Business Day
A UNITED
Nations (UN)-run humanitarian centre to cater for the thousands of illegal
immigrants from Zimbabwe deported from SA each week was officially opened on
Friday.
Senior officials from Harare and Pretoria attended the ceremony at
the Beit Bridge centre on the border between Zimbabwe and SA.
“When the
deportees get to the centre they will get everything they need, be it medication
or help to return to their homes,” said Zimbabwean Home Affairs Minister Kembo
Mohadi.
“They (deportees) are screened by immigration and the police
stationed at the centre to look for criminals or fugitives who might have run
away from justice.”
South African authorities deported more than 51000
Zimbabweans who had illegally crossed the border in the first six months of the
year alone.
Officials say about 2-million Zimbabweans have crossed over to SA
amid a seven-year econ-omic crisis characterised by high unemployment and
inflation running at about 1000%.
The centre, which will be managed by the
UN’s International Organisation for Migration (IOM), is also designed to help
Zimbabweans seeking employment in SA obtain legal documents, say
officials.
Labour Minister Membathisi Mdladlana said in a statement that the
centre would stop illegal immigrants being exploited by “unscrupulous employers”
and was designed to “source labour legally”.
IOM spokeswoman Nicola Simmonds
said her organisation was helping more than 300 deportees a day.
“At the
centre we will be giving medical assessment, transportation home for deportees,
meals, food to take home, whatever they want,” she said.
Illegal migrants
from Zim-babwe often work in teams to try to cross into SA, joining hands to
wade across the crocodile- infested Limpopo River on Zimbabwe’s southern
border.
UN aid agencies estimate that more than 4-million people out of a
population of 13-million are in need of food aid in Zimbabwe, once southern
Africa’s bread-basket and agricultural powerhouse.
President Thabo Mbeki has
come under fire from critics for his so-called policy of “quiet diplomacy”
towards Zimbab-wean President Robert Mugabe. Sapa-AFP
Kuwait Times
HARARE:
Oil-starved Zimbabwe has received 25.7 million litres of fuel from Kuwait under
a deal financed by French bank BNP Paribas, a state weekly reported Sunday.
"Zimbabwe has taken delivery of 25.7 million litres of fuel worth $15 million
under the $50 million facility which the country recently signed with French
bank BNP Paribas," the Sunday Mail reported. National Oil Company of Zimbabwe
(Noczim) chief Zvinechimwe Churu told the weekly that 8.5 million litres of
petrol and 17.5 million litres of diesel were being brought in from the
Mozambican port city of Beira.
"The product (diesel) is being pumped from
Beira and we have already received the full consignment of petrol," Churu said.
"Since the supplies are now in the country, the arrangement is for the
public and the private sector to access the product. However, first priority
will be given to certain sectors of the economy, especially agriculture, as the
country gears up for the forthcoming season."
In May, Zimbabwe signed a $50
million loan deal with French bank BNP Paribas to purchase fuel and ease
shortages that are threatening to bring the economy to its knees.
Under the
deal signed in the capital, Zimbabwe's Bindura Nickel Corporation (BNC) put up a
percentage of its export earnings as a guarantee for the loan.
Zimbabwe
requires $40 million a month to meet its fuel demands. The supply, the first
under the deal, was sourced from Independent Petroleum Group of Kuwait, which
bagged the tender, Churu said.
Zimbabwe has been struggling with fuel
shortages for nearly seven years due to a foreign currency crunch. The shortages
have spawned a burgeoning black market where private importers sell the
commodity for as much as double the government-fixed price of 320 Zimbabwe
dollars ($1.28) per litre of diesel and 335 dollars for petrol.
The
government blames the shortages on sanctions imposed by the United States and
European nations on President Robert Mugabe and his inner circle following
presidential elections in 2002 which the opposition said were rigged. - AFP
Mogae is in Zimbabwe to strengthen relations despite his criticism towards Mugabe |
Festus Mogae, the president of Botswana, offered Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe's
embattled president, a rare diplomatic solidarity today by avoiding political
differences and pledging to build strong economic relations.
