http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=24445
November 3, 2009
By Our
Correspondent
HARARE - President Robert Mugabe reluctantly received DRC
President and SADC
chairman Joseph Kabila in Harare Monday, after he kept
him waiting in a
Harare hotel for a full day without giving him an
audience.Mugabe, 85, also
refused to receive Kabila, 38, who holds the
rotating chairmanship of the
15-nation Southern African Development
Community, at the Harare
International Airport when he arrived in the
Zimbabwean capital around 7 pm
Sunday.
Mugabe, who just an hour
earlier had been handing out medals to the senior
soccer national team, the
Warriors, after it clinched the COSAFA Cup title,
refused to proceed to the
airport from Rufaro Stadium to reportedly receive
the DRC
President.
There was no senior official to receive Kabila at the airport
and he
proceeded to his hotel in the company of a low-key protocol
officer.
Prior to Kabila's visit, Mugabe had told mourners at the burial
of a senior
member of his Zanu-PF on Saturday that the stand-off prompted by
the partial
boycott of the government by the MDC must be addressed as a
domestic issue.
Mugabe said he was glad the principals were talking about
it, adding he was
treating it as a domestic political problem, "and our
attitude is that
ultimately it is up to us as Zimbabweans to sort out our
problems," he said.
Mugabe therefore saw the visit by Kabila as outside
interference in the
resolution of a problem he insists did not need outside
mediation, senior
government sources told The Zimbabwe Times.
The
state-run Herald newspaper described the visit as a "working visit" with
DRC's ambassador to Harare, Mwanananga Mwawampanga, claiming Kabila's visit
was a follow-up to the meeting he held with President Mugabe on the
sidelines of the SADC summit held in Kinshasa in September.
Mugabe
finally met with Kabila in the afternoon of Monday and later met with
Prime
Minister Tsvangirai.
"I am here to visit friends," Kabila said as he
arrived Sunday, careful not
to contradict official policy in
Harare.
Prior to his visit to Zimbabwe, he had met with President Jacob
Zuma in
Pretoria. At the end of that meeting, he told reporters: "There is a
problem
within the Zimbabwe government. That is a fact. But the situation
has not
gotten out of hand. As the region we believe that the agreement
signed last
year is still binding. Any amendments must be made within the
framework of
that agreement."
Zuma met Kabila just after holding a
meeting with Zimbabwe Vice President
and Tsvangirai's deputy Thokozani
Khupe.
Khupe flew to South Africa after a meeting by the SADC ministerial
troika on
Friday, which recommended that a special summit be convened to
unlock the
deadlock.
Apparently angered by outside mediation in a
problem he has dismissed as a
storm in a tea cup, Mugabe labelled
Tsvangirai's party untrustworthy.
"They can never be true and genuine
partners and they have proved to be
dishonest," Mugabe said at the Heroes
Acre.
On Monday SADC was to further infuriate Mugabe by calling for a
special
summit of the SADC troika in Maputo, the Mozambican capital,
Thursday, to
deal with issues of Mugabe's non-compliance with the
power-sharing
agreement.
Mozambique, head of the SADC Troika Organ on
Politics, Defence and
Security, had invited Swaziland and Zambian heads of
State to make a new
push for a resolution in Zimbabwe.
Tsvangirai,
Mugabe and Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara, and
negotiators from the
three parties were expected to attend the Maputo
summit.
Mugabe goes
to the summit after the ministerial troika forced his party to
accept as
binding, the SADC communiqué of January 27, 2009, which states
that there
must be new appointments for the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe
governor and the
Attorney General.
Besides refusing to swear in some of its members into
government, the MDC
accuses Zanu-PF which it calls an "arrogant and
unreliable partner" of
persecuting its officials and delaying media and
constitutional reforms that
will be key to holding free and fair elections
in about two years.
Mugabe says he has met his side of the power-sharing
deal and insists the
MDC must campaign for the lifting of Western sanctions
against his Zanu-PF,
including travel bans on him and more than 200 of his
officials and an arms
embargo.
http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=24440
November 3, 2009
By Our
Correspondent
HARARE - The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) man who
disappeared from
his home two weeks ago after he was abducted by state
security agents
appeared in court over the weekend facing charges of
stealing guns from the
Pomona Barracks in Harare.
Twenty guns and a
shotgun were stolen from barracks in an incident that is
now believed to
have been stage-managed by the state.
The abducted man, MDC transport
manager, Pascal Gwenzere, appeared in public
for the first time on Saturday
when state security agents brought him to
court. They were armed with a list
of charges.
According to court papers seen by The Zimbabwe Times Monday,
Gwenzere, 36
and a father of four, faces charges of unlawful entry and theft
under the
Criminal Law Codification and Reform Act and contravening a
section the Law
and Order Maintenance Act in that he allegedly underwent
military training
in Uganda in 1999.
Gwenzere's charge sheet reads,
"On the night of 20/10/09 at Pomona Army
Barracks, Harare, the accused,
acting in concert with Gertrude and army
officers who are still at large
proceeded to One Engineers Support Regiment
Armoury where they cut the
hinges of a screen door to the armoury before
proceeding to force the
armoury twin metal doors open using an iron bar.
