The ZIMBABWE Situation Our thoughts and prayers are with Zimbabwe
- may peace, truth and justice prevail.
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The Age Melbourne

Zimbabwe farm manager wounded in machete attack: union

HARARE, Dec 18 AFP|Published: Wednesday December 19, 12:18 AM



The manager of a white-owned farm in northern Zimbabwe suffered serious head
injuries today after a pro-government militant struck him with a machete,
the Commercial Farmers' Union (CFU) said.

Duncan Cooke, 25, was hospitalised in Harare after the incident on Butleigh
Farm, near the Mutepatepa area in Mashonaland Central province, Jenni
Williams, a spokeswoman for the mainly white CFU, told AFP.

Details of the attack were not immediately available, but Williams said
Cooke had had an altercation with a militant veteran of Zimbabwe's 1970s war
of liberation. Zimbabwe's war veterans have spearheaded invasions of
white-owned farms since February 2000.

The veterans say the invasions are a protest at the slow pace of reforming
colonial-era inequities in land ownership.

They want the government to resettle blacks on farms owned by whites, who
still hold most of the best land in Zimbabwe, 21 years after the end of
white-minority rule.

The farm invadasion campaign has been closely tied to political violence
targetting opposition supporters, and the occupations have also forced tens
of thousands of black farm workers and their families from their homes.

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BBC
 
Tuesday, 18 December, 2001, 16:22 GMT
Neighbours back Mugabe
Robert Mugabe
Some good news for Mugabe at last
Violence associated with Zimbabwe's land reform programme is declining and the government is committed to holding free and fair elections, according to Southern African ministers.

The ministers also repeated their opposition to sanctions at the Southern African Development Community meeting in Angola's capital city, Luanda.

Farm manager Duncan Cooke
Duncan Cooke was slashed with a machete
Both the United States Congress and the European Union parliament have urged their governments to impose targeted sanctions on Zimbabwe's leaders.

As the ministers were signing their statement, a farm manager was recovering in a Harare clinic after being slashed with a machete.

Duncan Cooke, 25, was attacked by a pro-government militant in northern Zimbabwe, says the Commercial Farmers' Union.

Peaceful

President Robert Mugabe slammed the US move as "repugnant, provocative, and indeed a gross violation of international law" in his state of the nation address to parliament on Tuesday.

He also called for presidential elections planned for next March to be free of the violence which has hit the country in the past two years.


The violence on the farms [has] reduced significantly

SADC ministers

"I wish to urge all Zimbabweans to maintain peace and calm as a norm of our society, and proceed to vote in the self-same atmosphere during the forthcoming presidential elections," he said. Also on Tuesday, South Africa's ruling party says it will send a delegation to Harare later this week to discuss land reform and the elections.

"We will make it known what we think of what is happening in Zimbabwe and what we think is out of tune," ANC spokeswoman Nomfanelo Kota told Reuters news agency. She would not elaborate.

'Smart sanctions'

The delegation will be led by ANC chairman Mosiuoa Lekota, who is also South Africa's defence minister, and secretary general Kgalema Motlanthe.

Recently, President Thabo Mbeki is reported to have lost patience with Zimbabwe and threatened to withdraw his support.

Earlier this year, SADC broke ranks with Zimbabwe and expressed concern that the economic crisis there would affect the whole region.


But last week, a delegation of foreign ministers in Harare said they opposed the sanctions being mooted by the US and the EU.

"Smart sanctions," such as a travel ban on Mr Mugabe and his closest associates and a freeze on any foreign assets they have, are being envisaged rather than a more general trade ban.

A draft statement from SADC noted that "violence on the farms had reduced significantly and that the few reported incidents were being dealt with under the criminal justice system."

The ministers also said that Zimbabwe was putting in place "mechanisms to guard against violence" in the presidential poll.

The opposition Movement for Democratic Change is also sceptical that the presidential elections will be free and fair, saying that its leader, Morgan Tsvangirai is being harassed for political motives.

The man expected to pose the strongest-ever challenge to Mr Mugabe in next year's poll was detained twice last week for not possessing a licence for a walkie-talkie radio.



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Ban Mugabe From European Union, Says MEP

 - EuropaWorld: 14/12/2001


Increasingly concerned at the continuing abuse of freedom and human rights
in Zimbabwe, the European Parliament is to debate a Resolution next week
demanding that the EU takes a series of restrictive measures against
President Mugabe and his senior associates. These include travels bans and
the freezing of assets of Zanu-PF politicians.

The matter was brought to a head this week by the news that President Mugabe
is in Spain where he is receiving treatment for an eye disorder.

"The fact that President Mugabe can obtain medical help from Spain - at a
time when the health service in Zimbabwe has collapsed, and the incidence of
HIV/AIDS has hit staggering proportions - supports the case which we have
been making for EU-wide visa restrictions on President Mugabe and his close
associates," said Mrs Glenys Kinnock, a leading member of the European
Parliament.

The MEP said that she had contacted her Spanish colleagues in the European
Parliament, to relay her concerns. "It is shocking to note that at the same
time, the Treasurer of the Opposition Party, the Movement for Democratic
Change, Mr Fletcher Dunili, is languishing in prison in Harare with severely
impaired and rapidly deteriorating eyesight," she added.

Tension is mounting in Zimbabwe ahead of the Presidential elections
scheduled for next April. Mr Mugabe has refused to accept an EU mission to
observe the poll, saying that this would constitute unwarrantable
interference with Zimbabwe's internal affairs. However, a fair presidential
poll is one of the conditions being attached to aid worth $26 million that
has been promised by the United States. Other conditions include the
restoration of the rule of law, particularly in regard to property rights,
free speech, and action to assist in ending the war in the Democratic
Republic of Congo where Mr Mugabe is keeping an army. However the ageing
President has shown no sign of changing his policies to fall in with world
opinion. Meanwhile, his country is sliding ever deeper into crisis with a
shambling economy, soaring fuel prices and a 25 per cent HIV infection rate.
Agricultural production has also slumped as the country's productive farms
have been expropriated by so-called 'war veterans' resulting in widespread
food shortages in a country that was once the breadbasket of southern
Africa.

"The EU should note the fact that the worsening crisis in Zimbabwe clearly
makes no difference to President Mugabe because he can leave the country,
and he has the resources to afford private health care in Europe," said Mrs
Kinnock, "In these circumstances - what chance is there of having free and
democratic Presidential elections?"


EU Heads of State statement on Zimbabwe

17 December 2001
 
The EU Heads of State and Government, over the weekend reiterated their concern at the deteriorating situation in Zimbabwe and made an appeal to the Government of Zimbabwe to take all steps to improve the situation, particularly with a view to Article 96 consultations to be held soon.
 