Mogae, who
has at times broken ranks with African leaders by publicly criticising Mugabe
over Zimbabwe's political and economic crisis, is in Harare to open an
agricultural show and discuss the joint construction of a border
bridge.
At a dinner party hosted by Mugabe after Mogae's arrival last
night, the Botswana leader said the two neighbours must explore ways of boosting
trade and joint investments and promoting general economic empowerment in
southern Africa.
Mogae, who has previously suggested that Mugabe must do
more to resolve the Zimbabwe crisis, said "despite the opinion of a few
sceptics", co-operation between their two countries was
growing.
Mugabe praised Botswana
Economic relations could be
enhanced by the implementation of agreements on investment promotion and
protection and the avoidance of double taxation, he said in a statement aired by
state television today. "There is undoubtedly more that can be done, not only
for the mutual benefit of our own peoples, but the peoples of this region as
well," Mogae added.
Mugabe, who values African solidarity in the face of
Western isolation over his policies, said Harare would work hard to strengthen
relations built on old political ties. Mugabe praised Botswana for helping
during Zimbabwe's national liberation war in the 1970s, adding that the
potential for trade remained great even though volumes have fallen in the last
two years.
Zimbabwe's economy is in its eighth year of recession, and is
currently struggling with the world's highest inflation rate of nearly 1 000%. -
Reuters
IOL
August 28 2006 at
01:16AM
Harare - Five people were killed in Zimbabwe on Sunday when a
passenger train collided head-on with a goods train near the resort town of
Victoria Falls, state radio reported.
Bodies were charred beyond
recognition in the accident that occurred early on Sunday, 30km outside Victoria
Falls, the radio said.
At least five people died at the scene of the
accident and property belonging to passengers was lost in the inferno, which
claimed at least eight coaches and two train engines, the radio said.
The
National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) passenger train was on its way to Victoria
Falls from the city of Bulawayo. The driver of the passenger train ignored
warnings by the oncoming freight train, the radio said citing unnamed
sources.
The rail link between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls, which marks
the border between Zimbabwe and its northern neighbour Zambia, has proven
treacherous in recent years.
In 2003, a head-on collision between a
passenger train and a freight train killed 50 people. In May, a passenger train
derailed on the same stretch of railway, injuring 34 people.
Rescue teams
reportedly took a long time to reach the scene of Sunday's accident due to the
poor state of the roads, the report added.
The injured were taken to
Victoria Falls hospital. - Sapa-dpa
globalpolicy.org
By
Stephen Leahy
Inter Press Service
August 25, 2006
Gender inequality
has become the main driver of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, especially in Africa, where
70 percent of those infected are women.
A new powerful international agency
for women is needed to turn this situation around and address the growing
problem of violence against girls and women, experts and advocates say. "Rape is
extremely common, especially by older men who are infected with HIV who believe
that having sex with a virgin will cure them," said Betty Makoni, executive
director of the Girl Child Network, a Zimbabwean non-governmental organisation.
In rural Zimbabwe, a teacher rapes 30 or 40 of his girl students and nothing
is done about it, said Makoni at the International AIDS Conference in Toronto,
which ended last week. "Where is the world outrage?" she asked.
The Girl
Child Network has helped 30,000 girls in 500 centres across Zimbabwe, where an
estimated 25 percent of the population aged 15 to 49 is believed to be
HIV-positive. At the conference, Makoni was awarded the inaugural Red Ribbon
Award by the United Nations Development Programme and UNAIDS. "There is no right
to life here for women and girls. They are treated as semi-slaves," she said.
Stephen Lewis, the U.N. special envoy for AIDS in Africa, agreed. "We will
never subdue the gruesome force of AIDS until the rights of women become
paramount in the struggle," he said at the conference. "It's a ghastly, deadly
business, this oppression of women in so many countries on the planet."
