http://www1.voanews.com
Peta Thornycroft |
Harare 09 August 2010
International diamond regulators have arrived
in Harare ahead of the first
legal sale of controversial diamonds from
eastern Zimbabwe.
A review mission from international regulator the
Kimberley Process are
scheduled to travel Tuesday to southeastern Zimbabwe
Tuesday, where they
will inspect the controversial diamond fields in the
Marange area.
Three companies are mining diamonds in a small section of
Marange. They
include two Zimbabwean companies backed by South African and
Mauritian
financiers, and a Chinese company.
The Kimberley Process
banned the legal sale of diamonds from Zimbabwe
because of claims of gross
human rights abuses in the diamond fields,
problems with smuggling and a
lack of security for the rough stones. The
Kimberley Process was formed six
years ago to end trade in conflict
diamonds. Since then, some aspects of
the international regulators' demands
have been cleaned up.
Now the
Kimberley Process says that if the situation actually has improved
and after
the stones are properly audited, all rough stones mined from May
28 through
August 1 can be legally sold on Wednesday.
There has been much debate
within the Kimberley Process about human rights
abuses allegedly committed
in the diamond fields. Several international
human rights groups say the
diamond fields have been militarized, and that
President Robert Mugabe's
security forces ultimately control the Marange
area.
Other groups,
such as Global Witness, say there still are other outstanding
issues. One
of them involves diamond rights investigator Farai Maguwu, who
was held by
police in poor conditions for more than a month in June. He is
now out on
bail in eastern Zimbabwe. But the attorney general's office has
accused
Maguwu of publishing false statements about Marange diamond
operations which
are detrimental to Zimbabwe. Maguwu's reports claimed
serious allegations
of human rights abuses and led to the ban on sales of
stones from
Marange.
Tendai Biti, Movement for Democratic Change finance minister in
the
inclusive government, recently called for the stones to be sold
legally. He
says the government has received no funds from Marange stones
allegedly
smuggled out of Zimbabwe and sold in Mozambique.
Abby
Chikane, a South African appointed by the Kimberley Process as Zimbabwe
monitor, says Zimbabwe's controversial diamonds should now be allowed to be
certified and sold.
Chiam Evan Zohar a respected Israeli diamond
analyst, while acknowledging
alleged human rights abuses at the Marange
diamond fields, has called for
the legal sale of the controversial stones.
Zohar says they represent 25
percent of the world's diamonds. The diamond
analyst is currently in
Zimbabwe representing the 'World Diamond
Council.
Part of the area now being mined in Marange belongs to a
British-registered
company, African Consolidated Resources, according to a
Harare high court
order in September last year. Company officials say they
want Zimbabwe to
benefit from the sale of the diamonds, but they may seek
payments
proportionate to the sale of stones from its small diamond fields
in
Marange.
The Marange diamond fields are in an extremely poor part
of Zimbabwe, which
has long had hunger problems. The U.N. Children's Fund,
or UNICEF, recently
did an assessment of the nutritional status of
Zimbabwe's children under
five. A medical researcher with UNICEF told VOA
that
the Marange area has some of the country's
worst malnutrition problems.
UNICEF insiders suggest the hunger problem
is being made worse by
disruptions and violence linked to the diamond
mines. The Zimbabwe National
Army sent in helicopter gun ships to fire over
informal miners in October
2008. Human rights groups say about 200 people
may have been killed in
Marange during those raids. Many more were arrested
and beaten up,
allegedly by members of the national police and
army.
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Alex Bell
09 August
2010
A parliamentary Mines and Energy team has slammed the Mines Ministry
for
barring them from visiting the Chiadzwa diamond fields, where reports of
human rights abuses still surface.
The ministry has stopped the
Parliamentary Portfolio Committee from touring
the diamond fields twice in
the last few months, despite insisting that
conditions at the fields have
improved. In a statement issued after the
first visit was stopped in March,
the committee said it was in the "interest
of the nation" for it to tour
Chiadzwa and report its findings back to
Parliament.
"It is the
committee's stand that the relevant authorities should uphold the
principle
of separation of powers and cooperate with Parliament in
facilitating the
granting of the clearance and allowing the committee to
exercise its
oversight responsibilities, so that it can compile and table
its findings in
Parliament without further delay, in the interest of the
nation," said the
committee.
Chiredzi West MP Moses Mare said the move to bar them from
touring Chiadzwa
was "baffling" and in violation of their constitutional
mandate of
overseeing events in the sector. Mare was quoted as saying that
suspicion of
illicit dealings in diamond sector would continue, as long as
they remained
barred from touring the Chiadzwa site.
"The portfolio
committee has become irrelevant. Why do we need the
justification of
outsiders, when there are local bodies that have been set
up to do just
that?" Mare asked.
Mare and the other members of the portfolio committee
were also left out of
a tour of the fields over the weekend, which saw the
return of the
international monitor, Abbey Chikane. Chikane was appointed by
the Kimberley
Process, the international trade watchdog, to monitor
Zimbabwe's efforts to
fall in line with trade standards.
But Chikane
has been implicated in corruption at the site after diamond
researcher Farai
Maguwu, who was jailed for more than five weeks, accused
Chikane of
'shopping' him to the police. Diamond rights groups have called
for Chikane
to be dropped as the monitor to Zimbabwe, saying his position is
'compromised'. In the meantime, news of his weekend visit prompted a
reported clean-up operation at the Chiadzwa mining site last week. Villagers
there spoke of police and military officials driving out any illegal panners
from the site, all to prepare for Chikane's visit.
http://www.zimeye.org/?p=20592
By Gerald
Chateta
Published: August 9, 2010
HARARE – President
Robert Mugabe on Monday at the National Heroes Acre in
Harare said no one
was going to be arrested and punished for committing
politically motivated
crimes in the past years under the process of national
healing and
reconciliation process.
