SABC
May 24, 2006,
06:45
South African leaders have called for new efforts to solve
Zimbabwe's
political and economic problems. President Thabo Mbeki has told
British
media everyone is awaiting the outcome of a planned intervention in
Zimbabwe
by Kofi Annan, the UN secretary-general.
Mbeki says Zimbabwe
has agreed to a visit by Annan. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma,
the foreign
minister, has told Margaret Beckett, her British counterpart,
that South
Africa and Britain need to revisit Zimbabwe's problems.
The two ministers
met for the first time since the appointment of Beckett as
the first British
woman foreign secretary a few weeks ago. Opening the
seventh session of the
bilateral forum between the two countries, Beckett
cautioned against losing
focus on the African agenda, pointing to Zimbabwe
as a case that she
described as "having taken a different turn".
Mail & Guardian
London, United Kingdom
24 May 2006
07:21
The United Nations holds the key to solving an economic and
political crisis in Zimbabwe, President Thabo Mbeki told a British newspaper in
an interview published on Wednesday.
South Africa's leader threw his
weight behind a planned visit to Zimbabwe by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan,
who wants to negotiate a deal with the country's ageing President, Robert
Mugabe, The Financial Times said.
Mbeki told the daily: "We are all
awaiting the outcome of his intervention. What Mr Annan is interested in is that
the circumstances must be created for Zimbabwe to face their real problems: the
falling standard of living and so on.
"You have got to do something to
turn around the economy. It is necessary to turn around the climate for
that."
Zimbabwe's government has agreed to a visit by the UN chief and is
making the necessary preparations, according to Mbeki.
"You need to
normalise relations between Zimbabwe and the rest of the world. So [Annan's]
interaction with the Zimbabwean government would be intended for those sort of
outcomes, including what sort of assistance the UN would give," the South
African president said.
A UN official said Annan has been exploring the
possibility of movement on the political and economic front ahead of a possible
visit.
However, he told The Financial Times: "At this stage it would be
premature to talk about an initiative. We are exploring whether there are
possibilities." -- Sapa-AFP
May 24 2006 at 09:40AM
London - The number of people from Zimbabwe claiming asylum in Britain
rose dramatically in the first quarter of the year after a United Kingdom court
ruling barring their deportation.
According to Home Office figures on
Tuesday, Zimbabwean asylum-seeker numbers jumped 96 percent to 755 from January
to March against the previous three months.
The rise has been widely
attributed to a ruling last October from the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal
which barred the deportation of two Zimbabweans, saying that as asylum-seekers
they would be in danger of persecution from the government of President Robert
Mugabe if sent home.
The ruling set a precedent for all such
cases and prompted the government to halt deportations to Zimbabwe pending an
appeal.
But last month the British government, a fierce critic of
Mugabe, who has ruled Zimbabwe since 1980, won that appeal, opening the way to a
resumption of deportations and suggesting future asylum requests might fall in
coming months as fast as they rose.
Overall those claiming asylum,
excluding dependants, in Britain rose five percent in the first quarter of 2006
to 6 455 in contrast to 4 930 removals of people denied asylum.
The
removal figure was up 17 percent on the previous quarter, giving some respite to
the government which has been heavily criticised in recent months over its
handling of asylum-seekers and illegal immigrants.
In March, an
all-party parliamentary committee said the country's asylum policy was being
undermined by its failure to remove thousands of applicants who have no right to
stay.
The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee said that at
current levels it would take between 10 and 18 years to remove the existing
backlog of failed asylum-seekers.
In another blow, the High Court
accused the government this month of "abuse of power" for refusing to allow nine
Afghans who hijacked a plane to Britain to stay in the country as refugees.
According to figures from the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees, Britain was the third most-popular western destination for
asylum-seekers last year behind the United States and the leader, France.
Germany was fourth. - Reuters
This article was
originally published on page 8 of The Mercury on May 24, 2006
People's Daily
Zimbabwe has the capacity to reclaim its
position as the breadbasket of southern Africa if it revitalizes its road,
railway and water infrastructure, an official with the World Bank has said.
World Bank country manager Sudhir Chitale was quoted by the state-run
newspaper The Herald as saying on Wednesday that " Zimbabwe has the potential to
once again reclaim its position as the breadbasket of southern Africa."
Until the 1990s, Zimbabwe had been the breadbasket, but since then it has
been facing difficulties owing to infrastructure breakdown, he added.