The
United Nations estimates that up to three million women lose their lives to
gender-based violence and four million are sold into prostitution each year,
while two million suffer genital mutilation. One woman in five is a victim of
rape or attempted rape. Women also make up the vast majority of illiterates in
the world due to lack of educational opportunities.
To aggressively tackle
these issues, Lewis has appealed to the United Nations to create an
international agency to advocate for the rights of women, similar to UNICEF. The
proposed agency would have a billion-dollar budget, employ thousands of staff
and have widespread operational capacity on the ground where it is needed. Lewis
and his supporters say a U.N. agency for women would be able to support and fund
these programmes, extract donations and make sure women are involved in
development, trade, culture, peace and security.
Women in poverty face
different problems than men, but development policies and programmes are not
designed to meet the needs of girls and women, says Joanna Kerr, executive
director of the Association for Women's Rights in Development, a Toronto-based
international organisation of women's groups involved in gender equality and
human rights.
Women do not earn cash salaries and are not permitted to own
land or open bank accounts in many parts of the world, leaving them powerless
and poor, Kerr told IPS. "In many parts of the world, women can't even negotiate
the use of a condom. HIV/AIDS cannot be effectively addressed without getting at
the root causes of poverty and inequality," she said.
HIV/AIDS prevention
programmes will be ineffective without programmes to reduce violence against
women, especially young women. These issues are not just African but apply to
Southeast Asia and Latin America, she says. "There is no powerful voice for
women at the U.N.," Kerr stated.
For example, young girls are raped every
day in refugee camps, and a new U.N. agency for women with strong operational
capacity could take action on the ground and ensure their safety, she said. An
agency with enough staff could also make sure the needs of girls and women are
addressed, such as providing sanitary napkins and ensuring proper toilet
facilities are built. "Such obvious things are often not provided," the activist
noted.
The U.N. currently has a small agency for women called UNIFEM -- the
United Nations Fund for Women -- but with a relatively scant 40-million-dollar
budget, limited mandate and few in-country staff, it is far from what is needed.
So where is the money going to come from for a U.N. women's agency? Global
foreign aid is more than 100 billion dollars and is expected to reach an
estimated 130 billion by 2010, Lewis told the High-Level Panel on U.N. Reform
this summer. "Is more than half the world's population not entitled to one
percent of the total?" he asked.
The panel is charged with making
recommendations regarding the reform of the U.N. and could recommend that the
U.N. General Assembly create this new agency. The need for such an agency is
"obvious" and there is a mounting clamour for action, says Kerr. "I see big,
empty buses on the streets of Toronto and I wonder about the equitable
distribution of resources," said Makoni last week. "In Zimbabwe, girls who used
to walk 20 kilometres to school don't attend because they don't have sanitary
napkins. They try to use sticks instead."
But it is far from certain the
U.N. will create a strong and effective agency for women, Lewis readily admits.
He urged those attending the Toronto conference in his final speech as U.N.
envoy to "enter the fray against gender inequality." "There is no more
honourable and productive calling. There is nothing of greater import in this
world. All roads lead from women to social change, and that includes subduing
the pandemic," he concluded.
VOA
By
Blessing Zulu and Patience Rusere
Washington
28 August
2006
Senior officials of the two rival factions of the Movement
for Democratic Change, riven by policy disputes and personal differences since
late 2005, met in South Africa on the weekend to talk about mending their
differences, party officials confirmed Monday.
The MDC faction led by party
founding president Morgan Tsvangirai was headed by its secretary general, Tendai
Biti, and chief policy advisor Eddie Cross. A delegation from the faction lined
up behind Arthur Mutambara was headed by secretary general Welshman Ncube and
elections director Paul Themba-Nyathi.
Officials of both factions declined to
comment, but sources privy to the talks said the political operatives agreed to
end hostilities and adopt a "non-agression" pact pending a meeting of faction
executive bodies aimed at forging a united political front.
