http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012 18:59
BY
CAIPHAS CHIMHETE
POLICE yesterday arrested about 30 MDC-T youths in
Bulawayo before
ransacking the party’s office, taking away several campaign
materials
including fliers, t-shirts and minutes of previous
meetings.
MDC-T lawyer Lison Ncube of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights
(ZLHR)
said the youths, who were arrested along Luveve road, were severely
assaulted before they were released without a charge.
“They were
beaten thoroughly especially the youth chairman Bekithemba
Nyathi,” said
Ncube. “After that, they raided the party’s office where they
took fliers
and minutes of previous meetings. They later released them
without a charge
although they recorded all their details on a personal data
form.”
Ncube said the youth were arrested around 9am and were
only released at
3:30pm.
Sources said the MDC-T youths had
planned to demonstrate in protest against
the continued incarceration of
their national youth chairman, Solomon
Madzore, accused of murdering a
police officer in Glen View last year.
Madzore has been in custody
for the past four months.
Yesterday’s arrest came at time when the
MDC-T secretary general Tendai Biti
is reportedly preparing a dossier to the
Southern African Development
Community (Sadc) complaining about the
crackdown of his party supporters by
state security agents, especially the
police.
The MDC-T has accused Zanu PF of waging a war against its
members by using
the police to randomly arrest them. After the clashes
between police and
vendors last week, the police raided Harvest House and
arrested several
MDC-T activists. Two MDC-T youths are currently
hospitalised after they were
severely beaten upon arrest.
Several
other MDC-T activists have also been arrested in the past few weeks
across
the country on allegations that the party claims are trumped up
charges. to
enable President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu PF to decimate Prime
Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai’s support base.
Scores of MDC-T supporters are in jails
while others are on bail awaiting
trial on charges they party claim are
trumped up.
Following the spate of arrests, Co-Minister of Home
Affairs Theresa Makone
last week said she will approach Mugabe and the
Commissioner-General
Augustine Chihuri over the partisan conduct of the
police.
“Once again, I will be engaging the Commissioner-General and
the President
about the deplorable behaviour of the police in Nkayi and
other areas,” said
Makone in a statement released soon after police raided
Harvest House.
Makone, who admitted that she was powerless to stop
the crackdown, said she
had previously complained to Chihuri on many
occasions but nothing has
changed.
“I have alerted the President,
to whom all these service chiefs report to on
operational issues, and there
has not been any shift in the general conduct
of some members of the
police,” she said.
Efforts to get a comment from police spokesperson
Wayne Bvudzijena were
fruitless on Saturday.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012 18:31
BY
JENNIFER DUBE
SOME Harare residents have advocated for a second term
for Harare mayor
Muchadeyi Masunda saying despite a few “weaknesses”, he
has done a lot of
work for the city. But others said he was just a
“smooth-talker but a
non-performer”.
A businessman and lawyer,
Masunda was elected unanimously by the Harare
council in July 2008 for a
five-year term after Emmanuel Chiroto, an MDC-T
councillor, who had been
previously elected executive mayor, voluntarily
stood down. He accepted the
position of deputy mayor.
Although there is still more than a
year before the expiration of Masunda’s
term, discussion around whether or
not he should be given another term has
already started. Masunda’s term also
depends on when elections will be held.
If they are to be held this year,
the new councillors will determine whether
to continue with him, or to
choose a mayor from among themselves or from the
civil
society.
Some councillors do not want Masunda’s term extended saying
they are not
happy with his management style.
However, Harare
Residents’ Trust Coordinator, Precious Shumba, said although
Masunda has
weaknesses like any other human being, he deserves another
chance to enable
him to finish projects he had started.
He said Masunda and his
council still needed to find ways of getting revenue
without burdening
residents. He added that residents expected council to
improve the city’s
road network, supply clean water and manage waste
properly.
Shumba was however, critical of Masunda’s
performance.
“Masunda is a smooth-talker but a non-performer,” he
said.
“He behaves like council’s legal consultant instead of playing
a lead role
in policy formulation.
“In most cases, he sides with
city management and not the councillors who
are the policy makers, for
example in the Easipark deal and also on the
councillors’ recommendation
that the town clerk should be fired to bring
policy
reforms.”
Shumba added the residents expected the mayor to implement
councillors’
recommendations. “Overall, we give him 60% on the positive and
we expect him
to improve his performance,” Shumba said. “We recognise that
he tried to
project a professional outlook to council business and brought
his business
experience which has helped council source resources, but that
alone does
not sustain council.
“There is still need for policy
coherence at Town House and Masunda also
needs to stop looking down upon his
councillors because we elected them and
they hired him.”
Masunda
has been quoted as saying most of the councillors were not up to the
task as
they were unqualified for the various committees they sit in.
Shumba said
Masunda had also acquitted himself well by resisting directives
from the
Minister of Local Government, Urban and Rural Development, Ignatius
Chombo,
who has been accused of interfering with local authorities’
operations.
Combined Harare Residents Association chairman
Simbarashe Moyo noted the
council had done a lot in trying to turn around
the situation in the city.
“They found total breakdown when they got into the
office and they must be
recognised for doing something,” Moyo said. “He
(Masunda) initiated a number
of projects and should be given another term to
see them through.”
But other residents said Masunda should not get a
second term because he had
failed to improve the state of the city’s roads
which are littered with huge
potholes. They said garbage continued to pile
up in the city centre and
residential areas while most traffic lights were
not working. They said
these issues must have been addressed a long time ago
since residents
started paying rates in US dollars.
Masunda last
week said he would step down when asked to do so and would
accept another
term if granted the opportunity. He said when his council
came into office,
Harare was getting less than 300 megalitres of water per
day and this has
been increased to 640 megalitres per day. The city had also
been able to
provide 3 102 housing units and another 1 500 were in the
pipeline.
Apart from this, he said council resurfaced several
roads including
Borrowdale road while the mayor’s cheer fund attracted more
funding than the
previous years, he said.
He said council managed
to source 600 000 euros from Munich for medical
equipment which lasted the
city more than six months. The city also got
medical equipment worth US$50
000 from his personal friends based abroad.
Masunda said he managed
to source US$5 million from the Bill and Melinda
Gates Foundation, a feat no
mayor has achieved before. He is also
negotiating with some financial
institutions for the construction of the
Kunzvi and Musami Dam
projects.
‘I resuscitated ailing council
infrastructure’
When he came into office, Masunda said, city’s
health facilities had totally
broken down, but he has managed to resuscitate
them.
He cited the sourcing of a generator (which can light up the whole of
Norton) for Beatrice Road Infectious Diseases Hospital as one of the main
achievements. He also cited the sourcing of two fire engines for the city
and the good relations with the corporate world which saw companies as Delta
Beverages and Dairiboard assisting the city.
“I led this council
with dignity and a degree of professionalism and that is
why we lasted
longer than any of the councils we have had in recent years,”
he
said.
“We addressed a number of issues, including provision of
potable water and
houses.
“Admittedly, we have not done as much
as we are expected to do in terms of
improving roads in high-density
suburbs, but these things require money.”
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012 18:31
ZANU PF
MP for Mazowe West Richard Chirongwe faces possible arrest after he
allegedly threatened to shoot his wife whom he accused of engaging in an
extra marital affair.
The matter came to light after the legislator’s
wife, Catherine Munjayi,
made a report at Marlborough police station on
January 3 claiming that
Chirongwe had threatened to shoot her with a
gun.
The MP faces charges of contravening Section 186 (a) of the
Criminal Law
(Codification and Reform Act), in a case under number
RRB1173495.
