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Tsvangirai blasts ‘lying’ Sadc chief

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 12:04

FOLLOWING last week’s expiry of the 30-day deadline set by regional leaders
for Zimbabwe’s coalition government to implement outstanding issues, MDC-T
leader Morgan Tsvangirai yesterday slammed Sadc chief, Tomaz Salomao, over
the handling of the Zimbabwe crisis at the Windhoek summit in August.
Upon return from the summit, the MDC-T accused the regional body’s executive
secretary of not capturing a report by the Sadc mediator on Zimbabwe,
President Jacob Zuma, which outlined the outstanding issues and a roadmap
for free and fair elections.

Tsvangirai’s party claimed that it wrote to Salomao at the end of August
seeking assurances that the regional body would ensure credible polls were
held in Zimbabwe. It also protested against the alleged “doctoring” of the
Sadc communiqué.

The MDC-T accused the secretariat of blocking debate on Zimbabwe at the full
summit of leaders.
However, in an exclusive interview with the Zimbabwe Independent, Salomao
denied ever receiving a letter from the MDC-T.
“Everyone is telling me that I am supposed to have received a letter from
(Tendai) Biti, but I didn’t receive any letter,” he said.
Salomao then asked: “What was the letter supposed to have been about?”

When told that it was an official complaint about the way he handled the
Zimbabwe issue at the summit and how he deliberately omitted recommendations
from Zuma’s report which were endorsed by the regional leaders, he said:
“The MDC has to learn how we do business in Sadc.
“Political parties attended the troika meeting of the Sadc organ on
politics, defence and security and the communiqué was from the Sadc summit
which discussed several other issues, including Zimbabwe.”

Asked about the roadmap to elections, which the MDC-T said Sadc should now
implement, Salomao said: “I don’t have official communication from MDC
regarding that issue. They have direct communication with me and the Sadc
secretariat here (Gaborone) and they have to write to me about that.”
Salomao’s statements angered MDC-T, whose top leadership accused the Sadc
secretary -general of being a “liar and pushing a Zanu PF agenda”.
This is likely to cause a crisis in Sadc, whose leaders are given the
opportunity to read through the initial draft communiqué before the final
one is endorsed by the summit.

In another interview, Tsvangirai insisted that the  letter was definitely
sent to Salomao. “We had to register our displeasure because he tried to
forge the communiqué,” he said. “He tried to say the facilitator’s report
was not adopted. There was nothing in the final communiqué and yet it was
adopted by the summit,” he said, adding that: “He (Salomao) wants to tell us
about Sadc, he wants to take us for a ride.”

Biti, who authored the letter sent to Salomao, said: “That is a lie (Salomao
not receiving the letter). I can actually give you a copy; I will give you
the copy. I am going to send Salomao an email today. I wrote and sent that
letter to him.”

In the letter, MDC-T noted and demanded answers on three areas of concern:
the alleged watering down of the communiqué, the blocking of debate on
Zimbabwe in the full summit, and the implementation of a roadmap to free and
fair elections in Zimbabwe.
A top MDC-T official accused Salomao of behaving like a “Zanu PF
card-carrying member”.

“Salomao behaves like a Zanu PF functionary, which is not necessary,” he
said. “He must know that there is a distinction between himself and Zanu PF.
He acts as if he is card-carrying member — maybe he is,” he said, adding
that: “It is time now that he actually understood what his interests are and
his interests are not with the people of Zimbabwe. It is about life and
death in this country. People lose lives because he is dilly dallying.”
The communiqué only spoke of a resolution for the regional leaders to lobby
against the removal of sanctions.

Zuma’s report noted that the coalition government partners had agreed on a
30-day implementation matrix on 24 outstanding issues. It outlined a roadmap
for elections in Zimbabwe as the most viable way out of the crisis.

The roadmap includes the completion of the constitution-making exercise, a
referendum on a constitutional draft and the holding of general elections
that parties hope will produce a clear and legitimate winner.

Faith Zaba
 


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Gono appeals for Biti’s intervention in RBZ row

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 12:01

RESERVE Bank governor Gideon Gono has appealed to Finance minister Tendai
Biti, his erstwhile rival, to intervene in his blazing row with the central
bank’s deputy board chairman Charles Kuwaza which has destabilised the
country’s lender of last resort.

The fight is threatening to suck in several other high-ranking government
officials, including President Robert Mugabe.
Central bank officials were said to be thinking of even taking the matter to
Mugabe if appeals to Biti cannot stop the wrangling.
The issue has assumed a serious dimension as Gono accuses Kuwaza of the
grave offence of breaching the Official Secrets Act. An official found in
violation of the Act can be jailed for up to 20 years.

In a letter dated August 27, titled “Serious operational differences with
the deputy chairman of the RBZ board, Mr C Kuwaza”, Gono urges Biti to
intervene to stop “destabilisation of the bank, witch-hunting, overbearing
behaviour, denigration of the country’s leadership and leaking of official
documents to the media”.

Gono says if Biti did not get involved to stop the fight, Kuwaza would
continue with his “covert and overt destructive activities”.
“This letter formally seeks your intervention to reconcile our widening
differences in the interest of moving the bank forward,” Gono says.
“Honourable minister, your assistance in this matter will be greatly
appreciated.”

Gono further states that in the intervening time he had decided to evict
Kuwaza from the Reserve Bank headquarters.
“In the meantime, I have taken the position that Mr Kuwaza ceases to occupy
the physical office he is using at the RBZ on the grounds of the material
evidence I have in my possession of his covert and overt destructive
activities,” he says.

Gono is his letter tells Biti of “serious operations difficulties” he had
been encountering since Kuwaza came in as deputy board chairman.
“Kuwaza is impairing the interests of the bank and its stakeholders through
direct, overt destabilisation of management’s team spirit through abrasive,
abusive and unprofessional language to members of management,” Gono writes
to Biti.

Gono also accuses Kuwaza of “unproductive focus on irrelevant witch-hunts,
dating back to issues and areas he had differences on with previous central
bank management.

“I have concrete evidence to this effect,” he says.
Gono also points the finger at Kuwaza for allegedly “discussing and
disclosing sensitive bank policy issues and affairs of the state to third
parties on social gatherings in contravention of the Official Secrets Act”.

Gono tells Biti that he has “tangible evidence and witnesses” to that. He
said he was ready to give Biti the evidence of the alleged Official Secrets
breaches. Kuwaza has been pushing for an investigation into the activities
of the central bank at the height of quasi-fiscal activities and
hyperinflation, a move which has triggered a fierce dogfight between him and
his chairman Gono.

Official documents suggest Kuwaza has been pushing for a probe into affairs
of the central bank in a bid to unearth suspected looting of the bank
between 2004 and 2008 by its top officials who are well-connected to Mugabe
and Zanu PF.

There have been previous efforts by ministers from the MDC-T to encourage
the government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to undertake a
“forensic audit” of the activities of the Reserve Bank. The efforts have
been resisted by Mugabe’s ministers.

Documents say Kuwaza, a former senior official in the Ministry of Finance
and board member of several organisatiions, including the Zimbabwe Revenue
Authority, had demanded an investigation into several issues, including
seignorage or printing money between 2004 and 2008. Kuwaza has written to
Gono telling him that Zimbabwe should never print money again whenever
possible because it caused hyperinflation. In 2008 hyperinflation in
Zimbabwe scaled 500 billion percent due to printing money.

Reserve Bank officials say Kuwaza wants all quasi-fiscal activities
investigated to ascertain how much money was printed and how it was used.
This is likely to be resisted vigorously from Zanu PF quarters of government
as some of the money was used to fund operations of the army, police and
intelligence services.

Government insisted on the printing of money for its own operations and
buying of cars, houses, farm implements and equipment and all sorts of items
used by the state.

Besides money printing, documents show, Kuwaza questioned a lot of issues at
the central bank, including the tendering process which led to the building
of the current Reserve Bank headquarters. He is said to be alleging that the
process was not transparent and that he has tried to check the records to
see if there was any corruption but failed to get the evidence.

It is said Kuwaza warned Gono to avoid making the Reserve Bank a “gravy
train”.

Kuwaza is also said to be even querying morality of staff at the Reserve
Bank which he says at one point was turned into “a red light district”.--Staff
Writer


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‘Loan shark’ Buyanga accusers make U-turn

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 16:14

SOME of the over 50 people who accused Harare businessman Frank Buyanga of
fraudulently seizing their immovable properties through a controversial loan
scheme have made a U-turn, saying they had instead sold their houses and
stands to the property mogul.
It has also emerged that some of the complainants had lost or withdrawn
their cases against the businessman in the High Court.
Documents and videos in possession of the Zimbabwe Independent reveal that
the people sold the properties to subsidiaries of Buyanga’s Hamilton
Property Holdings –– not that they received loans from the businessman who
has been accused of being a loan shark.
Buyanga was accused last month of cheating 500 homeowners out of their
properties through a loan scheme where the borrower would sign an agreement
of sale and pay the principal loan and interest within three months.
Failure to repay the loan, it was alleged, would result in the forfeiture of
the immovable property and subsequent transfer into Buyanga’s companies.
Affidavits at hand allege that a Harare woman –– Fiona Jirira –– had
conspired with people who had sold their houses to Buyanga and resolved to
raise false allegations of fraud against the 31-year-old businessman.
In June, Jirira lost a case in the High Court against one of Buyanga’s
companies –– ZIMCOR Trustees Ltd –– when she wanted to overturn an agreement
of sale she had entered with the company after selling her property to it
for US$15 000.
There are at least 53 people, among them cabinet ministers from both
political divides, prominent businesspeople and top musicians, who signed
agreements of sale with Buyanga’s companies, but are now refusing to pay him
back the money they received.
Buyanga reportedly sunk US$10 million in the economy through buying
properties at a time of a steep liquidity crunch.
Talkmore Kwaramba of Waterfalls, in a sworn affidavit dated August 24,
denied having entered into a loan agreement with Hamilton Property Holdings,
but confirmed having voluntarily entered an agreement of sale with the
company.
Kwaramba said he had snubbed a meeting convened by Jirira in March in Milton
Park to “drum up complaints” against Buyanga’s firm.
He wrote: “On the 29th of September 2009, I entered into an agreement with
Hamilton Property Holdings Ltd. In terms of this agreement I sold my
property, 4452/220 Montgomery Drive, Prospect, Waterfalls, Harare, to
Hamilton Property Holdings Ltd for the sum of $15 000.
“I confirm that in or around March 2010, I was called by one Fiona Jirira
asking me to come for a meeting in Milton Park. The agenda of the meeting
was to drum-up complaints against Hamilton Property Holdings Ltd, its
subsidiaries and Frank Buyanga Sadiqi, through alleging that this company
was selling/taking over people’s property without their consent.”
Kwaramba was categorical that he sold his house to Buyanga’s firm.
“I wish to clarify that my transaction with Hamilton Property Holdings or
Frank Buyanga was an outright agreement of sale and nothing else and that my
property was not at anytime taken over or sold without my consent,” he said.
“I therefore did not attend this meeting because its agenda was based on
falsehood.”
Another homeowner, Beauty Chabvonga, also claimed that she had sold her
property in Chadcombe for $15 000 and was also called by Jarira to attend a
meeting in Milton Park to pin down whom she accused of swindling scores of
desperate borrowers of their properties.
“I confirm that I went to Milton Park and spoke to Fiona Jirira,” said
Chabvonga in her affidavit dated August 23. “They showed me a list of names
with corresponding phone numbers. I then asked Fiona who had given my
details, but she did not say…I therefore left the meeting because its agenda
was not clear and based on falsehood.”
The High Court recently dismissed a case filed against Buyanga by Margaret
Marume (1909/10) and Todd Muguza (2606/09), while Marume (1824/10); and
Synodia Chaya (6266/09) withdrew their actions. Chawaona Kanoti’s case
(2529/10) was settled.
Besides the affidavits and court documents, the Independent has footage of
some of the homeowners  signing agreements of sale. The homeowners were
advised that they were being filmed while signing the agreements and
consented.
Among those captured on video were Wilton Musanhi, Tsitsi Chitagu, Irine
Mahlanze, Charles Dzvairo, Pearce Ferera, Theodora Madzimbamuto, Chris
Msipa, Farai Katso and Elizabeth Katso, Cyprian Musarurwa, Edwell Makomeya,
Douglas Munzvengi, Jealousy Sibanda, Richard Ncube and Jirira.
Others are Tendai Mupfurutsa, Vimbai Chidavaenzi, Marcelline Chinamora,
Stephen Nyoka, Nyamayevu Makombe, David Mwaruta, Godwin Munyama and Elias
Sawari, Theodora Madzimbamuto, Chris Msipa, Farai Katso and Elizabeth Katso,
Irene Ndamba, Cyprian Musarurwa, Edwell Makomeya, Douglas Munzvengi,
Jealousy Clever Sibanda and Richard Zibusiso Ncube.
Efforts to get a comment from Buyanga over the past two weeks were
unsuccessful as he is abroad, but an official at his office who asked for
anonymity said the complainants had “intentionally confused Hamilton Finance
and Hamilton Property Holdings Ltd so as to prove a case of illegal landing”
against the businessman.
“Hamilton Property Holdings has always been in the business of buying
property and has no link to Hamilton Finance as reported in the media,” the
official said.
Meanwhile, Hamilton property lawyers and the complainants, with the
assistance of the Attorney-General (AG), last month reached a settlement.
Buyanga’s lawyer, Farai Mutamangira, on Wednesday said: “We are still
finalising the settlement agreement.”
Sources at the AG said the complainants had agreed to pay back Buyanga in
the “context of cancellation of the agreements of sale”.
The complainants’ lawyer, a Mr Harvey of Granger & Harvey legal
practitioners, on Wednesday refused to comment and referred the Independent
to Mutamangira. Police last month said they were probing Buyanga, though his
lawyers insisted the matter was civil, not criminal.

