The Zimbabwe Situation

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Rough justice

Law Gazette, UK

Thursday 13 September 2007

Brutality and harassment have become an occupational hazard for lawyers in
Zimbabwe, where there is widespread contempt for the rule of law. Jonathan
Rayner reports

The tragedy that is modern Zimbabwe is epitomised by the spectacle of
lawyers seeking sanctuary in the offices of the Attorney-General - before
being bundled on to the back of a truck and beaten up by riot police.

The sequence of events started with the arrest of two human rights lawyers,
Alec Muchadehama and Andrew Makoni. They had been arrested as they emerged
from the High Court in Harare, where they had been arguing against the
continued detention of 13 officials of the Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC), the main opposition party in Zimbabwe.

The two lawyers were released three days later, but not before being charged
with lying in an affidavit in which they had claimed there was evidence that
the government had been behind a recent petrol bombing campaign. The
government's motive, they had alleged, was to justify its violent repression
of dissent over the previous months.

The following day, around 30 lawyers - including Beatrice Mtetwa, president
of the Zimbabwe Law Society (ZLS) - met outside the High Court with the
intention of marching to the Zimbabwean parliament and presenting a petition
in protest against their two colleagues' treatment.

Mrs Mtetwa says that although they were doing nothing illegal, they complied
when armed riot police ordered them to disperse. 'After we had walked for
about 100 metres, we saw the riot police running towards us. And so we ran
into the nearest building, which houses the Attorney-General's office and
the Justice Ministry, believing we would be safe there. But there were more
police inside the building and we were rounded up, put in to a police van
and taken to a riverbed about two or three kilometres away.

'We were told to lie down on our tummies and the order was given that we be
assaulted. I suffered bruises all over my arms and back, as did the other
lawyers who had been bundled on to the truck with me.' She adds: 'I could
not sit down or drive for two days after the assault.'

The incident last May attracted international condemnation. The Law Society
of England and Wales wrote a letter of protest to President Mugabe, and the
Commonwealth Lawyers Association, Solicitors' International Human Rights
Group and the Bar Human Rights Committee released a joint statement in which
they said they were 'extremely concerned' about what was reported to have
happened.

But according to Gugulethu Moyo, a Zimbabwean lawyer now working with the
International Bar Association in London, the protests would have fallen on
deaf ears. Ms Moyo says: 'The Zimbabwe government blames the west and the UK
in particular for all its ills. People opposed to human rights violations
are routinely accused of being agents of the west.'

She adds: 'The police and the army are highly politicised and, along with
the ruling Zanu PF party, are motivated by a naked hunger for power. Lawyers
who expose the arrest and torture of activists are an embarrassment that
must be silenced. This is why nobody was charged after the lawyers were
beaten up in May. The police brutality was officially sanctioned.

'But it's a worrying development nonetheless - it was the first time that
the police has acted so publicly. It's as though the government no longer
cares about its image in Africa and the rest of the world.'

Such contempt for the rule of law and its defenders - the country's
lawyers - is commonplace in President Mugabe's Zimbabwe. Joseph James, a
former president of the ZLS, says: 'The police have been encouraged not to
respect lawyers. You can arrive at a police station and simply be refused
permission to see your client. You can go for habeas corpus, find a judge,
get an order and serve it - and still the police can decline to obey.'

Finding an impartial judge was often a challenge, too. 'Many High Court
judges have compromised their positions by accepting farms that were
previously white-owned. Their title is precarious and dependent upon
government approval - often because they have borrowed money at a
concessionary rate from the government bank. When they have a case before
them that is against the government, they might try to be fair, but it would
only be human if they found for the government.'

Mr James adds that sometimes lawyers fail to show up in court at all because
they are under arrest for any one of a range of charges, including sedition.
This was the experience of his predecessor in the post of ZLS president.
Such intimidation, he says, has become an occupational hazard for many
lawyers in Zimbabwe. War veterans are encouraged to attack solicitors or
chase magistrates from their courts when decisions are deemed disloyal to
Zanu PF.

Mr James continues: 'Fuel shortages make it difficult for lawyers, clients
and witnesses to get to and from courts. There are no recording machines in
court, so no complete and fair records of trials. And over the last 12
months in one particular prison, 167 prisoners have died - that is around
one death every two days - before even getting to trial. They have died from
poor diet, lack of medical care and general mistreatment.'

There is no sign that things are about to get better. President Mugabe has
just signed into law the Interception of Communications Act, which makes
legal the government's tapping of telephones, opening of post and monitoring
of emails and other Internet communications.

Lawyers and opposition politicians have described the act as
unconstitutional and an attack on human rights. The government, as is its
practice, has ignored the lawyers' protests. The legislation is justified,
it claims, because the measures it makes legal are necessary to protect the
country from international terrorism and espionage. For 'international',
read 'the UK' - the former colonial power that President Mugabe constantly
tells his people is poised to resume control of Zimbabwe.

