(AFP) – 10 hours
ago
HARARE — Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has warned Switzerland he
would
"reciprocate" after his wife and top officials were denied visas to
attend a
UN meeting in that country, state media said Monday.
"Now
they are showing that they are vicious and we will reciprocate because
they
have their properties here," Mugabe said in the state-run Herald
newspaper.
"We are not without means to reciprocate," he
said.
"It is violation of rules and regulations governing host countries
of UN
meetings."
Mugabe's wife Grace, his personal bodyguard, and
four top officials were
denied visas to attend to a meeting of the UN's
International
Telecommunications Union in Switzerland, causing the trip to
be cancelled,
according to state media.
The six are on the sanctions
list imposed by the European Union and backed
by Switzerland, which is not
an EU member. Switzerland has not commented on
the visas.
Swiss food
giant Nestle operates a factory in Harare, which produces cereals
and
powdered milk for the local market.
Meanwhile, The Herald said Mugabe
returned to Zimbabwe on Sunday from a
private visit to Asia -- trips that
have become monthly events amid reports
that the 87-year-old leader is
suffering from prostate cancer.
Mugabe has angrily denied reports that
his health is worsening.
"You want to ask me about my health. As you can
see, this Mugabe is fit,"
Mugabe told the paper.
According to the
WikiLeaks whistleblower website, Mugabe has prostate cancer
which has
metastasized, and has been advised by doctors to cut on his
activities.
The cable sent to Washington in 2008 said Reserve Bank
governor Gideon Gono
told the then-US ambassador, Jame McGee that Mugabe was
told by doctors he
had three to five years to live.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Alex Bell
31 October
2011
Robert Mugabe has once again denied he has any serious health
problems,
after returning from his eighth trip to Asia this
year.
Mugabe reportedly snuck out of the country last week, leaving
Cabinet in a
state of confusion because he was not there to chair the
Tuesday meeting. It
was then reported last Wednesday that he had cancelled a
planned trip to
Switzerland for a UN conference and had left for Singapore
instead.
The journey was the ageing ZANU PF leader’s eighth trip to Asia
this year
alone, and it is widely speculated that he is receiving serious
treatment
related to his battle with prostate cancer.
This has been
fiercely denied by ZANU PF and on his return to Zimbabwe from
a reportedly
“private visit,” Mugabe told the state’s mouthpiece newspaper
the Herald,
that he is “fit.”
“You want to ask me about my health? As you can see,
this Mugabe is fit,” he
said.
This is the second time this month that
Mugabe is said to have traveled to
Asia for medical treatment. After
returning from his last trip Mugabe had
claimed he was on a private visit to
see his daughter Bona, who is studying
in Hong Kong.
Leaked
diplomatic cables by the whistle blowing group WikiLeaks meanwhile
have
contradicted ZANU PF’s denials about the state of Mugabe’s health.
In one
of the leaked cables, a US diplomat is said to have seen Mugabe
checking in
at a cancer clinic in Singapore in May and August in 2008.
Gideon Gono was
then quoted by a different leaked cable as confirming that
Mugabe is being
treated for prostate cancer.
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Tichaona Sibanda
31
October 2011
Police had to fire teargas and rubber bullets during clashes
between MDC-T
and ZANU PF supporters in Hatcliffe, a constituency held by
co-Home Affairs
Minister Theresa Makone.
Police intervened after
supporters of the MDC-T defended their right to
assemble as they sent ZANU
PF’s Chipangano gang members scurrying in all
directions.
Emmanuel
Chiroto, MDC-T councillor for ward 24 and chairman of the Harare
north
district, told SW Radio Africa on Monday that over 100 ZANU PF youths
were
bussed in to interrupt a planned party rally that was to be addressed
by
Makone, the MP for the area.
‘They came in Kombis and started pelting us
with rocks, sticks, bottles and
bicycle chains and other weapons. We had
clearance, in black and white, from
the police to hold our rally but ZANU PF
youths sponsored by Justice
Zvandasara came in their hundreds to disrupt our
rally,’ Chiroto said.
Zvandasara was the ZANU PF candidate in the
harmonized elections of 2008 in
Harare North Constituency but he was
trounced by Makone.
Zvandasara is also ZANU PF’s representative on the
Joint Monitoring and
Implementation Committee of the Global Political
Agreement. The losing ZANU
PF candidate reportedly placed a gun against an
MDC member in full view of
the police but no action was taken against
him.
‘Police fired teargas and rubber bullets at us and we had several
people who
were injured in the melee. Most of those injured were rushed to
the Avenues
Clinic,’ Chiroto said.
The councilor, whose wife was murdered
by ZANU PF thugs during the 2008
elections, accused ZANU PF of deliberately
provoking their supporters who
unfortunately bore the brunt of the police
action to quell to disturbances.
‘Security forces need to act more
professionally when dealing with clashes
because MDC people were defending
themselves but ended up on the receiving
end of police brutality,’ Chiroto
said.
In a statement, Makone she was shocked that as co-Home Affairs
Minister she
was not be protected by her own staff (the police). She said it
is clear
ZANU PF have targeted Harare North, Epworth, Mbare and Harare South
as areas
where they want to cow the MDC-T into submission.
She added
that she had to assume that the police eventually intervened, only
because
ZANU PF were clearly losing.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
Hon. Theresa
Makone
Subject: Disruption of Harare North Constituency Feedback
Rally
This a rally applied for by the MDC Harare Provincial organising
department
which was supposed to be held at Hatcliffe Shops on Sunday 30
October.
Ian and I attended mass at St. Augustine’s Roman Catholic
Church, which was
delayed due to a baptism session that was incorporated in
the mass. We only
finished at about 13.30hours. My husband left me behind as
he was going to
the office to do budget preparations, expecting me to
proceed to the rally
after my Sunday meetings. I was expected only at 2:00pm
while others in the
meantime, proceeded with entertainment and introductions
according to our
tradition.
To my surprise, one of my staffers called
me out of my meeting,to tell me
that all hell had broken loose at the
venue,as marauding ZPF youths were
attacking the gathering at the shops. At
the same time, churchgoers who had
left after mass came back to tell
everyone to plan the homeward route in
such a manner that they avoid the
Hatcliffe Shops vicinity.
