http://www.mg.co.za
HARARE, ZIMBABWE Oct 17 2009 13:02
Zimbabwe
prosecutors agreed on Saturday to postpone from Monday the
terrorism trial
of an ally of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai after his
lawyers argued that
they had been given little time to prepare their case.
Roy Bennett, a
senior white Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) official,
has been charged
with illegal possession of arms for purposes of committing
terrorism and
banditry.
He denies the charge that carries a possible death penalty upon
conviction.
Bennett was indicted to stand trial on Wednesday and
immediately detained in
prison. He was released late on Friday after a High
Court judge admitted him
to bail.
"It was agreed that the trial be
postponed as we have not given them [the
defence] enough time. We had given
them two days instead of the minimum 10
days required by law," Chris
Mutangadura told reporters on Saturday.
Bennett will appear in court on
Monday when his lawyers would ask the trial
judge to set a new date.
Prosecutors want the trial to start on October 27,
but defence lawyer
Beatrice Mtetwa said her team would ask for more time.
"We have proposed
that the matter be heard on a later date, however the
issue is that Bennett
wants this case to be finalised," said Mtetwa.
Bennett, a former white
commercial farmer, is Tsvangirai's nominee for the
post of deputy
agriculture minister but President Mugabe has refused to
swear him in until
he is acquitted.
Tsvangirai said on Friday the MDC would boycott the
country's power-sharing
government until sticking points had been resolved
and a political deal was
reached, sparking the biggest crisis since the
coalition was formed nine
months ago.
He said the MDC would disengage
from Mugabe's "dishonest and unreliable"
Zanu-PF party in the country's
unity Cabinet set up in February. - Reuters
http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=23840
October 17, 2009
By Our
Correspondent
HARARE - The trial of MDC treasurer-general Roy Bennett
will no longer
proceed as scheduled this Monday after the State conceded
Saturday it had
improperly indicted the deputy agriculture
minister-designate.
According to the law, an accused person who has been
indicted for trial at
the High Court should be allowed a 10-day grace period
to enable them to
prepare their defence outline.
But Bennett, a key
ally to Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, only knew of
his trial date with
two days to go to the trial, something his lawyers say
amounted to
ambush.
The former Chimanimani MP faces charges of possessing weapons for
the
purposes of insurgency and banditry.
Bennett was last Wednesday
committed to a Mutare remand prison to await his
trial but was released two
days later after his lawyers successfully filed
for his release on
bail.
High Court judge, Charles Hungwe reinstated his bail conditions
that
obtained before his indictment on 14 October, 2009, the date of
his
indictment.
Bennett's release coincided with yet another High
Court review application
by his lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa who challenged the
manner in
which he was indicted.
The matter was put before Justice
Lavender Makoni on Saturday but no
submissions were made as the State
quickly conceded it had improperly
indicted him.
"The order was
reached by consent," said State representative Chris
Mutangadura.
"We
never made any representations before the judge. We informed him we have
agreed not to proceed with the trial on Monday.
"The state has
conceded that it had not given him enough time as required by
the peremptory
provisions of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence. So in
terms of the law,
we are supposed to give him a 10-day notice.
"We had given him two days
notice. We have conceded to that fact."
Bennett will however still appear
before Justice Joseph Musakwa in a circuit
court on Monday out of procedure
as he had already been summoned for trial,
albeit wrongly.
Justice
Musakwa will be required to rule on a reasonable date for Bennett's
trial
after hearing submissions by both the State and the defence.
Mtetwa said
although they will seek a postponement of Bennett's trial to a
date further
than October 27, 2009 being proposed by the State,
they are still keen to see
the trial proceed and will not oppose the
indictment itself.
The
resolve to try Bennett by controversial Attorney General Johannes
Tomana, an
avowed "proud" supporter of President Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF,
has
heightened tensions in the inclusive government.
The MDC on Friday
announced its partial withdrawal from government to press
for a resolution
to outstanding issues haunting its eight month old marriage
with archrival
Zanu-PF.
But Wednesday's decision by Tomana to revoke Bennett's bail
pending trial
provided the spark to the so-called disengagement from
government by the
Tsvangirai led MDC.
The MDC concedes Bennett should
indeed be indicted for trial but is opposed
to what it sees as political
persecution on its top official.
The former opposition says Bennett was
being victimised for his political
affiliation.
The MDC is agitated
over President Mugabe's unwillingness to swear into
office one of its
founding legislators.
Mugabe wants Bennett to first clear his name in
court before he can accept
him in government.
http://www.radiovop.com
Harare, October 17, 2009
- The Zanu PF spokesman, Ephraim Masawi on
Saturday said the Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC) took the decision to
disengage from government
business to please a "white man".
"As Zanu PF we are not
surprised by this decision. The MDC has done it
several times boycotting
parliament and many other important national events
so we are not surprised
by this," said. "The MDC has its own problems and
wants to make these
problems national problems. They are only doing this to
please a white man,
they have always shifted goals posts but we will not
lose sleep over that as
Zanu PF we will continue working for the people of
Zimbabwe."
The mainstream MDC party led by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
announced
Friday its decision to disengage from all government business
until the
sticking political issues under a political agreement signed last
year in
September have been fully resolved.The MDC is protesting over the
continued
delay in appointing provincial governors, Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe
(RBZ)
governor, Attorney General and Deputy Agriculture minister designate
Roy
Bennett among other issues.
The decision by MDC followed the
indictment and arrest of the party's
treasurer general and deputy minister
of Agriculture designate, Roy Bennett
to appear in High Court for terrorism
charges. The MDC argues that its
legislators are being persecuted on trumped
up charges. The party said
Bennett had been attacked for being white and a
member of MDC.
MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa accused the Zanu PF
party of racism and
ruling by law. "It's a very extraordinary development
regarding this
decision that has been taken. We see this clearly as an
attempt by Zanu PF
to use the rule by law instead of the rule of law,
embarking on a clear
naked persecution of an individual, victimizing why
Bennett on the basis of
two offences. One that he is MDC and two that he is
White. We feel that this
is racist, this is provocative."
Other political analysts also shared the same sentiments with Zanu
PF.
"If they disengaged on the basis of Roy Bennett's arrest
then we are
disappointed," said President of a student association, Zinasu,
Clever Bere.
"Why can't they disengage on the basis of the fact that
students are failing
to raise money for exam fees and can't attend school.
As much as we
sympathise with the persecution that they are facing from Zanu
PF we are
equally disappointed by their failure to respond to the needs of
the people
of Zimbabwe."
Trade unionist and ZCTU secretary
general, Wellington Chibhebhe told
Radio VOP he was surprised by the
disengagement because the Prime Minister
was on record that the unity
government is working well.
"I hope this is not disengagement just
for the sake of disengaging
because previously we were being convinced that
the unity government is
working well. But this only confirms what we have
always said from the first
place that this will not work. It has always been
a non event and we are
going to see a number of such disengagements
coming," said Chibhebhe.
"There is a danger with such hotel
arrangements, now SADC has to be
called in but if the MDC had made the
decision to enter into a unity
government after consulting the people this
could have been a different
story. We are not saying we are right but we are
simply saying people must
look back before making decisions."
Bennett, a former commercial farmer in Chimanimani, is facing two
counts of
possessing weapons, insurgency, banditry, sabotage or terrorism
and another
count of terrorism.
http://www.radiovop.com
Harare, October 17, 2009 - A
number of Central Intelligence
Organisation operatives were accredited as
journalists on Friday for the
Cosafa Senior soccer challenge which is being
sponsored by the Zimbabwean
government, much to the surprise of the Sports
Writers Association of
Zimbabwe (SWAZ) which had submitted a list of sports
writers for
accreditation.
A member of the SWAZ
executive who works for a government institution
and so cannot be named,
confirmed there were people who work for the
President's Office who were
accredited as journalists.
Journalist accreditation allows access
to all areas.
However, it is not the first time that CIO operatives
have been
registered as journalists for they have always done this
especially when
there are international events taking place in
Zimbabwe.
However there will be no prize money for the champions in
the Cosafa
Castle Senior Challenge despite the government of Zimbabwe
committing US1
million for the hosting for the football showcase, it has
been learnt.
Sue Destombes, the COSAFA Challenge Cup chief
executive officer, told
journalists in the capital on Friday night that they
was no prize money but
the organisers were working flat out to ensure
winners would get "something"
at the end of the tournament.
"The prize money has not been determined. The sponsorship is still
trickling. We are however working flat to ensure that the winners will get
something. We should know by the second week of the tournament," Destombes
said.
Destombes said the 13 nations should not lose heart, as
there was
"national pride" to play for and a glittering trophy.
The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority has also poured US$300 000 which will
go
towards meeting the hotel expenses of the teams.
Destombes said the
organiser have set aside some money for individual
awards in the tournament
which burst into life on Saturday. The top
goal-scorer and top goalkeeper
awards come with a US$1 000 prize, while the
Player of the Tournament will
take home a cool US$1 500. The Man of the
Match for each game will receive a
commemorative trophy, as will the team to
win the Fair Play
The
tournament features the very best of Southern Africa's talent and
will
afford spectators the opportunity to see not only the finest talent of
today, but the stars of tomorrow too in a two-week celebration of the
region's football.
Matches will be played in Harare and
Bulawayo, with entrance to games
in the first round through to the
third-fourth place play-off priced at US$2
for standard seating, US$5 for
seating in the WINGS area (apart from the
quarterfinal between South Africa
and Angola, as well as the semifinals and
third-fourth place play-off, which
will cost US$8) and US$15 for the VIP
area. The final in Harare on November
1 will cost US$3 for standard
entrance, US$10 for WINGS and US$15 for the
VIP area.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009 21:11
THE Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T) yesterday said it has not
quit
the inclusive government but severed ties with Zanu PF, which it
accuses of
acting in bad faith and in contravention of the Global Political
Agreement
(GPA).
It said that position would stand despite the release of
Deputy
Agriculture minister-designate, Roy Bennett and would remain so,
until
President Robert Mugabe resolved all the outstanding issues stalling
the
inclusive government.
The move is set to
further widen the differences between the two main
parties to the government
and raise the possibility of a "two
governments-in-one"
scenario.
Clarifying the "disengagement", a senior MDC official
and deputy
minister of information Jameson Timba said his party had
disengaged from
Zanu PF and not from the inclusive
government.
"The MDC has disengaged not from government but
from Zanu PF with
respect to two state organs (Cabinet and Council of
Ministers) where it
interacts with Zanu PF," Timba said.
"The office of the Prime Minister and the MDC ministerial offices,
parliament and our councils will continue to work towards delivering real
change to the people of Zimbabwe."
Neither presidential
spokesperson George Charamba nor Minister of
Information Webster Shamu could
be reached for comment.
But Zanu PF deputy spokesperson Ephraim
Masawi said his party would
not lose sleep over MDC-T's disengagement
because it means nothing to them.
"For us life goes on as
usual. We have not lost anything," Masawi
said.
"Vaichaya
mapoto. Wakamboona kuchaya mapoto kuine marriage
certificate? (They are
co-habiting. Have you ever seen those co-habiting
having marriage
certificates?" Masawi asked.
Sources however said President
Robert Mugabe was frantically trying to
re-establish contact with Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai following the
fall out, feared to be the worst
since the inclusive government was formed.
Tsvangirai's
spokesperson James Maridadi said the two principals in
the unity government
were yet to meet although there were rumours they met
hours after the MDC-T
announced its decision.
On Friday, Tsvangirai announced that
his party had "disengaged" from
Zanu PF, and would not attend cabinet and
Council of Ministers meetings
until there was confidence and respect among
the political parties.
However, the Prime Minister said the
party would remain in government.
The latest tension was
triggered by Bennett's detention on Wednesday
on sabotage and banditry
charges. Bennett was granted bail two days after he
was sent back to jail
pending trial.
"It's not only the Bennett issue but there are a
number of outstanding
issues that need to be addressed," said MDC-T
spokesperson, Nelson Chamisa.
The parties are also in dispute
over the reappointment of central bank
governor Gideon Gono, appintment of
Attorney-General Johannes Tomana,
provincial governors as well as the
persecution of MDC-T officials.
Tsvangirai said the MDC-T is
aware of the constitutional implications
of the decision, especially the
provision that executive power is shared
between the President, the Prime
Minister and cabinet.
"However, it is a constitutional crisis
which should be resolved if
Zanu PF and its leadership know that there is a
price to pay for
procrastination," Tsvangirai said.
He said
if the crisis escalates, the MDC would push for the holding of
a free and
fair election to be conducted by the Southern Africa Development
Community
(Sadc) and African Union (AU), under UN supervision.
But
analysts noted that the disengagement could be good news for Zanu
PF
hardliners who are determined to see the collapse of the inclusive
government.