Jeremy Ferguson, a solicitor at Devon firm Chanter Ferguson, visited
Zimbabwe earlier this year to deliver training in civil mediation on behalf
of the Devon & Exeter Law Society, which is twinned with the ZLS. He says
the court system in Zimbabwe has ground to a halt. 'It can take three years
to type up a verdict, the clerks must be bribed to keep cases moving and
magistrates are doubling as taxi drivers to get witnesses to court. Imposing
fines on the guilty is increasingly unworkable - by the time the fine is
paid, inflation at 4,500% has rendered the punishment meaningless.'

He adds that although he was never threatened himself, he has seen the
consequences of resistance to the regime. 'One prominent lawyer, according
to a letter I saw from a certain ministry, was quite clearly on an official
death list.'

The Zimbabwe High Commission in London was contacted for a statement
regarding the rule of law in Zimbabwe and the police's mistreatment of the
protesting lawyers, but did not respond.

The commission, sited on The Strand, is the unwilling venue for a protest
that has happened every Saturday since 12 October 2002. Between 2pm and 6pm,
a weekly vigil is held on the pavement outside to draw attention to the
violations of human rights and other abuses that occur daily in President
Mugabe's Zimbabwe.

Meanwhile, the tragedy in Zimbabwe continues to unfold. Around 100,000
refugees per month - according to some estimates - are now fleeing the
country to try and find a new start in South Africa. Some have been shot
dead as they attempted to cross the border, others have been exploited as
cheap labour once they got there, but most have been rounded up and deported
back to the miseries of home.

The authorities, according to Beatrice Mtetwa, are increasingly working to
prevent the country's lawyers from alleviating these miseries. She says:
'The various forms of harassment have included denial of access to clients,
refusal to disclose the whereabouts of clients, chasing lawyers out of
police stations, assault, arrest and detention.'

But perhaps that is to be expected in Mugabe's Zimbabwe. It was in March of
this year when Morgan Tsvangirai, the leader of the MDC, and 30 of his
officials, suffered severe injuries at the hands of the police. An
unrepentant President Mugabe, talking of his critics, said: 'They will get
arrested and bashed by the police.'

Tsvangirai to meet Mbeki over talks

Zim Online

Friday 14 September 2007

By Batsirayi Muranje

HARARE- Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai leaves Harare on
Friday for crucial talks with South African President Thabo Mbeki on how to
speed up talks between the ruling ZANU PF and the Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) party, ZimOnline has learnt.

Tsvangirai's visit comes hard on the heels of the on-going South
African-mediated Zimbabwe crisis talks, which the two factions of the
divided MDC say are "painstakingly slow."

Tsvangirai could not be reached for comment as he was said to be in a
meeting. But his secretary-general Tendai Biti, who is representing the
Tsvangirai faction at the talks, refused to say whether Tsvangirai would
visit Pretoria for the talks or not.

"I am gagged on the issue of talks so I am not saying anything," Biti told
ZimOnline.

But insiders within the MDC said Tsvangirai, who is going to Pretoria at
Mbeki's invitation, would press the South African leader to expedite the
talks and pave way for the resolution of an eight-year-old Zimbabwean crisis
that has sucked in the rest of the region.

"It is not clear why Mbeki has invited Tsvangirai. But President Tsvangirai
will express his displeasure at the slow pace of the talks and other issues
that we are not happy with," a senior MDC official told Zimonline.

The meeting with Mbeki is expected to take place over the weekend.

"The party is also not happy that a new, people-driven Constitution is no
longer a key item on the agenda as it has been replaced by political
reforms. We are not sure whether reforms will be enough to usher in a new
electoral environment conducive for a free and fair poll," said the source.

It was not clear yesterday whether Mbeki had also invited Arthur Mutambara,
the leader of the other MDC faction.

The Mutambara-led MDC faction is being represented by Welshman Ncube at the
Pretoria-mediated talks while ZANU PF has sent Justice minister Patrick
Chinamasa and Labour and Social Welfare minister Nicholas Goche.

The talks are being held both in South Africa and Zimbabwe where they are
sometimes dragging on for about eight hours. It is reliably understood that
the latest round of talks took place in Harare on Monday from 6pm to about
2am in the early hours of Wednesday.

The state-media reported last week that the ZANU PF politburo had expressed
satisfaction with the progress of the talks.

ZimOnline understands that several other sticking issues, especially
controversial legislations such as the Access to Information and Protection
of Privacy Act (AIPPA) and the Public Order Security Act (POSA), are holding
down the talks.

President Robert Mugabe's government has since 2002 selectively used the
AIPPA and POSA legislations to stifle democratic space in the country.

Enacted in March 2002, AIPPA is among the harshest media laws in the world,
providing for imprisonment of journalists for two years for practising in
the country without licence from the state-appointed Media and Information
Commission.

