The Zimbabwe Situation

http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=25060

November 15, 2009

By Our Correspondent

HARARE - The three principals in Zimbabwe's troubled coalition government
met Friday to initiate the process of finding a solution to outstanding
issues threatening to torpedo the inclusive government.
President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Deputy Prime
Minister Arthur Mutambara met at an undisclosed venue on Friday to set the
rules of engagement, our source says.

Friday's meeting was the first meeting after the Maputo crisis summit on
November 5, chaired by President Armando Guebuza of Mozambique, the SADC
Organ Troika chairperson and the full compliment of the troika. The Zimbabwe
Times understands during their meeting on Friday, the three GNU principals
made presentations on how the negotiators will tackle the task ahead of them
in order to meet the 30-day timeline set by the Troika.

The negotiators of the three parties were due to hold their first meeting
possibly on Monday, November 16, to start the process. On November 21, the
facilitator, President Jacob Zuma, will visit Harare to assess progress and
offer assistance to the parties if necessary.

And by December 6, the facilitator will again assess progress and report to
President Guebuza, who will decide on the way forward - which could be
further assistance from or intervention by the Organ Troika. The Troika did
not decide in Maputo that failure to reach complete agreement will mean a
full SADC Summit, but this is a further possibility, informed sources say.

Friday's meeting was in line with the Troika recommendations that all
political parties signatory to the GPA should engage in dialogue with
immediate effect within 15 days, which dialogue should include a review of
all the outstanding issues emanating from the implementation of GPA and SADC
Communiqué of 27 January 2009.

The source said: "The meeting was meant to set the rules of engagement and
the agenda for negotiators who will tentatively resume talks early next
week."

The principals will be guided by the Troika communiqué which urged full
compliance with the letter and spirit, not just of the GPA, but also with
the decisions of the SADC Summit of January 27. That communiqué refers
specifically to the issues of provincial governors, the Attorney-General and
the Governor of the Reserve Bank and issues around the National Security
Council, which has met only once, four months ago, since formation of the
inclusive government in February.

Speaking during a question and answer session in Parliament on Thursday,
Mutambara said the momentum might have been lost but it was regained in
Maputo.

"Zimbabweans have now decided once again to work and fight together, by
realising that at this juncture in the history of our country, we are going
to swim or sink together," Mutambara said. "It is important that we retain
this momentum for the Zimbabwe nation to move forward, we are working
together now after Maputo and we are going to address all the outstanding
issues."

Mutambara said the matters that were raised by mainstream MDC of Prime
Minister Tsvangirai, which led to the party's boycott of Cabinet, were
"sincere reasons and genuine reasons which must be addressed," he said amid
interjections from Zanu-PF backbenchers.

He proceeded: "Those issues being raised by Zanu-PF that - (the MDC is
running) a parallel government, parallel independence are sincere grievances
which must be addressed," he said, now amid interjections from the MDC
benches.

"What this means when we say we do not want to fight each other, we stand as
men and women with a national interest. When we say find each other, we need
to find answers to provincial governors, find answers to (Reserve Bank
governor Gideon) Gono and (Attorney General Johannes) Tomana, find answers
to the media but at the same time find answers to the solutions and this
must be implemented concurrently and simultaneously."

Mutambara said dialogue was the only way to implement and get the country
back on track "and we are doing so with seriousness and robustness".

Zanu-PF has also raised its own outstanding issues around the lifting of
restrictive measures imposed by Western nations on Mugabe and his allies,
the need to shut down so-called pirate radio stations beaming into Zimbabwe
from abroad, external interference and what the so-called parallel
government established by the MDC.

Tsvangirai has said he has no power to lift the sanctions imposed on MDC
leaders.

"I must underline that Morgan Tsvangirai is not personally accountable,
neither is the MDC as a party accountable for the removal of sanctions,"
Tsvangirai said.

"This issue in terms of the GPA is a collective responsibility. Zimbabwe's
isolation is a collective responsibility. It should not be apportioned to
any particular party, let us approach it from that angle. The other thing on
radio stations is that once the (Zimbabwe Media Commission) ZMC is in place
you make the parallel market irrelevant."

Mutambara urged dialogue among the political parties, saying every leader in
the government, the President, Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister were a
function of the GPA, their roles and their legitimacy derived from there.

"Coming to my colleagues from MDC-T, I hear you, I share the concerns and I
agree with the concerns," Mutambara said. "However, in the absence of the
inclusive government, if this government collapses, you cannot at all have
free and fair elections in this country without a new constitution, without
national healing, without recovering the economy, without political reforms
and media reforms."

"Meaning, we must stick it out in this government, create conditions for
free and fair elections, build a new constitution, heal the nation, recover
the economy, media reforms and also political reforms, maybe then can we
have a free and fair election."

Tsvangirai's MDC has said if the talks collapse, it wants fresh, free and
fair UN-supervised elections.

But Mutambara told Parliament: "To say we are going to have an UN-supervised
election is a dream. It is not attainable. If I, as a Deputy Prime Minister
cannot bring the Rapporteur of Torture into Zimbabwe, how can I get a UN
supervised election? Let us be serious, let us work together. We are going
to swim or sink together."

This week will be crucial, observers say.

SADC demands Gono's dismissal to save Zimbabwe GNU

http://www.zimguardian.com/?p=1513

Written by SIMOMO TSHUMA Top Stories Nov 15, 2009

SOUTHERN African Development Community (Sadc) ministerial team that assessed
the implementation of Zimbabwe's troubled power-sharing arrangement
recommended that Reserve Bank governor Gideon Gono should be reassigned to
save the coalition government from collapse.
The recommendations by the brokers of last year's Global Political Agreement
(GPA) were given to the members of the Sadc troika on politics, defence and
security who met in Mozambique on November 5 to deal with the Zimbabwe
crisis.
They also set the tone for the negotiations between the three coalition
partners, Zanu PF and the two MDC formations due to start this week as
directed by the mini Sadc summit.
The ministers from Swaziland, Zambia and Mozambique who met separately with
President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, Deputy Prime
Minister Arthur Mutambara and several other stakeholders between October 29
and 30 identified Gono's continued stay at the RBZ as one of the biggest
threats to the unity government.
The ministers said: "The governor of the Reserve Bank should be assigned to
another position as a way of conversion."
Zanu PF had told the assessment team that Gono's tenure was not an
outstanding issue as claimed by the MDC-T because his post was not included
in the GPA.
But Sadc heads of state who met in South Africa on January 27 and convinced
Tsvangirai to join the inclusive government the following month said Gono
and Tomana's appointments must be reviewed by the new government.
A communiqué issued after the Mozambique meeting said: "The parties should
fully comply with the spirit and letter of the GPA and Sadc summit decisions
of 27 January 2009."
One of the negotiators confirmed that Gono's reassignment would be top on
the agenda when the negotiations, which according to a strict Sadc timeline
must be concluded by month-end, resume.
"He is not going to be put anywhere near finance, actually he must not even
be seen in a tuckshop," said the source. "He has done his part, let him give
others a chance to do the job."
In a surprising turn of events, Zanu-PF spokesperson Ephraim Masawi said the
party was not interested in what will happen to Gono who has been defended
by Mugabe on several occasions.
"Gono is just a governor to the RBZ. Whether he goes or stays, it does not
affect Zanu-PF," Masawi said.
"He is not a member of the Zanu-PF central committee. I have been in Zanu PF
for a long time and I have never seen him attending any central committee
meeting."
MDC-T spokesperson, Nelson Chamisa said he could not comment on the latest
developments.
As a way forward, the Sadc ministers also recommended that Tsvangirai's
status as Prime Minister should be reviewed, with suggestions that he must
have direct access to Mugabe.
They also spoke about the need for Sadc and the African Union to campaign
for the removal of sanctions against Zimbabwe, for the parties to work
together to stop external influence and create an internal mechanism to
solve problems.
It has also emerged that Mugabe told the ministers that if "MDC-T does not
campaign vigorously for the removal of the sanctions, Zanu PF will not move
on the issue of governors."
This was contrary to commitments by the ageing leader that the parties would
share the posts of governors according to their performance in last year's
elections.
He also said MDC-T treasurer Roy Bennett would be sworn in once he is
cleared of "criminal charges against him".
On the other hand Tsvangirai said the removal of sanctions was a collective
responsibility and that where the parties disagree, a facilitator must be
called in.
South African President Jacob Zuma was asked by the Sadc mini-summit to
assess the progress towards the fulfilment of the outstanding issues before
month-end.
MDC-T also wants the appointment of permanent secretaries to be dealt with
while Zanu PF says it wants an end to the regime change agenda by the
international community, the closure of pirate radio stations and that MDC-T
must close "parallel government structures".

