincial centre" where they are informed of the
decision to
allow them to continue farming.
"The week before last we
had picked up information that some farmers were
being called in to a
provincial centre to be formally advised that they were
to be one of the ten
farmers who were allegedly to remain and continue
farming in each district
of that particular province," a union spokesperson
said last
week.
Sources said the province in question was Mashonaland Central which
has some
of the best agricultural land in the country but has also seen some
of the
worst cases of violence linked to the seizure of white-owned
farms.
"This news was of course received with some relief by some and
with some
scepticism by others, particularly as we are aiming towards a
moratorium
being declared on evictions and prosecutions as part of the land
audit which
will hopefully be taking place in the not too distant future,"
the
spokesperson said.
The CFU has a pending Supreme Court
application in which it is seeking an
order calling for a moratorium on the
ongoing prosecutions and evictions of
white farmers by Mugabe's
supporters.
The union wants an order suspending ongoing prosecutions and
criminal
proceedings against several of its members accused of allegedly
contravening
Section 3(3) of the Gazetted Land Act.
The union
contends that the prosecutions are "invalid and of no force" and
violate the
constitutional rights of the farmers.
The Attorney General's Office has
in recent months stepped up prosecution of
white farmers it claims are
refusing to vacate land acquired by the
government for purposes of
redistribution to land less blacks.
This is despite the fact that the
Southern African Development (SADC)
Tribunal ruled in 2008 that the
government's land reform programme is
discriminatory and illegal under the
SADC Treaty to which Zimbabwe is
signatory.
Hordes of ZANU PF
supporters, so-called war veterans and members of the army
and police
stepped up farm invasions almost immediately after the formation
of the
inclusive government in February 2009.
Commercial farmers' organisations
say invaders have since raided at least
150 of the about 300 remaining
white-owned commercial farms, a development
that has intensified doubts over
whether the unity government will withstand
attempts by ZANU PF hardliners
to sabotage it.
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has ordered the arrest
and prosecution of
the farm invaders but his word is largely ignored with
farmers reporting
continuing invasions of their properties and disruption of
farming
activities.
The International Monetary Fund and Western
countries have - on top of other
conditions - made it clear that they would
not consider giving aid to the
Harare government while farm invasion
continue.
Zimbabwe has since 2000, when land reforms began, relied on
food imports and
handouts from international food agencies mainly due to
failure by resettled
black peasants to maintain production on former white
farms. - ZimOnline
http://www.zimonline.co.za/
by Own Correspondents Monday 17 May
2010
HARARE - Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai on
Sunday called on the
Southern African Development Community (SADC) to
urgently convene a summit
that should set a "clear roadmap" to fresh
elections to choose a new
government to replace his uneasy coalition with
President Robert Mugabe.
The SADC alongside the African Union is a
guarantor of the 2008 political
agreement between Mugabe and Tsvangirai that
paved the way for the two to
form last year a unity government that has been
able to stabilise Zimbabwe's
economy but remains threatened by a dispute
between the two former foes over
power-sharing and appointment of senior
public officials.
"The party urges the immediate convening of a SADC
summit to resolve the
matter which SADC summit should clearly discuss the
road map to an election
and guarantees to the legitimacy of this election,"
said Tsvangirai who last
year temporarily suspended his MDC party's
participation in the unity
government in protest against the arrest of his
top ally, Roy Bennett.
Tsvangirai was speaking after a meeting of top MDC
leaders to review
progress of the coalition government.
Bennett is
accused of illegal possession of weapons of war and plotting to
assassinate
Mugabe. He faces a possible death sentence if convicted.
But Tsvangirai
says charges against Bennett are politically motivated and
false, and told
journalists yesterday that the state's decision last week to
appeal against
Bennett's acquittal by the High Court was part of: "ZANU PF's
(Mugabe's
party) continued persecution and prosecution of Bennett."
Mugabe's
refusal to swear in Bennett, the treasurer of the MDC, to the post
of deputy
agriculture minister is also part of issues at the centre of the
dispute
between Mugabe and Tsvangirai.
The two men have also clashed over
Mugabe's refusal to rescind his
unilateral decision to appoint two of his
top allies as attorney general and
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor, while
the veteran leader has also refused
to appoint members of Tsvangirai and
Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara's
MDC formations as provincial
governors.
Mugabe insists he will not meet his commitments under the
power-sharing
agreement that is know as the global political agreement (GPA)
until
Tsvangirai calls on Western governments to lift visa and financial
sanctions
against him and top officials of his ZANU PF party.
The
Zimbabwean leader accuses Tsvangirai of campaigning for the sanctions
that
were imposed by the European Union, United States, Switzerland, Canada
and
Australia as punishment on Mugabe and his inner circle for their failure
to
uphold human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
South African
President Jacob Zuma, the SADC's mediator in Zimbabwe, is said
to be waiting
for Mugabe, Tsvangirai and Mutambara to meet to review a
report on the
power-sharing dispute prepared by their negotiators before he
visits Harare
to discuss ways to break the impasse.
Meanwhile Tsvangirai called for
transparency in the mining of diamonds at
Zimbabwe's Marange diamond field
also known as Chiadzwa.
"The party notes with concern the lack of
transparency and due process in
the handling of diamonds at Chiadzwa and in
the granting of concessions and
mining rights in the same," said Tsvangirai,
whose party holds the deputy
minister of mines' post in
government.
Top Mugabe loyalist Obert Mpofu is Minister of
Mines.
Tsvangirai called on the two joint venture firms formed by the
government's
Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC) and some private
investors to
mine the Marange diamonds to comply with the country's laws,
adding that
Harare should step up efforts to ensure mining complied with
requirements of
the Kimberley Process, the world diamond industry
watchdog.
"The Zimbabwean government must speed up compliance with the
Kimberly
Process and those concerned must equally speed up the process of
certification," he said.
Marange is one of the world's most
controversial diamond fields with reports
that soldiers sent to guard the
claims after the government took over the
field in October 2006 from
London-based Africa Consolidated Resources that
owned the deposits committed
gross human rights abuses against illegal
miners who had descended on the
field.
The two joint venture firms formed by the ZMDC and private
investors in a
bid to bring operations at Marange in line with standards
stipulated by KP
have however stirred up controversy, amid revelations that
some directors of
the two firms were once illegal drug and diamond dealers
in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo and Sierra Leone.