They then entered the
armoury and stole twenty AK 47 rifles and a shotgun.
They took the firearms
to an unknown destination.
"On July 1999 to 13 October 1999 at Soroti
Training Camp in Northern Uganda
the accused who is MDC -T activist, acting
in concert with Ernest
Chihombori, Matthew Musokeri and Thandiwe who are
also MDC-T activists, went
to undergo military training in order to
destabilise the government of
Zimbabwe upon their return."
Gwenzere
had no legal representation during the special court session which
was
attended by officers from the police, the CIO and military intelligence.
He
was remanded in custody to November 12 but his lawyers will on November 5
ask the court to remove him from remand.
According to his lawyers
Gwenzere was tortured while in the custody of
security agents. They said his
back had been broken while suffered ear
injuries. The lawyers said Gwenzere
could not walk properly because of the
falanga type of beating under his
feet. They said his private parts had been
pulled until they
bled.
Magistrate Edith Mushore ordered that the injuries be examined by
prison
doctors although Gwenzere had applied for permission to have that
done by
doctors of his choice whose findings would be admissible in
court.
Gwenzere was abducted almost at the same time as the foiled
abduction on
another MDC official while she was on her way to the party's
headquarters in
central Harare.
In a press statement released at the
time, the MDC said four armed men had
tried to kidnap party security
administrator Edith Mashaire on her way to
work at the Harvest House, the
party's headquarters in Harare.
The police and secret agents have on
numerous occasions in the past been
accused of abducting and holding human
rights activists and political
activists incommunicado for long periods
during which they sometimes beat or
tortured them in a bid to break
them.
http://www.guardian.co.uk
British mercenary
pardoned on humanitarian grounds
Simon Mann had served one year of 34-year
sentence
Haroon Siddique and Giles
Tremlett
guardian.co.uk, Monday 2 November 2009 23.23 GMT
The
British mercenary Simon Mann, who was sentenced to 34 years in prison in
Equatorial Guinea in 2008 for plotting to overthrow the country's
government, has been given a presidential pardon.
The Equatorial
Guinea information ministry said that the president, Teodoro
Obiang, had
already signed the pardon which was "a complete pardon for
humanitarian
grounds".
Mann, an Eton-educated former SAS officer, was arrested in
Harare, Zimbabwe,
in 2004 with dozens of mercenaries when their private
plane landed. He
acknowledged knowingly taking part in the attempt to topple
the government,
but his lawyer argued Mann was a secondary
player.
Mann was also ordered to pay a fine and compensation to the
Equatorial
Guinea state totalling around $24m (£14.6m).
The decree
issuing the pardon said that Mann had been released taking into
account his
state of health and given his need "to receive regular medical
treatment and
to be with his family".
The decree also said that Mann's "attitude during
the investigation . and
his behaviour during the trial and while being held
in prison . showed
sufficient and credible signs of
repentance".
Sentencing Mann, the presiding judge, Carlos Mangue said
that Mann had
failed to show "an attitude of regret", despite his apology
before the
court. But there was speculation at the time that he would be
pardoned by
Obiang.
Diplomatic sources said that he had told the
court what the regime wanted to
hear, implicating individuals and foreign
governments blamed by Equatorial
Guinea for the plot.
In court Mann
claimed that Spain and South Africa had supported the plot.
From the
Pentagon in Washington, and from the CIA and the big US oil
companies, came
tacit approval for regime change, according to Mann. He said
that in
retrospect he was relieved the coup had not succeeded because he now
realised Equatorial Guinea was not such a bad place.
http://www.voanews.com
By Sandra Nyaira
Washington
02 November
2009
Officials of the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme opened a
four-day
meeting in Windhoek, Namibia on Monday to decide among other
matters whether
to bar the sale of Zimbabwean diamonds on world markets due
to alleged human
rights violations.
The Kimberly Process was under
intense pressure from non-governmental
organizations in Southern Africa and
elsewhere who were urging the
international organization to halt diamond
exports charging rights abuses in
the eastern Marange diamond
fields.
Harare's star witness in Windhoek was to be Chief Norman Chiadzwa
of the
diamond-bearing area, said to have recanted earlier testimony saying
the
government destroyed his property after he spoke out against brutality
in
local diamond fields. Sources said Chiadzwa would apologize to the
Kimberly
Process for "lying" to its investigators in July.
Advocacy
groups were divided as to whether a ban on exports should be
imposed, some
arguing that such a move would only funnel diamonds into
illegal smuggling
channels to the world market. They said Kimberly's job is
to ensure that
diamonds do not fund conflicts.
From Johannesburg, Human Rights Watch
Senior Researcher Tiseke Kasambala
told VOA Studio 7 reporter Sandra Nyaira
that the campaign to ban Zimbabwean
diamonds from the international
marketplace is gathering momentum in
Windhoek.