However Development Commissioner, Poul Nielson told parliament last Wednesday that article 96 consultations will not be easy but should be given a chance. He said the Zimbabwean government had postponed the original date of consultations, which was this week and would possibly be held in January.
 
The EU response is frustrating in that, it is on one hand acknowledging that there is a crisis in Zimbabwe that requires immediate attention, but on the other hand seems not to have a real strategy for moving forward.  Zimbabwe has demonstrated an unwillingness to meet with EU representatives under the auspices of Article 96, which raises serious questions about the effectiveness of the consultation process. Given that violence in the country is escalating while government continues to snub the international community. 
 
In light of this uncertainity we urge the EU to give serious considerations to imposing targeted measures against senior government officials in Zimbabwe who are responsible for the current violence. They have to be isolated and made known to the whole world. Time is running out and Mugabe has been given ample time to put his house in order. Unlike his opponent Tsvangirai who last week openly condemned political violence and more importantly called on Mugabe to join him in putting an end to the prevailing culture of political violence, that is engulfing the country.
 
The whole reason for moving to article 96 consultations was that Zimbabwe had failed to satisfy the EU regarding stipulated areas of concern under article 8. These areas of concern are based on the essential elements which underpin the partnership agreement between  ACP countries and the EU.
 
These essential elements are, respect for human rights, democratic principles and the rule of law. All which the Zimbabwean government has openly violated over the past months.
 
While EU officials sit and fiddle with their fingers wondering which way to go next, the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, Morgan Tsvangirai has been in and out of jail like a yoyo over the weekend, because of trumped up charges concerning two-way radios. For the record, the equipment in question does not require a license under existing regulations. The charges laid against Tsvangirai are the latest in a series of desperate attempts by Mugabe to intimidate him. Tsvangirai a key candidate in the Presidential election, does not have access to the media, access to more than two thirds of the country and is under heavy surveillance, by state agents. This is despite again the election date being some time in March. We can not talk of a free and fair election anymore but measures should at least be taken to give credibility to the rest of the process. These elections must not be treated like an event, as it is the process that matters most.
 
The Human Rights Forum has just released their monthly violence monitoring report, in which the state is the main perpetrator, using violence for political ends. Just in the month of November there were six political murders, eight kidnappings, over 2100 cases of torture and nearly 1000 cases of unlawful detentions. The number of displaced workers has increased to 70 000, these are now internal refugees and can not vote, a result also of amendments to the electoral laws.  As they do not have proof of residency among other requirements. (see attached copy of November violence report)
 
The EU decided to move to article 96 on the 29th of October, all this has taken place, in just a period of a month, since then. What more evidence is needed. Should we go through another Nigerian scenario where the world only woke up after Ken Saro Wiwa and eight other activists were executed for their political beliefs?
 
The EUs credibility in international affairs is at stake the world is waiting to see how they tackle this one. The United States has been vigilant and unwavering in dealing with Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Bill is now just awaiting Presidential Assent.
 
Mugabe made it clear at the Zanu PF Conference that he will stop at nothing to eliminate all opposition to his rule, having declared himself the life President of Zimbabwe. It is time for the international community to call mugabe's bluff and act accordingly. If SADC countries really believe in democracy and the rule of law then they should issue unequivocal statements condemning Mugabe's ruthless defense of his crude system of power and patronage. The people of Zimbabwe deserve better than this and it is time SADC countries take action and not distort the reality of the crisis by issuing statements claiming that the rule of law is being restored in Zimbabwe. Why should we lower our human rights standards just because we are in Africa? In as much as we are demanding greater accountability from the international community we feel our governments should do likewise.
 
The World must rise and be honest in dealing with Zimbabwe. This is test case not just for the EU but for SADC and the Commonwealth too. 

Dulini still in jail

Meanwhile, MDC Treasurer Fletcher Dulini has today entered his fourth week in jail. He was refused bail on the grounds that his case was too complicated for bail to be considered. The refusal to grant bail has raised serious concerns as to how long Dulini will be able to survive in jail considering he is a diabetic and the authorities are refusing to supply him with adequate insulin. The crude historical irony about the Dulini case is that he served 17 years under Ian Smith for supporting the liberation war alongside people like Mugabe.

CMAG to meet in London

Zimbabwe will also be high on the agenda of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group, meeting to be held in London this Thursday. Once again we hope the meeting makes concreete proposals for assisting the Government of Zimbabwe, implement minimum conditions for a free and fair election. Above all the meeting should make strong statements against politically motivated violence.

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MSNBC
Zimbabwe leader assails U.S., British moves as ‘bold insult’


HARARE, Zimbabwe, Dec. 18 —  President Robert Mugabe on Tuesday accused the
United States and Britain of mobilizing against his government, and pledged
to move ahead with a controversial land-seizure program.
        MUGABE SAID the U.S. Zimbabwe Economic and Democracy Bill, which
aims to press Harare to ensure free elections and protect land ownership,
was “a bold insult to the people of Zimbabwe.”
       “No nation, no matter how white and how powerful, should turn itself
into some omnipotent juridical entity and from an imagined Mount Sinai start
bellowing orders or commandments on another,” Mugabe said in a year-end
speech to parliament.
       The bill, endorsed earlier this month by the House, takes a
stick-and-carrot approach to the deepening crisis in Zimbabwe ahead of
presidential elections in March next year.
       It offers a broad package of aid and economic enticements on the
condition that Mugabe’s government end its sponsorship of violence and
commit to an equitable land reform program.
       But if the electoral process is not deemed free or fair, the United
States could impose travel and investment sanctions against Mugabe and his
governing elite who have homes or children at school in the United States
and Europe.
       Mugabe accused the U.S. legislators of seeking “to punish our nation
for undertaking its just role of correcting the historical inequity in land
distribution.”

         “We are not at war with the United States and so the behavior of
its legislature is repugnant, provocative and indeed a gross violation of
international law,” he added.

EU SANCTIONS
       Mugabe also accused Britain of spearheading a European Union
sanctions campaign against his government, saying the former colonial power
had not fulfilled its obligation to provide financial support for Zimbabwe’s
land reforms.
       “Instead of mobilizing donors, Britain has sought to alienate
prospective donors ... by deploying her apparatus of diplomacy to cajole,
lobby, entice and even pressure her various associations in the
international community in order to stop, if not reverse the land reform
program,” Mugabe said.
       Critics say Mugabe has largely ignored a Nigerian-brokered agreement
that his government signed in September to end the often violent invasions
of white-owned farms. But Mugabe said his government was respecting the
accord.
       “I wish to assure the nation that government’s commitment to Abuja is
both unequivocal and beyond question. ... Violence related to the land
reforms is largely ... confined to sporadic incidents,” he said.

