• Minimum Wages and Salaries linked to the Poverty Datum Line (PDL) Reduction of Income Tax to a 30% maximum. Workers earning below the PDL (84 000 as at August 2006) should not be taxed.
• Availability and Free Access to Anti Retro Virals (ARVs)
• Stabilisation of prices of basic commodities
• A stop to harassment of Informal Economy Workers by local authority police and the ZRP

Zimbabwe Urgent Resolution in EP

Here is the resolution adopted today by the European Parliament. It shows
the growing concern of the major economic powers at the continued
deterioration of the situation in Zimbabwe.

Eddie cross

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

JOINT  MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

pursuant to Rule 115 of the Rules of Procedure
tabled by
- Geoffrey Van Orden, Charles Tannock and Bernd Posselt
on behalf of the EPP-ED group
- Glenys Kinnock on behalf of the PES group- on behalf of the ALDE group
- on behalf of the Greens/EFA group
- on behalf of the GUE/NGL group
- on behalf of the UEN group
- on behalf of the IND/DEM group
on the situation in Zimbabwe

 The European Parliament,

- having regard to its previous resolutions of 15 December 2003, 16 December
2004 and 7 July 2005,
- having regard to Council Common Position 2006/51/CFSP of 30 January 2006
extending Common Position 2004/161/CFSP and renewing restrictive measures
against Zimbabwe until 20 February 2007,

- having regard to Commission Regulation (EC) No 898/2005 of 15 June 2005
amending Council Regulation (EC) No 314/2004 and extending the list of those
persons in Zimbabwe targeted by restrictive measures,

- having regard to the report, 'Zimbabwe: An Opposition Strategy', published
by the International Crisis Group (ICG) on 24 August 2006,

- having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas the appalling humanitarian, political, and economic situation in
Zimbabwe continues to deteriorate, with the so-called 'Operation
Murambatsvina' (Drive Out Rubbish) leaving 700,000 people destitute,  with
over 4 million Zimbabweans at risk of starvation and surviving on Food Aid,
and political repression continuing apace,

B. whereas the government of Zimbabwe is proposing a legislation on the
Interception of Communications Bill  which will allow the military,
intelligence services, police and the office of the president to monitor
e-mail correspondence, internet access and telephone conversations,

C. whereas the Senate elections of 26 November 2005 were a cynical act of
political patronage designed to consolidate Zanu-PF's authoritarian grip on
Zimbabwe,

D. whereas the main political opposition in Zimbabwe, the Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC), regrettably split into two factions in October
2005,

E. whereas the development of Africa is a priority for the Western
democracies, while recognising that aid alone can achieve little and African
governments are expected to deliver their side of the bargain through a
commitment to democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights,

F. whereas Zimbabweans suffer from an unemployment rate of over 70 per cent
and the highest inflation rate in the world,

G. concerned by human rights organisations' reports that migrants from
Zimbabwe are vulnerable to mistreatment and abuse in South Africa,

H. whereas the African Union (AU), the Southern African Development
Community (SADC) and, in particular South Africa, have failed to take a
strong enough stand against the reprehensible Mugabe regime,

1. Condemns the Mugabe dictatorship for its relentless oppression of the
Zimbabwean people and expresses its profound disappointment at the refusal
of regional actors such as the AU, the SADC and South Africa, to take a more
robust stance against the regime's abuses and the failure to insist that the
Zimbabwean government should mend its ways and restore democracy and the
rule of law;

2. Demands that the Mugabe regime fulfil its pledge to provide housing
sufficient for all those forced out of their homes during the atrocious
'Operation Murambatsvina' campaign;

3. Regrets that Zimbabwe's progress in the fight against HIV-Aids is being
undermined by the government's abusive practices such as its eviction
programme which has disrupted access to healthcare and inadequate social
welfare policies which have further heightened the vulnerability of AIDS
patients;

4. Notes with great concern that Zimbabwe is currently experiencing one of
the world's worst HIV AIDS epidemics, with over 3,200 people a week dying
from the disease; calls for the Government of Zimbabwe to urgently take
action to improve access to Anti-Retroviral Treatment, which is currently
received by only 8% of those infected with the disease;

5. Refuses to recognise the legitimacy of the recently created 'Senate' in
Zimbabwe as a mere 15 per cent of Zimbabweans participated in the
discredited election process, the result of which was also guaranteed
beforehand to favour Zanu-PF;