The POSA legislation has regularly been invoked to deny the opposition its
democratic right to organise political meetings.

Several MDC leaders, including Tsvangirai, were arrested and severely
assaulted after attempting to attend a prayer meeting in Harare that had
been banned by the police.

The sources said the MDC would want the two laws repealed amid indications
that ZANU PF and South African mediators preferred amendment of only the
"repressive clauses".

"The MDC believes the two Acts are repressive but the other guys think it's
selected clauses that are repressive. The opposition is also not happy with
Mugabe's excessive powers in the run-up to the election which allow him to
change the rules when the electoral game is being played," the source said.

Zimbabwe is headed for watershed parliamentary and presidential elections
set for early next year.

Other MDC insiders said the opposition was also worried that even if an
acceptable agreement was hammered out to prepare for a free and fair poll,
it would be difficult to transplant the spirit of the document into a
working plan on the ground.

"ZANU PF has institutionalised fear and repression. Our fear is that it will
be difficult to convince the electorate that the ground has really been
leveled and there will be resistance from traditional chiefs and the general
populace that they can act freely without any vengeance from ZANU PF,"
another source said. - ZimOnline

Zim soldiers blamed for rise in poaching activities

Zim Online

Friday 14 September 2007

By Farisai Gonye

HARARE - Powerful Zimbabwean politicians and soldiers are behind an upsurge
in poaching activities in the country, a wildlife conservation expert
claimed yesterday.

Zimbabwe Conservation Taskforce chairperson Johnny Rodriques said poaching
had increased "dramatically" because of a shortage of beef spawned by a
government directive last June to slash prices and the subsequent withdrawal
of licences from private abattoirs.

Beef and other meat products have disappeared from butcheries and
supermarket fridges since the government closed private slaughterhouses and
put a ceiling on the selling prices of these products.

This has seen a spike in sales of game meat, the bulk of which is obtained
illegally through a network of well-connected poachers.

"It has become a big problem. Wild animals have become the latest victim of
this economic crisis," Rodrigues told ZimOnline.

Unlike in the past when conservation groups used to target border areas for
poachers, events in the past few months have shown an upsurge in inland
poaching.

"We are getting reports from all over the country about an increasing number
of baby elephants, buffaloes and other animals being killed or injured in
snares," said Rodrigues.

He accused soldiers of being at the forefront of poaching activities.

"We think it has to do with the fact that they are very lowly paid and they
sell the meat to nearby shop owners to raise cash.

"We also have information that senior politicians are employing gangs
involved in poaching," said Rodrigues.

A general shortage of food affecting the country has not spared the
country's security agents who are also among the country's worst paid
workers.

According to sources, the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority
(ZPWMA), responsible for managing the country's wildlife population, has
been asked to provide game meat to the Zimbabwe National Army to ease
starving at most of the country's barracks.

ZimOnline is reliably informed that the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) was
now feeding trainees on game meat obtained from various safaris.

It was not possible to verify these reports with the ZPWMA, ZNA or ZRP
yesterday.

But Environment and Tourism Minister Francis Nhema yesterday denied reports
of increased poaching.

"Rodrigues and his outfit are out on an agenda. They come up with all sorts
of claims. But we have one of the best recognised conservation systems in
this country," said Nhema.

Rodrigues accused the ZPWMA of complicity in the poaching activities,
charging that the authority had refused to give his organisation permits to
provide assistance to wounded wildlife.

"They want to keep a lid on information relating to poaching because their
people are mostly involved," he said.

"The authority sends its capture teams when we report wounded animals. But
all the capture teams do is shoot dead the animals and load them into their
trucks. No care is being provided at all," said Rodrigues. - ZimOnline

Mujuru visit knocks out MDC anniversary celebrations in Masvingo

Zim Online

Friday 14 September 2007

By Regerai Marwezu

MASVINGO - Police in Masvingo have barred the main opposition Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC) party led by Morgan Tsvangirai from holding a rally
on 23 September to commemorate the party's eighth anniversary.

The Tsvangirai-led MDC last week on Thursday applied for clearance from the
police to mark the party's eighth anniversary at Mucheke Stadium in
Masvingo.

But the police said they could not allow the MDC gathering to proceed
because there was going to be a state function in Masvingo town to be
addressed by Vice-President Joice Mujuru on the same day.

Under Zimbabwe's tough Public Order and Security Act (POSA), Zimbabweans
must first seek clearance from the police before gathering in groups of more
than three people to discuss politics.

In a letter to the MDC in Masvingo, Officer Commanding Masvingo district
Lancelot Matange said the Zimbabwean opposition party should reschedule its
commemoration to another date.

Part of the letter, dated 12 September 2007 and addressed to Masvingo MDC
provincial organising secretary Clemence Kambarami, read: " I acknowledge
receipt of your letter/notice in terms of section 24 of the Public Order and
Security Act chapter 11.17 dated 6 September 2007.