I asked if the police had been informed. I was
advised that Deputy Mayor
Chiroto, who is the local counsellor, and my
husband, Ian, who had been
contacted by Counsellor Chiroto, had gone to
Helensvale Police Station
together.
In the meantime, the MDC crowd
and other members of the constituents who had
come to listen to their MP,
were forced to defend themselves while the
police were,
hopefully,coming.
To their surprise ZPF youths who are accustomed to a
docile MDC crowd, were
surprised by the resolute defense of the people’s
right to assemble as the
attackers were sent scurrying in all
directions.
In the meantime, our people removed the P.A. System that we
had hired to
safety.
Councillor Chiroto, Mr Makone and one of my
drivers who had also been
injured, ferried injured people to Avenues Clinic
for urgent medical
attention.
Ian came back to check to see if it was
now safe and if the police had
responded to their earlier plea for
assistance.
The law abiding crowd was relieved when the riot squad arrived.
They
appeared to be driving the ZPF youths back successfully. At that point,
I
received a call from one of the organizers to come and address the
constituency. No sooner had I left my sanctuary than I received another call
to say that I should turn back, because the ZRP were now firing tear gas and
rubber bullets into the crowd, as the ZPF youths were following close behind
throwing rocks at the same crowd.
As some of our officials were walking
to safety with the riot police, two of
the ZRP officers were overheard
saying ‘If we could only catch two or three
MDC people, we will beat the
hell out of them’.
At that very moment, one of our people walking next to
my husband, was
struck by a rubber bullet. Fortunately, he only suffered
muscular shock. I
wonder who the real target was!
Obviously against
such a force, the rally had to be abandoned. Until 11:00
pm at night, I was
still stuck at Avenues Clinic checking on the progress of
the gallant cadres
who stood their ground as the merciless forces of
Armageddon pelted them
with rocks, sticks and bottles and attacked them with
bicycle chains. I
believe one of our youths had a gun placed against his
neck by Justice
Zvandasara in full view of the police, and no action was
taken against him.
Justice Zvandasara is the ZANUPF candidate of the
harmonized elections of
2008 in Harare North Constituency. Obviously, I
trounced him in that contest
and Counsellor Chiroto was elected to Harare
City Council. Our hard fought
battle was dampened by the cold blooded murder
of Mrs Chiroto at the hands
of ZANUPF.
The constituency was shocked to hear that the same Justice
Zvandasara is the
representative for ZANUPF at JOMIC (Joint Monitoring and
Implementation of
the Global Political Agreemen). The same person was on
Sunday coordinating
reinforcements for his coward forces from neighbouring
farms and townships.
If is very clear that ZANUPF have targeted Harare
North, Epworth, Mbare and
Harare South as areas that they can cower into
submission come next
election. Fortunately, their method of murder and
mayhem has long seized to
impress the people of this largely Christian and
God fearing nation.
If we can no longer hold meetings that have Police
clearance, even when the
Police are there, would it be wrong to come to the
following conclusions;
That the police only came because ZANUPF had been
routed
That the police did not come to protect law abiding citizens
That
the police are complicit with ZANUPF
That it is the police who do not want
MDC to assemble anywhere in Zimbabwe
That the police regard MDC as a rogue
party that should be disbanded?
The Minister of Home Affairs cannot be
protected by her own staff! I would
have expected them to be there earlier,
to ensure that all was well on the
ground from early that morning. I doubt
very much that our CID section did
not know that there were other people
planning to disturb the authorized
gathering. The ZRP that I know, have
their eyes and ears everywhere unless
of course they have lost steam like
all other institutions in the country,
or they are deliberately turning a
blind eye to these attacks, which are now
everywhere, where the MDC tries to
assemble.
Together, united, winning, marching to a New, Democratic
Zimbabwe!
Hon. Theresa Makone
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Tichaona
Sibanda
31 October 2011
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai is reportedly
breathing fire at the way
police in Matabeleland North province blocked his
rallies, under orders from
their commanding officer senior assistant
Commissioner Edmore Veterai.
A senior staffer in the Prime Minister’s
office on Monday branded Veterai an
‘idiot’ and a stooge of the former
ruling party, ‘who is brutish and
insensitive, siding largely with the
powerful rather than protecting the
weak.’
SW Radio Africa is
reliably informed that Veterai, a blue eyed boy of police
commissioner
Augustine Chihuri, runs a thriving fish business from the
Zambezi river,
supplying a chain of hotels and supermarkets.
‘He’s fighting theMDCto
hang on to his business. The man has plenty of
contracts from government
institutions to supply them with fish. He is a
naïve police officer who
believes he’ll lose everything when theMDCgets into
power,’ the staffer from
the Prime Minister’s office said.
Matabeleland North police blocked
theMDC-T President from holding a rally in
Lupane on Saturday andVictoria
Fallson Sunday, in total defiance of a High
Court order allowing the rallies
to proceed uninterrupted. They also blocked
Tsvangiai’s visit to the clinic
in Lupane.
In a statement theMDC-T said that the drama started when three
truckloads of
police officers heavily armed with guns, teargas and batons
chased away
staff and locked up the gate at St Paul’s clinic where the Prime
Minister
wanted to assess the situation at the health centre, which services
more
than 18,000 villagers but has no mortuary, no doctor and no maternity
ward.
TheMDC-T went on to say that armed police also went to the nearby
venue
where the Prime Minister was scheduled to address a rally. They
violently
dispersed the crowd that included elderly men and women. They
overturned
pots of food and threatened to shoot donkeys that had ferried
some of the
elderly to the rally.
When the PM arrived the police had
already violently chased everyone from
the venue of the rally and ordered
nursing staff and patients out of the
clinic.
In Victoria
Falls, police told MDC-T supporters they would be shot dead if
they dared
gather at Chinotimba stadium.
Tsvangirai vowed he would take up the issue
with Robert Mugabe in their next
meeting scheduled for Monday afternoon. A
source told us the Prime Minister
criticised the police in the region for
consistently and persistently
executing a carefully scripted regime of
intimidation, harassment and
arbitrary arrests ofMDC supporters.