       The Commercial Farmers Union, whose mostly white members have been
targeted by militant supporters of Mugabe’s land drive, said Tuesday a white
farm manager sustained serious, but not life-threatening head injuries after
he was attacked on his property.
       Southern African ministers, meeting in the Angolan capital Luanda
Tuesday, voiced fresh opposition to sanctions against Zimbabwe, insisting
that violence had subsided and Harare was committed to free and fair
elections next year.
       The ministers backed Mugabe’s leadership and said mechanisms were in
place to prevent violence ahead of the March polls.

‘REAL WAR’
       After 21 years in power, Mugabe faces a stiff electoral challenge
from Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the main opposition Movement for
Democratic Change.
       Last week, Mugabe declared “real war” on his political foes, and
Tsvangirai was hauled before police Saturday and charged with possessing a
two-way radio without a license .
       South Africa’s ruling African National Congress said on Tuesday it
was sending a high-level delegation to Zimbabwe this week for talks with
ZANU-PF on land reform and next year’s poll.
       South Africa has argued against a confrontational approach to its
neighbor’s problems, which have weighed on investor confidence in the region
and battered South Africa’s currency, the rand.
MSNBC

Mugabe lashes out at Britain, U.S. over sanctions

HARARE, Dec. 18 — Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe accused the United
States and Britain on Tuesday of mobilising sanctions against his
government, and vowed to press ahead with a controversial land seizure
programme.
Mugabe said the U.S. Zimbabwe Economic and Democracy Bill, which aims to
press Harare to ensure free elections and protect land ownership, was ''a
bold insult to the people of Zimbabwe.''
       ''No nation, no matter how white and how powerful should turn itself
into some omnipotent juridical entity and from an imagined Mount Sinai start
bellowing orders or commandments on another,'' Mugabe said in a year-end
speech to parliament.
       The bill, endorsed earlier this month by the U.S. House of
Representatives, takes a stick-and-carrot approach to the deepening crisis
in Zimbabwe ahead of presidential elections in March next year.
       It offers a broad package of aid and economic enticements on the
condition that Mugabe's government end its sponsorship of violence and
commit to an equitable land reform programme.
       But if the electoral process is not deemed free or fair, the U.S.
could impose travel and investment sanctions against Mugabe and his
governing elite who have homes or children at school in the United States
and Europe.
       Mugabe accused the U.S. legislators of seeking ''to punish our nation
for undertaking its just role of correcting the historical inequity in land
distribution.''
       ''We are not at war with the United States and so the behaviour of
its legislature is repugnant, provocative and indeed a gross violation of
international law,'' he added.

EU SANCTIONS CAMPAIGN
       Mugabe also accused Britain of spearheading a European Union
sanctions campaign against his government, saying the former colonial power
had not fulfilled its obligation to provide financial support for Zimbabwe's
land reforms.
       ''Instead of mobilising donors, Britain has sought to alienate
prospective donors...by deploying her apparatus of diplomacy to cajole,
lobby, entice and even pressure her various associations in the
international community in order to stop, if not reverse the land reform
programme,'' Mugabe said.
       Critics say Mugabe has largely ignored a Nigerian-brokered agreement
that his government signed in September to end the often violent invasions
of white-owned farms. But Mugabe said his government was respecting the
accord.
       ''I wish to assure the nation that government's commitment to Abuja
is both unequivocal and beyond question...Violence related to the land
reforms is largely...confined to sporadic incidents,'' he said.
       The Commercial Farmers Union (CFU), whose mostly white members have
been targeted by militant supporters of Mugabe's land drive, said on Tuesday
a white farm manager sustained serious, but not life-threatening head
injuries after he was attacked on his property.
       Southern African ministers, meeting in the Angolan capital Luanda on
Tuesday, voiced fresh opposition to sanctions against Zimbabwe, insisting
that violence had subsided and Harare was committed to free and fair
elections next year.
       The ministers backed Mugabe's leadership and said mechanisms were in
place to prevent violence ahead of the March polls.
       After 21 years in power, Mugabe faces a stiff electoral challenge
from Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the main opposition Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC).
       Last week, Mugabe declared ''real war'' on his political foes, and
Tsvangirai was hauled before police on Saturday and charged with possessing
a two-way radio without a licence.
       South Africa's ruling African National Congress said on Tuesday it
was sending a high-level delegation to Zimbabwe this week for talks with
ZANU-PF on land reform and next year's poll.
       South Africa has argued against a confrontational approach to its
neighbour's problems, which have weighed on investor confidence in the
region and battered South Africa's rand currency.


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ABC News

Southern African Group Opposes Sanctions on Mugabe


By Buchizya Mseteka
LUANDA, Angola (Reuters) - Southern African ministers voiced fresh
opposition to sanctions against Zimbabwe Tuesday, insisting that violence
had subsided and Harare was committed to free and fair elections next year.

Defense and foreign ministers from the 14-member Southern African
Development Community (SADC) also called for Angola's UNITA rebels fighting
a 26-year-old civil war to be declared a "terrorist" group.

Zimbabwe was not part of the official agenda for the two-day meeting in the
Angolan capital Luanda.

But in a draft closing statement, the ministers backed President Robert
Mugabe's leadership as Zimbabwe descends deeper into a crisis fueled by
Harare's controversial seizure of white-owned farms for black resettlement.

"The ministers noted progress with regard to the land reform program in
Zimbabwe," the statement said, adding that "violence on the farms had
reduced significantly."

SADC has been sharply criticized for failing to take tough action against
Zimbabwe, where Mugabe has approved the sometimes violent seizure of
white-owned lands and ignored the intimidation of political foes by his
ruling ZANU-PF party.

A SADC delegation to Zimbabwe last week rejected any form of sanctions
against Mugabe's government, saying it would hurt not only the former
British colony but its neighbors in the region.

A senior U.S. official urged Mugabe last week to ensure conditions were in
place for fair elections or risk U.S. sanctions. Critics say Mugabe has
chosen a biased state election body and barred millions abroad from voting.

The southern African ministers said Mugabe's government was committed to
free and fair presidential elections due before the end of March, "including
mechanisms to guard against violence."

Last week, Mugabe declared "real war" on his political foes, targeting his
main opposition rival who was hauled before police Saturday and charged with
possessing a two-way radio without a license.

Critics say Mugabe's militant supporters -- led by so-called veterans of the
independence war -- have continued a violent campaign against the opposition
ahead of next year's poll.

The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), led by former trade unionist
Morgan Tsvangirai, poses the strongest challenge to Mugabe since he led
former Rhodesia to independence in 1980.

UNITA CALLED A "TERRORIST" GROUP

The SADC ministers also called for veteran Angolan guerrilla leader Jonas
Savimbi and his UNITA movement to be put on a list of terrorist
organizations. The ministers also called for tighter sanctions against the
rebel movement to force it into talks with the Luanda government to end the
civil war.