"You are accordingly advised that there is going to be a state function on
September 22 and 23. Accordingly, may you reschedule your anniversary/
launch to another date since this office will not be able to cover the
function."

The official opposition party in Zimbabwe, the MDC was born in September
1999 and has its roots in the labour movement.

The Masvingo MDC provincial chairperson Wilstaf Stemele yesterday confirmed
the development, adding that the party's national executive committee was
now handling the matter.

"We have forwarded everything to Harare for consideration and I do not rule
out the possibility of us seeking a High Court order to compel the police to
allow us to hold the gathering," said Stemele.

Kambarami said the police told him that the MDC event could not go ahead
because Mujuru would be in Masvingo on the same day.

"Do we have to ask what ZANU PF will be doing before we seek to hold our own
political meetings? The fact that Mujuru would be in Masvingo cannot be a
reason to bar us from going ahead with our activities," said Kambarami.

The MDC will next year lock horns with President Robert Mugabe's ruling ZANU
PF party in key elections that political analysts say the veteran leader
could lose because of rising anger over the country's worsening economic
crisis.

The Zimbabwean opposition party earlier this year indefinitely postponed the
launch of its presidential election campaign in a move insiders said was
meant to give chance to South African-mediated talks with the ruling ZANU PF
party. - ZimOnline

14-year illegal diamond miner shot dead

Zim Online

Friday 14 September 2007

By Malvern Makono

CHIMANIMANI - A 14-year-old illegal diamond miner has been shot dead in
Chimanimani district after he was found illegally mining the precious stones
by officers from the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority.

Edmore Bhovhana, of Maturikira Village under Chief Ngorima, was fatally shot
by game scouts patrolling Charleswood Estates in Chimanimani.

The Estate was seized from exiled opposition Movement for Democratic Change
party politician Roy Bennet by President Robert Mugabe's government at the
height of the chaotic land reforms about four years ago.

A police spokesperson in Chipinge, Assistant Inspector Takaidzwa Chitombi
told ZimOnline that Bhovhana was in the company of several other villagers
who were illegally mining for diamonds at the property.

"The game scouts who were armed with AK47 rifles fired shots at the illegal
miners, resulting in Bhovhana sustaining a fatal gun shot wound near the
ear," said Chitombi.

The police spokesperson said the game scouts have since been picked up in
connection with the murder of the teenager.

Hundreds of villagers in Chimanimani have over the past few months invaded
Charleswood Estates in search of diamonds after word spread that there were
huge diamond deposits at the property.

The Zimbabwean government has however since deployed police officers at
Charleswood to stop the illegal mining operations there.

The alleged discovery of diamonds comes after similar reports of discoveries
in Marange and Odzi districts in Manicaland, triggering a "diamond rush" in
the area by desperate Zimbabweans.

Zimbabwe is in the grip of its worst ever economic crisis that has
manifested itself in rampant shortages of basic goods and the world's
highest inflation rate of over 7 600 percent. - ZimOnline

Back up rhetoric with actions, Gordon

Zim Online

Friday 14 September 2007

By Tanonoka Joseph Whande

GABORONE - Hello Mr Gordon Brown.

Your Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, is quoted as saying that if Zimbabwe's
notorious President Robert Mugabe attends the Portugal summit, you will not
attend.

This is just unbelievable, Gordon. Now I know how the Israelites felt when
they received manna from heaven. Say, did John Howard of Australia whisper
something to you? I mean, this is really neat and all.

I hope you have told British Airways and those overpaid security people, who
were counting on overnight expenses, to unpack. Mugabe should not and must
not be seen or allowed to mingle with 'world leaders'.

Let him have his time with the uninspiring African presidents who continue
to applaud him every time he makes those wayward remarks.

Apart from 'diplomacy', a word African presidents grossly misunderstand,
African presidents lack compassion and accountability, Gordon.

They have their muzzles so deep into the feeding trough that they, unlike
you, don't feel the pain inflicted on fellow Africans.

And I challenge any one of them, just one in all of Africa, to state
publicly their revulsion at the unnecessary suffering in Zimbabwe.

Let me hear only one African president express disgust at Mugabe for killing
and abusing defenceless people. African presidents want to blend with other
world leaders while they ignore the vile they collectively allow to take
place at home.

And, Gordon, I have seen them dressed up in tuxedos, looking like penguins
in the desert, as you shower them with food, laughter and wine at 'state
functions.'

Oh, my friend, you are just as much to blame.

No more state functions for these men. South Africa, Zambia, Botswana and
Mozambique know about state sanctioned violence in Zimbabwe.

They know exactly the type of torture and abuse of civilians taking place in
Zimbabwe and yet they don't seem to care.

You see, Gordon, we are one people who have turned against ourselves. We can
only blame you and your 'friends' in Europe and America for supporting such
inhuman, cruel and insensitive leaders.