6. Calls for the withdrawal of the Interception of Communications Bill, the
Suppression of Terrorism Bill and the Non Governmental Organisations Bill,
all of which will be used as pretexts for even tougher crackdowns on any
opponent of the Mugabe regime;

7. Expresses great consternation at the Mugabe regime's covert attempts to
take control of the Zimbabwe Red Cross Society (ZRCS), by forcibly
recommending the employment of regime members and supporters; notes that the
ZRCS's largest donors are Denmark, the UK and other EU Member States; is
fearful that this move will herald the use of ZRCS food support as a
political weapon, thus depriving many vulnerable Zimbabweans from receiving
vital assistance;

8. Strongly insists that the Mugabe regime must derive absolutely no
financial benefit or propaganda value from the run up to the World Cup and
the tournament itself; in this regard, calls on South Africa, host nation
for the 2010 World Cup, and on FIFA, to exclude Zimbabwe from participating
in pre-World Cup matches, holding international friendly games or hosting
national teams involved in the event;

9. Calls on Robert Mugabe to abide by his own promise to stand down, sooner
rather than later, which would be the largest single step possible towards
reviving Zimbabwean society, politics and the economy, and for the
commencement of positive transitional negotiations between Zanu-PF, MDC
parties and other opposition movements;

10. Welcomes the meeting that took place between the two MDC factions in
South Africa on 26 August 2006 and calls upon all those opposed to the
deplorable Mugabe regime to come together and ensure that their activities
provide the people of Zimbabwe with a firmly democratic, representative and
united opposition, ready in all respects to assume the responsibilities of
government, and to bring about political and economic change for the better
in Zimbabwe;

11. Applauds the Zimbabwean Congress of Trade Unions for their forthcoming
protests against the appalling living conditions imposed on the people of
Zimbabwe by the Mugabe regime and insists that such demonstrations should be
allowed to proceed without police harassment;

12. Recognises that the EU's targeted sanctions against both Zimbabwe and
certain individuals in Zimbabwe have failed to have the desired impact on
those directly responsible for the impoverishment of Zimbabwe and the
hardships endured by its people; calls on the Council to ensure that all
Member States rigorously apply existing restrictive measures, including the
arms embargo and the travel ban, erring on the side of exclusion rather than
permissiveness,

13. Further calls on the Council to expand the scope of the sanctions and to
enlarge the list of individuals - which currently stands at 120 persons - so
that it encompasses many more Zimbabwean government ministers, deputies and
governors, Zanu-PF members, supporters and workers, in addition to their
family members, and businessmen and other prominent individuals associated
with Zanu-PF;

14. Calls on China and other countries that continue to supply weaponry and
other support to the Mugabe regime to desist from this and to join the
international community in its efforts to bring about change for the better
in Zimbabwe;

15. Deplores the fact that at the same time as the United Nations is
appealing for US$257 million in humanitarian aid for Zimbabwe, the Mugabe
regime has completed the US$240 million procurement of twelve K-8 military
aircraft from China; notes also that the Zimbabwean army has announced the
purchase of 127 vehicles for senior officers with another 194 to be
purchased in coming months;

16. Urges the UN Security Council to report on the human rights and
political situation in Zimbabwe as a matter of urgency;

17. Reiterates its demand for the SADC to close its regional peacekeeping
training centre in Harare and relocate it within the territory of another
SADC member state;

18. Insists that all aid destined for Zimbabwe must be delivered through
genuine non-governmental organisations and must reach the people for whom it
is intended, with minimal involvement with the Mugabe regime; expresses
unease that the EU funded seven projects in Zimbabwe in 2005 at a cost of
?70 million, and further projects already in 2006, including ?3.7 million
through the EU Water Facility, and asks the Commission to give its
assurances that none of this aid benefited the Mugabe regime;

19. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the
Commission, the governments of the Member States, the governments of the G8
countries, the Government and Parliament of Zimbabwe, the Government and
Parliament of South Africa, the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, the
Secretary General of the United Nations, the Chairmen of the Commission and
Executive Council of the African Union, the Secretary-General of the
Southern African Development Community, and the President of FIFA.

 

Family basket shoots to $96 326

Daily Mirror

Business Reporter
issue date :2006-Sep-07

 A LOW-income urban family of six now needs $96 326 per month in order to
sustain a decent standard of living, the Consumer Council of Zimbabwe (CCZ)
has revealed.