Officials said Angola's strategy was inspired partly by the U.S. "war on
terrorism" and inclusion of three east African rebel groups in a new
"terrorist exclusion list."

The U.S. list, which includes 39 groups, did not include UNITA, which
enjoyed U.S. support during the Cold War against the then Russian and
Cuban-backed Luanda government.

The Luanda government wants UNITA to return to the Lusaka Protocol, a peace
deal signed in 1994. It collapsed four years later when the government
attacked UNITA, accusing Savimbi of breaking the U.N.-brokered agreement.



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CNN

S. Africa's ANC to hold talks in Zimbabwe
December 18, 2001 Posted: 9:19 AM EST (1419 GMT)


JOHANNESBURG, South Africa -- South Africa's ruling African National
Congress said on Tuesday it was sending a high-level delegation to Zimbabwe
for talks that would include land reform and next year's presidential
elections.

"We will make it known what we think of what is happening in Zimbabwe and
what we think is out of tune," ANC spokeswoman Nomfanelo Kota said. She
would not elaborate.

She said a senior ANC delegation will visit Zimbabwe this week for talks
with President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF party.

Kota told Reuters the delegation would discuss electoral processes, land
reform and economic issues with senior ZANU-PF officials, but stressed it
was not a specific meeting on the current economic and political crisis in
Zimbabwe.

She declined to comment on any specific concerns the ANC had with government
rule in neighbouring Zimbabwe.

South African President Thabo Mbeki said last month the situation in
Zimbabwe was getting worse and may deteriorate further if presidential
elections were not free and fair.

He also said South Africa had argued against a "confrontational" approach to
Zimbabwe's most divisive problem -- the redistribution to landless blacks of
farmlands owned by a dwindling number of white farmers.

Kota said ANC chairman Mosiuoa Lekota, who is also South Africa's defence
minister, and Secretary-General Kgalema Motlanthe would lead the team in the
two-day talks as part of a drive to extend links with other former
liberation movements.

South Africa's Deputy President Jacob Zuma may also attend the talks, but
this had yet to be confirmed, she added.

Mugabe, who hopes to extend his 21 years in power at presidential elections
next year, declared "real war" on his political foes at the weekend and
compared his party's political campaign to a military operation.

Critics say Mugabe's militant supporters -- led by so-called veterans of the
independence war -- have continued a violent campaign against the opposition
ahead of next year's vote.

Hopes for a gradual and peaceful handover have been dashed by land
occupations and violence, which critics argue is part of a campaign to
intimidate voters ahead of the March elections.

South Africa has stressed it does not support sanctions, approved by the
United States earlier this month, as a means to encourage free and fair
elections and a more equitable land reform programme in Zimbabwe.

The planned talks come amid a battering of the South African rand which on
Friday fell to historic lows against the dollar, pound and euro as bad news
from Zimbabwe conspired with tight liquidity to take the market weaker.


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ZIMBABWE HUMAN RIGHTS PROTEST - ENGLAND

Date: Saturday 19 January  2002
Time: 12.00hrs - 14.00hrs
Venue: Zimbabwe High Commission
429 Strand Street
London
(Nearest tube Charring Cross).
 
With months to go before the critical presidential elections in Zimbabwe it is essential that the international community uses all its resources to ensure that the election not only takes place but will also be free and fair. The presidential election in March is not just about choosing a new government, it is also about choosing a new society for the people of Zimbabwe, a society based on core democratic principles.

The cessation of all acts of violence against farm workers, farmers, the media, the judiciary, opposition parties, church organisations and gay activists.

The immediate return and respect to the rule of law and democratic rights, privileges and principles.

Call upon all Churches and governments throughout the world who have remained silent to finally stand up and speak out against the Zimbabwean the exploitation, injustice towards, and oppression of the poor, weak, defenceless, and innocent, particularly in the rural areas.

The cessation of intimidation and acts of violence on teachers, businesses, human rights organisations, NGO's, Christians and secular persons alike, who are involved in non-violent opposition to the government and daily face the threat of beatings, torture, abduction, rape, the illegal occupation and destruction of the owners property.

The rights of women and mothers of Zimbabwe seeking to protect their families livelihoods and homes, who are so exposed and susceptible, particularly in the rural areas, farming communities and outlying areas.

The immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all Zimbabwean troops/militia associated to Mugabe's exploitation and plunder of the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC's) forests ''one of the world's last great rain forests presently being laid to waste by logging operations and extraction of mineral resources''. The Congo has nearly half of Africa's and 6 percent of the world's, tropical rain forest. The immediate investigation of the nature and area of operations, quantifying soldiers of such forces and the return and location of the bodies of Zimbabwean soldiers to immediately be returned to Zimbabwe for decent burial.

Call upon the British Government, the Commonwealth and the European Union to impose selective sanctions on Zimbabwe government officials as introduced by the United States Senate in the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Bill. Approved by the Senate Committee on foreign relations on 12 July 2001 and tabled in the House of Representatives by September 2001.Call upon the International Community to assist in reopening investigations into the Matabeleland and Midlands massacres. There is an extensive and carefully worded document compiled by the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace in Zimbabwe and published in March 1997. The report investigates mass murders and other human rights violations that occurred during the conflicts that followed Robert Mugabe's rise to Presidency. The North Korean trained 5th-Brigade under direct control of Robert Mugabe with clear instructions to wage the '' War of ''GUKURAHUNDI'' to remove the chaff from the wheat. Why has this information been suppressed for so long, the conspiracy of silence must end.
 
WE CALL UPON THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO ARREST ROBERT GABRIEL MUGABE FOR CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY. HOW LONG DOES ZANU-PF CONTINUE THE CULTURE OF IMPUNITY?
The British  government have once again thrown the Mugabe regime a life line. In the absence of Mugabe himself being at Abuja in Nigeria on 6 September 2001. Mugabe will once again take the (British) money  and us it for presidential elections and will carry on as usual.   
The appointment of an independent, professional electoral commission with an adequate budget which will be given the task of running the presidential election. It will take over the process immediately from Mr Mudede and his collection of goons in the Ministry of Home Affairs and be fully responsible and accountable to the Parliament of Zimbabwe.
  Agreement to abandon the hopeless voters roll - at least a quarter of all voters on the roll are dead and a further 10 percent have emigrated. Until we repair this damage, the presidential election should be held on the same basis as the 1980 elections - treat the country as one constituency and allow all citizens to vote where they live.
Provide for independent supervision of the state media - perhaps through the electoral commission and grant access to the state controlled media for all candidates. Lift all restrictions on the International media immediately.
Allow full International supervision of the campaign and voting in the presidential campaign, such supervision to begin at least three months before the date of the election. Then let the people of Zimbabwe decide who is going to govern this country next year 2002. 
Finally, an end to International cynicism and practices amongst the world's leadership that accepts conspiratorial alliances and exploitation which drastically affect or destroy Zimbabwe's economy and that of other African Countries, as part of the African way of life and looks elsewhere at the desperate plight of many African nations and shrugs it's shoulders and thinks things are not that bad in Zimbabwe. Here we wish to prevent Zimbabwe from becoming another Rwanda, Angola, Sierra Leone or Congo etc. Without International intervention Zimbabwe may well be heading for a civil war. Countries bordering Zimbabwe may well become places of refuge for thousands.