Even the serenity of the church is no longer sacred under Mugabe. We can no
longer freely preach or attend church services as the language in the Bible
flies in the face of Mugabe's intentions.

He, you will recall, blasphemously accepted the accolade of 'son of God' and
he rewarded the blasphemer with a cabinet post. Look across Africa and see
what your 'European Union' did to Africa.

When you partitioned Africa, you were adversaries in Europe. Today, Africa
is fragmented and Europe is united. But you now wine and dine African
presidents while they abuse their people.

However, I applaud you for declaring that you will not go to Portugal for
that meeting if Mugabe is there. But you have to go further.

SADC leaders, who fervently support Mugabe, will be there. Hit the deceitful
executives with sanctions too. We cannot send our children to school,
Gordon.

We cannot eat because we cannot find the food, the jobs or even the money.

Zimbabwe's educational system, once the world's pride, has evaporated as the
gluttonous imbeciles feast on state coffers, reducing the education of our
children to a senseless, expensive, unaffordable and unproductive exercise.

The University of Zimbabwe is now a ghost edifice. Even students themselves
shun it, with only a quarter of those 'admitted' showing up this year.

We need not talk about health delivery, for there is none anymore. Gordon,
if you and your elite group are going to meet so as to discuss about
diamonds from Botswana, gold from South Africa, cocoa from Ghana, oil from
Nigeria, cashew nuts from Mozambique . . . and you forget about the people,
then you might just as well stay at home.

When you meet, sit down and talk about human rights in all African
countries.

But if you boycott the Portugal summit, you will be sending a message to
Mugabe, to the African presidents and to fellow European Union members that
you can back up your words with action, just like the Australians.

Please, don't shame us by being 'talked into it.' On my part, I feel totally
embarrassed that all African leaders tolerate the abuse of African people by
African presidents.

I have yet to hear a single African president opposing or criticising the
mayhem in Zimbabwe. I feel doubly mortified that the deliverance and
emancipation of the African people from the clutches of their African
dictators are being championed by foreigners like you and John Howard.

I love my Africa, Gordon, and your African stooges are messing up our
continent. Australia is backing up its rhetoric with action, Gordon.

As a parent myself, I find the deportation of young Zimbabwean students from
Australia unfortunate. But it should make those children think why such a
thing has happened to them. That is very important.

It should show them that they are benefiting from blooded opportunities. Do
what the Australians did and send our citizens back to their parents.

Meanwhile, listen to the silence of African presidents. None of them will
take a stand and defend their principles because people like you, Gordon,
are subsidising their recalcitrant behaviour.

The travel sanctions on Mugabe and his cohorts are working; please tighten
the screws and make sure that Mugabe finds no loopholes to sneak into the
EU. He is a master at that.

But, Gordon, I do not understand why you should punish Mugabe alone.

Your efforts are being undermined by African presidents, especially those
who share a common border with Zimbabwe. They are supporting human rights
violations.

They are supporting, in whatever way, the killing of innocent people in
Zimbabwe. I am compelled to warn you to look out for a notorious African
president who only visits the drinking wells when all of Africa is asleep.

He doesn't go there to quench his thirst but he always takes toilet paper
with him. This man has always succeeded in influencing other so-called
leaders into behaving illogically.

Be a man and carry out your threat, Gordon. African dictators will not stay
away because they are not paying for the junket. After all, they are coming
there for shopping but, most importantly, they are coming there to ask for
money.

Let them stay away. African presidents continue to support state sanctioned
abuse, human rights violations, electoral fraud and murders in Zimbabwe. If
the Portuguese insist on having Mugabe, don't worry about them.

They have always like that. They were the poorest, most useless and
stingiest of all colonisers. Oh, sorry, Zimbabwe will never be a British
colony again.

It is already a Chinese colony.

* Tanonoka Joseph Whande is a Botswana-based Zimbabwean writer.

Zimbabwe Law Society To Seek Legal Recourse On Price Freeze

VOA

      By Patience Rusere
      Washington
      13 September 2007

The Law Society of Zimbabwe on Thursday questioned the constitutionality of
price and salary freezes announced recently by President Robert Mugabe.

Law Society Vice President Josephat Tshuma told reporter Patience Rusere of
VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe that the presidential decree infringes property
rights and the individual right to work and receive adequate compensation
for that work.

Union For Striking Zimbabwe Teachers Rejects 91% Wage Increase

VOA

      By Jonga Kandemiiri
      Washington
      13 September 2007

The Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe said Thursday that the government
offered striking teachers a 91% salary increase, adding Z$2.6 million to the
present basic wage of Z$2.9 million for a total of Z$5.5 million dollars -
but the union said it rejected the "pathetic" offer, demanding a monthly
minimum of Z$15 million.

Many union members went on strike Monday though the PTUZ's two-week notice
to the government that it intended to strike was not to expire until next
week.