The
country's road, railway and water infrastructure needed rehabilitation since
most of it had outlived its life span, Zimbabwean Minister of Transport and
Communications Chris Mushowe said in response to the World Bank official.
Mushowe also urged the outside world to assist in revitalizing the country's
infrastructure which was key to economic development.
Source: Xinhua
May 24 2006 at 09:52AM
Harare - The speed with which Zimbabweans took back their land from
white farmers is "commendable" and Namibia wants to do the same, Namibia's
deputy land minister was quoted as saying on Tuesday.
"We feel that the
speed they took the land is commendable and we would like to see how they did
it," said Isak Katali, who is on a visit to Zimbabwe, according to the
state-owned Herald newspaper.
Zimbabwe launched its controversial
land-reform programme in 2000, and now most of the country's 4 000 formerly
white-owned farms are in the hands of black farmers.
The programme has
sparked Western criticism but won Zimbabwe the praise and admiration of other
countries in southern Africa.
'We feel that the same colonisers
are the same people who colonised Zimbabwe'
"Land reform is important to
Namibia and we feel that the same colonisers are the same people who colonised
Zimbabwe," Katali said.
"We also feel that if Zimbabwe did this we can do
it in the same manner," he added. - Sapa-DPA
This article was originally
published on page 9 of Cape Times on May 24, 2006
Financial Times
By James
Lamont and Quentin Peel in London and Mark Turner at,the United
Nations
Published: May 24 2006 03:00 | Last updated: May 24 2006
03:00
The key to a solution of the political and economic crisis in
Zimbabwe lies
in the hands of the United Nations, President Thabo Mbeki of
South Africa
said yesterday.
In an interview with the Financial
Times, Mr Mbeki threw his weight behind a
planned visit of Kofi Annan, the
UN secretary-general, to Harare, to try to
negotiate a deal with Robert
Mugabe, Zimbabwe's ageing and autocratic
president.
"We are all
awaiting the outcome of his intervention," Mr Mbeki said. "What
Mr Annan is
interested in is that the circumstances must be created for
Zimbabwe to face
their real problems: the falling standard of living, and so
on.
"You
have got to do something to turn around the economy. It is necessary to
turn
around the climate for that."
Mr Mbeki said the Zimbabwean government had
agreed to Mr Annan's visit and
was involved in the necessary
preparations.
"You need to normalise relations between Zimbabwe and the
rest of the world.
So [Mr Annan's] interaction with the Zimbabwean
government would be intended
for those sort of outcomes, including
indicating what sort of assistance the
UN would give."
A UN official
said: "The secretary-general has through emissaries and others
been
exploring whether there is a possibility of movement on the political
and
economic front in Zimbabwe, ahead of a possible visit. At this stage it
would be premature to talk about an initiative. We are exploring whether
there are possibilities."
Local press reports in South Africa have
suggested recently that a deal
might include international aid to rescue the
economy, in exchange for a
deadline from Mr Mugabe for his retirement, with
guarantees of immunity from
prosecution.
Mr Mbeki's comments and
those of his officials represent a clear change of
tone in South Africa's
approach to resolving the Zimbabwean crisis. For
three years they have
insisted on a policy of "quiet diplomacy" that has
failed to bear
fruit.
Privately, Mr Annan has acknowledged the difficulty for African
leaders to
criticise Mr Mugabe, seen in the region as a hero of the
liberation struggle
against white rule in the former
Rhodesia.
Zimbabwe's economy is in precipitous decline with inflation
running at 1,000
per cent in the year to April, leaving many Zimbabweans
unable to buy basic
food supplies. Unemployment is estimated at up to 70 per
cent.
Last week Mr Mugabe reiterated his intention to nationalise
Zimbabwe's
mining sector, which produces what little foreign exchange it
has.
The action follows a controversial land redistribution programme
that took
land from white farmers and installed black peasants..
Mr
Mbeki is in London for bilateral talks with Tony Blair, prime minister,
and
his cabinet. Any aid package for Zimbabwe would rely on substantial
contributions both from the UK and US.
VOA
23 May
2006
Human rights watchdog Amnesty International has slammed
Harare in its 2006
annual report, charging that the Zimbabwean government
has tried to
eliminate the political opposition and silence dissent through
the use of
arbitrary detention, assault and torture by state security
agents, ruling
party militants and youth militia.