116 cholera cases, fresh outbreak feared

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk


      Written by STAFF REPORTER
      Saturday, 14 November 2009 15:02
      HARARE - The World Health Organisation says a cumulative 116 cholera
cases have been reported in Zimbabwe since August, killing at least five
people as fears abound of another deadly outbreak of the disease that
claimed more than 4 000 lives between August 2008 and last July.

      WHO said 14 new cases and two deaths were reported last week as the
disease ravages nine of the country's 62 districts.
      "A cumulative 116 cases with five deaths have been reported in nine
out of 62 districts in the country," WHO said.
      News of the increased cholera cases came as aid agencies and the
Zimbabwe government made contingency plans for an anticipated deterioration
in the country's humanitarian situation until June 2010.
      According to an Inter-Agency Contingency Plan prepared by aid agencies
under the auspices of the United Nations' Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), aid agencies are on standby to respond to an
expected surge in cholera cases this year amid indications that the
availability of clean drinking water may not have improved.
      It is estimated that between 100 000 and 125 000 people could be
infected with the water-borne disease this year compared to 2008 when it
affected nearly 100 000 people.
      The agencies are also forecasting a surge in cases of the deadly H1N1
virus or swine flu during the next seven months as Zimbabweans continue to
travel within the region in search of economic refuge.
      They project that the number of people with swine flu could rise from
12 currently to 125 by June 2010 unless something is done to stem the tide
of Zimbabweans crossing into South Africa and other neighbouring countries.
      The aid agencies have also warned of a likely scenario where between
two and 2.8 million people would require food assistance until the next
harvest in March 2010.
      In the worst-case scenario, the aid agencies are budgeting for between
three and five million people applying for food handouts during the peak
hunger period around between January and March 2010.
      Zimbabwe is forecast to record a poor harvest during the 2009/10
farming season as weather experts warn of a lurking moderate El Nino
conditions across the Pacific Ocean which are associated with dry conditions
across southern Africa.

MP wants national heroes law changed

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk


      Written by GIFT PHIRI
      Saturday, 14 November 2009 14:47
      HARARE - MDC legislator Magalela Felix Sibanda has moved a motion in
Parliament calling for changes to the National Heroes Act to allow the
setting up of a non-partisan committee to determine and confer national hero
status on deserving citizens.

      Presently President Robert Mugabe and the politburo of his Zanu (PF)
party decide on who to declare national hero, a situation that has seen
several deserving citizens not being recognised as heroes despite making
immense contribution to the national cause.
      Zanu (PF) has also used its unilateral powers to confer national hero
status on some dubious characters most of them allies or members of Mugabe's
party.
      Sibanda has proposed changing Chapter 10:16 of the National Heroes Act
that empowers Mugabe to designate any citizen he considers deserving of the
title as a national, provincial or district hero of Zimbabwe.
      The MDC legislator's motion calls for the setting up of a committee to
find out how a non-partisan body could be established and mandated to
determine and confer hero status on all deserving citizens across the
political divide.
      The motion also calls recognition of other deserving citizens from
other sectors such as industry, commerce, business, sports, farming, mining,
medicine and education instead of reserving the accolade for those who
played a leading role during the country's liberation struggle.
      Sibanda's motion comes amid recriminations between MDC and Zanu (PF)
over respect for national heroes with Mugabe's party accusing Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai of snubbing the recent burial of liberation war veteran
Misheck Chando at the national hero's acre shrine.
      Tsvangirai did not attend the burial of the national hero saying he
was not consulted when the decision to confer hero status on Chando was
made.

ZANU PF infighting continues

http://www.zimguardian.com/?p=1518

Written by Farai Masawi Politics Nov 15, 2009

FACTIONALISM was evident at yesterday's nominations of members for the Zanu
PF presidium and central committee with at least four provinces failing to
reach a consensus on the top four posts.
Tension reached fever pitch in Mashonaland West where there were violent
scenes leading to the arrest of at least 12 people.

In Bulawayo there were attempts to block some members of a district
co-ordinating committee from participating in the nominations where John
Nkomo has emerged as the front-runner for the second vice-presidency.
President Robert Mugabe was nominated unopposed in all provinces, while his
deputy Joice Mujuru now has a fight on her hands after Masvingo province
nominated women's league boss Oppah Muchinguri.
Mujuru was unopposed in Matabeleland South, Matabeleland North, Mashonaland
West, Manicaland and Harare.
But the other contenders for the two remaining positions in the presidium
had to keep their fingers crossed as there were a few surprises.
The Midlands postponed the nominations to Saturday after some members raised
concern that most people at the party's grassroots structures had not been
given a chance to participate.
But it is understood the delay could have been a deliberate way of waiting
for indicators from the other provinces.
In Matabeleland North, Mugabe was nominated unopposed but the province
failed to agree on the choice for the second VP and national chairman,
resulting in the submission of two names for each of the positions.
John Nkomo and Naison Khutshwekhaya Ndlovu's names were submitted for the
VP, while Mines Minister Obert Mpofu and Zimbabwe's Ambassador to South
Africa Simon Khaya Moyo were nominated for the chairmanship.
The province also witnessed one of the many dramatic developments: the
nomination of Jonathan Moyo into Central Committee.

The former Minister of Information was dropped by Mugabe during Zanu PF's
2005 congress after he was nominated by the Tsholotsho following allegations
that he had led a revolt against Mujuru's elevation.
In Matabeleland South, provincial chairman Andrew Langa confirmed they had
nominated Nkomo for VP, while Khaya Moyo was nominated for the chairmanship.
Nkomo garnered 69 votes, against Ndlovu's 41. Khaya Moyo beat Home Affairs
co-Minister, Kembo Mohadi and Mpofu.
"Everyone is happy with the outcome of the elections, which we conducted
through a secret ballot," Langa said.
Another surprise was in Masvingo, where Muchinguri trounced Mujuru by 84
votes to 25.

The province nominated Nkomo for the other VP position and Mohadi for the
chairmanship.
In other provinces, the process took off late in the afternoon and the
meetings were still in progress at the time of going to press.
Officials confirmed they were waiting for the outcome from the Matabeleland
provinces, which were initially given the preserve to nominate the VP.
Harare provincial chairman Amos Midzi said they had endorsed Mugabe and
Mujuru, but did not finalise the other two presidium positions.
"We are still waiting for indications from the Matabeleland provinces. They
will guide our nomination," Midzi said.
The same happened in Mashonaland West.
"We endorsed President Mugabe and VP Mujuru, but for the other two presidium
positions we have to wait for indications from the Matabeleland provinces to
maintain the spirit that has always been there," said Local Government
Minister Ignatious Chombo, a politburo member from the province.
Manicaland province endorsed Mugabe, Mujuru and Nkomo and also nominated
Didymus Mutasa for the position of chairman.
"All these were nominated unopposed. No one had a different view in
Manicaland," said former legislator Enock Porusingazi.
Zanu PF is divided into three distinct factions led by Mugabe, Defence
Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa and retired army general Solomon Mujuru and the
infighting is set to intensify ahead of next month's congress where the
nominations for both the central committee and the presidium will be
endorsed.

Soldiers Beat Man Over Constitution T-Shirt

http://www.radiovop.com


      Darwendale, November 15, 2009 - Three uniformed soldiers here beat a
civilian for wearing an Anti-Kariba Draft Constitution T-shirt on Saturday
and left him unconscious.

      The T-Shirts were distributed by a Harare Non-Governmental
Organisation, Crisis Coalition recently when it held its 2009 People's
Convention meeting in Harare.

      The Civic society in Zimbabwe is against the adoption of the Kariba
Draft Constitution as the new constitution of Zimbabwe before Zimbabweans
are given a chance to debate and contribute to it. The draft was adopted by
the three political parties in Zimbabwe, the two Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) formations and Zanu PF, prior to the setting up of a new unity
government in February. However MDC has agreed to have the draft further
discussed by Zimbabweans before coming with a final constitution but Zanu PF
has been campaigning against the move, saying there was nothing wrong in
adopting the draft as it is.