The consumer watchdog said the recent figures reflect a 27, 7 percent
increase from the July figure of $75 439.
CCZ said the total cost of the August basket in US dollar terms is US$385,
31 based on the ruling interbank exchange rate.
"The cost of living as depicted by the CCZ's low-income urban earners
monthly budget for a family of six has risen from $75 439 in July to $96 326
in August reflecting a 27, 7 percent increase," CCZ said.
If the CCZ basket was to be taken as the official poverty datum line
threshold it means that most people are living below the PDL as most
salaries fall below the latest figures.
However, with the new income-tax free threshold of $20 000 introduced by the
Minister of Finance, Herbert Murerwa, in his mid-term fiscal policy review,
and which comes into effect this month, this is likely to lessen the burden
on the consumers who are currently living from hand to mouth.
CCZ said notable price increases were recorded in education, which rose by
89, 9 percent from $3 512 in July to $6 671 this month, margarine rose from
$722, 01 to $1 270, 25 representing a 75, 9 percent surge while transport
was up 50 percent from $300 to $450.
Other remarkable increases were recorded in the prices of washing powder,
which rose by 40 percent from $807, 07 to $1 133, 71, rice was 38 percent up
to $1 136, 50 from $820, 07 and cooking oil increased by 32 percent from
$484, 06 to $639, 80.
"The major mover was education, as the new term began most schools increased
their school fees and levies for the third term.
"Transport operators have continued to increase fares which has impacted
negatively on consumer budgets.
"Transport costs increased in June, July and August by 46, 7 percent, 36, 4
percent and 50 percent respectively, which means that there has been an
increase every single month as from June and this is not justifiable at all
considering that commuter omnibus operators have been accessing fuel from
the National Oil Company of Zimbabwe (Noczim) at a subsidised price," CCZ
said.
The consumer watchdog also took a swipe at fuel dealers who are not adhering
to the recently gazetted prices of fuel saying it is deplorable that service
stations have continued to sell fuel at the old price while some have been
withholding the commodity.
Government recently pegged the price of petrol and diesel at $335 and $320
per litre respectively.
CCZ applauded the monetary authorities for the recent currency reforms but
bemoaned the unjustified price increases by some retailers during the
transition from the old to the new system.
"According to observations noted in some surveys conducted by CCZ, some
retailers removed zeros while rounding off to the nearest dollar or tenth
thereby increasing the prices of the commodities," CCZ said.
Meanwhile, the consumer watchdog has called on the expeditious setting up of
the National Incomes and Pricing Commission (NIPC), whose mandate would be
to regulate the prices of goods and services among others.
CCZ also urged government, business and labour- social partners in the
Tripartite Negotiating Forum (TNF)- to put their house in order and conclude
talks on the prices and incomes stabilisation protocol.
"Generally, CCZ is very disappointed that the TNF has failed to come up
together as a body to fulfill its mandate," CCZ said.

Zimbabwe's malnutrition rate touches 30 percent

Agence France-Presse (AFP)
Date: 07 Sep 2006

HARARE, Sept 7, 2006 (AFP) - Zimbabwe's malnutrition rate has reached almost
30 percent amid galloping inflation and unemployment, compounded by an acute
shortage of basic goods, the government said Thursday.

"Malnutrition has slightly increased," a government demographic survey for
the 2005-2006 period said.

"Stunting, a measure of chronic malnutrion, is reported to be 29.4 percent
in 2005-06 compared to 26.5 percent in 1999 survey."

It said that the mortality rate for children under five had dwindled from
102 per 1,000 births in 1999 to 82 between last year and 2006.

But vaccination coverage for children fell to 53 percent from 67 percent, it
said.

Over the last five years, Zimbabwe has experienced a serious food shortage
attributed to drought and chaotic land reforms that saw the seizure of
thousands of white-owned commercial farms handed over to landless blacks

Amnesty raps Zimbabwe for failing to rehouse demolition victims

Agence France-Presse (AFP)
Date: 07 Sep 2006

LONDON, Sept 8, 2006 (AFP) - Only a tiny fraction of hundreds of thousands
of Zimbabweans have been rehoused after their dwellings were razed last year
in a widely condemned urban demolition blitz, Amnesty International said
Friday.