Some of the
directors are also known to have close ties with Zimbabwe's
military
establishment that is accused of stealing millions of dollars worth
of
diamonds from Marange and offloading them onto the foreign black market
for
precious stones. - ZimOnline
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Tichaona Sibanda
17
May 2010
Villagers in Makoni South constituency in Manicaland province
are living in
fear, after soldiers in uniform roamed the area ordering
everyone to attend
a ZANU PF meeting at Rukweza business centre on 6th
June.
'Their message has been clear, that if you don't attend you will be
in
trouble. I haven't seen the soldiers personally but villagers in the
constituency have confirmed that they're being instructed to attend the
meeting without failure,' MDC-T MP for the area Pishai Muchauraya
said.
The MP added he was not sure what the meeting is about but assumed
it will
be addressed by ZANU PF officials. He said the soldiers, moving
around in
army trucks, have been seen in the company of Happy Nyakuedzwa, an
active
ZANU PF functionary in the Makoni district.
'We can only
assume it's a ZANU PF meeting because they're the only party
that forces
people to attend meetings or rallies. Every headman in the area
is being
told to bring his people to the meeting. These are hallmarks of
ZANU PF's
way of doing business,' Muchauraya said.
Recently, war veterans' leader
Jabulani Sibanda was also forcing villagers,
traditional leaders and
government workers to attend campaign meetings in
parts of Manicaland, ahead
of the constitutional outreach programme.
Sibanda's meetings heightened
fears that war vets, who have traditionally
led violent campaigns on behalf
of ZANU PF, are mobilizing once again.
Someone who went to one of Sibanda's
meetings said they were told to
campaign for the 'Kariba Draft' constitution
and that it was a matter of
'life or death' for Robert Mugabe's
party.
After his meetings were marred by poor attendances, the war vet
leader ended
up forcing government workers, local headmen and chiefs to a
meeting at
Chimanimani Country Club.
In recent weeks, human rights
groups have reported that organised violence
has continued unabated against
MDC supporters in many areas, despite the
formation of the government of
national unity.
Advocacy group, Restoration of Human Rights Zimbabwe,
documented sustained
incidences of organised violence in Muzarabani district
of Mashonaland
central province.
Other reports say that attacks on
commercial farmers and their workers have
also intensified, with incidents
of violence against white farmers on the
increase countrywide.
Crisis
in Zimbabwe reported on Monday that with less than a month before the
start
of the onstitutional outreach programme, the environment remains very
unfavorable to such an exercise.
The group cited areas such as
Chakonda in Shamva where headmen and ZANU PF
supporters are blocking and
intimidating people from attending preliminary
discussions on the
process.
In some areas, such as Gwanda in Matabeleland South, base camps
housing
militia groups have been built in readiness for the outreach
programme. ZANU
PF supporters are being instructed to campaign for the
Kariba draft and to
whip villagers into line in support of the document.
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Lance Guma
17 May 2010
MDC
leader Morgan Tsvangirai is under growing pressure from his party
members to
confront Robert Mugabe and get the ZANU PF leader to honour his
obligations
under the power sharing deal. The pressure built up when the
Attorney
General, a key ZANU PF blue-eyed boy, appealed the acquittal on
terrorism
charges of MDC treasurer Roy Bennett. The move was seen as a
deliberate
attempt to sustain Mugabe's excuse for not swearing him in as
Deputy
Agriculture Minister.
Last Friday evening members of the MDC-T Standing
Committee met, and the
National Executive met on Sunday. Both meetings
deliberated on the
continuing refusal of ZANU PF to genuinely share power,
despite being the
party that lost elections in 2008. Although a watered-down
national council
resolution called for the urgent convening of a SADC summit
to resolve the
impasse, sources who attended the meeting say senior
officials made it clear
Tsvangirai must not back down to Mugabe on any of
their key demands.
The party listed as the outstanding issues, the
swearing-in of Bennett, the
appointments of the Reserve Bank Governor, the
Attorney General, provincial
governors, chairing of cabinet, alteration of
ministerial mandates, national
hero status and the role of George Charamba,
who doubles up as Permanent
Secretary in the Ministry of Information and
Publicity and Mugabe's
spokesman. The MDC-T want the SADC summit to 'clearly
discuss the roadmap to
an election and the guarantees to the legitimacy of
this election.
On Monday Tsvangirai, Mugabe and Deputy Prime Minister
Arthur Mutambara were
expected to meet to discuss the Bennett issue. At the
time of going to
broadcast Newsreel had not been able to establish what
progress, if any, had
been made.
MDC-T spokesman Nelson Chamisa
denied press reports that Tsvangirai was
facing growing pressure from within
his own party to challenge Mugabe's
intransigence. He told Newsreel the
pressure was being piled on Mugabe and
not their party leader. Chamisa
defended the decision to take the dispute
back to another SADC summit,
despite countless other summits drawing blanks.
He said SADC and the African
Union were the guarantors of the power sharing
deal and it was only logical
they try to deal with any impasse first.
So, more talk, while 90% of
Zimbabweans face more hunger, misery and
intimidation.
http://news.radiovop.com
17/05/2010
13:27:00
Harare, May 17, 2010 - The Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC)
last week
allegedly postponed to end of May a crucial workshop to expedite
the
licensing of new newspapers owing to financial problems and reports on
allegations of disagreements among commissioners on resource persons to the
workshop.
The workshop was scheduled to begin on May
13.
According to The Standard, the commissioners were allegedly divided
on the
hiring of Media, Information and Publicity Minister Webster Shamu,
his
Permanent Secretary George Charamba and Attorney- General Johannes
Tomana
and University of Zimbabwe 's law lecturer, Professor Geoff Feltoe.
Commissioners with Zanu (PF) linkages are allegedly backing the Shamu
team.
A committee headed by the ZMC Chairperson, Godfrey Majonga and
deputised by
Commissioner Matthew Takaona has been set up to look into the
matter of
resource persons.
The workshop was, among other things,
supposed to include a board meeting
that would allow the commissioners to
look into the applications submitted
by mass media houses seeking licenses.
This postponement is feared to
result in further delays in the licensing of
new and old newspapers.
It is alleged that the commission unanimously
agreed that the first
operating license would be granted to the banned
Associated Newspapers of
Zimbabwe following the recommendations of a special
commission led by the
late Chinondidyachii Mararike after a High Court
judgment which compelled
government to deal with the ANZ case in
2007.