‘The
Prime Minister has condemned the physical harassment meted out on
hospital
staff atSt Paul’s hospital in Lupane where they were chased away
leaving
patients to fend for themselves,’ our source
said.
OurBulawayocorrespondent, Lionel Saungweme told us theMDC-T
leadership in
Matabeleland North province is planning to convene a meeting
and discuss the
issues surrounding the Prime Minister’s
visit.
‘TheMDCis saying the police action over the weekend was illegal,
unconstitutional, barbaric, primitive and absolutely unacceptable. They
claim that decades of partisan policing, at the behest of ZANU PF
politicians, have resulted in an unprecedented level of public distrust and
fear of police,’ Saungweme said.
http://www.dailynews.co.zw/
By Thelma Chikwanha, Community Affairs Editor
Monday, 31 October
2011 08:33
HARARE - Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai was once again
barred from holding
a rally in Victoria Falls yesterday after police sealed
the entrance to
Chinotimba Stadium, as Zanu PF’s jittery over elections
scheduled for next
year worsens.
The police who have been accused
of practicing selective application of the
law in the past, prevented the
Prime Minister from holding the rally despite
the fact that courts had
granted him permission to hold the meetings.
On Saturday, Tsvangirai was
also prevented from touring St Paul’s Hospital
in Lupane after police
barricaded the entrance with chains.
Hospital staff was also chased away
leaving patients at the hospital
vulnerable.
Tsvangirai’s
spokesperson Luke Tamborinyoka told the Daily News the
behaviour exhibited
by the police in the past two days proved beyond
reasonable doubt that there
was lawlessness in the country.
Tamborinyoka said his party was concerned
about the unpatriotic behaviour
exhibited by police as it poisoned the
environment ahead of elections.
“The behaviour of the police in the past
72 hours tells us that there is no
rule of law in the country and that the
police are at the forefront of
promoting lawlessness,” Tamborinyoka
said.
He said the Prime Minister would definitely take the matter up with
President Robert Mugabe who was due to return from Singapore
yesterday.
Sparks are expected to fly when the two principals meet today
in their
Monday meetings which they have postponed because of Mugabe’s
absenteeism.
The confrontation will also attract Sadc which is closely
monitoring
implementation of the Global Political Agreement (GPA) signed
between Zanu
PF and the MDC’s.
As the guarantors to the GPA, the
regional bloc is not keen on a repetition
of the bloody 2008 presidential
runoff which saw more than 200 people losing
their lives. The election was
described by the whole international community
as a sham.
Sadc is
pushing government to make reforms so that the next election,
expected at
the end of next year or in 2013, will be free and fair and
produce a genuine
winner.
But Zanu PF thugs have been on a war path breeding violence in
most parts of
the country.
A recent workshop held by Zimbabwe
Election Support Network (Zesn) on the
Electoral Amendment Bill revealed
that thugs from the former ruling party
escaped prosecution because they
were deemed to be politically correct.
Sadc has on numerous occasions
castigated Mugabe over selective application
of the law by the police who
treat members of the MDC and human rights
activists as second class
citizens.
Zanu PF thugs recently attacked parliamentarians and
journalists in
Parliament but the culprits are yet to be
prosecuted.
Tamborinyoka said: “What is happening right now cries out for
urgent
security sector reforms. Where are we going, we are slowly turning
into a
police state.”
In March this year Tsvangirai said the country
was sliding into a police
state. He even called on Sadc to intervene because
civilian authority was
being undermined.
Deputy Prime Minister
Thokozani Khupe on Thursday accused Matabeleland North
police boss, Edmore
Veterai of holding a grudge against MDC.
“There is this police officer
called Veterai, I don’t know what his problem
is. He has all along been
fighting to derail our programmes in the
province. Recently in Nkayi he also
fought hard in trying to stop our
rallies, but let he be warned that we are
not going to take any of it,”
Khupe told journalists in
Bulawayo.
Sadc on one hand have also called for security sector reforms
before any
credible free and fair election can be held in the
country.
In Lupane on Saturday armed riot police officers threatened to
shoot donkeys
which had ferried old men and women who had travelled far and
wide to have
an encounter with Tsvangirai.
The Prime Minister is said
to have told the police — who have a
constitutional mandate to protect
citizens — to respect the rule of law.
http://www.swradioafrica.com
By Alex Bell
31
October 2011
The MDC-T MP for Bulawayo South, Eddie Cross, has faced
serious threats from
suspected CIO members, in the wake of revelations he
made during parliament
about the corruption at the Chiadzwa diamond
fields.
Cross earlier this month tabled a motion in Parliament calling
for the
controversial diamond mines to be nationalised, in an effort to
control what
Cross has described as rampant theft there. He then last week
went on to
detail what he had discovered about the situation at Chiadzwa,
where
millions of dollars in profits have not been accounted for. Cross said
the
way in which diamonds were being exploited was unacceptable, with only a
fraction of profits being seen by the State.
Cross said that the CIO,
the Zimbabwe Prison Services and the Zimbabwe
Republic Police, were all
involved in extracting diamonds from Chiadzwa.
Other MPs also joined in the
debate, saying key ZANU PF members like Obert
Mpofu, Emmerson Mnangagwa and
the Mugabes were all involved in the
exploitation.
Cross’ motion for
the mines to be nationalised was then adopted last week
Thursday, but after
the Parliamentary session ended he was approached by a
ZANU PF member who
said “we will investigate and come after you”. Cross said
that this threat
was followed by others over the course of three days. Then
on Sunday Cross
and his wife were followed by a group of people while he was
driving back to
Bulawayo from Harare. One of the group confronted Cross and
said he was
“from the CIO, the Presidents Office in Harare and that I was
being
monitored.”
“His language became more abusive and threatening and my wife
asked him not
to use such language. He ignored her and then told me that he
came from a
very senior ZANU PF Minister and that he could do anything he
wanted to me
including to ‘snipe’ me, at any time. I took that to be a
direct threat to
shoot me from a hidden location,” Cross said about the
incident.
Cross and his wife were eventually able to get away without
further
incident.
“I have no doubt that this was a direct death
threat by the CIO and that the
operation was authorised and ordered at the
highest level. The information
about (Chiadzwa) was and is extremely
sensitive and politically explosive.
