(AFP) – 11 hours
ago
HARARE — Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe reportedly told a former
minister in his government that he wants to retire but fears his party would
disintegrate, an independent weekly said on Sunday.
"From what we
discussed, Mugabe said he is tired and wants to retire but he
cannot do so
now because ZANU-PF would die," Enos Nkala, a former minister
of defence in
Mugabe's late-1980s government, told The Standard newspaper
after meeting
with the 88-year-old president on Friday.
"He cannot leave when the party
is in such a state. What is holding him now
is managing and containing
ZANU-PF to prevent it from disintegrating," Nkala
added.
Mugabe's
spokesperson was not immediately available to comment on Nkala's
statements.
Nkala, who has been a staunch critic of Mugabe in recent
years, met with him
privately for an hour in Bulawayo, 430 kilometres (270
miles) southwest of
the capital Harare, The Standard said.
Nkala
warned that Mugabe's succession remains a delicate issue that if not
handled
carefully might result in "chaos or civil war".
"It's easy for people to
say Mugabe must go, Mugabe must go, but most don't
know that he is the glue
that has been holding this country together," he
said.
Mugabe, who
has ruled the southern African country since independence in
1980, has
already been endorsed by his party to stand as a candidate in
elections
expected after the end of a power-sharing government formed in
2009 in the
wake of disputed elections.
He and his top rival, Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai, have been haggling
over when new elections can be held. Mugabe
wants to exit the power-sharing
deal as soon as possible, while Tsvangirai
insists key reforms be
implemented first.
Mugabe has been at the
centre of a swirl of reports that he is in failing
health.
Mugabe and
his top officials have repeatedly denied that he has prostate
cancer
following a leaked 2008 US diplomatic cable in which Reserve Bank
Governor
Gideon Gono said he had the disease and that it had spread through
his body.
http://mg.co.za/
20 May 2012 12:20 - AFP and M&G
Online reporter
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe reportedly told a
former government
minister that he wants to retire, but fears his party
would disintegrate.
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe reportedly told a
former minister in his
government that he wants to retire but fears his
party would disintegrate,
an independent weekly said on Sunday.
“From
what we discussed, Mugabe said he is tired and wants to retire but he
cannot
do so now because Zanu-PF would die,” Enos Nkala, a former minister
of
defence in Mugabe’s late-1980s government, told the Standard newspaper
after
meeting with the 88-year-old president on Friday.
“He cannot leave when
the party is in such a state. What is holding him now
is managing and
containing Zanu-PF to prevent it from disintegrating,” Nkala
added.
Mugabe’s spokesperson was not immediately available to comment
on Nkala’s
statements.
Nkala, who has been a staunch critic of Mugabe
in recent years, met with him
privately for an hour in Bulawayo, 430km
south-west of the capital Harare,
the Standard said.
‘Chaos or civil
war’
Nkala warned that Mugabe’s succession remains a delicate issue that if
not
handled carefully might result in “chaos or civil war”.
“It’s
easy for people to say Mugabe must go, Mugabe must go, but most don’t
know
that he is the glue that has been holding this country together,” he
said.
Mugabe, who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence in 1980, has
already been
endorsed by his party to stand as a candidate in elections
expected after
the end of a power-sharing government formed in 2009 in the
wake of disputed
elections.
Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai of the Movement for Democratic
Change, have been haggling over
when new elections can be held.
More Coverage
Mugabe treated in
Dubai hospital
Bob says he has the bones of a 30-year-old
Mugabe
not about to leave, says Zimbabwe govt
Mugabe wants to exit the
power-sharing deal as soon as possible, while
Tsvangirai insists key reforms
be implemented first.
Mugabe has been at the centre of a swirl of reports
that he is in failing
health.
Mugabe and his top officials have
repeatedly denied that he has prostate
cancer following a leaked 2008 US
diplomatic cable in which Reserve Bank
Governor Gideon Gono said he had the
disease and that it had spread through
his body.
‘Gift to the
nation’
In late April, the Mail & Guardian reported that two
pretenders to his
throne were pressured into taking the unusual step of
denying their
ambitions.
Vice-President Joice Mujuru declared that
Mugabe was “a gift to the nation”
and her rumoured rival, Defence Minister
Emmerson Mnangagwa, said those who
claimed he had made a secret deal to
replace Mugabe were “mentally deranged”.
It is classic Mugabe: force
ambitious lieutenants to declare their
allegiance publicly and whip all
other ambitions back into line behind him.
The rival faction leaders
appear to have come under pressure from hardliner
Mugabe loyalists who are
angered by reports that the two factions are making
new moves to nudge
Mugabe off the stage.
Mnangagwa, who seldom speaks about his rumoured
ambitions, used a public
lecture at a university to deny he had reached a
“pact” with Mugabe to take
over power.
“There is no such thing and
these are the efforts of detractors bent on
causing alarm and chaos among
the authorities, both in Zanu-PF and the
government,” he said.
http://www.washingtonpost.com
By Associated Press, Updated: Monday, May 21, 2:55
AM
HARARE, Zimbabwe — U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay
arrived Sunday in Zimbabwe on the first mission to the troubled southern
African nation by the world rights chief.
Officials said Pillay’s
weeklong trip is at the invitation of three-year
coalition government formed
in 2009 after disputed, violent elections
plagued by rights abuses blamed
mainly on militants of President Robert
Mugabe’s party and loyalist police
and troops.
“I am here to assess the human rights situation,” Pillay
told reporters at
the Harare airport late Sunday.
She will meet with
Mugabe, political leaders and rights groups, said Mugabe’s
justice minister
Patrick Chinamasa.
In 2009, chief U.N. torture investigator Manfred Nowak
was barred entry at
the Harare airport after claims he was not officially
cleared for the visit.
In 2005, another special envoy of the U.N.
secretary-general angered Mugabe
by criticizing a slum clearance program
that left 700,000 people homeless in
urban strongholds of the former
opposition led by Morgan Tsvangirai, now the
prime minister in the
power-sharing coalition.
Chinamasa, quoted in the state Sunday Mail
newspaper controlled by Mugabe
loyalists, said Pillay was first invited to
Zimbabwe last year but couldn’t
make that trip.