The ZMC's operational problems were largely due to the fact that
it still
has not received its 2010 National budget allocation of US$ 47
000.
The ZMC is yet to license new media houses since it was officially
appointed
in February.
http://af.reuters.com
Mon May 17, 2010 4:56pm
GMT
* Striking workers taking wage dispute to court
* Gold
miners hit hardest, platinum unaffected
By Nelson Banya
HARARE,
May 17 (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's mineworkers have called off a strike,
a union
official said on Monday, ending a protest that paralysed the
country's gold
mines that are still battling to recover from a decade-long
economic
crisis.
Associated Mineworkers' Union of Zimbabwe (AMWUZ) president
Tinago Ruzive
told Reuters that workers had ended the strike to pave the way
for court
action.
"The strike has ended, we have told all workers to
report for duty
tomorrow," Ruzive said. "The labour minister has directed us
to go to the
labour court for redress and we will get a hearing on
Thursday."
The 25,000-member AMWUZ began a strike last Wednesday to press
for a monthly
minimum wage of $496, up from the current average of
$120.
The industrial action hit the gold sector hardest. Zimbabwe's
biggest gold
miner, Metallon Gold, said the strike could cost producers up
to $8 million.
[ID:nLDE64D0LX]
The country's platinum mines, owned by
Impala Platinum's (IMPJ.J: Quote)
local unit Zimplats and Aquarius' (AQP.AX:
Quote) Mimosa, were not affected
by the strike.
Mining has overtaken
agriculture as Zimbabwe's main foreign currency earner,
after President
Robert Mugabe's seizure of white-owned farms to resettle
landless blacks
triggered a sharp decline in farming output.
Industry officials said the
strike was a setback for mines, most of which
only recently re-opened after
closing in 2008 because of hyperinflation, a
skewed exchange rate and
frequent power cuts, officials said.
Finance Minister Tendai Biti has
said the sector will grow by 40 percent in
2010, due to mines
re-opening.
At its peak Zimbabwe used to produce 2,400 kg of gold per
month but recorded
a low of just over 3,000 kg for the whole year in 2008.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/
Written by JOHN CHIMUNHU
Monday, 17 May 2010
15:54
HARARE - President Robert Mugabe and Zanu (PF) have reportedly
developed
cold feet over holding early elections after a recent poll showed
that Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai would win by a whopping 88
percent.
Mugabe's fears were highlighted in a recent speech by Deputy
Prime Minister
Arthur Mutambara.
Mutambara, also leader of the smaller
faction of the Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) said: "A recent survey I
saw said Tsvangirai will win by 88
percent if elections are held next year.
So, do you think Mugabe will go
into elections knowing that he will
lose?"
Mugabe announced in February that Zimbabwe will have elections in
2011, with
or without a new constitution.
Political observers said they
believed the date was still feasible despite
numerous delays in coming up
with a new supreme law, caused mainly by Zanu
(PF)'s fears of losing
power.
A shadowy pro-Mugabe outfit calling itself the Zimbabwe Movement for
Peace,
Reconciliation and Unity last Friday published another of its
long-running
full-page advertisements, under the headline: "No to early
elections".
Through a mixture of threats that Zanu (PF) will resort to
violence if
defeated to wild claims that countries like China and Russia,
seen as
favourable to Mugabe, would not accept a Tsvangirai victory, the
group made
a tenuous case for an extension of the life of the GNU
(Government of
National Unity).
Tsvangirai has refused a poll before a
new constitution is put in place. He
recently told the Americans, during his
visit to that country, to receive a
human rights award that he was
optimistic a referendum for the new
constitution would be held next year.
Foreign migrants and refugees fear attacks after tournament
Foreign migrants and refugees in South Africa have been warned to prepare for a wave of xenophobic attacks as soon as the final whistle of the World Cup blows.
This week, two years after the start of the 2008 riots that left scores dead across the country, a consortium of leading migration organisations said it had received reports by foreign nationals that they were being threatened with violence after the tournament.
"These threats are coming from many different people: neighbours, colleagues, taxi drivers, passersby, but also from nurses, social workers and police officers," said Cormsa, whose members include Amnesty International, the South African Red Cross Society, and the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation . "Some of those making the threats believe that they have the support of senior political leaders," it said.
Dozens of Zimbabwean women interviewed by the Guardian in Hillsborough, downtown Johannesburg, said they were being intimidated and threatened daily by their landlords and groups of men gathering outside their homes at night.
"They say they will come after the World Cup and they will kill us," said Ethel Musonza, 32, a mother of four. "These people are serious, they are organised, they know where we live. They say they won't do anything during the World Cup because of the foreign tourists but afterwards the police will step aside and some of us will get killed."
In an informal settlement in East Rand, groups of men who claimed they took part in the "war" of 2008 have told foreign migrants and refugees to leave the country before 11 July. "We sat down and talked and said let us leave them until the World Cup is coming to our country," said one, who admitted he broke the law to "protect his country from foreigners" in 2008.
"If we fight now, maybe they will stop 2010 . after that there is no one who can come to us and say don't fight," he added.
Cormsa has urged the government to act against xenophobia to try to defuse the risk of further violence. It has asked authorities to punish officials have used the threat violence to intimidate foreign nationals.
On 12 May 2008, a series of riots started in Alexandra township, north-east Johannesburg, targeting migrants from Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe. In the weeks that followed, the violence spread to other informal settlements in the Gauteng province, Durban and Cape Town, and then to the rest of the country. Sixty-two people were killed during the clashes, including 21 South Africans.
http://www.israelidiamond.co.il/
17.05.10, 09:39 /
World
Following a secret memorandum of understanding with the Chinese
authorities,
Chinese soldiers are being given permits to work in Zimbabwe's
disputed
Marange diamond fields, according to the
ZimDiaspora.
The Zimbabwean newspaper reports that the Chinese
military's intervention in
Zimbabwe's diamond mining is said to have been
facilitated by Army Commander
General Constantine Chiwenga during his
numerous trips to the Far East.
Chiwenga is believed to have struck a deal
with senior Chinese military
officials with the approval of President
Mugabe, says the ZimDiaspora.
ZimDiaspora also says that it has been
confirmed that Zimbabwe barters
diamonds for weapons with Chinese defense
industries.
