http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=9719
January 11, 2009
By Our
Reporter
HARARE - When the governor of a central bank anywhere in the
world stands up
in public to deliver a speech his audience usually falls
silent promptly.
Not so in Zimbabwe's north-eastern Mutoko District,
apparently. Angry
villagers there, who were attending the burial of the
father of a top aide
of President Robert Mugabe, recently heckled the
all-powerful governor of
the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ), Gideon Gono,
into silence.
The central bank governor is a close confidante of the
Mugabe family. He has
for long been keeper of the State House purse. He has
generally been accused
of making a major contribution over the past five
years towards the current
collapse of Zimbabwe's economy.
When Gono
stood up at Chitekwe Village to be introduced before speaking at
the burial
of Amon Chimiti Kajese the villagers would not hear of it. They
heckled the
hapless governor and accused him of being the chief architect of
their
misery. Kajese, who died at 98, was the father of Mugabe's
long-serving
chief of protocol, Samuel Munyaradzi Kajese. He was buried on
December
24.
An official who attended the burial told The Zimbabwe Times, that
Gono who
sat among top government officials and other dignitaries, was
heckled as he
was being introduced.
"Gono was heckled, booed and
insulted as he stood up to identify himself
when he was introduced as one of
the dignitaries speaking at the funeral.
Villagers took him to task for his
ill-advised fiscal policies and accused
him of being the architect of their
misery," said the official who requested
not to be identified.
He
said the villagers vented their obvious anger on the governor, hurling
such
insults at him that community leaders who attempted to calm them failed
in
their efforts.
"They accused Gono of not paying them for agricultural
produce which they
deliver to the Grain Marketing Board (GMB)," said the
source. "Others said
he was causing prices to rise while others accused him
of Zimbabwe's
widespread cash shortages and the suffering of the people
through the
introduction of foreign currency shops.
He said Gono's
name was hastily dropped from the list of speakers to
minimize the
commotion.
The burial was attended by Olivia Muchena, Webster Shamu and
David
Chapfika, the Ministers of Science and Technology, of Policy
Implementation
and Deputy Minister of Finance, respectively, in the ougoing
government.
Also on hand to witness the humiliation of a power official
by villagers
were Zimbabwe Defence Forces commander, Constantine Chiwenga,
Zimbabwe
Prison Service commissioner general, Paradzai Zimondi, and Central
Intelligence Organisation (CIO) Director General, Happyton Bonyongwe. The
three are members of the powerful Joint Operations Command, which, apart
from the central bank governor, now also wields much power in the highly
militarized administration of the country.
The villagers also accused
the government officials of wasting tax payers'
money by purchasing luxury
vehicles while millions of rural dwellers wallow
in abject poverty. They
protested despite the fact that they had been
treated to a sumptuous
breakfast which included the now scarce bread, as
well as an even more
sumptuous lunch. Lunch included meat from four beasts
slaughtered to feed
otherwise starving mourners.
Government dignitaries had apparently
incensed the villagers by arriving in
an in an array of the latest luxury
all-terrain vehicles, including top-of
the range Land cruiser VXs, Toyota
Prados, Toyota Vigos and Isuzu 4×4s.
Olivia Muchena was also heckled into
silence as she delivered a speech. She
had further incensed the crowd by
advising villagers against heckling their
leaders.
"Muchena was
certainly out of touch with the sentiment among her audience,"
said the
official. "Many attended the funeral just for the food which was in
abundance. Word about the slaughter of four beasts had spread quickly around
the villages. Others knew the deceased Kajese as a United Methodist Church
reverend, who was against politics. They did not take kindly to politicking
at his funeral."
President Mugabe, who once was held in high esteem
around Zimbabwe, was
recently challenged openly by one of his own relatives
in his rural home
area of Zvimba in Mashonaland West.
Adoman
Matibiri, Mugabe's uncle, accused the Zanu-PF leader of fanning
division
within the Mugabe family at the funeral of Beatrice Matibiri,
Mugabe's
cousin. The senior Mugabe said the President should not accuse
fellow family
members of consulting traditional healers.
Mugabe had invited the anger
of members of his clan when he told them that
family members consulted
traditional healers and that Beatrice's death was
not a natural
occurrence.
"I don't want to hear that someone has gone to an n'anga to
find the cause
of her death," Mugabe warned his relatives.
Mugabe
also complained that his own people had turned against him and were
now
supporters of MDC president Morgan Tsvangirai.
The President's complaint,
villagers said, was aimed at Adoman Mugabe, the
village headman, who the
president believes has allowed the MDC to flourish
in the
village.
After Mugabe finished speaking, his uncle stood up and started
by
registering concern that he, as village head and not the President,
should
have been allowed to deliver the eulogy at the burial.
Mugabe,
who was sitting with his wife, Grace, interjected harshly saying
that the
old man should say whatever he wanted to say and get over with it.
Mugabe
is said to have left for Harare the burial in a huff.
http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=9770
January 11, 2009
Vusisizwe
Mkhwananzi
GWANDA - A storm is brewing in Matabeleland South after
Zanu-PF heavyweights
in province allegedly diverted 30 tonnes of maize seed
meant for poor
peasant farmers in the region to their own personal use last
week .
Spearheaded by newly elected Zanu-PF provincial chairman, Andrew
Langa, and
former Gwanda legislator Abedinico Ncube a number of Zanu-PF
officials had
allegedly received a share from the loot.
Sources who
spoke to The Zimbabwe Times said Langa and Ncube had forced
their way into
the GMB depot and demanded 30 tonnes of seed maize.
Other Zanu-PF
officials who benefited from this plunder include Senate
Speaker, Simon
Khutshwekhaya Ndlovu, Provincial Administrator David Alfonce
Mpofu, former
provincial chairman Rido Mpofu, Zanu-PF politburo member
Thenjiwe Lesabe and
Patrick Hove who lost his parliamentary seat to MDC's
Siyabonga Malandu
Ncube in last year's elections.
This development had reportedly irked the
provincial Governor Angeline
Masuku who felt the appropriation was unfair to
peasant farmers who have
been struggling to acquire seed.
Masuku
reportedly turned down an allocation offered to her and threatened
instead
to report the matter to President Robert Mugabe when he returns to
work next
month. It is not clear why she chose to wait for Mugabe's return
from leave
instead of immediately reporting the matter to the police.
