Zimbabwe warns of 'terror' plot after air force chief shot

http://news.yahoo.com

HARARE (AFP) - Zimbabwe's government claimed Tuesday to be the victim of a
terror campaign after an assassination bid against the air force chief, as
the diplomatic heat was turned up on President Robert Mugabe.

With the death toll from a cholera epidemic now nearing 1,000, UN chief Ban
Ki-moon delivered an apocalyptic assessment of the political and health
crises afflicting a nation which was once seen as a post-colonial role
model.

Former colonial power Britain said the 84-year-old Mugabe was in denial
about the state of the southern African nation he has led since independence
28 years ago.

Officials said the attack on powerful air force chief Perrance Shiri, who
was shot in the arm while driving towards his farm on Saturday night, was
part of a larger campaign of terror being waged against senior figures.

"The attack on Air Marshal Shiri appears to be a build-up of terror attacks
targeting high-profile persons, government officials, government
establishments and public transportation systems," the state-run Herald
newspaper quoted Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi as saying.

Shiri -- a cousin of Mugabe's -- was leader of the Fifth Brigade which
oversaw a brutal crackdown in southwestern Matabeleland in the early 1980s
when up 20,000 people were killed.

The shooting comes in the wake of a series of bomb explosions at police
stations in Harare and an attack on a bridge outside the capital, according
to the daily.

Zimbabwean authorities said Monday they had "compelling evidence" that
neighbouring Botswana was harbouring and giving material support to
opposition-aligned rebels seeking to topple Mugabe.

The main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has refuted the
claims, saying it is convinced the government is preparing a state of
emergency as an excuse to further disregard rule of law in the nation.

It also accused Mugabe's regime of "intensifying its terror campaign"
against the opposition saying three of its councillors in Bindura were
arrested ahead of a key ZANU-PF conference there later this week.

"The three were arrested on trumped up yet to be disclosed charges and are
detained at Bindura Central Police Station," the MDC said in a statement.

Top officials from the ruling party met Tuesday to discuss the agenda of the
conference, which state radio reported would include "restructuring of the
party, the cholera outbreak, state of the economy, the all-inclusive
government and the security threat to the country."

Diplomats said South Africa had blocked a bid by the United States on Monday
night to have the UN Security Council adopt a non-binding statement
condemning Mugabe for his failure to protect his people from the cholera
outbreak.

Jacob Zuma , the head of the ruling ANC, said Tuesday South Africa had a
"responsibility" to push Zimbabwe to resolve its crisis and complete the
long-delayed implementation of a power-sharing accord.

"We are concerned that they are taking longer to finalise the agreement
while the humanitarian situation is deteriorating," he said.

South Africa's former president Thabo Mbeki has been trying to mediate
between Mugabe and MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai since disputed elections in
March.

Although he did persuade the pair to sign a power-sharing agreement in
September, it is still to be implemented amid disagreements over who should
control key ministries.

In his briefing to the council, Ban said the UN was being effectively locked
out of the efforts to resolve the impasse as "neither the (Harare)
government nor the mediator welcomes a United Nations political role."

"The current cholera epidemic is only the most visible manifestation of a
profound multi-sectoral crisis, encompassing food, agriculture, education,
health, water, sanitation and HIV/AIDS," he added.

Friendly fire!

http://www.zimbabwetoday.co.uk/

The truth behind the Shiri shooting

Zimbabwe's Air Force commander Perence Shiri, the target of an attemped
assassination on Sunday morning, was shot at by his own side. My sources
reveal that Shiri was the victim of a plot hatched by the feared spy agency
the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO).

Four hitmen armed with machine guns waylaid Shiri as he was driving back
from his farm in Shamva, a mining town in Mashonaland Central. The plan was
to fire first at the car, forcing it into a ditch, and then to finish off
the Air Marshal at point blank range.

Three bullets hit Shiri's vehicle, one of them wounding him in the shoulder.
But it is understood that he pulled out a pistol and returned fire, forcing
the hitmen to flee. He later received treatment for the wound at the
hospital at Manyame Air Force Base.

My source in the CIO told me that Shiri, who is a member of the Joint
Operations Command, the military junta that virtually rules Zimbabwe today,
was targeted because of his growing stature within the ruling Zanu-PF party.

"He has begun to rival the Zimbabwe Army Commander, Constantine Chiwenga," I
was told. "Chiwenga is determined to succeed Mugabe, so it was decided that
Shiri should be eliminated."

There was also a suspicion within Zanu-PF that Shiri had been in secret
contact with the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), with a
view to achieving immunity from prosecution, in the event of the MDC taking
power in the country.

Immunity is something Shiri would surely need. His name is still cursed in
parts of Zimbabwe, because in the 1980s he personally masterminded the
infamous Gukurahundi operation, in which 20,000 Ndebeles in the Matebeleland
region were massacred.

Now of course the government will attempt to blame the assassination attempt
on some mythical opposition force allied to the MDC. Most Zimbabweans will
reject this explanation. We have long known that, if you join the turbulent
ranks of Zanu-PF, you will find you have more enemies inside the party than
out.

Posted on Tuesday, 16 December 2008 at 17:44 |

Mugabe eyes state of emergency as air force chief claims he was shot

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Lance Guma
16 December 2008

A day after ZANU PF repeated it's allegation that Botswana was training MDC
bandits, the state media came up with another dramatic story. This time a
failed 'assassination' attempt on Air Force Commander Air Marshal Perence
Shiri. According to reports Shiri, who was traveling alone to his farm in
Mashonaland West, was shot in the hand after 'he stopped his vehicle at the
sound of gunfire and got out, thinking he had a puncture.' The incident
allegedly happened on Saturday evening but after much hesitation was only
published Tuesday by the state media. Website New Zimbabwe.com who covered
the story on Monday report that state television was told to hold back on
covering the incident for as yet unexplained reasons.

The immediate reaction of most Zimbabweans was to dismiss the story as
another excuse to justify a state of emergency. This would allow Mugabe to
suspend the constitution and rule by decree. Analysts say given that the MDC
controls parliament, Mugabe's authority outside a power sharing deal is
likely to be compromised. Something he would find completely unacceptable.
On Tuesday Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi predictably latched onto the
reports claiming there appeared to be 'a build-up of terror attacks
targeting high-profile persons, government officials, government
establishments and public transport systems.'

Mohadi said Shiri's attack 'showed the assailants were well trained and
there was a clear attempt to destabilise the country through acts of
terrorism.' The claim of well trained assailants seems a little unlikely, as
Shiri was alone and defenceless on an empty road, and was only injured in
the hand. A well trained assailant would surely have finished the job.

This week MDC Secretary General Tendai Biti told Newsreel they had reports
that several of their abducted activists have been tortured into making
confessions about alleged 'military training' in Botswana. He said Mugabe's
regime is forcibly extracting false and incriminating information in order
to justify declaring a state of emergency. He said they were told the
'confessions' were also filmed.
Using the state owned Herald newspaper Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa
has claimed that ZANU PF has evidence the MDC was training bandits in
Botswana. A charge that has been repeated constantly in the past few months,
despite Botswana challenging Mugabe to produce the evidence.