      Zimbabwe needs a new constitution before it holds fresh elections to
replace the inclusive government, which was set up with the aid of the
Southern African Development Community (SADC).

      The man was wearing a "No to Kariba Draft" T-shirt when he was
approached by the soldiers who demanded to know what message he was trying
to give by putting on such a T-shirt. "Who do you want to see in power,
now that you are against President Mugabe and ZANU-PF here and what do
you intend to achieve with your T-shirt in this area? asked the
soldiers. "We want to teach you a lesson in front of your friends and
we want you to know that we are in-charge," said the soldiers before
tearing the man's T-shirt and beating him up using booted feet and open
hands.

      Most patrons, at the beer drinking place, where the incident took
place, took to their heels, fearing for their lives. The man was left
unconscious after the intervention of a bar attendant.

      Darwendale, north west of Harare, and a stronghold area for Zanu PF,
was once dominated by white commercial farms before the chaotic land
invasions of 2000.

      Last week in Masvingo soldiers were holding meetings with villagers,
urging them to adopt the draft constitution as there was no need for further
debate.Zanu PF youth were allegedly said to be forcing people to attend the
meetings.

      President Robert Mugabe (85), who was at the weekend nominated for the
post of President by his Zanu PF party, is widely believed to have lost to
Prime Minister and leader of the main MDC faction, Morgan Tsvangirai in the
2008 Presidential election.

Billy Rautenbach goes into hiding

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk


      Written by Zimbabwe mail
      Sunday, 15 November 2009 18:07
      JOHANNESBURG - Zimbabwe defence Minister, Emmerson Mnangagwa's
business front-man Billy Rautenbach has gone into hiding to avoid testifying
in the corruption trial of former police chief Jackie Selebi, reports from
South Africa said.

      Reports from South Africa said that prosecutor Gerrie Nel and his team
were trying "frantically" to find Rautenbach amid reports that Zimbabwean
authorities and former South African President Thabo Mbeki have asked the
rogue businessman not to turn up for court proceedings or risk 'unspecified
actions'.

      Last week, Judge Meyer Joffe adjourned court proceedings in the
Johannesburg High Court at Nel's request because of "difficulty" in
consulting witnesses.

      "There is difficulty I have had with consulting the next three
witnesses... to prepare them for court," said Nel. "I would require the
court to stand down."

      Nel said not all the witnesses were in the country and he also had to
consult certain legal teams.

      On Sunday, National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesman Mthunzi
Mhaga refused to comment on the matter.

      Rautenbach, who lives in Zimbabwe, spent almost a decade on the run
before entering into a plea-sentence agreement with the NPA on tax evasion
charges on September 16, just 16 days before the start of Selebi's trial.

      Under the deal, Rautenbach, as a director of SA Botswana Hauliers,
agreed to pay a fine of R40 million on 326 counts of fraud.

      Convicted drug trafficker Glenn Agliotti testified that Rautenbach
paid him USD100,000 (about R743,500) as an alleged bribe for Selebi to
assist him with his run-ins with the law.

      Agliotti said Selebi, who was also president of international police
body Interpol, was to check whether there were any international warrants
out for the then fugitive Rautenbach.
      Former South African National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) boss
Bulelani Ngcuka was named in the Jackie Selebi trial with revelations
linking him to Zimbabwe's spy agents and the shady deals in mineral rights.
      Selebi's defence quizzed state witness Glenn Agliotti on a letter he
handed Selebi which alleged that Ngcuka was being controlled by foreign
intelligence agencies (believed to be Zimbabwe's Central Intelligence
Organisation) and that they were blackmailing him.
      Bulelani Ngcuka was former South African President Thabo Mbeki's close
ally and his wife Mlambo-Ngcuka was Deputy President.
      The issue of Mbeki's quite-diplomacy as a means to Zimbabwean and DRC
mineral rights has been whispered in the Zimbabwean political conspiracy
theories without any clear hint. Thabo Mbeki protected Robert Mugabe and
without him, he would have been history.
      "I will not go into detail on what the blackmailing was about, but do
you agree that this is what is in the letter," asked defence counsel
advocate Jaap Cilliers.
      The letter was from Billy Rautenbach, one of the top businessmen
Agliotti solicited money from with the promise that his good friend Selebi
could help them avoid prosecution for their criminal activities.
      The letter also stated that Ngcuka had tried to extort a bribe from
Rautenbach, whom he was investigating for tax evasion and money laundering.
He allegedly wanted Rautenbach to assist him with securing rights for mining
deals in Zimbabwe and the DRC in exchange for an investigation against him
being abandoned.
      That information was given to Selebi, who was police commissioner at
the time, with the hope that he would help make the charges against
Rautenbach disappear.
      The defence is now trying to prove that Selebi had no intention of
helping Rautenbach but was rather interested on the information he gave him
concerning Ngcuka.
      "Do you agree that the accused was more interested on the document
about the Ngcuka issue? That he never got back to you about helping
Rautenbach?" asked Cilliers.
      Agliotti replied with a yes to both questions.
      He is currently being cross examined in the trial of corruption and
defeating the ends of justice against Selebi. Agliotti said he had given
Selebi money in exchange for favours.
      Earlier, a tearful Glenn Agliotti told the South Gauteng High Court on
Thursday that he made payments of about R1-million to former top cop Jackie
Selebi for "friendship" and "business" reasons.

      "I made payments to the accused because, firstly, we were friends and
I needed him in my business deals," the convicted drug dealer said at the
former police commissioner's corruption trial.

      Agliotti also said he needed Selebi in his dealings with slain mining
magnate Brett Kebble and his associates, from whom he had requested a
$1-million "consultancy fee" for access to Selebi.

      "He did help me with three reports he showed me."

      Selebi showed Agliotti reports that he was being monitored by United
Kingdom officials for drug trafficking.

      Earlier, Agliotti broke down while state prosecutor Gerrie Nel was
questioning him about an affidavit signed in January this year, in which he
criticised the way in which the Scorpions were handling his case.

      "My Lord, it's not easy being here ... I didn't want to be here to
testify against my then-friend and the accused," said Agliotti, before Judge
Meyer Joffe adjourned proceedings to allow him to compose himself.

      Speaking after the adjournment, Agliotti told the court the affidavit
was handed over to former intelligence boss Manala Manzini, deputy director
general of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) Arthur Fraser and police
commissioner Mulangi Mphego.
      "I wanted somebody to hear my side of the story ... in order to try to
secure a deal for myself," said Agliotti.

Army being used to invade farms

http://nehandaradio.com

Published on: 15th November, 2009

By Thulani Ncube

Before the ink has dried on papers signed at the special 5 November 2009,
Southern African Development Community (SADC) summit, held in Maputo , to
salvage Zimbabwe 's troubled Global Political Agreement (GPA), farm
invasions have escalated.

Illustratively, Shurugwi farmer, Mr. John Anderson is the latest victim. As
SADC leaders met in Maputo , two rogue squads joined hands to attack and
takeover Anderson 's Corrongemite Farm.

One gang comprised a group of six who had come to help ZANU fanatic and
ZIMASCO (Pvt) Ltd, Health Manager, Mr. Farai Marikano, seize the remaining
portion of land. The other was a band of partisan cops sent to reinforce
Marikano's mob. The police men were getting direct orders from the Officer
in Charge, Shurugwi Police Station.

On 7 November 2009, three farm employees were seized, handcuffed and thrown
into custody at Gweru Rural Police Station. Six others were forcibly taken
as state witnesses. The labourers were arrested for attempting to return
Anderson 's cattle that had been driven by invaders onto Marikano's portion
of land.

While returning the herd to Corrongemite Farm, the workers were apprehended
by Marikano's men and taken prisoner. However, investigations reveal that
last year, Marikano made several futile attempts to grab some of Anderson 's
cattle.

After the beatings meted out by cops, the employees who were arrested were
forced to eat while handcuffed. Their repeated pleas to remove the handcuffs
were ignored.

Furthermore, while ordering the workers, police officers shouted on top of
their voices saying, "Gara pasi", which means, "sit down". The bad
"treatment was meant to degrade the inmates and puncture their self esteem,
"said a friend who visited the police station.

The invaders are aiming to dispossess Mr. Anderson and acquire his
Corrongemite Farm for Mr. Marikano. The latter has co-existed with the
former for several years after taking over a big portion of the land.

However, President Robert Mugabe's declarations that, "ONLY FIVE WHITE
FARMERS PER PROVINCE SHOULD REMAIN", has seen the incidence of violence
worsen.