The region has
received good rains this season. Most farmers in the region
are yet to
plant, however, due to a serious shortage of maize seed.
Agricultural
expert Renson Gasela says in spite of the good rains that have
generally
been received the country is heading for yet another drought as
farmers have
failed to acquire maize seed.
Some farmers have resorted to sourcing
maize seed on the black market were
it is exorbitantly priced. In Insiza
were Langa is a Member of Parliament a
25 kg bag of maize seed costs
R400.
A tonne of maize seed which can be shared among 40 people would
cost a
whopping R16 000.
http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=9741
January 11, 2009
By Our
Correspondent
BULAWAYO - Speaker of Parliament, Lovemore Moyo has written
to the Southern
Africa Development Community (SADC) parliamentary forum to
challenge the
nomination of Chimanimani senator, Monica Mutsvangwa, Zanu-PF
to the
position of treasurer at the forums' recent 24th plenary session held
in
Tanzania.
Moyo last week wrote to the parliamentary forum over the
anomaly regarding
the nomination of Mutsvangwa to the position of treasurer
that had been
allocated to Zimbabwe. He asked that she be removed from the
position.
Mutsvangwa is not a member of the SADC parliamentary forum. She
was only
representing the outgoing Minister of State for State Enterprises,
Flora
Buka at the meeting. The circumstances remain unclear. She is the
spouse of
controversial Zanu-PF spokesman, Chris Mutsvangwa, who is
Zimbabwe's former
ambassador to Beijing.
The Zimbabwe Times learnt
that the Zanu-PF senator allegedly lied to SADC's
parliamentary secretariat
that she had been nominated by the country's
delegates.
The SADC
parliamentary 24th plenary session held in Arusha, Tanzania ran
from 20 to
27 November.
Tabitha Khumalo, the MDC House of Assembly representative
for Bulawayo East
who was one of Zimbabwe's delegates to the parliamentary
forum told The
Zimbabwe Times: "The issue of the post of treasurer was
discussed with other
delegates in a committee meeting in the morning and we
were supposed to
select one of the country's delegates to take up the
post.
"According to our understanding, Mutsvangwa in the evening went
alone to the
offices of the secretariat. It is alleged that she lied that we
had selected
her to the post.
"We were supposed to come back to
Zimbabwe to discuss and consult with other
parliamentarians and select our
representative to take up the post and then
forward the name to the
secretariat.
"We were however surprised to read in The Herald a fortnight
ago that
Mutsvangwa had been nominated to take up the post.
"We
therefore advised the Speaker about the anomaly and he has accordingly
written to the forum to inform them that the Parliament of Zimbabwe will
submit its official candidate for the post," Khumalo said.
Mutsvangwa
and Moyo could not be reached for comment on the matter despite
repeated
efforts.
However, Khumalo, who is a former top executive of the
country's labour
body, the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) said,
"We always have a
problem with our Zanu-PF colleagues when we attend such
meetings. They
always try to bulldoze their way into posts."
The
plenary addressed issues such as electoral disputes, energy crises,
xenophobia, climate change and drought.
http://www.zimonline.co.za
by Andrew Moyo
Monday 12 January 2009
HARARE - The Zimbabwe
Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) is pushing for workers
to be paid in hard
currency, with union leader Lovemore Matombo warning of
fresh protests by
workers if employers refuse to peg wages in hard currency.
Matombo,
president of the ZCTU, told ZimOnline that the union's decision
making
general council will meet next Saturday "to solidify our earlier
position
that we negotiate (new wages) in foreign currency".
"If authorities say
they have no confidence in the (local) currency who are
we to have
confidence in it," said Matombo, referring to a decision by the
Reserve Bank
of Zimbabwe last year to allow selected shops to charge for
basic
commodities in American dollars.
He said: "The general council will sit
on January 17 to solidify our earlier
position that we negotiate in foreign
currency. We have to look at what the
PDL (poverty datum line or bread line)
is before we discuss.
"We will discuss our next course of action but I do
see workers
demonstrating against price hikes in the near future, we will
use our usual
actions to make companies pay in foreign
currency."
With its value eroded daily by the world's highest inflation
of more than
231 million percent, the Zimbabwe dollar is nearly worthless
and both
consumers and traders are increasingly shunning the currency in
favour of
hard cash.
A collapsed currency is the most visible sign of
Zimbabwe's deepening
economic and humanitarian crisis that is also seen in
acute shortages of
food and basic commodities, amid a cholera epidemic that
has killed more
than 1 700 people since last August.
Zimbabweans had
hoped a power-sharing government between President Robert
Mugabe and
opposition leaders Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara would
ease the
political situation and allow the country to focus on reviving the
collapsed
economy.
The three political rivals agreed on September 15 to form an
all-inclusive
government under a power-sharing deal that retains Mugabe as
president while
making Tsvangirai prime minister and Mutambara deputy prime
minister.
But the agreement brokered by former South African President
Thabo Mbeki on
behalf of the regional SADC alliance immediately stalled as
Mugabe and his
main opponent, Tsvangirai, wrangled over who should control
key ministries
and other top government posts.
Tsvangirai and his MDC
party meet on January 18 - a day after the ZCTU's
general council meeting -
to review the stalled power-sharing deal. The MDC
has insisted it will not
join the unity government until all outstanding
issues on Cabinet and other
top government posts are resolved.
While analysts agree that Mugabe and
Tsvangirai probably resent each other
too much to be able to form a
successful partnership, however they say there
is little viable option to
resolving Zimbabwe's crisis outside a
power-sharing government. -
ZimOnline
http://www.zimbabwetoday.co.uk/
The President's secret bid to beef up his army with
Russian troops
Zimbabwe's President and his family are officially on
holiday, and currently
enjoying their usual privileged vacation in
Singapore, where they have many
friends. But on January 17 Robert Mugabe is
due to board a jet for Moscow,
where he will finalise plans to bring in
Russian troops to defend his
tottering regime.
According to a top
government source, all the preliminary plans for a
Russian military presence
in Zimbabwe have been made during the past few
weeks. In Moscow Mugabe , who
hasn't visited Russia since 1987, will meet
with President Medvedev and his
puppet master Prime Minister Putin, to
finalise the deal that will have
hundreds of Russian army personnel landing
at Harare airport in the near
future.