The London-based rights watchdog said in two trenchant reports that a state
campaign targeting shantytown homes and "illegal structures" was a sham as
was the purported objective that better houses would be built for those
displaced.

"Almost none of the victims of Operation Murambatsvina (Clean up Filth) have
benefited from the rebuilding, with only some 3,325 houses constructed -- 
compared to the 92,460 homes destroyed," it said.

It said a much-touted rebuilding programme had miserably failed to deliver
with most people "being allocated small bare plots of land, often without
access to water and sanitation, on which they have to build their own homes
with no assistance."

"Satellite images of just four sites in Zimbabwe show more than 5,000 houses
destroyed, demonstrating that the government's much-publicised rebuilding
programme has produced fewer houses nationwide than were destroyed in just a
fraction of the country."

The clean-up drive -- launched at the height of winter last year -- 
targetted shacks, "illegal" buildings and roadside kiosks and rendered some
700,000 people homeless, according to United Nations estimates.

It added to the misery of Zimbabweans, who until recently laboured under
four-digit inflation, skyrocketing unemployment and an acute shortage of
basic goods, including fuel and cooking oil.

Amnesty said of the handful of new homes built to resettle the victims,
about one-fifth were reserved for defence and government officials who were
unaffected by Operation Garikai, which translates as Operation Live Well.

"Operation Garikai is a wholly inadequate response to the mass violations of
2005, and in reality has achieved very little," said Kolawole Olaniyan,
Amnesty International's Africa programme director.

"Hundreds of thousands of people evicted ... have been left to find their
own solutions to their homelessness. Very few houses have been constructed.
The majority of those designated as 'built' are incomplete."

"In addition, government officials have made it clear that at least 20
percent of the housing will go to civil servants, police officers and
soldiers -- rather than those whose homes were demolished," it said.

Amnesty's Olaniyan accused the government of Zimbabwean President Robert
Mugabe -- in power since the country's 1980 independence from Britain -- of
trying "to cover up mass human rights violations with a public relations
exercise."

"The victims ... were amongst the poorest people in Zimbabwe. The evictions
and demolition of their homes drove them into even deeper poverty -- losing
what little they had, such as clothes, furniture and even food."

The Amnesty report, which follows field missions, called upon Harare to
urgently review the reconstruction campaign "to bring it in line with the
Zimbabwean government's human rights obligations."

It also asked the Zimbabwean government to seek international aid to help
resettle the victims as the homebuilding campaign had not resulted in
"remedies but in further violations of human rights."

Zimbabwe has repeatedly said the UN estimates of those affected by the
clean-up drive were vastly inflated while Mugabe has hammered home the
message that the campaign was aimed at enabling his people to live well and
with dignity.

Zimbabwean Speaker: Iran vanguard of nuclear energy among developing states

Islamic Republic News Agency

Pretoria, Sept 7, IRNA
Iran-Zimbabwe-Nuclear
Iran's Ambassador to Zimbabwe Hamid Moayer at the end of his tenure
conferred on Thursday with Zimbabwean Senate Speaker Edna Madzongwe on
issues of mutual interests.

The outgoing Iranian ambassador highlighted Iranian interest in taking part
in the country's development projects in the economic sector and called for
continued supervision of parliaments of Iran and Zimbabwe on implementation
of agreements signed between the two countries so far.

Iran has proved that is the real friend to Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwean senator
said.

She expressed the hope to witness further expansion of economic cooperation
between the two countries.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran is the vanguard of nuclear technology among
developing countries," she said.

Iran's success in the field of nuclear technology has opened the gate for
the other countries to take advantage of such peaceful technology, she said.

Some try to deprive others of their legitimate rights and think that they
themselves are authorized to take advantage of such technology, she said.

Zimbabwe says HIV rate declines to 18,1%

Mail and Guardian

      Harare, Zimbabwe

      07 September 2006 10:32

            The number of of people infected with the virus that causes Aids
is down in Zimbabwe due to increased awareness but the country still has one
of the highest HIV rates in the world, state media reported on Thursday.

            Health Minister David Parirenyatwa was quoted by the Herald
newspaper as saying the government's latest Zimbabwe Demographic Health
Survey showed that the country's HIV prevalence rate had declined to 18,1%
from 20,1% from 2004.