A spate of suspicious bombings at various police stations this year has also
added to growing evidence that ZANU PF is plotting something. No one has
been killed or injured in any of the bomb blasts, which have always targeted
empty office blocks.
Similar tactics have been used by Mugabe's government against past political
opponents like the late Dr Joshua Nkomo and Ndabaningi Sithole. And recently
the state attempted to bring treason charges against Morgan Tsvangirai and
Tendai Biti.
Biti told journalists: 'This is a natural ZANU PF DNA. In 1982, ZANU PF
planted arms at the homes and farms of ZAPU members and they were arrested
on trumped up charges, including it's leader Joshua Nkomo, who had to skip
the country to Botswana dressed as a woman in order to avoid arrest. Again
in 1995, Zanu Ndonga leader Ndabaningi Sithole, was arrested on false
treason charges of trying to assassinate Robert Mugabe.'

Disgruntled Zimbabwe soldiers warn of more riots

http://www.monstersandcritics.com

Africa Features
By Sebastian Nyamhangambiri Dec 16, 2008, 13:50 GMT

Harare - In scenes that rattled the regime of President Robert Mugabe and
stoked speculation its days were numbered, dozens of soldiers ran amok in
the capital Harare on December 1 in protest over the country's economic
meltdown.

Some bystanders watched in amazement, some joined in as junior soldiers who,
frustrated at being unable to access their meagre salaries because of acute
cash shortages, ran through the streets, looting shops and attacking
black-market currency dealers.

Although the state moved quickly to put the genie back in the bottle,
arresting 16 soldiers who face court martial proceedings, the footsoldiers
of Mugabe's repressive regime warn they are likely to hit the streets again
before long.

'Just like everyone else, we have stomachs and families to feed. We are
suffering, just like most citizens in this country,' one junior officer Ola
(not his real name) tells Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

Sitting in a house in Mbare township south-west of Harare in worn boots and
faded fatigues, Ola, a 27-year-old father of two and Duke (not his real
name), 29, tell of the frustration that provoked their outburst.

'There is no junior army officer that still supports Mugabe. We are tired,
we are suffering,' says Duke. 'If a foreign army comes to fight us, we will
join them or flee to a neighbouring country.'

The riots began when the soldiers were forced to to stand in long line with
ordinary Zimbabweans for their money at a bank ATM instead of being paid at
the barracks.

'Cash ran out (at the barracks) because the top guns finished the money. We
then started walking into town to queue for cash,' said Ola. 'We got angry
when we could not get it (the banks ran out of cash). That is when the chaos
started.'

The rioting was the first open challenge to Mugabe in his 28 years in power
from within the normally loyal military. While that loyalty is still strong
among the top brass, whom Mugabe has showered with gifts, including luxury
vehicles and confiscated farms, junior officers, who are feeling the pinch
of the economic crisis, are showing signs of fatigue.

The lowest-paid soldier in Zimbabwe earns about 10 dollars a month.

'I am now (illegally) changing money. My wife does that when I am at work,'
says Ola, who has just returned from the city centre to receive a money
'drop' from his wife.

'Because of the recent unrest (a series of protests by unions and
activists), we are not allowed to go on leave - lest the situation gets out
of hand and the army is called in,' says Duke.

'They took our passports. Otherwise many of us could have fled the country
and sought asylum,' Duke says amid widespread reports in recent months that
thousands of soldiers have already deserted, mostly to South Africa in
search of work.

Although the soldiers were seen attacking money changers, Ola blames the
police and military police for violence during the protest. The police used
batons to quell the riot.

'The idea was to show the public that even soldiers were now tired of this
chaos. We wanted them to join us in marching since they have the same
problems like us,' Ola says.

Coming after bombings at two police stations in recent weeks that were
caused minimum damage and were described by police as an inside job, the
riots have sparked speculation that Mugabe's hold on power may be loosening.

Ola and Duke said junior soldiers were ready to meet the Mugabe regime 'head
on.'

'The top guns are getting payment in foreign currency but the rest of us, we
are getting shells of peanuts,' Ola complains. 'We want to see if we will
get a substantial salary rise in December as they promised. Otherwise, there
will be another round of protests.'

Soldiers Run Riot, Depositors Beaten - again

[No date on this but I think it is current]

http://www.radiovop.com

GUTU - Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) members based at 4.2 Infantry
Battalion went on a rampage Saturday night, beating up anyone in sight,
including bank officials and illegal foreign currency dealers, following
their failure to get cash from banks.

This follows similar incidents in Harare and Masvingo a fortnight ago,
as mutiny escalates in various quarters of the defence forces.
Sources within the army said the forces emulated similar actions by
their fellows around the country and started to beat up everyone in sight
following massive disgruntlement over low salaries which they struggle to
get from the banks.
In Gutu, like in other towns, soldiers were receiving preferential
treatment and were receiving more than the gazetted cash withdrawal limits
of more than Zd 200 million per week but this changed when bank officials
said they did not have the required cash reserves to sustain the gesture.

"Most banks in the growth point had little cash and said they could
not give us unlimited cash as they had to cater for everyone. But, like
people who were used to getting favours, ...this was viewed as a rebellion
by the bank officials.
"They started beating everyone at around five in the evening, up to
late in the night after they were riled by their bankruptcy. They, however,
did not break into shops. Several people, including innocent civilians and
illegal forex dealers lost substantial amounts of cash and sustained serious
injuries," the source added.
Witnesses said the soldiers accused them of failing to revolt against
President Mugabe's rule, as they (uniformed forces) are not allowed to
revolt.
"One soldier grabbed me and floored me, and as I was on the ground, he
accused civilians of being cowards who fail to revolt against Mugabe as they
were ready to join us, not disperse us. He said we tolerated the crisis in
the country, hence we had to suffer," a victim who requested anonymity said.
No arrests were made. Army officials refused to comment on the matter,
referring all questions to Zimbabwe Defence Forces commander, General
Constantine Chiwenga.

Meanwhile in Masvingo, riot police on Sunday night descended heavily
upon stranded depositors who were sleeping outside a bank while waiting to
get the new Zd 500 million cash limit.

Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) Governor Gideon Gono increased the
maximum withdrawal limits to Zd 500 million per week starting last Friday,
as he also introduced another new Zd 200 million note.
This has left most banks in the city battling with congestion as
almost everyone wants to get his weekly stipend following the illegal
foreign currency trading at banks, dubbed "burning".
Depositors who slept at the Central African Building Society (CABS) in
town on Sunday said armed police officers with the dog section squad beat up
all those who were sleeping at the veranda, saying "they did not want to see
anyone there."
Some people got injured as they were scampering for safety.
At CABS, officials give out numbers to depositors and only those with
the numbers would be served that day.
"The police wanted to get rid of the people so that they would be able
to get money themselves, remember they take advantage and abuse their
uniform to jump queues," said one observer.
But provincial police spokesperson, Assistant Inspector Phibion
Nyambo, professed ignorance over the matter.
"I am yet to find out, I did not hear about that, but I do not think
it is true. Why would they beat up people sleeping outside a bank?"

"There is no junior army officer who supports Mugabe"

http://www.politicsweb.co.za

Sebastian Nyamhangambiri
16 December 2008

Discontent grows among the rank and file of the Zimbabwe army

HARARE (Sapa-dpa) - In scenes that rattled the regime of President Robert
Mugabe and stoked speculation its days were numbered, dozens of soldiers ran
amok in the capital Harare on December 1 in protest over the country's
economic meltdown.

Some bystanders watched in amazement, some joined in as junior soldiers who,
frustrated at being unable to access their meagre salaries because of acute
cash shortages, ran through the streets, looting shops and attacking
black-market currency dealers.