It will also give Zanu PF room to unilaterally
make and implement
policy decisions, they said.
Constitutional law expert Lovemore Madhuku said while the MDC-T's move
had
political significance, it had no legal force.
Among other
things, Madhuku said cabinet meetings would still go ahead
in the
"voluntary" absence of MDC-T ministers, and this could allow Zanu PF
to
fast-track some policies.
"They said they are not pulling out
of government, they will just not
attend cabinet meetings," Madhuku
said.
"If they voluntarily decide not to attend cabinet
meetings that will
not have an effect on other cabinet members. It is either
they are in or
they are out."
Madhuku said cabinet was not
regulated by strict law but by
constitutional conventions or rules of
practice, most of which were not
written.
"All legal issues
work against the MDC-T. Nothing will stop the
government from working," he
added.
The National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) chairperson
said the MDC-T
boycott could plunge the country into a similar situation to
what happened
between March 29 last year and February 11 this year, when
Zanu PF ruled
without the mandate of the people.
Some of
the landmarks of that period were the controversial
appointment of Gono and
Tomana.
But one MDC official said the net effect of MDC-T's
"disengagement" is
a constitutional crisis and a paralysis of the inclusive
government.
The official, who requested anonymity, said while
Mugabe chairs
cabinet, Tsvangirai oversees formulation of policy and if the
office of the
Prime Minister is no longer part of the Cabinet "it means
there will be no
policy formulation and implementation to be
done".
The disengagement also means that Mugabe cannot appoint
anyone to
parastatals, Vice- Chancellors of universities and Commissions
because
Constitutional Amendment No 19 states that he has to do that in
consultation
with the Prime Minister.
Under Constitutional
Amendment 19, Mugabe makes senior appointments in
terms of the Constitution
and in consultation with the Prime Minister.
This, said
Madhuku, would also work against the MDC-T as Mugabe may
decide to go it
alone "if the Prime Minister is not available for
consultation".
Zanu PF prodigal son Jonathan Moyo said the
MDC had "created a perfect
opportunity for the appointment of an acting
Finance Minister who will treat
international credit lines with the urgency
they deserve".
"They are creating a lot of problems for
themselves just for the sake
of one white person," Moyo
said.
By Caiphas Chimhete and Vusumuzi Sifile
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009
21:03
THE entry of retired Brigadier Ambrose Mutinhiri into the race to
succeed the late Vice-President Joseph Msika has drawn the ire of Zanu PF
heavyweights from Matabeleland who now accuse other provinces of
interference.
Zanu PF secretary for administration Didymus
Mutasa last week claimed
the absence of a clear senior leader from
Matabeleland had complicated the
nominations for the vacant
post.
Mutinhiri, a former Zipra chief of staff who hails
from Mashonaland
East, last week added more confusion to the Zanu PF
succession crisis when
he became the first candidate to openly canvass for
support from the three
Matabeleland provinces.
He
reportedly wrote to the Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South and
Bulawayo.
The provinces failed to meet last week's deadline
to nominate their
choice for VP amid widening divisions.
Yesterday
two Zanu PF politburo members whose names have been linked
to the power
games blamed the confusion on interference from other
provinces.
"Mutinhiri has no chance because he is not from
Matabeleland," said
one of the officials. "The people of Matabeleland are
clear on who is
supposed to be the next Vice-President.
"The Unity Accord was essentially signed to end a tribal conflict and
if
they now want to bring other people from outside Matabeleland it would be
a
disaster for Zanu PF."
The two also accused Mutasa of
harbouring ambitions to take over as
national chairman.
Zanu PF and PF Zapu signed the accord in 1987 to end the Gukurahundi
massacres in Matabeleland and the Midlands.
PF Zapu leader,
the late Joshua Nkomo became the second Vice-President
and was succeeded by
Msika, who died in August.
Zanu PF chairman John Nkomo had
appeared on course to land the post
after he was nominated by Bulawayo
province earlier this month.
"The tradition in PF Zapu was that
leaders are chosen according to
seniority and that should be respected,"
said another source.
The deputy president of the senate, Naison
Ndlovu, is the most senior
surviving PF Zapu leader and is widely tipped to
take over as Zanu PF
national chairman if Nkomo eventually becomes
VP.
However, this has not deterred the likes of Mines ministers
Obert
Mpofu, Bulawayo governor Cain Mathema, Mutinhiri and Zimbabwe's
ambassador
to South Africa Simon Khaya Moyo from entering the
race.
Mpofu and Mathema have been dismissed as spoilers because
of their
unsavory history in PF Zapu while Mutinhiri and Moyo are considered
junior.
In his letter Mutinhiri said he was suitable for the
post because he
had remained loyal to PF Zapu since its formation and had
trained cadres who
include "Retired General Solomon Mujuru, Zimbabwe
National Army Commander
Lt-Gen Valerio Sibanda, Mpofu and
Mathema".
Mutinhiri and Mutasa were not available for comment
yesterday.
Meanwhile, analysts believe the confusion
surrounding the selection of
the VP provides the clearest indication that
Zapu's pullout had left Zanu PF
in a state of paralysis.
They felt if Dumiso Dabengwa had not left Zanu PF to revive Zapu he
would
have been the automatic choice for VP.
"As much as they do not
want to acknowledge how it has upset their
internal arrangement, the truth
is that it has indeed unsettled Zanu PF a
lot," said Brilliant Mhlanga, a
Zimbabwean analyst based at the University
of Westminster in the
UK.
"While they refuse to acknowledge Zapu's withdrawal and
revival, they
know for a fact that it means for positions like that of the
VP they have to
open them up for other regions as well."
Mhlanga
said although Nkomo was likely to prevail he would emerge from
the contest
"bruised".
BY KHOLWANI NYATHI
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009 20:46
THE battle between the First Family and Nestlé Zimbabwe thickened on
Friday
after the company turned away about 20 000 litres of milk from
Gushungo
Dairy Estate. First Lady, Grace Mugabe owns the farm, after seizing
it from
a former white commercial farmer at the height of the controversial
land
reform programme.
Nestlé was one of the farm's biggest
customers.
The company was however forced to cut ties with
Gushungo Dairy Estate
two weeks ago.
This was after human
rights groups protested against the company's
dealings with President Robert
Mugabe, who they say masterminded the land
invasions that have contributed
to the food insecurity in Zimbabwe.
Before severing ties with
Gushungo Dairy Estate, the farm was
supplying between 10% and 15% of
Nestlé's milk after most of its traditional
suppliers went out of
business.
Sources said a tanker with the milk arrived at the
company's
Southerton depot in Harare in the morning but spent the whole day
outside
the premises after management refused to accept it.
Zanu PF youths, led by Tongai, brother of Minister of Youth
Development,
Indigenisation and Empowerment Saviour Kasukuwere, are reported
to have
later visited the depot to try and force management to accept the
milk.
Sources said Kasukuwere arrived at the depot with
five other youths
and held a meeting with management.
Nestlé Financial Director Farai Munetsi would not disclose details of
the
meeting.
He said the decision to stop accepting milk from the
Gushungo Estate
was a decision in the "public domain" but refused to comment
further.
Munetsi referred The Standard to the Nestlé Group
Global corporate
communications team, which he said had the mandate to
comment on all matters
from the press. Despite assurances from Munetsi,
Nestlé's communications
office had not responded by the time of going to
press.
Over the last few weeks, activists have been up in arms
against Nestlé
for purchasing milk from Gushungo Dairy
Estate.
BY BERTHA SHOKO AND JENNIFER DUBE
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009 19:28
THE trial
of prominent human rights defender, Alec Muchadehama started
on Wednesday
with the Attorney-General's office and the police's Law and
Order section
coming under fire for their "continued persecution and
harassment of human
rights defenders". Muchadehama, who is accused of
contravening Section 182
(1) of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform)
Act, appeared before
Harare Magistrate, Tsitsi Mutongi together with his
co-accused, Constance
Gambara, a High Court Clerk in Justice Chinembiri
Bhunu's
office.
Mutongi dismissed the Attorney-General's office
interpretation of
Section 121 of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act
which gives the state
a seven-day period within which to launch an appeal
against granting of bail
to accused persons.
The state had
argued that Muchadehama had unlawfully sought the
release, from remand
prison, of Ghandi Mudzingwa, a former aide for Prime
Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai, tor Kisimusi Dhlamini and photojournalist,
Andrison Manyere who
were facing sabotage and terrorism charges.
The state was
arguing that the trio who were granted bail by Justice
Charles Hungwe in
April were released before the seven-day period elapsed
because it included
a weekend and public holidays.
However, Mutongi said:
"Paragraph six and seven of the state outline,
in my opinion, are the
Attorney-General's opinion on the interpretation of
Section 121. It is up to
this court to make an interpretation of the
sections
involved."
Mutongi then ordered the removal of the paragraphs
from the state
outline.
The defence, led by Beatrice Mtetwa
had argued that the position of
the AG's office were "legal arguments
prejudicial to the accused person".
Mtetwa said Muchadehama's
prosecution was on the basis of legal
opinions and interpretation of Section
121 of the Criminal Procedure and
Evidence Act by the AG's
office.
This, Mtetwa said, constituted a deliberate attempt to
undermine the
role of the courts "by influencing it through legal arguments
masquerading
as facts".
The defence also claimed
Muchadehama's prosecution was part of a
campaign by the AG's office to
harass human rights defenders "in an
endeavour to intimidate them into not
representing persecuted civil society
activists and members of the MDC
formation led by Morgan Tsvangirai".
Mtetwa also said the state
had failed to effectively outline charges
against Muchadehama to the extent
that the lawyer was not aware of the exact
allegations against
him.
Muchadehama was arrested after the state claimed he had
connived with
Gambara to seek the unlawful release of Mudzingwa, Dhlamini
andManyere.
The trio's release was suspended after the state
invoked Section 121
of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act to oppose the
ruling.
However, the defence claims Muchadehama made a
confirmation with the
Supreme Court to ascertain whether the state had filed
an appeal within the
seven-day period.
After the Supreme
Court confirmed that no appeal had been lodged as at
April 16 Muchadehama
sought the release of his clients on bail.
In the case of
Gambara, the defence led by Denford Halimani of
Wintertons Legal
Practitioners highlighted that the accused was a victim
caught up in the
cross fire of a sensitive case.
He said her action resulted in
the release of prisoners "whom the
state did not want to be released at all
costs".
Gambara is alleged to have processed the bail order
forms for signing
when Mudzingwa, Dhlamini and Manyere were
released.
The defence also claimed that when Gambara was
arrested, neither her
family nor legal representatives were informed.
Detective Inspector Dowa and
Detective Assistant Mirimbo allegedly
intimidated Gambara into admitting
charges against her.
The
case was adjourned to October 22.
BY EDGAR GWESHE
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009 19:26
NIGEL Chanakira will get control of Kingdom Financial Holdings Limited
(KFHL) after John Moxon and his family agreed to exit the financial services
group in a landmark deal that will quicken the de-merger of the parent
company, Kingdom Meikles Limited (KML). Chanakira's investment vehicle, with
6% shareholding at the beginning of the week, will end up with
49%.
This will be less than 2% shy of a controlling stake in
KFHL. In the
past, Chanakira controlled KFHL through support from Meikles
and Econet
Wireless Capital.
The deal, hammered in
Johannesburg after six days of intense
negotiations, will close the chapter
in the KML saga that has left some
executives with bruised and battered
reputations.
Details obtained on Friday show that the Moxon
family will swap its
18% shareholding in KFHL for 6% in Meikles Africa
Limited shares held by
Chanakira's investment vehicle, Valleyfield. The
share swap will leave
Chanakira with 24% of KFHL.
As part
of the deal, Moxon has offered the remaining 25% shares to
Chanakira to be
paid over two years on condition that the former KML
chairman is
despecified, close sources told Standardbusiness on Friday.
The
Johannesburg agreement led to the resignation of Chanakira,
Callisto Jokonya
and Sibusisiwe Bango from the KML board.
The trio was supposed
to be ejected from the board and its
subsidiaries at Friday's extraordinary
general meeting (EGM) as part of the
June 22 resolution for the de-merger of
the conglomerate.
In terms of the de-merger transaction
Chanakira, Jokonya and Bango
were supposed to resign as directors of KML
with effect from June 22 while
Moxon and Cecil Thorn were to resign as
directors of KFHL on the same date.
Thorn and Moxon resigned
while Chanakira, Jokonya and Bango have not.
KML was formed in
2007 as then the largest capitalised stock on the
local bourse following the
merger of Meikles Africa, KFHL, Tanganda and
Cotton
Printers.