The arrangement is supposed to be kept quiet. The troops will
come in the
guise of technicians exploring diamond mining opportunities in
the country.
But diamonds are just a part of the deal Mugabe is brokering
with Putin. The
troops are really there to bolster Zimbabwe's defences
against possible
invasion.
As I have reported here before, while many
of my more outspoken readers
think the chance of a liberation force crossing
the borders from Botswana or
Zambia is just wishful thinking, Mugabe and his
advisors take the threat
very seriously indeed. They have listened to the
calls for action emanating
from Desmond Tutu and leaders of certain Southern
African states. And they
are taking the necessary precautions.
The
deal will also include what might be described as Zimbabwe's friendly
neighbours, Angola and Namibia, with the three countries combining their
strength under the guidance of Moscow's military experts.
Zimbabwe's
own troops, who recently rioted in the streets of Harare against
their
appalling living conditions, have been pacified partly by the
distribution
of substantial rations. Elephant meat, to be precise. So,
whatever the
outcome of a Russian military presence in Zimbabwe may be, one
thing is
certain - Putin's soldiers will experience a radical change in
diet.
Posted on Sunday, 11 January 2009 at 22:39
http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=9737
January 11, 2009
By Raymond
Maingire
HARARE - The government has blocked attempts by private schools
in Zimbabwe
to open ahead of a rescheduled schools opening date for the
first term.
Government last week postponed the reopening of schools for
the first term
to January 27, two weeks after the scheduled date of January
13.
Stephen Mahere, the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Education,
Sports
and Culture said the delay was meant to allow teachers currently
involved
with the marking of last year's primary and secondary level public
examinations to conclude the exercise.
The delay in the marking of
Grade 7 examinations and the resultant delay in
their release means that
parents cannot use the results to secure places for
Form 1 for their
children in time for the opening of the first term.
Grade 7 results are
usually released during the first week of December.
But private schools,
which have their own internal systems of enrolling Form
1 students, decided
to stick to January 13 as scheduled.
Sources revealed Sunday government
has threatened with arrest any private
school authorities seeking to defy
the postponed.
"We usually invite applications for Form 1 places for the
following year as
early as July," said a senior official at a private school
in Harare who
cannot be named for safety reasons.
"This is the time
when we hold tests to choose those who qualify for
enrolment at our schools.
We are not in any way affected by the delay in the
release of the Grade 7
results as our Form 1 classes are ready.
"Why should we be held back by
that?"
He said the school had taken the trouble on Sunday to call every
parent to
stop sending their children this Monday as they were threatened
with arrest
if they did not stick to January 27.
Private schools,
which are mostly attended by children from wealthy
families, are not
subjected to the discredited Zimbabwe Schools Examination
Council (ZIMSEC)
curricula.
When government introduced ZIMSEC a few years ago, private
schools opted to
remain under the Cambridge system, whose administration is
far better.
While government is yet to release ZIMSEC results, all
examinations which
are being administered under Cambridge were concluded on
schedule and
results released.
Some parents, who have been made to
pay as much as US$3 000 to send their
kids for the first term, were
infuriated by the unpopular decision.
"This is grossly unfair," fumed
Andrew Chimunyu, who has a child enrolled
at Watershed Secondary School in
Marondera.
"The government cannot stop private schools from opening at a
date which it
had originally decided.
"We sacrifice a lot to send our
children to these private schools."
Jameson Timba, the former chairman of
the Association of Private Schools in
Zimbabwe chose to
differ.
"While I sympathize with private schools that have been
inconvenienced by
this, I still feel government is still acting within its
right to determine
the schools calendar.
"Everyone knows the
secretary for education determines the schools calendar
http://www.zimbabwejournalists.com
12th
Jan 2009 00:31 GMT
By John Fenandes
MUTARE - The Mutare
businessman, who was beaten-up by soldiers who accused
him of dealing in
diamonds, has died. Maxwell Mabota died moments after
being admitted at a
South African hospital where he was expected to receive
specialised
treatment.
Mabota, 32, was assaulted a day before Christmas at Chiadzwa
by a group of
soldiers who accused him of dealing in dimonds. His body was
expected to
arrive home over the weekend for burial, according to family
members.
Mabota was arrested by a group of soldiers after he had
allegedly sneaked
into the Chiadzwa diamond fields last week to buy the
precious gems.
Sources close to the police said he suffered severe
internal injuries which
require an urgent special operation.
During
the assault the soldiers are alleged to have stolen about US$11 000
and a
cell phone from him. They also impounded his car.
Police sources said
Mabota went to Chiadzwa after he was allegedly called by
soldiers who
claimed they wanted to sell him diamonds.
But after successfully
transacting with the group of soldiers and while on
his way out of the
diamond fields, Mabota was waylaid and caught by a
different group of
soldiers who demanded to know what a "civilian" was doing
in the diamond
fields.
"From there all hell broke loose as the soldiers took turns to
beat him us
using all sorts of objects and clenched fists and boots," a
police officer
who spoke on condition he was not named, said.
"They
started beating him up until he fell unconscious," said another police
source. "They took him to Mutare Central Police Station where he was
immediately rushed to a private hospital by his wife."
Mabota's wife
and other close family members declined to comment.
Soldiers guarding the
Chiadzwa diamond fields have gained notoriety for
being brutal towards
individuals they suspect to be dealing with the
precious stones.
When
they launched an operation to rid the fields of illegal miners and
buyers
they were accused by human rights groups of using heavy handed
tactics.
The rights groups estimate about 106 people were killed by
the soldiers
during the campaign to clear Chiadzwa of illegal miners and
buyers.
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights said the soldiers were
committing
"genocide".
During the campaign several businesspeople
that were believed to have been
dealing in diamonds were beaten up and taken
to the diamond fields to fill
up gullies created by illegal
miners.
They were forced to use their hands to fill up the
gullies.
Hundreds of previously impoverished people have amassed wealth
in excess of
several hundred thousands United States Dollars during the past
two years as
a result of selling diamonds.
But the government has
stopped all activities on the grounds it was creating
"lawlessness" in
Chiadzwa and surrounding areas.
http://www.voanews.com
By
Akwei Thompson
Washington, DC
11 January
2009
Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan
Tsvangirai
have so far been unable to agree on how to divide cabinet posts
to form a
government of national unity.