Reporter Blessing
Zulu of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe interviewed researcher Chris Maroleng of the
Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria on the chances of unity.
Dewa
Mavhinga, a British-based Zimbabwean human rights lawyer pursuing studies at
Essex University, England, offered his views on the MDC
discussions.
Elsewhere, representatives of opposition parties and civil
society groups were to meet this week in Harare to move forward on forming an
alliance for democratic reforms.
The Thursday meeting, which follows a “Save
Zimbabwe” convention held last month, is being sponsored by the Christian
Alliance, a church humanitarian group that sprang up in 2005 following the
government's controversial clean up campaign, Operation Murambatsvina, and more
recently has pursued a broader political agenda.
Christian Alliance
organizer Jonathan Gokovah confirmed that opposition politicians have agreed on
the principle of a unified approach. Both MDC factions confirmed they’ would
attend the meeting. Spokesman Nelson Chamisa of the Tsavangirai faction said his
grouping is agreeable to a broad alliance. Abednico Bhebhe, deputy information
secretary in the Mutambara faction, said his faction favors such an alliance.
Reporter Patience Rusere of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe asked coordinator
Ernest Mudzengi of the National Constitutional Assembly, which has been closely
involved in efforts to build the alliance, for his thoughts on whether a unified
front is possible.
VOA
By
Ndimyake Mwakalyelye
Washington
28 August 2006
In Harare on a
state visit, President Festus Mogae of Botswana pledged expanded economic
cooperation between his country and Zimbabwe, dismissing "skeptics" who have
discerned strains in relations between the Southern African
neighbors.
Speaking at a state dinner before the opening of the Zimbabwe
agricultural show, the Botswanan leader said Zimbabwe was an important trading
partner, according to the state-controlled Herald newspaper's account of the
event. Mr. Mogae said there has been a positive trend in cross-border
investment, often involving joint ventures.
Mr. Mogae said that he hoped the
two countries would soon implement agreements on investment promotion and
protection, and on relieving double taxation, so as to "further enhance the
prospect of win-win economic outcomes between us."
President Mogae's cordial
tone was of interest to observers who have seen him as a rare African leader who
is prepared to criticize President Robert Mugabe's policies to the extent that
they spill over into Botswana on a steady stream of refugees.
Some concluded
Mr. Mogae has moderated his tone, but parliamentary liaison officer Herman
Honekom of the Africa Institute in Cape Town, South Africa, told reporter
Ndimyake Mwakalye of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe he sees no change.
MUSINA - The Zimbabwe-bound bus has not quite completely stopped at South Africa's Musina town but this is little deterrence to the young man, who calmly hops on board with gravity-defying agility that could only have been acquired through many years of experience. On board the young man - who later only identifies himself as Mgomeni - wastes little time, waving a bundle of Zimbabwe's freshly minted new currency in one hand and an equally tempting bundle of South Africa's rand currency, he begins chanting. "The rate is so good. For 100 rands you get Z$8 million. Change your foreign currency here good people, because we offer a better rate than osphatheleni back home," shouts Mgomeni, in a beseeching tone as he worms his way down the bus aisle. Osphatheleni are illegal foreign currency dealers operating from Bulawayo's World Bank, an area in the city centre so named because it is the hub of the illegal but thriving foreign currency parallel market. Some osphatheleni are notorious for ripping off unsuspecting clients, a factor Mgomeni tries to exploit to the full here. "They (osphateleni) are cheats they lure you with higher returns for foreign currency but will pay you in fake Zimbabwe dollars," he says in a bid to convince passengers why it makes sense to do business with him. Soon, five more illegal foreign currency traders are on the bus, each after having paid 50-rand bribe to the driver to be allowed to "trade" on the bus. In the same energetic way as Mgomeni before them, the new traders are also soliciting for business from the travellers. "Lisiphatheleni makhiwa," a middle-aged Joseph Nkomo pleads with travellers as he brandishes crisp Zimbabwe dollar bills. Lisiphatheleni makhiwa is Zimbabwe's vernacular Ndebele language and loosely translated means: what goodies have you brought us people? But in this