Although the state moved quickly to put the genie back in the bottle,
arresting 16 soldiers who face court martial proceedings, the footsoldiers
of Mugabe's repressive regime warn they are likely to hit the streets again
before long.

"Just like everyone else, we have stomachs and families to feed. We are
suffering, just like most citizens in this country," one junior officer Ola
(not his real name) tells Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

Sitting in a house in Mbare township south-west of Harare in worn boots and
faded fatigues, Ola, a 27-year-old father of two and Duke (not his real
name), 29, tell of the frustration that provoked their outburst.

"There is no junior army officer that still supports Mugabe. We are tired,
we are suffering," says Duke. "If a foreign army comes to fight us, we will
join them or flee to a neighbouring country."

The riots began when the soldiers were forced to to stand in long line with
ordinary Zimbabweans for their money at a bank ATM instead of being paid at
the barracks.

"Cash ran out (at the barracks) because the top guns finished the money. We
then started walking into town to queue for cash," said Ola.

"We got angry when we could not get it (the banks ran out of cash). That is
when the chaos started."

The rioting was the first open challenge to Mugabe in his 28 years in power
from within the normally loyal military. While that loyalty is still strong
among the top brass, whom Mugabe has showered with gifts, including luxury
vehicles and confiscated farms, junior officers, who are feeling the pinch
of the economic crisis, are showing signs of fatigue.

The lowest-paid soldier in Zimbabwe earns about 10 dollars a month.

"I am now (illegally) changing money. My wife does that when I am at work,"
says Ola, who has just returned from the city centre to receive a money
"drop" from his wife.

"Because of the recent unrest (a series of protests by unions and
activists), we are not allowed to go on leave - lest the situation gets
out of hand and the army is called in," says Duke.

"They took our passports. Otherwise many of us could have fled the country
and sought asylum," Duke says amid widespread reports in recent months that
thousands of soldiers have already deserted, mostly to South Africa in
search of work.

Although the soldiers were seen attacking money changers, Ola blames the
police and military police for violence during the protest. The police used
batons to quell the riot.

"The idea was to show the public that even soldiers were now tired of this
chaos. We wanted them to join us in marching since they have the same
problems like us," Ola says.

Coming after bombings at two police stations in recent weeks that were
caused minimum damage and were described by police as an inside job, the
riots have sparked speculation that Mugabe's hold on power may be loosening.

Ola and Duke said junior soldiers were ready to meet the Mugabe regime "head
on."

"The top guns are getting payment in foreign currency but the rest of us, we
are getting shells of peanuts," Ola complains. "We want to see if we will
get a substantial salary rise in December as they promised. Otherwise, there
will be another round of protests."

South Africa blocks UN motion on Zimbabwe

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Violet Gonda
16 December 2008

Despite thousands of Zimbabweans fleeing the cholera infested country to
neighbouring countries and the crippling economic and human rights crisis,
South Africa has done it again and blocked a motion to allow the United
Nations to get a consensus on how to deal with the Zimbabwean crisis.

A closed-door session on the country by the UN Security Council on Monday
ended with South Africa and Russia going against a motion to censure Robert
Mugabe.

This was the first discussion on Zimbabwe by the Security Council since
July, when South Africa and others vetoed an attempt by western countries to
impose UN targeted sanctions on the Mugabe regime. They claimed the crisis
in Zimbabwe was an internal matter

The group known as the Elders, who had been refused entry into Zimbabwe,
had also been invited to physically present a report, but disappointingly
they declined because 'they wanted to preserve their independence from the
Security Council'. They sent a written report. However the UK Times
newspaper reports an insider saying South Africa had discouraged their
attendance.

Ban Ki Moon, the UN Secretary-General, is quoted saying: "Despite our
continued efforts, I unfortunately have to conclude that neither the
government nor the mediator welcomes a UN role."

Political analysts say although shocking, this latest development is not
surprising.

Alex Magaisa said a resolution would have shown an acknowledgement by the UN
that there is a fundamental problem that needed to be dealt with in
Zimbabwe.

He said many had high hopes when Thabo Mbeki left the South African
Presidency and Kgalema Motlanthe came in, but it appears the new South
African leadership has the same attitude towards Zimbabwe. This is in spite
of the neighbouring country declaring a disaster zone on the border with
Zimbabwe.

Magaisa believes that while international pressure is a help, Zimbabweans
themselves will have to be seen to be at the forefront of their own
liberation and that obligation falls on the MDC.

But the analyst said it is obvious that the options for the MDC are very
limited.

So far the MDC has only said pressure must be put on the Mugabe regime to
negotiate an equitable power sharing agreement, but there are growing calls
for the party to pursue other options as dialogue is clearly failing and
abductions and violence against civic society and the MDC is again on the
increase.

There is still no news on the whereabouts of any of the 23 activists
abducted in the last seven weeks.

Zanu PF violence and terrorism intensifies

http://www.sokwanele.com/thisiszimbabwe/archives/2942#more-2942

The Zanu PF regime has intensified its terror campaign against MDC
supporters in Bindura, Mashonaland Central province ahead of its annual
conference, which begins in the town tomorrow. Eleven of the 12 councillors
of the Bindura Municipality have fled their homes after the police arrested
Ward 10 councillor, Norbert Dhokotera and two other MDC activists in
pre-dawn raids last night.

The three were arrested on trumped up yet to be disclosed charges and are
detained at Bindura Central Police Station.

All the 12 councillors in the Bindura Municipality are MDC representatives.

Last week, Councillor Dhokotera was arrested again by Bindura police on
false charges of petrol bombing the houses of Zanu PF supporters.

He was however; released after it turned out that it was in fact Zanu PF
youths who had petrol bombed five houses belonging to MDC supporters.

Nearly all MDC activists in Bindura are on the run and they have not known
any peace since the death of Zanu PF's political commissar, Elliot Manyika
in a car accident last week.

Zanu PF youths have also joined the armed police and are looting property
and food at the homes that police have targeted as the occupants have fled
fearing unlawful arrests.

The Zanu PF regime is trying to finger MDC activists with the shooting of
Air Force of Zimbabwe Commander Perrance Shiri on Saturday.

Instead of carrying out proper investigations resulting in the shooting of
Shiri, the regime, which has been hard hit by internal hemorrhage in the
party's top hierarchy is coming up with false allegations that the MDC is
training its members in banditry activities in neighbouring Botswana.

As the clampdown on MDC activists intensifies, there has been upsurge of
nationwide violence by Zanu PF on innocent people.

The regime is ignoring the cholera outbreak that has reached alarming levels
and the starvation that is stalking the countryside but is choosing to
unleash terror on defenceless people.

Over 20 MDC activists including a two-year old child have been abducted by
the Zanu PF regime and their whereabouts are unknown. Among those abducted
is Jestina Mukoko, the director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project.

MDC Information and Publicity Department

This entry was written by Sokwanele on Tuesday, December 16th, 2008 at 5:37
pm

More arrests and injuries as NCA lead peaceful protests

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Alex Bell
16 December 2008

Members of pressure group the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) again
became targets of riot police on Tuesday, after yet another violent
crackdown on peaceful demonstrations across the country.

Scores of people had been expected to take to the streets on Tuesday for the
fourth round of NCA led protests calling for a democratic Zimbabwe. The last
three actions have been the sites of chaos, as police used force to break up
the crowds of demonstrators, and two weeks ago more than 20 people were
injured at the hands of the police.