Bernard Mpofu


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Holland rants at political violence victims

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 16:11

THE Minister of National Healing and Reconciliation, Sekai Holland, ranted
at political violence victims while a Joint Monitoring and Implementation
Committee (Jomic) official received boos in a show of how official organs
are out of touch with their constituencies.
A meeting organised to bring victims of political violence and official
organs formed to deal with emotive issues of national reconciliation closer
turned into a stormy affair this week.
Tempers rose high, with Holland at one point accusing some victims of trying
"to show off".
A local organisation, Heal Zimbabwe Trust, organised the meeting at a Harare
hotel. Holland is a member of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's MDC-T
party, which claims that its supporters suffered from past elections,
particularly the disputed 2008 presidential election run-off.
Amid jeers, Holland shouted at delegates who included over 200 victims of
past political violence after they quizzed her on why her ministry had
remained largely a paper tiger.
Holland went ballistic when a victim from Manicaland demanded to know why
perpetrators of violence were being prioritised in government agricultural
input schemes ahead of victims.
Zanu PF youths, the victim said, were bragging in communities about
receiving allowances and inputs from government for their role in the 2008
election violence.
"In terms of resources, the president (Morgan Tsvangirai) was here. Why didn't
you ask him this question?" She wanted to know. "Why are you putting it to
me?" she said with jeers drowning her defence.
Tsvangirai had attended the same event earlier.
Holland was undeterred by the increasing heckling: "No, listen, can I just
say this thing. When the president comes here you stand up dancing,
ululating, jumping and really showing love and gratitude. He leaves then you
put ministers in a tight spot.
"That is the question to put to the president because my position is, I am
doing national healing," Holland shot back at the delegates.
The National Healing ministry and Jomic are the coalition government's chief
organs to deal with transitional justice matters and heal tensions that are
running high following the 2008 election, one of the most violent since
Independence.
Victims and civil society groups accuse the two inter-party bodies of
failure. Next in line for the victims' wrath was Lovemore Kadenge, who
represents Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's party on Jomic.
He was booed off the podium after deferring victims' questions to the
ministries of Home Affairs and Defence, which are in charge of the police
and the army.
Earlier this month, Holland exchanged harsh words with former liberation war
guerillas that operated under Zipra. She was angrily reacting to accusations
of incompetence by Zipra.

Wongai Zhangazha


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Documents demand: Zim embassy fails to cope

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 16:10

HUNDREDS of locals living in South Africa are struggling to get legal
documents because the Zimbabwean embassy and consulate in that country are
failing to deal with the huge influx of illegal immigrants, a group involved
in discussions with Pretoria over the issue has said.
The South African government has given Zimbabwean immigrants, estimated at
between 1,5 to three million by different oganisations, until year end to
regularise their stay or face deportation.
Those with illegal documents have an amnesty, as long as they manage to
obtain a Zimbabwean passport and register with South African authorities
before 31 December.
Zimbabwe Exiles Forum (ZEF), a Pretoria-based group that deals with
immigrant rights issues, said yesterday the process has been marred by
congestion, poor communication and neglect of illiterate Zimbabweans. ZEF
met South African Home Affairs officials on Wednesday, the third time since
the announcement of the new policy in September, to push for a review of the
process.
Gabriel Shumba, the ZEF executive director, said Zimbabwean officials were
also hampering the process for vulnerable groups such as informal traders by
demanding letters of employment as a condition for issuing passports.
"There are a lot of challenges, including the fact that the Zimbabwe
Consulate in Johannesburg cannot cope with the applications for passports
and therefore people have to pay bribes to jump the queues," said Shumba.
"More unconscionable and reprehensible is the fact that the Consulate has
been asking some applicants for letters from employers before allowing them
to apply for lost or new passports. ZEF believes that every Zimbabwean
deserves a passport by virtue of nationality rather than employment status.
We find this practice undesirable and appalling," he said
Co-Home Affairs minister Kembo Mohadi, whose ministry has already stated
that the new policy was by mutual consent, refused to directly respond to
Shumba's allegations.
"We are giving them the requisite documents, he said. "The process is going
on now. Don't focus on negative things."
Outgoing Zimbabwean Ambassador to South Africa, Simon Khaya Moyo promised to
issue passports to immigrants before the amnesty lapsed on December 31.
"In this spirit, the embassy urges all organisations, whether civil or
political, to refrain from issuing statements that may not reflect the
correct agreement between the two countries, which statements may lead to
unnecessary confusion," he said in a statement.
The South African government is set to resume deportations of illegal
immigrants from January 1 after scrapping a moratorium on deportations of
illegal Zimbabweans that has been in place since April last year.
South African Home Affairs minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma announced this
week that 240 Home Affairs officials had been deployed to 46 regional
offices across the country to facilitate the registration of illegal
immigrants. Zimbabwe's Home Affairs ministry has said it will dispatch
passport officers to expedite the process.
South Africa hosts the largest number of exiled Zimbabweans who fled Harare's
decade-long economic and political turmoil that critics blame on President
Robert Mugabe's mismanagement of the economy and strong-arm tactics on
dissenting voices.
Mugabe, on the other hand, blames Western-imposed sanctions for Zimbabwe's
fall from being one of Africa's best performing economies to a regional
bread basket.
Economists such as Kingdom Financial Holdings Ltd's Witness Chinyama say
Zimbabwe's economy is still too small to absorb millions of unskilled
returning Zimbabweans despite the relative stability brought by the
formation of the coalition government.

Brian Chitemba


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Zanu PF invaders parcel out Glen Forest Farm

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 16:08

ZANU PF members who invaded Glen Forest Farm just outside Harare are selling
the land under the name of the late Joanna Mafuyana, wife of Zimbabwe's
founding father, Joshua Nkomo, who died in 1999, the Zimbabwe Independent
has established.
The case highlights the porous nature of government's land reforms and how
productive land grabbed from white farmers has turned fallow and is being
used for speculative purposes.
Mama Mafuyana, as the late vice-president's wife is popularly known, died in
2003, but her name remains a cash cow for a clique that has been parcelling
out pieces of the land for as much as US$10 000 per 0,2 hectares.
Government forced out the owners of Glen Forest farm for urban expansion
purposes and allocated  land to a housing project for Zanu PF supporters.
Most of the farm, previously a thriving maize and cattle operation, is now
under the hammer.
A real estate agent selling the land said individual beneficiaries were
queuing up to dispose of the land for cash.
Posing as a prospective buyer, a Zimbabwe Independent reporter was offered
part of the land, but was told to wait for two months for "papers to be
regularised". Fingold Real Estate agency has been conducting the sales.
The firm's managing director, only identified as Mrs V Aleck, said sales had
temporarily been stopped because of problems in locking in transfers to new
owners.
"Currently there are no title deeds, maybe if you can check after two
months," she said.
The late Mama Mafuyana's daughter, Thandiwe Nkomo, said she was aware of the
housing project, but had no idea that beneficiaries were now selling the
land. She said her family was not involved in the running of the project.
"I can't remember who is behind the housing cooperative. It's been years
since I last interacted with people from the Mama Mafuyana Housing
Cooperative," she said.
Commercial Farmers Union president Deon Theron said his organisation, which
represents most of the evicted white farmers, had received such a report.
Most of the people who were allocated the land were Zanu PF supporters.
"It's a criminal offence because no one can sell land that was acquired by
the government, especially without title deeds," he said.
Lands and Resettlement minister Hebert Murerwa was unavailable for comment.
The land, identified in acquisition papers as Remaining Extent of Glen
Forest of Borrowdale Estate, measures 149,029 hectares and was invaded by
militants loyal to President Robert Mugabe in 2002 during the haphazard farm
occupations. It officially became state land under the Constitutional
Amendment Number 17 of 2005.- Staff Writer.
 