“We showed our
commitment by extending another invitation in February and we
are happy she
has accepted,” he said.
He said he was not concerned by submissions
Pillay is expected to receive
from rights activists and non-governmental
organizations.
“We are happy we will be able to host her because we have
nothing to hide in
terms of human rights issues. We are not worried about
what our detractors
will say,” he said.
Pillay is scheduled to hold
talks with Mugabe, Tsvangirai, defense and
service chiefs, judges, lawmakers
and leaders of rights groups. She will
hear reports of alleged human rights
abuses at diamond fields in eastern
Zimbabwe where the military has been
accused of shootings and torture of
villagers driven from mining
areas.
In a decade of political and economic turmoil, Mugabe’s party has
been
accused of trampling on human and democratic rights, vote rigging and
targeting opponents and independent journalists in assaults and
intimidation.
Independent rights groups say at least 200 people,
mostly opposition
supporters, died in violence surrounding the last national
polls in 2008
that Tsvangirai’s party said it won. Tsvangirai boycotted a
presidential
run-off vote against Mugabe, citing spiraling violence against
tens of
thousands of voters.
Pillay, who served as a judge in South
Africa, has been at the forefront of
the documentation of reported killings
in Syria during uprisings against the
government. She was also a former
judge at the International Criminal Court
and head of the International
Criminal Tribunal on Rwanda’s 1994 genocide.
Pillay ends her Zimbabwe
visit on Friday.
http://www.iol.co.za
May 20 2012 at 09:48am
By Peta
Thornycroft
Zanu-PF’s prosperous mines minister Obert Mpofu has
effectively blocked a R6
billion investment for Zimbabwe – the largest since
independence 32 years
ago.
Mpofu, a Zanu-PF hardliner in the
power-sharing government, has put a rescue
package for Zimbabwe’s bankrupt
iron and steel industry on the brink of
collapse by refusing to hand over
iron ore claims to Indian steel giant
Essar.
Essar won majority
shareholding in Zimbabwe’s state-owned Iron and Steel
Company Zisco, which
stopped operating three years ago. More than half the
price for 54 percent
of Zisco is settling foreign and local debts run up
when the company was
managed by the Zanu-PF administration.
Now Mpofu has chosen to ignore the
agreement signed with Essar more than a
year ago and is insisting that the
iron ore claims, which were part of Zisco’s
assets, are audited prior to
handing them to the Indians.
Details of Zisco’s iron ore claims are
public record: one claim was
exhausted over 60 years of Zisco’s life until
it closed in 2009, the second
has about five years left, and the third,
known as Mwenezi, has never been
prospected or investigated.
In terms
of the deal signed with Essar, it would have exclusive rights to
prospect
the Mwenezi claim.
Industry minister Welshman Ncube, who managed the deal
which brought the
first significant Indian investment into Zimbabwe, told
Weekend Argus this
week that when its size and value are established, a
mining agreement would
be concluded with Essar over how much ore it could
extract, export or
process locally.
The Zisco deal with Essar was
concluded despite Zanu-PF’s preference for two
Chinese bidders promoted by
senior party loyalists.
Ncube is president of the small Movement for
Democratic Change party and
went to India to see some of Essar’s massive
iron and steel operations
before the deal was signed.
He said: “We
are taking 14 months to sign a document which in a normal
country should
take a week.” He said the mines ministry’s insistence that an
“audit” of the
iron ore claims was essential before they were handed to
Essar for
exploration was “nonsensical”. “The deal with Essar has been made
available
to the media and the public since President Mugabe signed it.
“The issue
here is only about Mwenezi. We don’t know the quantity of ore
there. This is
just an excuse.
“All that has been agreed (over the iron ore claims) is a
special grant so
that exploration can be done at Mwenezi with the Department
of Geological
Services, so that we work together.” After the deal was signed
Essar paid
out R7 million a month to many former destitute Zisco
workers.
Essar officials in Harare said this week they had stopped
shelling out money
given that they had not received the necessary
documents.
At present Zisco is silent, the town deserted, the people thin
and hungry.
Zisco earned a little revenue from selling its scrap metal,
mostly to SA
merchants. Mpofu facilitated some of those deals. One of the SA
buyers, New
Reclamation, was a regular buyer of Zisco’s scrap. CEO David
Kassel told
Weekend Argus last year the scrap was paid for with hard
currency, not
worthless Zimbabwe dollars.
Part of the intelligence
gossip in Harare is that the Mwenezi claim is
fantastically rich and that
Ncube has “sold it off” too cheaply. A veteran
metallurgist in Zimbabwe, who
asked not to be named and who knew Zisco over
several decades, scoffed at
Harare speculation about the value of its ore
claims.
“The Essar deal
seems fair value to me and is very good for Zimbabwe. Zisco
used to produce
the cheapest pig iron in the world.”
– Independent Foreign Service
http://www.radiovop.com/
Harare, May 20,
2012 - ZAPU President, Dr Dumiso Dabengwa has lambasted top
military chefs
for continued meddling in the country’s political affairs
adding that they
have converted themselves into Zanu PF commissars.
“As a military person
myself, it is unfortunate that my colleagues decide to
miscarry their duties
as army personnel,” said the former ZIPRA intelligence
supremo at a party
press briefing in Harare Friday.
“The army’s job is to protect the
citizens of the country, to protect
asserts of the country. They are not
supposed to meddle in politics. If they
really felt they should do that, the
best they can
do is to take off their uniforms and join the party which they
seem to have
done as far as Zanu PF is concerned.
“They have even
become the commissariat of Zanu PF. That is an abuse of the
military
institution.”
Dabengwa’s comments follow current steps by dozens of
top chefs in both the
police and military who have declared their interest
to contest the next
general elections as Zanu PF candidates.
They
insist Zanu PF civilian politicians have exposed the party to possible
defeat from the MDC.
Turning to elections, the former Home
Affairs Minister did not rule out the
prospect of joining forces with
“positive minded” parties to form a strong
coalition against Zanu
PF.
He however admitted this would be a tall order as individual parties
would
always want to retain their distinct identities all the
time.
Dabengwa, a former Zanu PF politburo member, also blasted
President Mugabe
and his party for continued attempts to block the concept
of devolution of
power from the new constitution insisting the veteran
leader did not own
Zimbabwe.