Tuesday's planned demonstrations went ahead in central Harare, Mutare and
Masvingo and predictably the crowds of demonstrators were once again
dispersed by heavily armed riot police. According to a NCA statement
released on Tuesday evening, the Harare demonstration had more than 500
participants who were set upon by police armed with guns, teargas and
batons. The NCA explained that police did not hesitate to fire shots at the
NCA members, and "all hell broke loose as the heavily armed police unleashed
terror on the demonstrators as well as members of the public."

More than 51 people were arrested and are currently in police custody at
different stations in Harare, while more than 10 activists sustained serious
injuries. At the same time NCA officials explained on Tuesday evening that
eight people are confirmed to have been arrested in Mutare. Meanwhile, more
than 300 demonstrators took to the streets in Masvingo, and successfully
marched without any interference from police.

War vets ready for war against Botswana - Sibanda

http://www.zimeye.org/?p=824

By Xolani Sibanda & Moses Muchemwa
Nyamandlovu Zimeye)-Zimbabwe's war veterans leader Jabulani Sibanda has
ordered ex-combatants to be on high alert claiming that Botswana was
threatening an invasion.

Sibanda told war veterans to resume morning training exercises arguing that
threats of war multiplies with incidents like the attempt on Air Marshall
Perence Shiri used as an example.

He was speaking during a function to distribute farming equipment to war
veterans from Zimbabwe's second city Bulawayo.

He attacked Botswana for planning terrorist campaigns against Zimbabwe.
Sibanda further stated that Botswana lacked experience in terms of war fare
having established it's own army in 1978 ten years after Zimbabwean
nationalists had taken up arms against white minority settlers of British
origin led by the late Ian Smith's Rhodesian front party.

The war veterans leader who led terror campaign against Zanu-PF opponents in
the March elections, said "the French leader Nicholas Sarchozy should ask
former president Jacque Chirac about why France should always be a coward a
country that was overrun by the Germans in the second World War,

"France are cowards who should not challenge Zimbabwe they don't know us as
a fighting force so they should leave us in peace".

Mugabe uses the war veterans to unleash violence on political opponents. He
is accusing he MDC of training bandits to be used in terror attacks. The
opposition has dismissed the allegations.

(Zimeye, Zimbabwe)
(Moses muchemwa is a journalist and partner ith the Zimeye. He can be
contacted at mmuchemwa@zimeye.com
)

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 16th, 2008 at 11:55 am

Botswana dismisses its neighbour’s sabre rattling

Photo: IRIN

Looking for bandits

JOHANNESBURG, 16 December 2008 (IRIN) - Neighbouring Botswana dismissed Zimbabwe's sabre rattling at it as nothing more than "distorted" and "concocted facts".

Zimbabwe’s state-controlled daily newspaper, The Herald, launched a broadside attack on its neighbour on 15 December, claiming the government had "compelling evidence" that Botswana was providing military training to "bandits" from the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).

Botswana is the region’s staunchest critic of Zimbabwe and recently suggested that sealing the landlocked country's borders would lead to the collapse of President Robert Mugabe’s 28-year rule in a week.

Justice minister Patrick Chinamasa told The Herald: "My plea to [Botswana's President Ian] Khama and his government is to think carefully about the irreversible harm they have been plotting to unleash on the region.

"Botswana has availed its territory, material and logistical support to MDC-T [the MDC faction led by Morgan Tsvangirai] for the recruitment and military training of youths for the eventual destabilisation of the country, with a view to effecting illegal regime change."

The use of the word "bandits" is a chilling reminder of Operation Gukurahundi (The rain that washes away the chaff before the spring rain), which Mugabe's government launched on the then opposition party and its supporters soon after Zimbabwe’s independence from Britain in 1980, on the pretext of tackling insurgents and counter-revolutionaries sponsored by apartheid South Africa.

Echoes of Gukurahundi

In the event, about 20,000 people, almost all civilians, were killed by the North Korean-trained 5th Brigade in the Matabeleland and Midlands provinces in southwestern Zimbabwe, strongholds of the rival liberation movement ZAPU.

"We now have evidence that while they [MDC] were talking peace, they have been preparing for war and insurgency, as well as soliciting the West [the US and Britain] to invade our country on the pretext of things like cholera," Chinamasa said.

The death toll from a cholera outbreak that began in August and spread across the country has reached nearly 1,000.

Chinamasa said the "evidence" had been handed to the Southern Africa Development Community's (SADC) Organ on Politics, Defence and Security.

A statement by Botswana's department of foreign affairs said: "As Zimbabwe has already publicly passed judgment on its own allegations, the ministry wishes to reaffirm that Zimbabwe's submission [to the SADC] contains nothing more than distorted and or concocted evidence, none of which is supported by facts."

Zimbabwe had dismally failed to produce any tangible, much less compelling, facts in support of its allegations

Botswana submitted its response to Zimbabwe's allegations to the SADC on 10 December, saying in the statement that "Zimbabwe had dismally failed to produce any tangible, much less compelling, facts in support of its allegations."

MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa said the rhetoric levelled against it and Botswana, which often hosts Tsvangirai, were "false".

"The MDC does not believe in violence, and there is no way we can train youths to overthrow President Mugabe. We believe in democratic methods just like the ones we used and displayed in March this year, when we defeated ZANU-PF in the harmonised [combined presidential and parliamentary] elections," Chamisa said.

He said the abduction of 15 MDC activists in Manicaland Province, in eastern Zimbabwe, more than a month ago was a plan to force a "confession" from them that Botswana was providing military training to MDC members.

"ZANU-PF is torturing our activists and they want to force them to admit to undergoing military training in Botswana, so as to divert international and regional attention from their own human rights record and the humanitarian situation unfolding in the country.

"But this will not work,” Chamisa said. “We are aware of ZANU-PF plans to declare a state of emergency in Zimbabwe, using false claims."

Miliband: Mugabe's misrule is a disease

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk

Ed Harris
16.12.08

ROBERT Mugabe was today accused of "misrule and corruption" by Britain's
Foreign Secretary as Zimbabwe's cholera crisis worsened.

David Miliband said cholera was making the headlines but Zimbabwe's real
disease was "the disease of misrule and corruption" under President Mugabe.

The UN says 978 people have been killed by cholera, a 25 per cent increase
on the last figure given just days ago. Talks between the government and
opposition are deadlocked.

UN chief Ban Ki-Moon said his organisation could do little to help Zimbabwe
because of its leaders' refusal to allow it to mediate.

The cholera epidemic was the most visible manifestation of a wider crisis,
Mr Ban told a session of the Security Council.

Mr Miliband described Mr Ban's closed-door briefing as "devastating". The
meeting ended without agreement on a motion to censure Mr Mugabe. A diplomat
present said this was due to opposition from South Africa.

Mr Mugabe said last week that cholera had been contained, and accused
Western powers of trying to use the outbreak as a pretext to invade the
country.

Zimbabwe has also accused its neighbour Botswana of being involved in a plot
to overthrow Mr Mugabe's government and hosting military training camps for
opposition rebels. Botswana, whose president Ian Khama is one of the few
African leaders to have publicly criticised Mr Mugabe, denies the claims.

Support from World Actors is keeping Mugabe in power says Rice

http://www.religiousintelligence.co.uk


Tuesday, 16th December 2008. 3:44pm

By: Manasseh Zindo.

Nairobi: The support for Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe from a
section of world leaders have angered US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
who says that despite their denunciations of gross human rights violations
in some African countries, intentional actors have remained both unable and
unwilling to force the removal of tyrants such as Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe.