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Poll violence victims recount ordeals, demand justice

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 15:29

EDISON Gwenhure of Zaka, Masvingo, still bears emotional scars of the
militarised 2008 presidential election re-run. Yet, when civil society and
business have spoken against fresh elections next year, Gwenhure wants them
held "immediately".
Failure by a discordant coalition government to deal with issues of
transitional justice and reconciliation following elections that turned
communities into war zones has made Gwenhure believe that only an election
that produces a clear winner can heal his wounds. He, however, qualifies his
support for elections. There must be effective international supervision, he
says.
"Nothing has changed. No-one has been arrested," Gwenhure said. "Instead,
some Zanu PF supporters are holding meetings threatening worse violence. We
want free and fair internationally supervised elections."
Gwenhure was one of many political violence victims who testified at an
indaba that brought together Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, National
Healing minister Sekai Holland, Joint Monitoring and Implementation
Committee (Jomic) representative Lovemore Kadenge, victims, civil society
and doctors who treated wounded activists.
Members of President Robert Mugabe's Zanu PF's party, accused by rights
groups and election monitors of fronting the violence, did not attend the
meeting held at a Harare hotel.
Another victim, Benson Chamwazoda of Checheche, Chipinge, in Manicaland,
said transitional justice would remain a dream as long as Mugabe was in
power.
"Tsvangirai appears to be struggling in the inclusive government. He doesn't
have the powers to act, so the only thing that can free us is a fair
election that produces a clear winner who can then tackle these issues,"
Chamwazoda told the Zimbabwe Independent.
"As it is, there is no difference. We are still being intimidated in the
communities. Let's go for elections. But they should not be a farce like the
2008 ones. The UN should intervene," Chamwazoda said, in what appeared to be
the popular view among the 200 victims of Zimbabwe's past elections who
attended the meeting.
Gwenhure, winding his memory back to Zaka, talked vividly about events of
June 3 2008 at the height of the election campaign when he was attacked in
the early hours of the morning. Gwenhure and colleagues were working at an
MDC-T command centre when the attack happened.
He said no matter how hard he has tried to forget events of that day, the
multiple scars on his face, hands and legs just cannot be erased.
"When we were at the MDC district command centre we were attacked by five
armed men at around 3.30 am," said Gwenhure. "At the time, we were still
working since the office was operating 24 hours during this sensitive
period.
"They told us to lie down and shot one of our colleagues Chrison Mbano. They
then took 25 litres of petrol and splashed it around the room. One of them
lit a candle, threw it at the centre of the room and closed the door."
Silence filled the hotel conference room, with some participants closing
their eyes as if picturing the horrifying incident.
Tears could be seen streaming down a number of faces as Gwenhure continued
with his narration.
"Our clothes were set alight by the fire but we managed to bring down the
door with some of my colleagues," continued Gwenhure.
"But the moment the door fell. I was shot in the leg and I lost some toes
and Washington Nyamwa, a colleague, was shot and fell down. I watched him
crying as he lay on the ground burning to his death while I hid ."
Some victims told the Independent on the sidelines of the meeting that they
were ready for elections despite analysts and civil society warning that the
political environment was not conducive for elections next year.
Victims say the situation in their communities showed that the political
environment would remain tense even if elections were put on hold for five
years as demanded by business leaders.
The victims, however, qualified their support for elections, stating that
only an internationally supervised election would solve outstanding issues
such as transitional justice.
As most victims spoke of violence that has plagued Zimbabwe elections since
2000, a woman from Matopo, Matabeleland South, queried why victims of
Gukurahundi - a 1980s ethnic campaign by the military that killed 20 000
people according to a Catholic agency-were being ignored.
"They would kill people and then instruct relatives to bury them. Some of
the bones are still scattered. There have been no decent burials up to now
and Gukurahundi victims want not only compensation but public apologies from
the people responsible," she said.
A representative of rape victims said women who had been raped wanted
compensation before elections. She proposed the death sentence for those who
committed rape, counseling services for victims and material, moral and
financial support for those living with HIV.
Agreement Kagora of Muzarabani, representing people detained for political
activism by President Mugabe's previous government, said some of those
detained lost their jobs in government because of the detentions. Such
people, he said, should be compensated for the trauma they suffered and
property they lost while in prison.
In response, Tsvangirai, who sat through some of the testimonies, said the
state had an obligation to look after and compensate victims of political
violence.
Tsvangirai said: "Transitional justice is not about retribution. It is about
formulating a flexible approach, to engage in the past to lay a foundation
for peace, tolerance and progress. It is about listening to the cries of the
victims as well as understand the fears of the perpetrators, fears that if
unchecked could derail the process of national healing."
He said he would not agree to an election next year if violence persisted.

Wongai Zhangazha
 


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‘Khama becoming more like Mugabe’

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 14:20

WHEN Botswana President Ian Khama took over from Festus Mogae on April fools
day in 2008, and became one of the two regional leaders who publicly
denounced president Robert Mugabe’s style of leadership, many viewed the
retired army general as the epitome of democracy.

Khama and the late Zambian president Levy Mwanawasa questioned Mugabe’s
legitimacy after the bloody June 2008 presidential election run-off that
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai claims killed at least 200 of his
supporters.
Botswana even went further to become the only Sadc country to declare that
it did not recognise Mugabe’s election, representing a departure from the
region’s usual quiet diplomacy.
Two years on, critics, former allies and analysts say Khama could be taking
a leaf from Zimbabwe’s wily 86-year-old Mugabe. They accuse Khama, the
former military commander, of turning into a dictator.
Opposition political parties, the media and analysts in Botswana fear that
if unchecked, Khama could become a despot and a mirror image of Mugabe ––
the man he so much despises.
There are uncanny similarities between the two. Their only difference is the
time it took for them to show these dictatorial tendencies, analysts say.
It took most Zimbabweans and the world 20 years to take note of Mugabe’s
hard-line, authoritarianism. It has taken Khama just two years to build a
similar reputation.
Khama, like Mugabe, enjoys excessive powers under the constitution.
But unlike his predecessors Sir Ketumile Masire and Mogae, who preferred to
consult cabinet and other stakeholders before making decisions, Batswana
analysts and opposition parties say the current president has chosen to use
his constitutional powers to make unilateral appointments.
Khama has allegedly surrounded himself with friends in cabinet, government
and the party’s top leadership – cronies who owe their livelihood to him,
they say.
Professor Kenneth Dipholo, a political analyst who teaches at the University
of Botswana, said: “We inherited some of the laws which were dictatorial,
but because we were a democracy these laws were not used.
“Past leaders have not taken advantage of these laws. The current president
uses the powers and we believe that he is becoming more like a dictator.”
Many Batswana are now worried about what has become of the once popular
leader and son of their founding father, Sir Seretse Khama. They are
wondering what the situation would be like in another three years when Khama’s
five-year term ends.
Just talking to ordinary people, journalists, and politicians in Gaborone,
one gets a sense of an entrenched fear to criticise or talk freely about
Khama.
A human rights defender who asked not to be named for security reasons said:
“I have sensed a worsening of the fear. The people are afraid to criticise
their government and this is going as far as the NGO sector, which is
cowering and apologetic.”
“Because of the alleged state-sanctioned killings here, a phenomenon which
seems to be emerging, Batswana fear that if it continues, Khama could turn
out to be one of the worst leaders Sadc has seen.”
Spokesperson of the Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD), which was formed
in May after a split in Khama’s ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP),
Advocate Sidney Pilane, said there was a general feeling that the Department
of Intelligence and Security Services (DIS) had bugged people’s phones and
was listening in to private conversations with a view of dealing with
dissenting voices.
Khama set up the DIS, which operates on the same lines as the feared Central
Intelligence Organisation in Zimbabwe, when he became president in 2008.
The agency is run by Isaac Kgosi, a powerful and feared personal friend of
Khama from their military days. Kgosi, who sometimes doubles as Khama’s
bodyguard, has also worked as his private secretary.
“There is that fear in people that they are not sure who they are talking to
and they are no longer free to talk on their phones because they feel that
the DIS is listening in and tapping their conversations,” said Pilane.
Professor Dipholo said Khama’s emphasis on discipline made people afraid to
comment or criticise his administration.
“Fear has engulfed our lives and since the president took over,
circumstances have changed and the freedoms we knew and enjoyed have
changed.”
Besides instilling fear in the people and trying to turn the country into a
“disciplined” nation, why do Batswana strongly feel that their leader is
turning into a dictator?
It was not possible to get a comment from Khama or his party. Officials at
his party refused several interview requests.
But in May, Khama defended his strong-arm tactics. He said it was his
responsibility to restore order and repair his party and country, adding
that he would continue to instill discipline in his party to ensure that
members did not end up behaving like South Africa’s African National
Congress youth leader, Julius Malema.
He then dismissed those labelling him a dictator, describing them as lazy
people who did not want to be told to work hard.
Khama said he did not expect people to agree with everything he does, hence
he had to take a stand as a leader. This, he said, did not make him a
dictator.
Khama’s appointment of loyal friends to military and top government posts
has trickled down to top party posts, which are being held by non-elected
members handpicked by him, say critics.
Pilane, who was the legal advisor to Mogae before the split, said opposition
parties, the press and a number of people from the ruling BMD party were
always wary of Khama’s dictatorial tendencies from the time he was vice
president.
He said they watched Khama’s worsening dictatorship hence the split in the
party by people who felt that if unchallenged he could end up like Mugabe.
“He (Khama) had always displayed tendencies, but they were not serious,”
Pilane said. “I was always suspicious right from the time he was
vice-president and I watched him closely for six and a half years, but some
of us thought he would shed his military leadership,” he said.
Pilane pointed out that: “Khama operates like a military commander –– he
makes the decisions and everyone exists to carry out his decisions and
consultation is a waste of time. He issues directives and his ministers are
there to carry them out. He says ‘I am the leader and you must support and
do as I say’.”
He said fortunately for Botswana, it had Zimbabwe as an example of what
could happen if a leader is allowed to manifest into a dictator.
“We haven’t reached the stage of Zimbabwe and we never will,” he said. “We
will not permit it. Last year we could see the beginning of a Zimbabwe in
the making. We decided to stop it by breaking away.”
“We are lucky that we had the Zimbabwean experience and we were able to open
our eyes because we were able to see Mugabe turn from a hero into a despot.
If it weren’t for Zimbabwe we would never have known that we needed to stop
Khama.”

Faith Zaba, recently in Gaborone


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Chegutu farmer pleads with PM Tsvangirai

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 12:49

A FRENCH national whose Chegutu farmhouse was burnt to the ground by
suspected Zanu PF supporters has expressed anger at Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai's failure to intervene despite the property being protected by a
bilateral investment and protection agreement.
The occupation of farms protected by bilateral investment agreements is one
of the contentious property rights issues keeping investors at bay, 19
months after President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
formed a coalition.

Catherine Jouineau-Meredith says she has been trying to get Tsvangirai's
help since February last year after Zanu PF Senator Jamaya Muduvuri occupied
her Twyford farm. The farmhouse was burnt down on September 14.

"All the promises given to me personally by you and your office have stood
empty and no action has ever been undertaken to rectify all the illegalities
that have taken place since  February 6 2009 when the farm was occupied by
Mr Muduvuri," she said in a letter to the Prime Minister's Office dated
September 21.

Tsvangirai's spokesman Luke Tamborinyoka, however, yesterday said the
premier was aware of the case and had made efforts to help.
The farm is also protected by a provisional High Court order issued on
January 27 2007.

Commercial Farmers Union (CFU) President Deon Theron yesterday said the
incident was one of several that his organisation had been informed of
around the country.

"We know about the incident and the farm is indeed protected by a French
Bippa. The owners are French nationals. Of late there has been a resurgence
of violent disputes at some of the farms countrywide. We have received
reports of two or three incidents per district," said Theron.
Jouineau-Meredith claims that she has lost 15 hectares of seed maize, 50
hectares of seed sorghum, 25 hectares of citrus, 30 hectares of sweet
potatoes, five hectares of commercial maize, 220 sheep and 26 head of
cattle.

Twyford farm was one of the farms visited by Deputy Prime Minister Arthur
Mutambara and a high powered inter-party ministerial delegation in April
last year in a bid to stop farm invasions. -Staff writer.


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Diamond-rich Chiadzwa gets raw deal

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 14:14

CHAIRMAN of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy Edward
Chindori-Chininga has said government is giving a raw deal to communities in
diamond-rich Chiadzwa because of selfish interests.