In fact Zimbabwe 's land reform has been characterised by two factors, among
other things. Firstly, there has been a standing declaration by Mugabe, that
"You must instill fear in the heart of the white men".

Secondly, the police, Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) and other
members of the armed forces continue to be used by ZANU-PF as a personal
army.

Recently, Prime Minister, Mr. Morgan Tsvangirai, wrote to Minister of
Defence, Mr. Emmerson Mnangagwa, to complain about Brigadier Justine Mujaji's
use of serving soldiers at Charles Lock's Karori Farm in Marondera.
Tsvangirai stated that it was unacceptable to employ the Zimbabwe National
Army (ZNA) as a private army.

NGOs protest to Mugabe, Tsvangirai over Nowak

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk


      Written by NEVER CHANDA
      Saturday, 14 November 2009 14:41
      HARARE - A coalition of 25 non-governmental organisations from 14
countries has written to the Zimbabwean government to protest last month's
deportation of a UN torture expert and the deteriorating human rights
situation in the country.
      The NGOs, led by the Asian Legal Resource Centre, World Alliance for
Citizen Participation and Physicians for Human Rights, said they "firmly"
regretted the last-minute refusal by the Harare authorities to receive UN
Special Rapporteur on torture Manfred Nowak after his official invitation to
conduct a fact-finding mission from October 28 to November 4.

      The groups said also worrying was Zimbabwe´s worsening human rights
situation marked by ongoing violence and arbitrary arrests of senior civic
leaders, political activists and human rights defenders.

      "These human rights abuses highlight the urgency of Mr. Nowak's visit,
whose mission would undoubtedly help to improve the human rights protection
of Zimbabwe's citizens, particularly to combat torture and ill-treatment,"
said the NGOs in the letter to President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai.

      Nowak, who later described the handling of his attempted visit to
Harare as "serious diplomatic incident", had been invited by the Zimbabwean
authorities to assess the country's human rights situation.

      His deportation was the worst diplomatic row to engulf the country
since Mugabe and arch-rival Tsvangirai of the Movement for Democratic Change
agreed to work together in a coalition government earlier this year, and
threatened the already faltering attempts to bring Zimbabwe back into the
global fold.

      Nowak was invited for an eight-day visit by Tsvangirai, who is Prime
Minister under the unity regime.

      But after the MDC this month withdrew cooperation with Zanu (PF),
officials from Mugabe's party stopped him at Harare International Airport on
October 28 and sent him back to South Africa the following day, saying his
visit was no longer convenient.

      The state-controlled Herald newspaper accused the UN official of
trying "to gatecrash into the country".

      The NGOs said the Nowak incident and other human rights violations
cast huge doubts on the sustainability of the Global Political Agreement and
the coalition government whose launch had been received with so much hope.

      "We call upon the Government of Zimbabwe to end human rights
violations occurring in the country and to cooperate with all UN human
rights mechanisms, including by finding a prompt solution to resolve the
impasse resulting from the cancelation of Mr. Nowak's visit to the country,"
they said in the letter which was copied to the Southern African Development
Community (SADC), the African Union and the UN Human Rights Council.

      SADC and the AU are the guarantors of the GPA signed by Mugabe,
Tsvangirai and the leader of a breakaway MDC faction in September last year
and which gave birth to Zimbabwe's fragile coalition government.

      The 25 NGOs represented in the coalition were drawn from Argentina,
Botswana, Brazil, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Egypt, Eritrea, India, Namibia,
Peru, Senegal, South Africa and United States.

Official says Zanu (PF) won't yield to MDC

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk

      Written by The Zimbabwean
      Saturday, 14 November 2009 15:15
      HARARE - President Robert Mugabe and his Zanu (PF) party will resist
calls by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai to fully implement last year's
power-sharing agreement until at least after the party's congress next
month, a top official said last week.

      The official, a member of Zanu (PF)'s inner politburo cabinet, said
Mugabe's party was keen not to portray itself as weakened ahead of the
December congress at which new leaders shall be elected.
      Part of the strategy of to show Zanu (PF) as party that remains alive
and strong included resisting all attempts by Tsvangirai's MDC-T party to
have the global political agreement (GPA) fully implemented, the Zanu (PF)
official told ZimOnline.
      The GPA or power-sharing agreement is the document that gave birth to
Zimbabwe's coalition government and implementing the agreement in full would
dilute Zanu (PF) and Mugabe's hold on power.
      "It will be almost impossible to make any further concession for us
before the people's conference. That will be political suicide on our part
as this would appear as if we would a have lost ground and made
concessions," said the Zanu (PF) official who spoke on condition he was not
named.
      The official said that Mugabe's position will not be challenged at the
elective congress but the ageing leader was eager not to appear to his
supporters as if he was bowing to pressure from Tsvangirai.
      He said: "If any concessions are made before the conference this would
appear as if the party has lost steam ... besides if that is to happen what
will Mudhara (the old man or Mugabe) say at the conference as people will
say he sold out."
      Zanu (PF) spokesman Nathan Shamuyarira was not available for comment
on the matter.
      But the disclosures by the Zanu (PF) politburo member dovetailed with
observations by several political analysts who told ZimOnline earlier this
week that Mugabe was unlikely to yield to pressure by MDC-T or by SADC to
speed up implementation of the GPA before his party's congress because doing
so would undermine his stature before his followers.

Mwana Africa has dug deep to bring mining back from the brink

If you drive a Toyota, the body is mostly likely fortified by a rare form of metal from the Bindura Nickel plant here in the ancient and magical hills of Eastern Zimbabwe.

By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard in Bindura, Zimbabwe
Published: 6:55PM GMT 15 Nov 2009

Stretching a mile, the Bindura Nickel plant is the only integrated mine, smelter, and refinery in Africa

Stretching a mile, it is the only integrated mine, smelter, and refinery in Africa. It should be the crown jewel of Aim-listed resource group Mwana Africa – "Sons of Africa" in Swahili – the first continent-wide venture of its kind created, owned, and run by black Africans.

But like almost every mining operation in Zimbabwe, it is eerily silent. No exporter could produce for long under the exchange rate confiscation imposed by the Mugabe regime during the hyperinflation crisis. Mwana had to repatriate hard currency, receiving worthless "Zim-dollars" in return. The most painful part was having to shut down the Freda Rebecca gold mine nearby just as gold prices surged to all-time highs.

"We were selling our gold for 20 cents on the dollar, so we stopped," Kalaa Mpinga, Mwana's the cigar-chomping chief executive explained.

The ruins of that episode are still strewn about. Mr Mpinga looks wistfully at the skeleton of a $1m (£600,000) 40-ton dump truck. "It is a good picture of what happened to the whole country. You couldn't get foreign exchange for spare parts so you had to scavenge until everything fell apart," he said.

Mwana's share price collapsed from 80p to 2.5p, valuing its assets across Zimbabwe, the Congo, South Africa, and Angola at £9m. (It is now back to 14p).

"We suffered because a number of hedge funds had to liquidate to meet redemptions, but core shareholders were very supportive," he said. They include Landsdowne and JP Morgan.

"We were lucky because we were fully funded when the market crashed, with enough cash to sustain us for 18 months. We cut down on everything non-core. It was not until March that we saw a glimmer of hope," he said.

The nightmare seems over. The Zim-dollar has hyperinflated into oblivion, giving way to the US dollar. The Movement for Democratic Change is now (mostly) in charge of the economy under the power-sharing deal with President Mugabe. It is abolishing exchange controls.

Mine finance is opening up again. South Africa's state bank, the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), is stumping up $10m in loans for the Freda mine, with hints of more to come for Bindura Nickel. You can read this as a political gesture to Morgan Tsvangirai, MDC leader and now prime minister.

Bindura is Mr Tsvangirai's baby. His big break in life came when he clinched a job at the mine as a plant operator, at $75 a week. "I could not believe my luck: it was a huge amount of money. In those days you could buy a car for $500," he told biographer Sarah Hudleston.

He rose to become foreman during the Rhodesian Bush War, when white staff were drafted to fight. It is where he learned his politics, and fell in love. Three decades later he wants to repay the debt. Revival of the hi-tech complex – and hope for Bindura's 50,000 people – is at the heart of MDC plans to put the crippled country back on its feet.

Mwana's African brand does no harm either in a region where colonial wounds have not entirely healed, and rumblings about China's intentions are growing louder.