Amnesty
International also condemned legislation proposed by Harare that
would
curtail activities of local human rights groups and civil society
organizations.
"The government engaged in widespread and systematic
violations of the
rights to shelter, food, freedom of movement and
residence, and the
protection of the law," stated Amnesty in the report,
citing the May-July
2005 forced resettlement and demolition drive called
Operation Murambatsvina
("Drive Out Rubbish").
"The police continued
to operate in a politically biased manner and police
officers were
implicated in numerous human rights violations, including
arbitrary arrest
and detention, assault, ill-treatment of detainees and
excessive use of
force. Freedom of expression, association and assembly
continued to be
severely curtailed. Hundreds of people were arrested for
holding meetings or
participating in peaceful protests."
Amnesty also took the African Union
to task on the subject of Zimbabwe,
saying that the AU "showed no stomach to
tackle the appalling human rights
situation" there.
But William
Nhara, a public affairs official in the office of President
Robert Mugabe,
told reporter Chinedu Offor of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe
that the Amnesty
report was "false" and that Harare challenges its
"mischievous"
allegations.
National Constitutional Assembly Chairman Lovemore Madhuku
said in an
interview that Amnesty's report is a true reflection of
government's human
rights record.
In response to more recent
allegations of human rights violations, members
of the European Union
diplomatic corps in Harare were to meet on Wednesday,
May 24, with the
leaders of nongovernmental organizations to discuss the
recent arrests of
those marking the first anniversary of Operation
Murambatsvina, and the
round-up since April of thousands of homeless people,
street vendors and
other urban groups.
Spokesman Fambai Ngirande of the National Association
of Nongovernmental
Organisations said Nango member groups on Tuesday set the
agenda for the
meeting with the EU representatives. He said the NGO
community is concerned
about what it terms the "impunity" of the government,
which critics say has
ignored findings by the United Nations and the African
Commission on Human
and People's Rights and routinely violates the country's
own laws on human
rights and civil liberties.
Another agenda item
concerns the state's ongoing internal displacements of
people, most recently
in the detention of thousands of homeless people,
street vendors and orphans
by police and security forces in roundups
conducted since
mid-April.
Land reform, land tenure and general property rights are also
on the agenda.
Finally, said Ngirande, the NGOs want to discuss the
precarious situation of
civic groups in light of the recent police crackdown
on those attempting to
mark the one-year anniversary of Operation
Murambatsvina. Ngirande said the
groups will ask the European Union
diplomats to help them find ways to
resolve such issues.
In a related
development, a spokesperson for the Crisis Coalition in
Zimbabwe said the
group's Kuwadzana, Harare, offices came under police
surveillance on
Tuesday. Crisis Coalition spokeswoman Elizabeth Marunda said
the police were
believed to be seeking group chairman Wellington Chibhebhe
and other
officials for questioning.
Marunda said some of the organization's staff
stayed away from the office
due to the heavy police presence at the
building. The police visited the
Crisis Coalition offices last week on the
eve of the Murambatsvina
anniversary and demanded that the organization
produce its NGO registration
documents.
Coalition advocacy officer
Itai Zimunya said police this week questioned the
Coalition's right to
office space under an arrangement with Transparency
International Zimbabwe
and denied permission to hold a public meeting to
mark the Murambatsvina
anniversary, calling the Crisis Coalition a "bogus"
organization.
Save The Children
date published: 24/05/2006
A new study by Save
the Children highlights the vulnerability of
children from Zimbabwe crossing
into Mozambique in search of food and work.
Many are orphans or simply
unaccompanied and therefore are especially
vulnerable to neglect, abuse and
exploitation.
The survey found that the illegal status of these
children puts them
at risk of labour exploitation. Children take jobs in
agriculture,
construction and petty trades, where they are paid less than
their
Mozambican peers and have no protection under labour laws. Meanwhile
girls,
as young as twelve, are turning to prostitution as a means of
survival.
Indeed local NGOs working in this area report that numbers of
child
prostitutes is on the increase. These children have little or no
access to
an education or health services.
The survey in Manica
province is thought to be the first to look into
this issue. Due to
considerable sensitivity around this problem and the fact
that children and
adults who cross illegally are reluctant to be interviewed
it was extremely
difficult to determine just how many children were
involved. Some sources
estimated 10-15 children per day were entering
Mozambique. An immigration
official spoke of 2-3 thousand people per day
crossing legally, of which a
"considerable number" were children. Given the
porous nature of the border
between the two countries it is possible that
the number of illegal migrants
is higher.