However, given the situation in
Zimbabwe I remain convinced that it is of
vital national importance to get
these resources under proper control and
working for the benefit of all
Zimbabweans. These threats will not deflect
us from that goal,” Cross
said.
The threats against Cross come as Zimbabwe is once again set to
feature high
on the agenda of discussions at a meeting of the international
diamond trade
watchdog, the Kimberley Process (KP). The group’s annual
plenary session got
underway in Kinshasa on Monday.
That session is
being boycotted by key civil society groups, over the KP’s
failure to end
diamond fuelled human rights abuses. This has been
particularly evident in
Chiadzwa, where violence and rampant smuggling have
continued with no
decisive action from the KP.
Zimbabwe was suspended from international
trade in 2009 over human rights
concerns, but the KP has fallen short of
ensuring that these concerns are
fully addressed. Instead the group, now led
by the DRC’s Mathieu Yamba, has
been trying to bring Zimbabwe back into
international trade circles, despite
the local industry still not meeting
international standards.
Yamba has said twice this year that Zimbabwe has the
green light to resume
trade, despite a lack on consensus from the rest of
the KP. These unilateral
decisions have been slammed as an attempt to
whitewash the ongoing issues at
Chiadzwa.
http://www.monstersandcritics.com
Oct 31, 2011, 18:52
GMT
Marondera, Zimbabwe - A 400-million-dollar health fund was launched
Monday
in Zimbabwe to provide free health services for pregnant women and
children
under 5 years, with assistance from UNICEF, the European Union and
other
Western nations.
The head of UNICEF in Zimbabwe, Peter Salama,
said hospital fees were one of
the biggest barriers to access to critical
health care for poor women and
children.
The country's economic
crisis has over the years severely weakened the
health care system.
According to the UN, 100 children under 5 years and
eight women die everyday
in Zimbabwe as they cannot afford to pay hospital
fees.
Calling the
fund a 'real revolution,' Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai said:
'Zimbabwe
is one of the three countries in sub-Saharan Africa that has gone
back by 22
per cent in under-five mortality rates.'
http://www.dailynews.co.zw
By Staff Writer
Monday, 31
October 2011 15:29
HARARE - Zimbabwean civic society organisations
have urged Commonwealth
countries to help Zimbabwe prepare for free and fair
elections.
Rindai Chipfunde Vava, the Zimbabwe Elections Support Network
(Zesn)
director who spoke on behalf of the Zimbabwean delegation to the
Commonwealth People’s Forum which was also made up of Artists for Democracy
in Zimbabwe Trust (ADZT) and Youth for Development in Zimbabwe Trust
(Yidez), said Commonwealth countries must help build a conducive environment
in the country before elections can be held.
“The Commonwealth must
help Zimbabwe meet five minimum conditions necessary
to hold elections next
year,” said Vava while addressing delegates to the
Perth
meeting.
“The five minimum conditions necessary to hold elections next
year are a
conducive environment, media pluralism, early invitation and
deployment of
observers, voters’ roll clean up and an independent, skilled
and well
resourced electoral commission. Without any of these five elements,
the
elections cannot be free and fair.”
Meanwhile, the Commonwealth
Advisory Bureau, in its briefing to the 2011
Commonwealth Summit, called on
Commonwealth leaders to among other things
consider scrapping “sanctions”
imposed on President Robert Mugabe and his
inner circle as a way of helping
the reform process in Zimbabwe.
The advisory group urged the leaders to,
“calibrate a reduction in
international sanctions to match progress towards
democracy and human
rights, help sort out Zimbabwe’s electoral register and
organise an
investment conference, similar to the one that Chief Emeka
Anyaoku supported
for Nigeria after the end of the Sani Abacha
dictatorship.”
http://www.radiovop.com/
Harare, October 31, 2011 -
Zimbabwe diamonds issue is expected to take the
centre stage at the Kimberly
Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) meeting in
the Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC) beginning Monday on whether to allow
or reject the country's bid
to sell its gems after concerns by human rights
organisations that there are
human rights abuses in the Marange area.
Zimbabwe's bid to sell its
diamonds has in the past divided the KPCS with
Western countries against the
bid while some African countries friendly to
Harare have supported that the
southern African country sell its diamonds.
The KPCS has allowed the country
to sell its diamonds in three monitored
auction sell in the past but the
world wide diamond regulator is yet to give
Zimbabwe permission to sell
alluvial diamonds discovered in Marange over the
past years.
As the
debate continues at the KPCS meeting in the DRC this week Zimbabwe
Members
of parliament will be debating the motion moved by MDC legislator
Eddie
Cross to have all the Marange diamonds nationalised saying that the
country
has not been benefitting from the gems except a few connected
individuals
who have been lining their pockets at the expense of the
country.
"The Minister told us here just a few weeks ago that they
were producing in
2010, 23 000 carats a day," Cross said. "We know from the
facts on the
ground that in fact production is substantially greater than
that. We know
that in fact sales from Chiadzwa last year exceeded $400
million. We are the
custodians of the welfare of Zimbabwe and this resource
is unique."
Apart from the alluvial diamonds in Marange,Zimbabwe has
other diamond mines
such as Murowa and River Ranch which have been mining
the gems over the
years without any human rights abuses that were
reported.
Human rights organisations have been calling on Zimbabwe to
affirm that it
will protect human rights of people in the area after reports
that ordinary
people were being tortured by security forces following a
diamond rush in
the eastern part of the country in the past five
years.
The pressure groups have also been calling for the compensation of
the
families and communities surrounding the diamond mining area who were
forcibly moved to allow companies to mine the diamonds.
Finance
minister Tendai Biti from Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has
complained
that some of the revenue from diamond sales is not reaching
treasury
something that has continued to divide the coalition government led
by the
premier and President Robert Mugabe.
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Lance Guma
31
October 2011
A businessman with close links to the Mujuru faction within
ZANU PF was
arrested last week Thursday on allegations of espionage and
illegally
setting up satellite communication equipment to leak official
secrets to
foreign countries.