Human Rights Watch
said last week that the Zimbabwean government has not
responded to Kimberly
Process recommendations which include the
demilitarization of the Marange
diamond fields, now under the control of the
Zimbabwean Defense Forces.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written by Tatenda Marowa
Monday, 02
November 2009 15:20
CHIADZWA - In an incident that exposes the extent
of the army's
brutality at the Chiadzwa Diamond Fields; three men were
reportedly asked to
carry corpses as punishment for entering the highly
secured area.
The corpses are understood to be some of people who are
reportedly
killed on a daily basis by the army. "We travelled to Chiadzwa
from Harare
to see if there were any prospects of getting the precious
mineral," said
one of the men. "We managed to pass through all the highway
checkpoints, but
we ran out of luck when the soldiers caught us walking to
the mountains."
The three men were taken to the army base where they
say, after a
night of severe beating, they were later taken to the
minefields and as
punishment, were made to haul four corpses from the mines
dug up by illegal
miners back to the base. After the punishment, the men
were released.
Asked if they went to the police to report the incident,
the men said
they were not sure if the police were going to help them in any
way. The
police have been accused of paying a blind eye to the atrocities
committed
at Chiadzwa and this has been seen as an attempt by government to
gloss over
the murders and human rights abuses.
An army official in
the Chiadzwa area who talked to The Zimbabwean on
condition of anonymity
confirmed the incidents and said this was a 'proper
way of punishing people'
trespassing on government property. Asked if his
superiors knew about these
incidents, the officer said they were told to do
anything necessary to stop
people from trespassing into the minefields.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written by Tapiwa Zivira
Monday, 02 November 2009 16:10
BULAWAYO - The social crisis caused by
the infamous Operation
Murambatsvina has created a child abuse scandal, a
controversial documentary
will reveal. According to the unreleased
documentary, over 106 orphans at
Lockview Primary School were sexually
abused. 15 of them tested HIV positive
after they were allegedly raped by
close relatives.
The documentary is a brainchild of Bulawayo film
maker, Thandazani
Nkomo, who has indicated that his idea is to prompt
authorities into action
through the production. Lockview draws its pupils
from the nearby peri-urban
plots where victims of the government-sponsored
Operation Murambatsvina of
2005 are taking refuge. Under Murambatsvina
illegal houses and structures in
urban and peri-urban areas were destroyed
and the occupants were left
homeless, resulting in many of them finding
their way to the illegal
settlements outside towns where they had no access
to health and sanitary
facilities.
It is also understood that the
cholera pandemic which swept across the
country late last year and early
this year, leaving nearly 4000 dead, was a
result the manifestation of these
settlements, among other things.
Co-ordinator of the Coalition Against Child
Labour Zimbabwe, Pascal Masocha,
said the findings were just the 'tip of the
iceberg' as there were likely to
be more of such cases among the displaced
people both in urban and farming
communities. "Such incidences are to be
condemned in the strongest terms;
there is need to ensure mechanisms to
provide decent accommodation for
people in these communities," said
Masocha.
"We fear these children are likely to drop out of school where
they
become more vulnerable to further abuse and this is the last thing that
we
want to happen," added Masocha. "It is our hope that the new constitution
must incorporate children's rights such that we do not have continuous cases
of the children's future being jeopardised by loose policies." According to
the findings, 350 of the 366 pupils come from families that shared a single
room, which might explain the abuse.
Garikai/Hlalani
Kuhle
African Network for the Prevention and Protection Against Child
Abuse
and Neglect (ANPCCAN) Director, Aaron Zinyanya, castigated the
government
for its Operation Garikai/ Hlalani Kuhle which he says did not
benefit those
with genuine need for accommodation. Operation Garikai was a
housing project
which came as a response to over 700 000 people who were
displaced under
Operation Murambatsvina.
"We call for these abusers
to be brought to book as soon as possible
and we also need to see the Victim
Friendly Unit's being capacitated to
handle such cases," said Zinyanya.
Justice for Children Trust (JCT)
Programmes Director Caleb Mutandwa implored
the government to allow Non
Governmental Organisations speedy access to deal
with the cases. Last week
Tabitha Khumalo, who is Member of Parliament for
the area, said there were
"a lot of child-headed families, children staying
with relatives and most of
these children have confirmed that they were
sexually abused at one point or
another".
According to Khumalo some
of the children do not report the cases of
sexual abuse because the
perpetrators are the providers of accommodation,
food and school fees.
Childine Public Relations Officer Patience Chiyangwa
said the cases of child
sexual abuse are 'deplorable and unacceptable'. She
urged NGOs dealing with
child rights issues to come up together to stand up
against any forms of
abuse.
http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=24429
November 3, 2009
By Our
Correspondent
HARARE - Justice and Legal Affairs minister Patrick
Chinamasa says the
United Nations torture investigator deported by
government last Thursday
kicked a storm over a trivial matter.Chinamasa
accused the envoy of causing
bad blood between the UN and
Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe deported the UN special rapporteur on torture, Manfred
Nowak,
citing concerns over a meeting of Southern African Development
Community
(SADC) troika leaders in the capital, Harare. Nowak was detained
Wednesday
evening and placed on a flight back to Johannesburg, South Africa,
the
following morning.