Chris McIvor, Director of Save the Children in
Mozambique is
determined to improve the situation for children crossing the
border into
Mozambique, "Although we were unable to determine just how many
children are
crossing the border it is clear that large numbers of these
children are
alone and extremely vulnerable. More needs to be done, both in
terms of
research and assistance, if we're to stop children being exploited
and
abused as they take desperate measures to escape poverty and hunger at
home".
Save the Children urgently called for more research into the
issue of
child migration and trafficking both from Zimbabwe and Mozambique
into other
countries in the region, as well as better provision of
assistance and
services, such as child reception centres, along the various
borders.
From Zim Online (SA), 24 May
Masvingo - Only 10 tonnes of maize will be harvested in Masvingo
province out of the10 000 tonnes that were expected under an army-run food
production programme, in a vivid illustration of how President Robert Mugabe's
latest agricultural initiative has flopped. Mugabe, who is accused of wrecking
Zimbabwe's mainstay agricultural sector through his farm seizure policy, last
year told Parliament that his government would pursue a new Stalinist-style
command agriculture programme under which military commanders and their troops
would move onto mostly former white-owned farms to produce food. The 82-year old
President said the programme, officially known as Operation Food Security (or
Operation Maguta/Inala in the vernacular Shona and Ndebele languages) would
bring an end to acute hunger stalking Zimbabwe since farm seizures began six
years ago. But Vice-President Joice Mujuru was so disgusted that she would not
even finish inspecting the army-cultivated fields in Masvingo after seeing that
nearly all the crops were a total write-off.
Mujuru was in Masvingo to assess
the food production programme which the government said would see selected farms
across the country produce specific quantities of strategic crops such as maize,
wheat and tobacco. A livid Mujuru, who cut short her inspection after viewing
generally wilted crops at the giant Nuanetsi Ranch, castigated officials from
the government's Agricultural Development Authority (ARDA) for failing to
supervise the project. "This is a disaster," said a visibly angry Mujuru. "How
can the whole province fail to produce half of the projected yields?" she said,
asking no one in particular. A senior official with the ARDA, who refused to be
named, told Zim Online that out of the 10 000 tonnes of maize the government
expected to harvest in Masvingo, only 10 tonnes probably enough to feed two
small-sized families would be harvested in the province. "We are going to
harvest only 10 tonnes from the whole project in Masvingo which is a clear
indication that it was a flop. With proper planning, this project could have
helped the nation," he said.
Zimbabwe has battled severe food shortages
since 2000 after Mugabe sanctioned the violent seizure of white-owned farms for
redistribution to landless blacks, a controversial policy that saw food
production tumbling by about 60 percent, chiefly because the cash-strapped
government did not give inputs and back-up support to black peasants resettled
on former white farms. A grinding economic crisis described by the World Bank as
unseen in a country not at war, only helped worsen hunger in Zimbabwe with many
families without income to buy the little food available in shops. Only the
timely intervention of international food agencies has helped Zimbabwe escape
mass starvation over the last six years. But Mugabe, eager to portray his land
reforms as successful, rejects destroying agriculture and says food shortages
are as a result of a combination of drought and Western sanctions that have
crippled the economy making it difficult for farmers to access inputs.
In
Masvingo, the provincial governor, Willard Chiwewe, attributed the failure of
the latest state agricultural project on failure by senior government officials
to effectively supervise the food production project. "We did not supervise the
project on a daily basis that is why it failed," Chiwewe told Zim Online.
Reports from other provinces also say not much will be harvested under Operation
Food Security for a variety of reasons including theft of farm equipment from
the army-operated farms committed by powerful government politicians. For
example, the deputy commander of the army's 3 Brigade Ronnie Mutizhe, recently
told Mujuru that not much would be harvested at Kondozi farm in the eastern
Manicaland province and one of the biggest estates in the country after six
officials, among them State Security Minister Didymus Mutasa and Agriculture
Minister Joseph Made, looted equipment from the farm.
By a
Correspondent
Association of Zimbabwe Journalists in the UK
LONDON
– THE British government today said it will continue to exert, mobilise and
maintain international pressure for change in Zimbabwe.