Mugabe told thousands of people who thronged the
national shrine to
commemorate the national heroes day among them Prime
minister Morgan
Tsvangirai, his two deputies, Thokozani Khupe and Athur
Mutambara and
uniformed soldiers that any attempt by government to seek
punishment was
going poison the spirit of national healing.
“We have
embarked in earnest on the process of national healing,
reconciliation and
integration. For the sake of our children and posterity,
I want to urge all
of you to note that the process of reconciliation is
national.
“It
does not seek to ferret out supposed criminals for punishment but rather
calls on all of us to avoid the deadly snare of political conflict. Guided
by the spirit of tolerance, we should continue to work together in promoting
peace and stability regardless of political or religious affiliation,” he
said.
Mugabe’s statement is a direct conflict with the wishes of the
people mostly
MDC-T supporters who were brutalized by militant sections of
his party in
June 2008 during the run up to the controversial Presidential
run-off
elections who demand that the perpetrators to be
arrested.
These people are putting pressure on Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai to
push the government to investigate such cases and bring
justice to shore.
More than 200 MDC supporters were killed by the
military and Mugabe’s
militant supporters during the bloody period preceding
the presidential June
27 2008 run-off election.
Mugabe’s statements
are also reflected in the continued refusal by police to
prosecute
perpetrators of political violence.
President Mugabe repeated his last
week’s speech at the burial of his sister
Sabina at the same place when he
accused the European Union of refusing to
lift sanctions they in 2002
imposed on his senior party members.
“America and Britain are wrong, and
EU should think again. Recently we have
sought to re-engage the European
Union on the issue of the immediate removal
of evil sanctions that are
hurting our people. But no sooner had we started
the re-engagement than we
realized that the EU is far from being sincere as
the bloc keeps on shifting
goal posts.
“The EU and America are keen to have our people continue
suffering under the
evil sanctions. Let all Zimbabweans unite on this matter
and with one voice
continue to demand their removal” Mugabe said.
The
EU said Mugabe should implement the GPA if they were to lift sanctions.
http://news.radiovop.com/
09/08/2010 15:05:00
Harare, August 09,
2010 - The Movement for Democratic Change and human
rights activists on
Monday expressed outrage at President Robert Mugabe's
call for amnesty to
perpetrators of politically motivated crimes.
President Mugabe told
thousands of people who thronged the national shrine
to commemorate the
National Heroes Day on Monday in Harare that the national
healing programme
was not going to criminalise political violence
perpetrators.
"We
have embarked in earnest on the process of national healing,
reconciliation
and integration. For the sake of our children and posterity,
I want to urge
all of you to note that the process of reconciliation is
national.
"It does not seek to ferret out supposed criminals for
punishment but rather
calls on all of us to avoid the deadly snare of
political conflict. Guided
by the spirit of tolerance, we should continue to
work together in promoting
peace and stability regardless of political or
religious affiliation," he
said
MDC-T deputy spokesperson Thabita
Khumalo said her party was not in
agreement with President Mugabe's
statements, which she said were giving
Zanu (PF) party green light to
continue brutalising MDC supporters.
"As MDC we are saying and have
always been saying there is no reconciliation
without justice. Mugabe's
statement gives his militia green light to
continue violating human rights.
We have wounds which back date from as
far as the Gukurahundi era, which
have not been healed, and how are the
affected going to forget these
atrocities if justice is not brought to
them," she said.
A human
rights activist and Zimrights director, Okay Machisa, said
politicians had
no right of dictating how the national healing process
should be
conducted because they were the ones responsible for inciting
violence.
"I think President Mugabe was speaking on his own
behalf not the nation
which is, bearing the brand of political violence,
which was perpetrated on
them by Zanu (PF) activists over the years. In fact
it's the victims who
should dictate the way national healing should
go.
"As Zimrights we are saying everyone who committed human rights
offences
should test the medicine. They should be brought to book if the
nation is to
learn and reconcile," he said.
Mugabe's statement is a
direct conflict with the wishes of the people mostly
MDC-T supporters who
were brutalised by militant sections of his party in
June2008 during the
run up to the controversial Presidential run-off
elections. They want the
perpetrators to be arrested.
These people are putting pressure on Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai to
push the government to investigate such cases
and bring justice.
More than 200 MDC-T supporters were killed by the
military and Mugabe's
militant supporters during the bloody period preceding
the bloody
presidential June 27, 2008 run off election, and up to this day
no
perpetrators of this violence has been brought to book despite being
known
who they are.
http://www1.voanews.com
Peta Thornycroft | Harare 09 August
2010
In his annual Heroes Day speech, Zimbabwe President Robert
Mugabe says U.S.
and E.U. sanctions on Zimbabwe "evil."
In a holiday
speech commemorating Zimbabwe's fallen heroes, President Robert
Mugabe says
his attempts to re-engage in negotiations with the United States
and
European Union were rebuffed and blamed the financial and travel
restrictions they imposed for Zimbabwe's financial meltdown.
"Think
again Europe. Think again America. You are wrong," he said. "But no
sooner
had we started the re-engagement, than we realized the European Union
is far
from being sincere. The European Union and America are keen to have
the
people suffering from evil sanctions. On what basis are the sanctions
being
continued?"
Mr. Mugabe claims the European Union and the United States
keep "shifting
goal posts" in their dealings. He spoke at Heroes Acre, a
national shrine
for loyalist politicians and fallen guerrillas from the
liberation war that
ended white rule in Zimbabwe in 1980.
Since a
power-sharing deal formed a coalition government last year with
Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, the former opposition leader, Zimbabwe has
campaigned for the lifting of travel, banking and business bans and other
sanctions targeting only Mr. Mugabe and about 200 of his party leaders and
associates.
Mr. Mugabe blames Western sanctions for the nation's
economic hardships. But
critics say the often violent seizures of thousands
of white-owned
commercial farms Mr. Mugabe ordered since 2000 disrupted the
agriculture-based economy.
On Sunday, in an emotional and angry
address at the state funeral of his
sister Sabina, 83, Mr. Mugabe attacked
the West once again.