Nowak was invited by minister Chinamasa, to
conduct a fact-finding mission
to the country from October 28 to November
4. While in transit in
Johannesburg from Vienna on October 27, he was
informed that the Minister of
Foreign Affairs, Simbarashe Mumbengegwi, had
decided on October 26 to
postpone his mission.
Waiting in
Johannesburg, the special rapporteur was informed by letter dated
October
27, that Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, wished to meet him in his
office
in Harare at 10:00 am on October 29.
He was also informed that he would
be picked up at Harare Airport by an
official of the Protocol Department of
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Consequently, the special rapporteur flew
to Harare in the evening of
October 28, to meet the Prime Minister and
discuss with various members of
the government how best to conduct such a
mission in the changed political
circumstances of Zimbabwe.
Upon
arrival at Harare Airport at 9:20 p.m. on October 28, the special
rapporteur
and his team were not met by a Protocol Officer, but by the dead
of
Immigration at the airport, one Mabika.
Although Nowak and his delegation
had valid visas, he was told that his
entry had not been cleared by the
Minister of Foreign Affairs and that, in
the absence of such clearance, he
would have to fly back to Johannesburg the
next morning.
He spent the
night at the airport and was put on the 7:20 am flight to
Johannesburg on 29
October.
All efforts by the United Nations, the Prime Minister, his
secretary and
both Co-Ministers of Home Affairs to facilitate Nowak's entry
were
unsuccessful. A high level delegation sent by the Prime Minister to the
airport was denied access and told that the special rapporteur was no longer
being held at the airport.
On Arrival in Johannesburg Nowak expressed
anger at being expelled from the
country, stating that he had been singled
out for vindictive treatment even
though he had an invitation from Prime
Minister Tsvangirai. He said his
deportation showed that Mugabe called the
shots in the unity government.
Chinamasa however, criticized Nowak's own
conduct in refusing to alter his
travel plans after being asked to delay his
visit by two days. Chinamasa
said he was miffed that Nowak had taken the
postponement of his visit in bad
spirit.
"When we conveyed to him
that the trip has been cancelled, he should not
have come," Chinamasa said.
"I think his insistence to come and that he was
coming at the invitation of
the Prime Minister is introducing a very bad
spirit into our relationship.
It is not good that he should come (to be)
hosted by the Prime Minister when
originally I am his host.
"I am the minister responsible for human rights
in this country. He should
come at my invitation, because I am the minister
responsible for that area
in government."
Nowak said after his
deportation that he had never been treated so badly by
any government in the
world.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written by Staff
Reporter
Monday, 02 November 2009 15:27
HARARE - The Zanu (PF)
faction led by retired army-general Solomon
Mujuru (pictured) is allegedly
sponsoring the candidature of former youth
minister Ambrose Mutinhiri for
the vacant vice-presidency position.
This has been hailed as a tactical
move that party insiders say is
meant to give the Mujuru group a head-start
in its battle to succeed
President Robert Mugabe. A rank outsider, Mutinhiri
surprised many in the
party and outside when he last month tossed his hat
into the race for the
Zanu (PF) second vice-presidency which was left vacant
following the death
of Joseph Msika in August.
As a legislator in
Mashonaland East, Mutinhiri capitalised on the
claim that PF-ZAPU - for
which he fought - was never a regional party. Zanu
(PF) sources said the
Mujuru camp saw in Mutinhiri an opportunity to
consolidate its position in
its turf war against another faction led by
defence minister Emmerson
Mnangagwa.
The Mnangagwa camp is fighting to succeed Mugabe and take
charge of
Zanu (PF) while Mujuru is pushing for his wife to take over from
the
85-year-old Zimbabwean strongman when and if the veteran leader leaves
office. The Mnangagwa faction reportedly has the support of seven provinces
which are more than enough to decide the party's presidium. But the entry of
Mutinhiri into the fray is expected to take the sting away from the
Mnangagwa campaign.
http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=24433
November 3, 2009
By Owen
Chikari
MASVINGO - Gutu resident magistrate Musaiona Shortgame has been
suspended
pending investigations into allegations of bribery in that he
received a
US$400 kickback from a convict in return for the prisoner's
freedom.
Shortgame who has already been arraigned before the courts to
face charges
of contravening a section of the Prevention of Corruption Act,
however,
denies the charges.
Masvingo provincial magistrate Golden
Mandityira on Monday confirmed
Shortgame's suspension, saying the ministry
was conducting its own
investigations.
"I can confirm that the Gutu
resident magistrate has been suspended to pave
way for internal
investigations", said Mandityira. "The police are doing
their own work and
as a ministry we also have to conduct our investigations.
"Once
investigations have been completed, and he is cleared of the charges
then he
is free to resume his duties."
Since his suspension Shortgame has been
barred from visiting his workplace
for fear his presence would prejudice
investigations.
It is alleged that relatives of the prisoner alleged to
have bribed
Shortgame met the magistrate and raised their concern over the
continued
incarceration of the convicted man.
Shortgame allegedly
demanded US$400 from the relatives in return for the
convict's
release.
It is alleged that Shorgame received the US$400 and went on to
pull the
prisoner's court record and signed for his release without the
knowledge of
the state.