The Progressive Teachers Union accused the rival Zimbabwe Teachers
Association - seen as closer to the government - of selling out by accepting
the state offer.

PTUZ President Takavafira Zhou told reporter Jonga Kandemiiri of VOA's
Studio 7 for Zimbabwe that teachers will stay on strike until their demands
are met.

For its part, the Zimbabwe Teachers Association denied that a 91% raise was
on the table and also denied passing out circulars urging members to accept
the offer.

ZIMTA President Tendai Chikowore said it is normal for the union to send
around circulars to update members on the progress being made in
negotiations.

Without Fanfare, Controversial Zimbabwe Amendment Bill Introduced

VOA

      By Ndimyake Mwakalyelye
      Washington
      13 September 2007

Legislation proposing the 18th amendment to the Zimbabwean constitution
passed its first reading in the house Wednesday with no fanfare despite
widespread opposition and ongoing talks between the ruling party and the
opposition as to the specifics of the bill which stands to significantly
reshape the country's electoral system.

The second reading is expected next Tuesday. Justice Minister Patrick
Chinamasa is expected to announce any proposed changes to the current bill
at that time.

But constitutional law lecturer Greg Linnington of the University of
Zimbabwe told reporter Ndimyake Mwakalyelye of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe
that the first reading should not have taken place at all in light of
significant pending revisions.

Reports said ZANU-PF and Movement for Democratic Change negotiators in talks
in South African-mediated talks in Pretoria had agreed a compromise under
which all 210 seats in an expanded assembly would be directly elected - but
the president would appoint 34 out of 84 seats in a similarly expanded
senate.

It was unclear whether the negotiators from both factions of the MDC had
demanded a change to the proposed amendment provision under which parliament
would choose a successor to the president if the executive resigned, died or
was incapacitated. Some worry this provision could allow President Robert
Mugabe to choose his successor.

Meanwhile, opposition parliamentarian Innocent Gonese, chief whip of the
Movement for Democratic Change faction led by Morgan Tsvangirai, said he is
not privy to changes to the bill and awaits details in the second reading.

Gonese, representing Mutare Central, said it was perfectly normal for
changes to be introduced into legislation during a second reading.

Wishful thought and a financial horror

europeus.org

jeudi, 13 septembre 2007

By Thanos Kalamidas

Imagine going to the bakery early one the morning to buy three small hot
bread rolls. For three euros you get them with butter and a nice cheese that
will make them a good breakfast. The smiling baker takes the three euros and
wishes you a good morning. The next day you decide to repeat do the same
again, only this time you need to take .750,000 euros to pay and who knows
if you will have enough for breakfast the day after.

It sounds a like a financial horror story or a stockbroker's nightmare but
one country in this world has this reality because of one man. The creator
of this nightmare is Robert Mugabe and the victims are the people of
Zimbabwe. Every day these people have to survive one of the worst African
dictators ever, in addition to a lack of necessities and HIV-Aids hanging
over their heads.

However, when Robert Mugabe is visiting other African countries for meetings
he seems that he is welcomed as a hero, so what's really going on? Mugabe is
a dictator, he is personally guilty for the murder of hundreds, for torture,
for rape, for stealing; Robert Mugabe is guilty as much as Hitler was guilty
but still many people in Africa consider him as a liberator and defender of
Africa's rights. Amazing?

Unfortunately this is true but, as usual, this has to do with what people
want to see and not reality, which brings us to the next question. Is the
hate towards white people so strong in Africa that it permits a dictator
like Mugabe destroy an African nation just because he kicked the white
people out of Zimbabwe?

I cannot avoid remembering Idi Amin Dada, another African dictator in the
1970s. At the start of his rule Idi Amin first kicked - and that's a mild
word - out of Uganda the Indians and Pakistanis, then the Jews and finally
every white person to end with most of the foreigners except Libyans and
Cubans. His first act was to take all their money, houses, businesses and
give them to the Ugandan people so suddenly he got the support of the ones
who liked to blame others for their mistakes. He presented himself as Robin
Hood, the people's hero. But this only lasted a few months. Then his crimes
made him the people's nemesis. The deaths, the torture, the fear became
synonymous with Amin's Uganda. Just like Mugabe's Zimbabwe.

Was Amin Africa's hero? Oh yes he was, the conqueror of the British Empire!
I'm serious, that's how he called himself. Most likely Mugabe felt jealous
and he tries to earn the same title, let's hope that he will not have the
same end as Amin. Idi Amin escaped justice and died peacefully in his
apartment in Saudi Arabia comfortable and rich with all he stole from the
Ugandan people.

Let's hope that Mugabe will have to face his victims and die alone behind
the very same bars he imprisoned hundreds and thousands of Zimbabwean
people. But at the moment this sounds like a wishful thought since the
monster is still ruling the country.