Chindori-Chininga, a member of President Robert Mugabe's Zanu PF and a
former Mines minister, said new mining regulations to be introduced "soon"
lacked consultation and were evidence of how resource-rich communities were
being sidelined.
He was speaking at a multi-stakeholder mining transparency conference hosted
by the Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association and Southern African Resource
Centre Watch  in Harare on Wednesday.
Community representatives from Chiadzwa and Mutoko, a hub of black granite,
were present at the meeting and expressed anger over forced relocations
being carried out to make way for commercial mining in Chiadzwa.
"There are a number of statutory instruments that are coming up to deal with
small-scale mining participation in Chiadzwa that are going to work out
issues of beneficiation and so on," said Chininga.
"But the problem is that the government is selfish. What is really needed
normally is that let us say you are starting a law on environmental agency,
you need to go out there and involve communities and discuss with people
involved to hear views before you structure anything."
He refused to divulge contents of the planned new regulations, saying it was
the Mines ministry's mandate to make relevant public announcements.
It was not possible to get a comment from Mines minister Obert Mpofu. But he
has previously stated that he plans to introduce amendments to the Mines and
Minerals Act to provide for local beneficiation, among other issues.
Chindori-Chininga, MP for Guruve South, raised the issue at a time when the
government is facing criticism from villagers and civil society for failing
to consult with villagers from Chiadzwa on issues to do with relocation and
compensation.
A recent visit to Arda Transau by the Zimbabwe Independent revealed that
some families were affected by the relocation and were now living in disused
tobacco barns at the abandoned farm, 60 km from Chiadzwa.
"The problem that is happening sometimes is that government goes ahead and
drafts its own ways of thinking how they should move and they have a limited
consultation where they may end up consulting the Chamber (of Mines) but not
going any further yet the interests are bigger," Chindori-Chininga said.
Some community representatives from Mutoko community asked why they were
never informed of the instruments.
"Chairman, we are also involved in negotiations with the Ministry of Mines
on how the Mutoko community can also be part of the Bills which are being
considered in parliament," Chindori-Chininga said. "It's only today that we
hear that something already is being submitted through cabinet  it can go to
the Attorney-General."
Chindori-Chininga's committee is yet to produce a report on an investigation
on Chiadzwa operations that was bitterly opposed by Mpofu.

Wongai Zhangazha


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Polls a Zanu PF dummy

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 12:43

THE three political principals are expected to meet next Thursday to
deliberate on a roadmap to free and fair polls, but Zanu PF insiders say
there are no elections scheduled for next year and that they had sold MDC-T
a dummy to see how the party would react to such a proposal.
MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai two weeks ago said that he had agreed with
President Robert Mugabe to hold elections next year, but Zanu PF sources
said polls were unlikely in 2011.

The Zimbabwe Independent understands that while Mugabe told Finance minister
Tendai Biti to budget US$100 million for the referendum and another US$100
million for the general election, Zanu PF had no plans for elections but
wanted to find out MDC-T's strategy.

One politburo member said: "There are no elections next year. We just wanted
to see how MDC-T would react. Why should we have elections next year when
there is peace in the country and when we are beginning to see our country
start to recover? As you can see we are sitting together mapping out and
planning our economic recovery." He was referring to a pre-budget
ministerial workshop held yesterday.

Meanwhile, Tsvangirai told the Independent yesterday that the principals,
who have not met since the Windhoek Sadc summit in August, were expected to
finalise the outstanding issues, discuss emerging issues of violence and
security-sector re-alignment, and agree on the roadmap for fresh polls.

The roadmap to elections includes the completion of the constitution-making
process, a referendum on a constitutional draft, implementing media,
security and electoral reforms, agreeing on a framework that would guarantee
a violence-free poll and the holding of general elections that will produce
a legitimate winner.

"We could not meet because one of the principals (Professor Arthur
Mutambara) was away for three weeks and even now the president is away,"
Tsvangirai said. "So we are only scheduling a meeting possibly for this
coming week, maybe around Thursday."

Tsvangirai could not, however, be drawn to give a date for the elections but
said it was a process and polls could only be held after certain benchmarks
that guarantee free and fair elections are in place.

He said the Thursday meeting would focus a lot on the violence that erupted
at the outreach meetings in Harare, which resulted in the death of an MDC-T
supporter.

"Obviously it is one of the key benchmarks, given these incidents of
interference with the will of the people to express themselves. We need to
ensure that it will be a violence-free election," said Tsvangirai.

"It is a whole lot of issues -- if we are going to go into an election with
fear predominant, it means that people will not be able to express
themselves. We will already have subverted the people's will. Violence is
one of the key issues that we will look at as principals and decide how we
are going to achieve a violence-free election."

Tsvangirai said Sadc and the African Union would have to guarantee that
agreement for violence-free elections.
"We don't want elections that will then become contestable because of
violence," he said. "The facilitator is going to come to talk about these
issues and also to discuss what is the opinion of the parties regarding the
roadmap for elections so that we have common benchmarks," he said, adding
that: "On what we need to be observed to have elections, we have to have
electoral reforms to ensure that we have free and fair elections."
Tsvangirai said it was possible to have free and fair elections in Zimbabwe
if all the necessary reforms are in place.

"I think that with everything in place, with all the benchmarks that we
agreed on including the removal of violence, this country will be ready for
elections," he said.

"So we want to make sure ZEC (Zimbabwe Electoral Commission) which has been
appointed sets the programmes and priorities and that the parties have an
agreement which is then underwritten by Sadc."

Faith Zaba


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MDGs don’t stand in isolation

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 14:27

DESPITE the Southern Africa region sustaining an annual growth rate of 6%,
the UN Summit on the Millennium Development Goals this week heard that the
majority of Southern Africans remain among the poorest people in the world.
While economies in the region are growing, inequalities between citizens of
the same countries have also increased.
“In South Africa, for instance, there is a growth in inequalities on the
basis of provinces, gender, classes and races,” said Dr Agostinho Zacarias,
the United Nations Development Programme resident representative in South
Africa.
“However, the country is hiding [this behind] the national economic growth
rate, which is not truly reflected in the rural areas where there is a
glaring underdevelopment of infrastructure.”
The problem is a familiar one. According to Isobel Frye, director of the
Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute (SPII), robust economic growth
will not be reflected in improvements in the lives of the majority, as long
as the export of raw materials drives economies in the Southern African
Development Community (Sadc).
“Exporting raw materials does not promote job creation because there is no
stimulation of local demand for labour,” said Frye.
She said processing raw materials within the region would create many more
jobs as well as contribute more to national revenue.
“When we do studies on what poor people would like government to do for
them, the majority of respondents always state that they would like to get
jobs,” said Frye.
A further obstacle to reducing poverty in the region, said South African MP
Stone Sizani, is the power of transnational corporations, which do not
invest in the countries they operate in or the local workforce. Instead, he
said, they take their profits back to their home countries.
“You find most of these companies listed in the London Stock Exchange
because they have no interests of investing in the country they work in,”
said Sizani. “That’s why the growth in GDP will not reflect on the majority
of the people in the region.”
Social protection programmes are seen as a crucial tool for better
distributing wealth in the region.
According to Nicholas Freeland, the director of Regional Hunger and
Vulnerability Programme, national non-contributory social pensions now exist
in South Africa, Mauritius, Namibia, Botswana, Swaziland and Lesotho.
Mark Heywood, a South African human rights activist, said cash transfers
have transformed lives of millions of South Africans in the past few years.
He said although most of the country’s citizens are still poor, relatively
few are still living in extreme poverty.
“Cash transfers, according to the South African constitution, are a human
right,” said Heywood. He said the school of thought that says giving people
social protection will make them dependent on the money they receive from
government is prejudicial against the poor.
“It’s like saying they are responsible for the poverty they live in,” said
Heywood.
“In the last 18 months, 1,5 million South Africans lost their jobs because
of the recession. How are these people surviving?”
He said it makes more sense to give people cash as opposed to food aid
because it enables individuals to make choices on what to do with the money.
“[Some] might want to use it for transport to go and look for jobs, or buy
food or go to the hospital.” he said.
Heywood observed that while many countries are now using cash transfers to
alleviate poverty, these programmes are not comprehensive.
As things stand, Heywood admitted, cash transfers are not sustainable in the
long-term because governments might run out of money if too many people
receive grants compared to those who are employed and contributing income
tax.
Frye said in South Africa 14 million people are receiving social grants
compared to 12 million people who are employed. This underscores the problem
of an economy growing without a corresponding increase in the number of
jobs.
“This imbalance creates problems because we need more people to pay tax so
that government will be able to give social protection to those who can’t,”
said Frye.
Despite the potential that social protection programmes offer, governments
have to resolve the question of how to sustain them without donors. One
answer may be right under their noses.
“African countries must create a highly qualified, well-paid, and honest tax
administration elite to make sure that the state can collect the financial
resources it needs to pay for development programmes,” Jean-Philippe Stijns
told IPS earlier this year.
Stijns was the main author of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and
Development’s 2010 African Economic Outlook, which concluded that taxes on
economic activity ranging from personal income to extractive industries must
be strengthened –– which the OECD argued need not mean raising taxes.
Effective tax collection could be a key missing link between economic growth
and poverty reduction. In April, economists Dev Kar and Devon
Cartwright-Smith published a report titled “Illicit Financial Flows from
Africa –– Hidden Resource for Development”.
They calculate that Africa as a whole lost US$854 billion to illicit
financial outflows between 1970 and 2008. The economists believe this
outflow, facilitated by tax havens, disguised corporations, trade mispricing
and money laundering have accelerated in the past decade.
Economic growth due to robust oil prices or commodity prices raises income,
says Kar. “But when income rises, it mostly goes into capital flight.
Without proper economic governance, increased growth prospects merely fuel
capital flight instead of stemming it.”
Stijns argues that more efficient tax collection not only increases revenue,
it improves democracy and governance.
“Beyond tax collection efficiency issues lurks the much bigger issue of the
political credibility of the state and the extent to which potential
taxpayers feel there exists a valuable “social contract”, Stijns said.
“Helping African states to broaden their tax base gives them incentives to
engage more directly with their citizens and better consider their needs,”
said Stijns.
It’s a reminder that the Millennium Development Goals do not stand in
isolation. Promoting good governance and an open, rule-based global trade
and financial system –– goal number eight ––  is closely linked to reducing
extreme poverty and hunger. –– IPS

By Mantoe Phakathi


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Power-sharing always conflictive