According to police papers in our possession, Chirogwe’s outburst
followed
an incident when he met his wife carrying a male passenger in her
car in the
evening at Asbrittle Shopping Centre in
Marlborough.
Upon seeing the two, the MP allegedly demanded an
explanation from his wife
as to the relationship between her and the male
passenger, who happened to
be a policeman, but was not satisfied by the
response. — BY EDGAR GWESHE
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012 18:28
BY NQABA
MATSHAZI
PRINCIPALS to the inclusive government are set to meet to deliberate
over a
report that was handed to them by the negotiators from the three main
political parties.
It has been revealed that the report was handed in
last December but
President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
and his deputy,
Arthur Mutambara are yet to meet over the
report.
The same report has also been handed to the facilitator,
South African
leader, President Jacob Zuma.
But it was not immediately
clear whether Zuma will be present during the
meeting with the principals or
would wait for a report from them.
“We came up with issues that have
not been implemented and the
implementation mechanisms,” Priscilla
Misihairabwi-Mushonga, who negotiates
on behalf of the MDC led by Welshman
Ncube, said.
She said the report tackled the outstanding issues,
which have so far
stalled the inclusive government, which celebrates its
third anniversary in
a month.
Misihairabwi-Mushonga’s counterpart
from the MDC-T, Elton Mangoma, however
declined to confirm the submission of
the report, saying he did not comment
on such things.
The
principals have so far failed to meet because of the holidays, with
Mugabe
and Tsvangirai being away from the country at different times.
However, a
source close to the discussions said the report was going to
provide the
latest avenue for contestation between Zanu PF and the two MDCs.
“The
outstanding issues have been on the table for quite a while and I doubt
that
there’s going to be any movement in that regard,” the insider said.
Chief
among the main issues was a roadmap to elections, which Zanu PF seems
reluctant to adopt, while the other parties are pushing for
it.
Zanu PF, the insider said, was also insisting that sanctions be
among the
outstanding issues and this was likely to be another sticking
point.
Another point in contention is that Zanu PF had indicated that
it was
getting weary of the negotiations and wanted an end to them, while
insisting
on holding elections.
Misihairabwi-Mushonga declined to
provide details of the report, although
she said the way forward would be
clearer after the principals met.
Efforts to get a comment from Zanu PF
negotiator Patrick Chinamasa were
fruitless.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012
18:28
BY SILAS NKALA
ZAPU is compiling information about its
properties seized by government
during political disturbances in
Matabeleland and Midlands regions with a
view of instituting legal action to
recover them.
The party’s secretary for legal affairs, Stephen Nkiwane, last
week said
they have made significant progress in the probe.
Zapu leader
Dumiso Dabengwa, whose members pulled out of the Unity Accord in
2009, last
year said their investigations had established that the Zanu PF
government
had sold most of the party’s properties.
“We are compiling data on
the properties and our process is at an advance
stage,” said Nkiwane. “After
we finish the compilation, we will then take
either a legal or political
action depending on how the respondents will
behave.”
Zapu and
Zipra properties were seized by Zanu PF government after
independence during
Gukurahundi Operation in Matabeleland and Midlands
regions, which resulted
in an estimated 20 000 people being killed.
Some of the Zapu
properties that are still under the control of the
government include Magnet
House in Bulawayo, which houses the regional
headquarters of the Central
Intelligence Organisation and Castle Arms Motel,
also in
Bulawayo.
In Harare there is a property, Snake Park, among
others.
After the Unity Accord in 1987, the Zanu PF government
refused to hand over
the properties.
Nkiwane said some properties
were in third parties’ hands, a situation which
was delaying the process of
getting them back.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012
18:27
SINO-Zimbabwe Cement company has said its plant in Lalapanzi near
Gweru
meets the government stipulated occupational health and safety
requirements.
Responding to a recent article in The Standard where
some workers complained
of poor safety standards, acting managing director,
Dereck Moyo said in a
statement his company gives its employees protective
clothing and provides a
safe working environment.
Moyo said the
company operated a clinic at the plant to ensure that
employees have access
to medical facilities all the time, while the safety
and health of
environment officer’s major role was to make certain that
standards were not
compromised.
“The company also has an occupational medical
practitioner who does regular
visits and conducts medical tests and checks
on all employees. This is done
to prevent and treat any illness,” he
said.
He said Sino-Zimbabwe Cement is the only cement company in the
country in
which the Chinese hold a stake.
Moyo said the
publication of the article portrayed the company as an
irresponsible
employer.
“We support freedom of the press, but that freedom should
come with
responsible reporting,” he wrote.— BY OUR STAFF
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012 18:13
BY OUR
STAFF
Hunger is stalking most parts of the country, with people living in
semi-arid areas already facing serious food shortages.
There are fears
that starvation is imminent unless the government and other
stakeholders
quickly act to avoid disaster.
One of the worst affected areas is Chimanimani
West in Manicaland where
humanitarian organisations such as Christian Care
are overwhelmed with
demand for food due to poor harvests last
season.
“My heart bleeds for children here. I fear they will soon
develop
kwashiorkor because most families here have run out of food,” said
Zekias
Nhachi, councillor for ward 20 in Chimanimani West.
Nhachi
pleaded with government to establish more irrigation schemes in the
area
which lies in natural region five, where crops hardly grow unless
under
irrigation.
“Irrigation will enable our people to achieve food
self-sufficiency,” he
said.
Families in areas such as Gudyanga,
Murare and Chikwizi travel long
distances to buy food or secure work in
Chimanimani East which experiences
better seasons.
He said a
bucket of maize was being sold for US$12 in his area compared to
half the
price elsewhere.
The dire food shortages in Chimanimani West are a
reflection of the
situation in other dry parts of the country which did not
receive enough
rains last year.
Manicaland provincial
administrator Fungai Mbetsa said over 96 000
households were facing serious
food shortages in the province. He said the
government has put in place a
grain loan scheme to bail out the starving
families.
“Manicaland
is generally dry and many communal areas did not receive good
rains last
year,” said Mbetsa. “As a result, there is a food deficit and the
government
is rolling out a grain loan scheme to save the starving
families.”
In Manicaland, the worst affected areas include
Marange, Chiadzwa, Buhera
and lower Chipinge where some families are said to
be surviving on wild
fruits.
Masvingo provincial administrator
Felix Chikovo attributed the food
situation in his province to poor rains
last season. He said government was
still to come up with intervention
measures.
“All districts are faced with food shortages. This is due
to last year’s
poor rains as well as the late onset of the rains this year,”
he said.
“There are no interventions at the moment, but some NGOs are giving
out food
only to the vulnerable and worse off groups.”
The
situation could be worse next year. This comes after reports that
Masvingo’s
maize hecterage dropped by more than 40% this farming season.
According to
figures presented by Agritex during a drought relief meeting
chaired by
Chikovo last week, there are 122 250 hectares of maize planted
this year
compared to 229 887 in the 2011 farming season.
Matabeleland has not
been spared from hunger due to poor rains. Sengezo
Tshabangu, the MDC-T
Matabeleland North chairperson said the 2011/12 season
is another wakeup
call for the government which must resuscitate irrigation
schemes while
creating new ones to avoid hunger in the event of rains
failing.
Deputy Minister of public service and Insiza legislator,
Andrew Langa said
2012 is another bad year for Matabeleland South as most
planted crops have
already been “wiped out”.
It is estimated that
9 000 tonnes of maize would be required in the province
to feed over 100 000
villagers every month.
“We expected good rains and the region had done its
best in terms of farming
preparations and planting.
Insufficent food
for 11,5% of population
“However, this dry weather shows that we
will not be able to harvest
anything,” said Langa. He said the government
should extend the grain loan
schemes to the next farming season to avert
starvation in the province.