Prominent banker Farai Rwodzi, a
non-executive director at telecoms company
Africom Holdings, was arrested
alongside acting chief executive Simba
Mangwende and Oliver Chiku from
Global Satellite Systems. Initial reports
say Mangwende was arrested
Wednesday while Rwodzi was picked up on Thursday.
A report in the state
controlled Herald newspaper said the businessmen are
being charged with
contravening a section of the Postal and
Telecommunications Act which “makes
it an offence for one to illegally
possess, control or work for a radio
station.”
Allegations are that the trio “connived to install
communication equipment”
and connect it to the “Africom main network system
without the authority or
knowledge of Africom management and the Post and
Telecommunications
Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe.”
It was via this
network that the trio allegedly sold and sent confidential
government,
military and other security information to Canada, the United
States and
Afghanistan. It’s also alleged they operated the system for three
months
before they were finally arrested.
But Harare lawyer Innocent Chagonda, who
is representing Rwodzi, has told
the Daily News he is puzzled at why his
client was arrested. “Rwodzi is a
non-executive director. We also wonder
whether it is proper for the police
to arrest him for something that
involves Africom as a company in its
entirety,” he said.
“My client
believes that there is more than meets the eye. He is of the view
that this
arrest has been touched off by a forensic report compiled by the
former
chief executive of the company who claimed there were monies that had
been
stolen from Africom,” Chagonda told the paper.
Other sources who spoke to
SW Radio Africa told us Rwodzi was considered a
right hand man for the late
Solomon Mujuru who led a powerful faction within
ZANU PF. Recently leaked US
diplomatic cables have suggested that relations
between Mujuru and Mugabe
were so strained at one time that the two did not
speak to each other, after
Mujuru challenged the ZANU PF leader to step
down.
The cables also
exposed the fact that the Mujuru faction sponsored the
presidential campaign
of former finance Minister and one time ZANU PF
politburo member Simba
Makoni, in 2008. That move is said to have cost
Mugabe votes in ZANU PF
strongholds. Whether Mugabe is quietly responding to
his WikiLeaks ‘enemies’
is the question being asked.
http://www.thezimbabwemail.com
Staff
Reporter 11 hours 10 minutes ago
HARARE - The beleaguered Zimbabwean
President Robert Mugabe has threatened
to seize local Swiss government
assets in retaliation for that country’s
decision to refuse visas to his
wife Grace Mugabe and his sidekicks who were
due to attend a UN summit in
Geneva, amid reports that the Swiss authorities
intercepted details of the
First Family plans to open bank Accounts in that
country, according to
sources.
Mugabe was forced to cancel a trip to Geneva last week after his
wife and
top aides including his spokesman, the Central Intelligence
Organisation
(CIO) director general and top bodyguard were declined
visas.
But a furious Mugabe, speaking at the Harare International Airport
on Sunday
as he returned from a "private visit" to Asia, warned that
"Zimbabwe is not
without means to reciprocate".
He told reporters:
“We were surprised, if not saddened, by what they have
done. Much more, the
Swiss government has always held itself as a neutral
country that did not
countenance war as it was neutral in any conflict even
during the First and
Second World Wars.
"Now they are showing that they are vicious and we
will reciprocate because
they have their properties here. We are not without
means to reciprocate.”
The Swiss embassy in Harare refused to comment,
referring questions on visas
to the Foreign Ministry in Berne, but according
to sources, the First Family
planned to use the visiti top open bank Account
in that country and
information was intercepted by the Swiss authorities,
hence the fury and
thunder from the fesity aging leader.
President
Robert Mugabe's wealth is estimated to be worth US$3 billion and
he is
Africa’s eighth richest man, a newly published book by a Zimbabwean
academic
and human rights activist has revealed.
In the book entitled Zimbabwe My
Home My frustration, Articles of Defiance,
the writer states that the
Zimbabwean president is as rich as Mohamed Fayed
owner of London Harrods
departmental stores.
The richest man in Africa is President of Equitorial
Guinea Teodoro Obiang
Nguema Mbasongo (est US$65 Billion) followed by
Maummar al-Gaddafi (US$56
Billion), Chairman of Globalcom Dr Mike Adenuga is
at US$27 Billion.
In the list, at number five is Egyptian businessman
Onsi Sawiris at US$20
Billion, followed by Ethiopian businessman Mohamed Al
Amoudi at US$9
Billion. At number six is Nigerian Aliko Dangote at US$4
Billion followed by
Zimbabwean businessman Strive Masiyiwa at US$3.5
Billion.
Sources said, Mugabe who is having health problems, wanted to
use the
Switzerland trip to stash some of his wealth before he
dies.
Mugabe and about 200 members of his inner circle have been banned
since 2001
from travelling to most Western countries, including Switzerland,
under
sanctions imposed following allegations of human rights
violations.
However, Mugabe has the right to enter the countries from
which he has been
blacklisted if the purpose of his visit is a meeting of
the UN or one of its
organs. Mugabe was due to have addressed a summit of
the International
Telecommunication Union, a UN body, on Monday.
The
87-year-old leader usually travels to UN meetings with one of the
largest
delegations of any nation. Critics say that the size of the
delegations is a
drain on the cash-strapped country’s coffers.
Swiss officials say for the
Geneva trip, Mugabe and 62 members of his
delegation had been granted visas,
but had cancelled the trip after being
told of the visa obstacle for his
wife, Grace, Foreign Affairs Minister
Simbarashe Mumbengegwi, Transport,
Communications and Infrastructure
Development Minister Nicholas Goche, CIO
chief Happyton Bonyongwe, his
spokesman George Charamba and top bodyguard
Senior Assistant Commissioner
Martin Kwainona.
Mugabe said on Sunday:
"It is a violation of rules and regulations governing
host countries of UN
meetings. They are alongside the United States of
America because the main
part of the UN is hosted in New York and the other
part and agencies related
to the UN are in Geneva.
"As host country, you should undertake
not to inhibit or prohibit visits on
UN business."
http://www.newzimbabwe.com/
30/10/2011 00:00:00
by Edwin Mwase I
Sunday Mail
“Salibonani,” the children speak in unison as we enter a
Grade 5 class at
Umvukwesi Primary School in Mvurwi.