But boardroom squabbles erupted between Chanakira and
Moxon over the
proposed sale of Cape Grace Hotel and foreign currency
externalisation
claims that led to Moxon's specification in January
alongside TM
Supermarkets.
TM was despecified last
month.
On September 11, government struck again by specifying
KML, Tanganda
and Thomas Meikles Centre.
Thomas Meikles owns
Greatermans, Barbours and Meikles Stores.
KML board chairman
Muchadeyi Masunda told an extraordinary general
meeting (EGM) on Friday he
had impressed upon the Home Affairs co-Ministers
Giles Mutsekwa and Kembo
Mohadi on the need to remove the specification.
He said there
was acknowledgement on the part of government that there
were some mistakes
that led to the specifications. Masunda told the EGM he
is scheduled to meet
again with Mohadi and Mutsekwa (Monday) to get a clear
picture on the
progress towards despecification.
But shareholders at the
meeting questioned why Chanakira, Jokonya and
Bango had not resigned from
the KML's subsidiaries boards as scheduled.
Sternford Moyo
representing Moxon's family told the meeting a
substantial amount of
goodwill had been accumulated and there were no
chances that the parties
will renege on the agreement.
BY NDAMU SANDU
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009
19:24
BEN Freeth, the Chegutu farmer whose house was burnt down by
alleged
Zanu PF militants, has returned from the US where he took his fight
to hold
onto his Mount Carmel Farm. Freeth, who returned on Friday, said he
failed
to meet President Barack Obama, but was able to meet aides close to
the US
President.
He said the week-long trip was aimed at
raising awareness of the Sadc
Tribunal ruling, which favoured 78 white
commercial farmers.
Freeth also wanted the Obama administration
to press the Zimbabwe
government to stop the ongoing seizures of commercial
farmland.
"The trip was very productive," Freeth
said.
He met several US senators and representatives of
foundations,
including all-black organisations in America and they were all
interested in
the Tribunal ruling.
Freeth, who co-owns
Mount Carmel with his father-in-law Mike Campbell,
made headlines last month
when his house was burnt to the ground.
The house was allegedly
burnt by suspected arsonists linked to former
cabinet minister Nathan
Shamuyarira.
Freeth said the invaders had completely taken over
his Mango-producing
farm, destroying and looting property.
Freeth has also written to Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai pleading
for the
unity government's intervention without any joy.
Justice
Minister Patrick Chinamasa recently declared Zimbabwe was no
longer bound by
the Tribunal rulings because it has withdrawn its
membership.
BY SANDRA MANDIZVIDZA
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October
2009 19:20
NO one deserves to suffer the way a 22-year-old single
mother of two
did at the hands of three soldiers. The farm worker, who
preferred to be
called Winnet Makorwa in order to protect her real identity,
was raped in
front of her four-month-old baby and her four-year-old daughter
as part of
efforts to pressure her boss to abandon his
property.
Karori Farm in Headlands has been at the centre of a
violent takeover
pitting owner Charles Lock against Brigadier Justin
Mujaji.
Lock said a few weeks ago soldiers loyal to Mujaji
stormed the farm
and looted his crops and also raped
Makorwa.
Makorwa, who is in hiding in Harare last week,
recounted her ordeal at
the hands of the uniformed
soldiers.
Holding her youngest daughter, she was not even
strong enough to
breast feed.
Still visibly traumatised,
Makorwa said she was haunted by nightmares
since the brutal attack three
weeks ago.
"I was sleeping with my boyfriend when we heard a
knock. We did not
answer and the soldiers kicked the door
open.
"They told my boyfriend to leave before they attacked
me.
"One of them threw me onto the ground while another raped
me."
Makorwa said she screamed for help but no one came to her
rescue
because a third soldier standing at the door was holding a
gun.
"My children who were sleeping woke up and started
crying."
Makorwa said she tried to fight back but was
overpowered by the
soldiers. One of the soldiers held her hands as his
colleague raped her.
"The soldier who raped me smelt of Kenge
(a cheap beer imported from
Mozambique)," Makorwa said.
She
fears that she could have been infected with a sexually
transmitted disease
because the rapist "looked unwell" and did not use a
condom.
"I have stomach pains.what if I contracted HIV?"
she said wiping off
tears.
To make matters worse, Makorwa's
boyfriend has since disappeared.
"Since that night he has
disappeared. He knows what happened to me but
he never came to see
me."
She said the soldiers threatened her with death if she
reported the
case to the police.
"I was afraid to tell the
police that I was raped. I only told them
that the soldiers had unlawfully
entered my house.
"With the help I am getting from other people
I think I will be able
to report the rape case."
Makorwa
said two NGOs came to her assistance. So far they have taken
her for a
medical check-up and counselling. Results indicated she had been
raped.
Makorwa and two friends are now living in a safe
house provided by an
NGO.
A Headlands policeman, who asked
not to be named, confirmed that
Makorwa reported that the soldiers had
unlawfully entered her house.
"According to the information she
gave to us she was not raped," he
said.
Mujaji, who has
been trying to wrest control of Karori Farm from Lock
for several months,
has reportedly disregarded a series of court rulings
against
him.
He is allegedly using uniformed soldiers to drive Lock off
his
well-established maize and tobacco farm.
Lock accuses
Mujaji of looting his crops and equipment despite a High
Court judgment that
allowed him to remove his crops and some of his property
from the
farm.
The High Court last month ruled that Lock must be allowed
to collect
his harvest and some of his property from the farm but he says he
has been
prevented from doing so by Mujaji.
The assets
included 300 tonnes of maize, 150 tonnes of tobacco, 40
tonnes of fertiliser
and other equipment.
"Mujaji has been busy looting my farm. He
claims to have an offer
letter, but the offer is not valid," Lock
said.
The disgruntled farmer said uniformed soldiers have been
causing havoc
at the farm.
But Mujaji denied all the
allegations saying Lock wanted to tarnish
his image.
"We
are not defying the court order.We did not agree with it and we
have
appealed to the Supreme Court," he said.
"The equipment he
wants to remove belongs to the state and he has no
right to take
it.
Asked about the soldiers deployed on Karori Farm, Mujaji
said: "Yes
there are soldiers at my farm but they are my soldiers who are
only there to
protect my farm.
"All the stories Lock has
been spreading are false and the maize he is
claiming that I stole from him
is mine."
Last week, Gapwuz launched its own probe into Makorwa's
case and is
now seeking legal advice.
Gertrude Hambira, the
General Agriculture and Plantation Workers'
Union of Zimbabwe (Gapwuz)
secretary-general, said: "When the woman reported
to the police, no action
was taken against the soldiers and this has since
raised questions as to the
extent of the harassment."
The violent takeover of Lock's farm
is one of several hot spots in
Zimbabwe's doomed agriculture sector
following a spike in commercial farm
seizures early this year by President
Robert Mugabe's militant supporters.
Gapwuz says over 66 000
farm workers have been displaced since
February this year.
BY SANDRA MANDIZVIDZA
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October
2009 19:18
MDC deputy president Gibson Sibanda beat a hasty retreat
after angry
soldiers challenged his statements that the security forces were
the drivers
of last year's deadly political violence. Sibanda, who is now a
consultant
in the organ for National Healing and Reconciliation after he
lost his
ministerial post, had told a peace conference in Mutare that
healing and
reconciliation would not be possible without reforming the state
security
agencies.
He said it was important for
reconciliation to be linked with other
processes of constitutional reform,
reform of the security, justice
institutions and the land
issue.
"Without reform of the organs of state which bear some
responsibility
for violence towards the population they are meant to serve,
there cannot be
faith within the populace that abuses will not be repeated
in future,"
Sibanda told delegates.
"Without such
confidence that citizens will be protected by the state
rather than preyed
upon, there cannot be healing and reconciliation at any
level."
This drew the ire of a Colonel Muzenda of the
Zimbabwe Defence Forces
and an officer from the President's Office who
demanded to know if it was
government position that security agents were
responsible for electoral
violence.
"I would like to know
from the Minister whether it was government
policy that state agents were
responsible for violence?" asked a visibly
agitated
Muzenda.
To the astonishment of the delegates, Sibanda made an
about-turn,
denying ever saying that the security forces were responsible
for violence
in the country.
He claimed that he had said
there was need to reform the security
sector so that it can protect the
people in future.
"What I said is there was need to reform the
security sector so that
it will protect the people in times of
violence.
"If they had protected the people violence would not
have occurred,"
he said.
Analysts say the organ charged
with reconciling the country after last
year's bloody elections has taken
too long to come up with a clear strategy
on dealing with the
issue.
Last month one of the co-ministers Sekai Holland angered
the people of
Matabeleland when she allegedly referred to King Mzilikazi and
the Ndebeles
"as being a violent lot that stole cattle" from other ethnic
groups.
Sibanda told the conference whose theme was The Basis
of
Reconciliation and Healing in Zimbabwe - Lessons from the Africa Region
which was organized by the Centre for Peace Initiatives in Africa (CPIA)
that impunity was promoting political violence.
"Each
episode of violence and failure to hold those responsible
accountable for
their actions has subsequently become part of the national
fabric ensuring
the continued use of violence," he said.
Soldiers, police
officers and Zanu PF militia accused of torturing and
killing MDC supporters
in last year's elections have not been arrested or
questioned although some
of them are known.
Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CZC), an
umbrella group of
non-governmental organisations in the country, recently
named 77 top
military commanders accused of masterminding a ruthless
campaign to keep
President Robert Mugabe in power in the uncontested June 27
run off poll.
The MDC-T has said at least 200 of its supporters
were killed by state
security agents and Zanu PF youth
militia.
The violent campaign also displaced over 5 000
villagers and some had
their homes burnt down.
The
coalition said there was no evidence that the unity government had
dismantled the structures of violence or recalled the
soldiers.
The conference recommended the formation of a Truth
and Reconciliation
Commission (TRC) with powers to investigate, recommend
prosecutions as well
as legislation to parliament, recover and restore
looted property to their
rightful owners.
MDC supporters
who tried to recover their property looted by known
Zanu PF supporters
during last year's violent elections are being hauled
before the courts for
demanding their goods and livestock back.
BY CAIPHAS
CHIMHETE
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009
19:14
DURING the day young innocent-looking girls can be seen running
around
the bustling business centre selling food and other items to
travellers. But
when it's dark they change from their modest dresses into
skimpy skirts and
troop into bars and nightclubs at Birchenough Bridge, one
of the busiest
business centres in Manicaland.
The growth
point is a hive of activity as it links major towns of
Mutare, Masvingo and
adjacent Chipinge.
During the night the girls hop from one nightspot to
another
soliciting for clients and in some cases parading themselves at
entrances to
clubs to make sure that they catch the eye of every
patron.
"Mazuva ano hazvisi kufaya nekuti magweja mashoma.
(It's hard to get
clients these days because there are few illegal diamonds
miners),"
complained one of girls who only identified herself as
Gladys.
Though she refused to state her age, Gladys looks
barely 12 years old.
She said most of her clients were illegal
diamond miners from Chiadzwa
in Marange who rent rooms at the business
centre. Long-distance truck
drivers, en route to South Africa from Mutare,
also prey on the girls.
In interviews with The Standard
recently most of the girls said they
dropped out of school because their
parents could not afford the fees.
Others were orphaned by the HIV/Aids
epidemic that is claiming about 3 000
lives every week.
Some of the girls said they had come from as far as Masvingo,
Zvishavane and
Chiredzi. "I have been here for the past three months and I
can tell you it
is better than in Zvishavane," said Rosemary Ndlovu who said
she dropped out
of school in the mining town in July.
As the night hours tick
away, the young girls become more desperate to
the extent that they begin to
approach prospective clients.
They even reduce the fees for
their "services". The reason for the
desperation is obvious - they have to
pay rent for the rooms they occupy on
a daily basis.
"Dollar chete short time! Three dollars hauna bori usiku hwese! (One
dollar
for a quickie and three dollars for the whole night)," they shout out
to
patrons as they line up at nightclub entrances.
They pay
between US$5 and US$10 a day depending on the condition of
the
rooms.
Children's organisations said the situation at
Birchenough Bridge was
a reflection of scenarios at most growth points as
poverty ravages the
countryside especially with the dollarisation of the
economy.
They said poverty, estimated to be ravaging 90% of the
country's
population, has driven some people into desperate survival
tactics.
The United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) said as of
2003 rural
poverty stood at 63% but the situation "must now have worsened"
with the
collapse of the economy and persistent droughts.
"Without a doubt the situation for rural Zimbabwe has since worsened.
We can
ably assume that the collapse of the economy, the persistent
droughts,
inadequate farming inputs and the recent dollarisation has
obviously
significantly worsened poverty levels in rural areas," said Unicef
Information Officer Tsitsi Singizi.