Former Defence
Secretary, Geoffrey Hoon, speaking in his new capacity as Minister of Europe
told parliament that during the past six months, the UK government has worked
with its European Union partners to maintain travel, financial and military
sanctions on President Mugabe and his senior officials, ensured that the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) kept Zimbabwe from getting essential support,
kept Zimbabwe under scrutiny by the Security Council, worked with the UN
Secretary-General, Kofi Annan to address Zimbabwe's governance problems and,
with the US and leading allies to maintain international pressure for change.
“We will sustain that pressure,” Hoon said in response to a question by
the Conservative MP for Macclesfield, Sir Nicholas Winterton. The
parliamentarian wanted to know what recent action the British government has
taken to influence world opinion on the situation in Zimbabwe.
''During the
past six months, the Government have worked with our EU partners to maintain
travel, financial and military sanctions on the Mugabe regime; ensured that the
International Monetary Fund keeps Zimbabwe suspended; kept Zimbabwe under
scrutiny by the Security Council; worked with the UN Secretary-General to
address Zimbabwe's governance problems; and, with the US and leading allies,
maintained international pressure for change,” said Hoon.
Sir Winterton
asked the Minister whether he agreed with the United Nations, which he said
reflected world opinion that Zimbabwe is in meltdown with 700,000 people losing
their jobs and homes as a result of Operation Murambatsvina, inflation at more
than 1 000 percent, unemployment at 80 per cent and 70 percent of the population
having only one meal or less per day. He also wanted to know whether the British
government had a new agenda to use world opinion to remove from brutality and
deprivation the good people of Zimbabwe.
"I agree with the honourable
gentleman about the appalling state of affairs in Zimbabwe,” said Hoon. “That is
entirely the responsibility of the Mugabe regime. I set out to the House the
range of measures over which the Government have influence in informing world
opinion, both through the EU and the UN, to keep the pressure on that regime.
Change can come only from inside Zimbabwe, and we want to see that change in the
interests of the people of that country.”
Kate Hoey (Vauxhall Labour), asked
whether the British government had protested to the European Commission when
the EU Humanitarian Aid and Development Commissioner met the Zimbabwean Finance
Minister, Herbert Murerwa in Brussels recently. “He was given a visa-perhaps,
technically, he was allowed to have one-but surely his meeting with the
commissioner goes against the whole spirit of the European Union sanctions. It
sends out the message that, if the European Union will meet Zimbabwe, why should
the African Union not do so?,” asked Hoey, who has led a sustained campaign
against Zanu PF rule in Zimbabwe.
Said Hoon in response: “I know that my
hon. Friend has taken a long and sustained interest in the situation in
Zimbabwe, and I know from her observations in the House of her personal
commitment to trying to resolve the appalling situation faced by the people of
Zimbabwe. That is really the issue. Clearly, we want to see sustained pressure
on the regime and further international action to isolate Mugabe's leadership.
At the same time, we have no quarrel whatever with the people of Zimbabwe, and
we need to continue to find effective ways to allow food aid in particular to
reach them. Above all, the tragedy of Zimbabwe is that it was the country that
fed many other countries of southern Africa over a long period, and it is now
incapable of feeding itself. We need to ensure that we do not take action that
further damages the interests of the people of that country.’
Meanwhile
opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, who is on a tour of Europe to meet
strategic partners, politicians and Zimbabweans in the diaspora, will address a
press conference at the House of Commons on Friday. He will also address two
meetings in Leeds and London where he will meet Zimbabweans living in the UK.
The Zanu PF government blames him and the MDC for calling on the international
community to impose sanctions against the ruling leadership.
SABC
Zimbabwe agrees to Annan brokering a peace deal
Zimbabwe and the MDC have welcomed Koffi Annan as a peace broker to answer to their crises |
The Zimbabwean government and the Movement of Democratic Change (MDC), the
main opposition, seem to agree on Kofi Annan, the United Nations
secretary-general, as a peace broker and an answer to Zimbabwe's melting
economy. This is just hours after President Thabo Mbeki told a London newspaper,
the Financial Times that Annan carried all the hopes of resolving
Zimbabwe's problems.
These problems include a runaway inflation of over
1000%, a crippling shortage of forex and lack of economic confidence.
Speculation is that part of Annan's mission will be to negotiate an exit plan
for Robert Mugabe, the Zimbabwean president, was torn to pieces today by Bright
Matonga, the deputy minister of information, who said Mugabe's exit plan lies in
Zimbabwe's electoral process. Matonga says: "He is welcome but he has to be his
own man. But we have confidence in him."