Mr Mpinga is the son of a former Congo prime minister. He cut his teeth at Bechtel in San Francisco and then at AngloGold, where he recruited his top team. But his key talent is navigating the reefs of local politics.

Freda Rebecca's rock crusher is back in action. The mine poured gold again last month. Costs will fall to below $500 an ounce as output nears 50,000 ounces next year.

Mwana's three-step plan is to ramp up gold output to capture prices above $1,100 an ounce. Cash flow will relaunch Bindura. The ultimate prize is to unlock the potentially huge gold, copper, diamond, (and perhaps uranium) wealth of its land claims in the Congo (DRC).

"We're ready to hit the button on Bindura," said Mr Mpinga. The world nickel price has begun to recover after crashing 80pc to under $10,000 a tonne. Chinese demand has jumped 50pc this year, lifting the price to $17,500 a tonne.

Mwana has a 53pc stake in the complex. The rest belongs to local interests and the state. The infrastructure is better than you might think. Bindura is the first feed on the power line from the Cahora Bassa hydro-electric station in Mozambique, sparing it the blackouts that plague the interior of Zimbabwe.

Potholes are rare on the road to Harare, lined with the miles of well-tended orange groves from Mazoe Citrus. Mwana's transport troubles start in South Africa. "An entire load of nickel was hijacked and never seen again, so now we have heavily armed security. We don't need that in Zimbabwe," said Mr Mpinga.

From next year, Bindura earnings will launch operations in the Congo, at the top of the Great Rift Valley near Lake Albert. Charl du Plessis, Mwana's chief geologist, said sample drills on the 9km belt of the company's Zani-Kodo project suggest gold reserves may increase 10-fold to 2m ounces by 2011. "One day there could be 5m ounces, but this needs huge investment," he said.

Anything on that scale would lift Mwana into the "sweet spot" of mid-tier gold miners. Veteran analysts take the claims seriously. Moto Gold next door has discovered the world's biggest ore deposit for years.

Further South, Mwana believes it has a million tonnes of copper in Katanga. It hopes to produce in time for the widely feared world copper crunch by mid-decade. "Any one of our projects in the Congo could be a company-maker," said Mr du Plessis.

You never know in mining, and this is not a stable part of the world. The Eastern Congo has seen horrible violence in recent years. Zimbabwe's power-sharing deal could collapse at any moment. Yet if you are an Africa-optimist, Mwana is hard to resist.

Zimbabwe Vigil Diary – 14th November 2009

The Vigil’s petition to the EU calling for punitive action against SADC countries was presented in Brussels this week to the EU's Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid, Karel De Gucht. It was handed over by Geoffrey Van Orden, MEP for the East of England, who received it at a ceremony last month to mark the Vigil’s seventh anniversary.

The petition reads: “A Petition to European Union Governments: We record our dismay at the failure of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to help the desperate people of Zimbabwe at their time of trial. We urge the UK government and the European Union in general to suspend government to government aid to all 14 SADC countries until they abide by their joint commitment to uphold human rights in the region. We suggest that the money should instead be used to feed the starving in Zimbabwe”.

Our argument is that SADC countries have been derelict in their duty to Zimbabwe. Why should countries which support Mugabe’s tyranny receive money from EU taxpayers? Why, for instance, should Malawi get £70 million in balance of payments support this year from the UK alone when its people face starvation because of a reckless loan to Mugabe, which predictably has not been repaid?

SADC has ordered urgent talks in Zimbabwe to resolve differences over the Global Political Agreement. But Mugabe has shown what he thinks of this by flying off to Rome with a retinue of 60 locusts to tell the UN World Food Summit how badly Zimbabwe has been treated. Will he mention that, according to the Zimbabwe Standard, the Commercial Farmers’ Union predicts the worst harvest in Zimbabwe for ten years, with less than 500 tonnes of maize against national requirements of 1.8 million tonnes?

There was much discussion at the Vigil of prospects for the talks and there was little optimism that they would get anywhere. There was also little gratitude to Congo and Angola for sending their professional torturers to help out the army in Harare interrogating soldiers accused of stealing weapons.

So what’s the way forward? SADC is deluded if it thinks the West will give in to wild blackmail over sanctions and if SADC wants to avoid a meltdown in Zimbabwe it must order new internationally monitored free and fair elections, as urged by President Khama of Botswana. If Mugabe refuses to play ball the region must let him go play ball by himself – until the world is forced to call the game off.

There was a good turnout for the Vigil despite a wet and blustery day – the most challenging conditions we have had for some time, with the wind threatening to whip away our tarpaulin at any moment.

· We were pleased to welcome Thobile Gwebu from Swaziland. She is planning a Swazi Vigil in London and she came to see how we did it. She was with us for the whole afternoon and joined in enthusiastically.

· Another visitor was Frank Johnson, our American friend who has given us trillions of Zimbabwe dollars to use for promotional purposes. Perhaps he knows that Mugabe is talking of printing Zimbabwean dollars again before the end of the year.

· Vigil supporters attended a media event in London this week for Betty Makoni, founder of Girl Child Network, who has been nominated as one of CNN’s top ten heroes of 2009. Our friends Zimbabwe Broadcasting Network News covered the event. Go to http://www.zbnnews.com/home/index=80 to see videos of Betty and Tare, the Zimbabwean girl who was brought to the UK to have an operation for a severe facial tumor.

· Thanks to Caroline Rusike for her help in clearing up at the end of the Vigil. Bystanders were impressed when she carried the tables on her head to the car.

· Happy birthday to Vigil stalwarts Gladys Mapanda and Josephine Zhuga who both celebrated birthdays this week.

· 2 Vigil founder members came today after long absences: Jean-Francois Mercier, who now lives in South Africa, and Patience Chakanyuka. It was good to see them again.

· ROHR Derby general meeting. Saturday 21^st November from 1 – 6 pm. Venue: The Community Block, Pear Tree Community Junior School, Pear Tree Street, Derby DE23 8PN. Substantive committee to be elected on the day. All ROHR interim national committee present. Free parking. Contact Tsitsi Razawe 7853508681, Chipo Nhandara 07767335586, Wonder Katurura 07858699224 or P Mapfumo 07915926323 / 07932216070.

· ROHR Chelmsford general meeting. Saturday 28^th November. Venue: 3 Stars Trent Road, Chelmsford CM1 2LQ. Present Amnesty International, Chelmsford Mayor, Chelmsford MP and ROHR Executive. Contact: R Mafigo 07944815190, Billy Machekano 07765459538, Martha A Magwaza 07748644911, Tendai Gwanzura 07772192679, Fungai Muzambi 07961635917 or P Mapfumo 07915926323 / 07932216070.

· ROHR Christmas party. Saturday 5^th December 2009, time tba. Venue: Coronation Hall, Stoke Road, Water Eaton, Bletchley, Milton Keynes, MK2 3AB. Stations: Bletchley (nearest) or Central Milton Keynes. Use Bus 5 from both stations. Parking: additional parking is available in the Veterinary Practice next door and on the gravelled area to the front of the Practice building. Futher parking is available in the Plough Public House approx 100metres from the hall. Please don’t obstruct the public footpath or highway or hamper access to the neighbouring properties. Contact: Martha Jiya 07727016098, Pamela Dunduru 07958386718, Jemias V Mujeyi 07534034594, Rodah Kulhengisa 07983057533 or P Mapfumo 07915926323 / 07932216070.

· Zimbabwe Association’s Women’s Weekly Drop-in Centre. Fridays 10.30 am – 4 pm. Venue: The Fire Station Community and ICT Centre, 84 Mayton Street, London N7 6QT, Tel: 020 7607 9764. Nearest underground: Finsbury Park. For more information contact the Zimbabwe Association 020 7549 0355 (open Tuesdays and Thursdays).

The Vigil, outside the Zimbabwe Embassy, 429 Strand, London, takes place every Saturday from 14.00 to 18.00 to protest against gross violations of human rights in Zimbabwe. The Vigil which started in October 2002 will continue until internationally-monitored, free and fair elections are held in Zimbabwe. http://www.zimvigil.co.uk.

JOMIC: powerless and redundant

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk


      Written by The Zimbabwean
      Saturday, 14 November 2009 15:18
      HARARE -- Intervention by the Southern African Development Community
(SADC) to resolve a dispute between Zimbabwe's unity government partners has
highlighted the redundancy of an oversight body specifically established to
smoothen the road of political reconciliation.