case the only goodies Nkomo inquires about are rands, United States dollars, Botswana pulas or whatever foreign currency is available. If only Dr Gideon Gono, the governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ), was here! The gentlemanly but tough-talking central bank chief would have seen for himself what a tough battle he has on his hands trying to smash Zimbabwe's foreign currency black-market as well as stopping local money being siphoned to neighbouring countries where Mgomeni and others use it to buy forex. In sweeping currency reforms announced last month that also included a 60 percent devaluation of the local dollar, the RBZ governor slashed three zeroes from every banknote and gave Zimbabweans up to August 21 to hand in old bearer cheques in return for new ones with less zeroes. Bearer cheques are promissory notes first introduced by the RBZ three years ago at the height of cash shortages in Zimbabwe. They are not official legal tender but are used in the same way as money. Gono defended the drastic currency changes as necessary to stabilise the near worthless dollar and to lessen the burden for Zimbabweans who were experiencing enormous inconvenience because of bearer cheques with too many zeroes. The RBZ boss also said his reforms, which included strict limits on the amount of money individuals and firms could keep in cash, were meant to stop the leakage of Zimbabwe's currency outside the country's borders where it was being used to finance deals on the foreign currency parallel market. Analysts and business leaders say Gono's currency reforms could in the interim help curb money supply growth but will eventually be a flop unless wider economic and political reforms are implemented to stimulate economic production. In a chillingly frank assessment of the currency reforms, Finance Minister Herbert Murerwa, who apparently does not see eye-to-eye with Gono, last Monday told a parliamentary committee that the three zeroes lopped off every banknote were likely to be back by December unless measures were taken to improve economic output. Gono shot back at Murerwa, telling journalists in Harare four days later that the RBZ was determined to see its currency reforms succeeding and that the zeroes removed from the currency would not be allowed back. But take a ride on any one of the luxury coaches or the dirty ramshackle buses that ply the Harare/Johannesburg or Bulawayo/Johannesburg route and you cannot avoid the feeling that Gono's reforms are surely headed for failure. Well, the RBZ governor, who on Monday was not available for comment, will probably be able to keep more zeroes off Zimbabwe's currency as he has promised. But without doubt he has already failed to stop money being siphoned to neighbouring countries to finance the foreign currency black-market. Musina is awash with the new Zimbabwe currency! And reports from the Botswana city of Francistown closer to the border with Zimbabwe, or Livingstone town on the country's border with Zambia all say the new Zimbabwe bearer cheques are more than readily available there. Ask Mgomeni, first, where he got the new currency which is actually in short supply in Zimbabwe? Secondly, how did he manage to smuggle the money across the border, where teams from the police, secret service agents and the RBZ are deployed to prevent cash leaving the country? With a complacent smile that seems to suggest that its all kindergarten stuff we are asking him about, Mgomeni replies: "The ordinary forex dealer you see is not his or her own employer. "There is always a big and powerful hand behind. For example, our team works for a very senior government official. He was able to repatriate back to Zimbabwe the old money we had here in Musina. He then organised the new currency and cleared the way for us to shift it over the border in broad daylight ....it was actually so easy." Not that anyone familiar with Zimbabwe's economic and political tribulations would be surprised by Mgomeni's claims. It has always been suspected that top officials of President Robert Mugabe's government and ruling ZANU PF party use their clout to access foreign currency and other basic commodities in short supply which they later resell on the black-market at huge profit. It's just that one never stops hoping it was not all true. - ZimOnline |