For More Information Contact:
Albert Weidemann
1 Ambrose Road
Ripon
North Yorkshire
HG4 1SH
England
Tel: 01765 607 900
albert@weidemann.fsnet.co.uk
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COMMERCIAL FARMERS' UNION
Farm Invasions And Security Report
Monday 17 December 2001



This report does not purport to cover all the incidents that are taking place in the commercial farming areas.  Communication problems and the fear of reprisals prevent farmers from reporting all that happens.  Farmers names, and in some cases farm names, are omitted to minimise the risk of reprisals.

NATIONAL REPORT IN BRIEF
·       Masvingo sees continued herding of cattle on to the main road, posing dangers to cattle and motorists alike.
·       Police do not respond to call outs from Duiker Flats, Mashonaland Central, to attend senseless assaults on a driver and a supervisor
·       Labour problems mount in the Horseshoe area, with Amajuba reaching a resolution and the Penrose manager barricaded in before a solution was found.  A nasty barricading happened at Nyamasewe with the farmer forcing an escape.
·        A robbery at a homestead in the Victory Block saw shots fired with no one hurt, a vehicle stolen for the get away and a subsequent accident at which the suspects, bruised but fine, were arrested.
·        DDF activity apparent in Chegutu/Suri Suri, with forced entry on to one farm resulting in a broken gate.
·         A Gwanda rancher has his labour beaten up and forced off-farm, leaving his cattle with no one to protect or feed them.
·        A “peaceful demonstration” in Inyati results in three horses and one foal being axed.  One horse will have to be destroyed.
 
 
REGIONAL NEWS

MANICALAND
No report received.

MASVINGO
Mwenezi – There has been continued rampant poaching, snaring and theft whilst ploughing and planting continue on a daily basis.  On La Pache Farm, the owner has been approached by the DA Mwenezi, CIO, and police officials concerning his cattle eating occupiers’ maize.  They also complained about his throwing out carcasses to feed the vultures on his farm, saying it is their land and they do not appreciate this happening!  Subsequently, the cattle were herded on to the main road, resulting in a traffic jam.  The female perpetrator was identified and only after much persistence, did the police react and issue an RRB number.  The cattle on Lumbergia Ranch are herded on to the main highway at night.  Two cows were reported snared and speared soon after.  Daily illegal movement of cattle continues on Kleinbegin Ranch despite a court order for the Veterinary Department and police to remove all communal cattle from this property.  The number of cattle has increased and three DDF tractors have been ploughing up the owner’s perennial grass.  This is merely for destructive purposes as the depth of ploughing is shallow.  Five dogs used by occupiers for poaching, followed by six of the occupiers, chased a kudu bull into the garden on Merrivale Ranch which got tangled in the security fence.  The occupiers speared the bull, then left, leaving behind the meat.  The owner of Lizuma Ranch has continuous complaints from occupiers about his cattle eating their maize.  Fences have been cut and gates are left open, making it difficult to control the situation. 
Chiredzi - A continuation of poaching, snaring and theft with illegal ploughing and planting on many properties in this area. 
Masvingo East and Central - On Lamotte Farm the owner has reported a theft of 11 gate valves valued @$6134.85 each and 11 irrigation adaptors valued at $2305.00 each making a total of $92 838.35.  Otherwise, the situation remains the same.
Save Conservancy - Continued poaching and snaring.
Gutu / Chatsworth - Nothing to report.
 
MIDLANDS
No report received.

MASHONALAND CENTRAL
Bindura – Cragside Farm was pegged on Friday but, as yet, there are no settlers.  On Wednesday last week, the driver working on Duiker Flats was beaten up by occupiers for no apparent reason, with the supervisor suffering the same on Saturday.  The occupiers also attempted to remove labourers from their homes.  Police have not responded to the call out.
Horseshoe – on Amajuba 11.12.01, the labour strike ended with intervention by a labour officer from Bindura.  The package includes backpay for November at the new wage rate, excluding days on strike.  Labour returned to work 12.12.01.  At Penrose 11.12.01 the manager was barricaded into workshop area until agreed to pay labour backpay for November at new wage rate. Tiaseka and Norwe both pegged by Agritex 11.12.01.  On 12.12.01, Blue Grass ex-workers' committee (having taken retrenchment package and left farm to go to their homes in the Zambezi Valley, and having signed a contract of termination stating what they were paid was in full and final settlement of all due to them) returned to the farm today to give notice of their demand for back-pay from November at the "new wage rate", saying that they would return on Friday for same. Makashwe Farm had an amicable meeting with settlers stating a list of wants and the farmer agreeing to comply if politics was left out of the negotiations.  A subsequent visit by the settlers found the farmer absent and they attempted to evict workers.  A meeting with a Mr Maurakira resulted in him ordering the farmer off farm.  Eventually Mr Rupiya, the DA, came to address the settlers, telling the farmer “politics is the issue of Zimbabwe and that everyone is a politician, and if [you] did not want politics, [you] should go.” 
Penrose Farm labourers continue to demand back pay and have threatened the manager in the owner’s absence.  The situation was resolved when told they would be paid on December 20.  Ex-employees who left Nyamasewe Farm between three to seven years ago have returned demanding retrenchment packages.  They barricaded in the farmer and his family, shouting threats from the security gates of the homestead.  The farmer tried to load up his computer and personal equipment on to a truck with the ex-employees off loading at the same time.  In trying to leave through a side gate, he was prevented when they rushed to wire it shut.  Eventually he managed to break through and escape.
Mvurwi – Farfield has a work stoppage and the occupiers have threatened to evict all people on the farm.  The manager has locked himself in the house while the police try resolve the issue.  Birkdale Farm occupiers stopped the owner from removing the bulk curer and the police have been called in.  An armed robbery took place in the early hours of this morning in the Victory Block, where thieves broke through the security gates and then the back door.  Shots were fired but no one was hurt.  The thieves made off with valuables and escaped in the owner’s red Toyota Corolla.  The vehicle has been found as it was involved in an accident.  The occupants received cuts and bruises and the police are investigating.
Mazowe/Concession – ongoing pegging and ploughing continues.  Many farmers have been issued new Section 8 orders.
 
MASHONALAND WEST (NORTH)
No report received.