      The Joint Monitoring and Implementation Committee (JOMIC) was
constituted on 30 January 2009 by the SADC Facilitation Team to ensure that
the signatories abided by the terms of Zimbabwe's Global Political Agreement
(GPA), signed on 15 September 2008.

      According to article 22 of the GPA - which paved the way for the
formation of the unity government in February 2009 - JOMIC would "ensure
full and proper implementation of the letter and spirit of this agreement
... (and) receive reports and complaints in respect of any issue related to
the implementation, enforcement and execution of this agreement."

      JOMIC has been plagued by funding shortages and "does not have legal
or statutory powers to enforce the implementation of the GPA. That therefore
means it has limitations in terms of ensuring the full and proper
implementation of the political agreement, and that forces everybody to work
on consensus," Elton Mangoma, economic planning minister and co-chair of
JOMIC, told IRIN.

      Zimbabwe's Prime Minister and leader of the opposition Movement for
Democratic Change, Morgan Tsvangirai, "disengaged" from the unity government
on 16 October in protest over President Robert Mugabe's alleged refusal to
abide by the terms of the GPA.

      This, the most serious breakdown in the unity government so far, has
been patched up after the SADC Troika on Defence, Security and Politics met
in Maputo, capital of Mozambique, where all parties in the unity government
were given a 30-day deadline to resolve outstanding issues.

      Mangoma said one of JOMIC's mandates was "to serve as a catalyst in
creating and promoting an atmosphere of mutual trust and understanding
between the political parties, and to promote continuing dialogue ... If
everything was working according to plan, then the recent meeting in Maputo
would not have taken place." The secretariat now had "reasonable" resources
and could not be dismissed as "toothless".

      "We cannot change the mandate of the JOMIC without amending the GPA.
For JOMIC to function smoothly, all outstanding issues to the Global
Political Agreement and the SADC communiqué of January 2009 have to be
implemented in order to give the country a fresh start," Mangoma noted.

      Among the outstanding issues was a transparent land audit to identify
multiple farm ownership, halted by fresh farm invasions; the swearing-in of
provincial governors, most of whom are MDC representatives, stalled by
Mugabe since elections in 2008; media reforms; and the furore over deputy
minister of agriculture designate, Roy Bennett.

      Bennett, a former white commercial farmer who lost his farm in 2003
during Mugabe's fast-track land reform programme, is currently on trial for
weapons possession and intent to commit terrorism and banditry. Bennett's
defence team has dismissed the charges as based on a confession extracted
under torture.

      The MDC has also listed as a stumbling block Mugabe's unilateral
appointment of the reserve bank governor and the attorney-general, contrary
to the terms of the GPA.

      In turn, Mugabe's Zanu (PF) contends that the MDC has not done enough
to persuade the US and European Union to lift sanctions against hundreds of
senior Zanu (PF) officials, as well as Mugabe and his family, and that the
MDC has failed to stop radio stations funded by foreign governments from
broadcasting into Zimbabwe.

      Ben Freeth, a Zimbabwean commercial farmer, told IRIN: "As far as we
are concerned, JOMIC does not exist. They have not done anything to stop the
fresh farm invasions taking place." His farm was taken over by a senior Zanu
(PF) government official.

      "The SADC Tribunal has ruled that some aspects of the land
redistribution were illegal, and the government of Zimbabwe has been in
contempt of that ruling since June, but JOMIC has not said or done anything
about it."

      According to JOMIC communications manager Joram Nyathi, "It [JOMIC]
cannot force parties to perform any specific provision. JOMIC can only
persuade the parties to be faithful to the letter and spirit of the GPA.
Where the parties hit a deadlock, JOMIC's role is to try and break it or
propose alternatives."

      In a recent newspaper column he wrote: "More importantly, because of
its role as a 'permanent' negotiating forum of the parties to the GPA, JOMIC
cannot afford the luxury of standing on hilltops to attack or condemn its
constituent partners for the infringements of the GPA."

Mugabe using MDC to buy time

http://nehandaradio.com

Published on: 15th November, 2009

By Doreen Mutemeri

Zimbabweans will no doubt be nauseated by the endless SADC summits and
troika meetings discussing the crisis in their homeland.

In September 2008 the three parties to the Global Political Agreement (GPA),
Zanu PF, MDC-T and MDC-M signed an agreement to share power.

This was despite Tsvangirai's MDC trouncing Zanu PF in the Parliamentary
elections and their leader Morgan Tsvangirai garnering more votes than
Robert Mugabe.

The current political crisis where the loser of the election is failing to
honour an agreement that saved his skin should not arise because everything
at stake is contained in an agreement.

How thirteen SADC states are failing to force Mugabe to respect what was
agreed on paper is beyond me. Only Botswana's President Ian Khama has called
a spade a spade by blaming Mugabe and Zanu PF for the deadlock.

It is even more shocking that some SADC states are actually entertaining
Zanu PF demands that the MDC must call for the lifting of western targeted
sanctions on members of the Mugabe regime and a closing down of so-called
pirate radio stations like SW Radio Africa and Studio 7.

Simple logic dictates that the MDC do not own any sanctions and do not have
the power nor leverage to have them removed by the countries that imposed
them. Worse still those countries have set certain democratic and human
rights standards as the minimum condition for any removal.

So the argument that sanctions by the West remain an outstanding issue is
quite ridiculous. Zanu PF should be asked to explain HOW the MDC is expected
to remove these?

The other demand over so-called 'pirate' radio stations is equally
laughable. Is Zanu PF suggesting that the MDC can walk up to the offices of
these stations and say 'right, we are now shutting you down.' The MDC does
not own a single radio station.

SADC know these demands from Mugabe's party have no legs to stand on but
will tolerate them because they are giving them a cover to hide their own
inability to confront Mugabe. That for me is the bottom line.

Meanwhile Mugabe continues to toy with the MDC, tying them up in knots with
silly court case after court case. Blessing Chebundo (rape case), Thamsanqa
Mahlangu (cellphone theft), Roy Bennett (terrorism), Tendai Biti (treason),
Shuah Mudiwa (kidnap) and many other cases, too numerous to mention.

The old dictator has no intention of sharing power and will frustrate the
MDC until the next round of elections in which he will unleash his violent
thugs on the nation.

Zanu PF in this unity government is toying with the MDC while buying time
for their lootocracy.

This is not power sharing, its power retention.

Doreen Mutemeri is a UK based gender and political activist. She is also a
regular columnist on Nehanda Radio.

MDC holds key to Zimbabwe's economic & socio-political regeneration

The MDC led by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai is on a roll.Whilst some
moribund and
hitherto nationalist political parties are still trying to acquaint
themselves with the rigours and challenges that confront political
organisations in the new millennium,the MDC has re-positioned itself as the
only political party that can genuinely and effectively drive the agenda of
meaningfull economic empowerment of the previously disadvantaged people of
Zimbabwe.As a party whose bedrock is social democracy,the MDC easily
identifies with the wishes and aspirations of the majority of all
progressive Zimbabweans living within the country and in the Diaspora.As a
party with a focussed leadership and openly democratic credentials,the MDC
has developed a certain level of irresistable charm and attraction ever
since it was formed a short ten years ago.It is amazing really! A visitor to
Zimbabwe today might easily be convinced that the MDC is a very old and
established party because of its resilience against all odds.This party is a
revelation and a shining example to all social democratic parties in the
developing world; particularly in Africa.This is a party that has proved to
the entire
world that democratic change in Africa can be painstakingly achieved
through a peaceful democratic struggle rather than through violence and
bloodshed.At a time when a tired and hopelessly faction-ridden party like
ZANU (PF) is pre-occupied with the politics of kleptocracy, autocracy and
gerontocracy, the MDC is busy mobilising its massive support base
countrywide for peacefull democratic change.Whilst ZANU (PF) preaches the ''
gospel'' of racial hatred,tribalism,homophobia and generalised thuggery,the
MDC is siezed with the more serious business of extricating Zimbabwe from
the depths of mass poverty and socio-economic trepidation brought about by
years of ZANU (PF) misgovernance and corruption.Zimbabwe became a pariah
state wholly because of unprecedented misgovernance and massive looting of
State resources by ZANU (PF) functionaries.These are people who perfected
the '' art'' of looting public assets from ZUPCO, the GMB, the NRZ and now
to the diamond fields of Chiadzwa.All state-owned companies were
mercilessly stripped of their assets to such an extent that a parastatal
like ZUPCO, which was very organised and as efficient as any other public
transport operator in the developed world at independence in 1980; is now
just a shell with a few ramshackle buses operated by a thoroughly
demotivated staff. This is the legacy of ZANU (PF); a hitherto
revolutionary party that failed to manage success and to adjust to the
compelling need for periodic leadership renewal in order to sustain
generational longevity and relevance.A political party that finds wisdom in
being led by a man who is about to become a nonagenarian surely belongs to
the dustbin of history.The story of the dinosaur becomes apt.The dinosaur
stubbornly refused to positively adjust to the changing environment and we
all know what became of it.I will bet my bottom dollar that ZANU (PF) is
following the dinosaur route; to total oblivion.