HARARE - Zimbabwe will face a litmus test when they visit South Africa for three one-day internationals next month as the two sides prepare for the ICC Champions Trophy in October. After edging Bangladesh 3-2 in an ODI series early this month, Zimbabwe will be hard-pressed to prove they still merit a place in top-flight cricket against their illustrious neighbours. South Africa last week added a third ODI to the "friendly" series to make up for their pullout from a tri-series in Sri Lanka. The Proteas had initially agreed two ODIs with Zimbabwe before South Africa coach Mickey Arthur requested an extra match to keep his charges in shape for the ICC Champions Trophy. South Africa are among the six top sides which are automatically in the ICC Champions Trophy, set for India, while Zimbabwe will have to battle with Sri Lanka, West Indies and Bangladesh for the other two berths. Before leaving for South Africa on September 10, Zimbabwe will face strong opposition as well when they host Australia's Commonwealth Bank Centre of Excellence in three one-day matches. The Australian academy will be in South Africa before they cross over into Zimbabwe and then to Kenya. Zimbabwe coach Kevin Curran has welcomed both series, which he said would be a test of character for his rebuilding side after several experienced players quit national duty over the last two years. Curran indicated they were likely to retain the side that defeated Bangladesh at home this month - Zimbabwe's first series win in two years. In South Africa, Zimbabwe will first play a Twenty-20 match against Eagles on September 13 at Kimberly before taking on the Proteas in the first ODI two days later at Bloemfontein. The second ODI will be on September 17 at East London and the last one on September 20 at Potchefstroom. - ZimOnline |
HARARE – Ruling ZANU PF party militias on Sunday forced hundreds of informal traders in Mbare suburb to abandon their stalls to go to the Harare International Airport to welcome visiting Botswana President Festus Mogae. The rampaging party youths brought business at Mupedzanhamo informal market to a virtual standstill as they force-marched the traders into state-owned Zimbabwe Passenger Company (ZUPCO) buses which were ferrying people to the airport. Mogae arrived in the capital last Sunday to officially open the Harare Agricultural Show which began on Monday. Informal traders who spoke to ZimOnline yesterday said they had been forced to close shop at 1pm on Sunday and were ordered to go to the airport to welcome the Botswana president. “I wanted to go to Rufaro Stadium to watch a soccer match but was forced to go the airport,” said one trader who refused to be named for fear of reprisals. Mbare, like most urban areas in Harare, is a bastion of the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party. ZANU PF party youths have often been accused of bussing in supporters from their rural strongholds and forcibly rounding up residents to beef up numbers at the ruling party’s events in the capital. For example, thousands of Harare residents have also been forced to attend against their will the burial of national heroes at the local National Heroes Acre shrine in Harare in what clearly illustrates the loss of personal freedoms under Mugabe's rule. Local and international human rights groups accuse the Zimbabwean government of violating human rights, a charge the Harare authorities deny. - ZimOnline |
BULAWAYO – A conference of donors to raise money for the provision of water in Zimbabwe’s second biggest city of Bulawayo which was held last week flopped with the city only managing to raise a paltry Z$96 000. Water shortages are a perennial problem in Bulawayo which is nestled in the dry southern Matabeleland province. Residents here have often gone for weeks without water forcing many of them to rely on boreholes for their water supplies. Bulawayo city spokesman, Pathisa Nyathi said the city had hoped to raise Z$4.8 billion during the conference to fund short and medium term projects to alleviate the city’s water crisis. Yesterday, Nyathi, conceded to ZimOnline that the city had failed to meet its targets during the poorly attended conference. “The amount the council has received in pledges and cash so far is not much but we are very grateful for those that donated and pledged money towards our water projects. “But we will be in a good position to comment (on the total amounts raised) when everyone who was present at the conference has responded,” Nyathi said. Residents of Bulawayo, a bastion of the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party, have often accused President Robert Mugabe’s government of deliberately sidelining the region after failing to fund an ambitious project to draw water from the mighty Zambezi River in the north. Critics accuse Mugabe of reneging on promises to fund the Matabeleland-Zambezi water project, with his government only eager to raise the matter during election times to win votes from the mainly minority Ndebele ethnic group. The Harare authorities deny the charge. - ZimOnline |