MASHONALAND WEST SOUTH
Chegutu/Suri-Suri – on Cigaro Farm a pump was stolen and the police complained they had no stationery to give the owner an RRB number.  Occupiers have taken down the cattle handling facility, which the police feel is a matter for the DA.  They have demanded the keys for the main house and continue to pressure the owner for them.  As DDF could not get through the gate to plough on Farnham, an unlisted property, they pulled it off its hinges and broke it.  DDF ploughed on Ijapo Farm but no settlers have planted due to lack of seed and fertiliser.  Weeds have taken over, as has happened on most farms where farmers have been prevented from planting.
Kadoma/Battlefields/Chakari – over a week ago, occupiers moved into the homestead on Mazarite Estate and police have done nothing, despite the DA agreeing this was illegal.  The occupiers have moved into the cottage containing valuable equipment.  On Croc-Na-Ragh occupiers have asked the owner if police and army personnel can move into the house.  Chief Inspector Makaza asked the workers on Alabama if they wanted to work, after intimidating the workforce prior by telling them to “not work for the white man.”  Naturally, no one was brave enough to want to work and he has ensured they will be paid off, including the domestic workers.
General – Nine Section 8 orders have been received in the last few days.  No pattern is apparent, with some single owned farms that are fully productive and less than the maximum farm regulations, being targeted.
 
MATABELELAND
Gwanda – a ranch owner and his family were forced to leave five weeks ago and warned to not return.  The owner reported this week that six “warvets” chased away his labour, beat them up and burnt their blankets.  Police responded and opened a docket for assault and malicious damage to property but there has been no follow up.  His cattle are still on the property and he is concerned there is now no labour to pump water for the cattle and protect calves from predators.
Inyati – on Pyramids Estate, the manager retrenched six workers, going through the proper channels with NEC.  The “warvets” sent him an unsigned letter stating he must re-employ them.  All six have taken plots on farm.  On 11.12.01, approximately 250 people descended on Gourlays Ranch from 5.30 am.  The police finally arrived with the army and all 14 men were armed.  This was a “peaceful demonstration” against the whites as they had murdered Cain Nkala.  During this “peaceful demonstration”, three horses and a foal were axed and one of the horses will have to be put down.





aisd1@cfu.co.zw                                       Visit the CFU Website www.mweb.co.zw/cfu
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Harare, EU to hold talks
---

By Tony Hawkins
HARARE - With President Robert Mugabe's threat to turn March's presidential
election campaign into "a war" ringing in his ears, Zimbabwean Foreign
Minister Stan Mudenge will attend a meeting in Brussels today to try to head
off the threat of European Union sanctions.

An EU team, led by Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel, will ask Mudenge
how free and fair elections can be conducted in view of the kind of
atmosphere created by Mugabe's weekend outburst.

He will also be questioned about the this week's fast-tracking of new laws
and the arrest of Morgan Tsvangirai, Mugabe's opponent in the poll. On
Saturday Mugabe told his Zanu (PF) party congress: "This is total war. It is
not a game. You are all soldiers of Zanu (PF) for the people."

Mugabe's bellicose language was matched by others. John Nkomo, home affairs
minister, told delegates that the government was "activating our security to
curb terrorism". The security forces would be sent to bring terrorists to
justice the American way, he added.

On Friday, and again on Saturday, Tsvangerai, leader of the Movement for
Democratic Change, was arrested on charges of possessing unlicensed radio
communications equipment - walkie talkies. Police said he would be charged
under the Broadcasting Act, but MDC officials said the equipment belonged to
the party and therefore he could not be held responsible.

Mudenge's visit to Brussels will coincide with the first reading of the
government's draconian public order and security bill, which makes it a
criminal offence for a person to organise or take part in an act of civil
disobedience.

The bill prescribes up to 20 years' jail for anyone convicted of organising
civil disobedience. It also allows police to ban political and public
gatherings and bars newspapers from publishing negative reports about the
president.

At the same time, recent government legislation will be challenged in the
High Court. A judgment is expected tomorrow in an action challenging the
citizenship act, requiring Zimbabweans to renounce their right to foreign
citizenship, while in another action the opposition is seeking to overturn
changes to some of the country's electoral laws.

Sources: Financial Times and Sapa-AFP

Business Day
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Business Day


Zim's inflation jumps to 103.8%
----

HARARE - Zimbabwe's year-on-year inflation jumped to 103.8% in November,
almost six percentage points above the 97.9% recorded in October, the
Central Statistical Office (CSO) said.
The latest figure means prices in Zimbabwe have more than doubled between
November 2000 and November 2001, and confirmed economists' fears that
inflation would reach 100% by the end of the year.

Costs for some items rose much faster than the general rate of inflation,
with medecines and school books roughly tripling in price, according to the
CSO report.

The news was a further sign of deterioration in Zimbabwe's battered economy,
mired in depression for the last two years. The economic crisis will figure
as a major issue in the presidential elections set for March, when incumbent
Robert Mugabe faces a serious challenge from opposition leader Morgan
Tsvangirai.

Skyrocketing costs for basic foodstuffs prompted the government last month
to impose price controls, reducing the price of items such as bread, sugar,
cooking oil and meats by five to 20%.

Harare has since extended price controls to goods such as paraffin,
fertilizer, seed and agricultural chemicals.
The result has been shortages of many of those goods, as producers say the
new prices are below their production costs.

The economic crisis is exacerbated by the sometimes deadly political
violence that has wracked Zimbabwe for almost two years.

AFP


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From The Star (SA), 17 December

ANC heavyweights called in to lean on Mugabe

Harare - President Thabo Mbeki will deploy a high-powered ANC delegation on Thursday in a last-ditch effort to persuade President Robert Mugabe to create conditions for free and fair elections and to uphold the rule of law in the run-up to next year's crunch presidential ballot. Zanu PF national chair John Nkomo said on Monday he could not discuss the details of the meeting, but his party's officials said the main items on the agenda would be the March election and land reform. The officials said ANC vice-president Jacob Zuma, national chair Mosiuoa Lekota and secretary-general Kgalema Motlanthe would hold two days of talks with senior Zanu PF officials in Harare on Thursday and Friday. The initiative comes after Mugabe exhorted his supporters to prepare for a physical fight against opposition supporters at the annual congress of his Zanu PF party over the weekend. "Yes, unless something changes, the ANC top leadership is coming for discussions," said a top Zanu PF official. "President Mbeki is worried about the upsurge of violence in the run-up to next year's election and what his party perceives as the general lawlessness here. He wants to open dialogue on these issues at party level."

