Monsters and Critics
Jan 27, 2007, 7:55 GMT
Harare - Zimbabwe's security
minister warned white farmers resisting
attempts to take over their farms
that the government has 'teeth and will
use them to bite', the Herald
newspaper reported Saturday.
Didymus Mutasa made the remarks Friday at a
former white-owned farm on the
outskirts of Harare, where a housing
programme for civil servants has been
launched, the report said.
The
Zimbabwean government accuses the former owner of the farm of resisting
government attempts to acquire it. He is reported to be still trying to farm
part of the land.
Mutasa said whites who resisted President Robert
Mugabe's land reform
programme, launched more than six years, ago 'would be
dealt with severely',
the Herald quoted him as saying.
'Anyone who
attempts to stand in the way will not be tolerated. May I warn
those who
want to derail the land reform that we have teeth and we will use
them to
bite when the need arises,' Mutasa added, according to the report.
Most
of Zimbabwe's more than 4,500 white farmers have lost their farms in
the
last six years. Less than 600 are believed to be still on their farms,
and
they are enduring an anxious period as evictions continue.
Earlier this
month, Mutasa warned white farmers that only those who had
shown goodwill
towards the government would be allowed to keep part of their
land.
©
2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur
Sokwanele -
Enough is Enough -
PROMOTING NON-VIOLENT PRINCIPLES TO ACHIEVE DEMOCRACY
Sokwanele Report :
The
international press is currently swamped with reports of the arrests of over 25
000 gold panners in
This
brutal operation is tantamount to genocide with constructive intent - the
authors knew in advance that their actions would lead to death by starvation,
depriving the poorest of the poor of their only - and last - means of feeding
themselves and their families.
Not
only have livelihoods been eliminated, but lives too. Since the beginning of
January, the press - muzzled as it is - has still been able to report deaths as
disused mines collapse on miners who are tear-gassed as they hide, seeking to
evade arrest and others who have been shot by a police force bent on serving its
despotic leader. By far the most appalling case is of three miners in Inyathi district who died from hunger and exhaustion after
the police forced them to work for six days, filling up trenches left open by
other gold panners, beating them and denying them food
at the same time. They had been complaining of dizziness and hunger before they
collapsed and died on December 24th.
Once
again it is the poorest of Zimbabweans who are being victimized and used as
pawns to hide the culpability of the big players, government ministers and zanupf apologists, who are allowed to continue the rape of
the country's precious resources with impunity.
The
facts are there, but the intention behind these widespread arrests stand veiled
by layers of conspiracy and malice.
A
not so glittering History …
One
has to look back a decade to understand the regime's haphazard stance on gold
panning, which has left the desperate panners confused
and now threatened with violence and starvation.
The
early 90's saw
In
1992 gold panning along the country's streams was legalised and actively encouraged, provided the panners obtained the necessary permits and deposited their
gold with the Reserve Bank or its agents. The panners
were also required to rehabilitate their operations by backfilling. In those
days environmental policing took place regularly.
The
then Mines Minister, Chris Anderson, said it was high time the panners were recognised as part of
the informal sector. Instead of hunting them down, he said they should be
encouraged to sell their gold to the reserve bank. He even suggested that
small-scale miners should be paid a higher price than the market rate to prevent
them from selling to the black market. Prospective panners were able to apply for permits to exploit the gold
deposits from their respective councils.
There
is a common belief that small scale gold mining and panning, which mainly took
place on commercial farms, was encouraged by government then not only to control
this informal sector, but also as a means of harassing white farmers and
precipitating conflict with the farmers who later suffered under the most severe
form of intimidation.
From
1999 to 2000, following the violent seizure of land from commercial farmers,
Gold
mining previously accounted for the highest income of the precious foreign
currency earned by
The
gap in production left by the near collapse of formal mining was replaced by the
precious metal being brought in from the informal sector, with the Reserve Bank
buying much of its gold from illegal panners.
However, the
panners today sell their gold on the black market as
the Reserve Bank pay well under the true market value.
The Victims of
Human Rights Abuses …
The
attack on panners has been merciless and
indiscriminate. Some of the victims are the estimated 100 000 gold panners operating legally since the 1990's, still holding
licenses issued then. They have not escaped the wrath of state
agents.
Following the
illegal, violent and chaotic land seizures, the country was thrown into turmoil
and an estimated 500 000 commercial farm workers were forced from their homes.
Employment in agriculture was for most of them vindictively ended by the so
called "new farmers" and war vets, and the vast majority were unable to find any
formal employment, so many were forced to turn to gold panning. They required
little expertise or capital investment to get going.