ZimDiaspora's own investigations have revealed that a
number of Chinese
nationals are based at Marange diamonds fields. "Chinese
nationals,
particularly those from the army or with links are being issued
with permits
to mine diamonds in Marange in exchange for supplying us with
military
hardware like vehicles, guns and bomb materials," said a
well-informed
military source, according to ZimDiaspora.
http://www.zimeye.org/?p=17397
By Blessing
Chapwati
Published: May 16, 2010
Harare - MDC
party leader, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai said Sunday,
ZANU PF and
President Robert Mugabe have no veto power to appoint government
ministers.
Tsvangirai said in response to calls by war veterans and
ZANU PF leaders who
say Roy Bennett should not be sworn in as Deputy
Minister of Agriculture,
Mechanisation and Irrigation following his
acquittal by the High Court last
week.
"ZANU PF and President Mugabe
have no right to appoint anyone in cabinet
either than ourselves because
they do not have the veto power.
ZANU PF cannot make a position to say
Bennett can't. I hear that Cde
Mnangagwa was the first one to say they will
not allow Bennett to be
appointed as Minister, that's a party position and
not a state position,"
Tsvangirai said.
On Sunday the state weekly,
The Sunday Mail carried a headline "Bennett just
can't" in which war
veterans leader, Jabulani Sibanda and political turncoat
Professor Jonathan
Moyo were quoted saying Bennett will not be sworn in
because he served in
Ian Smith's police unit, the Selous Scouts during the
war of
liberation.
"There is no way we can tolerate Bennett. For us to
accommodate people like
Bennett is an insult to those who liberated the
country," Sibanda was
quoted.
Professor Moyo was quoted saying
Bennett's hands drip with blood and
represents the unforgettable face of the
brutality of Rhodesia; a regime he
says was a provocative and insensitive to
the majority.
Observers say ZANU PF's claims goes against the spirit of
forgiveness which
the inclusive government is preaching through the National
Healing and
Reconciliation organ.
Bennett who is MDC national
treasurer was nominated to be the Deputy
Minister of Agriculture by
Tsvangirai in the inclusive government but his
swearing in was hamstrung by
allegations of terrorism, banditry, insurgency
and attempts to topple
President Mugabe in 2006.
The MDC has called for the immediate swearing
in of Bennett who has also
been advised by lawyers that the Attorney General
Johannes Tomana's
application to appeal the acquittal decision was not a
proper application in
terms of the rules of Zimbabwe's courts.
"The
prosecution was done by the state and not by ZANU PF. ZANU PF is
continuing
to persecute Bennett and not to prosecute him.
We will not accept either
the prosecution or the persecution of Bennett."
Tsvangirai
said.
Bennett's case has remained an outstanding issue in the GPA
negotiations
which are most likely to soon be referred back to SADC
appointed facilitator
South African President Jacob Zuma owing to a myriad
of differences between
the parties.
http://news.radiovop.com
17/05/2010 14:13:00
Bikita,
May 17, 2010 - Bikita residents are at risk of being attacked by
crocodiles
after Zanu PF youth and boisterous war veterans here vandalised
and
ransacked a crocodile breeding project run by lithium mining giant,
Bikita
Minerals.
The war veterans accused mine manager, Nigel Macfail, of being
sympathetic
to the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T) party under Prime
Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai.
Mcfail was once abducted and beaten by
Zanu (PF) youth who left him for dead
in the run up to the bloody June 27
run-off elections.
Villagers under Chief Marozva area told Radio VOP
they were benefiting from
the Mine's crocodile project as many
got
employment.
"For the past four months, our lives had changed
because of this project by
Bikita Minerals. Then came the fighters of the
liberation
struggle and some over zealous Border Gezi youth and destroyed
everything.
They politicised everything. Now, we have no income and some of
the
crocodiles have eaten our livestock," said Marvelous Rupiya, a
villager.
Mcfail confirmed the project had been sabotaged but refused to
shed more
details, referring all the questions to the mine's
company
lawyer, Roderick Makause, of Chihambakwe, Makonese and partners.
"I know
that the project has been abandoned...I do not know why, talk to the
mine,"
Provincial governor and resident Minister, Titus Maluleke said.
http://www.zimbabwejournalists.com
17th
May 2010 00:36 GMT
By MDC Harare
16 MAY 2010
Resolutions of the
MDC National Council
Harvest House, 16 May 2010
A Party of
Excellence to deliver Real Change
On the 16th of May 2010, the National
Council of the party met in Harare and
held an intense meeting in respect of
which the following reports were
received;
a. The report of the
Commission of Inquiry on the disturbances at Harvest
House.
b. A
report and recommendations from the National Standing Committee of the
14th
of May 2010.
c. A report by the Secretary General on the state of the
party, the state of
the State and the strategic position of the
party.
d. A report by the Organizing Department presented by the
Organizing
Secretary Hon. Eng. Elias Mudzuri.
In addition to the
above reports discussions were held on the following
matters; a. The issue
of indigenization in Zimbabwe,
b. The issue of diamonds and the mining of
the same in Chiadzwa, c. The
state of the economy and in particular the
issue of the conditions of
service for the civil servants, and
d. The
issue of human rights and the rule of law in Zimbabwe.
Following
extensive discussions, the following resolutions were made;
Violence and
disturbances at Harvest House
1. That the party has a zero tolerance
towards violence and condemns the
events of the 12th and 14th of April
2010.
1.2 That the following youths who were at the epicentre of the
violence are
forthwith expelled from the Party; Rhino Mashaya, Shakespear
Mukoyi, Stephen
Jahwi, Todini Todini and Francis Machimbidzofa.
1.3
That the above youths shall not participate in any activities of the
Party
and that no member of the Party shall, within the context of Party
activities, associate or entertain the above.
1.4 That the Party
condemns violence and offer training on non-violent and
non-confrontational
programmes.
1.5 Initiate a process of dealing with trauma for victims of
violence and
Party members.
1.6 The Party must adopt a progressive
and robust approach on the cases of
employment and welfare.
1.7
Implement a non-violent conflict management and team building programmes
throughout the structures.
1.8 Develop, adopt and implement a
sustainable cadreship programmes that
ensure that the party's core values of
democracy, human rights, including
women's rights and solidarity are
inculcated in all members.
Dialogue
2. That, the parties and the
Principals of the parties must take measures to
implement and execute the
agreed positions as reflected in the Negotiators
report dated the 3rd of
April 2010 and more importantly, must enforce and
uphold the Implementation
Matrix as prepared by the Negotiators.