“Sikhona,
linjani bantwana?” we answered.
“Thina siyaphila,” they replied, before
sitting down.
One could have been forgiven for thinking that we were in
the heart of
Matabeleland, but this is Mashonaland Central where Ndebele has
been
introduced as part of the school curriculum.
Pupils at Umvukwesi are
breaking the language barriers to unify Zimbabwe.
The idea of introducing
national languages across the board was first mooted
by education officials
in Mashonaland Central before being put on the debate
table by the Education
Ministry.
Umvukwesi Primary School has set the ball rolling as a pilot
project.
“We found it rational to introduce it as a communicable language
first in
2001. The emphasis was placed on the national spectrum in that
communication
would be made easier,” said the headmaster of Umvukwesi,
Andrew Taruvinga.
“We thought that the language might be of use, in case
the children might
find themselves in Ndebele-speaking regions, thus they
will be able to apply
the basics of the language,” he added.
Taruvinga
said the whole school, which comprises more than 450 pupils, was
now able to
read and write isiNdebele.
To test his assertion, the headmaster took us
to a Grade One class where two
pupils picked at random showed their new
language skill.
“Igama lami nguRopafadzo Mukwati, ngivela emaphandleni
eShamva (My name is
Ropafadzo Mukwati, I come from Shamva),” said a
seven-year-old.
“Namhla kuyatshisa, engxenye izulu lingana (Today it is
hot, maybe it will
rain),” added another seven-year-old boy who wanted to
show his proficiency
in the language.
Taruvinga is proud of the legacy
his school is creating.
He said: “Impressed by the enthusiasm displayed
by the kids, the Ndebele
community in the surrounding areas have come en
masse to help in the setting
and moderation of the subject.
“The
problem was that supervisors from the district and the province are
Shona
speakers who were hitting a brick wall in as far as supervision of the
subject is concerned viz-a-vis the curricula and the
syllabi.”
Taruvinga said they had now set their target on grasping the
concept before
the first class can sit the Grade Seven national examinations
in the
not-too-distant future.
Taruvinga said the other major
obstacle they were facing was the shortage of
Ndebele teaching
resources.
“The whole school of more than 12 classes is being catered for
by only two
teachers who are finding it hard to cope with the increasing
demands of the
subject,” he said.
Taruvinga added that the children are
showing a lot of excitement and
enthusiasm about the subject.
“It’s
amazing that you find the pupils using the Ndebele language
everywhere,
whether it’s on the playing fields or in the school corridors.
They are now
just proud of the language,” he said.
Nancy Mudiwa, the District
Education Officer for the Mvurwi area, concurred
with the headmaster on the
need to augment the available resources.
“Emphasis should be put on
widening the obtaining resource base like
increasing Ndebele teaching staff
and buying more textbooks before the
subject can be transformed from being
communicable to examinable,” she said.
Mudiwa said more schools in the
region were now clamouring for the subject
after witnessing the successful
Umvukwesi Primary School pilot project.
“Issues pertaining to the sound
administration of the subject must first be
addressed before the subject can
be offered to other schools,” she said.
Progressive Teachers’ Union of
Zimbabwe secretary-general Raymond Majongwe
said the idea was a brilliant
move which must be applauded by all.
“I would want to believe that pupils
must be able to converse in all the
recognised languages in this country so
that we may become one,” he said.
“We should not become foreign in our
land and I would want to pray for a
situation where Tonga is taught in
Manicaland, Kalanga in Masvingo and Venda
in Mashonaland,” said
Majongwe.
Walter Vengesai, a linguistics expert formerly with the
Midlands State
University, said students from Mashonaland Central should be
applauded for
piloting the Ndebele project as language plays a significant
role in
unifying a nation.
He said: “Language is a major vehicle for
fomenting conflicts or uniting
people all over the world. A considerable
number of tribal and genocidal
conflicts have been caused by differences
mainly in language, so the
universality of language plays a significant role
in uniting people.
“Language difference has been used by merchants of
tribalism as a means of
identifying the perceived enemy, so the future
generation has actually
shamed those who harboured fuelling tribal conflicts
in future as it will be
difficult to identify enemies or foes through the
use of language.”
http://af.reuters.com/
Mon Oct 31, 2011 3:07pm
GMT
* Production down after maintenance shutdown
*
Zimplats warns power tariff hike to raise costs
* Says on schedule to
present revised empowerment plan
HARARE, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Impala
Platinum's Zimbabwe unit said on Monday
metal production fell 13 percent
during the July-September quarter after a
maintenance shutdown at its
furnace, but the company was on track to submit
a revised local ownership
plan in November.
Zimplats said output of platinum group metals in
concentrate had declined to
90,822 ounces compared to 103,874 ounces during
the previous quarter.
"The furnace was down for 5 days for scheduled
maintenance. 4E metal
production was thus 13 percent below previous quarter
in line with the lower
mill and furnace throughput," Zimplats said in a
statement.
The platinum miner said a 60 percent rise in electricity
tariff on Sept. 1
was higher than expected and would increase production
costs in future.
Revenues during the period amounted to $133 million, 9
percent below the
previous quarter, due to lower sales
volumes.
Zimplats said it was working on a revised local ownership plan
which was
scheduled to be handed to the Zimbabwean government in November.
Its initial
document was rejected in September.
Zimplats, which is 87
percent owned by Implats is among several
foreign-owned mines in which
President Robert Mugabe's government wants to
hand over at least 51 percent
shares to black Zimbabweans.
Earlier this month, Implats announced that
local communities would acquire a
10 percent stake in Zimplats as part of
local empowerment compliance
measures.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
This was a rally applied for by the MDC
Harare Provincial organising
department which was supposed to be held at
Hatcliffe Shops on Sunday 30
October.
31.10.1102:21pm
by Theresa
Makone
Ian and I attended mass at St. Augustine's Roman Catholic
Church, Hatcliffe,
which was delayed due to a baptism session that was
incorporated in the
mass. We only finished at about 13.30hours. My husband
left me behind as he
was going to the office to do budget preparations,
expecting me to proceed
to the rally after my Sunday meetings. I was
expected only at 2:00pm while
others in the meantime, proceeded with
entertainment and introductions
according to our tradition.