Gold
panning was their last and sole means of livelihood, and even that has now been
brutally eliminated.
Ironically, by
2003 the "new famers" came to loggerheads with small
scale miners who were viciously competing for the land which had been
redistributed and in many cases divided into small plots. Environmental
surveillance became increasingly difficult and virtually non-existent with
manpower and funding shortages. Clashes between small scale miners and new
farmers grew alarmingly. There was no clear legal instrument on which activity
held sway, with mining permits sometimes going directly against land
resettlement patterns.
In
recent years, with the almost total collapse of the agricultural sector, those
same new farmers who were allowed to stay on seized land have had to resort to
panning as a means of survival for they have been unable to effectively produce
food with hyperinflation directly hampering access to seed, fertilizer and
fuel.
Many
of these panners were informal traders, whose
livelihoods were hit by Operation Murambatsvina
("Drive out the trash") in 2005, when the regime sought to punish the urban poor
for voting against them in the recent elections by razing their houses and
trading stands, and banishing them forcibly back to the rural areas where they
could do less political 'damage' .
There
are an estimated 1 million small scale gold miners currently operating in
This
regime has made it quite clear that they place little value on the lives of
Zimbabweans. In 2002 Didymus Mutasa exposed the government's shocking intention to
fulfill their vision of a final solution for
What are their
intentions?
We
know the regime actioned Operation Murambatsvina back in 2005 to punish those voting for the
opposition, and to remove them to the rural areas where
they could be better controlled.
Why,
though, has the regime engaged in this persecution of the informal
gold-producing sector? The answer is not at all obvious, and we can but
speculate on how their evil minds work, but a few possibilities do come to
mind:
1.
Who stood to lose when the sale of gold no longer all passed through the Reserve
Bank? Zimbabwean
legislation requires that all gold is sold to Fidelity Printers - an arm of the
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ); the price paid for the gold is controlled by the
government. The RBZ then sells the metal on the world market, generating much
needed foreign exchange for itself. Now in former days, when all the gold used
to pass through the official channels, there was more foreign currency (forex) being generated. It is common knowledge that the
chefs had access to forex, buying it at the controlled
rate, and then selling it in the market at the much higher parallel rate;
alternatively, they would buy fuel with it, and make a killing by selling their
fuel at market rates.
Official
records state that gold production has decreased from 1999 (27,666kg) to the end
of 2006 (estimated 12,000kg) by 57%, but gold producers will tell you that the
same amount of the precious metal is coming out of the ground as before. This
means that the difference has been passing through the informal system in the
last few years. That means less forex for the chefs
(top dog zanupf leaders and their cronies)! If I were
a chef, I wouldn't be too happy, would you? I'd try and put a stop to this
informal sector 'leakage'. And maybe that's what they've
done!
2.
Stopping the fuel profiteers? These
small-scale gold panners were selling their gold to
middle-men either inside or outside the country. The middle-men then traded the
gold for
3.
Gideon Gono's involvement? Gono, the
Governor of the Reserve Bank of
Aside
from himself benefiting from access to cheap forex
(and who believes the full page supplements in the newspapers, denying his
purchase of a top-of-the-range Mercedes Benz?), is there anyone he might have a
personal vendetta against? We know that Mnangagwa
closely controlled all the gold panners in the Kwekwe area; and Joyce Mujuru has
certainly been profiting from fuel deals; did Gono want to get back at them,
both of whom were threatening his own presidential ambitions?
And
why, by the way, is Gono's name not on the list of the
European Union's travel ban?
4.
Pillage of the gold milling industry? Maybe this
wasn't the original intention, but the chefs are now trying to grab all the
resources they can get their hands on. Do they sense that the days of this evil
regime are numbered? Gold millers are central to the gold industry, as all gold
passes through them for milling; they are now being harassed beyond belief,
arrested on trumped up charges designed to elicit bribes, or even the forced
sale of the companies, we presume.
5.
Punishment of the electorate? Look at the
timing: this operation kicked in just after the Rural District Council (RDC)
elections. Like Murambatsvina, was this again
punishment of the electorate for not voting for the Zanu PF candidates? Zanu certainly
wasn't happy with the results of the elections - they might have won more wards
in total than the opposition, but they lost in some of their strongholds, and
they certainly didn't win the number of wards that they expected! Was it
considered convenient, once more, to dispatch these "trouble-makers" to the
depths of the rural areas, and to punish them by removing their last means of
livelihood?