Thanos Kalamidas is cofounder of Ovi Magazine

Key Domestic Suppliers Stop Production

SW Radio Africa (London)

13 September 2007
Posted to the web 13 September 2007

Tererai Karimakwenda

It has been revealed that virtually all companies that supply basic goods
and services to the domestic market have stopped production, due to the
price controls introduced by government this year. Bulawayo based
businessman Eddie Cross told Newsreel that major companies such as Olivine
Industries, Unilever, National Foods, Blue Ribbon Industries and Victoria
Foods have all stopped supplying the domestic market. This means the current
shortages of basic commodities will become even worse, and Cross said it is
part of the government's strategy to reduce the urban population ahead of
the elections. He said the state also wants to take over private firms and
eventually give the shares to party chefs. Critics also believe the
government wants to control the production of basic commodities to further
use food as a political tool.

Cross explained that the price controls have nothing to do with prices. He
said the government has two objectives. The first is to drive out of
Zimbabwe about 2 million more people, ahead of the elections in 2008; "And
they don't care where these people go. It could be the rural areas, South
Africa, Malawi or wherever. As long as they are out of the cities and towns
so they cannot vote." The second objective is to set up what he called the
"ZANU-Fication" of private industry.

A new Statutory instrument was published at the end of August that allows
government to take over any private company that is deemed not productive.
The new regulation, Statutory instrument 159A, gives the state powers to
appoint an administrator to manage companies that have "discontinued
production" and their shares can eventually be taken over by whoever the
administrator chooses. It is not clear exactly what "discontinued" means in
these new regulations, but it is defined as "when the owner ceases to
properly or adequately operate or supervise the enterprise". Experts say
this could apply to any company the state targets.

There is also legislation pending in parliament that will require all
foreign-owned companies to give up 51% shares to locals under the Indigenous
Empowerment Programme. The government has already taken over some large
companies, including Olivine Oil and the South African bank ABSA, by buying
majority shares using state run companies.

The last time Mugabe invoked the Presidential Powers was when he recently
ordered a six-month price and salary freeze. He gave the National Incomes
and Pricing Commission the sole power to approve increases, and this body is
controlled by Mugabe himself.

A legal challenge to the order is being considered by the Law Society of
Zimbabwe (LSZ). The group is reported to be consulting its membership and
other experts to judge whether they should challenge it in the courts.

Fury as Mugabe, the unlikely pop star, storms the charts

Independent, UK

14 September 2007 15:20

By Ian Evans in Cape Town
Published: 14 September 2007

His country may be starving and the infrastructure collapsing, but the
83-year-old President, Robert Mugabe, has become an unlikely pop star in
Zimbabwe.

The embattled leader's voice has been sampled on a new record called
"Beitbridge" by an artist named Nonsikelelo, which state radio stations have
been told to play.

The chart hit features parts of a speech Mr Mugabe made in the the small
town of Beitbridge, near the South African border. With no hint of irony,
the chorus has Mugabe saying, "Forward with developing Beitbridge", "Food to
the people of Beitbridge", and "We don't want Beitbridge to lag in
development. We are committed to the development of Beitbridge."

It is unclear whether Mugabe personally agreed to his contribution to the
song, but local sources say his information ministry, which enjoys a large
budget to spend on groups known to be sympathetic to the government, was
involved.

The single - with a soul beat but a traditional Zimbabwean rhythm - is now
in the lower reaches of the top 20 chart. "The president's voice is very
distinctive - you can't miss it," said one record industry pundit.

An announcer at the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation told local media:
"That one ['Beitbridge'] is being treated by bosses here as second only to
the national anthem. They are so crazy about the recording and we play it at
least twice in every hour. And that's an order, by the way.

"It's not by choice because no sane presenter would play that kind of stuff
that talks about giving food to the people of Beitbridge when everyone knows
there is no food to give. It's being spiteful, it's sick, immoral,
insensitive and ill-timed."

Zimbabwe is in the midst of an economic meltdown. It is thought 3,000 people
a day are fleeing to escape starvation and poverty.

JAG job opportunities, 13 september 2007

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Competitive salary, excellent facilities and equipment, congenial working atmosphere where the emphasis is on the all-round development of little children.

We are putting a management team together to run a successful and developing Safari Lodge (75ks from Harare) of presently 32 beds with an additional satellite/overlander camp to be added next year. The business is foreign run with one owner recently relocated to

Zimbabwe

but not wanting to manage the business on a day to day basis.

We are looking for either 2 individuals or a couple, one to manage the hotel/lodge side and the other to manage the game section/park (7800 acres with extensive game).

Management accommodation is a 3 bed roomed house very close to the lodge but not on site (allowing personal time away from the business). A good local primary school exists 20 minutes away. A good basic package with the possibility of profit share exists for the right applicants.

The applicant for the lodge element MUST have experience in the Hotel/Lodge industry in a Management capacity.