This impotence is undermining the UN's "Responsibility to Protect"
doctrine, which states that international military force should be used to
stop governments from crushing its own citizens. The UN Security Council
appears unlikely to respond positively to Dr Rice's expected call on Monday
December 15 for "meaningful action" against Mugabe.

Two of the council's five veto-wielding members - China and Russia -
have not endorsed demands by the other three - Britain, France and the US -
that Mugabe step down.

China and Russia both vetoed a US-sponsored Security Council
resolution in July calling for an arms embargo against Zimbabwe and
financial restrictions on him and 13 other top officials. There is no
indication that Moscow and Beijing have grown favourably disposed to more
direct efforts to bring about regime change in Zimbabwe.

The US and its allies have also not managed to convince South Africa
to take action likely to lead to Mugabe's downfall.

An unnamed US official was quoted last week as suggesting that if
South Africa were to close its border with landlocked Zimbabwe, "within a
week, it would bring the [Zimbabwe] economy to its knees."

South Africa does have the power to bring down Mugabe, US ambassador
to Zimbabwe James McGee implied last week.

Describing South Africa as "the big dog on the block," he said that
"we expect South Africa to take an active stance on everything that happens
in the southern tier of Africa. We do continue to work quietly and behind
the scenes with South Africa to make that happen."

Just as South Africa continues to resist US pressure, America itself
shows no sign of moving unilaterally to apply the Responsibility to Protect
doctrine in the case of Zimbabwe. With the US already engaged militarily in
both Iraq and Afghanistan, the American public has no appetite for an
intervention in Africa. The African Union, which has dispatched forces to
both Darfur and Somalia, has likewise made clear that it will not send
troops into Zimbabwe, despite calls for such a step by Kenyan Prime Minister
Raila Odinga and respected South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

All this has led Rice to express frustration over the world's
inability to topple oppressors such as Mr Mugabe. "We all undertook this
notion of a responsibility to protect a couple of years ago with great
fanfare, and we've, as a community, fallen short," she said in an interview
last week with National Public Radio in Washington.

The failure does not result from US inaction, she added. "We've put
unilateral sanctions on Sudan, on Burma, on Zimbabwe. And very often, we've
been joined by other states, particularly the Europeans, in several of those
circumstances. But much of the world is prepared to turn a blind eye, and
that's really unfortunate, and I think it really damages the credibility of
the Security Council."

The incoming administration of US President-elect Barrack Obama can
break this global deadlock, a group led by two former top-level US officials
said last week.

The Genocide Prevention Task Force, co-chaired by ex-Pentagon head
William Cohen and ex-secretary of state Madeleine Albright, urged Obama and
his designated foreign policy chief, Hillary Clinton, to launch "robust
diplomatic efforts" to gain consensus for action on the part of the UN
Security Council.

UN warns may have to cut food rations in Zimbabwe

http://africa.reuters.com

Tue 16 Dec 2008, 15:32 GMT

By Stephanie Nebehay

GENEVA, Dec 16 (Reuters) - The United Nations warned on Tuesday it may have
to cut food rations to millions of hungry people in Zimbabwe despite a
worsening cholera epidemic, due to a lack of funds.

The rainy season under way in the region is expected to fuel the spread of
the contagious water-borne disease, which has infected at least 18,418
people and killed 978 since August.

Nearly 4 million Zimbabweans receive monthly food rations from the U.N.'s
World Food Programme (WFP), which hopes to feed 5.1 million -- almost half
the population -- from January.

But donors have contributed only $16 million towards a $140 million WFP
appeal for Zimbabwe, leading to smaller distributions of maize and beans to
families in the past two months, according to WFP spokeswoman Emilia
Casella.

"The decision on whether to cut and by how much will be made in late
December. We very much hope donors heed the call because decisions they make
today will impact on the stomachs of children and vulnerable people in
January," she told Reuters.

WFP needs 47,000 tonnes of food a month for Zimbabwe, reeling from economic
collapse and a political turmoil after failure to form a government since
March elections. [nLG544351]

Matthew Cochrane, spokesman of the International Federation of Red Cross and
Red Crescent Societies, said aid agencies were scrambling to boost cholera
treatment and prevention programmes.

But rains have begun in Zimbabwe and Congo, which typically swell the
Zambezi, flooding wells and septic tanks, he said.

"If we don't do what we need to do as a humanitarian community now, it could
be catastrophic. We've already got a very serious situation and rain will
only make it much, much worse," Cochrane told a news briefing on his return
from Harare.

The Federation, the world's largest disaster relief agency, plans to issue
an emergency appeal for Zimbabwe in the next 48 hours, according to John
Roche, head of its Africa operations.

"Our main concern is a lot of Zimbabweans who work in South Africa will be
moving back during this Christmas period. If we don't take measures now to
keep this under control, we could have it spread much faster and wider in
the region," he said.

Some 751 cholera cases including 11 deaths have been reported in South
Africa, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), a U.N. agency.
(Editing by Jonathan Lynn)

Red Cross: rains worsen Zimbabwe cholera epidemic

http://www.iht.com

The Associated PressPublished: December 16, 2008

GENEVA: The onset of seasonal rains in Zimbabwe has increased fears that the
cholera epidemic could turn into a catastrophe with tens of thousands more
sickened and further spread into neighboring countries, the Red Cross
federation said Tuesday.

"We've already got a very serious situation and rain will only make it much,
much worse," said Matthew Cochrane, a spokesman for the International
Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

The rainfall, which usually brings floods to the southern African country,
has started in the northern provinces, he said.

Aid agencies have been warning the rains could spread cholera further in a
population already weakened by disease and hunger.

The outbreak continues to grow and the fatality rate is alarmingly high,
said Cochrane, who just returned from Zimbabwe.

The United Nations said Monday that 18,413 people have been infected with
the waterborne disease in the country and 978 died from it.

Unless aid agencies and the government massively scale up their operations,
"it could be catastrophic," said Cochrane.

The total number of cases could reach 60,000 and cholera, which has already
spread into South Africa and Botswana, could spill into other neighboring
countries, he said.

Botswana and South Africa are sufficiently equipped to contain the outbreak,
Cochrane said. But if cholera was to spill into Zambia or Mozambique, it
would be more difficult to stop it because those border regions lack the
necessary health system and funds to contain it, he said.

"If we start seeing huge numbers of people going across the border into
those countries bringing with them cholera or being exposed to cholera, then
it could be like a wildfire in the bush," he said. "We really could see the
whole region flare up."

The Red Cross federation, which supports around 30,000 volunteers from the
Zimbabwean Red Cross, is negotiating with the government on how to ramp up
aid operations in the country, Cochrane said.

Informing people about basic hygiene, giving them access to clean water and
improving sanitation and waste systems are the most urgent challenges, he
added.

Ending Zimbabwe's Nightmare: A Possible Way Forward

Threats as journalist arrested in Zimbabwe

From The Star (SA), 15 December

In the ongoing crackdown in Zimbabwe, another journalist, Andrisson Manyere,
has been arrested. Manyere, a freelancer, was accredited to work as a
journalist in Zimbabwe. He was picked up at his Harare home yesterday and
taken by detectives to the Harare Central police station. On Saturday,
President Robert Mugabe's spokesperson, George Charamba, who writes a weekly
column in the state-controlled Herald, warned that state action against
journalists was coming. He wrote that the "line between these journalistic
misdeeds and espionage grows thinner by the day, and the authorities are
about to place a price on those concerned". Charamba accused journalists of
misreporting the cholera epidemic in Zimbabwe, which has claimed about 800
lives and seen 17 000 infected, with a high fatality rate of 4%. The UN says
a death rate of 1% is an acceptable limit.