We
don't know where these people are now: part of the starving urban poor, or part
of the rural poor - also starving. But we can say truthfully that the regime's
actions are tantamount to death sentences - no other means of livelihood remains
to them - these people and their dependents are going to starve to
death.
6.
Control, control, control? As briefly
mentioned in the introduction, the Mugabe regime had previously encouraged
small-scale mining, as a prelude to getting people off the farms and into the
rural areas. Operation Chikorokoza Chapera seems to be Part 2 of their plan.
Whilst they
were mining, these people - many former farm-workers - were outside the regime's
control. Forcing them back into the rural areas, under the watchful eye of the
compliant village chiefs, control is re-established. It ties in with punishment
of the electorate; it ties in with Mutasa's aim of
reducing the population and so removing the non-compliant
sector.
7.
Local intentions? The local
police are certainly benefiting from this Operation Chikorokoza Chapera; many of them
have been stealing the gold confiscated from the panners! Are these the same policemen or militia who broke
down houses and stands in Operation Murambatsvina? The
police benefited there too, confiscating goods for their own use, or selling
them and pocketing the proceeds.
As
said previously, one can only speculate on the intention of the regime in this
latest act of elimination. However, one thing is for sure, and that is that it
was not done from pure motives.
Shooting,
beating, starving - this is the Zanu PF way. It is
tantamount to genocide.
They
will plead the excuses of trying to prevent a cholera outbreak, or protecting
the environment - fine! - but this isn't how it should
be done, and they know it.
The
world is not turning a blind eye to human rights abuses: look at Pinochet, Sadam Hussein, and now our own 'guest' Mengistu!
Operation
Chikorokoza Chapera is the
latest in a succession of human rights abuses by this regime: misery is piled
upon misery. When will it end?
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Vigil Co-ordinator
We are asking you to print out the leaflets on
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print out the A4 poster and ask you local cinema if they could pin it up. Please
see below a list of possible
actions:
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audience.
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or put up a poster.
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- Inform local press of the action and/or interest in the
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Start up discussion groups about the film, book and current situation in
Every little
helps! Please download ACTSA's
The Last King of Scotland flyer and/or ACTSA's
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Thank you for your kind
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ACTSA
Zim Standard
BY WALTER
MARWIZI
HERE was a stampede at the Grain Marketing Board's
Aspindale depot in
Harare on Thursday as farmers scrambled to buy Chinese
fertilizer which
arrived in the country last week.
The chaos
broke out as it emerged that government officials and the
well-connected,
described by GMB acting chief executive as "serious
farmers" - including
President Robert Mugabe - had privileged access to buy
fertilizer in
Harare.
This was happening at a time when ordinary Zimbabweans are
resorting
to the black market to get fertilizer which is among the many
commodities in
short supply.
Witnesses told The Standard the
GMB Aspindale depot was besieged by
small-scale farmers and dealers who had
failed to access the commodity for
the past two months. Stocks were last
sold at the depot in November.
News about the arrival of six
National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ)
wagons laden with Chinese fertilizer
prompted a stampede as early as 11:00AM
and by 4:00 PM farmers were still
battling to get fertilizer.
The acting GMB boss said the stampede
showed that Zimbabwean farmers
were taking their business
seriously.
"There were no riots," he said. "We are happy with the
enthusiasm
shown by the farmers when they heard that fertilizer had arrived.
Farmers
are conscious of the need to apply fertilizer on their crops,
especially
considering that there are good rains in the country," said
Muvuti.
But as the ordinary farmers were scrounging since the past
year for
one or two bags of fertilizer, The Standard investigations showed
that
government officials and those close to the establishment were allowed
to
buy large quantities of the commodity for the winter wheat
season.
These include ministers, Didymus Mutasa and Flora Buka, who
bought 60
tonnes and Chris Mushohwe who got 25 tonnes. Governor David
Karimarinzira
got 26 tonnes, Nicholas Goche 20 and David Parirenyatwa 14 for
his
Tambawaguta farm in Rusape.
Air Marshall Perence Shiri
received 30 tonnes and Retired General
Vitalis Zvinavashe 60
tonnes.
Manicaland Zanu PF chairperson Enock Porusingazi was among
those who
bought 30 tonnes. Vice-President Joseph Musika bought only six
tonnes from
Aspindale.
Asked to explain why government
officials were allowed to buy large
quantities of fertilizer while ordinary
farmers with limited resources
failed to get a single bag, Muvuti said
ministers were farmers, "serious
farmers for the matter".