She said Unicef's rapid
assessments and field monitoring with its
partners have shown that poverty
was contributing to the exploitation of the
girl child in the form of
prostitution and other forms of child labour.
"While the causes
of child prostitution are complex and related to the
fundamental
vulnerability of children, especially those in child-headed
households, it
is important that we remember that we are talking about a
criminal
act.
"It is up to communities and government supported by their
partners to
institute systems that protect the innocence of children," she
said.
Unicef said the situation has been worsened by the
HIV/Aids pandemic
which has contributed to about 50 000 child-headed
families in the country
with an average of two children per household. "This
makes 100 000 children
living on their own," Singizi said.
Analysts said children living on their own weremore vulnerable to
abuse
because they are no longer subjected to parental guidance, have no
sources
of income, food or other material resources.
Labour and Social
Welfare Minister Pauline Mpariwa said poverty has
worsened because
government and non-governmental organisations stopped food
aid programmes in
May pending the finalisation of a food vulnerability
assessment
study.
"Poverty in general leads to exploitation of the
vulnerable including
the girl child," Mpariwa said.
"As government
we are helping all children in need through the
National Action Plan for
Orphans and the Vulnerable."
She said there were several
institutions in the country where
vulnerable children were receiving
assistance.
However, she added, the programme was severely
hampered by lack of
resources.
"We have serious financial
constraints as a ministry and as a
government but we are doing everything
possible to help children in need,"
Mpariwa said.
BY
CAIPHAS CHIMHETE
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009
19:10
FORMER Zanu PF politburo member and now interim Zapu national
chairman, Dumiso Dabengwa (DD) tells Nkululeko Sibanda (NS), our senior
reporter that the revival of the former liberation movement has been a
breath of fresh in Zimbabwe's polarized politics. Below are the excerpts.
NS: Zapu officially pulled out of the Unity Accord in May, what has been the
response from the people and those who remained in Zanu PF? Does Zapu now
have a membership to talk about?
DD: Since the pullout from
the Unity Accord, Zapu has been working on
putting its structures in place,
in particular at provincial levels,
covering both the provincial executive
and the council of elders, which we
have done.
Zapu has also held
and completed provincial workshops in all the 10
provinces and we are now
moving to district and branch workshops.
After that, Zapu structures
would now move on a recruitment and
mobilization programme. We can only talk
about membership when we have
completed the district and branch workshops.
In the meantime, it is enough
to let you know that our membership drive is
progressing very well
throughout the country.
The response of the
people throughout Zimbabwe has been of relief and
excitement that Zapu is
back. It is a relief for the old Zapu membership
from the treatment they
have received from Zanu under the Unity Accord. For
young people, from
Zapu's pronouncements so far, they feel there is light at
the end of the
tunnel.
NS: The party has held a series of workshops across the
country and
rallies, who is funding them?
DD: We are using
our own funds from contributions from our members,
locally and in the
Diaspora, particularly those in South Africa who
contribute their own
resources.
NS: What has been the response from Zapu's
traditional allies such as
Russia, the ANC and other liberation movements to
the revival of Zapu?
DD: Zapu's first step has been to inform
its sister organisations in
Angola (MPLA), Namibia (SWAPO), South Africa
(ANC), and Mozambique (Frelimo)
about our decision to pull out of the unity
accord, and they have noted the
development. The next stage would be to
engage our friends after the Zapu
congress due in 2010. I can't comment
further on that for now.
NS: What is your reaction to criticism
that you stayed for too long in
Zanu PF and you no longer have the moral
ground to challenge Mugabe?
DD: The proof of my moral ground to
challenge Mugabe and Zanu PF is
contained in my response that I made to his
criticism or attack on Zapu and
me.
The local papers, both
government-controlled and independent, would
not publish my response for
reasons best known by the editors or owners of
those papers. I refer you to
a copy of the statement, which I have attached.
We can only speculate
why the local media seems to be working hard to
sideline Zapu. I have all
the moral ground to challenge Mugabe and Zanu but
the Zimbabwean press seems
bent on ensuring that very little is published
about Zapu in this
country.
That is unfair and must be addressed by those who control the
newspapers.
We hope the media playing field will be levelled by the
licensing of
more newspapers and radio and television stations by the new
in-coming
Zimbabwe Media Commission. Zapu wants media freedom and media
multiplicity
to ensure diversity and fairness.
NS: Zanu PF
has started a process to select a candidate to replace
Vice-President Joseph
Msika. What is your view on the way the process is
being handled, do you
think anyone who emerges out of it will have
credibility
problems?
DD: Zapu has nothing to do or say about the internal
politics of other
political parties, Zanu PF included. We don't interfere in
other parties'
internal politics. We left Zanu and it is for good and we
have no interest
in how they choose each other.
NS: Do you
have any ambition to challenge for the presidency of the
country and why
have you gone back on your promise to retire from politics?
DD:
Firstly, I need to correct your impression that I said I was
retiring from
politics. Did I ever say that? No. I retired from government
and not
politics. Zapu decides on its leadership and not individuals. In
Zapu you
have to be nominated, seconded and elected to fill a position. You
do not
nominate yourself. The people decide who they want to stand for which
position, and not me.
NS: After the formal withdrawal from
the Unity Accord, what's next for
Zapu?
DD: Zapu stands on
its own as an opposition party in Zimbabwe and will
contribute towards the
politics of this country to ensure that Zapu's long
standing objectives of
freedom, human rights, and economic prosperity are
realised.
NS: Can you respond to criticism that Zapu is a
tribal party? How will
Zapu respond to the issue of Gukurahundi victims who
are still crying out
for compensation 21 years after the Unity
Accord?
DD: Zapu structures which are already in place in all
provinces are
proof of its non-tribalistic or regional in character. If we
were a regional
or tribal party we would only have structures in one region.
Our interim
national leadership comes from all the 10 provinces of
Zimbabwe.
The problem with Zimbabwean politics has always been that
everything
that is initiated in Matabeleland is tribal. If we were to follow
the logic
of those who say Zapu is a tribal party simply because it is being
led by a
person from Matabeleland, then we have to apply the same logic to
all the
political parties.
Zanu PF is led by Robert Mugabe who is
Shona, MDC-T is led by Morgan
Tsvangirai who is Shona, MDC-M is led by
Arthur Mutambara who is Shona,
Mavambo is led by Simba Makoni who is Shona,
and UPP is led by Daniel Shumba
who is Shona.
If we apply that
logic, it therefore means all these parties are also
tribal because they are
led by people who have tribes, like me. If you point
a finger at Zapu, be
careful because the other four fingers are pointing at
you. If these parties
are national parties, which they say they are, Zapu is
also a national
party. We have to be consistent.
Zapu is waiting to hear from the Organ
of National Healing,
Reconciliation and Integration before we can comment on
the matter of
Gukurahundi.
We are anxious to meet the three
ministers and hear whether their
terms of reference also cover Gukurahundi,
and if so, how they propose to
deal with the matter.
Our supporters
are however worried that there seems to be silence on
the matter of
Gukurahundi in what has so far been said publicly by the three
ministers.
NS: Has there been any progress regarding the
return of Zapu and Zipra
properties seized by the
government?
DD: Our legal department is working on that and we
hope we will have
it sorted before we go to congress next
year.
NS: Has the refusal by former senior Zapu officials to
defect from
Zanu PF had an impact on the revival of the
party?
DD: Zapu has always been and will always remain a
people's party. Its
leadership comes from the people who are committed to
its ideals and
objectives.
We do not recruit leadership
from the faint-hearted and the reluctant.
Those ex-Zapu leaders who have not
come back to the party have their own
reasons and we are under no pressure
at all that they have not come.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October
2009 19:08
LAST year villagers in the Madziva area of Shamva,
Mashonaland
Central, viewed each other with suspicion following the violence
that
gripped the area before and after the disputed June 27 presidential
run-off
election. At the height of the violent campaign, a militant outfit
known as
Chabopa terrorised the villagers, leaving scores of opposition
activists
injured and some hospitalised.
A few were
allegedly killed in the process, while a number of homes
and shops were
destroyed.
Many of those who survived left their homes and sought
refuge
elsewhere.
Following the signing of the Global
Political Agreement and the
subsequent formation of the inclusive
government, the situation changed for
the villagers.
Although there are still some pockets of mistrust and violent
behaviour, the
villagers say they no longer have to spend time at forced
political
rallies.
In an attempt to help heal the rift caused by the
violence, Shamva
businessman and development activist Isaac Chidavaenzi has
introduced a
programme where villagers from across the political divide work
together on
development projects.
Through his newly formed
Chengaose Foundation, Chidavaenzi drills
boreholes at various homesteads,
which will be used to supply water for
irrigation and household
use.
Once the boreholes become functional, they will keep the
villagers
busy and leave no room to engage in violent
politicking.
"All I am trying to do is heal the rift between
these political
divides," said Chidavaenzi. "We do not care which party one
belongs to.
"For us what matters is to get people to focus on
their own
development and aid each other's efforts, not engaging in
worthless fights."
Among other things, the foundation has
started drilling boreholes at
homesteads, which will be used for
irrigation.
In every homestead participating in the programme,
the foundation
adopts one hectare of land, which is split into three for the
production of
maize, nitrogen fixing crops like groundnuts and a drought
tolerant cereal.
"We have so far drilled four boreholes and
deepened two existing
wells.
"We have since adapted these
wells to supply water to other homesteads
while we construct more
boreholes," he said.
Two beneficiaries of the programme, Simon
Musiiwa and Tozivepi
Mutsvangwa said following the new intervention, they
were set to multiply
their agricultural output this year.
"For all along I have just confined my activity to a small garden, but
now
with all this water, I am expanding it into a big and commercial
operation.
"There is enough water in the well for me to
water my crops during dry
periods," Musiiwa said.
His well,
located near Mutumba School, was deepened from eight metres
to 25
metres.
Mutsvangwa said in his neighbourhood - near Nyamaruro
School - there
was so much excitement among farmers about the
programme.
"With this programme, people no longer have time to
waste in
unnecessary fights," Mutsvangwa said.
In the long
term, Chidavaenzi said, the projects will stop the
district's growing
dependency on food aid.
Although Shamva used to be one of the
country's most agriculturally
productive districts, changing rainfall
patterns have seen a nosedive in
crop output.
Villagers
have even set up vegetable gardens on riverbeds, which pose
a serious
environmental threat.
Most villagers in the area now occasionally have
to survive on food
aid.
The food aid, Chidavaenzi said, was
now eroding villagers' dignity.
"One of the saddest things I
have experienced is to see people I know
to be good farmers queuing up for
food aid," Chidavaenzi said.
"At some point I saw old women
fighting over a small bottle of cooking
oil, which was being distributed by
a non-governmental organisation.
"This kind of food aid is
actually taking away people's dignity."
The healing programme
is not only through development work. A soccer
tournament has also been
introduced for youths from the area, regardless of
political
affiliation.
"We have a number of teams where youths from
different parties play
together.
"This will go a long way
in fighting the current polarisation and help
us forget about our political
differences.
"I have already met a number of people I was no
longer on talking
terms with at the soccer matches," Chidavaenzi
said.
Deep divisions emerged as a result of last year's
political violence.
Despite the launching of a national healing
programme by the
government, bitterness still reigns among those who were
affected.
BY VUSUMUZI SIFILE
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009
18:07
THE provision of palliative care in most communities is
threatened by
worsening poverty and donor fatigue, research by the Southern
African Aids
Information Dissemination Service (SAfAIDS) and IRISH Aid has
revealed.
Titled Caring from Within, the report pays tribute to Community
Home-Based
Caregivers (CHBC) for their personal sacrifices which ensured
that their
programmes survived the long-running economic crisis in the
country.
The report says the hyperinflationary environment made
budgeting
difficult for programme implementers.
"The
primary challenge of the CHBC programmes in the sampled projects
remains the
overwhelming demand for services in an environment characterised
by
inflation, food insecurity, widespread poverty and reduced donor
funding,"
read part of the report.
"Many of the income generating
projects implemented by CHBC programmes
to provide livelihoods support for
PLWHAs have collapsed because of
hyperinflation.
"The high
cost and general lack of basic commodities such as food,
soap, linen,
clothes and drugs make it difficult for programmes to replenish
kits."
Most CHBC programmes only managed to survive the
economic crisis
because commitment from dedicated
caregivers.
"In each of the eight organisations assessed as
part of this project,
volunteer caregivers clearly represent the front line
of HBC efforts and
services," said the report.
"Volunteer
caregivers make vital contributions to managing
AIDS-related illnesses,
particularly in rural areas. "They travel long
distances, usually on foot to
reach affected households - despite the huge
demands placed upon
them.
"Volunteer caregivers display high levels of enthusiasm
and dedication
to their work."