The state prosecutor who represented the
state in the case then raised the
alarm over the intended release of the
convict without the state's
knowledge. The prosecutor reported the case to
the police, resulting in the
magistrate's arrest.
The magistrate is
currently out of custody on free bail after Mandityira,
who is also the
presiding magistrate in the case, dismissed the State's
request to have
Shortgame remanded in custody.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written by Staff Reporter
Monday, 02
November 2009 13:32
HARARE - A group from Restoration of Human Rights
(ROHR) Zimbabwe
activists yesterday convened in the city centre to send a
clear message to
the Southern African Development Committee (SADC) Troika
to take up a hard
stance against Zanu (PF) and President Robert Mugabe. In
carrying out its
fact finding mission, ROHR called on the SADC Troika to
take note of the
following fundamental issues of concern:
1) The
uniformed forces should execute their duties professionally
without
discriminating on the grounds of political affiliation.
Investigations
should be made on the fresh reports on the abduction of MDC
supporters by
armed police officials.
2) Draconian media legislature POSA and AIPPA
should be repealed as a
matter of urgency.
3) The office of the
attorney general should immediately cease
intimidation campaigns that are
targeted at harassing human rights defenders
and political
activist.
4) Zanu (PF) should demobilize and disarm the
militia.
5) Known perpetrators of violence must face the law regardless
of
political affiliation and rank in society.
http://www.zimbabwejournalists.com
2nd
Nov 2009 20:31 GMT
By a
Correspondent
UK Parliament
House of Lords
Monday 2 November
2009
Zimbabwe
Question
Asked By Lord Avebury
To ask Her
Majesty's Government what recent discussions they have had with
the Southern
African Development Community concerning implementation of the
global
political agreement in Zimbabwe.
Lord Wallace of Saltaire: My Lords, in
the unfortunate absence of my noble
friend Lord Avebury, and with his
permission, I beg leave to ask the
Question standing in his name on the
Order Paper.
Lord Brett: My Lords, everyone in the House will join with
me in wishing the
noble Lord, Lord Avebury, a successful recovery from his
broken leg and a
speedy return to the House. He demonstrates great wisdom
and experience on
the Liberal Democrat Benches and great wisdom and
effectiveness in debates
in the Chamber.
The Southern African
Development Community, as sponsor and guarantor of the
global political
agreement - GPA - has a key role to play in this matter. We
regularly
discuss Zimbabwe with SADC Governments and a SADC troika visited
Harare on
29 October to discuss developments. We will closely monitor the
outcome of
that and continue to make our priority working with the region to
promote
reform in Zimbabwe.
Lord Wallace of Saltaire: My Lords, while recognising
the difficulties the
British Government face in openly criticising the
Zimbabwean Government and
attracting ire from Mr Mugabe in return, what
channels do the British
Government find most useful in pressing SADC to act
to bring the parties
back together again in the rapidly deteriorating
political, and therefore
economic and security, situation within
Zimbabwe?
Lord Brett: My Lords, the Government use all channels
available, including,
of course, bilateral channels with countries in SADC.
My noble friend Lady
Kinnock is in South Africa this week and I have no
doubt that Zimbabwe will
not be without note in her discussions with the
South African Government. We
also work with our European Union colleagues,
who have a major part to play
in bringing that country back to normality. We
support the Unity Government,
particularly those parts which favour reform.
However, we cannot but condemn
the henchmen within that Government who seek
to continue what went before
and to avoid returning to a democratic and
prosperous Zimbabwe.
Baroness D'Souza: My Lords, the current chair of
SADC, President Kabila of
the Democratic Republic of Congo, relies on
Zimbabwean guards for his
personal safety. Do the Government agree that this
compromises his authority
in dealing with the current upsurge in human
rights violations in Zimbabwe?
What diplomatic pressure will the Government
exert on this issue?
Lord Brett: My Lords, I listened with care to the
noble Baroness but I am
not sure that I agree with her. SADC is a major
geographical and regional
power with lots of member Governments with
considerable reason to hope that
Zimbabwe will return to its prosperity of
yesteryear. I do not think that
the provision the noble Baroness asks about,
though it might cast doubt in
people's eyes, is likely to be a major feature
within SADC's decisions.
However, I take her question on board.
Lord
Elton: My Lords, given the power and spread of SADC to which the noble
Lord
has just referred, and the fact that it is meeting in Mozambique on
Thursday
to consider this issue, how does he interpret the fact that Mugabe
has
already said that the SADC tribunal ruling on land reform was of no
consequence, that land issues are not subject to the SADC tribunal, and that
he is already ignoring, and has long ignored, the undertaking he gave to
swear in MDC district governors and Ministers on the instructions of SADC?
What steps can SADC be encouraged to take that will bring him to his senses,
or will it remain completely powerless?
Lord Brett: My Lords, I have
every sympathy with the noble Lord's points.
The issues that President
Mugabe seeks to deny are part of the global
political agreement, which SADC
produced in 2008. Therefore, we should ask
SADC how it will implement the
GPA and persuade and advise those in breach
of it. I am sure that my noble
friend and other Ministers in the Foreign
Office are doing everything
possible through all channels earnestly to
advise SADC member states. One
hopes that Thursday's meeting and the troika's
efforts will pressure
Zimbabwe to achieve what the Unity Government should
be about; namely, to
restore democracy, bring forward development and rescue
the Zimbabwean
people from a decade of desperate mismanagement.