Agricultural experts have called on
government to revive irrigation schemes,
most of which have collapsed due to
neglect and vandalism by some of the
newly resettled farmers.
The
Famine Early Warning Systems Network estimates that 11, 5% of the
country’s
population will have insufficient food entitlements between
January and
March this year.
It says the highest prevalence of food insecure
households would be in rural
areas and some poor urban areas.
The worst
affected provinces were cited as Manicaland, Masvingo, parts of
Midlands,
Matabeleland South and North.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012
18:12
BY OUR STAFF
AN Arbitration Tribunal has ordered the Zimbabwe
Schools Examination Council
(Zimsec) to pay its 290 workers US$400 000 in
outstanding housing allowances
dating back to 12 months ago.
Independent
Arbitrator Arthur Manase ruled that Zimsec should pay the
amount in line
with a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) signed by the
two parties in
June last year.
“The Collecting Bargaining agreement was binding,”
reads the arbitration
ruling made last Thursday.
“The parties are
to duly enforce their CBA for 2011 in toto. They are to
meet as Works
Council within 10 working days of this award and agree on a
proportion of
the US$420 000 which is going to be set aside for housing
allowances.”
Zimbabwe National Education Union of Zimbabwe (NEUZ)
spokesperson Mathias
Guchutu said workers were forced to take the legal
route after Zimsec
declined to implement the collective bargaining
agreement.
“All was not well at Zimsec for the past six months as
disgruntled workers
were fighting management over the payment of outstanding
allowances,” he
said.
“Workers deliberately avoided going on
strike to ensure the smooth sailing
of the June and November examinations.
Now that the Arbitrator has made his
ruling, Zimsec should pay up to avoid
confrontation with employees.”
Guchutu said the CBA entered into, on
June 6 2011 by the Works Council was
signed as a total package, with all the
relevant authorities endorsing the
agreement, yet management was now
reneging on it.
Sources said workers demanded a 56% increment and
US$210 in housing
allowances, while the examination board was only offering
10%.
To end the stalemate, workers and management later agreed that loans for
housing, vehicles and personal use, as well as encashment could be used to
fund employees’ allowances.
It was also agreed that money for
vacant posts could be used to increase
employees’ salaries and
allowances.
Calculations were done with cash from loans coming to
US$420 000, which
could then be converted to increase employee allowances
and salaries.
Worker representatives said they were not yet sure whether
management would
pay them as ordered by the Arbitrator or appeal the ruling
altogether.
“We just hope that management honours the decision of the
Arbitrator in
order to put to rest this long running case.
Morale
is currently low as workers are not happy with the way the
examination body
is being run,” said a worker representative.
“Zimsec public relations
manager, Ezekiel Pasipamire has not yet responded
to written questions put
forward to him last Friday.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012 17:52
BY
PATRICE MAKOVA
A new local pressure group, Resource Exploitation Watch (REW)
says there is
nothing sinister with the appointment of foreign nationals to
head
locally-based international companies as government has not banned
expatriates from operating in the country.
New chairman,
Tafadzwa Musarara said attacks on Telecel Zimbabwe for its
recent
appointment of a US-born Swiss citizen, John Swaim as managing
director,
were not warranted as many Zimbabweans also occupy top positions
in
different countries throughout the world.
He said Telecel through its
foreign shareholders, acquired capital and
massive telecommunication
equipment worth more than US$40 million to roll
out a huge base station
project nationwide.
Musarara said the exercise will benefit local
consumers as the enhanced
network will provide competition to other
networks, resulting in tariffs
lowering and efficient service. He said, in
order for the project to
kick-off, the foreign shareholder funding the
project had to second their
senior personnel to oversee the project on the
ground.
“This is a common practice worldwide as investors would be
seeking to secure
their capital in the foreign market,” said Musarara.
“Zimbabwean companies
like Econet, Africa Sun and Nicoz Diamond which opened
operations in Ghana,
Zambia, Botswana, UK, South Africa and elsewhere had to
send Zimbabweans to
head these operations in these foreign
countries.”
Musarara’s comments come soon after Affirmative Action
Group (AAG) Chief
executive officer Davison Gomo last week said the radical
economic
empowerment group was opposed to the appointment of Swaim and
called on
government to deny him a work permit.
He said Chinese
investors who were opening businesses in the country were
also placing
fellow countrymen at the helm of their organisations, but
no-one was raising
any alarms.
There was no country in the world that does not have
expatriates, Musarara
said.
“Even USA is not an exception. There
are a lot of Japanese nationals heading
Japanese-owned companies in the
USA,” he said.
“It will not be trains-smash if we have two foreigners
appointed for a
limited time to unlock significant value given that the rest
of the
management are black Zimbabweans. This will enable us to achieve
desperately
needed capital injection in the company and the requisite
technological
transfer into the country.”
Musarara was the
secretary-general of the Supa Mandiwanzira-led AAG which
resigned a few
months ago after a fallout with founder and Harare
businessman Phillip
Chiyangwa.
Telecel is chaired by fugitive businessman James Makamba,
who is in a bitter
power struggle with former acting chairperson Jane
Mutasa.
No law bars foreigners: Musarara
Musarara said
there was no provision in the current indigenisation laws that
bar the
employment of foreigners.
He said Zimbabweans should be careful that
certain policies that some people
want to advocate for could be disastrous
should other countries “return the
favour”.
Musarara said Zimbabwe
has the highest number per capita in southern and
East Africa of its own
nationals working in the Diaspora including some who
are managing African
telecommunications giant, MTN operations in some
African
countries.
A number of Zimbabweans were also heading Barclays and
Standard banking
operations in several countries in the continent.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012
17:52
BY OUR STAFF
PRIME Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has instructed his
lawyers to institute
legal proceedings in response to stories implicating
him in an alleged
journalists bribery scam.
The Zimbabwe Broadcasting
Corporation (ZBC) recently carried stories
alleging that Tsvangirai had
bribed editors of local private newspapers to
stop negative coverage of his
party and his promiscuous behaviour.
The Herald also picked up the
story.
Tsvangirai’s lawyer, Selby Hwacha, on Friday confirmed
receiving
instructions to sue.
“We have received instructions to
sue the writers and publishers of the
stories,” Hwacha said.
“We
are in the process of compiling the papers.”
The stories alleged that
Tsvangirai dangled thousands of dollars to the
editors and instructed them
to immediately stop publishing anything to do
with his alleged marriage to
Locardia Karimatsenga Tembo.
The stories further alleged that
Tsvangirai ordered the editors to redirect
their negative reports to Zanu PF
and its officials.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012
17:15
BY FORTUNE MOYO
FIFTY-YEAR-old Anna Nyoni’s married life has
been a nightmare.
She remembers no bliss in her seven-year marriage, just
beatings from her
husband which has left permanent scars all over her body.
Her relatives and
friends have on several occasions told her to persevere to
keep her
marriage, saying the battering will end as it was common in most
marriages.
Though she cannot take the beatings anymore, Nyoni has no
knowledge of where
to get professional assistance. Nyoni is one of the
several thousands of
women in Zimbabwe who suffer at the hands of their
husbands but have no
knowledge of where to seek recourse or any other form
of assistance.
A recent report by the Ministry of Women Affairs,
Gender and Community
Development, in collaboration with some
non-governmental organisations
(NGOs), says women suffer in silence because
they are ignorant of the laws
that can protect them against gender-based
violence (GBV).
The ministry came up with a national strategy and
public campaigns on issues
of GBV, which are meant to enhance women’s
capacity to protect themselves
against domestic
violence.