The report says volunteer
caregivers continued taking care of patients
with very limited supplies over
the past 10 years.
Among the many sacrifices that the
caregivers made was resorting to
the use of plastic bags in the absence of
protective gloves.
Other caregivers took food from their own
homes to feed their
patients, who were unable to grow their own food because
of continued ill
health.
A number of them had to forego
income-generating activities that may
benefit their own households in order
to take care of people living with HIV
and other affected
people.
"Much of their work remains unpaid, unaccounted for and
undervalued in
economic terms despite its critical contribution to the
overall economy and
society in general," researchers noted.
"Due to the harsh economic environment currently in Zimbabwe volunteer
caregivers have to make do with very limited resources, which not only
increases the burden of care but may also makes caregivers vulnerable to HIV
and TB infection.
"CHBC programmes are failing to supply
caregivers with basic tools
such as medication and soap or glove.
"In some instances caregivers are improvising - for example by using
plastic
bags as gloves-so that they can carry out care work."
Presenting the report findings last week researcher, Patrick Mamimine
paid
tribute to all caregivers in the country and called for greater support
for
their work.
Mamimine said during the research his team learnt
that care work was
extremely demanding.
The Deputy Minister
of Health and Child Welfare, Douglas Mombeshora
said the report has valuable
lessons for future care programmes.
He said many people will
require palliative care because most PLWHAs
were still struggling to access
antiretroviral drugs.
"In this era of ART (Antiretroviral
Therapy) CHBC cannot be
disregarded as out of 500 000 in need of treatment
only 170 000 are
currently accessing it," Mombeshora said.
"This shows that the existence of high quality CHBC organisations is
essential if we are to achieve our objectives as laid out in the ZNASP
(Zimbabwe National HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan).
"The exercise
of documenting the evolution and best practices is very
valuable.there is
much that you can learn and draw into future planning."
Some of
the organisations that took part in the research are New Dawn
of Hope in
Harare, Male Empowerment Project and Dananai in Manicaland
province, Uzumba
Orphan Care in Mashonaland East and the Catholic Health
Care
Commission.
With public hospitals overwhelmed by the HIV and
Aids pandemic the
concept of CHBC was introduced to relieve pressure on
public hospitals.
BY BERTHA SHOKO
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009
18:05
GWERU - Since the death of her husband in 1995, 46-year-old
Euphrasia
Chawuruka's health has been very poor. "For years since my husband
died I
was always in and out of hospital," Chawuruka who is from Ascot told
Standardhealth in a recent interview.
"I had no idea what
was causing my illness. I used to get headaches
that would last for days,
chest pains and at times I would just feel weak."
Following
advice from a friend, Chawuruka who had lost a lot of weight
decided to test
for HIV in August last year and the results were positive.
Her
life was on the edge with a CD4 count of just 79, which is
dangerously below
the normal levels of more than 200.
"I was shocked with the
result and it was only then that I realised
what had killed my husband and
what had been making me ill all these years,"
Chawuruka
said.
"I felt really pained that all these years I had been
ignorant about
HIV and had wasted a lot of money going to hospitals,
doctors, prophets and
traditional healers.
"If only I had
known earlier."
In May this year Chawuruka was lucky enough to
benefit from the Global
Fund to fight Tuberculosis, Aids and
Malaria-supported Antiretroviral
Therapy programme at Mutapa Clinic.
Speaking during one of her visits to the
clinic two weeks ago she said her
immune system had become stronger.
Her CD4 count has gone up to
265 since she started taking the
life-prolonging drugs.
"I
feel very strong, healthy and energetic and I just don't know why I
spent
all those years struggling with ill-health.
"As you can see I
am very big person but my weight had gone down to
50kg. Now I am my normal
75kg," Chawuruka said.
"When I see someone walking on the
streets struggling with their
health my heart bleeds.
"I
feel like stopping them and telling them about the ART programme at
the
clinic but it's not right to diagnose someone on the streets.
"All I do is pray that they get to hear about this programme in good
time
like I did."
Chawuruka is not the only one who has spent years
in and out of
hospital and wasting time visiting prophets and traditional
healers.
Doricha Moyo also from Ascot spent years struggling
with poor health.
"At night I couldn't sleep. I used to feel
very hot and restless and
my legs used to swell," said Moyo.
"When
I went to the hospital the medication failed to work.
"There is
nowhere I haven't been to restore my health, to the
prophets, the
traditional healers because all this time I was ill I thought
I had been
bewitched."
But after the witch-hunt failed to restore her
health, Moyo went back
to Mkoba Clinic in May 2006 where she tested positive
to HIV.
Her CD4 count was found to be 150 and she was
immediately given
Antiretroviral Drugs (ARVs).
A few months
ago Moyo was moved together with many others to collect
their drugs at
Mutapa Clinic to ease pressure at Mkoba Clinic.
"When my CD4
count was taken in September last year it had gone up
from 150 to 605. "This
means I am as fit as someone who is HIV-negative and
this gives me so much
joy.
"I can't believe that at some point people said I was a
walking
coffin," Moyo said.
"The greatest joy for me is
that my husband has accepted me as I am
and we are living positively with
HIV, we use protection each time we have
sex as I was
counselled.
"He is not yet ready to get
tested."
Chawuruka and Moyo are some of the many people in
Zimbabwe who have
been fortunate enough to access life-prolonging ARVs
through the support of
donors such as the Global Fund.
At
least 1,1 million people are living with HIV in Zimbabwe, according
to new
statistics released by government.
Of the 1,1 million people
living with HIV, 100 000 of these have
access to ARVs and more than 300 000
are waiting to be enrolled for the
programme.
The Global
Fund is supporting ART programmes in 16 districts.
In Midlands
alone the fund has managed to put at least 24 027 on ARVs.
The
National Aids Council (NAC) projects that through the support of
the donors
at least 210 000 people will be on ART by the end of this year.
The number of ART initiating sites has risen to around 290 throughout
the
country from just two in 2004 when the country began rolling out ART,
says
NAC.
Emmanuel Rubaya, the NAC provincial Aids co-ordinator told
journalists
during a media tour that more people will have access to
life-saving ARVs
after resource mobilisation.
"What you see
here at Mutapa clinic is evidence of how through
increased support and more
resources we can change the lives of many people
living with HIV," Rubaya
said.
BY BERTHA SHOKO
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009
18:56
GWERU - Zimbabwean Industries will not reach the targeted 60%
capacity
utilization by the end of the year as planned by the inclusive
government in
the Short Term Emergency Recovery Program (STERP). The
Minister of Industry
and Trade, Professor Welshman Ncube said that his
ministry had carried out
its own assessments and realised that the 60%
target was far fetched.
"We will not be able to reach the
target average of 60%, at the moment
the productive sector capacity
utilization stands at 35%," Ncube said on
Friday in Gweru where he was guest
of honour at the Launch of the Centre for
Entrepreneurship Development
Studies at the Midlands Sate University.
Ncube said the inclusive
government was facing major challenges in
trying to resuscitate the
productive sector that had collapsed over the last
decade.
He said the biggest disappointment that they were facing in trying to
make
the economy work again was the letdown by international banks which he
criticised for only offering 3% of their deposits for lending, an act he
described as "criminal".
"The ratio that international
banks including Standard, Barclays and
Stanbic are lending to business is
criminal. We name them openly in the hope
that they will think
hard.
They have decided to sit on the money that after all does
not belong
to them but to Zimbabweans," Ncube said.
He said
other challenges included the debts from arbitrary conversion
from the local
currency to the US dollar, power and transport and also the
fact that the
money secured by Zimbabwe for example from Comesa is expensive
money and has
a lot of bureaucratic requirements delaying accessibility just
like the
credit lines offered by other Sadc members .
Ncube also said
that sanctions were contributing to the economic
problems that the country
is still trying to weather.
Ncube acknowledged that Zimbabweans
at the moment including government
fail to appreciate the real value of the
dollar and are charging unrealistic
tariffs that have a knock on effect on
the resuscitation of the productive
sector.
Turning to the
issue of reintroduction of the Zimbabwe dollar Ncube
said: "Reintroducing
the Zimbabwe dollar is tantamount to committing
economic
suicide.
At cabinet level we have agreed that the Zimbabwe
dollar is not an
option. The real debate that can be pondered on is whether
Zimbabwe should
maintain the use of multicurrency or to join the Rand
Monetary Union so that
we can be able to get the rand printed specifically
for Zimbabwe so that we
have more money in circulation and people can buy
from the productive
sector, otherwise what we produce will be destined for
the warehouse."
Ncube also condemned reckless decisions by some
individuals whom he
accused of trying to undermine the desire to stabilise
the country.
Ncube said the re-incarceration of Roy Bennett,
Deputy Minister of
Agriculture designate, had a potential to cause a
political crisis.
"The AG's office should be sensitive to the
fragile political
environment and decisions should not be made recklessly.
Their act calls
into question the continued participation of some political
parties in the
inclusive government.
"There are people
driven with a desire to undermine political
stability. Do you think that the
incarceration of Bennett is so important
that we can risk the entire
collapse of the inclusive government and what it
has achieved so
far?"
Ncube blamed the AG's office for not treading carefully
and said even
if they had to prosecute they could have done it
sensitively.
By Rutendo Mawere
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17
October 2009 18:48
DURING the financial sector's heydays, a commercial
bank was urging
Zimbabweans to open accounts because it was "a big bank with
a big heart".
Not to be outdone, a smaller rival hit back saying size does
not matter, but
the service.
Six years down the line, in
another sector mobile operators are locked
in a mini-war for the control of
the market.
The use of multiple currencies in February has
spawned massive
investments in the sector as mobile operators embark on
programmes to grow
their subscriber base.
The industry had
endured a decade of under investment as the economic
crisis took a toll on
the sector.
The massive expansion programmes have resulted in the
increase in the
mobile market penetration rate to 21% as of August from 14%
in February.
Mobile penetration rate describes the number of
active mobile phone
numbers (usually as a percentage) within a specific
population.
Advertisments placed in newspapers and on radio and
television show
operators "beating their own drums" as they tussle for the
hearts and minds
of subscribers.
Econet, the largest mobile
operator by subscriber base, says a million
people have "seen the light and
joined the big family, bringing its total
subscriber base to over two
million".
"Check your figures again. We are now three times
bigger than the
other mobile networks put together and five times bigger
than the next
competitor," it said in one of its adverts. "As you read this,
seven out of
10 of your family and friends are already part of the biggest
family," it
said.
Then Econet goes for the jugular: "So,
what are you waiting for! Make
the switch and join the biggest family. When
we say they are exciting times,
we mean even for you."
Telecel is also throwing punches saying that it strives for quality
everyday.
"Our recent re-certification confirms Telecel
Zimbabwe as the only ISO
certified telecommunications company in Zimbabwe
and the region," it boasts.
Telecel believes it has been there
for the subscriber in good and bad
times.
"Difficult times
sometimes call for drastic measures, but as Telecel,
we have remained true
to our commitment to offer you a personal, quality
service," it says in one
promotion hype.
"During the challenging times, we kept you
roaming, and our contract
customers remained unaffected without switching
off packages or being forced
to pay something upfront. "We believe this is
what makes for our valued
relationship - in good or bad
times."
"The biggest thank you that we can give our subscribers
is to ensure
that we build a quality network that you can be proud of," it
says. Last
year, Econet switched off contract subscribers.
Telecel is not intimidated by its rivals and says it will increase its
subscriber base to 700 000 by the end of the month.
As of
July 31, Telecel had 355 000 subscribers.
By end of October, it
plans to cover "10 new geographic sites
countrywide and by the end of this
year, the plan is to cover 46 new sites
countrywide".
The
strategic plan is to ensure all highway corridors out of the major
urban
areas of Harare, Bulawayo, Mutare and Gweru are covered throughout, it
says.
NetOne managing director, Reward Kangai, said the
mobile operator
would advise the market in due course on its expansion
programme.
"We are not in a position to issue a press statement
as of now," he
said.
Kangai could not be drawn into
revealing the company's subscriber
base.
While this "mobile
war" is escalating, the biggest winner is the
subscriber who can switch from
one network to another.
In the past sim cards were a precious
commodity and were even sold on
the black market. At one point, a single sim
card was being sold for as much
as US$150.
However, the use
of multiple currencies has seen prices coming down to
as low as US$10
inclusive of airtime.
Stiff competition has also meant a
reduction in tariffs in another
plus for subscribers who were paying more
for the service than their
counterparts in the region. The scramble for the
market share has also seen
operators churning out products to attract
customers.
Econet recently launched bonus minutes, where
customers get free
minutes when they buy airtime. Econet already has a
service where text
messages are virtually discounted.
The
products are part of the operator's continuing efforts to develop
consumer-focused products and services, says Econet's corporate
communications manager Ranga Mberi.