Sabina Mugabe, who retired from Parliament in 2008,
was buried at Heroes
Acre.
But there is growing debate about whether
she should have been awarded the
honor. While she was declared a national
heroine by the ruling party, others
accused her of benefiting from
Zimbabwe's controversial land reform program
and encouraging the violent
invasion of white-owned farms.
Aaron Muzungu of a new, small political
party said many others who had died,
but had fought more recently, for
democracy in Zimbabwe, should also be
named heroes.
"Those people who
founded the MDC can also be awarded the hero status on
condition that they
are fighting for the freedom of Zimbabwe," said Muzungu.
"If we look at
Sabina Mugabe, Sabina Mugabe was given hero status only
because she is
sister to the president of this country. Sabina Mugabe is not
in the history
of the liberation struggle."
In a sign that tensions remain high between
the Mugabe-led ZANU-PF and Prime
Minister Tsvangirai's Movement for
Democratic Change, Mr. Mugabe's security
chiefs failed to stand up and
salute Prime Minister Tsvangirai when he
arrived and left the
ceremony.
The prime minister has said that ZANU-PF has not fulfilled all
conditions in
the 22-month-old global political agreement that created the
inclusive
government.
Mr. Mugabe disagreed.
"Since the
formation of the inclusive government in February last year, our
commitment
and determination to forge ahead in implementing the Global
Political
Agreement has been beyond reproach," he said.
Mr. Mugabe has conceded on
the establishment of an independent electoral
commission, a human-rights
watchdog and the partial opening up of the media.
But critics say he
retains sweeping presidential powers and security laws he
has used to stifle
opponents, and he commands military and police forces
hostile to the
Movemnet for Democratic Change.
http://www.washingtonpost.com
The Associated Press
Monday,
August 9, 2010; 7:20 AM
HARARE, Zimbabwe -- Zimbabwean President Robert
Mugabe says his attempts to
engage the West have been rebuffed - making no
reference to his recent
outburst against Europe and the United
States.
Mugabe referred to his strained foreign relationships in a speech
Monday, a
holiday commemorating Zimbabwe's fallen heroes.
Mugabe says
he sought to engage the European Union and the United States to
get them to
remove sanctions against his regime, but found they kept
"shifting goal
posts."
On Aug. 1, during a state funeral for his sister, Mugabe told
Western
nations to "go to hell" after alleging that they interfered in
Zimbabwean
affairs.
Diplomats from the United States, Germany and the
European Union walked out
of the funeral.
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
By Irene Madongo
9 August,
2010
The MDC wants the currents system used to decide who is considered a
national hero to be scrapped and replaced with a fairer method, as the
country marks National Heroes Day.
The conferring of hero status is
one of the outstanding issues of the Global
Political Agreement (GPA). At
present ZANU PF has been having the final and
only say on who gets buried at
National Heroes Acre.
MDC-T spokesman Nelson Chamisa conceded that
despite being in existence as a
political party for over ten years, and now
sharing power with ZANU PF, the
MDC still does not have any of its members
lying at National Heroes Acre, in
Harare.
"We do recognise Hero's
Acre as being a place that has predominantly been
dominated by ZANU PF
cadres, but we need to make sure that we develop and
move forward with the
times. We try to be all-inclusive, we also maintain
the relevance of the
memorials and heroes commemoration," he said.
On Monday Robert Mugabe
addressed a crowd at National Heroes Acre in Harare.
He said that those
behind the 2008 election violence and killings would not
be prosecuted and
once again he used the occasion to rage against the
targeted sanctions put
in place on him and his cronies, by the West.
MDC Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai and his deputy Thokhozani Khupe
attended the event at Heroes
Acre, despite snubbing the recent burial of
Robert Mugabe's sister, Sabina
Mugabe, who ZANU PF unilaterally proclaimed a
hero.
For its part, the
MDC has a list of people it would like to be awarded
heroes' status.
"Certainly I must say we have our own heroes. These are
people like Isaac
Matongo, Learnmore Jongwe, who have contributed to the
democratisation
process, people like Susan Tsvangirai. People who have
played a significant
role, who we feel are actually supposed to be part of a
leadership that we
would acknowledge and indeed recognise as heroes,"
Chamisa said.
The
MDC said heroes status should not just be awarded to politicians but
should
include those who have contributed significantly to the country,
including
legendary musicians and others. This could see people who have
died fighting
for democracy being recognized as heroes, including hundreds
of people who
were killed in the 2008 general election. In one day alone
during that time
seven people were reported to be beaten to death by ZANU-PF
supporters and
men in army uniforms.
Names such as Edward Chikombo could also be put
forward. He was taken from
his home in front of his wife, allegedly for
releasing visuals to the
international media of the savage beating of Morgan
Tsvangirai. As the men
arrived at his house he reportedly turned to his wife
and said; 'I am dead.'
http://news.yahoo.com
AFP
2 hrs 47 mins
ago
HARARE (AFP) - Ministers from Africa's diamond producers arrived in
Zimbabwe
on Monday to assess operations at the controversial Marange fields
ahead of
a limited gems sale, officials said.
"The delegation will be
going to Marange to assess compliance issues,"
Lovemore Kurotwi, managing
director of Canadile, one of two firms operating
at Marange, told
AFP.
The fact-finding mission comes ahead of a gems auction on Wednesday
after
the Kimberley Process global watchdog last month allowed Zimbabwe two
sales
after finding the country had complied with minimum standards for
human
rights.
"We have complied with the Kimberley Process (KP)
regulations, but others
were saying we are yet to meet the set guidelines.
This visit is meant to
see how far we have complied with the KP
regulations," said Kurotwi.
The Kimberley Process had blocked sales from
the alluvial fields in eastern
Zimbabwe after documenting forced labour and
other abuses by the military.
The Association of the African Diamond
Producing Countries delegation
comprises mining ministers from South Africa,
the Democratic Republic of
Congo, Angola and Namibia, according to a
government schedule.