The sources would not fully explain why Mbeki had resorted to party-to-party contact with Zanu PF instead of the normal government-to-government talks. However, they said they suspected that Mbeki's decision to keep Foreign Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma out of all the Commonwealth and Southern African Development Community ministerial delegations to Zimbabwe might have been precipitated by his plans to start engaging Zimbabwe at party level. "There seems to be a feeling on the South African side that progress could be made if the ANC and Zanu PF, which are both key liberation movements, can sit down for some serious business," said an official. This will be the first time that Mbeki has sent the entire top leadership of the ANC to engage Mugabe's party in dialogue. Zimbabwean analysts said the harassment of opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai on Friday and Mugabe's war talk at the Zanu PF party congress at the weekend were ample proof that Mugabe did not intend holding a free and fair election next year.

From The Zimbabwe Standard, 16 December

Judge orders Spooner’s release

The Supreme Court has ordered the release from remand prison of Bulawayo businessman, Simon Spooner, who is also the personal aide to David Coltart, the MDC’s MP for Bulawayo South. He had been languishing in prison for nearly one month for allegedly participating in the killing of Cain Nkala, a Zanu PF activist. In his ruling on Friday, Justice Simbarashe Muchechetere dismissed the State’s objections to the release of Spooner and said he would give his reasons later. The judge ordered that a warrant for Spooner’s release be issued immediately. Spooner was represented by Advocate Chris Anderson, instructed by Ms Nyaradzo Maphosa of Sawyer and Mkushi. Spooner was one of 14 people arrested in connection with last month’s murder in Bulawayo of Cain Nkala, the former chairman of the Zimbabwe Liberation War Veterans’ Association. Nkala was abducted from his Bulawayo home, and a week later his body was found buried in a shallow grave near Matopos. President Mugabe declared Nkala a national hero and branded his killers terrorists linked to the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). MDC MP for Lobengula-Magwegwe, Fletcher Dulini Ncube, who is diabetic, has been denied bail by the High Court in Bulawayo despite pleas from family members who have cited his deteriorating health. Ncube is also being detained in connection with Nkala’s death which the ruling Zanu PF party is using to whip up emotions ahead of next year’s presidential poll. Despite the government pointing accusing fingers at the MDC, relatives of the slain war veterans leader have said he was a victim of feuding within the ranks of the war veterans association.

Update from ZWNEWS: Simon Spooner's release was eventually secured on the evening of Saturday 15 December. Numerous obstructions were raised by the police, despite the Supreme Court order. Spooner's lawyers reported him to be in good spirits, despite a significant weight loss during his incarceration in "atrocious conditions". Fletcher Dulini-Ncube was granted bail by the Supreme Court on Monday, but he is yet to be released. News of the other eight MDC members arrested at the same time was not available this morning. During their imprisonment, the two were held in tiny cells for up to 22 hours a day. They were denied toilet paper, and the toilets in the prison were not working. Dulini-Ncube was also denied adequate supplies of insulin and medical attention, and suffered sight and hearing loss as a result.

From The Cape Argus (SA), 17 December

SADC under fire for backing 'despotic' Mugabe

The harassment of Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai last week and President Robert Mugabe's war talk at the Zanu PF congress was further proof that he did not intend holding free and fair elections next year, analysts and politicians said at the weekend. They also expressed their concern and puzzlement over the SADC's endorsement of Mugabe's policies last week. University of the Witwatersrand researcher Ross Herbert said the arrest was a direct consequence of the failure of South Africa's policy toward Mugabe's "increasingly despotic rule". He was referring to the SADC ministerial visit to Zimbabwe this week to audit its land reform, which ended in the six-member team embracing Mugabe's violent land seizure programme as the basis for future aid and development.

Zimbabwean police detained Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, for about four hours on Friday after a pre-dawn raid on his home. Police said they took him into custody because he failed to produce a licence for a shortwave walkie-talkie radio that Tsvangirai used to communicate with his personal security guards. At the Zanu PF congress in Victoria Falls at the weekend, Mugabe exhorted his supporters to treat the presidential elections next year as a "total war" and a third chimurenga (freedom war). He was also quoted as saying he would deploy security forces to protect farmers newly settled on white farmland from attack by farmers and farm workers. Herbert, who works for the SA Institute of International Affairs, said: "Instead of challenging Mugabe, SADC embraced his violent land grab. In so doing they greatly boosted Mugabe's propaganda campaign and squandered the last best chance to stop the violence and mass disenfranchisement of urban voters that is now under way." Leader of the Opposition Tony Leon said in a statement that Tsvangirai's "arrest on a trumped up charge is further proof... that Mugabe has no intention of allowing a free and fair election".

In a communique issued on Thursday to follow up a two-day visit to assess Zimbabwe's land reform programme, the six ministers, including SA Labour Minister Membathisi Mdladlana appeared to follow Mugabe's line on issues such as media responsibility for Zimbabwe's bad image, the legality of land seizures, the alleged failure by Britain to supply finance for land reform and any form of sanctions as a disaster for the region. The communique failed to make mention of critical matters such as recent clampdowns on the press and opposition parties, widespread scepticism over the free and fair conditions for next year's presidential elections, and the banning of large sections of the population from the polls. The team "welcomed the improved atmosphere of calm and stability" and welcomed the decision by the Zimbabwe Supreme Court last month declaring Mugabe's land reform programme to be legal and constitutional. The finding was widely condemned as fraudulent as it followed a sustained campaign of intimidation by state agents against the judiciary. Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad confirmed that the position in the communique was also that of the South African government. Zimbabwean constitutional lawyer Dr Lovemore Madhuku called the meeting a waste of time. "For those of us struggling for a democratic process it was a non-event but a triumph for Mugabe." Political analyst Professor Elfas Mukonoweshuro said: "I'm afraid this is not good news for all Zimbabweans because this is an endorsement to abandon good governance and pursue the breakdown of the rule of law."

From the Financial Times (UK), 14 December

South Africa blames unrest in Zimbabwe for low rand

Johannesburg - As South Africa's financial services sector leaves Johannesburg this weekend for Christmas holidays, many wonder what they will come back to in early January. Their worry is not burglars in a city notorious for crime, but the value of the rand. On the eve of the annual exodus to the coast, the rand closed at R12.36 to dollar and R17.96 to the pound sterling. The rand is the world's worst performing currency against the dollar over the past six months - closely followed by those of Turkey and Botswana. The rand has fallen more than 40 per cent against the dollar this year. It fell about 7 per cent on Friday, living up to its reputation among local economists as the "wild card" confounding state policy.

One of the reasons for its decline lies across South Africa's northern border in Zimbabwe. Traders put part of the blame for Friday's fall on the arrest of Morgan Tsvangirai, the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, in Harare, and belligerent comments by President Robert Mugabe at the ruling Zanu PF party conference. In what was interpreted as unrelenting intimidation of the opposition, Mr Tsvangirai was arrested for having a two-way radio in his possession. He was released after being held in custody for half an hour. The prospect of Mr Mugabe standing for election in March, and a toothless engagement between Stan Mudenge, Zimbabwe's foreign minister, and a ministerial delegation from the Southern African Development Community this week, gave financial markets little hope of improvement for the first quarter of next year.