Last week Mr. Mugabe sacked
nine ministers and three deputy ministers who
lost seats in last March's
polls. This week Zimbabwean newspaper the
"Herald" announced that a
government was most likely to be in place by the
end of February when Mugabe
returns from a month-long holiday.
George Katito, a researcher of African
Governance and the African Peer
Review Mechanism in South Africa told VOA
reporter Akwei Thompson that a
major contention in the stalemate remains the
division of key ministerial
posts.
He said there did not seem to be a
consensus of the two contending parties
as to which of the two main
political parties would control key ministries
including the justice
ministry and the department of finance. "The key
ministry which seems at the
fore is of course the control of the security
forces and more specifically,
the national security council.," Katito said.
The South African analyst
confirmed reports that Mugabe would go ahead and
form a government upon his
return from vacation, but he added ".over the
past few days as well we've
had reports from within the MDC offering to
enter into some sort of talks
with President Robert Mugabe."
As to what role the MDC would play if
Mugabe went ahead to form a government
at the end of February, Katito said
"I think certainly what we've heard from
ZANU-PF and Robert Mugabe is very
few encouraging signs that the MDC would
have any serious role to play
within the government that the ZANU-PF would
form."
http://www.nation.co.ke
By KITSEPILE NYATHI, NATION
CorrespondentPosted Sunday, January 11 2009 at
18:16
HARARE,
Sunday
Zimbabwe's feuding parties remain poles apart almost a week before
a
constitutional amendment that will bring into force the proposed unity
government is introduced in Parliament
The bill, which cannot sail
through parliament without the support of the
opposition Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC) will be presented to
legislators on January
20.
But developments in the past two months have dampened hopes that the
long
awaited union between President Robert Mugabe's ruling Zanu PF and the
two
MDC formations will materialise.
This has prompted analysts to
predict another tough year for Zimbabweans
with Mr Mugabe's tight grip on
power still unshaken.
Tensions have been rising over the recent spate of
abductions of MDC
activists and human right defenders on allegations that
they were involved
in the recruitment of people to undergo military training
in Botswana.
MDC leader and prime minister designate Morgan Tsvangirai on
self imposed
exile in Botswana since November has declined to be sworn in as
part of the
September 15 power sharing agreement insisting there were still
outstanding
issues before the deal is consummated.
"The deal might be
dead in the water," said Mr Peter Makuvise, a political
analyst. "As time
drags on the parties will come up with fresh demands to
suit the new
circumstances.
"However, the resumption of parliamentary sittings means
that the MDC has to
decide whether it still wants to be part of this
arrangement.
"Mugabe is not likely to make any more concessions because
his lieutenants
are already bitter that he gave in to a lot of MDC demands
and this is the
biggest threat to the unity government."
Is now
demanding
The Tsvangirai led MDC is now demanding that the police, army
and the feared
Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) should be placed
under the effective
control of parties to the inclusive government after the
state apparatus was
used to abduct opposition supporters and human rights
activists.
In a letter to South African President Kgalema Motlanthe last
week, Mr
Tsvangirai accused the police, CIO and the army of undermining the
implementation of the global agreement.
He said expectations were
that security organs would have been the first to
appreciate the need for
change of direction.
"This has not been the case in Zimbabwe," Mr
Tsvangirai said. "Given the
fact that our national institutions have been
selectively used to target MDC
and other activists it is only imperative
that these security apparatus be
placed under the control of parties to the
agreement.
Mr Tsvangirai is also raising fresh security concerns and has
remained
holed in neighbouring Botswana for more than two months.
"We
can't keep Zimbabweans guessing, we have to close the chapter on
dialogue,
whether in success or failure," said MDC spokesman, Mr Nelson
Chamisa. A
fortnight ago, Mr Mugabe's spokesman told state media the veteran
leader
would appoint a new cabinet in February.
http://www.voanews.com
By
Patience Rusere
Washington
11 January
2009
Children have been the most vulnerable segment of
Zimbabwe's population in
the face of the cholera epidemic which has killed
more than 1,900 people in
recent months, according to a spokeswoman for the
United Nations Children's
Fund, a leading provider of relief.
UNICEF
Communications Officer Tsitsi Singizi said her organization has not
compiled
specific data on children, but said children account for a
"sizeable number"
of under treatment.
The World Health Organization released a statistical
update showing that
deaths from cholera in Zimbabwe totaled 1,915 through
Friday with total
cases numbering 37,556.
Singizi told reporter
Patience Rusere of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe that
children are
particularly at risk because they do not comprehend public
safety
messages.
http://www.zimbabwejournalists.com
12th
Jan 2009 00:45 GMT
By Joyce
Museka
Zanu PF is living on the strength of its record of violence,
aleged mass
murder and intimidation as Zimbabwe descends into total
economic, social and
political catastrophe.
Since the 29th of March
2008 Zimbabwe is living on the grace of God without
a government and in
total paralysis exacerbated by rampant corruption of
president Mugabe's
criminal cabal.
Robert Mugabe who clearly lost the ballot to MDC's Morgan
Tsvangirai but
grabbed it by force has failed to form a government in the
last nine months.
He clearly knows that the only man with the mandate of
the people to put up
a government is Morgan Tsvangirai, but he has failed
to, save for his his
barbaric rants of hate for the opposition.
Many
people would wonder why Robert Mugabe has no mercy for the suffering
masses
of Zimbabwe, this is not the first time that Mugabe's government has
shown
no care for the common people.
During the liberation struggle many
Zimbabweans were allegedly killed by
Mugabe's forces on false accusations of
selling out and witchcraft.
For those of us who were old enough to recall
the activities at "pungwe"
gatherings can bare testimonies to the bullying,
maiming and raping that
went on.
The early years of independence
witnessed one of the most brutal times
experienced by our people with the
extermination of more than twenty
thousand people in Matebeleland and
Midlands.
Mugabe's lies seems to have now hit a brick wall with many
common
Zimbabweans realising that they have been taken for a ride. Today the
present political impasse in Zimbabwe is a result of pure insincerity on the
part of Zanu PF.
They lost the election but they still want to
control the reigns of power.
The use of violence will not bring the food on
the people's tables. There
are those who believe that the MDC should falter
and allow Zanu PF to rule
the country by default, this is unfortunate, as
this will be tantamount to
leaving the devil running away with the gospel in
the eyes of the believers.