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 14:17

SHARING power is like sharing a spouse; it is seldom easy and is always
conflictive.
The same with Zimbabwe's tripartite elite pact known as the Global Political
Agreement (GPA) signed on September 15 2009 with much fanfare and
thinly-veiled hysteric euphoria.
The GPA is two years old now. The same welcome celebrations met the GPA's
offspring christened the "inclusive government' which in simple terms was a
coalition government inaugurated on February 13 2009; it is therefore 18
months old now.
It is only fair to reflect on what happened, what did not, and what is
likely to happen. The underlying argument is that a triple transition is
underway: a transition in the country's politics, national economy, and
society. Because I believe politics largely determines everything else, I
concentrate on the political dimension of the transition which often leads
to or is accompanied by other transitions in social and economic life. There
are those who support the transition and others who are viscerally opposed
to it, that is, the spoilers.
I take a political transition to be an interval between two regime types.
But there is neither a linear route to nor a straightforward process from
one regime to another. The path to and processes towards a new regime are
invariably curvilinear. And yet both the lovers and enemies of political
transition in Zimbabwe often embrace the fallacy of linearity,  i.e. that if
they do X, then Y will of necessity be the outcome without acknowledging
that there are many intervening variables that often upset one's best
calculations. Linearity can happen only if one has total control and this is
rare. For instance, the enemies of Zimbabwe's political transition naively
think that by destroying the inclusive government, they would have, by that
very act, destroyed the political transition. They do not seem to appreciate
the reality that the transition predates both the GPA and the government and
will outlast both. They confuse cause and effect. The GPA and its inclusive
government did not cause the political transition, but both were and are
merely visible manifestations of a deep, underlying transition dynamic. In
short, the political transition happened not because of, but despite the
GPA. What this means is that even if the inclusive government were to be
terminated today, the transition dynamic would still inexorably maintain its
course. We should therefore put Zimbabwe's political transition in its
proper perspective. It is these underlying forces that largely explain the
successes and failures of the inclusive government in implementing what the
three principals reluctantly agreed to do as encapsulated in the GPA.
I see two components to the GPA: the policy agenda and the governmental
structure. The GPA tried to please everyone, a rare feat in the checkered
history of humankind. Thus, the GPA represents the lowest common denominator
or the least-worst option for all the three signatories and their parties.
It was a second-best compromise then, and remains a compromise today. This
is obvious from the many decisions and processes since the inclusive
government; most are compromise decisions and processes.
The same fate awaits the final product of the constitutional reform process.
I have little doubt that the final constitutional draft - if there will be
one - will be an outcome of a patchwork of compromises struck at the elite
level by the three principals. This is notwithstanding the animated -- and
sometimes too animated -- public consultations that provide entertainment to
the masses. This seems to throw me in the NCA camp. But not quite! In
principle, it is desirable, but improbable to have a "people-driven"
constitution. In practice, this normative stance has never been and most
likely will never be. Constitutions everywhere and throughout history have
seldom been and most likely will never be mass-driven outcomes; they have
been and will remain elite-propelled processes and elite-driven outcomes.
The masses are often roped into the process to lend popular legitimacy to
both the process and the outcome. This is the brutal reality in the
practical world of politics.
Let's be unambiguous: the GPA was about regime change spearheaded by the
three wise men (the three principals) and superintended by Sadc. The GPA was
a negotiated elite-driven transition pact. It was not a product of the
electoral will of the people. Instead, it was a vitiation of that electoral
will. And yet the law of the situation demanded such a compromise. Zanu PF
had lost the March 2008 elections but would not surrender power while the
MDC-T had triumphed but could not ensure a transfer of state power,
especially the instruments of public coercion.
In the context of the post-June 2009 stalemate, and given that the electoral
route to democratic transition had been blocked, the GPA became inevitable.
Though it did not receive accolades everywhere, even its harshest critics
acknowledged that it was a significant milestone in crisis-ridden post-2000
Zimbabwe. With the GPA and its subsequent offspring christened the inclusive
government came some opportunities but also risks and challenges.
The record of the inclusive government is a mixed one. It scored some
spectacular victories but the failures are equally stunning. The very
formation of the government was unthinkable a few months before its
inauguration. To President Robert Mugabe, Morgan Tsvangirai was the
personification of evil and it is highly unlikely that the two had met in
the previous decade. But from February 2009, Tsvangirai was Mugabe's deputy
in the highest decision making body in the country, that is the cabinet. The
psychological impact of this is often underrated as critics rush to condemn
the GPA and the inclusive government.
Also to its credit was the peace dividend. The government delivered relative
peace and this still holds. Without doubt, and to most Zimbabweans
post-March 2008, the quest for peace was stronger than their lust for
democracy. In all probability, that is still the case today.
Again to its credit, economic stability was re-established and for the first
time in a decade, the economy stopped sliding and even recorded its first
economic growth statistic in 2009. Stratospheric inflation had been tamed.
And, for the first time in a decade, people's hopes were restored and even
rejuvenated. It must always be remembered that prospects for transition and
recovery do not depend entirely on the capabilities of the state, no matter
how robust that state is. Within society, the political and economic
orientations of ordinary citizens also matter. After all, in a democratic
regime, the electorate grants or withholds legitimacy from political leaders
and state institutions. In March 2009, a nationally representative survey
found that an overwhelming 80% of adult Zimbabweans supported the inclusive
government though this had declined to 66% by September of the same year.
Even as recently as August 2010, a majority of Zimbabweans (55%) expect the
national economy to improve in the next 12 months compared to only 8% who
expect it to worsen. In short, deep-seated despondency has been replaced by
widespread optimism, albeit fragile.
Equally praiseworthy was the restoration of basic public services, notably
health, education, water and sanitation, and to some extent the
rehabilitation of our physical infrastructure.
On the credit side, we must also note the inauguration of the constitutional
reform process. Granted, this process has been mired in controversy both
within and outside government and the Copac-led outreach programme has been
anything but smooth. Instead, chaos seems to have been the defining feature
of this public consultative process whose outcome is very indeterminate.
On the debit side of the equation, a systematic analysis of the
implementation of the clauses of the GPA after 18 months exposes the
fragility and uncertainties inherent in government. The failures of
government have been attendant on the partial or outright non-implementation
of the clauses in the GPA. Though the GPA is inherently flawed, its policy
agenda is nonetheless an essential building block for a transition to a
democratic order. The deficits and obstacles include the asymmetrical
division of executive power; rather than power-sharing, there is power
division resulting in each of the three parties - especially Zanu PF and
MDC-T - controlling and exercising its own lump of power. This has
inevitably resulted in policy gridlock and dysfunctionality.
There has also been little substantive progress in many governance sectors,
except at the symbolic level eg the establishment of theoretically
independent commissions like ZEC, ZMC, and the Human Rights Commission.
And many challenges lie ahead, chief among them the timing of the next
elections. This is a very contentious issue. Both the president and the
premier have converged on holding elections next year but disagree on
whether this is before or after the adoption of a new constitution. For the
president, there will be elections with or without a new constitution while
for the premier, elections will be conducted only after a new supreme law.
It is common knowledge who will prevail on this one. Evidence on the ground
also exposes the hard reality that the institutional infrastructure and
resources are not in place for credible, reasonably free and fair elections
that produce an indisputable outcome. Further and equally important is that,
given the level and depth of fear attendant on the traumatic campaign for
the June 2008 presidential run-off, an election in 2011 is most probably
going to be a barometer of the amount of residual fear in the electorate
than of their electoral will.
The voters roll is in shambles and needs to be cleansed. To have a clean
voters' roll you need first to know how many adult Zimbabweans are still in
the country after the massive emigration post-2002 census. In short,
Zimbabwe is not ready for elections, either institutionally or
psychologically. All things being equal, another highly contestable election
awaits Zimbabwe in 2011 and with it power-sharing agreement Part II.
Zimbabwe 2011 is most likely to be less stable than Zimbabwe 2010. As we
move closer and closer to the constitutional referendum and after it, the
elections, Zimbabwe will inch closer and closer to June 2008 without being
soaked in the same pervasive physical violence. The country is likely to
witness less physical and more covert, subtle psychological violence which
nonetheless will distort and subvert the people's electoral wishes. It could
be another election without a choice, and another transition cycle will be
restarted. The transition will continue, but take different forms, and whose
outcome will also be uncertain.

Eldred Masunungure is a professor of political science at the University of
Zimbabwe and is also the director of the Mass Public Opinion Institute.


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Citizens must take initiative on MDGs

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 14:16

MOST countries in Africa are not on course to meet most of the targets set
out in the Millennium Development goals, but on the level of policy, the
goals have forced African governments to more seriously address their roles
in alleviating poverty on the continent compared to the  past.
Since the inception of the Millennium Development Goals in 2005, progress
has been made in some African countries in relation to their specific
realities, but much more needs to be done.
The MDGs have undoubtedly influenced government budget plans in several
countries such as Ghana, Ethiopia, Rwanda and Malawi. The goals have also
impacted on increased allocation of resources to such sectors as water and
health-care in most East African countries.
So if one is to assess the impact of the MDGs in broader terms, it would be
safe to say that they have contributed to the movement towards eradicating
poverty, but at a slow rate.
The two most crucial goals for Africa in my view are firstly ending poverty
and hunger and secondly universal education. But one cannot speak of goal
number two leaving out goal number three: gender equality.
Goal one enables people to make an income so that they can feed themselves
and care for themselves. So if progress is made on enabling people to feed
themselves and earn a decent income, this will lead to higher government
revenues which can then be invested in achieving other goals.
Progress also has to be made on agriculture and agricultural productivity.
An active agricultural community can have direct access to food and increase
their incomes. Given that a majority of Africans are still working the land,
this will reduce income poverty directly.
Failure to have active economies for poor people means that the only way to
achieve the MDGs is to rely on international aid. International aid is
useful if well used and if it comes with less damaging strings attached, but
is often very unreliable, especially in Africa.
It is sometimes good and most of the times bad. So Africans need to achieve
goal one so that they can stop relying on other people for sustenance.
Goals two and three are important because one cannot transform a population
on the back of illiteracy and repressive gender relations.
If the people do not put pressure on the governments to act, then the
government officials can easily relax and not prioritise the MDGs.
Holding governments accountable and putting pressure on them is the most
important thing that citizens should do in order to ensure that their needs
are met.
African citizens should also try and work with their local governments as
they are closer to the grassroots level problems than national governments.
But even if the citizens themselves become active in trying to push for
their needs to be heard, there are major hindrances that lie in their way.
One such obstacle is the legacy of twenty years of liberalisation ideology.
African countries adopted structural adjustment programmes which are now
affecting them drastically. These programmes encouraged governments to
privatise everything and to free capital and markets from regulation.
Governments were discouraged from supporting their farmers and their small
and medium-sized industries indirectly. Alongside this, they were encouraged
to throw open their markets to imports in the belief that import competition
will lead to efficiency. A belief which has no historical precedence and yet
the African policy elite bought wholly into it.
These market-oriented ideologies are the ones that are making African states
fail to protect their people economically. Most states have very liberal
markets that allow imported products to suffocate the local products. So
this liberalisation ideology then acts as a hindrance to self
sustainability.
The other big obstacle is the existence of corruption within our African
states. Corruption will always affect the distribution of funds and
resources to achieve poverty alleviation and that is why it is necessary to
ensure effective public oversight over government expenditures.
Nevertheless, public investment is crucial to making progress in poverty
eradication as this is necessary to provide infrastructure, train the work
force for health education, invest in value-added production and provide
direct employment.
China is a good example of poverty eradication through the use of
government-centred investments.
The United Nations Millennium Campaign is trying to do three things over the
next three years to try and accelerate the progress on MDGs in Africa.
First is the mobilisation of people, including through youth movements and
gender equality movements and civil societies so as to put pressure on the
governments to keep their promises.
Second is monitoring, UN Millennium Campaign (UNMC) is trying to find ways
in which they can work with citizen groups to monitor resources  meant to be
spent on MDGs.
Thirdly the UNMC is focusing on policy. The UNMC wants to start discussions
of Africa's ability to transform  economies, create decent jobs and put
incomes in the hands of the poor. Most governments in Africa believe that
they can grow through aid and natural resource extraction, but this does not
do anything for job creation and sustainable income generation.
Despite the slow progress on the MDGs in Africa, some countries such as
Ghana, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ethiopia and many more have made good progress in
the education and health sectors. A few, such as Malawi, Ethiopia and to
some extent Kenya (before the election-related violence), have also made
significant progress in the area of agriculture and food production.
If more countries can start to engage in intra-Africa trade, they would be
helping themselves because this will create larger markets to support the
expansion of local production, not only in food and agriculture but in
low-technology manufacturing and value-added services.
African countries should start opening up doors to each other so that they
can share and trade effectively among themselves. This way acceleration on
achieving the MDGs can be realised. But this will require rolling back on
the extreme import liberalisation regimes, reinstating industrial policy to
promote value-added production and innovation and increased public
investment to address the problem of skills and infrastructure.
Above all, it will require a rethinking of the role of the state in the
economy and society generally, what others call a developmental state - one
dedicated to intervening in society and minimising rent-seeking and
encourage value addition, to redirect rents including natural resource rents
to benefit the poor and the productive sectors and a system of taxation that
is effective and equitable, among others.

Abugre is the Deputy Director for Africa, United Nations Millennium
Campaign -- IPS.

By Charles Abugre
 


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Reconnecting with the old rudder

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 09:25

THE IMF recently released a paper showing that most countries in Sub-Saharan
Africa will not be able to accomplish the Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs) whose deadline is 2015. This is because of the global financial
crisis that resulted in less funding flowing to third world countries.
Zimbabwe likewise, though it was not directly affected by the global
financial crisis, will not accomplish these goals. This is because of the
current tight liquidity in the economy that has resulted in restricted
credit and the cost of funds going up. Other policies that were enunciated
since the adoption of multiple foreign currencies are also failing to
stimulate growth. The country; on the other hand, is failing to access
significant external lines of credit because of its huge external debt
obligation.