HARARE - Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor Gideon Gono has warned Zimbabweans not to stock up cash in homes as the country's final transition to a new currency will be sharp and swift. Speaking at the weekend, Gono said the final leg of currency reforms he says are meant to shore up the near-worthless Zimbabwe dollar would be implemented within 24 hours. "Next time round, the implementation process will be short and, therefore swift. It will require less than 24 hours notice and will have much tighter cash limits for allowable deposits. So Zimbabweans take heed. Don't say you were not warned," said Gono. The RBZ chief earlier this month introduced a new family of bearer cheques with less zeroes as part of currency reforms that also included a devaluation of the local dollar by more than 60 percent. |
|
Zimbabweans were given 21 days to hand over the old notes and switch over to the new currency. The new measures created a siege for most Zimbabweans as the police and national service youths seized cash from individuals at roadblocks mounted around the country. The tough measures sparked chaotic scenes in most urban areas as Zimbabweans rushed to beat the deadline. Thousands of villagers in remote parts of the country were also left holding on to heaps of worthless money after failing to meet the deadline forcing the RBZ to last Friday extend the deadline for rural areas only up to 2 September. Gono urged people not to stock up the new bearer cheques but to make use of the banking system to avoid being caught unawares by the next currency switch. "Ladies and gentlemen don't store cash under your pillows and don't operate mini central banks because the day of reckoning is coming," he said. Gono has in the past accused Zimbabweans of operating "mini central banks" by stashing cash in their homes for speculative purposes on the thriving but illegal parallel market for foreign currency. - ZimOnline |
HARARE - Zimbabwe authorities at the weekend insisted that a US$50 million
fuel supply fund arranged with French bank, BNP Paribas, was still active, even
as a long-running fuel shortage that worsened in the last three weeks threatens
to bring the country to a complete halt. Under the fuel procurement deal, the French bank provides the state-owned
National Oil Company of Zimbabwe (NOCZIM) with cash to import fuel. In return
President Robert Mugabe's virtually broke government uses earnings from
Zimbabwe's lucrative nickel mining industry to repay BNP Paribas. Zimbabwe's giant nickel producer, Bindura Nickel Corporation, has pledged a
percentage of its export earnings to meet the loan repayments. Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor Gideon Gono, a key architect of the fuel
deal, at the weekend told ZimOnline that the deal was still in place, adding
that the country was set to receive 37 million litres of fuel supplied under the
arrangement. Gono, who refused to answer more questions pertaining to the fuel supply
deal, would not say when exactly the fuel shipment he said was on its way to
Zimbabwe would arrive in the country. "The fuel is coming but the authorities at NOCZIM can confirm that," was all
Gono would say. NOCZIM chief executive officer, Zvinechimwe Churu, also told state media at
the weekend that Zimbabwe had over the past week taken delivery of 25.7 million
litres of fuel worth US$15 million, which was supplied under the deal with BNP
Paribas. Previous fuel supply deals with oil suppliers from Libya and Kuwait collapsed
after Harare failed to pay. And there was little evidence at the weekend that Zimbabwe was getting any
substantial supplies of diesel or petrol, with long and winding queues of
motorists at the few garages - mostly operated by small companies who source
their own fuel - that were selling fuel in Harare and other cities. Fuel queues had disappeared in most cities and towns in Zimbabwe following
the deregulation of the energy sector last year. But the government has re-imposed controls on the fuel industry ordering
suppliers two weeks ago to lower pump prices of diesel and petrol to levels fuel
firms say are below cost and would condemn them to financial ruin. Zimbabwe has battled severe fuel shortages since 1999 after the International
Monetary Fund withdrew balance-of-payments support to Harare following sharp
disagreements with Mugabe over monetary policy and other governance issues. The fuel shortages have resulted in most private and public buses being
forced off the roads with many commuters being left with no option but to walk
or cycle to work. - ZimOnline
Mon 28 August 2006
The Australian
Gavin du Venage
August
29, 2006
JOHANNESBURG: Zimbabwe has bought another six fighter jets from
China to replace its grounded fleet of British-made aircraft.