The unelected Information Minister, Sikhanyiso Ndlovu, has explained the
cholera crisis as the work of the West, saying it has launched biological
warfare against Zimbabwe. More than 20 people, mostly opposition Movement
for Democratic Change activists and human rights workers, have been abducted
from their homes and offices in the past few weeks. Mugabe has accused the
West of using the cholera epidemic as an excuse to "invade" Zimbabwe, and
said last week that cholera had been beaten. The following day, Charamba
said Mugabe had made a "sarcastic" remark. Most journalists regularly
working in Zimbabwe have been arrested in the past eight years. Many have
been forced to flee the country. Lawyers representing activists and
journalists have also been detained in Zimbabwe's never-ending repression.
It was not yet clear whether any lawyer had had access to Manyere, or
whether he was going to be charged. He was not working when detained,
according to his friends.

Meanwhile, the MDC is not yet ready to enter government, despite Mugabe
having gazetted legislation to enable it to do so. On Friday, Mugabe's
government gazetted a bill to amend the constitution for the 19th time to
create the position of prime minister for MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai, in a
power-sharing, unity government in which Mugabe would remain president. Both
President Kgalema Motlanthe and his predecessor Thabo Mbeki, the regional
mediator on Zimbabwe, have welcomed the gazetting of the amendment as
clearing the way for a unity government. At a summit last month, the
Southern African Development Community said passing amendment 19 should be
the last obstacle to launching the long-delayed unity government. The SADC
agreed the only outstanding ministry was Home Affairs, which controls the
police. It said it had resolved that the ministry be shared between the MDC
and Zanu PF. SADC said the distribution of 10 powerful governor's positions
should be negotiated.

MISA: Zimbabwe threatening to ban remaining foreign news groups

http://www.apanews.net/

APA-Harare (Zimbabwe) Zimbabwe plans to slap a blanket ban on all foreign
media foreign groups, accusing them of "playing little gods" on the country's
affairs, the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) said here on Tuesday.

The regional media rights watchdog said Zimbabwe's presidential spokesman
George Charamba had threatened to ban all accredited foreign bureaux or
local reporters working for foreign news organisations because he said they
had embarked on a propaganda assault on the southern African country.

MISA said Charamba was on a war path after accusing the foreign bureaux
accredited in Zimbabwe of quoting President Robert Mugabe out of context
following his remarks last Thursday that the country had "arrested" the
cholera outbreak.

"He said Zimbabwe had no need to accredit the foreign news agencies as
required under the repressive Access to Information and Protection of
Privacy Act (AIPPA)," the Namibian-based watchdog said.

Targeted media houses included Britain's Reuters, Agence France Presse, the
British Broadcasting Corporation, Associated Press of the USA, France 24
International and Al Jazeera from Qatar, which are accused of
misrepresenting facts about Zimbabwe to suit the agendas of the news
organisations' host nations.

Writing in the state-run Herald newspaper at the weekend, a columnist under
the pen-name of Nathaniel Manheru threatened to deal with the foreign news
organisations.

"They have played little gods with copy on Zimbabwe, in the process
rubbishing the letter and spirit of AIPPA. There has to be robust response,"
wrote the columnist.

Charamba is widely believed to be the author of the column.

  JN/nm/APA 2008-12-16

Zimbabwe Opposition Says Three Councilors Arrested

http://www.nasdaq.com



HARARE, Zimbabwe (AFP)--Zimbabwe's opposition Tuesday accused the
authorities of instigating a crackdown on its members by arresting three of
its councilors ahead of the ruling party's annual conference this week.

"Eleven of the 12 councilors of the Bindura Municipality have fled
their homes after the police arrested Ward 10 ccouncilor Norbert Dhokotera
and two other Movement for Democratic Change activists in ppredawnraids last
night," read an MDC statement.

"The three were arrested on trumped-up yet to-be-disclosed charges and
are detained at Bindura Central Police Station."

The MDC said President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF party was "intensifying
its terror campaign" ahead of its annual conference, which starts in Bindura
in northwestern Zimbabwe Friday.

Officials from the ruling party met Tuesday to discuss the agenda of
the conference.

"The meeting focused on items on the official program including
restructuring of the party, the cholera outbreak, state of the economy, the
all-inclusive government and the security threat to the country," reported
state radio.

The party conference comes nine months after the March general
elections in which ZANU-PF lost its majority in parliament for the first
time since independence 28 years ago.

Top Mugabe aides would meet as international pressure on the veteran
leader to step down mounts amid an economic crisis, cholera outbreak and
political stalemate over the formation of a unity government.

The opposition party said Mugabe's regime was trying to blame it for a
failed assassination attempt on the country's air force chief Perrance Shiri
and that it was plotting with neighboring Botswana to overthrow the
government.

Police couldn't be reached to confirm the arrests.

  (END) Dow Jones Newswires
  12-16-081152ET

South Africa-Zimbabwe Mediation Unsuccessful says Analyst

http://www.voanews.com

By Joe DeCapua
Washington
16 December 2008

As the year draws to a close - and Zimbabwe's political crisis continues -
many are questioning whether South Africa's role as mediator has had any
real effect. Critics are also saying that South Africa has failed to take
advantage of its temporary seat on the UN Security Council to help resolve
the crisis.

Darrel Glaser, professor of political studies at the University of
Witwatersrand, spoke to VOA English to Africa Service reporter Joe De Capua
about whether South Africa's efforts in Zimbabwe have achieved any results.

"I don't see that mediation as having been very successful at all. There
have been moments when it looked as though our former president, Thabo
Mbeki, was being reasonably successful in at least cajoling the parties to
talk to each other, but essentially nothing's come of it. We've seen that in
recent weeks the process has gone backwards, " he says.

Glaser says that the claims made regarding Mbeki's "quiet diplomacy" have
"simply not been vindicated." When asked why, he says, "I think that the
type of diplomacy that is needed in Zimbabwe is one where the third party is
not simply going to be an entirely neutral mediator between the two sides
but is willing to at least take sides to the extent of recognizing that
President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe is more a part of a problem than the
solution and more of a problem than his opponents."

The professor says that if diplomacy is going to be successful there needs
to be real pressure on the Zimbabwean leader, whether "behind the scenes or
in public."

He says, "Mugabe has to be made to understand that he's lost the support of
probably the majority of his people and that he has to make way for new
forces in the country."

He also says South Africa could have done a better job this year in using
its seat on the UN Security Council to deal with Zimbabwe's political
crisis. "Throughout the period that it's had that seat.it has taken what
some people have called a Third Worldist position, which has essentially
been a tendency to side with countries in the Third World or the Global
South against what is seen as the dominant imperial powers of the North. And
I think unfortunately this has resulted in a kind of knee-jerk tendency to
support Third World regimes no matter what their character simply
because.(they) see themselves as historically victims of colonialism or
neo-colonialism." He says.

For example, Glaser is critical of South Africa's vote in favor of the
military junta in Burma. "This has been very tragic that South Africa has
tarnished a great deal of the prestige that it acquired in the 1990s as a
global champion of human rights," he says.

He doesn't see South African policy toward Zimbabwe changing much, if at
all, if ruling ANC party President Jacob Zuma is elected South African
president next year.