Zimbabweans do not eat propaganda.The people of this great and majestic
country are not as naive and docile as some latter-day ZANU (PF)
propagandists and political turncoats seem to believe.Tafataona Mahoso and
Jonathan Moyo can write acres of rabid propaganda pieces in the ZANU
(PF)-controlled media such as the Herald and the Sunday Mail newspapers but
they can be assured that their toxic and hate-filled propaganda will only
serve the purpose of galvanising the masses against ZANU (PF) thuggery and
autocracy.The people know who exactly authored the unprecedented
hyper-inflation that pauperised more than 90% of the population.The people
know who was responsible for non-stop printing of worthless Zimbabwe dollars
when basic economic fundamentals show that no country in this world has ever
managed to solve its economic policies by massive printing of money.If
ZANU(PF) failed to learn from the economic history of such countries like
Germany and Equador then what guarantee is there that they will learn from
anything? At any rate, it will take a miracle for such a faction-ridden
party to rejuvinate itself.If a party rigs its own internal provincial
elections in Harare,then one would be a fool to trust such a party with the
management of the country's economy.The good thing is that the majority of
the people have peacefully decided to dissociate themseleves from
ZANU(PF).The overwhelming crowds that attended the MDC consultative rallies
and meetings throughout Zimbabwe during the past few months is clear
testimony of the fact that the Movement's message resonates with the
people.The people of Zimbabwe are aware of the lack of genuine power-sharing
in the inclusive givernment but they know that this is just but a
transitional phase.The people of Zimbabwe want real change and they know
that only the MDC led by Morgan Tsvangirai can deliver real change to their
lives.

Zimbabwe is at the crossroads.The people will never accept their vote to be
stolen again.Losers of elections should never dream of clinging to power
against the wishes of the people.And the wilful and flagrant violation of
the terms and conditions of the global political agreement (GPA) will be
harshly punished by the people come next election.The MDC is acutely aware
of the desperate attempt by some failed politicians in both ZANU(PF) and its
sidekick led by Mutambara to drive a wedge across its leadership.These
attempts will never see the light of day.Morgan Tsvangirai is the popular
and undisputed leader of the Movement and all party cadres are aware of
this.Tsvangirai is the face of the people's struggle against ZANU (PF)
tyranny and thuggocracy. Those opportunists who rebelled against the
Movement on October 12, 2005 are free to wine and dine with ZANU(PF).We
know that they are greedy losers who will clutch at anything in order to
fatten their pockets.Their political lives will be as short as the duration
of the inclusive government.Thereafter,these opportunists and chancers will
be relegated to the trash can of Zimbabwe's political history where they
properly belong.

With an unemployment rate of about 90%, Zimbabwe is a sad story within the
SADC region and indeed, in Africa as a whole.We are poor but we are
rich.Why? Ask ZANU(PF) and they will tell you that we are in this pathetic
state because of so-called '' illegal'' sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe by
Britain and her Western allies in response to the '' successfull land reform
program''.What errant nonsense! We are in this state of poverty and
socio-economic trepidation wholly because of ZANU (PF) misgovernance and
poor governance; a system of government that rewards mediocrity and
incompetence.A system of government where looting of public resources is
celebrated as the hallmark of indigenisation and black economic ''
empowerment''. What a shame,really!

The country needs a Messiah to enable it to reclaim its rightfull position
amongst other prosperous nations of the world.And this Messiah cannot be a
man who is fast approaching the age of 90.The people's salvation is to be
located in the MDC; a social democratic party that does not believe in the
personalisation of political power.Zimbabwe needs a new style of leadership
and governance such as the one exemplified by the MDC.ZANU (PF) is
yesterday's party.It has had its time.It has dismally failed to liberate the
people from poverty and destitution.If anything ,ZANU (PF) has acted as a
catalyst to the mass pauperisation of the people.Little wonder,therefore,
that ZANU (PF) can never again win a free and fair election in Zimbabwe.

Written by:

Senator Obert Gutu

So difficult to forgive

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk


      Written by The Editor
      Friday, 13 November 2009 12:12
      The greatest tragedy of President Robert Mugabe's land reform
programme - we use that term with utmost reservation - might not be the
hunger and economic ruin it has imposed on Zimbabwe that have turned our
once proud nation into a community of beggars.
      The true tragedy of Mugabe's land policies of the past decade lies in
the way the Zanu (PF) leader has, without blinking an eye, callously
manipulated a genuine national grievance - the land question - to further a
personal ambition to cling to power. In a shameless pursuit of his bizarre
goal to die in office Mugabe has defiled what was a glorious revolution
waged by his own Zanu (PF) and the late Joshua Nkomo's ZAPU party. The
liberation struggle was about freedom, human rights, justice and equitable
land redistribution.
      The fast-track land reform programme was and is about Mugabe and the
Zanu (PF) elite keeping power. And nowhere is this point better illustrated
than in the way Mugabe and his party have treated black workers on farms
seized from whites. We are not for mindless retribution. But anyone who has
read the report of the General Agriculture and Plantation Workers Union
(GAPWUZ) on the experiences of the black commercial farm worker over the
past 10 years will agree that the document could easily secure Mugabe a very
long jail term. The report, excerpts of which we publish elsewhere in this
paper, is a heartbreaking record of harassment, beatings and torture
suffered by farm workers at the hands of the so-called war veterans.
      The farm workers did not own land. Indeed the workers needed as much
as the black peasants in whose name, Mugabe launched his disastrous farm
redistribution campaign. The unforgivable crime of the farm worker and
indeed the real crime of the white farmer in the eyes of Mugabe was their
"wrong" political orientation. As one female farm worker narrates in the
GAPWUZ report: "My house at the farm was burnt down, all my belongings were
gutted by fire . . . we did not do anything. We were just accused of voting
for MDC, quite a number of us were beaten up at the farm, the five of us.
Because of the beating I was injured around the eye area."
      Commercial farms, like all areas where there was a considerable
concentration of the working class, had become a powerful support base for
the labour-backed MDC and therefore a threat to Mugabe's hold on power. They
had to be depopulated. And when you consider that before the land reform
mayhem thousands of innocent villagers - some say at least 20 000 people -
were murdered in the south-western regions of the country, again in the
pursuit of unrivalled power by one man, it becomes so difficult to forgive.
But we shall not be the judges. The call is for you Zimbabweans to make!

Triumph of a Dreamer

By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF

Published: November 14, 2009

Any time anyone tells you that a dream is impossible, any time you’re discouraged by impossible challenges, just mutter this mantra: Tererai Trent.

photo courtesy of Tererai Trent

Tererai Trent in front of the hut in Zimbabwe where she grew up.

Courtesy of Heifer International

Jo Luck, center, of Heifer International in her first meeting with Tererai Trent, who is to her right.

Of all the people earning university degrees this year, perhaps the most remarkable story belongs to Tererai (pronounced TEH-reh-rye), a middle-aged woman who is one of my heroes. She is celebrating a personal triumph, but she’s also a monument to the aid organizations and individuals who helped her. When you hear that foreign-aid groups just squander money or build dependency, remember that by all odds Tererai should be an illiterate, battered cattle-herd in Zimbabwe and instead — ah, but I’m getting ahead of my story.

Tererai was born in a village in rural Zimbabwe, probably sometime in 1965, and attended elementary school for less than one year. Her father married her off when she was about 11 to a man who beat her regularly. She seemed destined to be one more squandered African asset.

A dozen years passed. Jo Luck, the head of an aid group called Heifer International, passed through the village and told the women there that they should stand up, nurture dreams, change their lives.