Also in the delegation are deputy ministers from
Sierra Leone and
Mauritania.
Kimberley scheme monitor Abbey Chikane
is expected to certify and examine
all diamonds produced by the two
companies operating in Marange from May 28
to August 1, according to
government officials.
Meanwhile, the government has refused to indicate
how many buyers will
attend Wednesday's supervised sale or how much is
expected to be raised.
"We are not going to name, or state how many
buyers we have for Wednesday or
how many parcels we have for security
reasons," Thankful Musukutwa, mines
secretary told AFP.
"Other buyers
do not want to be known who they are and we will respect
that."
The
ministerial delegation will also visit the border post with Mozambique
to
assess the issue of smuggling.
http://www.swradioafrica.com/
by Irene
Madongo
09 August 2010
The constitutional outreach exercise has been
forced to suspend its
activities in Masvingo, because of a terror campaign
unleashed in the
province by war vets supporting ZANU PF with the police's
knowledge,
according to officials in the area.
On Saturday the MDC
members of the outreach team refused to continue with
their work because of
increased threats of violent attacks and after an MDC
committee member's
house was torched by suspected ZANU PF operatives.
Angry outreach workers
say police are also deliberately allowing the war
vets to intimidate locals,
making it impossible for them to complete the
constitutional outreach
exercise in a safe and democratic manner.
According to the MDC, war vet
leader Jabulani Sibanda has been in Masvingo
for up to three weeks, holding
several meetings, especially in Bikita West
and South, and is understood to
be planning to move to Daka. His speeches
have been very threatening, and he
has said he would burn down the houses of
anyone believed to be opposed to
Robert Mugabe and he would 'kill these
dogs.'
And he has made good on
one of his threats. On Friday night David Holman, a
Bikita MDC-T district
committee member, lost property after his house was
torched by suspected
ZANU PF loyalists. The MDC says it is also hopeless
reporting these matters
to the police.
Tongai Matutu, the MDC-T's provincial chairperson for
Masvingo said: "Like
we have said before, the attitude of the police has
never changed,
especially towards ZANU PF war veterans and militias, they
are very
sympathetic towards them. The meeting that he had on Friday at
Mashoko in
Bikita South, the officer in charge of Mashoko police station was
actually
present when Jabulani incited violence against the
MDC."
Matutu added that: "He threatened violence against any villagers
who dared
to oppose the Kariba Draft. So the officer in charge was there and
also the
police are very clear of Jabulani's activities. He was camped at a
training
centre which also houses the officer commanding the district for
the
particular area. It is the same story, the same tune, the same style of
management where all police are actually not doing anything when it comes to
war vets among other ZANU PF sympathizers."
On Monday Matutu said the
position of MDC members of the outreach exercise
was still that they would
not participate, because of Sibanda's activities,
meaning the COPAC
programme remains suspended.
http://news.radiovop.com
09/08/2010 10:51:00
Harare,
August 09 , 2010 - President Robert Mugabe on Monday complained
sabout
divisions in his Zanu (PF) party and castigated the European Union
(EU) and
its allies for failing to remove targetted sanctions on the
country.
Speaking at the national Heroes Acre where former liberation
fighters are
buried to commemorate the Heroes Day, Mugabe in his address
said his party
was now split by divisions.
He appealed to the several
factions to unite.
"Zanla and Zipra, the guerilla fighters now torn
apart.This group belongs to
so and so. That group on its own and yet that
other group. But you are bound
together by the struggle you fought, you are
bound together by the
commitment that you have to the nation," Mugabe said
in his address.
"Look at your history and then examine where you are now.
I appeal to you
talk together sit down and discuss your differences.We want
to deal with you
together. We don't want to deal with groups."
Zanu
(PF), which was formed in 1987 after the unity accord by the Zimbabwe
African National Unity (Zanu) and the Joshua Nkomo led Zimbabwe People's
Revolutionary Army (Zipra) is now marred by divisions which are led by the
Defence minister, Emmerson Mnangagwa and retired army general Solomon
Mujuru.
Mugabe told the gathering, which included Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai,
senior government officials and service chiefs that the
European Union was
not sincere in resolving relations with
Harare.
"Recently we have sought to re-engage the European Union on the
issue of the
evil sanctions that are hurting our people.But no sooner had we
started the
re-engagement then we realised that the European Union is far
from being
sincere, as the block keeps on shifting goal posts," Mugabe
said.
"The European Union and America are keen to have our people to
continue
suffering under evil sanctions.I appeal to all political parties to
unite
and speak with one voice. we must speak with one loud voice that
sanctions
must go."
Mugabe also said that the process of national
healing and reconciliation is
not to punish the perpepetrators of
violence.
The Movement for Democratic Change led by Tsvangirai has said
perpetrators
of violence must be brought to book.
"For the sake of
our children and posterity, I want to urge all of you to
note that the
process of reconcilliation is national.It does not seek to
ferret out
supposed criminals for punishment but rather calls on all of us
to avoid the
deadly snare of political conflict," Mugabe said.
http://www.bloomberg.com
By Brian
Latham - Aug 9, 2010 8:53 PM GMT+1000
Deliveries of tobacco by
growers in Zimbabwe, the world's sixth-biggest
exporter of the flue-cured
variety of the leaf, are at their highest level
in eight years, the
industry's marketing board said.
Growers have delivered 109.6 million
kilograms (241.6 million pounds) this
year, compared with a crop estimate of
70 million kilograms, Tobacco
Industry and Marketing Board Chief Executive
Officer Andrew Matibiri said in
a telephone interview from the capital,
Harare, today.
"Deliveries are still continuing and we now believe we may
sell 114 million
kilograms this year," Matibiri said.
Tobacco output
has plummeted in Zimbabwe since 2000, when supporters of
President Robert
Mugabe's Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front
party seized mostly
white-owned commercial tobacco farms to redistribute
them to black farmers
deprived of land under colonial rule.