To my
surprise, one of my staffers called me out of my meeting,to tell me
that all
hell had broken loose at the venue,as marauding ZPF youths were
attacking
the gathering at the shops. At the same time, churchgoers who had
left after
mass came back to tell everyone to plan the homeward route in
such a manner
that they avoid the Hatcliffe Shops vicinity.
I asked if the police had
been informed. I was advised that Deputy Mayor
Chiroto, who is the local
counsellor, and my husband, Ian, who had been
contacted by Counsellor
Chiroto, had gone to Helensvale Police Station
together.
In the
meantime, the MDC crowd and other members of the constituents who had
come
to listen to their MP, were forced to defend themselves while the
police
were, hopefully,coming.
To their surprise ZPF youths who are accustomed
to a docile MDC crowd, were
surprised by the resolute defense of the
people's right to assemble as the
attackers were sent scurrying in all
directions.
In the meantime, our people removed the P.A. System that we
had hired to
safety.
Councillor Chiroto, Mr Makone and one of my
drivers who had also been
injured, ferried injured people to Avenues Clinic
for urgent medical
attention.
Ian came back to check to see if it was
now safe and if the police had
responded to their earlier plea for
assistance.
The law abiding crowd was relieved when the riot squad
arrived. They
appeared to be driving the ZPF youths back successfully. At
that point, I
received a call from one of the organizers to come and address
the
constituency. No sooner had I left my sanctuary than I received another
call
to say that I should turn back, because the ZRP were now firing tear
gas and
rubber bullets into the crowd, as the ZPF youths were following
close behind
throwing rocks at the same crowd.
As some of our
officials were walking to safety with the riot police, two of
the ZRP
officers were overheard saying 'If we could only catch two or three
MDC
people, we will beat the hell out of them'.
At that very moment, one of
our people walking next to my husband, was
struck by a rubber bullet.
Fortunately, he only suffered muscular shock. I
wonder who the real target
was!
Obviously against such a force, the rally had to be abandoned. Until
11:00
pm at night, I was still stuck at Avenues Clinic checking on the
progress of
the gallant cadres who stood their ground as the merciless
forces of
Armageddon pelted them with rocks, sticks and bottles and attacked
them with
bicycle chains.
I believe one of our youths had a gun
placed against his neck by Justice
Zvandasara in full view of the police,
and no action was taken against him.
Justice Zvandasara is the ZANUPF
candidate of the harmonized elections of
2008 in Harare North Constituency.
Obviously, I trounced him in that contest
and Counsellor Chiroto was elected
to Harare City Council. Our hard fought
battle was dampened by the cold
blooded murder of Mrs Chiroto at the hands
of ZANUPF.
The
constituency was shocked to hear that the same Justice Zvandasara is the
representative for ZANUPF at JOMIC (Joint Monitoring and Implementation of
the Global Political Agreemen). The same person was on Sunday coordinating
reinforcements for his coward forces from neighbouring farms and
townships.
If is very clear that ZANUPF have targeted Harare North,
Epworth, Mbare and
Harare South as areas that they can cower into submission
come next
election. Fortunately, their method of murder and mayhem has long
seized to
impress the people of this largely Christian and God fearing
nation.
If we can no longer hold meetings that have Police clearance,
even when the
Police are there, would it be wrong to come to the following
conclusions;
That the police only came because ZANUPF had been routed That
the police did
not come to protect law abiding citizens That the police are
complicit with
ZANUPF That it is the police who do not want MDC to assemble
anywhere in
Zimbabwe That the police regard MDC as a rogue party that should
be
disbanded?
The Minister of Home Affairs cannot be protected by her
own staff! I would
have expected them to be there earlier, to ensure that
all was well on the
ground from early that morning. I doubt very much that
our CID section did
not know that there were other people planning to
disturb the authorized
gathering.
The ZRP that I know, have their
eyes and ears everywhere unless of course
they have lost steam like all
other institutions in the country, or they are
deliberately turning a blind
eye to these attacks, which are now everywhere,
where the MDC tries to
assemble. - Theresa Makone, co-minister of home
affairs
October 31st, 2011
The closing remarks delivered by the Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs, P.A. Chinamasa at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on 12 October 2011 tragically demonstrate how Zimbabwean citizens can expect to have their rights denied in perpetuum by this Government. In particular, Minister Chinamasa, leading the Government delegation at the Universal Periodic Review process, rejected calls to abide by the civil and political rights owed to the population by virtue of our acceptance of various international human rights norms and instruments, and even the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
Chinamasa instead says that economic, social and cultural rights should form the core of the human rights agenda. Indeed, this is where we have seen the greatest advances during the period of the Inclusive Government (IG), brought about by stabilisation of the economy and massive donor assistance to various Ministries in the rehabilitation of services such as health, education, water and sanitation. It is these same donors who he calls ‘imperialists-colonizers’. There can also be no justification (not that he tries to offer one apart from the false claim that it is sponsored by ‘the West’) for the denial of civil and political rights to the population in this period of political transition, which encompasses a constitution-making process with a referendum and election to come. In this context, his explicit rejection of the recommendations to impartially apply the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly; and ensure protection against enforced disappearances, torture and political violence with impunity; are spine-chilling.
Far from reacting ‘in a balanced way’ to the contributions made by member states, he instead launches a tirade against so-called Western countries, refusing to acknowledge ‘all recommendations that contain innuendos that Zimbabwe is a violator of human rights’. This rejection however includes recommendations made by two fellow SADC states, Zambia and South Africa, on the need to comply with the Paris Principles ensuring independence for the Human Rights Commission and investigate all credible allegations of political violence from the 2008 Presidential elections, especially around torture and enforced disappearances. The most sickening aspect of his remarks is how he attempts to completely absolve Zimbabwe’s negative human rights record, by pinning the very crimes of the Government of Zimbabwe on some ill-defined imperialist offspring who ‘arrest, detain, mutilate our people and plunder and pillage our resources’. Anyone with even a vague grasp of Zimbabwe’s track record knows precisely who is responsible for those acts.