Be pro-active in the management of anti-poaching/fencing/road maintenance/hunting.

Suitably qualified interested parties please forward your current CV’s to the directors listed below:

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transerv@zol.co.zw Tel: 00 263 4 496297 (fax 00 263 4 480997) or Mobile: 00 263 23 401414

Twin Peaks in Gweru is looking for a husband and wife team. The husband to be handyman/caretaker and the wife to supervise the restaurant.

Tel: 054 223762 or 054 227996

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Ability to work under pressure, people skills, diagnostic ability, understanding of PCB’s and components, pressure switches, elements etc.

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Please contact Mrs Bown at 04 702402 (office) or: 023 316 739 (cell) for further information.

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We provide specialised recruitment expertise with local knowledge. Our personalised friendly approach is backed up with skilled consultants and a state of the art database that identifies both client and candidate opportunities in the marketplace.

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For a confidential appraise of the job market and work opportunities in

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Kerran ran a highly successful Agricultural Consulting Company in the Chinhoyi District up until the end of 2002. He has now been in

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for 4 ½ years. As an autonomous manager of the Branch or Australian Recruiting, he is happy to communicate with any interested parties currently looking to

Australia

to relocate.

Looking for a mature book-keeper, mornings only excluding Fridays and the odd Wednesday. Must be computer literate.

We off a fun working environment based in Highlands with a good remuneration and fuel allowance offered.

.I have an immediate vacancy for a Dairy Manager to manage our 1000cow dairy in Chisamba, Zambia. This is a senior post and I am looking for a highly motivated, experienced, professional person. Only high-calibre, suitably experienced candidates will be considered. Experience of managing a large dairy herd is ESSENTIAL. Total herd is 2500 animals. Tertiary education would be an advantage but NOT essential.

3. All silage/stock-feed is provided by Crops Manager so Dairy Manager can focus 100% on managing the dairy

The position would suit a husband/wife team and/or a displaced farming couple without children.

This position will require a more mature person over the age of 35, with considerable mechanical and maintenance experience of ERF and Renault trucks. Would prefer a candidate with at least 5 years experience in this same position, who would be able to manage the running of a fleet of cross-border trucks. Please send CV's to Mahomed Abdulla at mahomed@ops.larkcon.co.zw

I am looking for either a houseworker/cook or gardener. The applicant should be mature, experienced and either recommended by an employer or have recent contactable references.

Please phone: 011 614 233 for interview.

I am looking for a cook and gardener (preferably husband and wife team) to start immediately. Accommodation is offered.

Please contact: Glenn 011888214 or email: glenn@nt.co.zw

To the right person a rewarding opportunity exists to ‘operate your own business’ in partnership with Zimbabwe and

based businesses and a Non-Profit Organisation. No financial investment is required of you, HOWEVER, this opportunity has specific requirements which would be your contribution to the ‘partnership’.

This is not a ‘job’ - this is an opportunity to ‘operate your own business’

We are a low-profile service orientated business (inc 1994) and organisation, providing commercial services to the business community, and strictly confidential services to private clients, and non-profit activities.

The partners adopt a philosophical approach to Life, believing in the significance of an individual’s need to find their very own unique and special purpose, and to then live out their personal dream.

Excellence & proficiency in: secretarial & office practises, written & spoken communication, computer skills (especially MSOutlook & File Management)

As the successful ‘partner’ person you will be self-motivated, and competently & with dedication, carry out the daily activities, expand the market of our services in

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and further develop, maintain & operate various Address Book data bases (Network Marketing).

You will possess and be able to practically demonstrate: personal responsibility, a high degree of personal integrity and trustworthiness, that you are a ‘people person’ with compassion and empathy, emotional maturity and stability. Good health and bodily disposition. Be committed to staying....for the next year at least. An added ‘feather in your cap’ will be that you subscribe to the philosophy as expounded in the movie and book - ‘The Secret”

Write an Email letter (attaching your Résumé) telling us sufficient about yourself that we would be wanting to meet with you for consideration as a ‘partner’ in

Zimbabwe

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A mature man with many years referenced experience, mainly in administration and security related management with various reputable organisations, seeks a new direction in life.

Mature man in his 30’s seeking employment in either Marketing/Sales or Management. Preferably regional.

I am the holder of an IMM Diploma; Bachelor of Bus. Admin degree; Certificate in Retail Business Management.

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I am mature lady with 14 years working experience in Administration and Human Resources. I am currently working at the University of Zimbabwe in the Human Resources Department. I hold A Bsc in Sociology from The University of Zimbabwe and Certificates in Human Resources Management. I am looking for employment either as an Administrator in Human Resources. My contact is Mrs Hove 011218590 or 333524 or 492348. My e-mail address hoveh@admin.uz.co.zw.

Currently serving as a Finance and Administration Officer for a regional organisation.