The high external debt of US$6,7 billion that Zimbabwe is saddled with has
increased its sovereign risk profile, hindering efforts to achieve the
various development goals that have been set several times. External debt
has been building over several years, something that is common in developing
countries as they view external borrowing as a necessary cornerstone for
financing growth. Like any corporate, governments borrow assuming that they
will be able to generate enough revenue to cover the debt plus any interest
that would have accumulated. However, there are some instances where debt
accumulates to unmanageable levels.  This is especially true when the
borrowed funds do not result in real production increases to levels that
enable the government to improve revenues. Also, it could be a case whereby
the borrowed funds have been used for other unintended purposes.

The greater part of the country's external debt of US$6,7 billion is not new
money but interest accumulating on arrears. This is highly unsustainable
given that currently the country is actually seeking more funding while its
capacity to repay the loans is crippled. Sovereign debt has a negative
multiplier effect in that it sours relations with the rest of the world and
impedes progress in the domestic economy.

Greece is an example of how imprudent debt management strategies can be
harmful to an economy. The country's debt rating was downgraded to junk
status. This did not only impact negatively on the country but on the region
as a whole as it adversely impacted the attractiveness of the Euro as an
alternative asset. Zimbabwe therefore needs to come up with strategies to
clear its external debt so that it will be able to access more external
funding essential for growth.

There are several areas which can be dwelt on to refocus Zimbabwe on its
various development goals. The private sector accounts for only 5% of
current debt while government and parastatals have 61% and 34% respectively.
Given such a scenario, carrying out austerity measures implies reducing
public sector services and employment. But there is still much to do on
Zimbabwean debt. The apparently easy but in fact hard compromise is
declaring Zimbabwe a Highly Indebted Poor Country (HIPC), a suggestion which
has not been palatable to political circles. For example, Zambia had waived
a US$7 billion debt following the attainment of the HIPC completion point.
An analysis of the national debt shows that there are idle elements in the
government and the economy at large which continuously contribute to debt
and these require immediate attention.

Streamlining of government revenue to productive expenditure; spreading the
expenditure burden; revamping revenue collection; improving capacity
utilisation in various sectors; sustainable or reduced wage expenditure in
the public sector and implementing tough tax evasion regulations are some of
the measures the government can adopt. It is not surprising to note that of
the US $937 million tax revenue, the informal sector contributed an
insignificant amount. The recent introduction of an electronic tax register
system to increase accountability of revenue is highly commendable in
response to modern computer-based debt management systems.

The authorities should again capitalise on the strong skills base the
country has to facilitate the operation of these systems. Effective
communication, coordination and cooperation amongst data suppliers and users
is key in the formulation of effective debt management strategies. There
should again be close coordination amongst the CSO, Zimra, RBZ and the
National treasury in the implementation of debt management strategies.

Build, Operate and Transfer models can also be implemented to help create
fiscal space. Instead of waiting for continuous government funding, private
players can be invited to carry out projects like road and railway
construction. These models were also used by Mozambique, Tanzania and
Malawi, among others, in railway and road construction.

Zimbabwe also needs to engage the international community. This can be done
through improvement in the country's ease of doing business indices which
have declined since the adoption of MDGs. Much more needs doing to protect
both domestic and foreign investment from arbitrary confiscation and to
provide a just, legal environment in which disputes can be settled in the
courts on the basis of relevant Acts and regulations rather than through
force or political connections.

An acknowledgement that the country cannot operate as an island is important
to unlock the export market for locals, more FDIs and foreign currency
inflows hence improved tax revenue. Improvement in the depth of capital
markets can also reduce over reliance on external borrowing. Sovereign
balance sheets have been haunted by debt which has resultantly obstructed
the achievement of goals set.

The government therefore needs to show commitment and incorporate more
aggressive debt management strategies to improve its credibility which then
completes the circuit of development goals the country adopts. Such a
commitment is also essential in negotiating funds to finance growth
regionally and internationally.

By Jealous Chishamba


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Gapare fired from Indigenisation Board

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 09:29

CHAMBER of Mines boss Victor Gapare has been sacked from the National
Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Board sectoral committee on mines
after just one meeting amid speculation he was seen as not singing from the
same hymn book as his colleagues.
Gapare, who owns GAT Mines, only attended one meeting of the subcommittee
and was fired immediately after the meeting, a development industry
representatives feel was to silence the chamber's views on the committee.

He is said to have rallied small scale miners to agree to the chamber's main
views on mines.
The chamber believes government should not pursue a wholesale equity
empowerment but should also introduce credits for corporate social
investments to determine equity thresholds. This, mines say, will encourage
social investments.

Although CEO Wilson Gwatiringa says Gapare's removal from the indigenisation
subcommittee on mining was due to an "oversight", well placed sources say
the chamber boss was sacked for not promoting a wholesale takeover of mines.

Documents show that only 15 members had been appointed but sources say NIEEB
will soon appoint a traditional chief, widely viewed as a Zanu PF
sympathiser in Gapare's place.

Committee members are Chris Hokonya, Chris Mutsvangwa, Trevor Manhanga,
Trynos Nkomo, Annackleta Gumba, Hamilton Pazvakavambwa, Walter Sarabga,
Richard Mubaiwa, Supa Mandiwanzira, Eng Mukudu, Forbes Magumbate, Elizabeth
Chitiga, John Mangudya and Tinashe Rwodzi (chairman).

A letter dated September 17  and circulated to members of the chamber from
NIEEB CEO Wilson Gwatiringa to Gapare reads: "I write to advise that you are
no longer a member of the Mines Sectoral Committee on Indigenisation with
immediate effect. The reason is that the total number of committee members
has exceeded 16, in contravention of Statutory Instrument 116 of 2010
Section 6 5(1). This was due to an oversight on our part."

Gwatiringa claimed NIEEB had also considered Gapare's "busy schedule" and
that the chamber was already represented on the sub-committee.
"In reaching the decision, NIEEB considered your very busy schedule and the
fact that the Chamber of Mines will still be represented by your chief
executive officer who is also a committee member," added Gwatiringa.

Following the revision of indigenisation and economic empowerment
regulations gazetted in January compelling foreigners  to "cede" controlling
stakes in all businesses valued above US$500 000, government set up
sub-committees to look at the shareholding thresholds and come up with
modalities on how best to implement the policy in various sectors of the
economy.

Sources say government might not want committee members with dissenting
views.

Chris Muronzi


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Zim in Catch 22 situation over mulled elections

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 09:18

ZIMBABWE'S business organisations, labour and politicians could be in a
catch 22 situation as tension around holding next year's general election
hots up.
The Employers' Confederation of Zimbabwe (Emcoz) -- a grouping of
employers -- became the first business organisation to appeal to President
Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and his deputy Arthur
Mutambara to put in place a five year moratorium to an early poll planned
for next May. For them, economic recovery and national healing should take
precedence over elections.
Fear of politically motivated violence stands as the main reason for not
holding elections among business and civil society organisations. For
business, elections would reverse economic gains credited to the inclusive
government formed last year. Analysts say the pro-liberal coalition helped
Zimbabwe's economy grow by 5% last year -- the first recorded expansion
since 1998.

Capacity utilisation for local industries which had plunged to below 10% at
the height of hyperinflation two years ago rose to an average 40% since the
formation of the coalition.

Daniel Ndlela, a renowned economist, says the country could be in a dilemma
as financial aid inflows are reduced to a trickle, with Western governments
pinning more pledges on political reforms.

"The nation is in a Catch 22 situation because of vested interests in the
status quo. It's a dilemma. One could sympathise with business because of
the uncertainty that comes with the elections," Ndlela said.

"The economy could be crippled after the election. But from a politician's
point of view, an election could be an opportunity to unlock the value of
Zimbabwe. Already no inflows have been coming because of the impasse in the
coalition."

He said although credible polls could unlock problems in the coalition
government, the election could again come at a cost. Treasury estimates that
the referendum and general election - estimated at US$200 million - would be
way above monthly government revenue.

"Again because of the intransigence of the other party (Zanu PF) it looks
like an election is the only way, which again comes at a cost. For example,
the high cost of the election of US$200 million could limit any chances of a
pay rise to the civil service, given the current performance of the economy",
he said.

Deon Theron, the rotating chairman of the Business Council of Zimbabwe
contends that a new legitimate government could restore waning business
confidence in the Southern African state. He said partners in the inclusive
government should demonstrate their commitment to holding an internationally
accepted poll. This could be asking too much from President Robert Mugabe,
whose party believes that Zimbabwe is under siege from an invisible hand
seeking "regime change".

"We need stability in the country. The Global Political Agreement has not
fully restored confidence among investors. So, we feel that we should have
elections as soon as possible but the current situation is not conducive for
a free and fair election," Theron said.
"We have a lot of work to do before we can have an election under
internationally accepted standards. It's possible when politicians show
extreme commitment in having a free and fair election."

Theron who is also the Commercial Farmers Union president -- an organisation
of white commercial farmers whose properties were expropriated during the
land reform exercise undertaken in 2000 -- hopes the new government would
bring to finality cases of 198 commercial farmers being prosecuted in court
for illegal occupation of their farms. The challenge for the new government,
he noted, would be the restoration of property rights.
Lovemore Matombo, president of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, admits
that holding elections next year under the current political environment is
not ideal. But he says an appeal by Emcoz to push the polls to 2015 is
exploitative to downtrodden workers struggling to eke out a living.
"Generally we would want an election to be held as quickly as possible but
we feel that any poll held without Sadc supervision is likely to be
contested," Matombo said.

"What employers are saying (the moratorium) is that lets continue to exploit
workers for the next five years because they are making profits. The retail
sector, for example, is making a lot of money. So as labour we would have
expected companies to increase salaries in line with capacity utilisation
which rose from below 10% in 2008 to an average of 40% currently. So the
status quo is benefiting them."

He claimed that although Zanu PF has publicly announced its readiness for
the polls, most government ministers inclined to the party were  benefiting
from the current economic environment.

"We want Sadc to supervise and monitor the next election because you cannot
have two antagonists being in power for the next five years. One of the
parties might be consumed," Matombo warned.

Bernard Mpofu


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Muckraker: Beware ZTV’s ambush journalists on the prowl

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 14:24

IT has become customary for ZTV to ambush ambassadors outside State House
after their presentation of credentials. Those who have not been warned by
their longer-established colleagues of the dangers of misrepresentation if
they say anything to the state media are likely to fall into a trap.
Last Thursday European Commission delegate Aldo Dell’Arricia was reported as
acknowledging the existence of a free press in Zimbabwe.
“I have been in this country for the past eight days,” he told ZTV, “and
what I can tell you is that there is a press that is free. You can read
newspapers in this country and have a feeling of independent information.”
And where was this independent information at the State House ceremony? Were
any independent newspapers invited? Were there any independent radio or
television reporters to cover the event?
Of course Ambassador Dell-Ariccia chose his words carefully. “I can tell you
that there is a press that is free,” he said.
That obviously doesn’t include the Herald. But that newspaper went on to
pretend that Zimbabwe had a free press. “Zim’s press free”, the paper
dutifully proclaimed the next day.
Is Dell-Arricia aware of how little the Media Commission has achieved since
its inception? Is he aware of Tafataona Mahoso’s sinister presence on the
commission? And how many radio licences have been awarded (nil)? Meanwhile,
our colleagues based overseas and in South Africa have still not had an
assurance of safe passage if they were to return to Zimbabwe. At a
Unesco-sponsored conference earlier this month none of the state editors
turned up despite having confirmed their attendance. They are obviously not
their own men!
We wish Sgr Dell-Arricia a happy and productive stay in Zimbabwe. But having
just got off the boat he needs to take soundings in the media before he next
holds forth on the current situation.