However, gender experts say that little is being done to
sensitive the
ordinary woman about the issue.
In interviews
carried out by The Standard, it emerged that some women were
unaware of laws
that protected them against domestic violence.
“What I know is that domestic
violence exists in homes, but I was not aware
that there is actually a law
on domestic violence,” said Sithabisiwe Gumbo.
Some said they only
got to know about such laws when it happened to a
relative or a close
friend.
“In most cases, one gets to know about these things when they
are directly
affected by the issue,” said Nomsa Dube.
“Otherwise,
if nothing of that sort happens, I never bother to find out
whether or not
there are laws about domestic violence.”
Domestic violence is
considered the most pervasive and widely tolerated form
of GBV in Zimbabwe.
Gender experts say the practice is hidden in silence to
protect the
integrity of the family.
Gender experts say, like HIV, domestic
violence can happen to anyone
regardless of race, class, economic status or
religion.
The Domestic Violence Act (DVA) of 2006 makes provision for
the protection
and relief of victims of domestic violence and to provide for
matters
connected with or incidental to domestic
violence.
According to the Act, domestic violence means an unlawful
act, omission or
behaviour which results in death or the direct infliction
of physical,
sexual or mental injury to any complainant.
It
mentions types of domestic abuse as physical abuse, sexual abuse,
emotional,
verbal, psychological abuse, economic abuse, forced virginity
testing,
pledging of women or girls for purposes of appeasing spirits and
sexual
intercourse between father-in-law and newly married
daughter-in-law.
Domestic violence cases on the rise: Musasa
Project
Statistics revealed by Musasa Project at a one-day media
briefing in
Bulawayo recently, showed that cases of domestic violence were
on the
increase.
The organisation aims to enhance the development of
women by making
government authorities and the public aware of the
illegality and
non-acceptability of violence against women and through
taking action to
reduce the incidents of the crime.
Musasa
Project says there were 3 193 cases of domestic violence reported in
the
country in 2009.
The number increased to 7 628 in 2010 while 2 536
cases were reported and in
the first quarter of last year.
“We
believe that these figures are not the real representation of domestic
violence, as there are more cases that actually go unreported,” said Musasa
Project regional manager for Bulawayo and Midlands, Lindile
Ndebele.
“Most women always prefer to suffer in silence; hence we can
safely double
these statistics to show the real picture and extent of
domestic violence in
the country.”
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012
17:14
BY TATENDA CHITAGU
MASVINGO — Seventy-year-oldMolyn Maziva still
remembers vividly seeing the
lifeless body of her great granddaughter dumped
on their doorstep.
Wrapped in a plastic bag, Nokutuhula Rwaibva’s body was
dumped at the family
home in Masvingo’s Mucheke high-density suburb, four
days after the toddler
disappeared on Christmas Day.
Maziva suspected the
baby’s body had been immersed in hot cooking oil or
boiling water. She
described the murder as heartless.
“And to show how callous and daring the
murderers are, they dumped the baby’s
body four days after, a few metres
from our home. We wonder the motive of
the murder,” said Maziva, tears
streaming down her wrinkled cheeks.
“If the criminals are arrested,
they should face the full wrath of the law.”
The 19-month-old toddler
was abducted while playing outside as her mother,
Abigail Bheka, was asleep
in the house.
Maziva is one of the several hundreds of residents of
Masvingo who now fear
for their children’s safety as a spate of suspected
ritual murders has
rocked the resort town in recent months. The residents
have since demanded
urgent intervention from the police.
Scores
of placard-waving residents recently took to the streets in protest
over the
surging cases of suspected ritual child murders in the country’s
oldest
town.
The demonstrators, who cited police ineptitude in dealing with
the cases,
were calling on all law enforcement agents to put an end to the
killings
that has seen scores of children going missing.
Last
year, Masvingo United Residents and Ratepayers’ Association held a
meeting
with the police where they also pledged to galvanise the community
into
action.
Masvingo provincial police spokesperson, Inspector Tinaye
Matake, said he
needed time to study the cases of suspected
ritually-motivated murders.
“I cannot give a comment now as I need time to
study the different cases,”
said Matake.
“We are also afraid of
jeopardising the investigations at this stage. But we
will issue a press
statement soon.”
As police continue to investigate, residents said
they are now afraid of
letting their children out of their homes or even
going to school. “How can
the practice go on and on like that? We are now
afraid of sending our kids
to the shops to buy bread,” said one Masvingo
resident.
“We are now very cautious to the extent that we no longer
leave our kids
unattended. Who knows, they may be the next
victims.”
Another resident from Rujeko suburb, Vincent Muzenda, also
expressed concern
about the unresolved cases of abductions, disappearances
and killings.
“The disturbing trend is still ongoing, given the recent case.
We are
worried,” Muzenda said.
In November last year, a month
before Nokhutula’s death, a nine-year-old
deaf and dumb boy, Isheanopa
Gumbo, went missing for about a week before his
corpse was found floating in
Mucheke River.
In yet another gruesome murder, a 26-year-old man,
Lloyd Chigandiwa of
Rujeko high-density suburb, was found dead in October
last year with his
lips, ears and nose missing. And a few months before, a
couple from Mucheke
high-density suburb was arrested after they allegedly
gave away their
seven-year-old son to suspected ritual
killers.
There is a widespread belief in Masvingo that the children’s
limbs are being
sold in neighbouring South Africa, where locals are paid
huge amounts of
money, given commuter omnibuses or other vehicles.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012 17:13
BY
MOSES CHIBAYA
WOMEN and Aids Support Network (Wasn) says it has unearthed
several
unreported rape cases of the disabled and young girls during an
ongoing
awareness campaign on sexual and reproductive health, which the
organisation
is conducting throughout the country.
Wasn director, Mary
Sanders, told The Standard last week that her
organisation has already
reported some of the rape cases to the police.
She said most of the cases go
unreported because the victims and their
guardians lack information. This,
she said, is most prevalent in rural
areas.
“We have discovered
several cases, but most of them were not reported
because the victims felt
that they could get victimised in the community and
also get blamed by
family members,” said Sanders, who could not give the
exact number of cases
her organisation has reported to the police.
“We really feel that
there is a lot of awareness that we should be giving to
the community and
even to parents of children living with disabilities so
that when anything
like rape happens to their children, they should report
to the
police.”
Sanders however, lambasted the courts for their delay in
dealing with the
reported cases of rape.
In one case, she said,
it has taken over six years for justice to be
delivered and “I think it was
unfair to the victim.”
She added, “We also have a case of a young
girl who was raped in Chirumhanzu
by her guardian and she is pregnant, but
the justice system has taken so
long to rein in the
culprit.
“They are saying they are waiting for her to deliver the
baby of the rapist
and l don’t know how she will live with that baby.”
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14
January 2012 17:13
A recent report: Baseline Study Report on the
perceptions of Sexual and
Gender-Based Violence in Mbare, Harare, Zimbabwe
by Medicines Sans Frontiers
and the University of Zimbabwe, says lack of
transparency and gaps within
the judiciary system allows perpetrators to
escape retribution.
The report says most cases are often postponed and many
survivors of sexual
and gender-based violence (SGBV) end up withdrawing
their cases from courts,
opting for out-of-court settlement.
It
added that the judicial system should be closely monitored and corruption
within the police should be eradicated.
The report recommended
that the courts, both civil and criminal, should be
further decentralised to
various provinces and districts so that more cases
can be tried and
perpetrators are brought to justice.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
2011 will be marked as an eventful year
on the environmental scene in
Zimbabwe as it proved to be the year the
nation was truly awoken to the dire
state of the environment.