The Minister fails to consider the cries from Zimbabwe itself, so busy is he with a wholesale rejection of ‘the West’ – equated to protection of sovereignty and rejection of neo-colonialism. For example, in one sentence he decries the excessive reference to POSA and AIPPA, saying that these laws were not the inventions of Zimbabwe – which is true, they came almost intact from the previous Rhodesian regime which used these specifically to oppress the majority – followed immediately by the assertion that those Acts are here to stay. This is despite the fact that public appeals to have POSA repealed, or at the very least amended, have been sustained for over two years during which time certain actors in Parliament have deliberately stalled the Amendment Bill. The latest culprit for stalling the passage of the Bill has been Min. Chinamasa himself who spuriously tried to say that it was a matter under consideration by the Principals in the Election Roadmap, thus trying to divert the normal passage of long-awaited legislative reform[1]. In addition, he suggests that these pieces do not violate any fundamental freedoms as long as their letter and spirit is followed. This is precisely the contention that civics have long raised, and presented full evidence for: that the police fail to interpret the law correctly and instead use it specifically to selectively curtail people’s rights to association and assembly[2]. It is astoundingly petty to reject the ‘omnibus recommendations’ made by some states, even though they have merit, on the basis of who said them. Thus, Zimbabwe shows itself to be the architect of its own pariahdom on the world stage by its petulant and uncooperative stance.
The excuses made for non-implementation of the Global Political Agreement are grossly misdirected. He claims that the hindrances to implementation are: sanctions and ‘pirate radio stations’. After 32months of monitoring adherence to the GPA, it is actually desperate to make such an assertion. Perhaps however, we can finally take this as a confession from ZANU-PF that they are the reason behind the non-implementation of the GPA, as these are the issues which they bleat about at every opportunity while ignoring all other failed benchmarks, such as state-sponsored political violence, the illegal appointment of key Government positions including the Attorney-General, etc.
In the midst of this we wonder, where is the MDC part of the Inclusive Government? Where were their Government representatives at the UPR and what about the Deputy-Minister of Justice? Will there be any response from them as a party or do they condone the slander and lies as the official Government position? If so, then they must accept it when our outrage at the disenfranchisement of the population, by the Inclusive Government, includes them.
It is now more patently obvious than ever that those who spoke did not represent or have the legal, democratic or best interests of the population at heart. The concluding remarks instead express, exclusively, the interests of a deranged and dictatorial coterie. When the Government position regarding the UPR is such, it is quite clear that we cannot expect our Government to protect our rights. This is therefore an appeal to the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights as well as SADC to realise the implications for the people of Zimbabwe and intervene when necessary to protect the rights that our own Government seeks to trample.
[1] See Veritas – on POSA Amendment Bill
[2] See ZLHR statistics on abuse of POSA and Section 121
Clifford Chitupa Mashiri, 31/10/11
You don’t have to be a lawyer to know
that Zimbabwe’s Attorney General
Johannes Tomana does not inspire confidence
as the country’s Chief Law
Officer, raising the question if he is not a
square peg in a round hole.
For instance, the A-G has threatened a high
profile lawsuit against the
European Union for a travel ban on Mugabe and
his wife using public funds.
“What I can tell you is that we are done
with the paper-work and what is
left is to get the necessary travel
documents to enable us to travel to
Europe,” Johannes Tomana told the
state-owned Herald last week.
Honestly, should it take Tomana 9 years to
feel confident to sue the
European Union or something has prompted such a
reaction? Does the lawsuit
have anything to do with the foiled plans by the
Mugabe family to allegedly
open Swiss bank accounts?
In January it
became public that Mugabe had reportedly lost all the money he
once held in
a Swiss Bank account estimated at millions of US dollars which
he allegedly
opened in the name of his 2nd wife Sally to avoid detection.
According to
Edgar Tekere, Mugabe’s first ‘wife’ was Abigail Kurangwa.
And Mugabe in
a “tutorial” at the airport Sunday from his eighth health
visit to Singapore
at taxpayer’s expense said Switzerland had no right to
bar delegates to UN
meetings. Is that the same Mugabe who detained and
deported a United Nations
Torture envoy? Has he forgotten other countries
also have the right to
protect their “sovereignty”?
However, Johannes Tomana’s arrival in Europe
could present a rare
opportunity for a citizen’s arrest for allegedly
snatching a conservancy in
July 2009 from its owner, Kenned Hood using an
offer letter from Zanu-pf
Governor Titus Maluleke in clear disregard for
property rights which he
should be upholding.
Since he is also on the
banned list, the A-G might face the humiliation of a
few hours in an
air-conditioned western prison and taste the difference with
Mbare’s
notorious Matapi police cells which he reserves for Mugabe’s
critics.
Last year, the A-G conceded that his law officers and
prosecutors had at
times misjudged when they unnecessarily invoked section
121 of the Criminal
Procedure and Evidence Act (CPEA) to effectively reverse
the granting of
bail to accused persons.
Curiously, the infamous CPEA
is the regime’s weapon of choice against
journalists, opposition and human
rights activists who remain incarcerated
in filthy prisons against court
orders.
Amazingly, in another posturing manoeuvre, the Attorney General
Johannes
Tomana is reportedly mulling to pull Zimbabwe out of the United
Nations over
Grace’s visa row! Give us a break.
However, it is not
the first time that the AG has become embroiled in Grace
Mugabe’s affairs.
In August, observers asked why the Office of the Attorney
General and an
officer from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe travelled to South
Africa to argue
on behalf of Mugabe’s wife in a civil dispute over haulage
trucks.
The civil case which partly reveals how some people
“invested” abroad at a
time of economic implosion (2007), raised fears last
month that Mugabe’s
family could lose their luxurious US$7 million mansion
in Hong-Kong as the
“shadowy Chinese businessman” whom they fronted to
purchase the house for
them was refusing to hand over the title
deeds.
How Mugabe could have managed to buy a US $7 million dollar house
in Hong
Kong in 2007 when Zimbabwe was at the height of hyperinflation and
he was
reportedly earning US$300 per month after the GNU remains a mystery.
But
with Zanu-pf in power, and the A-G who is a party fanatic, anything is
possible.
©Clifford Chitupa Mashiri, Political Analyst, London,
zimanalysis2009@gmail.com