But does size matter in
the telecommunications industry?
The bigger the network, the
less an operator pays in interconnect
charges.
Interconnect
charges are those incurred when one network processes
calls from
another.
For instance, if an Econet subscriber calls a NetOne
subscriber,
Econet is supposed to pay NetOne interconnect charges which
currently stand
at US$0.07 a minute.
The selling-point of
Econet's new "Be part of something Big" campaign
is that it is cheaper for
mobile customers to make calls within the Econet
network, because they don't
have to pay for interconnect charges.
This appears to be an
attempt by Econet to attract customers from its
rivals, Standarbusiness has
gathered.
Information and Communication Technology Minister,
Nelson Chamisa,
said competition was to the advantage of the customers and
even operators in
terms of quality of service and
innovation.
He said in the past eight months service has
improved and there is
deployment of infrastructure to rural areas as part of
the Information and
Communication Technologies (ICTs)
revolution.
"We want to make ICTs available to all and sundry.
ICT is the last
bridge between the rich and poor," he
said.
BY NDAMU SANDU
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday,
17 October 2009 18:40
THE accuracy and integrity of voters' roll is an
essential component
of free and fair elections. The Zimbabwe Election
Support Network (ZESN) has
repeatedly pointed out that the current electoral
roll is highly inaccurate
and needs complete overhaul before next general
elections.
Claims of duplicate entries, voters enrolled in
wrong constituencies,
eligible voters being left out, and, dead persons
remaining on the voters'
roll continue to be reported. Ideally, an audit of
constituency roll should
be conducted and anomalies rectified before any
by-election is held.
Presently the Zimbabwe Electoral
Commission (ZEC) supervises electoral
processes while voter registration is
conducted by the Registrar-General.
ZESN recommends that the function of
voter registration be removed from the
Registrar-General's Office and taken
over by the Electoral Commission.
The Electoral Act must be
changed to require the Electoral Commission
to disclose promptly the number
of ballot papers printed for an election and
to disclose other such
information, for example the number of ballot-boxes
issued to each polling
station.
In the last election, electronic voters' roll was made
available to
political parties but at considerable cost and not in computer
searchable
format.
ZESN recommends that they be in
computer searchable format.
ZESN also recommends that
voters' roll must be available both in
electronic and printed form and be
made available free of charge to polling
agents, observers and political
parties.
Counting and tabulation of results must be properly
done within the
provisions of the Electoral Act. The counting and collation
processes should
be done in the presence of candidates or their polling
agents.
After counting of the votes and posting of results
outside polling
stations, results must be sent to the Ward Collation Centre
where they are
collated and verified.
The collated results
should be posted outside the Ward Centres.
These results
should be immediately transmitted to the constituency
elections officer for
collation and verification who will declare the
results and post them
outside the Constituency Collation Centre.
These processes
must be done efficiently and expeditiously after
polling has taken place
with no unreasonable delay in announcing the
results. Any recounts of votes
should only take place after the announcement
of the
results.
Independent observation of elections is vital part of
fair electoral
process as it lends credibility to the process. Existing law
relating to
observers is highly restrictive and should be reformed before
by-elections
are held.
Local and international
observers should be free to observe all
by-elections, should be free to
observe during the lead up period to the
referendum, should be free to
observe the voting process and the collation
and announcement of results and
the period following the announcement of
results.
The
accreditation of observers should fall under the management and
control of
ZEC. There is also need to remove veto power of Justice and
Foreign
Ministers to exclude persons or organisations government does not
want to
observe elections.
Ideally the whole media arena should be
opened up so that there can be
media diversity in both print and
broadcasting prior to by-elections.
The ZBC should also be
transformed from a highly partisan broadcaster
into a genuinely public
broadcaster that will cover elections on a fair and
balanced basis. The
repressive media laws that exist currently must be
completely
overhauled.
In the meantime the Electoral Commission must use
the legal powers
already incorporated into the Electoral Act to ensure fair
coverage of
elections and avoidance of hate speech.
The
Electoral Commission must be pro-active in monitoring the media
and ensuring
that they abide by the legislation in the lead up to the
various
by-elections that are due to take place. This should be done in
conjunction
with the Zimbabwe Media Commission established under
Constitutional
Amendment No 19.
The regulatory powers of the Electoral
Commission in respect of
elections should be more limited and
specific.
The regulations that ZEC is empowered to make
should not be subject to
approval by the Justice
Minister.
The President should not be able to use the
Presidential Powers
(Temporary Measures) Act to change any of the electoral
rules.
Police must not be deployed inside polling stations.
Voters in need of
assistance should be helped by relative or friend. Police
officers should
not be present.
In this section ZESN
prioritizes critical reforms that should be made
before the holding of a
referendum in order to ensure that the referendum is
perceived to be free
and fair and that the published result accurately
reflects the will of the
people of Zimbabwe.
Certain changes to the Referendums Act
will also be made.
Article 6 of the Global Political Agreement
provides the process and
timetable for the drawing up of a draft new
Constitution for Zimbabwe and
the submission of the Constitution to a
referendum at which Zimbabweans
voters will decide whether to approve or not
approve this draft.
Before the referendum is held the draft
must first be submitted to the
Second All-Stakeholders' Conference where the
draft will be debated and
decisions made on whether the draft properly
reflects what the people said
they wanted in the Constitution during the
outreach program.
Thereafter the draft Constitution and
accompanying Report is to be
debated within Parliament for up to one
month.
However, it is not clear what Parliament's role and
functions are when
it debates the draft Constitution.
Will the Parliament be at liberty to amend the provisions of the draft
or
will it simply debate whether the draft reflects what is contained in the
Report.
However the draft is in effect draft
legislation and under the
Constitution the legislative authority lies with
Parliament any legislation
brought before it.
Also
worrying is that the process is running behind schedule as the
timetable
envisages that the draft Constitution would be put to a referendum
around
July 2010.
*Prepared by the Zimbabwe Election Support Network.
zesn@africaonline.co.zw
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17
October 2009 18:37
THERE are, perhaps, few places on this earth where
the description of
'survival of the fittest' applies more starkly as it does
in the tropical
rainforest. Here, the perennial rains nourish and nurture
plant and animal
life in abundance. Plants race to the top as they literally
reach for the
sky in the relentless quest for precious
sunlight.
The trees grow straight and tall - a moment of rest
or a detour could
easily spell doom. So they tower above the earth, the big
trees, forming a
natural canopy, leaving the smaller plants literally in the
shade.
But even the biggest tree knows that one day it will
have to give way.
It knows that one day it will have to answer nature's
call. It cannot grow
tall forever. One day it may develop back pains; it may
develop sore feet or
the great canopy will become too heavy for its ageing
body. At that point,
it will have to give in.
And when it
does, it comes down with a heavy thud. But it is true also
that when that
circumstance occurs, it will not go alone. Since it is so
tall and heavy,
when it comes down at its mercy is everything that stands in
its
way.
The innocent pleas of its unfortunate neighbours, if any,
matter very
little. They, too, have to pay the price for the unbridled
ambitions of
their great neighbour, who, like others near him, thought it
could one day
touch the underside of the sky.
Even though it
knew that it would come down to earth some day, it just
went on, relishing
the fierce competition and enjoying the fresh air closer
to the
heavens.
It is the arrogance of big things; they end up
believing their own
dreams even if they are unrealisable dreams to live and
rule forever. And
others in its neighbourhood will have to bear the brunt of
this uncultured
and unrestrained ambition.
Yet Nature is
not dull. She has her ways because she is blessed with
abundant wisdom. She
knows that the fall of the big tree is not the end of
the world. Rather it
is the beginning of new things. It represents renewal.
For upon
its fall, light is given entrance to the lower reaches of the
rainforest. It
opens up opportunities. The little ones who may have waited,
some of them
with growing impatience, now have a chance to also rise to the
top. The
patient and calculating survive. But some would have been too
impatient,
leading to early sunsets.
Not only does Nature shower the young
with light, she also ensures
that the old fellow becomes reunited with the
earth and from it, is derived
more nutrition for the young ones. Nature has
its agents to ensure that
process of renewal and re-birth.
That is the gift of the old tree - that when it falls, it provides
opportunities, not complete closure. It brings light, not darkness. It
yields itself for the consumption of the new and young, indeed, those that
it sired and lay in the ground for years, waiting their
turn.
Much of the same is not alien to human societies. Some
human beings
have captured the essence of this type of life, for better or
worse. They
understand that some among them grow to become the big men and
women and
that some will be left in the shade, struggling to make ends
meet.
They know that this process is often competitive and can
be harsh. We
see it everyday, within and among families, in business, at the
workplace
and, above all, in politics. It is dirty. Sometimes, it is quite
vicious.
However, just like the big tree that wants to grow the
tallest; like
the large tree that wants to outdo others, the human versions
also tend to
lose sense of reality.
They want to go on
forever. There want to stay there at the top and
keep everyone else in the
shade.
But Nature knows that even the biggest tree cannot
go on forever. Age
and the elements finally catch up with it. In the same
way, these things
also catch up with the big men and women among
us.
There are some statistics that cannot be changed. They
cannot be
rigged. The clock ticks towards the inevitable.
You would think our leaders would understand that simple reality. You
would
hope that they appreciate that they cannot defy Nature's will; that
their
stepping down is not the end but only provides light and nourishment
renewal.
If the big tree remains arrogant, its young become
more and more
impatient and their lives are short and miserable. They may be
lucky, if
another agent takes them elsewhere, where, if they are favoured,
they may
find light and nourishment.
There they might
grow and later nourish those lands. It happens too,
with humans. It has
happened to Zimbabwe. The young and able that have been
kept in the shade
have found comfort elsewhere.
They contribute to the growth
and beauty of those new places. All
because the large trees at home refuse
to share the space and light.
I am told there is a beautiful saying
among the Edo of Nigeria. They
say that a cockroach knows how to sing and
dance, but it is the hen that
prevents it from performing its art during the
day.
Perhaps that explains why the cockroach spends the day
hiding in
cracks and crevices of wood and rocks during the day and appears
the dark of
the night.
It is not that it does not like
to roam around and show its talents
during day. It is just scared that if it
appears, it will be devoured by the
hen.
There are many in
Zimbabwe today who cannot show their talents; a lot
who could rise to sing,
dance and show their talents; many who cannot stand
openly for their
interests. It is because there are some hens that stand
ready to devour them
should they dare come out.
Then again, they say in Liberia that
when a honey-gatherer uses smoke
to gather honey, the smoke does not only
affect the honey-bees. It also
affects the honey-gatherer.
Alex Magaisa is based at, Kent Law School, the University of Kent and
can be
contacted at wamagaisa@yahoo.co.uk
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17 October 2009
18:34
AFTER eight months of cohabitation Zimbabweans ought to have a
clear
idea of the future course of the country. Investors too have for some
time
sought to extract exact assurances. The international community -
including
Zimbabwe's friends - has been baffled as one party to the Global
Political
Agreement, Zanu PF, moved from apparent co-operation to what seems
a
deliberate strategy to frustrate the Government of National
Unity.
The expectation appeared to be to force the withdrawal of
one of the
parties - the MDC-T.
Declaring "We have an
unreliable and unrepentant partner in the
transitional government," Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and his party
last week decided that they had
enough of this lack of clarity and
commitment to the future. They took the
unprecedented action of disengaging
from Zanu PF in government in order to
force President Robert Mugabe's party
to deliver on its obligations to the
Global Political Agreement (GPA).
Twelve months ago when the
principal political actors - Mugabe,
Tsvangirai and Deputy Prime Minister
Arthur Mutambara - signed the GPA,
there were clear guidelines indicating
who was responsible for what specific
action.
But
harassment of human rights defenders and political activists, the
continued
invasions of commercial farms and the inordinately slow pace of
progress on
media and constitutional reforms are areas of growing concern.
The
enthusiasm and optimism with which Zimbabweans greeted February and
March is
giving way to disenchantment as targets and goal posts are
continually
moved.
The international community continues to call for
further reforms
before they can engage more fully with Zimbabwe. Issues of
new provincial
governors, the governor of the Reserve Bank and the
Attorney-General are
being defiantly resisted to the extent the MDC-T is
being rendered powerless
and irrelevant.
Even as the Prime
Minister protested that no respect was being
accorded his ministers in
government and his party, the state-broadcaster
rallied and then unleashed
critics who proceeded to savage the position
adopted by the MDC-T, as if to
egg them on to quit the GNU.
Opening up of the media landscape
and allowing the return of exiled
Zimbabwean journalists are critical in
ensuring that every Zimbabwean has
the right to "seek, receive and impart
information and ideas through any
media and regardless of frontiers", as
enshrined in Article 19 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights. A
free and independent media
environment is the backbone of strong,
functioning democratic societies and
is key to investment
promotion.