2.2 That on the outstanding
issues, which include the following matters; i.
The swearing-in of Roy
Bennett,
ii. The issue of the RBZ Governor and Attorney
General,
iii. Provincial Governors,
iv. National heroes,
v.
Review and reallocation of ministerial mandates,
vi. The chairing of
Cabinet,
vii. The unilateral alternation of ministerial mandates,
and
viii. The position of the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry
of
Information and Publicity doubling up as the Spokesperson of the
President.
2.3 The party urges the immediate convening of a SADC Summit
to resolve the
matter which SADC Summit should clearly discuss the roadmap
to an election
and the guarantees to the legitimacy of this
election.
Indigenization
3. On indigenization, the MDC believes in
broad-based empowerment for the
people and for this reason condemns the
current proposed indigenization
regulations on the basis that they are
elitist, selective and a mere vehicle
for further enrichment of the rich
few, self aggrandizement, patronage,
clientelism and further destruction of
the economy.
3.2 The MDC recognises that the country currently suffers
from lack of
growth, lack of capacity, lack of jobs and weak aggregate
demand. To this
extent therefore, the major imperative should be that of
growing the economy
so that more jobs are created, foreign direct investment
flows in and
capacity is increased. The focus and attempt to redistribute a
tiny sick
economy is wrong and misplaced.
3.3 It is our firm view
that the original indigenization and empowerment act
should be repealed and
be replaced by a new law that balances the
overwhelming imperator of growing
and investment in the economy against the
fundamental obligation of broad
based empowerment.
3.4 In any event, it is important to marry the
indigenization programme with
the experience of the land reform programme.
It is important to conclude the
land reform audit urgently so that lessons
from the same are properly
applied to any programme that seeks to address
the plight of previously
disadvantaged Zimbabweans.
Diamonds and
Chiadzwa
4. The party notes with concern the lack of transparency and due
process in
the handling of diamonds at Chiadzwa and in the granting of
concessions and
mining rights in the same.
4.2 The MDC demands that
all concessions and mining rights should be granted
on the principle of
transparency and openness involving public auctioning or
public tender
processes to be carried out by an independent authority.
4.3 That the
current investors at Chiadzwa should comply with Zimbabwe's
laws, in
particular the Zimbabwe Investment Act and are prepared to make
equity
investment to the State, failure of which their rights should revert
to the
State.
4.4 That due process of the law and all court orders issued in
respect of
the Chiadzwa claims should be honoured and respected.
4.5
That all income from Chiadzwa should be accounted for transparently to
the
State to enable the same to attend to capital and recurrent expenditure
and
in particular the adequate remuneration of civil servants.
4.6 That the
Zimbabwean government must speed up compliance with the
Kimberly Process and
those concerned must equally speed up the process of
certification.
4.7 That the interests of the Marange people must be
made paramount and due
process, decency and fairness must be applied in the
processes of
compensations and relocations of affected Marange
communities.
Resolution on violence and the rule of law
5. As a
party, we are aware of the re-emergence of violence in the provinces
and the
mushrooming of pungwe bases in the country.
5.2 We are also aware of
increased intimidation and the threats and promises
that violence will be
unleashed after the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
5.3 We are also aware
that attempts will be made to violently force citizens
of Zimbabwe to
propagate for the adoption of the Kariba draft in the current
constitution
making process.
5.4 The MDC strongly condemns violence and coercion in
any form whatsoever
and demands that Article 18 of the GPA must be respected
and honoured.
5.5 The MDC is also concerned about the selective
application of the law
including the Attorney General's failure and
reluctance to prosecute
perpetrators of violence following the March 2008
elections in clear breach
of Article 18.5 (c) and (j) of the GPA.
5.6
On another note, the MDC condemns the slow rate of work by the
Constitution
Commissions appointed and sworn-in in March 2010. Three months
down the
line, the MDC believes the Media Commission in particular ought to
have
tangible results of its work.
5.7 The MDC further notes and condemns the
continuous breach of Article 19
of the GPA and notes the hate speech and
corrosive propaganda propagated in
the Herald.
Resolution on the
state of the economy and conditions of service of civil
servants and workers
in general
6. The MDC is a social democratic party born from the struggle
of the
working people of Zimbabwe. To this extent, the MDC strives to uphold
and
improve the living conditions of workers including the paying of
reasonable
and equitable wages. The right to a basic wage being a
fundamental right.
6.2 The MDC however recognises and abhors the
destruction of the Zimbabwe
economy by years of Zanu PF mis-governance and
misrule. In the last 13
years, the Zimbabwe economy has lost 60 percent of
its value, has seen
continuous negative growth rate and has witnessed
capacity utilization
shrinking to 4 -10 percent with unemployment reaching
85 percent.
6.3 In addition, a huge debt continues to stifle an economy
that virtually
has no savings and no Foreign Direct Investment.
6.4
The MDC however feels that space can and should be created through
revenue
arising from the transparent and professional handling of mining
resources
and in particular income from diamond mining in Chiadzwa.
6.5 The MDC is
also aware of thousands of ghost workers and Zanu PF militia
on the civil
service wage roll. It is important that the civil service audit
be concluded
as a matter of urgency. In this regard, we find it unacceptable
that the
Public Service Commission continues to stall the same by refusing
to supply
critical information to auditors.
6.6 We also express unhappiness with
profligate government expenditure in
particular millions of dollars
haemorrhaging through travel and subsistence
as well as huge amounts being
spent on acquisition of non-productive capital
in particular motor
vehicles.
6.7 The MDC also finds unacceptable the charges being levied by
public
utilities and local authorities. These charges are high and bear no
reflections to a cost structure but rather to high wages and allowances that
are being paid to senior management in these service providers and local
authorities.
6.8 The party also finds unacceptable the huge
speculative rentals being
charged on the people by greedy landlords in many
residential areas. These
rentals are eating into the disposable income of
the people of Zimbabwe.
6.9 In light of all the above, the MDC recognises
the imperator of strong
and decisive leadership and discipline in the
management of this economy if
the structural issues raised above are to be
overcome.
Committing our Party, our country to God.
http://news.radiovop.com
17/05/2010 14:09:00
Harare, May 17,
2010 - A prominent Zimbabwe human rights lawyer, Beatrice
Mtetwa, who last
week secured an acquittal of Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC)
Treasurer-General Roy Bennett, has been awarded with the 2010
International
Human Rights Award by the American Bar Association (ABA).