The MDC should stand firm and unequivocally
demand its right to lead the
Zimbabweans as mandated by the people in the
March 2008 ballot.
The scenario that we have today is that of a greedy
political party that has
run out of options. It is sad to hear that Mugabe
goes around blaming
cholera on Gordon Brown, the British Prime
minister.
This is a sign of madness replica of the post liberation war
uncontrolled
euphoria that brought us in to this predicament. All sane
Zimbabweans know
that no one else but Mugabe is to blame for the present
state of affairs.
There was need to put checks and balances on Zanu PF on
the eve of
independence to prevent them from trampling on the people's
liberties.
http://www.zimbabwejournalists.com
12th
Jan 2009 00:19 GMT
By Gift Phiri
ZIMBABWEAN
journalists live not just with the crippling hardship that comes
with the
state-sponsored destruction of most prospective employers - and 90
per cent
unemployment caused by the collapse of the economy - but with the
knowledge
that the penalty for the reporting of uncomfortable truths can be
death.
Apart from introducing the euphemistically-titled Access to
Information and
Protection of Privacy Act, AIPPA, which would bar foreign
correspondents
from working in Zimbabwe and require all Zimbabwean
journalists to renew
their licenses to practice, the government has come up
with yet another
bottle neck in the form of punitive accreditation
fees.
The government now interprets any criticism of its failure to
improve the
economy as proof of a Western-inspired plot. Understandably the
Zanu-PF
government is angry because the media sees the difference between
its
slogans and performance.
Journalists are under intense pressure
not to step out of line in an
increasingly intolerant Zimbabwe. There is
extreme concern over the new
exorbitant accreditation fees for foreign
correspondents based in Harare and
local journalists filing for foreign news
organisations.
These restrictive new licensing fees instituted through a
government gazette
last week is clearly designed to prevent us from
reporting from Zimbabwe.
Asking journalists working for foreign media to pay
US$4,000 in application
and license fees for a one-year renewable license
from a
government-appointed commission, clearly amounts to
censorship.
These are clear financial sanctions against journalists
designed to shutdown
the foreign press. The government, through the
Orwellian AIPPA, is flexing
its muscles and showing who has effective veto
over who reports for any
media organisation, foreign as well as
domestic.
These new accreditation fees constitute blatant discrimination
of foreign
and local journalists stringing for foreign media and are further
steps in
the ongoing campaign to silence critical media. I doubt very much
if there
are journalists stringing for foreign media that earn that kind of
money
monthly.
The government is simply encouraging lawlessness. Who
is going to comply
with such punitive regulations? The government has
forgotten that it removed
the requirement for press cards last year and also
promised to make
accreditation of journalists much easier.
I am
surprised with this volte face manifesting in this demand that
journalists
pay punitive fees to the dissolved government-appointed Media
and
Information Commission, MIC, which used to be run by government
supporter
Tafataona Mahoso.
Just to remind the authorities, the MIC ceased to exist
on January 11, 2008
following the signing into law of amendments to AIPPA.
Who ever gazette
these fees is in contempt of parliamentary processes that
disbanded MIC.
It follows therefore that these fees are illegal, set by a
de facto body.
And no one should comply with illegal instructions. As we all
know, the
amendments to AIPPA were made as part of democratic reforms
recommended by
SADC ahead of the March 29 general election to level the
electoral playing
field.
So there is also an element of contempt of
SADC by the MIC. It would seem
the MIC still relishes the power it used to
wield, to refuse accreditation,
deciding who may or may not work as a
journalist in Zimbabwe.
Parliament, which is set to resume sitting on
January 20, has not even
constituted the standing rules and orders committee
which is supposed to
handpick the nominees who will sit in the new Zimbabwe
Media Coouncil which
is set to replace the MIC. It is surprising that these
fees have been
constructed and put in place in the absence of a regulatory
body. Surely we
cannot encourage journalists to get accredited by an illegal
entity.
I have heard arguments about the "dirty-hands doctrine" that
journalists
should comply with the law and then challenge it. In this
instance our hands
are not dirty because we have not broken any law. We are
not refusing to pay
the fees. We are saying there is nowhere to pay the
US$4,000 because the law
of Zimbabwe does not recognise the MIC where we are
supposed to pay the
fees. US$4000 is a lot of money.
Anyone who
wishes to pay their money to MIC should do so but should not cry
foul when
the proper body is constituted and demands accreditation fees from
them. We
all know that under this tough media law journalists face a
two-year prison
sentence for practising without accreditation. But no one
can invoke AIPPA
in this instance because it does not recognise the MIC.
Some say there is
no rule of law in Zimbabwe and journalists can be charged
regardless given
"the vampire instincts of the regime." A colleague told me
"Vakomana handei
tino accreditwa musatamba ne regime."
Some people say there is no
solidarity in the media. A colleague spoke of
the 2003 ban of the Daily
News, that the Independent and FinGaz sought
accreditation but the Daily
News on a matter of principle refused to seek
accreditation because it
argued it did not recognise AIPPA.
We all know the fate of that
newspaper. So it becomes a matter of principle.
If we say lets not accredit,
we all don't go for accreditation. It must be a
class action. There must be
consensus. The point here is that these fees are
punitive and are a
hindrance to the free flow of information. The problem we
are facing is that
we have a regime which looks at foreign media as enemies.
And these fees
are clearly meant to shutdown the foreign media. It also
clearly vindicates
our position that statutory regulation of media is
undemocratic. No one was
consulted about these prohibitive fees. ZUJ was not
consulted, MISA was
consulted, MMPZ was not consulted, and the Voluntary
Media Council was not
consulted. It is clear the government is trying to
arbitrarily curtail press
freedom.
It's unacceptable and undemocratic. This encourages guerrilla
journalism.
Freedom of expression, mass media and information is an
indispensable
element of the legal democratic society, a guarantee of its
stability and
progress.
Claiming that freedom of expression should be
limited in order to protect
someone's rights or bring public safety is one
of the typical reasons to
bring about censorship up in countries with
totalitarian regimes. This
government has continued to consolidate its
authoritarian power, building a
system of institutional support for its rule
through censorship.
There is mounting concern that media regulation in
Zimbabwe is getting more
and more entrusted and controlled by the
presidential administration. There
are clear attempts to use a wide rage of
financial and administrative
sanctions and restrictions to shut down the
free press. We have to defend
press freedom.