The absence a clear commitment to the rule of law
and property rights
has had several immediate backlashes during the past
week.
The first was over the Kingdom Meikles Africa Ltd saga, where
a
government minister admitted he had acted without properly investigating
the
issue. The immediate outcome of the minister's actions can be directly
linked to a decision by Shoprite, the South African retail chain to place on
hold its plans to invest in Zimbabwe.
Numerous investment
conferences have taken place in Zimbabwe, South
Africa and the UK and the
one recurring question that no one has been able
to assure prospective
investors on is: What guarantees are there that their
investment will be
protected?
What the MDC-T is merely saying is that the GNU
needs to sort out this
discordant approach, ensure there is absolute
consensus on all government
decisions so that they begin next year on a
clean slate, free of the current
hollow posturing that harms Zimbabwe's
prospects of economic recovery.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 17
October 2009 18:29
ZIMBABWEANS received news of the signing of the
Global Political
Agreement by Zanu PF and the two MDCs with a mixture of
anxious optimism and
downright pessimism. They just couldn't believe that
their suffering was
finally over. This was to be expected. They don't trust
President Robert
Gabriel Mugabe. They know him very well for he has ruled
them since
independence.
He is nowhere near his biblical
namesake Gabriel, the righteous and
kindly angel who was God's
messenger.
Mugabe, himself, never made a secret of the fact
that he is a cunning
old man. He once publicly said: "If you have never
played card games, you
must play me. Then you will know just how crafty I
am." And: "This little
fist of mine (kachibhakera kangu aka) can cause a lot
of damage."
Zimbabweans were, therefore, rather wary. They
suspected that Mugabe
was not sincere when he signed the Memorandum of
Understanding, which was a
preamble to the power- sharing
negotiations.
They remembered what happened to Joshua Nkomo and
the Zimbabwe People's
Union (Zapu). After over 20 000 people were massacred
by the army, Nkomo
signed a power- sharing deal with Mugabe just as the two
MDC leaders did.
Nkomo and a few Zapu leaders were given a few seats in
government and Zapu
was swallowed hook, line and sinker to form the present
Zanu PF. The rank
and file of Zapu got nothing in return.
The status quo not only remained but was made stronger. They were,
therefore, rightly asking themselves whether history was not going to repeat
itself or had the Zimbabwean leopard finally changed its
colours.
When the Memorandum of Understanding was signed, the
gullible among us
actually expected all state-sponsored violence to stop and
that the
negotiations would take place in a peaceful and conciliatory
environment.
The then leader of the opposition MDC party,
Morgan Tsvangirai,
himself had said: "No negotiations can take place while
the Zanu PF regime
continues to wage war on my party and the people of
Zimbabwe!"
Zimbabweans were, therefore, dismayed when the
negotiations were
officially launched in South Africa while state-sponsored
violence
escalated. Even though mass violence had subsided, it was now
replaced by
harassment and violence targeted at key MDC activists, outspoken
civil
society leaders and their lawyers, as well as independent journalists.
Nevertheless, the Government of National Unity document was
signed.
After listening to the signatories, Arthur Mutambara,
Tsvangirai and
Mugabe's speeches after the signing ceremony a whole lot of
Zimbabweans and
I were not overly impressed.
Mutambara and
Tsvangirai animatedly spoke of the event being a
historic moment and about
forgetting the past, looking ahead with hope and
working together to
alleviate the people's suffering by bringing democracy,
peace and prosperity
to Zimbabwe as a matter of urgency.
Mugabe was his old self. He
spoke about his role in fighting for
independence from British oppressors
and how he helped the African
countries, represented by African leaders
there, to gain their independence.
He rubbished the West in general as
unwelcome meddlers, who had no role to
play in Africa. At this the audience
was apparently fed up and some booed
him.
Morgan Tsvangirai
promised the people that the power-sharing
arrangement was going to work.
Zimbabweans remained sceptical. They had no
confidence in the Sadc which
brokered the power-sharing talks.
There is so much talk from
African leaders about African solutions for
African problems. When one takes
into account the fact that the African
Union was presided over by none other
than Muammar Gaddafi of Libya some of
us are indeed sceptical about those
African solutions. Now we have as head
of Sadc, young Joseph Kabila, who is
indebted to President Robert Mugabe in
more ways than one. What African
solutions can he offer Zimbabwe?
I once pointed out to
Prime Minister Tsvangirai that going into a
government of national unity
with Zanu PF was like hugging a skunk. One was
in danger of ending up
smelling like one. My colleagues later remonstrated
with me for saying that
to him. After one year of the inclusive government
it seems as though I was
right after all.
Nothing much has changed. It is true that
there is now food on
supermarket shelves and the health and education
situation has improved to a
certain extent. However there are so many
negative things going on. The
Global Political Agreement itself has not been
fulfilled and the MDC-T is a
despised junior partner in the inclusive
government.
Some of us had placed our money on President Jacob
Zuma because South
Africa is directly and negatively affected by the
Zimbabwe situation. They
are over three million Zimbabwean refugees who are
a strain on that country's
resources. Next year South Africa is hosting the
soccer World Cup.
It is in Zuma's best interests to have
all those miserable millions of
Zimbabweans back in a peaceful Zimbabwe. His
party, the ANC, is pushing him
to do the right thing for they don't want to
lose their newly acquired
international respectability.
ANC partners, Cosatu and the South African Communist Party who are
sympathetic to the MDC-T are breathing down his neck. At the same time, the
machine-gun loving, old war-veteran does not want to appear to be the
odd-man-out in the Sadc Boys' Club. Let us hope that he has something up his
sleeve.
As I write the MDC-T leadership is split
over whether they should
remain in the GNU or pull out. At present they are
going around the country
asking members what they should do. That is rather
silly! When they
compromised and entered into the GNU they did not first ask
the people but,
in good faith, the people followed.
They
still have that mandate. Whatever decision they make the majority
will
follow, for better or for worse. As things stand there is no viable
alternative.
He, who has ears to hear let him
hear!
BY PIUS WAKATAMA
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke
Updated 1 hr(s) 57 min(s)
ago
By Oscar Obonyo
Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's
decision to boycott the unity
Government until sticking issues are resolved
reads like a script all too
familiar to Kenyans.
Tsvangirai's threats
are akin to his Kenyan counterpart Raila Odinga's,
during the nascent stages
of the Grand Coalition Government. Tsvangirai and
Raila, who maintain their
election victories were stolen, are both stuck in
a political marriage of
convenience. While their separate power-sharing
pacts dictate a 50-50 deal,
coalition partners, Zimbabwe's President Robert
Mugabe and President Kibaki
retain and enjoy the bulk of the power.
University of Nairobi Political
Science Lecturer Adams Oloo points out this
anomaly as the basis of friction
in the Zimbabwe and Kenya.
"There was no way Kibaki and Mugabe were going
to share power equally with
individuals they perceive forced themselves into
their Governments. While
Raila finally accepted this fact and opted to
quietly negotiate for his
space, Tsvangirai seems unable to negotiate from
within," observes Oloo.
The apparent denial by Tsvangirai that his
Movement for Democratic (MDC)
party is practically a junior partner to
Mugabe's Zanu-PF, has impeded
harmony in Government.
Tsvangirai's
latest battle is a protest against the arrest of Mr Roy Bennet,
a senior MDC
official.
"The detention of our party treasurer has brought home the
self-evident fact
that Zanu-PF sees us as junior, fickle and unserious
partners," said
Tsvangirai last Friday when he "disengaged from
government".
Tsvangirai, who is certain his decision will paralyse
operations of the
Government, has threatened to pull out from Government
altogether if Mugabe
does not stop his "dishonest and unreliable
ways".
The action of Zimbabwean politician is watched closely by some ODM
members,
who feel their party leader has endured a lot of dishonour from
PNU. While
some MPs have openly asked Raila to pull out of Government in
protest,
political analysts are convinced the PM will stay
put.
According to Munene Macharia, professor of History and International
Relations at the United States International University, Raila is unlikely
to pull out of Government because he has negotiated a better deal compared
to Tsvangirai.
"But again this has more to do with the characters and
personalities of the
individuals in question. Tsvangirai does not appear as
forceful as his
Kenyan counterpart, let alone the general perception in the
eyes of the
international community that Raila calls the shots in Kenya,"
says Munene.
Unlike Kibaki, who seems indifferent in issues of
governance, Munene
observes that Mugabe has a tighter grip on the events of
his government.
Oloo further points out that Mugabe and Tsvangirai have
nothing that binds
them together as opposed to the Kenyan principals who
share a history and
good inter-personal relationship. Their foot-soldiers in
PNU and ODM might
be embroiled in a verbal war", observes Oloo, but "Kibaki
and Raila have no
choice but work together".
In Kenya's case, Oloo
notes that a number of tasks, including long-term
ones, were set up under
Agenda Four compelling the two principals to walk
through the process
together.
New electoral body
"In Zimbabwe's case, there is no new
electoral body or any other that has
been set up. It was simply a question
of Mugabe and Tsvangirai forming a
united Government," he
says.
Except for the circumstances under which the coalition governments
were set
up, following botched presidential elections, the Kenyan situation
is quite
different from Zimbabwe's.
Raila, for instance, is paired
with a partner who is on his way out of
political power after 2012 and who
is believably not engaging the PM in
dirty battles. On the contrary,
politicians in Zimbabwe confess they have no
idea if and when Mugabe will
exit the political scene. All the moves by the
strongman of the Central
African nation are accordingly perceived to be
geared towards power
retention.
Back home, President Kibaki is equally under pressure from
members of his
PNU brigade to groom one of their own to succeed him. The
President, who
last year officially assumed the position of party leader
during PNU's
national conference, may be involved in the party's activities,
but he is
yet to publicly anoint his successor.
In the meantime,
Zimbabwe grapples on with a difficult administrative phase
same as Kenya's a
year ago, when Kibaki and Raila locked horns over
appointments to the Civil
Service and diplomatic postings.
"Unlike Raila, Tsvangirai has the MDC
numbers solidly behind him and he may
just give meaning to his threat.
Raila's party, on the other hand, is
leaking slowly and a decision to opt
out of Government might not be very
prudent for ODM," says
Munene.
But Oloo argues that the PM has experienced the folly of fighting
the
Government from outside and cannot make that mistake this time
around.
Observes the expert: "He learnt from his late father, (Kenya's
first
Vice-President) Jaramogi (Oginga Odinga) who formed KPU party but the
State
machinery battled him to near political irrelevance. On the flipside,
Raila
joined Kanu in 2002 and walked away with the heart of the party days
to the
General Elections, leaving it virtually dead."
http://www.economist.com.na/
Written
by Daniel Steinmann
Friday, 16 October 2009 08:28
A report on
land reform across the African continent came across my
desk during the
week. The first interesting fact that jumped at me was that
most sub-Saharan
countries have land distribution problems so it is not a
uniquely Zimbabwean
or Namibian or South African phenomenon.
The second important
conclusion I noticed is that arrable land will
become less and less
available as politically popular but economically
suicidal land reform
programmes are pushed through to try and garner votes
but without any regard
to future food sufficiency and agricultural
production.
Then came
the punchline, which in my mind should be the most important
guiding
principle in any land reform programme. The report made it clear
that any
land reform programme must only empower individuals and communities
with a
vested interest in agriculture. To me this is such a fundamental
truth, I
almost view it as axiomatic.
This begs the question what exactly is a
"vested interest in
agriculture". At this point I leave the report and
formulate my own
definition, one that applies to our situation while keeping
an eye on the
ultimate goal of land reform.
Perhaps I
should start by looking at the land reform failures that
poke one in the eye
and then move to those that produce seemingly acceptable
results.
On my list of biggest land reform failures I do not hesitate to list
Hoachanas near Stampriet as the biggest failure so far. Whole communities
were resettled on Hoachanas, once a profitable small stock farming
operation, turning it into the south's biggest rural communal squatter camp.
Those that reside in Hoachanas today have been relegated to permanent
poverty and their only contribution is to deteriorate the value of
surrounding land making any profitable undertaking on adjacent farms almost
impossible. What topped the stupidity around Hoachanas was when some
government hotshot called it a major success some time back. My response
then was the same as my response today: Any fool who calls Hoachanas a
success has either never been there or does not know what the word success
means.
Next is Voigtsgrund. For many years a resettlement community
for
ex-soldiers, ex-cadres and all sorts of exes and excess. This farm
boasts
one of the largest dams on private land in the entire country yet I
do not
think anything has been irrigated on Voigtsgrund for the past 18
years. The
valuable farm buildings are run down, many of them in a derelict
condition
and the productive date palm grove, which used to be irrigated
from the dam,
has been destroyed. Today it is just another resettlement farm
of which its
neighbours mend the boundary fences otherwise these would have
been gone
too.