"It's
not a question of being ministers, but the scale at which one is
farming.
They are engaged in large-scale farming activities and they deserve
to get
those quantities," said Muvuti.
He added: "We have made an
arrangement that A2 farmers order their
fertilizer in Harare instead of
their local depots. We don't want a
situation where an A2 farmer in Mvurwi
where we may have put between 60 to
100 tonnes to turn up at the depot and
ask for 80 tonnes. What will the
small scale farmers who may need a bag or
two say when they see one person
taking all the available
quantities?"
Muvuti said ministers, "like everybody else", brought
letters from
Arex officials and their depot managers who confirmed that
their required
tonnage was appropriate to their crop.
Asked if
war veterans leader Joseph Chinotimba who bought 24.5 tonnes
of Shasha Top
fertilizer was one of those serious farmers, Muvuti said:
"Chinotimba? His
own son is running the farm".
About Sekesai Makwavarara who bought
5.9 tonnes of Shasha fertilizer,
Muvuti said: "Mai Makwavarara, she is a
serious farmer. For your own
information she has a son who is running the
farm."
The Standard also established that while small scale farmers
were
wondering where they could get fertilizer, top GMB officials have made
sure
they had stocks of fertilizer at their farms before the onset of the
rains
this cropping season..
The Standard discovered that
between the 23 and 24 August last year,
the Aspindale depot released 80
tonnes of fertilizer for the acting GMB
chief's Musengezi farm following an
instruction from the GMB headquarters.
Of these, 40 tonnes were
Compound D and the remaining Shasha
fertilizer. The fertilizer was
transported to Mvurwi depot where it was to
be picked up by
Muvuti.
Thirty more tonnes of fertilizer were transported from
Aspindale to
Goromonzi. These were for Woodform farm owned by John Madzinga,
the GMB
operations director.
Zvidzai Makwenda, the GMB
marketing director got 30 tonnes.
Muvuti admitted that he had and
other officials of the GMB had bought
large volumes of fertilizer. "I even
got more than what your sources told
you. I have a tobacco crop and I am
pursuing farming seriously. To me it's a
passion," said Muvuti.
"Muchafa muchinyora tumafalsehoods twenyu vamwe vachirima
vachibudirira,
(You will die writing these falsehoods while others are
farming and
succeeding)," said Muvuti.
Zim Standard
By Kholwani
Nyathi
THE government and the Bulawayo City Council are headed
for a bruising
showdown after the local authority last week vowed it would
not hand over
water and sewer management to the beleagured Zmbabwe National
Water
Authority (ZINWA) without a "fight" .
Last week the
government formally wrote to the council ordering it to
hand over its water
distribution and billing functions to ZINWA. The Mayor,
Japhet Ndabeni Ncube
has said this transfer would be "disastrous" for his
city.
The
town clerk, Moffat Ndlovu, said the hand-over could only be done
after the
approval of councillors and residents. He said this week council
management
would brief residents and councillors "about the implications" of
the
takeover before considering whether or not to comply with the
directive.
"We just got a letter from the ministry concerning the
directive but I
don't know how they will do it (take-over)," Ndlovu said.
"We will have to
sit as the council to take a decision on the
matter."
A full council meeting will be held on Wednesday where the
matter is
likely to dominate debate. Councillors have already publicly
stated that
they will not allow ZINWA to take over the city's water
administration.
They enjoy the support of Zanu PF officials who
have backed the
Movement for Democratic Change-dominated council's defiant
stance in its
battle to retain the right to distribute water.
Zanu PF provincial spokesman, Effort Nkomo said the government's
interference was unwaranted because everyone accepted that "Bulawayo is the
best run city in the country".
"We are saying NO to the ZINWA
takeover," said Nkomo. "We believe the
city council has the capacity to
provide us with clean water and ZINWA's
track record does not satisfy
us."
He added "The best thing ZINWA can do is to construct the dams
and
bring water to the reservoirs and let council distribute the commodity
because it has the capacity to carry out that function."
Bulawayo United Residents Association chairman, Winos Dube said
"residents
are angered" by the government's attempts to intefere in the
affairs of the
city.
"I have been recieving calls from a number of residents who
are really
angry about the announcement that ZINWA will take over the
management of
water and sewer," said Dube . "Generally, residents fear that
if ZINWA takes
over our standards will tumble because it has demonstrated
beyond doubt, in
towns like Harare, that it is not capable."
He
said ZINWA should stick to its mandate of providing bulk water to
Bulawayo
where so far "it was failing to perfom to expectations".