So what can be done if South African mediation efforts fail? "Well, this is
a very difficult question to answer. For a start there has to be stronger
symbolic and diplomatic pressure. There has to be some stepping up of
economic pressure that is somehow separated out from the whole question of
humanitarian aid," he says. Perhaps even intervention.

"If you're asking me personally, I wouldn't altogether rule out the sort of
option that Archbishop Desmond Tutu was referring to, which is some kind of
limited humanitarian-military intervention, provided it was conducted
entirely under southern African regional leadership. I would not like to see
Western powers having any role in that. I think that would discredit the
whole exercise. But I think that things have become so desperate and this
crisis has become so regional in terms of spreading disease across borders
and sending floods of refugees in every direction that I think the region
has to be willing to take concerted action, including, for example, if
necessary, armed action to protect relief supplies and so on," he says.

The number of cholera deaths in Zimbabwe is nearing 1,000, with tens of
thousands of cases reported overall. Many thousands of Zimbabwe have crossed
the border into South Africa, for example, to escape the political turmoil
in Zimbabwe or to seek treatment for cholera.

Zimbabwe power-sharing deal taking too long: Zuma

http://news.yahoo.com

BLOEMFONTEIN (AFP) - Ruling ANC chief Jacob Zuma said on Tuesday that South
Africa had a responsibility to push Zimbabwe to resolve its crisis,
expressing concern it was taking too long to form a unity government.

"We are concerned that they are taking longer to finalise the agreement
while the humanitarian situation is deteriorating," he said as deaths from a
cholera epidemic inched closer to 1000 in the neighbouring country.

"We have a responsibility to push them all in the right direction, and will
continue to do so."

Zuma was addressing a gathering of African National Congress military
veterans in Bloemfontein, as the small city in central farming province of
the Free State also attracted a group of ANC dissidents launching a new
party on South Africa's Day of Reconciliation.

His remarks came as a swelling international effort to turn up the heat
against Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe faltered, as South Africa blocked a
western bid to put the issue on the agenda of the United Nations Security
Council.

Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF and rival Morgan Tsvangirai's Movement for
Democratic Change have been stuck in a three-month logjam over the formation
of a unity government.

"We are continuing to put pressure on our ZANU-PF comrades and the MDC
formations to agree on a unity government without further delay," said Zuma,
addressing former members of the Umkhonto we Siswe military wing of the ANC.

He said the party had conducted visits to former liberation movements in
neighbouring countries that had helped the ANC in the fight against
white-minority apartheid rule, and would "undertake a similar visit to
Zimbabwe once the political stalemate in Zimbabwe is resolved."

The Day of Reconciliation is held in remembrance of a day in which thousands
of Zulus were killed in a war with Afrikaners in 1838. But it is celebrated
as a day for fostering reconciliation and national unity.

Abel Chuma, "Very few families had received free seed and fertiliser"

Photo: Obinna Anyadike/IRIN

Forced to buy, instead of grow maize

HARARE, 16 December 2008 (IRIN) - Abel Chuma, 42, is a gardener working in Mabelreign, one of the affluent northern suburbs in the Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare. Adjacent to his employers' home is a vacant piece of land, where for years Chuma has grown enough maize, the staple food, for his needs.

"It looks like I may have to start buying mealie-meal [maize-meal] next year because I cannot afford the high prices of maize seed and fertiliser.

"The little maize seed and fertiliser that is available is beyond my reach because they are sold in United States dollars, which I do not have.

"All efforts to get free or cheaper maize seed and fertiliser have failed.

"Some urban farmers have received the farming inputs, but only those who are in the ZANU-PF [party, which has ruled Zimbabwe for 28 years] leadership structures have benefited from donations of the inputs.

"I went to my rural home, hoping to access them, but was met with the same story. Very few families had received free seed and fertiliser, and those who received it were well-known party stalwarts.

"The few families with fertiliser and maize seed had received it from children, friends and relatives who work in urban areas or are in the diaspora [of millions of Zimbabweans who have left the country].

"I have identified some places from where I will collect some manure, which I will spread on my piece of land. Urban farmers have over the years contributed to the country's food security.

“By producing enough food for our families, it means the government would have fewer people to source food for. [The UN estimates that over five million Zimbabweans will need food aid in early 2009.]

"However, if we are to continue providing that service, then the government has to acknowledge our critical role by availing seed and fertiliser to urban farmers.

"Pricing inputs beyond us just increases possibilities of hunger in the country, especially in urban areas where food security is not guaranteed."

Cholera death toll jumps 25% in three days

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Alex Bell
16 December 2008

While Zimbabwe's Zanu PF government started a game of finger-pointing last
week over the cause of the devastating cholera outbreak, hundreds more
people are reported to have died - bringing the official death toll to
almost a thousand.

The United Nations on Monday announced that the cholera death toll had
reached 978 since last Friday, when there were 784 reported deaths. The new
figure means the fatality rate increased by an estimated 25 percent in three
days. With only a minority of cases across the country being treated and
reported, there are fears the actual number of deaths is already well beyond
the 3000 mark. Officially more than 18 thousand people are reported to be
infected, according to the UN's new figures, and at the same time the killer
outbreak has seen hundreds of Zimbabweans flee their homes, hoping to escape
the disease or find treatment outside the country.

Regional countries are now on high alert as cholera deaths have been
reported in at least four neighbouring states, and there are warnings that
the worst is yet to come.

The UN's announcement came just days after Robert Mugabe last Thursday
claimed that cholera had been 'arrested' and no longer existed in the
country. While speaking during a nationally broadcast speech at Heroes Acre
Mugabe also pinned the blame of the outbreak on the west, saying the disease
was a mere 'excuse' for western leaders to invade Zimbabwe. Mugabe's
Information Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu, echoed the dictator's rant against
the favoured western scapegoat, saying the British had deliberately planned
the outbreak, saying the epidemic is "meant to incite the people of Zimbabwe
so they can turn against the government."

The dire situation has seen the British Red Cross and Oxfam launch
emergency appeals to tackle the outbreak, that aid organisations have
previously warned is set to get much worse. Aid groups and medical experts
have said the onset of the rainy season will cause the outbreak to run
further out of control, and that immediate action is needed to prevent
staggering numbers of deaths. The international appeals will be used to
supply emergency relief through community based health, water, sanitation
and hygiene projects, while delivering aid and education to those most in
need in Zimbabwe and across the Southern African region.

The Red Cross has been on the ground in Zimbabwe since the beginning of the
cholera epidemic, focusing largely on public education. One of the
organisation's delegates, Matthew Cochrane recently returned from Zimbabwe
and explained to Newsreel that the group is planning for the 'worst possible
case scenario'. He described the growing fears that the rains and the season's
first floods will drastically worsen the situation, if the disease is not
contained as a matter of urgency.

"This is a disease and an enemy we know how to defeat, we have it's number,"
Cochrane said. "But we need to get a lid on it before it becomes totally out
of control."

White Messiah Saves Hospital, Patients

http://www.radiovop.com/


Masvingo - A White Doctor and Medical Superintendent of Masvingo's
Morgenster Missionary Hospital, Dr Henry Ten-hove, is being hailed as a
messiah after his recent decision to top up workers' salaries in foreign
currency in addition to pumping his own money to run the hospital and
feeding patients.

"I am happy because Dr Ten-hove is concerned about our welfare. We
have since agreed that we proceed with our normal operations as long as his
(Dr Ten-hove) promises are fulfilled. It does not make sense for us to wake
up early and go to work while our children are dying because of hunger. The
reason for going to work is to earn a better
living," said a staff member.