There are dozens more examples of this type of
destruction resulting
from superficial policies and a lack of guidance for
the new owners or
settlers but these two suffice to support my observations.
There are even
intances of Agribank now leasing former white-owned farms
back to white
farmers just so that the Affirmative Action loans the bank
extended, can be
repaid by non-Affirmatives.
When I look at the
successes, they invariably come from individual
commercial farms, owned by
individual farmers who farm for a profit. These
so-called emerging farmers
are also black but the single biggest reason for
their success is that they
produce for a profit. On these farms it is not a
case of turning profitable
land into a rural squatter camp. In this regard I
can take you to dozens of
Herero-owned farms in the Okakarara and Waterberg
area. It should be an
eye-opener just how profitable most of these farms
are, not because the
owner is white or black but because the commercial
principles on which they
operate, are sound. In terms of communal land,
there are also numerous
success stories especially where individuals work
their own plots for their
own pockets on land allocated according to
traditional tribunal guidelines.
Food production in these communal areas
have grown exponentially as
occupants enjoy some form of title, are allowed
to grow for a profit, and as
research and finance make available better
quality seed and
fertiliser.
When I consider all the variables, I suggest the following
very simple
definition of a "vested interest in agriculture". The occupant,
whether he
is the title holder or not, must be allowed and encouraged to
produce for a
profit and he must produce food. In essence, he or she has to
contribute to
food security and food self-sufficiency in Namibia. If not,
then that person
is on that land for the wrong reason, and will ultimately
fail.
It's a sad fact that
people in Zimbabwe are judged by their political views,
or racial background
rather than as Martin Luther dreamed "by the content of
their character" and
this in Africa in 2009. So many, many precious men,
women and even children,
have had their lives destroyed in Zimbabwe because
they got in the way or
dared to challenge the greed of the few.
So lets honour and
remember just one such man who was a true Zimbabwean and
clearly believed in
fairness & justice. A member of ZEC he blow the whistle
on gross
irregularities in the elections process in June 08.
It's so easy
to look the other way, keep your head down, or just keep
quiet..but
Ignatious Mushangwe spoke up and a year ago paid the ultimate
price.
He had to be silenced because leaders in Mugabe's
Zanu-PF fear truth &
transparency more than anything because their deeds
are evil (John 3:19-20)
As reported then "Mushangwe had announced
publicly that ZEC had printed
600,000 postal ballot forms, when less than
10,000 were actually required.
He also revealed that some 9 million normal
ballot papers had been printed,
for only 5.9 million registered
voters"
Kidnapped from his home on June 17, his body was discovered a
year ago on
18th October in Norton. A post mortem revealed that Mushangwe
had "been
first strangled, then doused in petrol and set alight." You can
learn more
at http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=6539
A
year on and his killers have not been brought to account. But one day
justice will come.
Until that day let's remember and
continue to remember such men of courage
like Ignatious who one day will be
rightly honoured by Zimbabwe.
Written by Adrian Smale
adriansmale@virginmedia.com
http://www.cathybuckle.com
16th October 2009
Dear Friends.
Here
in the UK diaspora, I first got the news on Wednesday from a contact at
the
Human Rights Forum that Roy Bennett was likely to be indicted for trial
in
the High Court on a charge of terrorism. A magistrate in Mutare was
'deciding' - with more than a little pressure from the politically partisan
Attorney General, no doubt - whether the case should be heard before the
High Court when it moves to the eastern capital on circuit. With the
inevitability of Greek tragedy the magistrate decided that the charge was
too serious for her court and Roy Bennettt was immediately sent back to
Mutare Remand Prison to await trial which, we are told, cannot be until next
year because the High Court calendar is already full. Pending an application
for bail, that is where Bennettt will remain until his case is heard before
the High Court.
I waited to hear how the BBC would report the matter;
after all they are now
free to broadcast from inside Zimbabwe but apart from
a brief mention on BBC
World News and a small item on Channel Four,
Bennett's imprisonment was
barely touched on. It seems some form of
self-censorship is going on, so
desperate are the British authorities to
show that all is well in Zimbabwe
under the Inclusive government. Nothing
must be done to upset the boat
despite the fact that events on the ground
demonstrate very clearly that the
boat is already sinking!
Inside the
country, however, the comments have come fast and furious; this
is not
prosecution through properly constituted legal channels, it is
downright
persecution for political purposes. The disgust and outrage this
case has
provoked has already been expressed in numerous articles by human
rights
activists, journalists and foreign diplomats. "Politically motivated
abuse"
said the EU president and the US State Dept described the jailing of
Roy
Bennettt as "a blatant example of a lack of the rule of law." The newly
appointed British High Commissioner's comment was curiously restrained, "The
jailing of Bennett did not look good politically."said Mark Canning. That
has to be the understatement of the year! But perhaps his recent experience
as British Ambassador to Burma has left him with a healthy fear of military
regimes?
My own reaction to the news of Roy Bennett's
re-incarceration can be summed
up in one question, "Well, what did you
expect? Have you learned nothing
after thirty years of Zanu PF misrule?"
Duplicity and double-dealing are all
you can hope for from the likes of
Robert Mugabe and his politically
appointed law officers. In the case of Roy
Bennettt, it is clear that
personal animosity is the one over-riding
consideration in his continued
persecution. Zanu PF and the Minister of
Justice in particular hate Roy
Bennettt a) because he is white and a
successful farmer and b) because the
people love him. If that sounds
childish and immature, then that is exactly
what it is. Time and again we
have seen how the former ruling party react to
any white person who is loved
by the common people. Remember what they did
to David Stephens, to Ian Kay
and to so many others whose bloodied bodies
were testimony of the racist
hatred spewed from the mouths of Mugabe and all
the rest of his mentally and
emotionally challenged followers. They simply
cannot forgive anyone, but
especially someone with a white skin, who has
earned the love and respect of
ordinary black Zimbabweans. Roy
Bennettt/Pachedu was elected by an
overwhelmingly black electorate in
Chimanimani; he is a fluent Shona speaker
whose every word demonstrates his
love of the people and the land he was
born in. That's what Zanu PF cannot
abide: the white African who dares to
stand up for the cause of justice and
democracy, a cause which the
government of Zanu PF has comprehensively
failed to address for thirty
years.
The initial reaction of the MDC to Bennettt's imprisonment was a
curious
mixture of threats and boycotts: they will not pull out of the GNU
but they
will suspend all contacts with Zanu PF forums - whatever that means
- and
they will no longer attend cabinet or Council of Minister meetings.
The
comparison of the GNU with an arranged marriage is one that has been
made by
Morgan Tsvangirai himself. So where does the marriage stand now? As
one
commentator pointed out, it is the GNU of which the MDC is a part that
has
acted in the case of Roy Bennettt. The MDC are hoist with their own
petard;
they joined a government of national unity for the good of the
country, they
said, and now find themselves complicit, by association, in
Zanu PF's unjust
and illegal behaviour. As Roy Bennettt himself had said
earlier this month;
the MDC is in government but has no power; this is a
marriage in name only.
"Limping along" is how President Khama of Botswana
described the coalition
government in Zimbabwe. The case of Roy Bennettt may
well bring the whole
arrangement to a juddering halt. It certainly
constitutes a test of the
MDC's moral courage; whether they will be prepared
to stand by Pachedu and
risk losing all the benefits they have personally
gained in this
ill-considered marriage of convenience is not something I
feel able to
predict but one thing I am sure of: Robert Mugabe, his Attorney
General and
his Minister of Justice will not rest until they have got rid of
Roy
Bennettt - one way or the other.
Postscript: I had finished my Letter
and was preparing to press 'send' when
I checked the BBC website to see if
there was any news of Roy's bail
application. No news of that yet but
instead a report of Morgan Tsvangirai's
Press conference, dated 16.10.09,
time 12.27. The MDC has 'disengaged' from,
the Unity government. "We will
not continue working with Mugabe's party
until all outstanding issues of a
power sharing deal have been dealt with"
announced the MDC President and
Prime Minister of Zimbabwe. He added "It
(Roy Bennettt's imprisonment) has
brought home the reality that we have an
unreliable and unrepentant partner
in the transitional government"
No doubt all the 'political' analysts
will have plenty to say about this
over the weekend. This diasporean remains
sceptical but it is perhaps a sign
that moral courage is not entirely
lacking in the MDC. Small comfort for Roy
Bennettt as he awaits his bail
application in Mutare Remand Prison yet again
but a welcome sign that the
MDC have finally woken up to the reality of
dealing with Robert Mugabe and
Zanu PF.
Yours in the (continuing) struggle PH.
Dear Family and Friends,
The news
readers on the state controlled ZBC television have been
wearing black
football T shirts all week. Every night, before the
bulletin begins the news
readers tell us solemnly how many days are
left before the football game. On
Friday night the newsreader smirked
as she began to read the "news." The
headline story was President
Mugabe talking about the impending football
game. Second in line was
President Mugabe giving computers to a school. Then
came a report on
SADC and regional peace, then the Chinese Ambassador talking
to army
staff. After a commercial break and 21 minutes into the bulletin
came
the real news: the MDC were disengaging themselves from Zanu PF
and
the cabinet. In less than 2 minutes and airing just a few sentences
of
Mr Tsvangirai's press statement, ZBC soon turned to their invited
guest
for comment.
~ The blame is on the Rhodesians; Roy Bennett is a
Rhodesian, Morgan
Tsvangirai is having difficulty pleasing his white masters~
said the
analyst. The news reader's smirk grew as the absurd comments
continued
and we thought about what they hadn't reported but what had
actually
happened.
It was a shocking week in the country when Roy
Bennett, deputy
Minister of Agriculture, who is yet to be sworn in, was
detained in
custody by a magistrate in Mutare. Everyone, everywhere was
talking
about it. Disbelief, shock, contempt, disgust and anger were
the
widespread, unanimous expressions. The MDC issued
statements
immediately using words like 'provocative' and 'persecution.'
Perhaps
the most appropriate part of their statement rang true for everyone:
"This latest action is deliberately provocative, unnecessary
and
motivated by hatred of a personality."
Two days later Prime
Minister Tsvangirai held a press conference. He
came out with the fighting
talk that we are all familiar with but
haven't heard for a year. Mr
Tsvangirai said that provincial governors
have still not been appointed, the
issues of the Attorney General and
Reserve Bank governor remain unresolved
and the government itself is
not even properly constituted. The Prime
Minister said he knew the
countryside was being militarized and that 16,000
Zanu PF youth have
been imposed on the government payroll. He said that Zanu
PF were a
dishonest, unrepentant and unreliable partner The Prime Minister
than
said the words that have been burning a hole in the hearts of our
oh
so patient nation:
"The truth of the matter is that it is our
Movement that won the
election of 29 March 2008. It is our Movement that
has the mandate of
the people to govern this country. It is our Movement
that has
strategically compromised on that mandate by executing the GPA and
by
entering into the transitional government. It is our Movement
upon
which the hope and future of millions of Zimbabweans is
deposited."
Yes Mr Prime Minister, your Movement did compromise the
mandate of
the brave people of Zimbabwe who courageously stepped forward
and
literally risked their lives to give you and your party their
votes.
People were beaten, tortured, raped and lost everything to bring
the
MDC into power, hundreds were murdered. The MDC gave us back money
in
our pockets and food in the shops but now its time for
accountability
and real democracy, not this sham.The time for threats, words
and
strategic compromise is past.
Until next week, thanks for reading,
love cathy Copyright cathy
buckle 17th October 2009 www.cathybuckle.com
(UKPA) - 1 hour ago
Zimbabwe took an
unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match ODI series against
Kenya with a
six-wicket victory in Harare.
Prosper Utseya set the foundation for the
hosts, taking four for 46 as the
visitors made 270 for eight, before a stand
of 111 by Mark Vermeulen and
Forster Mutizwa guided Zimbabwe to 271 for four
as they claimed victory with
12 balls remaining.
Kenya had won the
previous match and opener David Obuya's 49 off 58 balls
ensured they got off
to a good start before he was lbw to Utseya.
Maurice Ouma top scored with
58 off 58 deliveries alongside a more cautious
47 from Rakep Patel as the
pair shared a stand of 86.
Hamilton Masakadza was out with 30 on the
board but that saw Vermeulen and
Mutizwa come together at the
crease.
Vermeulen made 56 off 62 deliveries and Mutizwa 79 off 97 with
both players
hitting six fours and one six to take the hosts to 141 before
the former was
out.
An unbeaten 60 by Brendan Taylor then guided
Zimbabwe to their winning
target.