Lord Acton: My Lords, my
noble friend said that the noble Baroness, Lady
Kinnock, was going to South
Africa. We wish her very well in her diplomatic
efforts. What is the current
position of South Africa on the Zimbabwean
situation? I do not ask this just
to monitor how good the noble Baroness,
Lady Kinnock, is at
diplomacy.
Lord Brett: My Lords, we will have to see the outcome of the
discussions
that are taking place in Mozambique on Thursday to know that.
Certainly,
President Zuma has made clear his rather more urgent requirements
of the
Government of Zimbabwe, more than perhaps his predecessor has done.
There
are those in SADC - Botswana is one and there are many others - who
can see
why a solution to Zimbabwe is in everybody's interests in the
region.
I am pretty sure that my noble friend Lady Kinnock has arrived in
South
Africa by now - if she has not, she is on the longest flight that has
ever
taken place from the United Kingdom - and I hope that she will be using
her
influence in all quarters to ensure that we bring about the policy, not
that
we want to see, or that Europe wants to see, but that the world wants
to
see.
Lord Howell of Guildford: My Lords, the UN torture expert Mr
Nowak said
that, when he was denied entry into Zimbabwe the other day, he
was going to
complain to the UN Commissioner on Human Rights. Can the
commissioner do
anything about it? Are we backing his complaint? Is anything
going to happen
at all?
Lord Brett: My Lords, those who listened to
the rapporteur's interview on
Radio 4 will have no doubt how badly he was
treated in contravention of
international law and in contravention to the
invitation already issued. In
that sense, we are totally supportive that
international law has to be
applied. We have heard nothing since from the UN
about how the rapporteur
will take that forward, but clearly it will be an
issue and not one on which
we are likely to find ourselves in sympathy with
the Zimbabwean Government.
Lord Anderson of Swansea: My Lords -
The
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food
and
Rural Affairs (Lord Davies of Oldham): Sorry, my Lords, our time is up.
http://www.zimonline.co.za
by Edith Kaseke
Tuesday 03 November 2009
HARARE - The SADC troika will hold a
summit this week, in a sign of growing
pressure against President Robert
Mugabe but analysts said regional leaders
would need to press hard the
obstinate octogenarian to fully implement terms
of last year's Global
Political Agreement (GPA) and save a fragile unity
government from
collapse.
Zimbabwe's nine-month-old unity government is rocked by
disputes between
erstwhile rivals Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and
Mugabe on how to share
executive power and was plunged into crisis after
Tsvangirai's Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC) party boycotted Cabinet, a
decision that may has
hastened SADC action.
Last week, the two men
and their negotiators met a Southern African
Development Community (SADC)
ministerial team, which was in the country to
review the coalition and there
was no doubt it was Tsvangirai who emerged
from the meetings more satisfied
with the summit decision.
The summit will be held on Thursday in
Mozambique and will be chaired by
Mozambican President Armando Guebuza and
attended by Zambian leader Rupiah
Banda and Swaziland's King Mswati
II.
Tsvangirai had travelled around the region two weeks ago, meeting
leaders to
explain his party's decision to boycott Cabinet citing Mugabe's
ZANU PF as
an unreliable coalition partner.
Troika summit
"I
have no doubt SADC is now turning the heat on Mugabe, what he did not
want
was a summit to deal with Zimbabwe but this is exactly what he has
got,"
John Makumbe, a political analyst and Mugabe critic said.
"They (SADC)
have an opportunity to tell Mugabe to meet his side of the deal
or that he
will be left on his own, I believe the summit will deliver a
strong message
to him."
MDC officials have in the past expressed disquiet and
exasperation over SADC
for failing to tackle the 85-year-old Mugabe, one of
the oldest African
leaders.
The convening of the troika summit is
seen as acknowledging that much more
action is needed to bring Mugabe and
ZANU PF to adhere by the spirit of last
year's agreement while securing the
MDC's continued participation in the
unity government, whose formation has
stopped Zimbabwe's economic
haemorrhaging and political violence.
But
political analysts said SADC would need to lean more on Mugabe to fully
meet
his party's side of the political agreement and its February
communiqué,
which among other things, requires the unity government to deal
with the
appointment of a central bank governor and attorney general and
senior
government officials.
Mugabe has of late insisted that he has met all
obligations under the
power-sharing pact and maintains the MDC should
campaign for the lifting of
Western sanctions against ZANU PF, including
travel restrictions and a
freeze on general financial aid to
Zimbabwe.
The analysts said Mugabe was likely to dig in for now,
especially ahead of
his party's congress next month when ZANU PF would elect
a new leadership.
Some concessions
"Mugabe is somehow contemptuous
of SADC leaders, that he has made clear
through his actions, but at the same
time he can not spit in their face
because they did help him secure
legitimacy through the coalition government
at a time of increased pressure
for his ouster from the West," Eldred
Masunungure, a political science
lecturer at the University of Zimbabwe
said.