The
realisation helped stir the nation into action, which saw numerous
environmental campaigns being launched. As the journey into 2012 commences,
it is hoped that the momentum gathered in the preceding year will be carried
through and not be allowed to die down, as the future of our environment
depends on it.
StandardEnvironment set out to record some of the
initiatives of the
numerous local organisations that were “hands-on” last
year working on
different projects to bring some relief to the battered
environment and find
out their plans for the year ahead.
Miracle
Missions, a non-profit-making organisation with a special interest
in the
environment, was most notable for their vigorous clean-up campaign,
which
ran for the whole of 2011.
Working closely with the Environment
ministry, Environment Management Agency
(EMA), Environment Africa, Harare
City Council and different environmental
organisations, they went to great
lengths to make the public aware of the
filthy state of the country and the
need to clean-up and maintain a healthy
environment.
They managed
to rope into the campaign a number of corporate organisations,
which saw
Delta Beverages, Kingdom Bank and Avis, among others, committing
themselves
to the cause.
With cooperation from the corporate world, the campaign
saw a number of
refuse bins being provided at various locations around
Harare, helping ease
the pressure on the overwhelmed council facilities,
which have largely
proved insufficient.
Asked about their plans
for 2012, Jacquie Anderson, spokesperson for Miracle
Missions, had this to
say: “2011 was a good year; it was a good start to
bringing sanity back in
the nation. We are still going forward with the
clean-up campaign and this
year we are taking it beyond Harare.”
The Zimbabwe Conservation Task
Force (ZCTF) however, had a different tale to
tell. The organisation, which
has a special interest in the preservation of
natural resources, bemoaned
the rampant abuse of resources for personal
gain, and in particular, pointed
to the ongoing killing of wild animals
which has seen wildlife numbers
dwindling to worrying levels.
Especially worrying, said ZCTF chairman
Johnny Rodrigues, are the elephants
that continue to be slaughtered for
ivory.
Rodrigues added that the continuing invasion of wildlife sanctuaries
like
the Chiredzi Conservancy was regrettable as it was contributing heavily
to
wildlife depletion.
“It will not go away until we all have the
willpower to conserve the
resources for our future generations,” said
Rodrigues on the rampant
wildlife poaching.
Maybe owing to the
17th conference of parties (Cop-17) that took pace in
Durban, South Africa,
late last year, people have been awoken to the reality
of climate change and
global warming.
Maxwell Kanotunga, a climate change activist working
with Greenpeace, noted:
“Although we still face some resistance as we still
have people who fail to
understand the importance of the environment, 2011
saw an increased
awareness of the phenomenon of global warming and climate
change.”
On his plans for 2012, Kanotunga said: “I will continue with
climate change
awareness campaigns and this year we will concentrate on
teaching adaptation
measures as people need to adapt to the changes. Plans
of establishing a
climate change youth club are also in the
pipeline.”
Deforestation, on the other hand, has been identified as a
major
environmental problem that has had devastating effects on the state of
the
environment in the country. This has resulted in indigenous trees fast
disappearing.
In their attempts to nip the problem in the bud,
Forestry Commission of
Zimbabwe (FCZ) came in with an aggressive
tree-planting campaign. They
targeted at planting 10 million trees for the
2011 season, although we
cannot yet ascertain how successful the drive was
until the planting season
comes to an end in April.
FCZ
information and communication manager, Violet Makoto said: “We will try
as
hard as we can to continue pushing for tree-planting exercises on all the
environmental days on our calendar.”
These are some of the
environmental organisations that worked tirelessly in
2011 to bring some
relief to the environment.
Still a lot more could not be included due to
space constraints while others
could not be reached for comment. But for
everyone who did one positive
thing or the other for the environment last
year, your efforts did not go
unnoticed.
We hope to see you go a step
further in 2012. Wish you the very best.
BY CHIPO
MASARA
For feedback, contact me at cmasara@standard.co.zw
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012 16:44
BY NDAMU
SANDU
FORMER Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) employees have sought an order at
the
Labour Court to be reinstated on the payroll until finalisation of their
outstanding retrenchment packages.
The move is a new twist to the
retrenchment saga after RBZ culled 75% of its
workforce last year to
concentrate on its core business.
The ex-employees thought they had
got relief last month after the court
granted them their wish on the basis
that there was no opposition.
However, RBZ said that it had filed
opposing papers and lawyers of the two
parties consented to the order being
set aside.
The adjudication process is now set for this week as the
lawyers of the two
parties have agreed to see the president of the Labour
Court, this paper was
told on Friday.
The interim relief sought
by the employees would, if given, result in the
bank paying them salaries
and benefits backdated to July last year.
According to an agreement
which blessed the retrenchment exercise, RBZ
promised to pay the retrenched
workers their full packages by June 30 last
year.
In its
application, the former workers said their plight has become so dire
that
they cannot meet the basic requirements such as food, shelter and
clothing.
In its notice of opposition, RBZ lawyers argued that
the justice of this
case does not require the reinstatement of the former
workers and payment of
their backdated salaries to July 2011 as “doing so is
not competent at law
because there is no unlawful termination of
employment”.
RBZ said the former workers cannot refer to their
problem as a humanitarian
one, as it is economic in nature and is one
problem that almost every
Zimbabwean is going through considering that the
economy is on a recovery
path after years of being swept by the tide of
inflation.
The retrenchment was hailed as the central bank’s first
step towards
normalcy after it had steeped itself in activities that fall in
the realms
of the Ministry of Finance as the custodians of fiscal
policies.
As part of the agreement reached in January last year, the
former workers
were paid US$5 000 each and RBZ promised to pay the packages
in two
installments: March 31 and on June 30 2011.
On March 31,
RBZ gave the former workers US$5 000 each and promised to clear
the amounts
in June. When June came, RBZ had no money and again gave them
US$5 000 each
and said it would pay once the disposal of its non-core assets
was
completed. This infuriated the former workers who approached the Labour
Court.
An arbitral award issued on September 16 last year ordered
the bank to pay
all outstanding dues immediately and pay compensation of 5%
per annum as a
penalty for delaying payments.
RBZ appealed
against the award and said that it was able to pay the
outstanding packages
within a period of 18 months from the date of the
order.
The bank said
that would pay the costs of the suit.
The former employees filed an
application to register the award as an order
of High Court so that the bank
could be held in contempt of a court order.
RBZ opposed the application and
the matter is pending at the courts.
The former employees said that
the bank was determined to stop any
enforcement of payment of packages and
hence their approach to the Labour
Court to be given temporary relief to be
put back on payroll until
finalisation of the retrenchment packages.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012 16:35
BY KUDZAI
CHIMHANGWA
ZIMBABWE has requested for a temporary suspension of tariff
increases on the
Southern African Development Community (Sadc) trading front
in order to
provide local industry sufficient time to recapitalise and
restore its
competitive edge, a government official has said.
Following
years of prolonged political squabbles in the country that took
toll on the
economy, several industries failed to retool as production
levels waned
while others shut down.
The inception of the inclusive government in
February 2009 and commensurate
economic stability led to the slow recovery
of the manufacturing sector
while capacity utilisation levels increased
marginally.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Regional
Integration and
International Cooperation, Tadeus Chifamba, said the country
has requested
for a recovery period of between two to three years, which
should be
sufficient for local industry to make progress.
“We
have since requested for derogation on tariff increases. Most countries
have
been very understanding in this regard, and fortunately there is room
for
negotiation in this trade forum. Our reasons are legitimate considering
the
economic challenges we have faced,” he said.
“There is already a
programme in place to eliminate restrictive tariffs.”