“The Zimbabwean citizens are owners
and the supreme authority of the state
of Zimbabwe. They decide what type
of state and system of government they
want. No individual or political
organisation has the licence or the
monopoly to decree that for them,” he
said.
“The outburst recently with all due respect of our President
and the
decision of his politburo that they do not want a constitution with
devolution of power is a subversion of the citizens' supreme authority over
their state. The President and his politburo have no authority to impose on
their issue of devolution because they are not the owners of this
country.”
Dabengwa said he continues to receive secret calls from his
former Zanu PF
colleagues urging him to push harder in his current demands
for devolution
since they themselves were too scared to publicly go against
President
Mugabe’s position on devolution.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/
MINES minister Obert Mpofu says he would
not allow the destruction of
Zimbabwe’s mining sector by heeding calls to
nationalise diamond fields.
20.05.1201:46pm
by Rebecca
Moyo
There have been calls for the nationalisation of the Marange
diamond fields
to fund the national fiscus.
"I will not support such
ideas I will not allow call from missinformed
parties or individuals to
destroy the mining sector with such strange ideas.
We know what we are
doing,” said Mpofu.
"It is important to note that mining has continued to
be the major mainstay
for economic gtowth and development in Zimbabwe,
contributing an estimated
13% to GDP in 2011 and is projected to growth by
15,8% this year. We should
not slow down this momentum," said Mpofu Mpofu
said Zimbabwe's mineral
exports have seen a fairytale rise rebounding by
138% in 2010 growing by
38,75 in 2011 and 2012 projections stand at 13,3%
"In terms of earning,
mineral exports surged in 2011 to US$2,45 billion from
US$1,6 billion in
2011 driven mainly by increased platinum, gold and diamond
production and
buoyed by looming international prices.
"Revenue from
Platimum gained 35% on the 2011 figure while production fo the
same grew by
41% surpassing MTP projections and with continued expansion
projects at some
of the producers we expect the rend to continue," said
Mpofu Zimbabwe’s
current diamond production is estimated by volume to be in
excess of 25% of
world production.
Mpofu said going by the value realised to date per
carat, Zimbabwe is set to
earn in excess of US$2 billion annually in gross
revenue.
Mpofu conceded that there would always be leakages when it comes
to minerals
no matter how powerful a government could be or how much arsenal
it had.
“You can mention any country in the world they are facing leakage
challenges, even the US has failed to control leakage of drugs,” he said
http://www.newzimbabwe.com
20/05/2012 00:00:00
by Peta
Thornycroft
INDUSTRY and Commerce Minister Welshman Ncube has
dismissed as “nonsensical”
a demand by his Mines counterpart for an audit of
iron ore claims before
Ziscosteel’s takeover by Essar Africa can be
concluded.
Mines minister Obert Mpofu has effectively blocked
Ziscosteel’s US$750
million takeover by Essar Africa – the largest
investment in the country
since independence - by refusing to hand over iron
ore claims to Essar.
Essar won majority shareholding in the
Redcliff-based company which stopped
operating three years ago, weighed down
back massive debts, lack of working
capital and ageing
equipment.
More than half the price for 54 percent of Zisco is settling
foreign and
local debts run up when the company was managed by State
appointed
administration.
Now Mpofu has chosen to ignore the
agreement signed with Essar more than a
year ago and is insisting that the
iron ore claims, which were part of Zisco’s
assets, are audited prior to
handing them to the Indians.
Details of Zisco’s iron ore claims are
public record: one claim was
exhausted over 60 years of Zisco’s life until
it closed in 2009, the second
has about five years left, and the third, at
Mwenezi, has never been
prospected or investigated.
In terms of the deal
signed with Essar, it would have exclusive rights to
prospect the Mwenezi
claim.
Ncube, who managed the deal which brought the first significant
Indian
investment into Zimbabwe, said when its size and value are
established, a
mining agreement would be concluded with Essar over how much
ore it could
extract, export or process locally.
He said: “We are taking
14 months to sign a document which in a normal
country should take a
week.”
Ncube added that Mpofu’s insistence that an “audit” of the iron
ore claims
was essential before they were handed to Essar for exploration
was
“nonsensical”.
“The deal with Essar has been made available to
the media and the public
since President Mugabe signed it.
“The issue
here is only about Mwenezi. We don’t know the quantity of ore
there. This is
just an excuse.
“All that has been agreed (over the iron ore claims) is a
special grant so
that exploration can be done at Mwenezi with the Department
of Geological
Services, so that we work together.”
After the deal was
signed Essar paid nearly a million dollars every month to
many former
destitute Zisco workers.
Essar officials in Harare said this week they
had stopped shelling out money
given that they had not received the
necessary documents.
At present Zisco is silent, the town deserted, the
people thin and hungry.
Part of the intelligence gossip in Harare is that
the Mwenezi claim is
fantastically rich and that Ncube has “sold it off” too
cheaply.
A veteran metallurgist in Zimbabwe, who asked not to be named
and who knew
Zisco over several decades, scoffed at the speculation about
the value of
the ore claims.
“The Essar deal seems fair value to me
and is very good for Zimbabwe. Zisco
used to produce the cheapest pig iron
in the world,” he said.
http://www.radiovop.com/
Tsholotsho, May 20, 2012-Villagers in
Ward One at Samahuru in Tsholotsho
North have described Professor Jonathan
Moyo as a chameleon that traded
their votes to Zanu-PF and left them in the
open to be attacked by War
Veterans in the area.
In an interview with
Radio VOP after an MDC rally at Samahuru today,
Nicholas Khumalo, said Prof.
Moyo is no longer welcome in the constituency
because he has done nothing
for his constituency apart from trading their
votes at a cheap price to
Zanu-PF that has failed to rule Zimbabwe for the
past 32 years.
“We
are not happy in Tsholotsho North because Prof Moyo worked against our
mandate to represent our interests in Parliament and when he decided to
cross-over to Zanu-PF, he failed to consult us.
“Prof. Moyo is a
sellout, Tsholotsho North is faced with serious drought but
up to date we
are starving, our fields were destroyed by Elephants and the
food that the
government promised to deliver is distributed by the Chief to
Zanu-PF card
carrying members,” said Khumalo.