The more control state
puts over information, the shorter range of
information people can have
access to at a time we are steeped in one of the
worst humanitarian crisis
in the country, underlined with a cholera outbreak
that had killed more than
1800 people by yesterday.
The government would rather have Zimbabweans
presented mostly with news and
opinions reflecting sunshine journalism.
Censorship strives to block any
signs of criticism or critical thinking. And
this regime has been quite
creative in its attempts to hinder the media. The
punitive fees are just but
one example.
The regime is aware that
economic pressure is more effective than
administrative or criminal
pressure. This is why they have instituted
punitive import duty for foreign
newspapers such as The Zimbabwean, The
Economist, The Telegraph, The Times
both of London ad of South Africa, The
Mail and Guardian and others. Last
year we even saw instances where
journalists press cards failed to insure
protection from police. Journalists
stringing for foreign media were thrown
out of the Rainbow Towers - venue
for crucial power-sharing talks.
Journalists were arrested for expressing
their views and reporting events
that cast unfavorable light on the
government, and so-called violation of
public order.
Practically all of them fell under the heading of crimes,
administrative
breaches or civic-legal delicts: Some of them were brought to
administrative
justice. We need to realise that one of the component of
governmental
control and self-censorship is this mandatory licensing or
registration of
journalists and especially the punitive licensing fees for
journalists
writing for foreign media.
We know that these fees come
hard-on-the-heels of threats by the government,
pointedly President Mugabe's
press secretary George Charamba, to close
foreign news bureaus for Reuters,
AP, Al Jazeera and AFP following the
publication of stories that quoted
President Robert Mugabe as saying cholera
had now been contained in the
country in December.
The international outrage that followed those
reports, which correctly
quoted the president and were beamed live on State
television, gave cause
for the beginning of this governmental campaign to
control the activities of
foreign media. Clearly the measures which have
been undertaken by the
authorities are more than drastic.
These fees
enlarges the list of bans for correspondents stringing for
foreign media and
therefore of bases for applying sanctions to them. US$4000
is a staggering
amount of money by any standards. This is Zimbabwe, hello!.
We should not
lose focus of the ultimate objective of this, which is to
avoid unpleasant
publication of articles containing criticism of leadership
and above all the
President.
We need to mount a multi-pronged response to this. Firstly I
suggest we
immediately institute legal action. I have consulted legal
opinion and they
say we can file an urgent chamber application in the High
Court seeking a
declaratory order that the MIC is illegal at law and cannot
demand licensing
fees from us.
After that we can seek another order
allowing us to continue practicing
until the ZMC has been properly
constituted. I don't know when that will be.
We also need to mount a
constitutional challenge in the Supreme Court that
these fees violates
freedom of expression which is enshrined in the Zimbabwe
Constitution.
I am told even the "unreasonableness" of these fees can
win any legal test
in the High Court.There is also need to continue lobbying
for the total
removal of statutory regulation of the media. We can self
regulate. We are
all professionals I believe.
There is also need to
petition the main political parties which made these
changes to AIPPA to
take action. Parliament resumes sitting next week
Tuesday. We need to make
noise there as well. We also need to petition SADC,
the guarantors of the
power-sharing deal, and the SADC Parliamentary Forum.
This is the roadmap
that I suggest we take.
http://www.zimbabwejournalists.com
12th
Jan 2009 01:10 GMT
By Chenjerai
Chitsaru
IN the world history of civil rights advocates, women's
names which will be
prominent will be those of Bella Abzug, Gloria Steinem,
Angela Davis and
Rosa Parks - all Americans.
There are among the
people who gained International fame for their tenacity
in the campaign for
the rights, not only of women around the world, but of
all people,
particularly minorities.
In years to come, a number of Zimbabwean women
will be included in this
hallowed roll call: Beatrice Mtetwa, Jenni Williams
of Women of Zimbabwe
Arise (WOZA), Lupi Mushayakarara, Margaret Dongo, Fay
Chung - and Jestina
Mukoko.
Mtetwa has been defending Mukoko against
charges by the government that she
and a group of others, among them men,
recruited people to be trained in
Botswana for the express task of
overthrowing the government of Robert
Mugabe.
Mukoko was tortured
while being held by government agents.
Many of us remember her as an
unforgettably pretty, fascinating ZBC-TV
anchor person, years ago. She had
an enchanting smile and was "coolness"
personified.
Recently, we have
seen her on TV, under guard, being led to this or that
dark hole by people
assigned to perform these disgusting chores by a
government itself engaged
in the disgusting business of humiliating any of
its own citizens who dare
to demand they be treated with respect and
dignity.
She and Mtetwa
share a common background: they have both been beaten by
government agents,
whether on the orders of their "masters" or on the orders
of individuals who
believe they have been a threat to the existence of this
regime.
Is
this a regime of misogynists? Is this a regime which hates women, which
believes, to put women in their so-called "place", they have to be handled
with a specifically brutal and savage cruelty because they are
women?
In Africa, in general, women have always been handled as if they
were
second-class citizens, particularly after independence, when they would
have
expected to be accorded the same rights as their men.
One recent
TV documentary showed an African country in which girls are
forced to eat
fattening foots to prepare for marriage. The government seems
to condone
this force-feeding of the young girls, as being fat assures women
of
marriage-ability.
There is the horrendous custom of circumcision which,
in the case of girls,
entails female genital mutilation. Advocates of the
abolition of this
disgusting custom have been hounded into silence by
governments and
died-hard traditionalists.
But a government which
sets out to treat women differently whenever they
raise their voices
against repression courts for itself the repugnance of
all people,
particularly progressive-minded Africans who believe we have
moved from
those dark ages.
In Zimbabwe, they have been other examples of this
unofficial degradation of
women. Men in positions of power, although legally
married, have gathered
around them so many mistresses in so many "small
houses", there has been
violence involving the two competing spouses, some
of them ending in
bloodied limbs.
But it is the image of Zimbabwe as
a modern, 21st century democratic state
that we must safeguard. The Mugabe
regime has already earned for us the
status of a pariah among the countries
of the world.
We have been removed from the former British Commonwealth
of nations,
although this was an act of personal pique by Mugabe himself, a
man so proud
and so convinced of his "righteousness" he will not stomach any
criticism.
Not many of the people in the regime have any appreciation of
how much we
lost as a result of not being part of that grouping of
multiracial nations.