In that year, the country exported
236 million kilograms of tobacco and was
the world's second-largest exporter
after Brazil. It now ranks behind
Brazil, India, the U.S., Argentina and
Tanzania, according to the website of
Universal Corp., the world's biggest
tobacco-leaf merchant.
Tobacco prices have averaged $2.88 per kilogram
this year, compared with
$2.98 at the same time last year, the marketing
board's Matibiri said.
Farmers earned $316.1 million since tobacco sales
began in February,
compared with $173.6 million in the same period a year
earlier.
http://www.zimonline.co.za
by Own Corespondent Monday 09 August
2010
HARARE - Zimbabwe mobile phone operator Net One, which has been
linked to
acquisition by MTN South Africa and other foreign suitors, has
said it
expects to wind up negotiations before the end of the
year.
Wholly state-owned Net One is the third largest mobile phone
operator in
Zimbabwe behind privately owned operators, Econet Wireless
Zimbabwe and
Telecel Zimbabwe.
"We are still in talks, whatever stake
that is sold must be sold at the
right price," Net One boss Reward Kangai
said.
"It's not just MTN, but there are others whom have shown interest.
The
negotiations will be completed soon, which will be before the end of
they
this year. The problem is that some these firms want to get our assets
at a
discount."
Kangai would not be drawn into saying exactly how
much stake the government
looked to offload to a foreign partner or what was
holding back negotiations
with especially MTN which began several months ago
and appear to be dragging
on behind closed doors
endlessly.
Previously, the state had indicated that it wants to offload
as much as 60
percent but this was later revised to 45 percent with some in
Zimbabwe's
ruling coalition reportedly against surrendering of a firm they
consider
strategic to a foreign partner.
About 40 percent of
Zimbabwe's population of 12 million people has access to
mobile
phones.
The government has said it wants to sell off, restructure or
commercialise
its companies to save money and improve efficiency at the poor
performing
firms.
Local economic experts and the International
Monetary Fund say the
government owned firms have been a huge millstone on
the fiscus, gobbling up
billions of dollars in subsidies every year despite
many of the firms being
monopolies in their areas of trade.
Critics
say most of Zimbabwe's parastatals have been ruined by poorly
qualified
managers - many aligned to President Robert Mugabe's Zanu (PF)
party - who
were put in charge of the government firms because of their
political
connections not technical know-how. - ZimOnline.
http://news.radiovop.com
09/08/2010 14:17:00
Harare, August 09,
2010 - Incarcerated Zanu (PF) member and businessman
Temba Mliswa has been
given terrorist status and is detained at the
notorious Matapi police
station where the police cell is surrounded by
heavily armed snipers from
the police support unit.
Mliswa's treatment at the hands of the police
has caused concern among
family members who told Radio VOP on Monday that
they were worried that
there was a deliberate plan to harm the outspoken
businessman.
"Temba (Mliswa) is being treated like a terrorist or a
deadly armed robber.
Right now, the prison cell is surrounded by police from
support unit and
they are holding big, menacing guns. It's like they are
waiting for war.
They are claiming that their bosses have told them that
Temba is a
dangerous criminal who needs high levels of security
attention.
"We only hope they will not harm him and later claim that he
wanted to run
away. Why would they treat him as if he is a serial killer or
Osama bin
Laden. It is stressing to see the snipers from support unit all
over the
place.
"It seems they are getting instructions from the top
offices among the
police but we will still wonder whether this is still a
case of Temba facing
these trumped up charges or some people just want to
show their muscle over
personal issues. We have reached a stage where we are
saying Temba's life is
now in the hands of God," said a family
member.
Mliswa, who was granted bail last Friday by Harare magistrate Don
Ndirowei
on charges of stealing generators and defrauding the Reserve Bank
of
Zimbabwe of US$3,5 million, was re-arrested for the third time after
getting
bail at the courts.
Mliswa was dramatically re-arrested at
Chikurubi Maximum remand prison on
Friday in an operation that left even
prison guards shell shocked.
At least 15 heavily armed police officers
in four top of the range
vehicles - a BMW, a Range Rover, a Mazda B2500 and
an Isuzu raided Chikurubi
and snatched Mliswa soon after he was
released.
The vehicles sped in the direction of the city centre and
family members
pursuing the police convoy were threatened by plain clothes
police officers
from one of the vehicles.
A prison guard who spoke to
Radio VOP said everyone was shocked with the way
Mliswa was
arrested.
"He was virtually abducted not arrested. The police came in
some strange
vehicles we had never seen before and bundled him into a tinted
Isuzu truck.
There were some whites and some of Indian origin among the
arresting
officers and up to now we don't know who these people
are.
"Some officers from the homicide section had introduced themselves
but we
don't understand where the other guys came from. It was like a movie.
Temba
(Mliswa) has been in custody for over a month and has been nice to
everyone
and at no point did engage in violence or threaten anyone to
deserve such
treatment.
"We really don't understand the presence of
all those officers with
automatic machine guns yet the person is mainly
facing what looks like
merely civil cases," said the prison guard who
witnessed Mliswa's dramatic
arrest.
Mliswa was taken to Harare
Central Police station where he was interrogated
for a violence incident
that occurred in 2003 during the height of the
violent and bloody farm
invasions. He is expected in court on Wednesday.
He is now being charged
with attempted murder for the 2003 incident. Mliswa's
arrest is in defiance
with a court order given by the magistrate who said
police must bring
together all the crimes he is alleged to have committed
and not to bring his
cases in installments.
The magistrate said by bringing cases one by one
and making sure they
arrested him each time he was given bail, police were
infringing on his
rights.
Mliswa's treatment is similar to that of
Jestina Mukoko, Roy Bennett and
many other human rights defenders and
opposition officials who have fallen
prey to the regime.
Mliswa was
arrested for publicly accusing police commissioner general
Augustine Chihuri
of being corrupt and since then police have been digging
up his cases
allegedly committed nearly a decade ago.
http://news.radiovop.com
09/08/2010 09:27:00
Bulawayo, August
9 2010, Seven MDC -Mutambara councilors in Bulilima in
Matabeleland South
last week defected from the party and joined the
mainstream MDC led by Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.