            The newspaper said the survey showed a rise in condom use, a
delay by young girls in starting sex and an awareness rate of HIV/Aids of up
to 99,2%.

            "Doctor Parirenyatwa said that while the prevalence rate was
still high, the government was especially happy that the country seemed to
be in the right direction in responding to the HIV/Aids crisis," it said.

            The survey was not immediately available on Thursday and
Parirenyatwa and other senior officials could not be reached for comment.

            The embattled Southern African country lies close to the heart
of Africa's HIV/Aids epidemic, which local health experts say kills an
average of 3 000 Zimbabweans every week.

            The World Health Organisation said last year that Zimbabwe's
adult HIV prevalence had fallen to around 20% in 2004 from 25% in 1999 due
to increased condom use and people having fewer sexual partners.

            Critics say Zimbabwe's drive against the HIV/Aids pandemic would
have been greater but for a severe economic crisis many blame on government
policies and mismanagement.

            The health sector is among those hardest hit by the crisis,
which has brought shortages of food, fuel and foreign currency along with
water and power cuts, and an inflation rate of almost 1 000%.

            Mugabe (82) and in power since independence from Britain in
1980, rejects charges he has misruled Zimbabwe, and blames the economic
crisis on sabotage by his political foes and Western sanctions imposed over
allegations of political repression. - Reuters

Mugabe deploys army to mop-up grain

      September 7, 2006

      By ANDnetwork .com

      Harare (AND) The government of Zimbabwe has deployed the army and the
Grain Marketing Board's (GMB's) loss control officers into the countryside
to force farmers to deliver all grain to the parastatal, as the state panics
over looming mealie-meal shortages.

      Highly placed sources at GMB said army personnel manning the command
centre and the parastatal's loss control section, made up of former security
officers, have been dispatched to the farming communities to mop-up grain
supposedly being held back by farmers.

      "Their first port of call was Mashonaland Central province on the
assumption that it had harvested much of the grain," a source said.

      "As we speak they are in Mashonaland West and they will proceed to
Mash East, Manicaland, Midlands, Masvingo and then Matabeleland."

      Sources said unavailability of mealie-meal in Matabeleland and other
outlets throughout the country over the past two weeks pushed the panic
button in the government circles particularly after lying to the public that
the country had harvested more than
      enough.

      "There are strong considerations to bring in militias in to intensify
the mop-up campaign and even introduce household raids because the current
team is not finding anything," the source said.

      The mop-up campaign comes as only a paltry 100 000 tons is understood
to have been delivered to GMB against the projected 900 000 tons, which
government expects to be delivered this year. Under normal circumstances all
farmers should have delivered their produce to enable them to buy inputs for
the next season by now.

      Maize meal shortages prompted retailers to increase the price of the
commodity by about 160%.

      A snap survey last week showed that most supermarkets in Harare and
nearby towns were charging $1 300 for a 10kg bag maize-meal up from $450 the
previous week.

      Milling industry said a shortage of maize across the country was
pushing up prices.

      Day dreaming

      Agriculture minister Joseph Made, in May told the Public Service,
Labour and Social Welfare Portfolio committee that the crop forecast was 1,8
million tons of maize for this year and of that production, GMB was likely
to receive 900 000 tons, as farmers normally
      retain 50% for their own use.

      Made's misleading claims were met with a flurry of criticism from
civil and humanitarian organisation questioning government's commitment to
avert the recurring food crisis.

      Analysts said Made's misleading projections would create a false sense
of security to gain political mileage but detrimental to initiatives aimed
at resolving the current food crisis.

      "Misrepresentation of facts by some government ministries that
misdirects public opinion and sentiment to create a false sense of security,
particularly in the food and energy sectors of the economy has proven
dangerous over the past six years," one analyst said.

      Made, has a disappointing record of embellishing harvest figures. In
one instance he stunned the nation with details that he was able to see a
bumper harvest
      aboard a helicopter.

      Opposition MDC secretary for agriculture Renson Gasela described Made's
projection as a dream.

      Justice for Agriculture described Made figures as "day dreaming".