In education, science, health, the law and
development in general we gained
a lot when we were members. But because we
are now under the terrorist
regime of a group of women-haters and people
who, in general, hate criticism
of any kind, we have a situation where
people are dying of hunger, disease
and poverty in basically avoidable
circumstances.
The deaths from cholera, for instance, would never have
occurred if our
health delivery system and if our local government
structures were as
self-sufficient as they were before 2000.
Most
pathetic is the state of the media: anyone who speaks of it being as
equitable as it ought to be is living in fantasy land of gnomes and
fairies.
To hear George Charamba speak of what he believes would be the
ideal media
situation can make you begin to wonder if the idea is to hurl us
to the Dark
Ages.
A story headlined Direct national interest, media
told, in The Herald begins
thus:
"History will harshly judge Zimbabwean
journalists for allegedly allowing
foreign media to shape and direct
national interest and thinking, resulting
in the erosion of the founding
values of the nation."
What gobbledygook!
Charamba is fairly young
and may be forgiven fore not being aware of the
real "founding values" of
this nation. Certainly, none of them advocated
cruelty to women, or the
debasing of the characters of citizens who protest
at the excesses of the
government.
There is nowhere in the "founding values" where a "captive
media" is
advocated. During the colonial period, newspapers, the radio and
television
were all controlled by the regime, directly or subtly.
What
the nationalists were fighting was this whole cabal of government
ownership
of the media.
Yet, what happened after 1980? The same people who would
not trust one word
they read in The Herald, now wanted that same newspaper
to perform for them
the same function - to lie and lie and lie to the
people, until even the
most innocent and gullible paused in their tracks:
"Haven't we seen this
before?"
Charamba is one of the most ardent
advocates of a state media. Footage of
his encounter with journalists in
Egypt during last year's African Union
summit, demonstrated most graphically
how contemptuous he is of journalists
who probe, question and continue to
dig deep into the motives of a
government which is self-absorbed in its
survival in power.
Both he and Mugabe demonstrated in their encounters
with reporters at that
summit that as long as they are in power, there would
not be a free press in
this country. They indicated in word and deed, that
for them a malleable
media was the most ideal tool for a regime that desires
to beat its people
into submission.
As presumably educated and
intelligent people, both men must know that
history is against them. Near
home, there were regimes in Malawi and Zambia
which believed, as they do,
that countries can be run like tuckshops - the
possession of one man and his
wife and children, beholden to no-one except
the family.
Kamuzu Banda
was beaten in an election and, by the time he died a few years
later, he
didn't know what had hit him. Kenneth Kaunda survived the defeat,
but to to
this day he must know that he was utterly wrong in his belief that
A Great
Someone had placed him in the presidency for life.
His party, the United
National Independence Party (UNIP) has not won an
election since 1991 - and
may never return to power again. Banda's Malawi
Congress Party suffered the
same fate. It is unlikely ever to return to
power - in a free and fair
election.
Both Charamba and Mugabe must know that this fate awaits Zanu
PF. Once it is
vanquished this time, there will be no return to
power.
The people of Zimbabwe have as long and keen memories as the people
of
Malawi and Zambia. They will never forget the hell through which Zanu PF
dragged them, kicking and screaming from 1980 to this day.
Neither
will they forget the misogynists who took perverted delight in
beating up
and humiliating their women.
http://www.zimonline.co.za
by Mutumwa Mawere Monday
12 January 2009
OPINION: On January 4, 2004, an article
entitled: "The inconvenient truths
about the West and Zimbabwe" authored by
MDC-M leader Arthur Mutambara was
published in which he attempted to advance
the argument that the challenges
in implementing the September 15, 2008
global political agreement (GPA)
between President Robert Mugabe, Movement
for Democratic Change (MDC) leader
Morgan Tsvangirai and MDC faction leader
Mutambara must be squarely placed
on the alleged unwelcome external
interventions by the West and a Zimbabwean
leadership deficit.
He
makes the point that the external interventions in the form of statements
made by representatives of Western governments are ignorant and un-strategic
leading to the conclusion that if only such representatives kept their
opinions to themselves an inclusive government would by now be in place and
poverty will be eliminated.
He argues in the article that the "brazen
and crass" Western shenanigans
have actually undermined the opposition and
strengthened Mugabe.
He submits that what he describes as "the uninformed
and reckless" foreign
policy positions of the Western governments who are
purported to be
Tsvangirai's principals have negatively impacted Zimbabwe's
national
interest.
The same argument has been made by former South
African President Thabo
Mbeki as well as Southern African Development
Community (SADC) heads of
state who continue to maintain that all the
outstanding issues can be
resolved through the inclusive
government.
SADC is at one in holding the position that the Zimbabwean
parties must
proceed expeditiously to implement the GPA.
How valid is
the allegation that Tsvangirai is a puppet of the West?
Tsvangirai was a
contender for the position of president but now finds
himself locked out of
the state house not as a consequence of an electoral
process but of
negotiations held in camera from which it is evident that two
of the
principals do not trust his bona fides and in so doing indirectly
question
the legitimacy and authenticity of the results of the March 29
elections.
If it is accepted that only two Zimbabweans i.e. Mugabe
and Tsvangirai are
the only ones with a legitimate claim on executive power
in Zimbabwe and
Mutambara voluntarily excluded himself from the debate on
who should be in
state house by electing not to participate in the
presidential race, then it
would be difficult to dismiss Tsvangirai's
concerns about an outcome that
virtually condemns him to the outhouse and
not the state house.
We all may not agree on who should or should not be
the head of state and
government of Zimbabwe but anyone who believes in a
Republican ideology
would agree that it is the people who must govern
through representatives
they select through a fair and transparent
system.
This truth is self-evident and cannot be described as
inconvenient.
Equally it would be wrong to attempt to suggest that the
millions of
Zimbabweans who took their time to go and cast their votes on
March 29 were
doing to assert the rights of the West.
What is a
convenient truth is that Zimbabweans are tired of the politics of
point
scoring and they really deserve a break from the past and yet through
the
GPA, the future will mean more of the same bitter politics.
It would be
wrong to assert that Zimbabweans who took their obligations as
citizens
seriously and voted in their millions for Tsvangirai to be the head
of state
and government are not concerned about the absurdity of a
negotiated outcome
whose selection of participants has very little to do
with the question that
the world and the majority of Zimbabweans want
answered - who of the two men
should be the custodian of Zimbabwean
sovereignty.