Chifamba said
the local business sector needs to note that 80% of tradable
goods were
already duty free, save for the remaining 20% which are listed as
sensitive
products. He said government was committed to expediting the free
movement
of business persons across borders as Zimbabwe is already a
signatory to the
Sadc protocol on trade.
However, many haulage trucks continue to
spend weeks at border posts within
the Sadc region to comply with costly and
time-consuming customs procedures.
He said the only delay was due to the
fact that a few member states had not
yet ratified the agreement. “Besides
the three pillars pertaining to the
free trade area agreed on last year,
there are parallel negotiations that
are ongoing in terms of facilitating
the free movement of business persons
across borders,” he
said.
“The biggest impediment for Zimbabwean business in the regional
arena has
been that of capacity utilisation. Zimbabwe was once one of the
strongest
economies in terms of industrial output but the economic problems
of the
past decade affected the country. This situation has affected our
competitive edge in terms of the cost of production.”
Trade in
goods and services, as well as the enhancement of cross-border
investments,
are key areas of collaboration among Sadc members.
It is envisaged
that, should the ratification of the trade protocols take
place, all
existing forms of non-tariff barriers such as import licensing
requirements
and quantitative restrictions, shall be removed and trade
documents and
procedures in the member states of Sadc would be harmonised.
Member
states will also be allowed to enter new trade-related arrangements.
Economist Eric Bloch contends that only until such a time that the local
manufacturing sector becomes competitive can Zimbabwe fully realise the
benefits of regional integration that other member states are
enjoying.
“The problem isn’t about the regional arrangements in
place. We need to sort
out our own economy in order for the manufacturing
sector to produce
competitively priced goods,” Bloch said.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012
16:05
BY KUDZAI CHIMHANGWA
THE Indian business delegation that visited
the country last week expressed
interest in investing in Zimbabwe’s key
sectors, but urged the government to
create a suitable business
environment.
First Secretary at the Indian Embassy in Harare, Mukesh
Kumar, said that
Zimbabwe needs to urgently address the negative perception
that still exists
about the country in the international
community.
“Zimbabwe has to shake-off its poor status tag and
really show the rest of
the world its true potential as reflected by its
resource endowments,” he
said.
Kumar said it would be important
for Zimbabwe to clearly indicate its
foreign investment requirements in
order to properly guide Indian business
people who intend to make long-term
investments in the country.
He also indicated that Zimbabwe has not
reacted quickly to protect
vulnerable industries such as textiles and
leather from destructive external
competition as evidenced by the influx of
cheaper goods, presumably under
the auspices of the “Look East” policy
enunciated by government.
“The country needs to address issues of
bureaucracy to allow for hassle-free
and easy access into the country by
investors from Zimbabwe’s major source
markets,” he said.
His
comments come soon after a recent Zimbabwe-India investment conference
held
in Harare last week following a visit by a high-level business
delegation
from the Chamber of India Industry (CII). The delegation included
the
Minister of Industry, Commerce and Textiles, Anand Sharma.
The Indian
delegation comprised 25 large companies involved in the
pharmaceutical,
energy, manufacturing and textiles, infrastructure
development and
engineering, as well as energy and water projects among
others.
A
number of business delegations including German and British firms have
entered the country to explore investment opportunities ever since the
inception of the multi-currency regime in 2009, but have continued to
express reservations about the local business climate.
Government
plans to achieve an economic growth rate of 9,4% this year, with
foreign
exchange reserves of at least three months import cover by 2015,
double
digit savings and investment ratios of around 20% of GDP by 2015.
The
government, under the Medium-Term Plan, also intends to intensify the
investment drive to attain at least 25% of Gross Domestic Product by
2015.
The delegation observed that while this growth potential
exists, there are
challenges hindering the country from taking an economic
leap forward in
spite of its natural and human resource
endowment.
Kumar said the Indian government’s commitment to issuing
visas to
Zimbabweans expeditiously was not being reciprocated by Zimbabwean
authorities.
Last year in September, another business delegation from
India, led by
Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Jyotiraditya
Scindia, toured
the country and held a joint Zimbabwe-India investment
conference.
During the conference, the Indian business delegation
also expressed
interest in venturing into mining, diamond cutting and
polishing; supplying
of agriculture-related equipment and machinery, as well
as social services
in the health and education sectors.
Permanent
Secretary in the Ministry of Economic Planning and Investment
Promotion,
Desire Sibanda said Special Economic Zones would soon be
introduced,
resulting in the setting up of industrial parks and clusters
that are
favoured by most Asian countries as viable development models.
It was
noted during the session that both countries have complementary needs
where
India requires raw materials to set up its industries while Zimbabwe,
needs
technical and financial assistance to exploit its natural
resources.
Indian ambassador to Zimbabwe Jietendar Kumar Tripathi
told Standardbusiness
that the Indian government was committed to increasing
trade relations with
the country.
“We have no problem at all with
the indigenisation policy, as we recognise
that it is important for the
indigenous people to have a stake in their
economy,” he said, adding that
suitable arrangements in that regard could be
made to forge
partnerships.
Zim stands to benefit if indian firms invest:
robertson
Economist John Robertson said the country stands to benefit
greatly, should
the Indian investments be forthcoming as skills and
technology transfer
would pass on to the economy.
“Most Indian
companies are very big and successful, but they need to take
advice from the
problems surrounding the Essar deal, where the investors are
having
difficulty persuading government to stick to the original terms of
the
agreement,” he cautioned.
Government has promised to put in place
reforms to attract Foreign Direct
Investment (FDI) and get a bigger chunk in
terms of global FDI inflows.
Last year, it signed Bilateral Investment
Promotion and Protection
Agreements with India, an assurance to Indian
investors that its investments
would be safe in Zimbabwe.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012
16:58
BY SIBANENGI DUBE
The world woke up last week to read in The
Herald that Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai bribed editors of the
independent Press. The government-aligned
paper claimed that Tsvangirai was
trying to buy positive reportage so as to
salvage his battered image. What
is worrying here is not that The Herald
lied. That has always been the
trademark of the paper. People will be
worried if The Herald starts dishing
out the truth.
What is surprising is the fact that the paper
confirmed a widely held view
that The Herald newsroom personnel do not even
take their work seriously.
This is because they have no control of the
paper’s content since
print-ready copies seem to be faxed whole from either
Shake-shake building,
Kaguvi or from the Ministry of Information. The
evidence to back the above
claim is abundant.
Can anyone
imagine how a story that never cited any source managed to see
the light of
the day? There is not even any attempt to mention either
anonymous or
well-placed sources. Even if the paper had concealed sources
from the media
house, what justification would they give because Tsvangirai
has no
potential to victimise employees of private media companies? To make
matters
worse, The Herald did not hesitate to employ declaratory
suppositions in the
story which were spewed out as facts.
Media Commissioner, Ambassador
Chris Mutsvangwa, was prominently given space
to condemn a non-existent
anomaly. The editors and the Prime Minister were
vituperated for a crime
that never was. Mutsvangwa is a Zanu PF appointee
who has served in various
diplomatic postings, including South Africa.
Tsvangirai’s bravery by
taking the Zanu PF regime head on elicits positive
media coverage. There is
no need for him to buy positivity in the media. His
deeds are surely enough
to gain public sympathy. The media is merely
reflecting that. Tsvangirai’s
MDC doesn’t own a newspaper or radio or
television station but receive
positive global headlines every day. This is
simply because Tsvangirai munhu
anevanhu (Man of the people). Zanu PF is the
only political party in
Zimbabwe that has to resort to desperate methods of
drumming up good
publicity.