In a letter addressed to the party's
Secretary General, Welshman Ncube and
copied to the party's President Arthur
Mutambara, the seven councilors
accused the party's top leadership of
dictatorship and arrogance.
"We, the undersigned councilors inform you of
our decision to resign from
and dissociate ourselves with your party and
join the MDC -T party.
"Our decision has been necessitated by a number of
blunders and poor
strategies by the leadership of this party. We strongly
feel the aims and
founding values of the party have been compromised," reads
part of the
letter which is in Radio VOP's possession.
Some of the
councilors who have abandoned Mutambara's party are Cornelious
Nyathi (ward
one), Norman Ncube (ward 7), Irene Ncube (ward three), Court
Ndlovu (ward
five) and Mtshumayeli Ndlovu of ward 14.
Two months ago, 16 councillors
from Lupane East sympathetic to the sacked
former MP for the area Njabuliso
Mguni also resigned from the party accusing
the party's leadership of
dictatorship and wining and with Zanu (PF). Nkayi
councilors were also
believed to be sympathetic to Abedinco Bhebhe, the
former MP of the area,
who was also sacked by the party along side Bulilima
East MP Norman Mpofu,
who deserted from the party in May this year.
There were fears that other
MDC-M councilors from Gwanda, Hwange and
Tsholotsho were also planning to
leave the party.
When reached for comment the party's Bulawayo
spokesperson Edwin Ndlovu
accused the Tsvangirai led MDC of bribing the
councilors so that they can
leave the party.
"As a party we are aware
of the approach used by MDC-T on our councilors.
They were bribed and
promised a lot of money to join MDC-T," he alleged.
However the MDC's
national deputy spokesperson Tabitha Khumalo dismissed
Ndlovu's
allegations.
"I would like to stress that MDC -T is a people driven
party. We do not
believe in the politics of splashing out money to lure
supporters," said
Khumalo.
http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk
Written by Joel Mhizha
Monday, 09 August
2010 12:30
No prosecution of politically motivated crimes
HARARE -
President Robert Mugabe (Pictured) on Monday at the National Heroes
Acre in
Harare said no one was going to be arrested and punished for
committing
politically motivated crimes in the past years under the process
of national
healing and reconciliation process.
Mugabe told thousands of people who
thronged the national shrine to
commemorate the national heroes day among
them Prime minister Morgan
Tsvngirai,and his two deputies,Thokozani Khupe
and Athur Mutambara and
uniformed soldiers that any attempt by government
to seek punishment was
going poison the spirit of national healing.
"We
have embarked in earnest on the process of national
healing,reconciliation
and integration. For the sake of our children and
posterity, I want to urge
all of you to note that the process of
reconciliation is national. "It does
not seek to ferret out supposed
criminals for punishment but rather calls on
all of us to avoid the deadly
snare of political conflict. Guided by the
spirit of tolerance, we should
continue to work together in promoting peace
and stability regardless of
political or religious affiliation,"he
said
Mugabe's statement is a direct conflict with the wishes of the people
mostly
MDC-T supporters who were brutalize by militant sections of his
party in
June2008 during the run up to the controversial Presidential
run-off
elections,who want the perpetrators to be arrested. These people
are
putting pressure on Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai to push the
government to investigate such cases and bring justice.
More than 200
MDC supporters were killed by the military and Mugabe's
militant supporters
during the bloody period preceding the bloody
presidential June 27, 2008 run
off election. Mugabe's statements is also
reflected in the continued refusal
by police to prosecute perpetrators of
political violence. President Mugabe
repeated his last week's speech at the
burial of his sister Sabina at the
same place when he accused the European
Union of refusing to lift sanctions
they in 2002 imposed on his senior
party members.
"America and Britain
are wrong,and EU should think again.Recently we have
sought to re-engage the
European Union on the issue of the immediate removal
of evil sanctions that
are hurting our people. But no sooner had we started
the re-engagement than
we realized that the EU is far from being sincere as
the bloc keeps on
shifting goal posts. "The EU and America are keen to have
our people
continue suffering under the evil sanctions. Let all Zimbabweans
unite on
this matter and with one voice continue to demand their
removal"Mugabe said.
The EU said Mugabe should implement the GPA if they
were to lift sanctions.
http://news.radiovop.com
09/08/2010
09:25:00
Kadoma, August 09, 2010 - Human rights analysts and
journalists have
questioned the delay and secrecy of activities of the
Zimbabwe Human Rights
Commission and has demanded that it be granted
prosecution powers if it is
going to effectively deal with human rights
issues in the country.
"The commission must have teeth to investigate and
prosecute cases and must
not be subjected any undue political pressure. This
is a new phenomenon in
Zimbabwe and therefore it must herald a new culture
of human rights," said
political analyst and media expert Takura Zhangazha
at the meeting organised
by the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association
(Zimrights).
The Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission was created following a
Constitutional
provision agreed to by the Zanu (PF) and the two MDC
formations.
The commission is expected to investigate human rights
abuses/atrocities,
protect and promote human rights of
citizens.
Among the key issues that came out at the meeting was the need
to ensure
that the commission is adequately resourced, is free from
political
interference and is staffed by people of integrity who do not
pander to
political whims.
A Zimrights official told journalists that
they were worried that government
had too much control on the human rights
commission.
"Given the fact the commissioners were appointed by the
politicians there
is a great likelihood of them of them, representing those
who appointed
them not the people of Zimbabwe. We are likely to see more
human rights
abuses occurring than before," said the official who did not
want to be
named.
"Also we are told that the commission 'may' be
given power by the
parliament which also makes it less powerful. This is
worrying us as an
organisation and we want the authorities to urgently
address this loophole
before it is too late.