      AND, Harare Bureau

Authorities accused of downplaying train accident death toll

By Violet Gonda
7 September 2006
Villagers and witnesses close to the recent Dibamombe train crash have
alleged that the state misled the country about the number of people who
died in the accident. The authorities put the figures of the deceased at 5,
but some people believe that more than 100 died when a passenger train
collided head-on with a goods train near the resort town of Victoria Falls
over a week ago.
National Railways of Zimbabwe officials who spoke on condition of anonymity
to us said the five mentioned in the press were actually the crew members.
They said it's very sad to see such information being politicized as scores
of people died from both the crash and the burns sustained during and after
the accident, which saw at least two coaches destroyed in an inferno.

A Zambian National Broadcasting Cooperation (ZNBC) report said the goods
train was carrying copper sulphate and fuel. Some of those killed in the
accident were Zambians returning from Zimbabwe and South Africa via Victoria
Falls. Zambian officials told journalists it has sent a team to investigate
as the actual figures of the dead remain a mystery.

According to villagers the scenes were horrific. Some that managed to escape
are said to have collapsed less than 20 meters from the scene because of the
serious burns. It is reported that a mass burial is expected as some bodies
were charred beyond recognition.
A nurse working at Victoria Falls Hospital told us that 9 dead bodies were
taken to the hospital but reports from her colleagues who went to the scene
of the accident, and from eye witnesses, say at least two coaches packed
with people were burnt. The nurse said; I believe they were bringing more
bodies which I don't know how many so far. And there are some people still
missing."
She also said she noticed the media had been giving misleading statistics
even on the surviving victims who were treated at the hospital. "There were
about 189 people treated but the media reported 20. It's difficult to know
why they are saying things like that without actually getting figures from
us."

Observers believe the statistics have been misleading so as not to expose
the full extent of the dangerous collapse of the public transport system.
Outspoken Catholic Archbishop of Bulawayo Pius Ncube said the government is
preoccupied with portraying a good image and engages in untruths to portray
this. He said, "We are aware that two and a half to three years ago - on the
same line between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls - there was a very serious
train accident (people were bringing in fuel from Zambia in plastic
containers on the trains). A lot of people, I am told more than 200 people,
died and our government went to put the number at 50. So you can never
really trust them because they are always looking for ways of bailing
themselves out."
Our correspondent visited the scene of the accident but said that the area
had been cordoned off by military and other security personnel. He was told;
"You will be informed as soon as investigations are complete. If any of your
relatives are dead, we will get to you," by an army officer.

These days more and more people are using the rail system to travel as many
now depend on the trains due to the high cost of road transport, but this is
fast becoming a death trap. Rail officials confirmed that signal warning
systems stopped working years ago and train drivers now depend on phone
calls between station foremen who tell the drivers where to stop, seriously
exposing drivers and passengers to dangerous situations.
According to press reports, police say the driver of the passenger train
ignored an order to give way to the goods train at a cross point in the
Dibamombe area, leading to the tragedy. But staff at NRZ blame the ancient
methods being used for signalling, which tragically resulted in a breakdown
of communication between the two train drivers.
We were not able to get a comment from Fanuel Masikati the NRZ public
relations manager but he has reportedly denied that the authorities
distorted the death figures. He said the NRZ is concerned about human life
and is aware that it's communications system is no longer effective. He said
there are plans to install a microwave communications system.
Meanwhile the National Railways of Zimbabwe has announced an 85% fare
increase with immediate effect. A trip from Harare to Bulawayo now costs
Z$2,100 up from Z$1,300 and Harare to Mutare went up to Z$1,500 up from Z$
900.

This will make things very difficult for commuters who were finding the rail
system cheaper than buses. A bus trip to Bulawayo from Mutare went up from
Z$3,000 to Z$5,000.

At one time the NRZ introduced day trains to Bulawayo and Mutare but
abandoned the idea due to fuel and wagon shortages. Although rail transport
remains the cheapest form of transport in Zimbabwe it has become the most
dangerous, especially the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls route which has
experienced numerous fatal train accidents in the past 2 years.

 SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news

Pioneer conservationist dies in Zim

IOL

          September 07 2006 at 09:19PM

      Harare - One of southern Africa's most noted conservationists, Clem
Coetzee, died after suffering a heart attack at his farm in southern
Zimbabwe, family members and friends said Thursday. He was 67.

      Coetzee, an internationally renowned veteran game ranger who pioneered
techniques to relocate elephants and a wide range of wild animals from
habitats affected by drought and environmental degradation, collapsed Sunday
after an early morning tour of his farm and its wildlife research and
breeding pens in the Triangle district, about 400km south-east of Harare.