Secretary for
Defence Trust Maposa said yesterday: "We will be receiving six aircraft from
China sometime this year."
Zimbabwe already has six Chinese-made jets which
were delivered last year. The aircraft are intended to fill the gap left by the
Zimbabwe Air Force's ageing British-made fighters, which have been grounded due
to lack of spare parts.
Britain, along with most Western countries, has
imposed a ban on selling weapons to Zimbabwe, accusing the southern African
country of human rights violations.
Zimbabwe has sought to get around the
embargo and rearm its military with Chinese and Korean-made weaponry.
JUSTICE FOR AGRICULTURE PR COMMUNIQUE - August 28, 2006
Email: jag@mango.zw: justiceforagriculture@zol.co.zw
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
FUND RAISER COMMUNIQUÉ
For funds in aid of the
Justice for Agriculture Trust.
The JAG Trust has re-launched the African
Art fund raising project, which commenced in January 2006.
This is the
third painting to be offered in a series; the last two paintings were a huge
success.
It is the Trust's intention to silent auction via the Internet
and the Trust's extensive e-mail network an anonymous donor commissioned
painting in each month of 2006.
The much needed funds raised by this
initiative will go towards the operational costs of the Justice for Agriculture
Trust, which carries out community charitable support work and various action
projects on behalf of farmers and farm workers, under extremely difficult
circumstances and against all odds.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
About the
Artist:
BARRY THOMAS
Barry was born in Harare 1974, and although a boarder at school there until he was seventeen, he was really brought up on the family farm in northern Zimbabwe, along with his two brothers. The great Zimbabwe outdoors, the bush and the wildlife were very prominent in their lives. After school Barry did an apprenticeship as a mechanic, then his pilots licence and eventually returned back to the farm to take over the management duties. There he remained for six years, with a brief interlude travelling abroad. Now in his thirties Barry has started this his latest career move: Wildlife Art. Although, originally, not out of choice, he’ll admit.
The painting will be offered on silent
auction up until 31 August 2006. Bids may be registered via email with JAG's
office: jag@mango.zw or justiceforagriculture@zol.co.zw. It is hoped that this and the
other silent auctions will provide the purchaser with a unique opportunity to
obtain a valuable painting by leading local and internationally recognised
artists whilst at the same time assisting an organisation and community
dedicated to Zimbabwe's future.
The bidding on this painting has now
reached a figure of SAR 3000, from a prospective buyer in South
Africa.
Please could JAG membership, recipients on the JAG
email network and all those sympathetic to Zimbabwe's plight, humanitarian or
environmental, forward this email worldwide via their mailing lists; it is
especially important to target collectors of African art.
See attached
image "Hot and Hungry". For a larger, more defined image and more about the
artist please write and request from jag@mango.zw or justiceforagriculture@zol.co.zw - message size 643KB.
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About the
painting:
TITLE: HOT AND HUNGRY
SIZE: 600mm x 900mm (24” x 36”)
MEDIUM: OIL ON CANVAS
PAINTED BY: BARRY THOMAS
DATE: MAY 2006
The lioness is perched on top of the southern escarpment over-looking the Zambezi valley floor. At the end of the dry season she has had to come up with her pride from the valley in search of prey, which by this time, has moved up the escarpment escaping the lack of grazing, intense heat and in search of water. Although cooler up here, the temperatures are still very high, she must find somewhere, with shade, to lie up during the heat of the day and hunt with her pride at night. From this vantage point she can detect movement from a long way off and save herself time, searching aimlessly. Just a flick of a tail could give her potential dinner away.
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