Efforts to diffuse political
tensions and prevent an economic meltdown have yielded little by President Mbeki
and Olusegun Obassanjo, his Nigerian counterpart. No dates have been given as
yet for Annan's visit, but it's certain to take place before the end of the
year.
Zimbabwe Fails to Provide Promised Homes for Displaced | |
Harare 24 May 2006 |
In May 2005 the Zimbabwean government launched a blitz on informal businesses and unauthorized housing, making thousands homeless when their houses were razed. A year later some are still homeless, despite government promises to build them homes.
This man and his family live in an abandoned van, after the Zimbabwean government demolished their home |
Some of those are residents of The Hatcliffe Extension settlement just outside Harare.
Prior to the demolition it was home to 15,000 people. They had paid for and were allocated stands by the government in 1991. The authorities provided the wooden cabins they lived in. Those who had the means were putting up brick structures.
After their homes were razed, despite showing the police their lease documents, they were taken to a holding camp. After some weeks, and proving they were at Hatcliffe legally, they were taken back to what used to be their homes.
For shelter, the government promised every household four asbestos sheets and poles to make a 3x5 meter shed, regardless of family size. They were told that using plastic sheeting or any other material to wall off the structure was not allowed, because that would create a shantytown.
VOA recently visited the settlement to find that the government has provided only a few incomplete houses to some residents and building stopped at the end of last year. The houses have no doors, no windows and no floors.
Some without houses have benefited from a Catholic Church funded project, which is putting up plastic structures under corrugated steel sheets. The remainder are using whatever they can find to build shelter. Old plastic sheeting is the most used material.
Many of the residents who were employed or involved in the informal sector lost their jobs last year and are struggling to make ends meet. One of them who worked as a builder shares a flimsy structure with his wife and seven children. He expressed despair at the situation.
"We do not expect the government to build homes for us anymore, they have admitted they do not have any more money," he said. "We hear of donor organizations, which want to come and help, but we do not know if that is true."
Hatcliffe residents told VOA that disease is a problem in the settlement, which has no running water, electricity or toilets. Exposure to the elements worsens the situation; first it was the winter, then the hot summer and rainy season, now with a second winter looming the man's wife fears for the worst.
"A lot of the children get colds because of over exposure," she noted.
The World Food Program, through non-governmental organizations, is providing food for some of the displaced.
Leonard Karemba a spokesperson for Christian Care, one of the organizations helping the people, says they are assisting people at 12 centers in Harare.
"All in all, in Harare urban, we are assisting a total of 25,761 people," said Leonard Karemba.
Zimbabwe authorities say the blitz was meant to clean up urban areas. It also ostensibly targeted those it said were involved in criminal activities, black marketing of scarce basic commodities, and illegal dealing in foreign currency. But licensed traders and home industries were also destroyed.
A report by U.N. Special Envoy Anna Tibaijuka, who was sent to assess the impact of the exercise, condemned the government action. Jan Egeland, another U.N. envoy, agreed with the Tibaijuka report, but their findings were met with hostility and dismissed by the Zimbabwean government.
The government spurned offers of assistance, which included providing tents and basic brick and asbestos structures. It said it wanted permanent structures and did not want to give the impression that its citizens are refugees.
The local United Nations office could not confirm recent media reports that an agreement on a shelter design has been reached between the U.N. and the government.
Washington 24 May 2006 |
South Africa's Department of Home Affairs has refused to grant political asylum to Roy Bennett, a Zimbabwean opposition politician who was imprisoned for eight months in 2004-2005 for shoving a minister in parliament and fled the country earlier this year after authorities said he had conspired to assassinate President Robert Mugabe.
Bennett filed an application for political asylum in South Africa, and said he intended to continue while in exile to serve as the treasurer of the Movement for Democratic Change faction led by founding MDC President Morgan Tsvangirai.
But Bennett said he received a letter from the Home Affairs Department saying asylum was refused because his life would not be in danger if he returned to Zimbabwe. The letter acknowledged that Zimbabwean police had been "overzealous" at times, but that Zimbabwe's judicial system was usual "impartial," citing Tsvangirai's acquittal in late 2004 on charges of treason and plotting to assassinate President Mugabe.
Bennett told reporter Patience Rusere of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe that he saw the South African decision refusing him asylum as politically motivated.