The ABA named
Mtetwa as the recipient of its 2010 International Human Rights
Award last
week for her extraordinary contributions to the cause of human
rights, the
rule of law, and the promotion of access to justice in the
country.
Mtetwa and another human rights lawyer Trust Maanda
successfully won an
acquittal for Bennett who had been on trial for terror
related charges.
High Court Judge Justice Chinembiri Bhunu acquitted the
former Chimanimani
legislator at the close of the state case after ruling
that the sate had
failed to establish a prima facie case against
Bennett.
The human rights lawyer will travel to San Francisco in August
to accept her
award at a luncheon organised by ABA.
Mtetwa becomes
the second recipient of the award from Zimbabwe after the
ABA, which is a
voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which
is
headquartered in Chicago, Illinois awarded the Supreme Court of Zimbabwe
with the International Human Rights Award in 2001.
The International
Human Rights Award, which is given each year, is intended
to honor and give
public recognition to an individual who has made a special
contribution in
the area of human rights in a foreign jurisdiction.
Since its inception
in 1991, the International Human Rights Award has
honored and recognised
individuals who have made special contributions in
the area of human rights
in a foreign jurisdiction.
The award was created in response to the
knowledge that in many countries
with repressive regimes, the regime is less
likely to take retaliatory
action against a human rights advocate if the
advocate has received
international recognition. The recipients have often
fought for basic human
rights for others, even when it may not be in their
personal self-interest,
and have made extraordinary contributions to the
cause of human rights, the
rule of law, and the promotion of access to
justice. The award builds
awareness of the courageous work being done by
lawyers and judges around the
world in the face of adversity.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written by TAURAI
BANDE
Monday, 17 May 2010 15:19
HARARE - Leader of the newly formed
MDC-99, Job Sikhala, has described the
GPA national healing Programme as
demonic and satanic, saying it was
designed to let Zanu (PF) thugs get away
with murder.
In an exclusive interview with The Zimbabwean, Sikhala said
perpetrators of
political violence must be brought to justice to appease
souls of victims.
"Although Tsvangirai is now satisfied and boasting of
drinking tea on the
same table with Mugabe, he must not laugh off lives lost
in the struggle for
democracy. If he does so, activists such as Tonderai
Ndira and more than 200
others murdered by known Zanu (PF) thugs, will have
died in vain," said
Sikhala.
He warned of more violence towards next
elections, as Zanu (PF) had realised
it can get away with murder.
The
outspoken president of MDC-99, also warned Tsvangirai against advocating
for
removal of targeted sanctions against Mugabe and members of his inner
circle.
"Targeted sanctions were a result of violation of human rights
among other
reasons by the former Mugabe government. Tsvangirai must stop
behaving like
Mugabe's public relations officer. Mugabe must deal directly
with countries
which imposed the restrictive measures against his
administration. MDC
factions in the inclusive government must not forget the
objective of the
struggle. Any advocacy for removal of the targeted
sanctions will be the
greatest betrayal of the selfless electorate, by MDC
parties in the GPA.
Mugabe and Zanu (PF) must go," he added.
Sikhala
said his party had done enough ground work to win next harmonised
elections.
This week, MDC-99 will be electing the Harare party executive.
The party
challenged media houses to cover events of all political parties,
to enable
the electorate to make informed decisions come next elections.
To promote
gender equality, MDC-99 appointed two women as first and second
party vice
presidents, Abigail Mahlangu and Bibiana Musunami.
Sikhala also said the
constitution making process was flawed.
He said a non partisan High Court or
other superior court judge must chair
the committee.
"It is a mockery to
the process to have it chaired by politicians such as
Douglas Mwonzora, a
member of a political organisation interested in the
outcome of the
constitution," he said, adding "a constitution process
without participation
of civic society groups, is a joke."
Sikhala said his party will not
recognise a constitution which does not
embrace views of the people.
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Violet Gonda
17 May
2010
World acclaimed novelist and filmmaker, Tsitsi Dangarembga, has been
appointed the portfolio Secretary for Education for the MDC led by Professor
Arthur Mutambara. Dangarembga has been an Executive Member of the party for
Harare Province for at least a year.
Dangarembga is the author of the
award-winning novel Nervous Conditions -
the first novel to be published in
English by a black Zimbabwean woman; she
directed the film Everyone's Child
and wrote the story for the film Neria.
Secretary General Welshman Ncube
announced the appointment on Monday,
including reshuffling 19 other
portfolios. He said some of the positions
were reassignments but others were
to fill vacancies created by the deaths
of some of the National Executive
members, including Secretary for Lands
Renson Gasela, who died in a road
accident last month. Three other party
officials perished in the car
crash.
Edward Mkhosi, the MP for Mangwe and a co-chairperson of the
parliamentary
select committee leading the constitution making process, is
the new
Secretary for Lands and Agriculture. Sibongile Mgijima from Mash
West
province is the new Secretary for Disciplinary Matters, replacing the
late
Gasela and Lyson Mlambo respectively.
MDC-M Portfolio
Secretaries appointments
1. Edward T. Mkhosi(Mat South) - Secretary for Lands
& Agriculture
2. Sibongile Mgijima (Mash West) - Secretary for
Disciplinary Matters
3. Mica Sibindi (Mat South) - Secretary for Defence
& Security
4. Wilson Kwenda (Manicaland) - Secretary for Local
Government
5. Tariro Shumba (Chitungwiza) - Dep. Sec for Local
Government
6. Mary Manyenje (Manicaland) - Secretary for Transport
7. Sam
Mlilo (Mid South) - Dep. Sec for Policy & Research
8. Rittah Ndlovu
(Bulawayo) - Secretary for Labour
9. Nhlanhla Dube (Mat North) - Dep. Secfor
Information & Publicity
10. Constance Chihota (Mash East) - Deputy
Director of Elections
11. Birgitta Matengenzara ( Mash Central)- Dep. Sec for
International
Relations
12. Japhret Khumalo (Bulawayo) - Dep. Sec for
External Relations
13. Claudio Marimo (Chitungwiza) - Deputy Secretary for
Legal Affairs
14. Rabson Mashiri (Harare) - Dep. Sec for Defence &
Security
15. Tonderai Gwabada (Mash East) - Deputy Secretary for
Organising
16. Charles Sibanda( Mid North) - Dep. Sec for Disciplinary
Matters
17. Tsitsi Dangarembga (Harare) - Secretary for Education
18.