The US and South Africa acknowledge that international initiatives are having little effect in putting an end to intimidation of the opposition, selective application of the law and the exclusion of the international media from the country. But the markets view South Africa's response as a test for its leadership under President Thabo Mbeki, who has set out a stall that African states can promote good governance among themselves. The fall of the rand is also rattling some of the ruling African National Congress' best-laid macroeconomic foundations, including a keystone inflation target of 6 per cent or below. Economists increasingly expect higher interest rates to await the holidaymakers' return.

From the Zimbabwe Independent, 14 December

Feud threatens poll campaign

President Mugabe’s home area of Mashonaland West, seen as a stronghold of the ruling party, has been rocked by factionalism as Chegutu MP Webster Shamu and other provincial heavyweights refused to campaign for Zanu PF’s candidate, Stanley Majiri, in last weekend’s mayoral poll. Shamu, the unofficial political godfather of Chegutu, refused to campaign for his party’s candidate. The Chegutu mayoral poll was won by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change candidate, Francis Blessing Dhlakama. Two factions have emerged in Chegutu - one led by the upstart provincial chairman, Philip Chiyangwa, and the other by Shamu, the ousted chairman. Shamu’s camp reportedly comprises Swithun Mombeshora and Edna Madzongwe, among others. Nathan Shamuyarira, Ignatius Chombo, Chiyangwa and Paul Mangwana are said to be in the other group. A row erupted over the election of the candidate before the poll with the two camps submitting different names.

Sources said the failure by Shamu to effectively campaign for Majiri contributed to the defeat by the MDC. Chiyangwa refused to comment on the latest developments. "You are from the Independent. I am sorry I cannot comment on that," Chiyangwa said before switching off his mobile phone. Contacted for comment, Shamu would neither confirm nor deny the latest developments. "You can ask Philip Chiyangwa and his executive, they are running the show," Shamu said. Political analyst Brian Raftopoulos said the divisions in Chegutu and Masvingo were certain to hinder Mugabe’s presidential election campaign. "I think this is a serious problem in Zanu PF and it is likely to harm Mugabe’s campaign. Chegutu was a Zanu PF stronghold but it has fallen to the opposition MDC. Masvingo is one of the most populated areas in Zimbabwe and if factionalism continues there is likely to be a low turnout or a protest vote for the MDC. The implications are very serious for the ruling party," said Raftopoulos. Sources said Shamu and Zvobgo were mulling an alliance and this would further compound Mugabe’s problems ahead of the biggest challenge he has ever faced in his 21 years of unbridled rule. "The two are frustrated by the way Mugabe is treating them. They are now sidelined despite the sterling work they did for Mugabe," said a source.

From The Zimbabwe Standard, 16 December

Dreaded act gazetted

Government has gazetted legislation empowering the police to ban political rallies and bar newspapers from publishing articles criticising the president, among other draconian measures ahead of next year’s presidential election. The Public Order and Security Bill, gazetted on Friday, makes it a criminal offence for anyone to organise or partake in an act of civil disobedience. Last month, civic organisations resolved to embark on measures to protest at the lawlessness currently prevailing in the country. The proposed law sets a 20-year jail term, without the option of a fine, for convicted organisers of civil disobedience action. According to the proposed law, no public gatherings will be allowed unless first sanctioned by senior police officers who automatically become the "regulating authority" for their respective areas. The proposed Act will empower police officers to ban public gathering in their areas for up to three months, which could include the period before the presidential election. The Bill, which is intended to replace the Law and Order (Maintenance) Act used by the colonial regime to suppress dissent, includes a clause which bars newspapers from publishing negative stories about the president.

From The Zimbabwe Independent, 14 December

MDC fights new registration rules

The opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has filed an urgent High Court application to challenge the conduct of the voter registration exercise and force the government to compile a common roll for the presidential election to be held in March next year. The filing of the application this week comes amid allegations by the MDC that Zanu PF had instructed Registrar-General Tobaiwa Mudede to ensure that only Zanu PF supporters conduct voter registration. Learnmore Jongwe, the MDC Secretary for Information and Publicity named one Simba Mpanduki-Sibanda as a Zanu PF official who was busy conducting voter education at Mpinda Primary School in Lower Gweru. "At Insukamini Hall, also in Lower Gweru, Older Jinkila-Ncube, a provincial Zanu PF official, is also conducting voter registration. This is only a drop in the ocean. The prevailing scenario casts a dark shadow in the face of the presidential election next year," Jongwe said.

In the application filed on Wednesday, the MDC wants all persons over the age of 18, who are citizens of Zimbabwe and who since 1985 were permanent residents, to be entitled to vote in the election at any designated polling station in the country. The party wants all persons who hold a Zimbabwean national identity document or those with voter confirmation cards to be allowed to vote. The High Court challenge follows the change of voter registration regulations by the government, which wants to use constituency registers for the presidential poll. Those wanting to register have been asked to bring proof of residence such as lodgers cards, water statements or electricity bills.

"As a result of the insistence on production of these documents, several potential voters who are entitled to be registered have been turned away and certainly this defeats the whole purpose of the exercise," reads the MDC application. "It is in the interest of the MDC and indeed, any political party which intends to field a candidate to contest in the upcoming presidential election, for the registration exercise be done properly and in accordance with the Electoral Law," reads the application. The MDC is also challenging the continued tenure of Sobuza Gula-Ndebele as chair of the Electoral Supervisory Commission. The MDC has averred that Gula-Ndebele’s tenure as chair expired on September 1, which means that the ESC is not properly constituted.
From ZWNEWS, 18 December
 
Church groups urge unity

Church leaders from 15 denominations in Bulawayo have called on their congregations to pray together in response to the current national crisis. The group expressed concern about the collapse of the economy, unemployment, AIDS, food shortages, destitution and the widespread reign of violence and fear that is being orchestrated by the government. Anglican Bishop Wilson Sitshebo appealed to the nation: "Please, children of the soil of Zimbabwe, sons and daughters of God, desist from these tendencies and seek to work for the well-being of all Zimbabweans irrespective of colour, creed, race or political affiliation." Another church leader, the Revd Raymond Motsi of the Baptists, said: "Because God hates violence, we are calling upon all Christians to pray for God's intervention." He quoted Luke 4.8-9: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord." The churches involved are: Anglican, African Methodist Episcopal, Apostolic Faith Mission, Baptist, Brethren in Christ, Catholic, Church of Central African Presbyterian, Church of Christ, Good News Church (Pentecostal), Methodist, Revival Centre, Word of Life, Selborne Park Fellowship, Victory Fellowship, and Evangelical Lutheran.
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