What is beyond any debate is that The Herald has gone a
step further by
abandoning all residual media ethics they have been
struggling to adhere to.
To claim that Tsvangirai bribed editors in the
absence of a police case,
court conviction, complainant or proof is
recklessness of the first order.
There is no way any sane editor would have
okayed such a glaring
misrepresentation, which has the potential of
undermining any newspaper’s
credibility.
It is no secret that
Zimpapers employees are part of the media enlisted on a
campaign to inflict
maximum damage to Tsvangirai’s credibility, but one
would expect a
journalist to be alert to obvious plots. The only sensible
conclusion that
could mitigate such a glaring omissions is that the story
was manufactured
at the red-brick house and delivered as a print-ready copy
to The Herald
printers.
I don’t doubt even for a second that The Herald personnel
is aware of the
fact that readers have ceased to believe whatever they write
about
Tsvangirai and MDC. People read a paper to get informed and any overt
diversion from this role renders the newspaper untrustworthy. Owing to these
indiscretions, Tsvangirai’s credibility is unassailable, especially by The
Herald. The readers are very much aware of the context in which the toxic
stories are discharged.
In actual fact, it could be said most
readers now read The Herald in
reverse. What The Herald reports about
Tsvangirai or MDC is almost always
the opposite of the actual situation of
the ground. It is now actually a
badge of honour to be attacked by The
Herald.
The Locadia Karimatsenga Tembo saga and his utterances in
support of gay
rights are trivialities that should not be used to undermine
the high esteem
in which the PM is held by the Zimbabwe electorate.
Tsvangirai has curved
himself trust in people’s hearts to the extent that
even if he were to shoot
someone in self-defence, the victim would be blamed
for pushing the former
trade unionist to the trigger.
The Herald
can fill hectares of their newspaper space with columns, stories,
side-bars,
opinion pieces and features articles denigrating Tsvangirai,
readers’
reactions will always be: “Idzi inhema idzi (It’s all lies).
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012
16:54
SUPPLIED BY ZWRCN
The recent ban on the importation of
second-hand underwear in Zimbabwe was
met with mixed reactions from various
segments of society. Some thought it
was the best action ever taken by the
inclusive government so far as they
found used underwear to be dehumanising
and unhygienic. Informal traders
were outraged by the ban saying the move
puts their businesses and
livelihoods at risk. There are those who said they
preferred used underwear
because it is of better quality than the so-called
brand new imports from
China. While the ban may have been premised on issues
of health and dignity,
what is of greater concern is that Zimbabweans,
particularly women, have to
dice with either their health or their
livelihoods.
Underwear is a most important part of women’s clothing
and it is very
difficult if not impossible for a woman to move around
without one.
The underwear saga demonstrates what gender justice
activists have always
been saying — that the issue of women’s empowerment is
a basic human rights
issue. Women in the low-income bracket, some of them in
the zero-income
bracket, will argue that underwear hand-me downs, local or
imported, sold
or donated, are not a new phenomenon and are still common
in extended
families as an option in very poor families.
Simple
economics shows that the law of demand and supply applies in this
case. If
there was no ready market for used underwear then the supply levels
would
fall. What it means therefore, is that, there are many women in
Zimbabwe who
can only afford second-hand underwear. The reason being, they
are not
economically empowered to afford brand new ones. For example, some
rural
women who resort to the use of dried cow dung as sanitary wear because
they
cannot afford to buy a packet of sanitary pads selling for only US$1.
Would
those women be able to purchase brand new underwear?
Hygiene and
dignity are very important empowerment issues. Finance minister
Tendai Biti
was right to point out that Zimbabweans should not stoop that
low and allow
women to wear used underwear. Prowse director, Mrs Sithabile
Mangwengwende
said despite it being a source of income for many cross-border
traders,
selling used underwear is unethical because of the risk of passing
on
skin-related and other diseases that may be passed on through
clothing.
“Besides hygiene, it lowers the receiving person’s
self-esteem to be wearing
someone else’s underwear”, said
Mangwengwende
“Only women can understand the importance of underwear — that
good
underwear is part of women’s basic health and sanitation, it should be
made
affordable and locally available to prevent people from using
second-hand
underwear”, said Koliwe Nyoni Majama, a women’s rights
activist.
While the pros and cons of using second-hand underwear can
be debated, it is
important to look deeper into the issue. The majority of
the informal
traders who are importing “bales” of used underwear are women
trying to fend
for their families. Before the ban, informal traders were
decrying the
recently imposed duty on clothing and shoes and now the ban on
the
importation of used underwear will further reduce their business
opportunities.
While the increases in import tariffs may be
meant to promote local
production, there are no measures in sight to raise
the informal traders’
economic status. Women have largely remained in
peripheral and non-lucrative
ventures. If the established local Industries
are operating at below 50%
capacity, how are women expected to get
integrated into the mainstream
economy?
ZWRCN Director, Mrs Naome
Chimbetete lamented the women’s economic
predicament and said there is need
for more action beyond the ban.
Said Chimbetete, “Handing down underwear is
not a new practice in Zimbabwe
but women have been doing it even with their
extended families because of
poverty”
l ZWRCN is an information
based organisation committed to gender equity and
equality.
“ It is
not a safe practice if the underwear is not sanitised but the whole
point
is, women cannot do without underwear and they need to fend for their
families, so they are caught between a rock and a hard place”, said
Chimbetete.
For too long, women have been restricted to the road
side vending, informal
cross border trading, hand crafts and unpaid care
work. Is it not time for
women to own transborder transport companies,
export fruits and vegetables
and sign high profile mining deals? If such
opportunities are available then
why do women sell second hand
underwear?
ZWRCN is an information based organisation committed to
gender equity and
equality.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
Saturday, 14 January 2012
15:22
Finance minister Tendai Biti’s announcement that the government has
banned
the importation of used lingerie has caused a stir among the
girls.
There are those who think this move is insensitive and others who
believe it
is a good and healthy move.
Others are simply amused about the
whole issue.
Lingerie is like deodorant — one of those things that
you walk into a shop
and if they stock what you like you buy if you can
afford it or you move on
and shop around for reasonable prices.
I
had never given a thought to the idea, let alone possibility that people
were actually importing used underwear and reselling it.
A friend
volunteered to accompany me to Mbare’s Mupedzanhamo market where
one can buy
second- hand clothes, shoes and of course used underwear.
To say I
was shocked is an understatement. I was horrified by the fact that
so many
people were buying lingerie that had been worn before.
I grew up in a
small family where I never had to share clothes or bed linen.
I am not one
of those girls who swap clothes or shoes with friends.
Even swapping
earrings scares me. I can give people clothes but I cannot
share, I just was
not raised that way. I have friends who complain about
sisters or cousins
just walking in and borrowing shoes or clothes. For me it
is not only a
hygiene issue but also a space thing – if someone decides to
wear my clothes
I feel invaded. Simply put, if that happens I will not wear
those particular
clothes again.
I have always believed that lingerie is a very private
thing that cannot be
shared.
I guess circumstances differ and
sometimes we are shielded from the horrors
of what other people have to put
up with.
In a country where more than 90% of the population is
unemployed, I get why
some people would think they are doing the nation a
favour when they import
used underwear.
Very few people have real
disposable incomes and sometimes underwear becomes
a luxury.
But
I also get the fact that we should be proud enough to draw a line
somewhere.
All Biti has done is simply say we are better than
that.
Even Ghana banned the importation of used underwear for health
reasons.
Some might view Biti as an arrogant minister but he is
right.
We are poor yes but we must preserve some sense of
dignity.
I toured some flea markets and shops in downtown Harare.