Joshua Mhambi (Mat South) - Dep. Sec for Economic Affairs
19. Morgan
Changamire (Harare) - Secretary for Economic Affairs
20. Nehemiah Zanamwe
(Masvingo) - Dep. Sec for Lands & Agriculture
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Tichaona Sibanda
17 May
2010
Jacob Raphael Barnabus Mwela, the 45 year-old Zimbabwean who died in
an
Afriqiyah Airways plane that crashed in Tripoli, Libya last week will be
buried in Redcliff in the Midlands province.
The married father-of-four,
had lived in the UK for over a decade and had
recently decided to relocate
back to Zimbabwe to start a business.
An officer at the Zimbabwe Embassy in
Tripoli confirmed Jacob was one of two
Zimbabwen citizens to have died when
the Airbus A330 plunged into the ground
while trying to land at Tripoli,
killing 103 people. Only a ten year old
Dutch national survived the
crash.
Jacob boarded the doomed plane in Johannesburg last week Tuesday. He
intended to catch a connecting flight from the Libyan capital to London.
Embassy staff are assuming the second victim, Zenzeni Moyo is Zimbabwean,
though she was travelling on a British passport.
The embassy in
Tripoli is giving consular assistance to Jacob's family
members, who include
his wife and a child who travelled to Libya to begin
the harrowing task of
identifying his body. The identification process has
been slow because many
of the victims sustained horrendous facial injuries,
making the task
difficult.
Zimbabwe's Deputy Ambassador to Libya, Tedious Chadenga, has
spent most of
the time since the crash with the families. The embassy was
also assisting
with finalising the details of the repatriation of the
remains.
Michael Mwela, Jacob's father, told SW Radio Africa on Monday
that his son,
a former mechanic with the CMED, was on a two-week break in
Zimbabwe to
finalise his plans to relocate, after living in the UK for 12
years.
'He was setting up business here and was basically going back to
London to
work for a few months before coming back home. He used to visit us
almost
twice a year with his wife but this time he left her in London. We
are so
devastated because he had become the pillar and provider of the
family,' the
75 year-old Mwela said.
Mwela said his son will be
buried in Redcliff, once his remains are
repatriated from Tripoli. He said
his son's last trip was fraught with
personal misfortune from the
start.
'When he flew in from London, Jacob lost a considerable amount of
money and
goods in Johannesburg. He used the Tripoli-Johannesburg route when
he came
home. It was after he landed in Johannesburg when he was
transferring to the
last leg of the journey (Harare) that he discovered his
luggage was missing.
To make matters worse, he also discovered he lost cash,
but was able to
complete the journey home,' Mwela said.
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Violet Gonda
17
May 2010
'Gukurahundi' visual artist Owen Maseko says his arrest and the
banning of
his exhibition is helping him to get his point across and the
police actions
are proving his point.
Maseko was arrested in March
when he opened an exhibition showing an artist's
impression of the
Gukurahundi atrocities of the 1980s, at the National Art
Gallery in
Bulawayo. This was the first exhibition of its kind in Zimbabwe,
about this
violent period that led to the deaths of an estimated 20 000
Ndebeles in
Matabeleland and the Midlands provinces.
Police could not remove the
graphic pictures and graffiti which had been
painted directly onto the walls
of the gallery, so they stormed the building
and shut the exhibition down.
They also covered the windows with newspapers
so that people walking past
the gallery could not see the images.
On Monday Maseko told SW Radio
Africa that while it has been difficult for
him personally to be arrested
and going to court, his persecution is
allowing people to talk about this
terrible episode in Zimbabwe's history.
He made an urgent application in the
High Court to have the exhibition
re-opened, but this was thrown out. The
artist is expected to appear in a
Bulawayo magistrate's court on May 26th
where he is challenging his remand.
He said it is at this hearing where it
will be decided whether he is going
to trial or the charges will be
dropped.
"I think it's a win, win situation for me. If it goes to trial
it means they
(police) risk having the Gukurahundi issue openly discussed
and at the same
time if they dismiss the case it means they automatically
have to allow me
to re-open the exhibition and the public can actually see,"
pointed out
Maseko.
The artist who is currently on bail, was arrested for
allegedly 'undermining
or insulting the authority of the President or
insulting a particular race
or tribe' through his exhibition. The Acting
Director of the Bulawayo Art
Gallery, Voti Thebe, had also been arrested,
but was freed later the same
day.
One of the paintings showed ZAPU leader
Joshua Nkomo and Robert Mugabe
signing the Unity Accord with blood pouring
down Nkomo's back as he was
signing it.
The artist said it had been a
good opportunity to open his exhibition at a
time the government is
promoting its, so far, failing programme on National
Healing and
Reconciliation. Maseko said: "If it is a true National Healing
(programme)
then we need to talk about these very important issues."
He said he was
surprised that the Ministry of National Healing and
Reconciliation had not
said anything about his arrest or the closing down of
the exhibition.
http://www.indcatholicnews.com/
By: Fr Oskar
Wermter SJ
Posted: Sunday, May 16, 2010 9:40 pm
Viewpoint:
Catholic priest defends beleaguered Anglicans in Zimbabwe |
Zimbabwe,Kunonga,Fr Oskar Wermter SJ
A Jesuit priest working in Zimbabwe
speaks up on behalf of the Anglican
Church in Zimbabwe, caught up in a
dispute with supporters of the rebel
former bishop Kunonga. Fr Oskar Wermter
SJ writes:
The Anglicans are still being politically abused by the party
that continues
to rule in contradiction to the General Political Agreement
which promised
to restore the rule of law.
Most unfortunately,
leaders of other Christian churches remain silent and do
not declare their
solidarity with suffering fellow Christians because they
are under the
erroneous impression that this is an internal affair of the
Anglican Church
in which they, naturally, should not get involved.
But the Anglican
Church has settled the issue long ago. Nolbert Kunonga was
removed from the
Harare Diocese and excommunicated. There are no two
factions within the
Church of the Province of Central Africa. Kunonga, the
clergy loyal to him
and a few lay members are no longer part of the Anglican
communion. There is
no dispute within the Anglican Church.