"So SADC is likely to
wring some concessions from the old man, reminding him
that a stable
Zimbabwe is better for the region but he is unlikely to give
in to all MDC
demands because you don't want to go to congress appearing
weak and giving
in to your rivals," he added.
Western diplomats said South African
President Jacob Zuma has been working
hard behind the scenes to end the
current political impasse and in his
meeting with Democratic Republic of
Congo President and SADC chairman Joseph
Kabila last week, discussed
Zimbabwe's political problems at length.
Kabila yesterday met Mugabe for
more than five hours as the young Kabila
told Mugabe of the region's fears
of instability in the country if the unity
deal collapsed.
But it was
not clear what the two men discussed as their talks stretched
into the
evening.
"You need to understand that South Africa is the mediator in
Zimbabwe and so
they want to see this agreement fully implemented and
working," a Western
diplomat who declined to be named, who closely monitors
the political events
in the region said.
"The reason Mr Kabila is
here is because he has sought and received advice
and guidance from Pretoria
on how to make the GNU work, but at the same time
it is really up to Mugabe
whether he wants this thing to work or not," the
diplomat said.
Ball
in Mugabe's court
The MDC says Mugabe has refused to swear-in its
treasurer general Roy
Bennett, one of the few high ranking white party
officials who will next
week stand trial on terrorism charges that carry a
possible death penalty.
The ageing leader says Bennett, a former white
commercial farmer whose
incarceration two weeks ago triggered the MDC
boycott, will only be sworn-in
if he is acquitted.
Mugabe and
Tsvangirai agreed to swear in five provincial governors from
Tsvangirai's
main MDC and another from Arthur Mutambara's smaller splinter
MDC group by
September this year, something the veteran leader has reneged
on.
Analysts said the MDC was likely to continue with its boycott
until Mugabe
implemented some parts of the agreement.
"Going back to
Cabinet right now without any concessions would seriously
undermine the MDC
and I don't think they would do that," said Masunungure.
"But the ball is
firmly in Mugabe's court now and this is what the MDC
wanted." -
ZimOnline
http://www.zimonline.co.za
by Mutumwa Mawere
Tuesday 03 November 2009
OPINION: On Monday, March 24 1980,
the Time Magazine published an article
entitled: "Zimbabwe Rhodesia:
Demanding the impossible":
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,921867,00.html
that
captured the complexity and challenges of constructing a government in
a
post-conflict situation.
The then Prime Minister-designate, Right
Honorable Robert Gabriel Mugabe,
had no choice but to put the interests of
Zimbabwe first in the face of what
seemed to many an impossible task of
satisfying black aspirations, retain
white confidence and keep peace and
security.
At the time, there was intense interest not only in the region
but also
globally about how the former leader of a liberation movement would
construct a government that responded to the demands of the time while
providing hope to many about a future that was uncertain.
Even Mugabe
had this to say: "Why are you asking so much from my poor little
Zimbabwe?"
to a journalist who was anxious to know the thinking of this
untested
leader.
The former revolutionary leader surprised many when he appointed
his first
Cabinet, leading Bernard Miller, white editor of the Rhodesian
Farmer to
remark: "We were all wrong about him. Everyone's got egg on his
face."
This was 29 years ago and it is appropriate that we ask whether
Miller was
correct in his assessment of Mugabe.
Was the concern about
the future of Zimbabwe misplaced? What did Mugabe do
right to convince
people like Miller that the future was secure for all?
In 1980, Mugabe
was the undisputed leader and in 2009, this is not the case.
ZANU PF was
acutely conscious that "white" interests had to be factored into
the
national question.
The national democratic revolution required the buy-in
of all and more
significantly there was a recognition that any attempt to
strengthen the
historically weak by weakening the strong would not
work.
ZANU PF was dominant as a political institution but in 2009 it has
been
forced to share state power with the two MDC formations.
After
28 years of monolithic hegemony on state power, one can appreciate the
adjustment challenges that confront ZANU PF?
Zimbabwe like South
Africa inherited a sophisticated industrial, mining and
agricultural
economic base.
The economy was still intact and the key players were
white compelling
Mugabe to acknowledge the futility of pursuing policies
designed to alienate
this key constituency.
The world responded
favourably when Mugabe included two prominent whites,
David Smith, a
Zimbabwean of Scottish heritage who was Rhodesia's Finance
Minister and
Deputy Prime Minister under Ian Smith, and Denis Norman, leader
of the
country's 5 300 commercial white farmers.
The key ministry of agriculture
was entrusted to Norman, an English-born
Zimbabwean, who came to Rhodesia in
1953.
Even Smith was not born in the then Rhodesia.
Norman was the
president of the Rhodesian National Farmers Union. For him to
be elected in
1978 as the president of this important platform of white
power meant that
his views on black economic empowerment could not have been
different from
the widely held view in white circles that black economic
advancement was
not in the national interest.
Notwithstanding, Mugabe believed then that
it was critical that his
government be inclusive. In choosing Norman, Mugabe
must have considered the
fact that he had not been active in
politics.