Professor Reg Austin a
Lawyer, former Professor and Dean of the Faculty of
Law at the University of
Zimbabwe and former head of Commonwealth
Secretariat's Constitutional and
Legal Affairs Division is the commission
chair while his deputy is Dr Ellen
Sithole.
Zhangazha said it was disturbing to note that the functions of
the Human
Rights Commission had not yet been tabled to the public whom it
should
serve.
"The problem with the Human Rights Commission since
its inception is that
it is a politically negotiated creature whose
commissioners were appointed
in a partisan manner even though parliament was
involved and therefore it
was compromised. It does no exhibit political
independence from political
parties involved and I see it functioning in a
compromised fashion and
sometimes not dealing with human rights issues," he
said.
It was recommended at the meeting that issues like the Gukurahundi
atrocities, Murambatsvina and other human rights abuses committed during the
colonial period should be dealt with by the Organ on National Healing and
Reconciliation while the Human Rights commission should dwell on the way
forward.
Leo Chamahwinya, a programme officer for Zimrights, said the
Zimbabwe Human
Rights Commission Act should clearly explain the roles that
the commission
shall play and avoid vague language that will give
politicians a leeway to
manipulate commissioners.
"The law must
clearly spell out the independence of the commission. It
should also
determine where its work shall start," said Chamahwinya.
Participants at
the meeting also argued that the commission must among other
things
safeguard the rights of gays and lesbians who have been a subject of
constant harassment from state security agents.
"They are human
beings like everyone. Their rights must also be safeguarded.
They must not
be subjected to President Robert Mugabe's hate campaigns
against them. They
must be allowed to go about their business with
hindrance," said another
journalist at the meeting.
A report produced by Zmrights on Community
Views on the Zimbabwe Human
Rights Commission concluded that the people want
a truly independent
commission that protects their rights.
"The
people of Zimbabwe's concerns lie in whether or not the nation can
establish
a commission that is independent of any political influence. This
owes much
to the fact that the Zanu (PF) government has manipulated and
violated
people's rights to serve their selfish interests. The commission
should be
victim driven and centred," read the report.
SPEECH DELIVERED BY GUEST OF HONOUR THE HONOURABLE VICE
PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF ZIMBABWE - VICE PRESIDENT JOICE TR MUJURU AT THE
ORGAN FOR NATIONAL HEALING, RECONCILIATION AND INTEGRATION/NEXUS GLOBAL SERVE
PARTNERSHIP IN ‘SHOES FOR NATIONAL HEALING’ PILOT PROGRAMME LAUNCH IN BINDURA,
MASHONALAND CENTRAL - COMMUNITY CENTRE - 4 AUGUST 2010
Ø
Our
Samaritans;
Ø
Honourable Ministers,
Holland, Sibanda and Our Deputy Minister Lazarus Dokora;
Ø
Our Provincial Education
Director;
Ø
Our host Governor and
Resident Minister, Advocate M Dinha;
Ø
Our Government officials here
present;
Ø
Ladies, gentlemen and
children;
It is a great honour and
privilege for me to officiate at this important occasion, aptly named a
Shoes-for-National Healing event; with particular focus on
Mashonaland Central Province.
The journey that we had
travelled together as Zimbabweans has been long and difficult, but we have
nevertheless accomplished milestones.
We have journeyed from the
pre-colonial era as a people, during which period we have not always agreed.
Consequently, pre-colonial conflicts occurred and wars were fought to settle
differences.
Economic, social, political
and even spiritual divisions were introduced on the basis of the divide-and-rule
principle, thereby inspiring social and economic disparities that led to an
armed struggle in the 1960s – 70s.
Conflict was thus centred
on economic displacement and deprivation, political denial and segregation:
divide-and-rule of indigenous populations, as well as the use of brutal military
and police force to subjugate native populations.
Thirty years after
independence, it remains clear that we remain in disagreement as Zimbabweans.
Today we find ourselves being signatories to a Global Political Agreement (GPA)
that calls upon us to heal, reconcile and integrate as
compatriots.
To this end, and consistent
with Article VII of the GPA, the three Principals to the Global Political
Agreement formed the Organ for National Healing, Reconciliation and integration;
so that it would guide the country in building an appropriate mechanism to
properly advise on measures that are necessary and practicable to achieve
national healing, cohesion and unity in respect of victims of pre and
post-independence conflict.
The role of polarized media
has also not been very helpful, not to mention other technology-based
communications including broadband. Messages transmitted through all these
media, which are largely favoured by youth, have not been positive. Hence our
whole language and communication culture has been polluted, leading to
polarization.
The psychological trauma,
physical injury, economic and property losses as well as desire to revenge, have
thus impacted negatively on our society; to the extent that we have countries
that want to place under regional supervision as a
country.
Indeed, the Organ has met
and consulted with the three party signatories to the Global Political
Agreement: and has also now met the National Executives of the MDCs and the
politburo of ZANU-PF, to chart a way forward together.
We now must proceed to
“cool the ground”, ahead of effective engagement with the grassroots people to
address those matters, particularly the critical political matters- that led to
polarization and cause confusion among us.
Ladies and gentlemen, the
phenomenon of impunity has been tolerated across the political divide, despite
the existence of known cases of race, gender, ethnic, age and political
intolerance and ill-treatment that occurred in the past and in contemporary
times. In addition, Zimbabwe has lost some of its critical skilled manpower to
the diaspora largely as a result of economic and political frustrations. Hence,
today we witness proliferation of dysfunctional families whose anger and trauma
impact negatively on social harmony and development, these being victims of
frustrated hope.
The event in which we are
participants today is part of the initial steps towards finding one another.
Very often within the family, parents or elders disagree but are brought back
together by the fact that they have children. They realize that it is their duty
to secure and safeguard the interests of their off springs for now and the
future. They therefore forgive, reconcile and resolve to protect the interests
of their children.
As Zimbabweans,
particularly we the older generations, ought to realize that we have come to
such a crossroad in our political development. Our disagreements must not be
allowed to destroy the aspirations and future of tomorrow’s generations. Unlike
in marriage where divorce is an option - a painful one for that matter - we
cannot divorce.