There is a High Court decision
which must be adhered to for the time being:
the members of the Anglican
Church Province of Central Africa (CPCA, under
Bishop Chad Gandiya) must
have access to church assets just as the followers
of Nolbert Kunonga until
a final and definite decision is taken about who
owns these assets. Kunonga,
not being Anglican bishop of Harare any more,
has no right to control the
assets of the diocese (churches, church
premises, etc). It is mischievous
for government (through the ZRP) to
support Kunonga and bar the Anglican
Church proper from its churches and
church premises.
Some churches,
including Catholic parishes, are playing host to displaced
Anglican
congregations and associations when asked to do so. There is at
least some
quiet solidarity at ground level.
This document is not meant to be a comprehensive report on the state of the IG
of Zimbabwe. Rather it is aimed at giving an overview, month by month, of
political developments under the terms set out in the Global Political Agreement
(GPA). The sections profiled in monthly outputs may vary depending on events and
issues raised in that particular report. Where possible, the relevant article as
stipulated in the GPA has been provided. As this documentation began in April
2009, there may at times be references to activities or events that took place
in previous months.
Please Click
Here to download the April 2010 GNU Watch.
Please
Click Here to download the Global Political Agreement (GPA) against which this
analysis is drawn.
A
people's guide to the agreement - Africa Community Publishing and Development Trust (ACPDT)
Click to read the GNU Watches for 2010 January February
Year
in Review March
For 2009 GNU Watches, click on month:
April
May
June
July
August
September
6
Month Review October
November
December
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Psychology
Maziwisa
17 May, 2010
Mugabe's application for leave to persecute
Roy Bennett under the shameful
guise of exercising the 'constitutional right
to appeal' is downright
political mischief and unacceptable. The only
acceptable thing to do right
now is to swear Bennett in.
It is
worrisome beyond words that two years into the inclusive government,
Mugabe
should continue to exhibit such breathtaking insincerity and
unwillingness
to co-operate in what should be a progressive and bi-partisan
effort to
build a new Zimbabwe.
Ironically the very people who have openly and
consistently disregarded the
precepts of our constitution through the
systematic violation of our
constitutional rights today have the audacity to
rely on that very
constitution to justify their evil intentions. This is
hypocrisy of the
highest order!
When the High Court of Zimbabwe
finally acquitted Bennett, Mugabe's devious
time saver Johannes Tomana
indicated that the state would not be opposing
Judge Chinembiri Bhunu's
judgement. For a moment we believed that our hopes
to move the nation
forward were, at least in part, being realised.
No sooner had Zimbabweans
dared to hope than that eloquent charlatan
Jonathan Moyo labelled Bennett as
having been a member of the 'murderous'
Rhodesian army who, 'therefore',
could never be allowed to be a member of
government in a 'free'
Zimbabwe.
The state changed course and lodged an application for leave to
further
persecute Bennett.
Zimbabweans have managed to remove any
residual doubt they may have had
about the motivation for Bennett's trauma
thanks to Moyo who bluntly
revealed ZANU PF's true position "the quandary
has never been a legal one
but rather a political one".
"The question
whether Bennett should be sworn in as deputy minister of
agriculture", Moyo
went on, "has absolutely nothing to do with his acquittal
but his abominable
Rhodesian past. The MDC-T can have Bennett as their
treasurer, agriculture
secretary or even their president, but the majority
of Zimbabweans simply
can't stomach him as a member of their government in
any capacity
whatsoever.''
It really is wishful thinking in the extreme for anyone,
let alone a ZANU PF
parliamentarian who should know better, to suggest that
the widely
discredited ZANU PF enjoys the support of the majority of
Zimbabweans.
One should venture to explain to Moyo that Philip Chiyangwa,
the
multi-millionaire and Mugabe's nephew, was a member of the Rhodesian
military police. David Coltart a distinguished lawyer and now Minister of
Education served, together with Bennett, in the British South Africa Police
service in the 1970s. So why the fuss with Bennett'?
Here is why:
ZANU PF members and apologists are now chicken terrified that
Roy Bennett
would expose, among other things, the aberration of multiple
land ownership.
Indeed he must! Indeed he will!
It is not for Mugabe, Mnangagwa,
Chinamasa or, for that matter, the
politically irrelevant Jonathan Moyo, to
say who the MDC can or cannot
designate for appointment to the cabinet. That
is the prerogative of the MDC
and the MDC alone.
It would be a
regrettable and unpardonable error if the MDC accepted any
portfolio for
Bennett other than that which was initially intended. They
must stay
resolute and should contemptuously refuse to be bullied into
changing their
mind.
If Roy Bennett's mere service in the British South African Police
warrants
an unprecedented perpetual isolation from government activities,
what
penalties should be imposed on those who sanctioned the massacre of
over 20
000 innocent Zimbabweans in Matabeleland during the 1985-86
Gukurahundi
atrocity?
What should Zimbabwe do with those among us
who, in 2005, without prior
notice, demolished the homes of hundreds of
thousands of our most vulnerable
people in a political campaign that
resulted in their displacement and loss
of livelihood, effectively rendering
the bulk of them refugees in their own
country?
What should happen to
those Zimbabweans who, in breach of the very
constitution Mugabe now relies
on to ensure Bennett is persecuted for as
long as possible, erected torture
camps across the country in 2008 and
mercilessly maimed and butchered
innocent people?
The very people who should be facing the music in our
courts, some of them
even at The Hague, are walking freely on our streets.
Indeed a number of
them remain in our government today.
In contrast,
when members and officials of the opposition are charged on the
most bogus
of grounds, not only are they swiftly brought to court, they are
traumatized, persecuted, their rights grossly violated and they are kept on
trial for as long as politically expedient.
Enough of this tyrannical
and racist nonsense! Mugabe has no other
acceptable option but to forthwith
and unconditionally swear in Roy 'Pachedu'
Bennett, a Zimbabwean citizen
beyond question, who has been cleared by the
High Court and whose
subscription to the ideals of democracy and experience
as a successful
commercial farmer will immensely boost our present efforts
to reconstruct
Zimbabwe.
The time has come for Morgan Tsvangirai and the MDC to find
within
themselves the fortitude necessary to tackle Mugabe head on. They
must take
a determined, no-nonsense approach to implementing all the terms
and
conditions of the unity government without compromise.
©
Psychology Maziwisa, LLB, Interim President of the Union for Sustainable
Democracy
leader@usd.org.zw,
www.usd.org.zw
Regards,
P
Maziwisa
Interim President
Union for Sustainable
Democracy