He said that challenges faced by the
community in Tsholotsho North date back
to Ian Smith regime.
“We have
no dams, more than 35 families in this ward share one borehole that
was
constructed in 1980, our children walk more than 10 kilometers to school
and
the only clinic that we have has nursing staff but there is no
medication.
We have been living under such conditions since 1980 when we
gained
independence and the Government has turned a blind eye on us,” added
Khumalo.
In February 2005 Moyo registered to run as an independent for
the seat.
Doing so earned the wrath of Mugabe, who expelled him from the
party and the
cabinet. He won the seat in the elections held on 31
March.
Moyo was re-elected to the House of Assembly from Tsholotsho North
constituency in the March 2008 Parliamentary election. He received 3,532
votes, defeating MDC candidate Mgezelwa Ncube, who received 3,305 votes, as
well as Zanu-PF candidate Alice Dube, who received 2,085 votes. The
mainstream MDC did not field a candidate in this constituency on the
understanding that Moyo's victory would be good in the fight to remove
Mugabe from power.
Prof Moyo defected to Zanu-PF in 2009, today
Tsholotsho North voters passed
a vote of no confidence and banned him from
addressing them.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
The country's maize harvest is
estimated to drop by 26% to 1 million tonnes
after an estimated 45% of the
crop that was planted this season was written
off due to drought, the
African Development Bank (ADB) has said.
20.05.1201:39pm
by Rebecca
Moyo
As if that is not all, the Minister of Africulture,
Mechanisation and
Irrigation Development Joseph Made yesterday also said
Zimbabwe has missed
the winter wheat plantindeadline primarily because
fertiliser companies
refused to release the product after government failed
to settle a US$50
million debt streacthing back to several
season.
The country's annual maize consumption is 1,8 milllion tonnes,
with the
Ministry of Agriculture saying it has build up about 400 000 tonnes
in maize
reserve about 400 000 would have to be imported to make up for the
deficit.
"The hectarage of maize written off rose by 117% from the 333
637 hectares
recorded in the 2010/2011 to the 2011/2012 levels of 722 557
hectares," said
ADB.
Maize production in 2011 was 1,35 million
tonnes.
"Zimbabwe’s agriculture sector is currently facing some
challenges. The
country has experienced severe droughts in some parts of the
country and has
estimated a deficit of one million tonnes of maize from the
2011/12 summer
cropping season, a development which is likely to see the
average price of
maize increasing as the year progresses," ADB
said.
Presending the 2012 national budget, Finance minister Tendai Biti
did not
allocate money for grain imports, probably leaving private companies
to do
so.
ADB said an estimated 83 882 hectares of sorghum planted
this season had
been written off with pearl and finger millet having 32 878
hectares and 5
621 ha being written off, respectively.
"The country
currently has 5,2 million cattle 500 000 sheep and 3 million
goats The beef
sector made marginal gains of 2% from 5,1 million, while milk
production
increased 16%," sad ADB.
Prices for both wheat and maize changed
direction several times during the
month of March 2012 but closed the month
5% and 6,6% weaker,respectively.
ADB said US wheat and maize export
prices lost all or most of the gains
registered in early March. Wheat prices
were influenced by the winter crop
concerns in Europe and the Black Sea
region although improved weather
boosted prospects for US winter
wheat.
Maize prices were initially lifted by tightening US
availabilities, rumours
of increased buying by China and rising soya-bean
values.
"Maize prices could have been subdued by competition from lower
grade wheat
and barley for feed use, likely slowed down growth in industrial
use and
forecasted dip in US ethanol production because of stalling domestic
and
export demand," said ADB.
Prices may also have been affected by
global stocks that are projected to
increase modestly as a rise in the US
more than offsets declines in China
and Brazil.
According to Fewsnet
latest report, in Southern Africa, adequate supplies of
maize and other
staple foods from the good 2011 harvests have held maize
prices and the
prices of other staples relatively stable or seasonally
trending upward
despite the lean season peaks.
http://www.thezimbabwemail.com
CZ 1 hour ago
The
Attorney General's legal challenge of Western sanctions in European
Union
Courts and a parallel propaganda campaign against South African Courts
which
may soon start investigating those who tortured political and human
rights
activists make up this weekend’s dossage of Zanu (PF) propaganda.
The
liberation party’s propaganda sheet, the Sunday Mail, claimed that the
EU
Court case in Luxemburg where AG Tomana is instructing a team of two QCs
(British Advocates), two barristers and two Zimbabwean lawyers, would cost
millions and is being funded by unnamed "friends of Zimbabwe" – most likely
illicit diamonds since Zimbabwe has no international friends who would fund
such a fanciful venture.
The Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO),
the Zimbabwe Republic Police
(ZRP) and even the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA)
were involved in the illegal
torture of MDC and human rights activists
throughout the 90's, some of them
high profile people like Morgan
Tsvangirai, and Sekai Holland, others of not
so high profile like
Tsvangirai’s assistant, Gandi Mudzingwa, who were
detained for almost year
and later acquitted and awarded damages.
Others who were tortured by the
CIO and ZRP simply because they wanted to
expose human rights violations by
Zanu (PF) thugs and militia against MDC
activists, are the likes Jestina
Mukoko who was also awarded damages in a
high profile court
case.
They there are also multitudes of little-know people who were
targeted in
their towns and villages and simply for supporting the MDC, such
as those
documented by Solidarity Peace Trust, and others who saved
themselves by
crossing the border to South Africa where they sought asylum
and formed an
organisation called the Zimbabwe Exiles Forum.
Some
were followed up in South Africa by CIO agents and hauled back to
Zimbabwe
for more torture, apparently with the complicity of South African
security
forces - who are also now targets for prosecution under South
Africa’s 2002
law which has now been interpreted to mean that SA is obliged
to investigate
any allegation of crimes against humanity in any country as
long as the
allegation has been made in a South African court.
Realizing the
implications of this for Zanu (PF) perpetrators’ shopping
trips to SA, and
even trips for medical treatment and business, AG Tomana
has recruited
Jonathan Moyo and mobilized the resources of the Sunday Mail
to mount a
propaganda campaign.