They stock cheap
lingerie from the Far East. Most likely the lingerie will
not last more than
five washes but you buy it new.
Some
supermarkets too now stock underwear at reasonable prices. The quality
of
your underwear is a source of pride for most women, but it ceases to be
so
when you have to buy soiled underwear used by someone else
before.
The traders at Mupedzanhamo told me that they wash the
clothes and underwear
and iron them so they are presentable but the fact
remains, second-hand
lingerie should just never be sold.
Instead
of us lynching Biti, we should be engaging the government on how
best to
address our lingerie problems just like we did with the issue of
sanitary
ware.
If the government is talking of rebuilding the economy, one of
the areas it
needs to look at is derelict clothes factories around the
country and help
them back on their feet.
Real entrepreneurs
should be encouraged and assisted to produce affordable
lingerie.
This whole issue must be looked at as part of the wider
reproductive health
issue.
Covering your delicate bits with used
underwear is not hygienic and might
cause all sorts of health-related
problems.
Innovative solutions to the problem
Some
innovative Zimbabweans, using donor funds have come up with a sanitary
pad
that is re-usable.
While I still think it is not the best solution, it is a
good start.
What needs to be done is enable these guys to produce an
affordable sanitary
pad that does not need to be washed and be re-used four
to five times.
Like the lingerie industry, this is big business that
could see Zimbabwe
exporting a user friendly and inexpensive sanitary
pad.
We should stop looking negatively at every decision made by
government and
hide behind the fact that “we are poor”.
Yes we
might be poor but we should still have standards.
Admittedly, not
everyone can afford breathtaking designer underwear but we
should never
compromise our health.
Used underwear should be banned. We should
never be that country where just
anything goes. In the early 80s we were a
people that prized cleanliness and
had a deep sense of pride of who we were
and how others viewed us.
You do not have to have new clothes
everyday but whatever few clothes you
have must always be
clean.
And if we chuck out something this year it must be used
underwear.
Girls, get designing and start lingerie-making groups.
Make Zimbabwe the
lingerie fashion centre and let us start organising our
own lingerie fashion
week, keeping in mind that we need to cater for all in
our society – the
needy and the well-heeled.
http://www.thestandard.co.zw/
BY Desmond Kumbuka
What would have
seemed unthinkable to many people happened in Harare on
Wednesday last week.
Who would have imagined the lowly regarded street
vendors, the hordes of
self-employed merchants to be found at almost every
street corner hawking
anything from sweets, “vuka-vuka” portions, imported
bum-enhancing drugs,
boiled maize cobs to pirated music CDs, would have
the guts to take on the
might of the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP).
But it happened — street
vendors, in their numbers, decided enough is enough
and struck back,
pelting police officers with stones and other handy
missiles to exact
revenge for years of torment and harassment.
I would have loved to
witness this fascinating spectacle first-hand, but
decided, since police
bullets seldom discriminate, it would not be advisable
to get too close, and
risk being a collateral damage statistic. But I am
sure I am not the only
one who found the thought of the usually smug and
arrogant policemen, always
brimming with self-importance, running for dear
life from rampaging vendors,
rather intoxicating. I could imagine elderly
women, fed up with constantly
running away from the “law,” whacking some
unfortunate rookie constable over
the head with a sack full of onions, and
relishing the
feeling.
Media reports said the clashes forced the closure of shops
along the busy
First Street Mall and Nelson Mandela Avenue while a police
vehicle and a ZRP
post had its windows smashed by the stone-throwing
vendors. Obviously taken
aback by this unexpected rebellion by the hitherto
docile traders, police
moved-in, armed with teargas canisters and rifles, in
a bid to round-up
suspects after one of theirs was allegedly assaulted by
the vendors on
Monday.
Predictably, in their attempt to explain
away this alarming turn of events,
fingers were pointed at the usual
scapegoats – the MDC. “What we have
gathered is that there are some
political activists masquerading as vendors
or vendors who are masquerading
as political activists who have become so
confrontational each time the
police want to enforce the law, especially
near Harvest House,” police
spokesman, Chief Superintendent Oliver Mandipaka
said rather
ambiguously.
While I personally did not witness the spectacle of the
mighty police on the
receiving end of the brutality they routinely mete out
to defenceless
civilians, there is a measure of poetic justice when our law
enforcement
officers discover that people, even street vendors, have a
breaking point
beyond which they can endure no more. Many of them are single
mother or
father families trying to eke an honest living through street
vending and
when police arrest them and confiscate their wares, never to be
recovered,
they are left desperate. And as often stated, desperate
situations attract
desperate measures.
Police brutality is
defined as the wanton use of excessive force, usually
physical, but
potentially in the form of verbal attacks and psychological
intimidation, by
police officers against usually defenceless civilians.
Widespread police
brutality exists in many countries, Zimbabwe included, and
even in those
countries where perpetrators can be prosecuted. It is one of
several forms
of police misconduct which include false arrest, intimidation,
racial
profiling: political repression, surveillance abuse and police
corruption.
In the United States, the supposed bastion of
democracy and human rights,
there are many documented cases of human rights
violations committed by the
police such as the celebrated case of Rodney
Glen King. For the
uninitiated, Rodney King was the African-American best
known for his
involvement in a police brutality case involving the Los
Angeles Police
Department LAPD on March 3 1991. A bystander, George
Holliday, videotaped
much of the incident from a distance.
The footage
showed LAPD officers repeatedly striking King with their batons
while other
officers stood by watching, without taking any action to stop
the beating. A
portion of this footage was aired by news agencies around the
world, causing
public outrage that raised tensions between the black
community and the LAPD
and increased anger over police brutality and social
inequalities in Los
Angeles.
Violence in any form is deplorable. The spectacle of an old
woman, one hand
trying to keep secure the baby strapped on her back while
the other hand
clings to her precious merchandise, bolting from pursuing
police
details, is depraved and dehumanising. In one incident, I witnessed
an
elderly woman vendor, with a small child on a lap, weeping uncontrollably
because her entire stock of vending merchandise on which she had spent her
entire savings of a princely US$17 had been seized by the police and she had
no way of recovering what she had lost.
From a vantage third
floor window of our offices, we have frequently been
afforded a bird’s eye
view of the ZRP clones, the municipal police,
apprehending street vendors.
In one such case, a municipal truck packed
full of “captured” vendors drew
the attention of passersby as municipal
police details sought to subdue
those who tried to escape. The brutality of
their methods and the verbal
exchanges between the vendors and their captors
cannot be repeated in a
family newspaper suffice to say even the Gestapo of
the Nazi German era
could have learnt a thing or two from these guys.
When one of the
arrested vendors demanded to know why they were being
treated like common
criminals when their only offence was to try and fend
for their families
through vending, a gruff individual, obviously the
“supervisor” of the
group, retorted that in terms of the city by-laws, they
were all criminals
who deserved to be punished. And his idea of enforcing
the law: he
threatened to beat up the woman vendor if she did not shut up,
saying the
work of police officers was being rendered doubly difficult by
pesky
nuisances as street vendors.
To this officer and his colleagues,
human rights and the doctrine of a
suspect being innocent until proven
guilty are alien concepts they know
nothing about.
I, like other
Zimbabweans, must wonder what law allows Zimbabwe Republic
Police (ZRP)
officers and their counterparts in the Municipal force, to
confiscate,
according to unconfirmed reports, and share the spoils from
their raids on
street vendors. With the level of corruption in the ZRP and
municipal
police, it is not far fetched to conclude that the main incentive
for the
overzealousness with which they undertake these raids are the easy
pickings
from sharing the plundered goods and demanding bribes from those
wishing to
avoid prosecution.