Inspired, Tererai scribbled down four absurd goals based on accomplishments she had vaguely heard of among famous Africans. She wrote that she wanted to study abroad, and to earn a B.A., a master’s and a doctorate.

Tererai began to work for Heifer and several Christian organizations as a community organizer. She used the income to take correspondence courses, while saving every penny she could.

In 1998 she was accepted to Oklahoma State University, but she insisted on taking all five of her children with her rather than leave them with her husband. “I couldn’t abandon my kids,” she recalled. “I knew that they might end up getting married off.”

Tererai’s husband eventually agreed that she could take the children to America — as long as he went too. Heifer helped with the plane tickets, Tererai’s mother sold a cow, and neighbors sold goats to help raise money. With $4,000 in cash wrapped in a stocking and tied around her waist, Tererai set off for Oklahoma.

An impossible dream had come true, but it soon looked like a nightmare. Tererai and her family had little money and lived in a ramshackle trailer, shivering and hungry. Her husband refused to do any housework — he was a man! — and coped by beating her.

“There was very little food,” she said. “The kids would come home from school, and they would be hungry.” Tererai found herself eating from trash cans, and she thought about quitting — but felt that doing so would let down other African women.

“I knew that I was getting an opportunity that other women were dying to get,” she recalled. So she struggled on, holding several jobs, taking every class she could, washing and scrubbing, enduring beatings, barely sleeping.

At one point the university tried to expel Tererai for falling behind on tuition payments. A university official, Ron Beer, intervened on her behalf and rallied the faculty and community behind her with donations and support.

“I saw that she had enormous talent,” Dr. Beer said. His church helped with food, Habitat for Humanity provided housing, and a friend at Wal-Mart carefully put expired fruits and vegetables in boxes beside the Dumpster and tipped her off.

Soon afterward, Tererai had her husband deported back to Zimbabwe for beating her, and she earned her B.A. — and started on her M.A. Then her husband returned, now frail and sick with a disease that turned out to be AIDS. Tererai tested negative for H.I.V., and then — feeling sorry for her husband — she took in her former tormentor and nursed him as he grew sicker and eventually died.

Through all this blur of pressures, Tererai excelled at school, pursuing a Ph.D at Western Michigan University and writing a dissertation on AIDS prevention in Africa even as she began working for Heifer as a program evaluator. On top of all that, she was remarried, to Mark Trent, a plant pathologist she had met at Oklahoma State.

Tererai is a reminder of the adage that talent is universal, while opportunity is not. There are still 75 million children who are not attending primary school around the world. We could educate them all for far less than the cost of the proposed military “surge” in Afghanistan.

Each time Tererai accomplished one of those goals that she had written long ago, she checked it off on that old, worn paper. Last month, she ticked off the very last goal, after successfully defending her dissertation. She’ll receive her Ph.D next month, and so a one-time impoverished cattle-herd from Zimbabwe with less than a year of elementary school education will don academic robes and become Dr. Tererai Trent.

What will Santa bring Zimbabwe?

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk


      Written by Eddie Cross
      Sunday, 15 November 2009 04:21
      The sense of insecurity and uncertainty has never been more
foreboding. Talk of the Reserve Bank printing a new currency behind closed
doors and in great secrecy and the President saying last week that the local
currency would be back by the end of the year. The sudden withdrawal of the
MDC from the transitional government and the subsequent negotiations, have
all thrown the Zimbabwean population into the slough of despond.

      Whatever the truth, the community fears a return to the situation that
prevailed in 2008. Businessmen fear that they will wake up one morning and
find their hard currency accounts converted to a new local currency that is
basically worthless at a rate set by the Reserve Bank. They fear the
imposition of restrictions on prices and a return to the harsh regime of the
recent past.

      The slow recovery in the banking system has evaporated, a run on the
banks has put severe strain on cash flows and this is not helped by
information that the Reserve Bank has been misappropriating the reserves of
the commercial Banks. People are suddenly reverting to a strictly cash
system.

      The revelation that the Ministry of Youth and Empowerment has
clandestinely drafted new regulations that would expropriate, without
compensation, 51 per cent of the shareholding of all foreign firms with a
capital value of more than $500 000 has simply halted all FDI activity.
Firms that are already invested in Zimbabwe have frozen their operations
here and those thinking about new investments have stopped all preparations
and plans.

      Without FDI there will be no significant recovery in the economy and
no growth in the mining and tourism sectors - the only sectors that are
likely to lead the recovery in the economy. Billions of dollars of new
investment in both these sectors are now frozen and will not be invested
unless the government moves to remove this uncertainty and to clarify what
our intentions really are. The damage is so severe that it will take more
that a few statements to remedy the problems.

      The El Nino factor has suddenly intensified with the news that
temperatures in the Pacific have risen by 1,5 C. and this suggests that we
must anticipate a below average wet season. The early signs are not
encouraging and after a series of good seasons including a near perfect
season last year, we must expect a rough season. Even without the problems
of a dry season, this year is going to be another disaster. Commercial farm
production will be down even on last year. We are distributing small
quantities of seed and fertilizer to 600 000 families in rural areas but
this is scratching the surface of their needs.

      Worse, I sense that the international community is weary of the
ongoing Zimbabwe crisis that seems to have no end. A needs survey is
underway and I am sure the outcome is going to shock the authorities -
people have no food stocks and the hunger season is about to start and
resources have declined and the global situation no longer makes it easy to
raise the funds needed to prevent starvation.

      So what can we, as Zimbabweans expect for Christmas? Not much, I am
afraid. Talks to end the crisis in government started on Friday, the
deadline for their resolution looms and what then? Our experience tells us
not to expect too much. But so much is required to alleviate our
difficulties.

      So long as we are forced to tread water by the grip that Zanu PF holds
over the reform process, we run the threat of being drowned by the waves
generated by the storm that rages above our heads. It is at times like these
that faith counts.

      When Christ began his long walk to the Cross He knew the odds and the
likely outcome. His followers refused to accept the reality of that and at
the end they tried to use force to defend the man when His freedom and life
were threatened. Christ made no moves to defend Himself and went to the
Cross without complaint or struggle.

      What followed was in fact more than His disciples could have asked or
imagined. His death was followed by a demonstration of God's control over
life and death and the final stamp of authenticity for Christ's life and
ministry. In weeks the ultimate defeat was turned into victory and in 300
years the World worshipped the one they had killed and who had then
demonstrated absolute control.

      Christ's teaching that "in the world you will have tribulation" are
more than true for the average Zimbabwean, but somehow the truth of the next
sentence "but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world" suddenly changes
everything. The man who died at the hands of a corrupt Judge and on the whim
of a cruel dictator, actually was in charge and has made it possible for us
to do the impossible, including fighting on when all else seems to fail us.

      So we turn to Christ at this season and suddenly find that He turns
lemons into oranges and failure into victory, death into life. All that He
asks is that "we walk by faith and not by sight", He knew that if we kept
our eyes on the storm, we would never see his hand inviting us into the
safety and security of the boat.

      The sceptics say this is just mumbo jumbo and pie in the sky, however
those of us in the water, in the storm, know the reality is something else.
It is real and tangible and can be relied upon and all who "call on the name
of the Lord, will be saved" and if you read the bible carefully it is not
talking about pie in the sky.

      For those of you who are of the faith, remember Roy Bennett this week.
Roy told me on Friday that he feared that no matter what the evidence was,
the authorities were determined to find him guilty and to sentence him. The
charges are serious but without foundation - the Judge is clearly under
instruction and from confidential documents we have seen, the old regime is
determined to press this case to a conclusion even if they have to fabricate
the evidence.

      It is a statement of great faith and courage as well as commitment to
his country and our people that he remains here and goes to Court knowing
that the authorities are trying to find him guilty. This is tough on Roy but
also think of Heather, his wife, for whom the whole ordeal is so much worse.

Bill Watch Special of 14th November 2009[Parliamentary Committee meetings 16th to 19th November]

House of Assembly Portfolio Committees and Senate Thematic Committees will be meeting in the coming week.

Members of the public wishing to attend any of these meetings should telephone Parliament first [on Harare 700181], to check with the relevant committee clerk. Entry to all meetings will be through the Kwame Nkrumah Ave entrance and IDs must be produced.

Oral evidence from Ministry officials on Ministry's half-year budget performance.

Portfolio Committee on Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade

Oral evidence on Human Rights Instruments from Inter-Ministerial Committee [Ministry of Justice and Legal Affairs]

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

Principals meet to map out strategy