The campaign is complete with fictitious diplomats
from the region whom the
Sunday Mail claims are now geared up to “square up
with former Rhodies and
their influential friends in South Africa who are
abusing democratic
institutions in that country to continue their war
against Zimbabwe in
provocative ways that are now threatening to destabilise
the region” –
clearly not the words of a diplomat, but Jonathan Moyo’s
well-rehearsed
verbiage.
Fictitious war veterans have also been
recruited into the propaganda
campaign with claims that they are outraged by
Judge Hans Fabricius’s
judgment ordering the South African Police Service
and the National
Prosecuting Agency to pursue the cases of torture brought
by Zimbabwean
exiles – a tip of the ice-burg.
In their outrage the
war veterans are alleged to have said: “the former
Rhodies and their friends
in South Africa should know that we are fully
aware that they committed lots
of unspeakable atrocities before our country’s
independence and they
continue to do so up to this day and so the time is
fast approaching to
return fire with fire (sic).”
SA is a signatory to the statutes of the
International Criminal Court (ICC),
and has made it part of its domestic
law, but Zimbabwe, obviously hoping to
forestall any cases that could be
brought against its repressive leaders,
has refused to be a signatory to the
ICC.
A regional leader in most UN initiatives, Zimbabwe has consistently
refused
to subscribe to the Rome Statutes and conveniently so does not
recognise the
court. But now, following the petition by the Southern Africa
Litigation
Centre and the Zimbabwe Exiles’ Forum, Zanu (PF) is finding that
although
they may not recognize the ICC, if their leaders who are accused of
crimes
against humanity ever set foot in South Africa, they may find
themselves
hauled before the ICC – whether they recognize it or
not.
So, multiple Human Rights award-winning lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa, who
is a
trustee of the Southern Africa Litigation Centre has been made are
target,
simply by being mentioned in the Sunday Mail article as being among
those
Rhodies and whites who are intent on provoking the ruling party in
South
Africa, the ANC, and Zanu (PF) as former liberation
movements.
According to the unnamed diplomats from the region, “this is
fast escalating
to levels threatening stability in the region.” Talk about
Jonathan Moyo’s
fertile imagination! He bares his futile strategy to recruit
the region into
Zanu (PF)’s fight for survival further down the article:
saying South Africa
is home to many former Rhodesians who are now
influential in the judiciary,
legal fraternity, media, business and NGOs and
are using their positions and
influence to settle their Rhodesian scores
with Zanu-PF.
And they are doing so “in reckless and dangerous ways that
may end up being
very harmful to South Africa's national interest to the
detriment of
cohesion and stability within Sadc.” Now if that is ot Jonathan
Moyo who
else could it be.
On one hand he wants to persuade the ANC
to join the Zanu (PF) cause, but
with his typical lack of diplomacy and
disrespect, especially for South
Africa, he also threatens that if the South
African government does not
appeal against the Fabricus decision, “its own
interests in Zimbabwe and the
region will be in serious jeopardy because
Zimbabwe and other countries in
the region can retaliate through their own
legal systems, not only against
former Rhodesians who are now South Africans
who committed genocidal crimes
during the apartheid days up to as recent as
1994 but also against the South
African government itself which is liable to
legal claims for compensation.”
And all this is attributed to a Harare-based
SADC diplomat, who is not
named.
Moyo must think the international
community is very gullible, that they
would read the Sunday Mail and believe
that that it is written by
journalists who are reflecting a true position in
the region, when in fact
it is one man’s desperate attempt to remain
relevant in Zanu (PF) by giving
its intellectually challenged leaders false
hopes.
As much as we can easily see through his attempts, so can the
international
community, and so can Zimbabweans see that the liberation
party itself has
totally crumbled, leaving behind individuals who are
desperately trying to
find ways of hanging on to power in the face of a
tsunami because they have
known nothing else but being in power for the last
32 years.
As for the QC’s and barristers, this will be their chance to
get their hands
on some easy diamond dollars, thanks to an incompetent
lawyer who has sold
his professional soul for a job protecting hooligans and
murderers who have
hijacked the ship of state without caring about the
welfare of its
citizens. - Changezimbabwe
http://www.thezimbabwemail.com
JOHN NQINDI 21 hours 2 minutes
ago
The love affair that politicians have with international
universities is
stronger than ever - depending on which side of the
political divide one is
on - with both Western and Eastern countries
enrolling children and wives of
Zimbabwe's political elite.
The first
family has Bona Mugabe, who is now studying for a master's degree
in
Singapore. Before that she was studying in Hong Kong for a degree in
Business Administration.
Bona follows in her mother's footsteps. The
First Lady, Grace Mugabe passed
a Bachelor of Arts in Chinese with a
university in China last year.
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor, Dr
Gideon Gono, had three children,
namely Pride, Praise and Passion, studying
in Australia until there were
calls to deport them because of their father's
role in Zanu-PF. Their visas
were cancelled and they finished their studies
at Asian universities.
After Gono's children, the West became a no-go
area for children of Zanu-PF
politicians, including Sylvester Chihuri, the
son of Police Commissioner
Augustine Chihuri, Tendai Nguni, son of Dr
Sylvester Nguni, the Minister of
State in Vice-President Joyce Mujuru's
office, Kudzai Muchena, son of Olivia
Muchena, the Minister of Women's
Affairs, and Thelma Chombo, the daughter of
Local Government Minister
Ignatius Chombo. The others were Taona
Karimanzira, the son of the late
former Harare Provincial Governor David
Karimanzira and Emmerson Mnangagwa
jnr, the son of Emmerson Mnangagwa, the
Minister of Defence.
But
family of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and members of his MDC-T
continued to study freely in Australia. Tsvangirai's daughter Rumbidzai
continued studying at Perth's Murdoch University where she attained a degree
in Economics. His son Garikai is studying in Canada.
With Western
countries out of the question for Zanu-PF politicians, the
likes of Minister
of Mines, Obert Mpofu, have taken to the "look East"
policy like
Mugabe.
Mpofu's children are studying in Hong Kong and China. One of his
daughters
was attached to an Indian college at one point.