      "His death is a great loss to wildlife conservation not only in
Zimbabwe but elsewhere in Africa," said Justice for Agriculture, a farmers'
support group, in a tribute Thursday.

      Coetzee developed methods to move elephants in family groups by
darting them with sedatives from a helicopter and lifting them via heavy
duty rubber conveyor belts into truck containers or freight train cars,
where they were revived and fed and given water for journeys of hundreds of
kilometres.

      In the Gonarezhou nature preserve in southern Zimbabwe during a
drought in 1992 he moved at least 40 elephants to new habitats in
neighbouring South Africa in the first operation of its kind in which
electronic tracking microchips were implanted beneath the animals' skin.

      Subsequent groundbreaking research showed the elephants suffered no
ill-effects of being moved as long as the family unit of bulls, cows and the
young was left mostly intact.

      The technique was later used to relocate game animals in Kenya and
several other African countries.

      He was also responsible for spearheading a campaign to sedate and saw
off the horn of the endangered African rhinoceros as a means of combating
rhino poaching.

      Rhino horn is prized in the Middle East and Asia for traditional
dagger handles and as a medicine in its ground form.

      Coetzee is survived by his wife, Em, his daughter Beth, his son Vicus
and three grandchildren. A funeral service is planned in the garden of his
farm in southern Zimbabwe on Saturday. - Sapa-AP

Zimbabwe earns US$107 million from tobacco sales

Angola Press

Harare, Zimbabwe, 09/07 - A tobacco marketing agency in Zimbabwe said
Wednesday the country earned a total of US$107 million from exports of the
crop this year.

Tobacco auctions ended last week, and the Tobacco Industry Marketing Board
(TIMB) said a total of 53.4 million kilogrammes of the crop had been sold.

However, the agency said auction floors would be kept open until next week
to allow farmers to complete their sales.

Transport difficulties, and expectation of better prices, had prompted some
farmers to withhold their crop from the market, which opened in April.

"We had to extend the selling season because deliveries are still strong and
by law farmers are not allowed to carry over stocks to the next season," a
TIMB official said.

Tobacco is one of Zimbabwe`s main export crops, although in recent years
production has declined substantially.

Long-awaited MDC UK congress set for Saturday

zimbabwejournalists.com

      By a Correspondent

      LONDON - OPPOSITION Movement for Democratic Change leaders Isaac
Matongo, Grace Kwinjeh, and Tamsanqa Mahlangu are expected in the UK to
preside over elections this Saturday to choose a new MDC executive that will
transform the diaspora unit into a full province.

      Matongo, the party's national chairman, will lead the delegation from
the Morgan Tsvangirai-led MDC to the long-awaited congress and elections
that have seen divisions developing in the party here as people jostle for
positions.

      The co-ordinating committee said the congress at the weekend is
historic as it will elevate the party structures in the UK and align them
with the other provinces in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

      Since the congress date was announced, there have been massive
disagreements and divisions in the party as those running for office have
been trying to out-do each other in canvassing for votes.

      Electronic mail, text messages, phone calls and stringent voting
procedures are some of the weapons of choice for those who have been
ruthlessly trying to throw mud at their colleagues running for office.

      One group has been saying all new branches will not be allowed to vote
come Saturday while the other has been telling supporters and branches all
those who are paid up would vote regardless of how late their branches were
set up as the numbers game reaches its climax.

      "We have seen in the past few weeks the emergence of different camps,
some getting so dirty as even sending e-mails aligning some genuine people
in the running for office or already in office as either working for the CIO
or the Zanu PF government - it is so sick that people who are known to have
lost relatives in the struggle have been ruthlessly attacked in a malicious
way," an insider said yesterday.

      "Also we have seen how power can get to people's heads - some have
been throwing a lot of money around and even sponsoring some people who are
in Harare so they can help them become our leaders here in the UK. We are
not fools, come Saturday we will show them what the real MDC is all about
and we are happy our national chairman will be hear to lead us through this
very important process."

      Nominations are still in the process for elections that will see a new
leadership emerging to take over from the Washington Ali executive.

      THE CONGRESS WOULD BE HELD AT OXFORD BROOKES UNIVERSITY, CHENEY
SCHOOL, CHENEY LANE, HEADINGTON, OXFORD OX3 7QH. TIME: 1000HRS-1700HRS