To Mugabe, the GPA
has restored his legitimacy and, therefore, he sees its
implementation as
necessary for him to remain as the head of state and
government. He has yet
to accept Tsvangirai as an authentic Zimbabwean
vested with the same rights
as enshrined in the constitution.
He has bought the propaganda that
people like Tsvangirai must never be
trusted with the reigns of
power.
Although the constitution of Zimbabwe has no provision that
disables a
person like Tsvangirai from being a head of state and government,
it is
evident that Mbeki,Mugabe and Mutambara are at one in holding the view
that
Tsvangirai is not the kind of leader that Zimbabwe should have. This is
one
of the inconvenient truths that Mutambara did not say in his
article.
Whose interests are served by a speedy implementation of an
agreement that
boxes Tsvangirai out of power in the transitional phase with
no promise that
he will emerge from the confusion of the inclusive
government intact.
An inclusive government implies that there is a shared
position on what kind
of Zimbabwe the interlocutors want to see.
The
kind of Zimbabwe that Mugabe wants to see is a poor but ideologically
pure
where people can eat the land and not the food produced from the land.
I
doubt whether Mutambara shares Mugabe's worldview to give him comfort that
day one after the formation of the inclusive government, the three
principals will converge in the understanding of what the country
requires.
In framing the terms of reference of the negotiations, it was
accepted that
sanctions, however, defined must be lifted. If this is the
case, it cannot
be inconvenient for the very people who imposed the
sanctions not to express
their opinion about their likely reaction to the
inclusive government
especially if the burden of opening the Western doors
is to be placed on
Tsvangirai.
Is it an inconvenient truth that any
government that does not respect the
rule of law and property and human
rights as framed by the West is unlikely
to receive the support of such
countries?
If we accept that Western intervention is not called for then
we must ask
Mugabe and anyone who supports the proposition that the GPA as
currently
framed will stimulate investor confidence what alternative plan is
in place
to lift the country up?
Is it not ironic that working people
despise their employers and yet expect
to be paid at the end of every month
even if their contribution to the firm
is not commensurate with the salary
paid?
Is it also not ironic that the poor want to be reach and yet spend
a
substantial part of their productive time despising the rich?
If
only the people in the valley could realise what it takes to climb the
mountain then they will appreciate the views of those who are at the top of
the mountain.
The West is at the top of the economic ladder although
its business model is
currently challenged but it would be wrong for anyone
who wants to be lifted
up to then create a reality in which half truths and
self-serving lies are
now projected as convenient truths.
At this
defining hour, Zimbabweans ought to ask themselves whether Mugabe is
capable
of changing the views that have crystallised in his mind over the
last 29
years in power to give the proposed inclusive government space to
operate
with the kind of flexibility and wisdom required.
He has shown by
appointing Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Gideon Gono,
Justice Minister
Patrick Chinamasa and the Attorney General that he does not
believe that
change is what the country needs. Rather it needs Tsvangirai to
change the
minds of the West so that the tap of resources can continue to
flow with no
inhibition.
What is not an inconvenient truth is that the West is and
continues to feed
Zimbabwe while the economy is imploding and gravitating
towards becoming the
52nd state of the United States (US).
Already
the official currency will be the same as the US and it cannot be
denied
that more Zimbabweans now know about Benjamin Franklins than they do
about
the machinations in the closed doors of the GPA shenanigans.
Even
teachers want to be paid in Benjamin Franklins, confirming a convenient
truth that the custodians of the Zimbabwe dollar have either abdicated or
have no alternative plan.
It would be welcome if Zimbabweans began to
voice their concern as
Tsvangirai and his colleagues have been doing that
without trust and a give
and take attitude there is no hope for fixing the
economy.
It is not inconvenient for Tsvangirai to be cautious and
apprehensive about
sharing a bed with someone who calls him a "prostitute",
"puppet" and
"unpatriotic".
Notwithstanding, there are many people
who hold the view that the only way
Tsvangirai can assert his rights, for
Mugabe is not about to go away, is for
him to take what is on the table and
pray to God that he will be given room
to manoeuvre by people who hold him
in low esteem.
Who is stalling the GPA? It is evident that
Mbeki,Mutambara, Mugabe and SADC
believe that Tsvangirai is the bad boy and
they excuse him because they
genuinely believe that he is being
managed.
If Mutambara was Tsvangirai what would he do? Would he jump into
bed with
Mugabe and forget the scars?
When former Tanzanian President
Julius Nyerere recommended that Mugabe ought
to consider former Rhodesian
Prime Minister Ian Smith as a Cabinet minister
in his first administration,
it was Mugabe who refused saying that water and
oil could never be united
and it was too much to expect him to consider such
an outcome.
Can
Mugabe and Tsvangirai share executive power without a permanent
mid-wife?
This is a thought that needs exploration but what is instructive
is that
they share very little to be trusted to work together.
Mutambara was
supposed to be the mid-wife and it is normally possible in
business where a
company has three shareholders, for example, A holding 49
percent of the
shares; B - 49 percent and C - 2 percent for C to be the king
maker.
However, the inconvenient truth is Mutambara needs help from
all of us to
recognise the urgency of the moment and the fact that he may
hold the key to
unlocking the future.
There is no value in condemning
Mutambara and his colleagues but what is
required is for a revised framework
that is premised on the fact that
opposition as collectively defined has the
confidence of the majority of the
people of Zimbabwe.
It is never too
late to push for Mutambara and Tsvangirai to begin to
realise that
Zimbabweans want them to work together so that the wind of
change can
finally visit Zimbabwe.
Tsvangirai cannot do it alone and he needs to get
Mutambara firmly behind
him. Mutambara has no benefit in aligning or
appearing to align himself with
Mugabe.
What is evident is that we
all have failed to lobby not SADC leaders but
Mutambara to appreciate that
at this defining hour an injury to Tsvangirai
is neither in his or the
national interest.
Mugabe's record of accomplishments is known so are his
failures to compel
anyone interested in the future to start investing in the
change they want
to see.
To the extent that the West wants to see
change that is believable it is
important that Mutambara reconsiders his
position on the West particularly
if he offers no alternative sustainable
economic model. - ZimOnline