The Deputy
Prime Minister Thokozani Kuphe sent her two sons to colleges in
the United
Kingdom. Her only daughter is studying at a prestigious South
African
university.
MDC-N leader Welshman Ncube's son, Wesley, went to the
University of Cape
Town, where he met his wife, Gugulethu, the daughter of
South African
President Jacob Zuma. He is currently working in South
Africa.
Professor John Makumbe, from the University of Zimbabwe, said the
reason
politicians sent their children abroad - those from Zanu-PF in
particular -
was for their security.
"There are some in public office
who have done bad and people might end up
taking it up with their children.
So the main reason is for their protection
from some students and other
violent elements in society," he said.
Education abroad is relatively
expensive and the university chosen speaks
volumes about the financial
status of parents.
"It is a status symbol within corridors of power to
send children to
universities overseas. A person who has managed to abuse
state resources to
enrich his or herself would obviously fork out top dollar
for their
children's education," he added.
Political analyst Trevor
Maisiri once said politicians go abroad for health
care and education
because they have lost trust in institutions they
themselves have managed to
run down because of bad policies.
The not-so-prominent but relatively
influential chiefs in Zanu-PF have
resorted to using presidential
scholarships to send their children to South
African universities. -
timeslive
http://www.financialgazette.co.zw/
Wednesday, 16 May 2012 21:42
Clemence Manyukwe,
Political Editor
HIGH-RANKING government officials and politicians are
among people whose
debts amounting to over US$5 million were written off due
to poor record
keeping by the Zimbabwe National Water Authority
(ZINWA).
An audit done by the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG),
Mildred Chiri,
reveals that when ZINWA handed over the management of water
back to Harare
City Council in January 2009, it did not provide names of
some individuals
who had defaulted.
Cabinet had four years earlier
decreed that the management of water
countrywide be handed to ZINWA only to
reverse the directive after the 2008
cholera outbreak which killed more than
4 000 people from more than 100 000
reported cases.
Although ZINWA could
not provide the names of the defaulters, some of them
were high-ranking
officials who had not paid for the scarce resource either
at their homes or
business premises.
“Harare water debtors — finding — I observed that during
the handover of the
management of water in Harare to City of Harare, the
authority did not get
enough documents to support the debtor amount of US$5
068 614. No names and
amounts owed by each consumer were availed for this
amount. As a result,
recovery of this amount is difficult. No action has
been taken since the
2009 audit to date on writing off this amount,” reads
part of Chiri’s
report.
“Management response. Noted. Approval for the
write-off will be obtained
from the board. The whole amount was provided
for as a doubtful debt in the
books of accounts.”
The latest revelations
come at a time when ZINWA is battling to recover over
US$70 million owed by
some top government officials and ZANU-PF heavyweights
for water mostly used
for irrigation purposes at their farms.
The chefs also owe ZESA Holdings
millions of dollars in unpaid electricity
bills, another product of their
farming ventures.
The failure to pay the power utility has affected ZESA’s
ability to import
power, resulting in a crippling load shedding schedule now
threatening the
winter wheat farming season.
In a judgment with far
reaching consequences on the generality of the
country’s workforce last
week, Labour Court president, Loice Matanda-Moyo,
exem-pted companies from
paying their employees for time spent at the
workplace when there was no
electricity due to load shedding.
In a separate report, Chiri said the power
utility was losing revenue
because ZESA officials sent to disconnect power
were being bribed.
“I noted the following from my review of internal audit
reports: Prepaid
met-ers were no longer working and were being phased
out, due to this
fact about 5 000 units were not being billed.
“Most
farmers were also not being billed because of their hostility to the
meter
readers and their reluctance to pay,” said the C&AG’s report.
“Customers
were not being disconnected as ZESA officials sent to disconnect
were being
bribed . . . The company’s cash flows from debtors are
compromised by
defaulting customers in collaboration with dishonest
employees.
Investigations should be made into the allegations of employee
fraud and
appropriate disciplinary measures should be taken against
culprits.”
Swazi protest outside the Savoy
Hotel
Vigil supporters had a busy week
helping our Swazi friends protest against King Mswati’s visit to the UK for the
Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. We were disappointed that the Queen should invite
Africa’s last absolute monarch to what we would regard otherwise as a joyful
celebration.
Why should the
Zimbabwe Vigil be worried about Swaziland? Our answer is that both countries are
in the same boat: we both suffer under brutal regimes which deny democracy and
abuse human rights.
We regard any friend
of Mugabe as our enemy, so if – for instance – President Sata of Zambia comes to
London we will also be there to protest. We were interested to read this week of
the difficulty Zambia is experiencing getting Zimbabwe to repay its debts. We
also note that the new Malawian President has said that a delegation is trying
to get Mugabe to repay money lent to him by the late President Mutharika (see:
https://www.zimbabwesituation.com/old/may19_2012.html#Z7
– Malawi turns screws on Zimbabwe over debt). It always amazes the Vigil that
anyone could be stupid enough to lend money to Zanu PF, which never honours its
promises.
The protests against Mswati
culminated after the regular Zimbabwe Vigil today when we processed from the
Zimbabwe Embassy to the Savoy Hotel about 200 yards down the Strand to greet
Mswati’s guests as they arrived for a dinner he was hosting. About 30 of us
gathered with our drums and posters (‘King Mswati buys £30m plane while his
people eat cow dung’, ‘Mswati and his 30 strong entourage stay in £400 a night
Savoy Hotel while his people starve’, ‘End human rights abuses in Swaziland’,
‘Mswati must go NOW!’ and ‘Democracy now for Swaziland’). As Mswati’s guests
went in we heckled them with cries of ‘Shame on you, Shame on you’. Protesters
also shouted ‘women abuser’ and ‘save the young girls of Swaziland’. We were not
surprised by the news from South Africa that one of the king’s 13 wives has
spent the past month in the Presidential Suite of the Westcliff Hotel in
Johannesburg costing $2,000 a night (see: http://africajournalismtheworld.com/tag/swazi-queen-runs-up-huge-hotel-bill/).
It was a long day for the Swaziland
Vigil which had gathered for their regular demonstration outside the Swaziland
High Commission at 10 am today before presenting a petition to 10 Downing Street
at 1 pm protesting about the human rights abuses in Swaziland. For the letter to
the British Prime Minister that accompanied the petition (see: http://www.zimvigil.co.uk/vigil-news/campaign-news/401-swazi-letter-to-the-british-prime-minister).