In handing over the shoes
to the children today, we are inspired by the enduring symbolism of a nation
that has journeyed together through history, and must now replenish. The hazards
we have met along the way, some self-induced and others externally-generated,
must not disable us as a people.
Therefore, we have gathered
around the cause of our children today; not so much to give them gifts as
exemplified by the shoes we are to distribute today, but more importantly for us
to realize and accept that human life-personified at best by our children-is too
sacrosanct a gift to be abused.
To the children gathered
here today, we are building a peaceful future for you. The shoes we are giving
you as our children tell the story of your parents’ journey; a journey that you
will yourselves complete in the name of Zimbabwe.
Indeed, your life is a
journey and your parents bid you to travel in peace, enduring hard work, being
honest and dependable, towards the prosperity you so richly
deserve.
God bless our
Children.
God bless
Zimbabwe.
I thank you.
SPEECH TO BE DELIVERED BY HONOURABLE SIMBARASHE S
MUMBENGEGWI, MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AT THE PEACE AND SECURITY ‘SHOES FOR
NATIONAL HEALING’ AT GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL, HARARE, 3 AUGUST
2010
Honourable Vice President Cde. John Nkomo; Honourable
Ministers; Distinguished Guests; Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a privilege and honour for me to be invited to
this very important event which has been jointly organized by the Organ for
National Healing, Reconciliation and Integration, the Nexus Church Ministries
Network and other stakeholders to reach out to disadvantaged children in our
society.
As you are aware, the African Union (AU) has declared
2010 the Year of Peace and Security in Africa to give fresh impetus to the AU’s
efforts to end conflict and establish durable peace on the African continent. In
recognition of the important role that all citizens play in the attainment and
consolidation of peace, the Au has lined up a series of activities, whose main
objective is to mobilize all stakeholders to play their part in our drive for
peace in Africa.
The activities, whose central message is, “Make Peace
Happen,” include the lighting of the Flame of peace. As you are aware, in
Zimbabwe, the Flame of Peace was lighted by the President, His Excellency Cde. R
G Mugabe on 25 may 2010 during celebrations to mark the 47th
anniversary of the founding of the OAU, now the African Union, and made a
passionate appeal that this symbolic event should be followed by initiatives to
support peace in Africa. It is in this context that we welcome this
initiative.
Other activities that have been planned to ensure
implementation of the Year of Peace include:
·
The Make Peace Happen
Industry Charter. The charter acknowledges the important contribution that
industry can make towards the promotion of peace and aims to enlist their
participation and support during this Year of Peace, especially since there can
be no sustainable economic development without peace nor can there be peace
without development. We therefore urge our own business community to sign onto
the charter and contribute towards the attainment of peace, not just in Zimbabwe
but across the African continent as a whole.
·
The AU has also approached
airlines and mobile phone companies and appealed to them to contribute towards
the implementation of the Year of Peace. The telecommunications companies have
been requested to carry peace messages, including through SMS, prior to and on
Peace Day on 21 September 2010, while airlines can contribute by providing
transport for members of peace mission and publicizing the Year of Peace through
their in-flight magazines.
·
The AU has also launched the
“Peace Caravan’” which is undertaking an expedition across about 30 African
countries including Zimbabwe to create awareness and spread the message of peace
among African citizens.
All these activities I have mentioned will culminate in
the International Day of Peace on 21 September 2010. Peace Day was established
through a UN Resolution to demonstrate that peace is possible in Africa. On that
day, 21 September 2010, there should be no violence, no conflict, no fighting –
all Africans should experience peace simultaneously. To achieve this objective,
the activities that have been planned to mark Peace Day will therefore focus on
two critical elements:
·
Cessation of hostilities in
all conflict areas which are still experiencing varying levels of violence;
and
·
Distribution of humanitarian
supplies, materials and services to communities in conflict areas as well as in
non-conflict areas in need of this type of support and
assistance.
The following activities are also being planned for
Peace Day:
·
One minute of silence for
peace across Africa at a pre-agreed time;
·
Relevant developmental work
and community support in all Au Member States to be carried out by members of
the armed and security forces;
·
One Day One Goal football
games, which will be played across Africa to bring communities together around
one common goal – peace. The games will be organized jointly by the AU and the
Confederation of African Football (CAF);
·
Make Peace Happen Lesson
Plan. The lesson, which has been developed by the AU Commission for use by
schools and colleges, emphasizes the benefits of peace and aims at
institutionalizing a culture of peace in our communities in
Africa.
Needless to say, the success of the Year of Peace and
Peace Day will depend on the active participation of all citizens in African
countries. It is therefore heartening that the Organ on National Healing,
reconciliation and Integration and the Nexus Church Ministries Network have
entered into this partnership in support of the international ‘Shoes for
National Healing Programme.’ This will no doubt contribute towards the
realization of the objectives of the Year of Peace and Security in Africa and
Peace Day. The involvement of the Organ for National Healing, Reconciliation and
Integration as well as the participation of all of us in the Inclusive
Government is ample testimony of Zimbabwe’s commitment to this noble cause. I
would also like to urge local authorities, schools, churches, civil society and
communities at large to create conditions for all Zimbabweans to participate in
these activities.
Zimbabwe, as a member of the AU Peace and Security
Council for the next three years will continue to work with all our partners at
the regional, continental and international levels to ensure that the targets we
have set for ourselves towards enhancing of peace and security are
realized.
It is my sincere hope that after the successful launch
of this programme in the targeted four provinces, the Organ for National
Healing, Reconciliation and Integration and the Nexus Church Ministries Network
will have reason to celebrate as having originated practical action that
furthers the wider goals of peace and security that Africa has committed herself
to.
Finally, I would like to pay tribute to the Honourable
Governors and resident Ministers who have chosen to show the way by accepting
the Organ’s request to host the events.
Thank you.