Zanu PF secretary for administration Didymus Mutasa provides a significant
insight into his party’s contempt for democracy. Responding to a recent poll
by MPOI revealing that Morgan Tsvangirai would claim an easy victory over
President Mugabe in any presidential poll, Mutasa told supporters in
Masvingo: “Who is Tsvangirai? He will never rule this country. Never, ever.
How can we let the country be ruled by sellouts? He will only do so over our
dead bodies. If we go to the polls and he defeats Mugabe, Zanu PF and the
people of Zimbabwe will not allow that.”
When asked by NewsDay to clarify his remarks last Friday, Mutasa refused to
comment further.
“I do not want to hear anything about it. If you continue asking me about
this issue, I will beat you up. I was not addressing you; I was addressing
the people of Masvingo.”
Let’s hope supine Sadc members make a note of these comments. They perfectly
represent what the democratic movement in this country is up against. But at
least we know what these losers are thinking. Don’t we recall somebody else
saying “Never in a thousand years…”?
Perhaps that’s where Mutasa got the idea!

Muckraker was amused by a story in the Standard reporting that Zimbabwe had
been suspended from taking part in the Homeless World Cup in Brazil. This is
apparently because the entire team bar one ­— Petros Chitiza — decided to
remain in Australia after the last tournament that was held there.
The homeless teams, drawn from 64 nations, comprise street kids from those
countries.
“Zimbabwe will not be part of the Homeless World Cup in Brazil following the
debacle in which all the players except me (Chitiza) decided to stay in
Australia,” Chitiza lamented. The defectors included the entire management
team as well as the players.
“It’s unfortunate that the whole team decided to remain in Australia,”
Chitiza said. “It was their own decision but I am not saying it was the
right thing to do.”
Self-help schemes will be started in future to make sure the players have
something to return to. Meanwhile, Reason can acquaint them with their
revolutionary duty to go home and struggle!

There are occasional rewards for those few readers who are prepared to wade
through the turgid dross that constitutes Mahoso’s weekly African Focus
column in the Sunday Mail.
Reflecting the maxim that a little learning is a dangerous thing, he will
seize on some event 50 years ago to underpin a current argument. Last Sunday
he was spouting indignation over Tony Blair’s receipt of the Liberty Medal
for Conflict Resolution. He referred to the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights adopted in 1948 and pointed out that South African Prime Minister Jan
Smuts had been present at the San Francisco signing ceremony.
He declared that “in South Africa in 1948 apartheid was proclaimed de jure
officially as a state policy…This was important because South Africa in 1948
was a self-governed British colony.”
No it wasn’t. South Africa in 1948 was a fully-fledged dominion and had been
so since 1910. That status had been confirmed by the Statute of Westminster
in 1931. South Africa was represented by its prime minister at San Francisco
precisely because it was an independent state. Mahoso appears unaware of
this and deals with this problem by expressing indignation that Smuts was
present. He doesn’t explain how Smuts could have been present if South
Africa was not a sovereign state.
The National Party (not “nationalist party”) came to power later that year
and passed a raft of laws that were known as apartheid. Of course they were
“de jure” if they were part of the country’s legal framework. That is
self-evident. Smuts meanwhile was out of office having been defeated in the
1948 election.
Mahoso was posing on ZTV last Thursday as an expert on Blair and the Iraq
war. His appearances should carry a warning that he is not in fact an expert
on many of the topics on which he holds forth!
“The world should refuse to be fooled by media stunts,” he declares. More to
the point, Zimbabweans should refuse to be fooled by his ZTV stunts. His
homework this weekend should be to familiarise himself with “colonialism of
a special kind”.

We were interested to note that President Mugabe will be flying from New
York, where he has been attending the UN General Assembly, to Quito in
Ecuador to receive an honorary doctorate in civil law from a university run
by the Anglican church of the province of Ecuador.
Bishop Walter Roberto Crespo who heads this schismatic outfit was in
Zimbabwe recently to meet Mugabe, Bishop Kunonga and others. Readers
interested in the background to Bishop Crespo should Google him up and check
out a BBC story of March 14 2001.

Muckraker has over the years reported the formation of shadowy Zanu PF front
organisations that purport to be part of civil society. These have included
outfits such as the Zimbabwe Federation of Trade Unions, Zimbabwe
Revolutionary Volunteers Front, Zimbabwe Lawyers for Justice, Kunonga’s
Anglicans, Zimbabwe Association of Editors, Destiny of Africa Network,
Zimbabwe Coffin-Makers Association, Zimbabwe Exhumers Association, and the
Allied Youth in Mining Organisation.
Now we have another one: the Federation of Civil Society Organisations.
FCSO has set up a 13-member committee headed by Zanu PF apologist Goodson
Nguni and including Chris Mutangadura who is the government’s chief law
officer in the AG’s office.
The organisation has been established to rival Nango which has appointed
Farai Maguwu’s Centre for Research and Development as a focal point for NGOs
monitoring the diamond trade in terms of the Kimberley Process.
Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy chair Edward Chindori
Chininga told the media that a delegation from the Kimberley Process had
recommended that NGOs have a role in line with KP procedures as discussed in
St Petersburg.
But the FCSO has moved to occupy that space and to resist the appointment of
Maguwu. Nguni’s outfit argued that Maguwu was unsuitable for the role given
pending court cases against him.
Nango CEO Cephas Zinhumwe has described FCSO as “a bogus organisation” and
asked them where they were when Murambatsvina was going down. Needless to
say, “not around”.
Police Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuri claims there is an NGO
dedicated to the protection of flies. We have yet to hear its name.
ZimFlies? This should not be confused with South Africa’s national airline,
FlySAA.

Rugare Gumbo, speaking to the People’s Voice, said sanctions had been put in
place to cause three things, disindustrialisation, regime change, and making
people suffer.
He’s got it wrong. Sanctions were put in place to protest against political
violence and electoral rigging. Zanu PF’s voodoo economic policies were
responsible for dis-industialisation and “making people suffer”.
But Gumbo did get it right on regime change. Everybody in Zimbabwe wants
regime change but Zanu PF is refusing to comply!
Gumbo should be asked: “How many people do you think buy your silly stories
about sanctions? Anybody above the age of five?
But always prepared to say something daft, Didymus Mutasa told the People’s
Voice that Zanu PF was concerned about the welfare of Zimbabweans, that is
why the party had decided to form three committees to deal with specific
issues effectively: namely economic, social and administrative.
So there you have it. The nation is saved. Three committees to the rescue!
And Zanu PF MP for Shamva South Samuel Ziteya says the people are now tired
of Morgan Tsvangirai’s party of “stoogies” (sic).
“If they want to play monkey tricks it is better for them to ship out or we
will rather ship them out…”
Is that the same as “shaping up or shipping out”? We lost the thread there
somewhere what with the monkeys causing havoc with their tricks!

Muckraker has been struck by the volume of publicity surrounding Dr
Munyaradzi Kereke, advisor to RBZ governor Gideon Gono. He keeps popping up
in puff-piece supplements — including in our papers — telling everybody how
wonderful and accomplished he is. In the material we suspect he wrote
himself on the Tobacco Grower of the Year Award he forgot to even mention
who had actually won the first prize. (He came second although you wouldn’t
know it.)
Meanwhile, he has just opened a medical centre in Mount Pleasant which
neighbours say is noisy and disruptive. Council officials warned against the
development but the council itself gave the go-ahead.
The Herald told us (no doubt coming from Kereke) that people who were
objecting to his medical project were affluent and could therefore seek
attention elsewhere. He pledged to drive down ambulance costs by 60% by
year-end. It was “madness” what some private operators were charging, he
said.
Among those congratulating him as a “visionary tobacco farmer” was Doves
Funeral Services which called him “a rising star”, and Imperial Motors
which — entirely coincidentally you understand — also described him as “a
rising star”. There was an accompanying picture of him bowing to VP Joice
Mujuru.
l In last week's edition we referred to Kuchi as builders of the new
passport office.  That should be Energoproject. Our apologies.

Finally, we enjoyed the following message from a reader containing the word
“fluctuations”.
“I was at my bank today,” so the story went. “There was a short queue.
“There was just one lady in front of me, an Asian lady who was trying to
exchange yen for dollars.
“It was obvious she was a little irritated. She asked the teller: ‘Why it
change? Yesterday, I get two hunat dolla fo yen. Today I only get hunat
eighty? Why it change’?”
“The teller shrugged his shoulders and said: “Fluctuations”.
“The Asian lady says: “Fluc you white people too.”

 


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Eric Bloch: Pilots shooting themselves in the foot

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 14:22

AIR Zimbabwe's pilots have long been deserving of high regard and great
admiration.  They have been foremost amongst the cockpit crews of virtually
all airlines operating in the region, and further afield. At all times they
have unreservedly shown that they placed the safety and comfort of their
passengers above all else, and have been leading contributants to the
exceptionally high safety record of Zimbabwe's national airline.  But no one
has ever been totally immune to committing errors, doing others and
themselves disservice.
That is certainly so of the present strike in which the airline's pilots are
engaged.   It is an action which is ill-considered and counterproductive -
not only against the best interests of the airline, its customers and the
national economy - but also against those of the striking pilots.  In fact,
the pilots' action is tantamount to them shooting themselves in the foot.
In so contending, one cannot but be sympathetic with the pilots, for it is
an untenable circumstance that they are victims of immense arrears of
remuneration to which they are lawfully entitled. For which they have
consistently fulfilled their service obligations. It is an indisputable
right to seek their lawful entitlements, but doing so by withholding  their
services is counterproductive in the extreme, and exceptionally harmful not
only to the employer, but also to Zimbabwe as a whole, including the
strikers themselves.
It is a harsh and incontrovertible fact that Air Zimbabwe is operating under
extremely difficult financial circumstances.  This is in no manner a new
circumstance, but has prevailed almost continuously.  Ever since the
national airline was established, more than  half a century ago, each and
every government has  failed to capitalise the airline adequately, forcing
it to resort to costly borrowings - albeit guaranteed by the state.
The government has also sought to wield excessive control over the airline's
policy and management determinations.  Since 1990 an intent to privatise the
airline, in whole or in part, has repeatedly been mooted by government, but
nothing  has been done to achieve it.  In the meanwhile, the airline has
been forced to operate with an inadequate fleet of aircraft recurrently
diminished by expropriation for governmental journeys abroad, high funding
costs, and subject to inappropriate operational policies imposed by the
ministry to which it is accountable.  These and other factors have
inevitably resulted in continuous operational losses, compounding the
gargantuan operational constraints endlessly confronting the airline's board
of directors and its management, and exacerbating those losses.
As a result, payment defaults to personnel have been recurrent, over an
extended period of time, and intensifying, to the immense prejudice of
almost all the employees.  It is, therefore not surprising, that ultimately
the "lid blew off the pot" with the pilots resolving to take action intended
to achieve a righting of the wrong done to them. They cannot be blamed for
seeking and demanding their lawful entitlements.  But to do so by recourse
to an industrial action of a strike has been intensely counterproductive.
The consequence has been to intensify the airline's losses, reputedly an
additional US$500 000 per day.
This can only worsen the financial circumstances exponentially, intensifying
the inability of the airline to remunerate its employees, and to continue
its operations.  Instead of the action being able to yield the intended
objective of receipt by the pilots of that lawfully due (nay, overdue!!) to
them, the pilots have intensified their employer's inability to pay.
Moreover, the pilots' ill-considered actions are highly prejudicial to
Zimbabwe as a whole, impacting very negatively upon the already weakened
economy.  The strike has horrendously impacted upon the slowly developing
recovery of the tourism sector, with many hundreds of tourists left stranded
at airports around Zimbabwe, and abroad.  Many of those tourists will have
resolved never to return to Zimbabwe, and will also not be the advocates of
Zimbabwean tourism to others.
The consequential negative impact upon tourism will inevitably have
downstream economic ill-effects, with minimisation of that sector's sourcing
of goods from other economic sectors.  At the same time, many operations of
the business sector have been disrupted, with businessmen being unable to
undertake essential and urgent business travel within Zimbabwe, and beyond.
Similarly, potential investors have been prejudiced, unable to travel to and
within Zimbabwe, or to return to their home countries timeously, and thereby
disillusioning them as to Zimbabwe's suitability as an investment
destination.
Compounding the tragedy is that the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU)
has been voiciferous in its support for the pilots' actions, and thereby
impliedly commending similar  actions by others within the economy.
Trade unionism is an essential element of any economic society, for worker
rights must be protected, and ZCTU has, over the years, done much for
workers, and indirectly for the economy, as is very commendable. Its support
for action of the nature resorted to by the pilots is however, most
regrettable, ill-considered, and economically destructive.  That support can
well prove to be of great future prejudice to much of the ZCTU membership.
Instead, ZCTU should be interacting constructively with employers and
employees to identify solutions to labour problems, and to prejudices
suffered by labour.
The Air Zimbabwe's pilots' strike is as deplorable and deserving of
condemnation as has been actions, in the recent past, by some of government's
employees in the health care sectors, who allowed patients' lives to be put
at risk in pursuit of the employees' remuneration demands.
No matter how grievously unjustly those employees may be deprived of
legitimate rights, surely it cannot be acceptable to render their patients,
as against their employer, the victims!  Apparently, some of the government
health care employees believe that their Hippocratic Oath obligations are
only Hypocritical Oath obligations!
Government needs to constructively address labour issues. It needs to
protect the operations of its parastatals and their employees by genuine and
expeditious pursuit of privatisation. Workers need to resort to constructive
and cooperative interaction with employers to attain mutually equitable and
effective resolution of their reciprocal difficulties.  When employees shoot
themselves in the foot, they only intensify the ills.