On Friday night activists from both
the Swaziland and the Zimbabwe vigils joined the human rights campaigner Peter
Tatchell in a protest outside Buckingham Palace (see; http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18099937
- Diamond Jubilee:
World royals gather in UK for Queen).
King Mswati must have been left with
little doubt about what we and the Swazis in the UK thought of him after we
greeted him when he arrived at the Savoy Hotel on Wednesday (see: http://www.zimvigil.co.uk/vigil-news/press-releases/400-protest-in-london-over-visit-by-swazi-king).
The efforts that we and others have made resulted in totally negative media
coverage for him in newspapers, television and radio. As the Times reported
‘Swaziland’s King Mswati III is said to enjoy a lavish lifestyle while his
subjects starve’.
The success of the demonstrations was
largely down to the hard work of Vigil management team member Fungayi Mabhunu
and three members of the Swaziland Vigil: Flora Dlamini, Margaret Dlamini (who
came to the protest on Wednesday straight after dialysis) and Jabulile
Simelane.
Other
points
·
We were
sorry to hear that Vigil management team member Patson Mazuwa was in hospital.
Fellow team member Addley Nyamutaka visited him on behalf of the Vigil and
reports that he is getting effective treatment.
·
For the
past few weeks we have been joined by Ellen Gonyora, Secretary General of the
MDC Women’s Assembly. She and others were invited to the UK by the Labour Party
for training in election campaigning. While waiting at Harare airport, she was
targeted by CIO operatives who told her they would get her when she returned to
Zimbabwe. Too fearful to return, she is now seeking asylum in the UK. She has
shown herself to be a committed activist, attending and contributing to all our
activities.
·
Several
Zapu members were with us today. They plan to join us on a regular basis. As we
explained, anyone who supports our aims (ending human rights abuses and
campaigning for democracy in Zimbabwe) is welcome to join
us.
·
On Monday, the fifth
of the monthly protests organised by the MDC diaspora will take place outside
the Zimbabwe Embassy in London from 1 – 4 pm. Representatives will be dispatched to the Mozambique and
Zambian High Commissions – both members of the SADC Troika on Politics, Defence
and Security Cooperation. The protesters are targeting the Troika to demand it
enforce media reforms and also appoint the long awaited three member team to the
Joint Monitoring and Implementation Committee (JOMIC). These were both
resolutions of SADC and the Troika is supposed to see to the implementation.
For latest Vigil pictures check: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zimbabwevigil/.
Please note: Vigil photos can only be downloaded from our Flickr website – they
cannot be downloaded from the slideshow on the front page of the Zimvigil
website.
FOR THE
RECORD: 57 signed the
register.
EVENTS AND NOTICES:
·
Fifth 21st
Movement Free Zimbabwe Global Protest organized by the MDC
diaspora. Monday 21st May from 1 – 4 pm outside the Zimbabwe
Embassy in London. Representatives will be dispatched
to the Mozambique and Zambian High Commissions – members of the SADC Troika
on Politics, Defence
and Security Cooperation.
·
Next Swaziland
Vigil. Saturday
2nd June from 10 am – 1 pm. Venue: Swazi High Commission, 20
Buckingham Gate, London SW1E 6LB. Please support our Swazi friends. Nearest
stations: St James’s Park and Victoria. www.swazilandvigil.co.uk.
·
Zimbabwe Action
Forum. Saturday
2nd June from 6.30 – 9.30 pm. Venue: Strand Continental Hotel (first
floor lounge), 143 Strand, London WC2R 1JA. Directions: The Strand is the same
road as the Vigil. From the Vigil it’s about a 10 minute walk, in the direction
away from Trafalgar Square. The Strand Continental is situated on the south side
of the Strand between Somerset House and the turn off onto Waterloo Bridge. The
entrance is marked by a big sign high above and a sign for its famous Indian
restaurant at street level. It's next to a newsagent. Nearest underground:
Temple (District and Circle lines) and Holborn.
·
ROHR
North East Meeting. Saturday
16th June from 12 - 3pm. Venue: Gateshead Council Civic Centre, Regent
Street, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear NE8 1HH. 3mins walk from
Gateshead Intercharge and Metro station before Gateshead Central Police station.
Free parking available. Come let’s talk about issues that concern our beloved
Zimbabwe. For directions please contact Tapiwa Semwayo 07722060246/ 07412236229,
Susan Ndlovu 07767024586 and Catherine Tshezi 07428189705.
·
Zimbabwe Vigil
Highlights 2011 can be viewed on this
link: http://www.zimvigil.co.uk/the-vigil-diary/363-vigil-highlights-2011.
Links to previous years’ highlights are listed on 2011 Highlights
page.
·
The Restoration of
Human Rights in Zimbabwe (ROHR) is the Vigil’s
partner organisation based in Zimbabwe. ROHR grew out of the need for the Vigil
to have an organisation on the ground in Zimbabwe which reflected the Vigil’s
mission statement in a practical way. ROHR in the UK actively fundraises through
membership subscriptions, events, sales etc to support the activities of ROHR in
Zimbabwe. Please note that the official website of ROHR Zimbabwe is http://www.rohrzimbabwe.org/. Any other
website claiming to be the official website of ROHR in no way represents the
views and opinions of ROHR.
·
ZBN
News. The Vigil
management team wishes to make it clear that the Zimbabwe Vigil is not
responsible for Zimbabwe Broadcasting Network News (ZBN News). We are happy that
they attend our activities and provide television coverage but we have no
control over them. All enquiries about ZBN News should be addressed to ZBN News.
·
The Zim Vigil
band
(Farai Marema and Dumi Tutani) has launched its theme song ‘Vigil Yedu (our
Vigil)’ to raise awareness through music. To download this single, visit: www.imusicafrica.com and to watch the video
check: http://ourvigil.notlong.com. To watch other
Zim Vigil band protest songs, check: http://Shungurudza.notlong.com and http://blooddiamonds.notlong.com.
·
Vigil Facebook
page: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=8157345519&ref=ts.