Norman was in Mugabe's Cabinet for 12 years. He was not the
only white
person to find favour with Mugabe.
When the MDC was
formed, the party managed to attract white members
including Roy Leslie
Bennett who was one of three white parliamentarians
elected in the 2000
election.
He is currently the treasurer of the MDC-T and is the deputy
minister-designate for agriculture.
The fact that he was a former
colonial policeman and an activist has given
Mugabe a reason to deny him the
appointment.
Although Mugabe accepts that for Zimbabwe to move forward,
targeted
sanctions must be removed he still would want to reserve the right
to decide
on the kind of white persons that must be part of the Zimbabwean
democratic
revolution.
In 1980, the challenge was to build a new
nation founded on new values,
principles and beliefs. In 2009, the challenge
ought to be to move Zimbabwe
from the failed policies of the past.
A
view is held that Zimbabwe's condition in 2009 is a direct consequence of
sanctions and, therefore, what is required is simply to remove
sanctions.
However, the land reform programme has dislocated many
Zimbabweans and
regrettably the majority of the key players in the farm
sector have left the
country and it must be accepted that even if the
political players were to
establish a sound working relationship it is
unlikely that we will witness a
mass return of this key
resource.
Commercial agriculture has been disturbed and to restore some
semblance on
normality will require a new approach.
It is clear that
Zimbabwe will not be able to move forward without the
support of the West
and yet Mugabe still holds the view that white people
should not be
trusted.
The only white people that can be trusted must be those who like
former
health minister Timothy Stamps and Norman were able to appreciate the
dangers of aligning with any so-called regime change agenda.
Mugabe
is yet to be convinced that the freedoms enshrined in the
constitution of
Zimbabwe can be valid for whites, especially those whose
hands can be
considered as contaminated by the colonial order.
Was Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai naïve in appearing to link the decision
to temporarily
disengage MDC-T from the inclusive government with the
re-arrest of
Bennett?
Mugabe at independence selected his own white colleagues in
Cabinet and yet
29 years later, he would not want Tsvangirai to exercise the
same right to
bring into government his party lieutenants.
One would
have expected that the wounds caused by the colonial order would
have healed
but clearly this is not the case.
Black people are in the majority and it
is inconceivable that a diminishing
minority group could pose so much threat
to a government that has been in
power for such a long period.
Why
would Mugabe appear to be scared of Bennett's presence in government
when it
is common cause the land reform has forced many white Zimbabweans to
emigrate? It is unlikely that those who have emigrated will return even if
normalcy is restored.
What the crisis has exposed is that without the
support of the Anglo-Saxons,
the future of Zimbabwe is challenged. We have
not seen the East come in to
fill the gaps.
What is evident is that
white people will have to be part of the solution
and there is no better
place to start the process than accepting that people
like Bennett are part
of the solution.
Unlike Norman and Smith, Bennett has carved his own
constituency to the
extent that he can stand his own ground.
By
accepting Norman as critical in assuring white farmers that they were
needed
in post-colonial Zimbabwe, Mugabe understood the need to reach out to
those
who hold a different worldview.
What is now required is a new thinking
accepting that Mugabe's worldview is
not original given that for the last 29
years he has been a prisoner locked
in the corridors of
power.
Mugabe's worldview has been and continues to be shaped by his
handlers who
benefit politically and economically from manufacturing
so-called enemies of
the state.
What complicates the situation is
that its detractors have framed the MDC-T
as a surrogate of the West and
so-called Rhodesian interests.
Mugabe believes this to be the case and
when MDC-T took the decision to
suspend its involvement in the inclusive
government, it was just another
example of a party pandering to the whims of
white interests.
At independence the nation demanded the impossible and
Mugabe was able to
respond positively. However, 29 years later, the
impossible is no longer
possible and the future remains as uncertain as it
was when Norman decided
to pack his bags and leave the country for good. -
ZimOnline
http://in.reuters.com
Tue Nov 3, 2009 11:51am
IST
CHITTAGONG, Bangladesh (Reuters) - Bangladesh dismissed Zimbabwe for
just 44
runs before easing to a six-wicket victory and an unassailable 3-1
lead in
their five-match one-day international series on
Tuesday.
Pacer Nazmul Hossain and left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak shared
two wickets
apiece to reduce the visitors to 8-4, a position from which
Zimbabwe could
never recover.
Left-arm spinners Enamul Haque Jr and
Shakib Al Hasan took over as chief
tormentors, grabbing three wickets each
to bowl out Zimbabwe, who had won
the toss and opted to bat, for the lowest
total by any team against
Bangladesh.
Hong Kong held the previous
mark of 105 in a 2004 Asia Cup match in Colombo.
Bangladesh were on
course for a first 10-wicket victory at 33 without loss
before Zimbabwe
snared four wickets in quick succession on a batting surface
that provided
sharp turn for the spin bowlers.
Raymond Price and Graeme Cremer each
claimed two wickets for Zimbabwe before
middle-order batsman Roqibul Hassan
finished the match with a huge off six
over long to take the hosts to 49-4
in 11.5 overs.
The final match of the series will be held at the same
venue on Thursday.