 Dr Ten-hove averted a strike on Friday when he announced at an
emergency meeting that all medical staff would receive R 200 as survival
allowance over and above their salaries. The administration and the general
workers were promised R150 and R100 respectively.

This comes at a time when most state hospitals throughout the country
have closed due to shortages of drugs and poor renumeration and conditions
of service.

"I am happy because Dr Ten-hove is concerned about our welfare. We
have since agreed that we proceed with our normal operations as long as his
(Dr Ten-hove) promises are fulfilled. It does not make sense for us to wake
up early and go to work while our children are dying because of hunger. The
reason for going to work is to earn a better
living," said a staff member.

When Radio VOP visited the institution, workers and patients expressed
their gratitude to Dr Ten-hove.

"The government should learn that Whites can help us. Dr Ten-hove  has
rescued several lives. We can not hide our joy. This man from Netherlands
has become our Messiah," said one patient.

In addition Dr Ten-hove is also giving mealie-meal to all workers and
donating food to patients.

Radio VOP could not talk to Dr Ten-hove as he was out of office.

Morgenster hospital is run by Reformed Church in Zimbabwe (RCZ). It is
servicing more than 250 patients a day.

Where are our Human Rights in Zimbabwe?

http://www.morningmirror.africanherd.com

On December 10, 1948 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted and
proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, sixty years ago ...
sixty whole
years ago this week .......

What happened to those rights in Zimbabwe ?

Are we not members of the United Nations ? Why are we not being accorded the
basic
Human Rights right here in our own country ?

Do we have freedom of speech ?
Do we have the right to medical care ?
Do we have the right to have a safe working environment ?
Do we have freedom of the press ?
Do we have the right to privacy ?
Do we have the right to bear arms ?
Do we have freedom of opinion and expression ?
Do we have the right to receive an education ?
Do we have freedom of movement/travel ?
Do we have the right to adequate housing ?
Do we have freedom from cruel and unusual punishment ?
Do we have the right to an attorney ?
Do we have the right to a fair trial by jury ?

Do we have the right to have a minimum wage ?
Do we have the right to adequate housing ?

About the only Human Right we have in the long list is the right to live, to
exist, because
that is just about all we are doing at this moment.

Have we got the right to Security ?
Safety from violence ?
Protection from the law ?
Having a fair trial ?
To be seen as innocent, even if a person is arrested, until the person is
found to be guilty
by a fair court ?
To be a citizen of a country ?
To vote ?
To seek asylum if a country treats you badly ?
To think freely ?
To peacefully protest against a government or group ???
To a basic standard of living ??
Education ??
Health care ??

What basic rights do we have as Zimbabweans ?
What are we going to do about it ?

Sleeping rough better than repatriation to Zimbabwe

Photo: Taurai Maduna/IRIN

Merycinah Chauke and son

MUSINA, 16 December 2008 (IRIN) - After just a few hours on a drip, Merycinah Chauke said she could see an improvement in her three-year-old son, under treatment for cholera in a makeshift emergency centre at Madimbo Clinic, in South Africa's northern Limpopo Province.

"We came in this morning after I noticed he was continuously vomiting and having diarrhoea," said a still worried Chauke as she offered her boy a sip of water.

The giant tent in the grounds of Madimbo Clinic, 85km south of the Zimbabwean border, is one of two emergency centres set up to deal with a cholera outbreak that has been declared a disaster by the provincial government.

More than 660 cases of suspected cholera have been recorded in Limpopo over the past month, with eight deaths.

Madimbo Clinic serves the surrounding farming community, and the cholera cases they treat occur among the Zimbabwean migrants crossing the border looking for work as well as local residents. But as a public awareness campaign has got into gear, the numbers have fallen; on 15 December there were just four cases in the emergency unit, three of them children.

"We used to treat a lot of adults but now the numbers have dropped," Tshinakaho Mulaudzi, a health worker, told IRIN. She has been educating the community about the symptoms of cholera, and what can be done to prevent and treat it.

Musina, the town nearest the border with Zimbabwe, has been at the centre of South Africa's cholera outbreak, but the cholera treatment centre at the general hospital has also seen a marked reduction in cases, despite the epidemic continuing to rage in Zimbabwe.

"The situation has greatly improved; there are fewer cases of cholera that are being reported," said John Shiburu, provincial disaster relief coordinator at the South African Red Cross. Around 15 cases were being treated in Musina on 15 December.

Shiburu is still concerned about conditions at the Musina show grounds, an expanse of public land on the outskirts of the town where more than 2,000 people, mostly Zimbabweans seeking asylum, are sheltering.

Suffering in show grounds

There are only a few water taps, and the portable toilets that have been provided are blocked; bedding often consists of a flattened cardboard box laid out on the dusty ground.

Photo: Taurai Maduna/IRIN

Eye sore at show grounds

"We are feeding close to 2,000 people every day, there is no shelter and clean water; hygiene has been compromised," said Shiburu. The asylum seekers who have money buy buckets of cooked meat, rice and maize-meal porridge from hawkers - a heightened health hazard in an area where a disease that is spread by poor sanitation is present.

People endure the conditions at the show grounds because of its proximity to the Department of Home Affairs office, where people queue daily for asylum application forms, and hope for safety from repatriation to Zimbabwe.

The queue for registration is long and fractious. "Home Affairs is delaying processing asylum papers - I have been here for the past week and I am struggling to get a form. More and more people are coming every day," said a young Zimbabwean man, who asked not to be named.

Yet he told IRIN that sleeping rough at the show grounds, and putting up with the pushing and shoving in the application queue, was better than life in Zimbabwe with its unprecedented humanitarian crisis.

Individual tragedies of people, vulnerable and desperate, are common in Musina. One migrant from Masvingo, in southern Zimbabwe, said that some of those lucky enough to win asylum papers had run out of money, and where now selling their hard-won documents.

Another would-be refugee told IRIN: "There are some girls who are sleeping with anyone for as little as R10 [US$1] to buy a plate of sadza [maize-meal porridge]".

Diagnosing dementia with sarcasm?

http://blogs.nature.com/news/thegreatbeyond/2008/12/diagnosing_dementia_with_sarca.html

December 16, 2008
After years of being lambasted as "the lowest form of wit", sarcasm has
fallen into the good graces of doctors as a tool for diagnosing dementia.

John Hodges, a neurologist at Prince of Wales Medical Research Institute in
Australia, and his colleagues designed two sets of short plays that were
identical except for the tone of voice: words were said either seriously, or
sarcastically.

Patients with Alzheimer's could tell the difference between the plays,
whereas patients with fronto-temporal dementia could not, Hodges and
colleagues report in Brain.

"This new study indicates that testing people's ability to detect sarcasm
may help diagnose fronto-temporal dementia," Rebecca Wood, Chief Executive
of the Alzheimer's Research Trust told the Telegraph.

FTD affects 1 in every 4,000 people, and "people with FTD become very
gullible and they often part with large amounts of money", says Hodges.
Currently, FTD is difficult that diagnose or to tell apart from depression,
schizophrenia or personality disorders.

Here, at The Great Beyond, we have no doubt that doctors worldwide will
embrace sarcasm tests.

In other news, Mugabe was trying to be sarcastic when he said recently that
there was no cholera in Zimbabwe, the Guardian reports. No word yet on
whether inappropriate use of sarcasm is also a sign of dementia.