·
Vigil Myspace
page: http://www.myspace.com/zimbabwevigil.
Vigil
co-ordinators
The Vigil, outside the
Zimbabwe Embassy, 429 Strand, London, takes place every Saturday from 14.00 to
18.00 to protest against gross violations of human rights in Zimbabwe. The Vigil
which started in October 2002 will continue until internationally-monitored,
free and fair elections are held in Zimbabwe. http://www.zimvigil.co.uk.
BILL
WATCH
PARLIAMENTARY
COMMITTEES SERIES
[19th May 2012]
Committee Meetings Open to the Public 21st to 24th
May
NB:
Members of the public who cannot attend meetings, including Zimbabweans in the
Diaspora, can at any time send written submissions to committees by email
addressed to to clerk@parlzim.gov.zw
Thematic Committee and Portfolio Committee meetings will continue
this coming week, in both open and closed session. The meetings
listed below will be open to the public as observers only, not as participants,
i.e. members of the public can listen but not speak. The meetings will be held at Parliament in
Harare. If attending, please use the
entrance on Kwame Nkrumah Ave between 2nd and 3rd Streets.
This
bulletin is based on the latest information from Parliament. But, as there are sometimes last-minute
changes to the schedule, persons wishing to attend a meeting should avoid
disappointment by checking with the committee clerk [see below] that the meeting
is still on and open to the public.
Parliament’s telephone numbers are Harare 700181 and 252936. If attending, note that IDs must be
produced.
Monday
21st May at 10 am
Portfolio Committee: Mines
and Energy
Oral
evidence from Mbada Diamonds and ZMDC on social
responsibility activities to relocated families in Arda Transau among other related
issues.
Senate
Chamber
Chairperson: Hon
Chindori-Chininga Clerk: Mr
Manhivi
Portfolio Committee: Higher
Education, Science and Technology
Oral
evidence from ZINASU on the state of tertiary
institutions in Zimbabwe
Committee
Room No. 3
Chairperson:
Hon S. Ncube Clerk:
Mrs Mataruka
Monday
21st May at 2 pm
Portfolio Committee: Public
Service, Labour and Social Welfare
Oral
evidence from the National Employment Council for the Communication and Allied
Industries on the operation of the National Employment Council and challenges
that are faced by the employees in the sector
Committee
Room No. 1
Chairperson: Hon
Zinyemba Clerk: Ms
Mushunje
Thematic
Committee: Gender and
Development
Oral
evidence from the Minister of Women's Affairs, Gender and Community Development
on the National Gender Policy and the progress made towards its
implementation
Committee
Room No. 3
Chairperson: --- Clerk:
Ms Masara
Thematic
Committee: HIV/AIDS
Oral
evidence from the Secretary for Health and Child Welfare on the procurement of
Anti Retroviral Drugs
Government
Caucus
Chairperson: Hon D.
Khumalo Clerk: Mrs
Khumalo
Tuesday
22nd May at 10 am
Portfolio Committee: Health
and Child Welfare
Oral
evidence from City of Harare on waste management
Committee
Room No. 1
Chairperson: Hon
Parirenyatwa Clerk: Mrs
Khumalo
Portfolio Committee: Foreign
Affairs, Regional Integration and International
Trade
Oral
evidence from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the First Quarter Budget
Performance Report
Committee
Room No. 3
Chairperson: Hon
Mukanduri Clerk: Mr
Chiremba
Portfolio Committee: State
Enterprises and Parastatals
Oral
evidence from Allied Timbers Zimbabwe on their operations and
challenges
Committee
Room No. 2
Chairperson: Hon
Mavima Clerk: Ms
Chikuvire
Portfolio Committee: Industry
and Commerce
Oral
evidence from New Zimbabwe Steel Limited workers'
representatives on the operations of the plant
Committee
Room No. 311
Chairperson: Hon
Mutomba Clerk: Ms
Masara
Portfolio Committee: Agriculture,
Water, Lands and Resettlement
Oral
evidence from ARDA on its
operations
Committee
Room No. 4
Chairperson:
Hon Jiri
Clerk: Mrs Mataruka
Wednesday
23rd May at 9 am
No
open meetings
Thursday
24th May at 10 am
Portfolio Committee: Media, Information and Communication Technology
Oral
evidence from the Minister of Media, Information and Publicity and the
Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe on progress made in the opening up of
airwaves
Committee Room No. 413
Chairperson: Hon S. Chikwinya
Clerk: Mr Mutyambizi
Portfolio Committee: Small
and Medium Enterprises
Oral
evidence from the Governor of the Reserve Bank on the regulatory framework that
governs the financial services sector and its impact on small and medium
enterprises
Committee
Room No. 1
Chairperson: Hon R.
Moyo Clerk: Ms
Mushunje
Portfolio Committee: Women,
Youth, Gender and Community Development
Oral
evidence from the Ministry of Women Affairs, Youth Gender and Community
Development on the First Quarter Budget Performance Report
Committee
Room No. 3
Chairperson: Hon
Matienga Clerk: Mr
Kunzwa
Public Hearings in Mash Central and Mash West
Effects of load-shedding on wheat farmers
Thematic Committee:
Peace and Security
The thematic committee will be holding public hearings in Mashonaland
Central and Mashonaland West on the
effects of load shedding on wheat farmers
Tuesday
22nd May, Wednesday 23rd May and Thursday 24th May
Venues and times to be listed in a separate bulletin as soon as
details are available
Chairperson: Hon Mumvuri
Clerk: Miss Zenda
Committee Reports
[available from veritas@mango.zw]
Vocational Training Centres operated by Ministry of Youth Development, Indigenisation and
Empowerment
Portfolio Committee on Women’s Affairs, Youth, Gender and Community
Development
Presented to the House of Assembly:
15th May
Service Delivery by the Local Authorities of Gutu and
Chiredzi
Portfolio Committee on Local Government, Rural and Urban
Development
Presented to the House of Assembly:
16th May
Zimbabwe Revenue Authority’s Operations at Border Posts
Portfolio
Committee on Budget, Finance And Investment
Presented
to the House of Assembly: 17th
May
Veritas
makes every effort to ensure reliable information, but cannot take legal
responsibility for information supplied