 


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Candid Comment: Constitution must make women’s rights a reality

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 14:40

WOMEN are the only sector of the Zimbabwean population mentioned
specifically by name by the three principals of the global political
agreement in Article 6 on the constitution-making process. This is
attributable to the unjust legal, constitutional and social status of women,
which may qualify them as a group most in need of a new constitution.
Article 6 says the principals are determined that the new constitution
“deepens our democratic values and principles and the protection of the
equality of all citizens, particularly the enhancement of the full
citizenship and equality of women”. For this to happen a new constitution
must have, at the minimum, the following provisions across the breadth of
the 17 thematic areas.
Firstly, a specific equality clause that says all people are equal would be
necessary. This should not only be in the bill of rights but also reflected
in the preamble and founding principles.
Secondly, a clause that specifies that women and men have equal citizenship
is necessary to eliminate the second class citizenship of women manifest in
them being disadvantaged in passing on their citizenship to their children
with foreign men, or in having their foreign husbands acquire Zimbabwean
citizenship.
In the Bill of Rights itself the following clauses are needed. An effective
anti-discrimination clause that makes discrimination unlawful and
unconstitutional, including on the basis of sex, gender, and marital status,
is necessary. It is vital for the constitution to state that all culture and
custom is subject to human rights and fundamental freedoms.
It is also critical to have a clause guaranteeing the right to security of
the person that clearly and specifically also includes the right to
protection from violence against women.
There will also be a need to have a stand-alone clause on the rights of
women.
Another necessity is a stand-alone clause providing for children’s rights as
this would address many of the concerns of women because of their childcare
roles.
A further necessity would be the introduction of economic, social and
cultural rights, which include rights to healthcare, water, sanitation,
shelter, livelihoods and environmental rights.
Affirmative action should be provided for so that special temporary measures
to address the historical marginalisation of women are not held to be
unconstitutionally discriminatory.
This affirmative action should also specifically provide for a 50% quota for
women in decision-making at all levels in line with Article 12 of the Sadc
Protocol on Gender & Development.
Another clause should introduce proportional representation into the
electoral system exclusively or in combination with the present
first-past-the-post system. This is as long as proportional representation
is not confined to the Senate which, being the house of Parliament
traditionally dominated by appointees, is stereotyped negatively against
women.

Jessie Majome is Women’s Affairs deputy minister.


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Comment: MDC belatedly sees the light

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 14:30

IT is not usually a good thing to say to someone "I told you so" when
something goes horribly wrong after forewarning them on the dangers of what
they are doing. But there are times when it becomes necessary to do so.
We find ourselves at that point with regards to the MDC-T and the current
chaotic constitution-making process. We hold no brief for the MDC-T on
anything and we also recognise that the party has a right to make its
political decisions, no matter how disastrous, without consulting others.
However, we have a right to comment in the public interest on what the
MDC-T, a political organisation seeking to win power and rule us, does.
After months of politicking and making smoke-and-mirrors statements
defending this shambolic constitution-making process, MDC-T leader Morgan
Tsvangirai on Wednesday finally saw the light.
He crept out of his ivory tower and called a press conference on Wednesday
in Harare to lament the violence and intimidation that rocked the capital
last weekend during the constitutional outreach programme.
"The MDC leadership met today to review the latest developments on the work
of the parliament-led constitutional outreach programme which was scheduled
to end in Bulawayo, Chitungwiza and Harare last weekend," Tsvangirai told
journalists.
"After considering all the evidence from our Copac teams and from
independent monitors and observers drawn from civil society, the leadership
noted with concern the reported loss of life, the disruptions and the
violence which marred the process. This process fails to pass the test of
legitimacy, credibility and people-drivenness."
Tsvangirai went on to say the process has been militarised and that Zanu PF
had hijacked it using state structures and instruments of coercion. He also
described the process as "messy".
Now there we have it from the PM himself. What we however find disturbing is
not necessarily what Tsvangirai said but that it took him so long to say it.
Right from the beginning, we were very clear on this issue. We said from the
start that this controversial process is badly flawed; it lacks credibility
and legitimacy.
Our argument from the start was that the process is not inclusive and
therefore not representative. We said the process is driven and controlled
by a team comprising members of three political parties -- which only
represent a narrow section of society -- and that is not acceptable in a
culturally-diverse and multiracial country like ours.
We argued for weeks on end the exercise is not consensus-based and is
hostage to the whims of a few political parties with self-serving agendas.
We repeatedly stated that all-inclusiveness stems from the principle of
equality. Everyone affected, and even potentially affected, by the
consequence of the constitution-making process must be included via
representative groups be they political parties, civil organisations or any
other group.
We also said the constitution-making team must have structures and rules of
operation on how to achieve the desired outcome. We even suggested that
there should be a representative constituent assembly or commission to
spearhead the process. The assembly or commission must preferably be chaired
by a judge or another person of proven integrity.
Tsvangirai and his loyalists initially claimed that the constitutional
parliamentary committee was representative as it comprised MPs from the
three parties in parliament. When confronted with the reality that Zanu PF
and the MDC factions simply don't represent or capture the diversity and
multicultural nature of our society, the politicians, thinking they were
clever, incorporated a few gullible elements from civil society and other
willing tools to camouflage their undemocratic and unrepresentative team.
The result of that fraudulent attempt by Zanu PF and the MDC factions to
hoodwink the people was a calamity. People saw through the smokescreen and
did not really participate as they did during the 1999-2000 process. Zanu PF
then resorted to coercive mobilisation methods. The idea behind this is to
impose on the people the discredited Kariba draft constitution. This remains
Zanu PF's agenda. For Zanu PF it's either the Kariba draft or nothing.
Mr Tsvangirai: It's time to smell the coffee. No elections until healing is
underway. And a credible constitution-making process. That's the least the
MDC can do.

 


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Editor's Memo: Sadc has neither bark nor bite

http://www.theindependent.co.zw/

Friday, 24 September 2010 14:39

IT is now apparent that Sadc and its facilitator in the Zimbabwe political
negotiations, South African President Jacob Zuma, do not have teeth that
bite and even have difficulty barking.
And besides Sadc and Zuma, President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai and his deputy Arthur Mutambara have betrayed Zimbabweans by
failing to discharge their mandate to heal the nation and take charge of its
social development.
The regional bloc at its summit in Namibia last month gave a 30-day deadline
to Mugabe, Tsvangirai and Mutambara to resolve outstanding issues in the
global political agreement (GPA) signed two years ago.
The deadline expired last Wednesday with no movement whatsoever towards the
resolution of the sticking points - the rehiring of central bank czar Gideon
Gono, appointment of Attorney-General Johannes Tomana and the swearing in of
MDC-T treasurer Roy Bennett as Deputy Agriculture minister. Sadly, Sadc and
Zuma have been mum on this development.
This is the second time such a deadline had been imposed on the principals
by Sadc and not followed through.
In October 2009, Tsvangirai's MDC-T disengaged from government, forcing Sadc's
Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation to hurriedly convene a
meeting in Maputo, where the political protagonists were given 30 days to
deal with a litany of outstanding issues. The deadline came and went without
any resolution. Meanwhile Sadc and Zuma remained silent.
It is this failure by Sadc to deal decisively with the Zimbabwe situation
that has rendered the bloc, in the eyes of many, as next to useless. Sadc
clearly does not have much leverage over the three principals, especially
Mugabe, and as such it would help matters for the bloc to admit its failure
and escalate the Zimbabwe case by referring it to the African Union (AU).
The AU, a joint guarantor of the GPA with Sadc, should be allowed to come in
and try to resolve the outstanding issues because Zuma and the regional bloc
have feared to confront one of their own and have failed to address critical
regional issues to the disadvantage of the nation!
Sadc has failed to be firm, especially with Mugabe, by demanding a
resolution to the outstanding issues so that the work to rebuild the country
continues in earnest. They should have been speaking loudly against the
resurgence of politically-motivated violence during the constitution-making
process. There is no need on the part of the regional bloc to treat the
principals with kid-gloves. They need to commit to what they signed up to.
Mugabe, Tsvangirai and Mutambara have betrayed the nation by failing to meet
within the 30-day Sadc deadline to resolve the outstanding issues -- the
reason being that Mutambara was abroad. Of what benefit was Mutambara's trip
to the country considering that this impasse is threatening the very
existence of the inclusive government? Must we put these issues on ice every
time the deputy premier goes overseas?
The violence in Harare at the weekend during the constitution-making process
outreach programmes has exposed the farce that we call national healing.
Last week Tsvangirai said national healing should take place after fresh
elections.
He should be reminded that any process of national healing should involve
unearthing the nefarious activities of those with whom he is presently
sharing power. At present they are instilling fear of retribution if people
express their views openly.
On the other hand, he should also note that victims of political violence,
as we disclose this week, are yearning for recognition and acknowledgement
of the wrongs done to them.  Ultimately he will not be able to please
everybody at the same time.
In his attempt to play politics, he assumes that what people need most is
change in political leadership and that when that is achieved, other issues,
such as national healing can be done. But in doing so he may be
underestimating the residual bitterness among the victims, many of whom are
his supporters. Also he probably doesn't realise that those resisting change
will not take his statements seriously because they know they will be
targeted once they lose power.
So trying to please them by suggesting that national healing is suspended
until after the election does not really achieve much. Far better in our
view is to stick to principle and insist on the need for national healing
and everything that it entails.
 

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