The
government through ZINWA owns all water bodies in the country and
sells raw
water to local authorities. In the case of Bulawayo, the last
supply dam was
built in 1976 when it was still the responsibility of the
city
council.
Bulawayo was plunged into serious water shortages last
week following
the decomminissioning of two supply dams last year after they
ran dry.
The council cannot immidiately utilise 77 boreholes in the
Nyamandlovu
aquifer to minimise the impact of the shortages because ZINWA
does not have
money to rehabilitate them.
The Matabeleland
Zambezi Water Project, first conceived in 1912 and
involving the laying of a
pipiline stretching for over 400 kilometres as
well the construction of the
Gwayi Shangani Dam has been touted as the
permanent solution to the water
crisis.But lack of government support has
stalled the project.
The ouncil has said handing over the distribution of water and the
billing
would lead to its financial ruin, as it relies heavily on revenue
from water
and sewerage tariffs. ZINWA took over the distribution of water
in Harare in
2005 and the billing system last year and since then the city
has never
enjoyed consistent water supplies.
There have also been questions
about the quality of water with the
parastatal always complaining about the
shortage of water treatment
chemicals.
The Minister of Water
Resources and Infrastructure Development,
Munacho Mutezo was not immidiately
available for comment on the latest
developments. But Mutezo told sate media
last week that government will go
ahead with the takeover despite
opposition
Zim Standard
BY CAIPHAS
CHIMHETE
WHEN Zimbabwe was still regarded as the "Jewel of
Africa" in the
1980s, getting a formal job was the dream of any unemployed
worker.
Back then, the Zimbabwean dollar was at par with the now
most
sought-after American dollar and slightly less than the British
pound.
At that time, you took a few coins to the supermarket to buy
groceries
for the whole family.
If you were fully employed, you
were guaranteed a good life, more or
less.
But as the country's
economy continues its downward spiral, with the
Zimdollar tumbling against
the world's major currencies, Zimbabweans'
attitude towards formal
employment has changed.
Jacqueline Munyaka (35) of Harare resigned
from formal employment as a
merchandiser in December.
She told
The Standard: "It was no longer making sense for me to travel
to the city
centre every day because transport alone would take up over
three quarters
of my salary then. I would have to scrounge for money for
rentals, school
fees and food from friends every month."
In December she was
earning $28 000 a month. "Buying and selling" is
now her source of
livelihood, Munyaka said, without elaborating.
Tendai Muchena (28)
of Mutare quit formal employment late last year
and is now into vegetable
vending at the city's green market, popularly
known as Musika
Wehuku.
"The touts I went to school with would laugh at me whenever
I asked
for money. I decided to go it alone and I am doing well now," said
Muchena,
who holds a teaching diploma from Mutare Teacher's
College.
Muchena vowed that he would not return to the classroom,
even if the
government kept its promise to award them a 300 percent pay
increment
"I make more money at the market than in the classroom.
In any case,
teachers will go for another year without a pay rise," he
said.
Munyaka and Muchena are not the only workers who have
abandoned formal
employment.
Zimbabwean workers are leaving
formal employment to join the informal
sector in droves as their incomes are
being eroded by the ever-escalating
inflation.
Some are
venturing into vegetable vending, furniture manufacturing,
cross-border
trading, while others engage in foreign currency dealing. Many
others have
turned into gold panners or have joined the thriving illegal
trade in
diamonds.
Latest government figures indicate that the poverty
datum-line has
topped $370 000, an amount most civil servants do not dream
of ever earning.
Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU)
secretary-general, Wellington
Chibebe, confirmed that workers were
voluntarily quitting employment to stay
at home, citing poor
wages.
He said most employers were being subsidised by their
employees, whom
they pay unsustainable wages.
"I have a classic
example of a close relative of mine who also left
employment because of
that. It's very true and the rate is alarming," said
Chibebe.
According to the ZCTU, most workers earn between $85 000 and $200 000
a
month on average, which he called a "mockery".
The number of
workers in formal employment has dwindled from 1,2
million in 2000 to about
800 000 this year, said the ZCTU.
This has been attributed to the
2000 farm invasions and the ripple
effects on industry, resulting in the
closure of many companies.
Employers' Confederation of Zimbabwe
(Emcoz) national director, John
Mufukari, conceded that employers were
cognisant of the hardships that
workers were experiencing.
"This is why some employers are arranging transport for their workers
or
providing bicycles. Every serious employer will ensure that his workers
come
to work and when they come they work," Mufukari said.
Emcoz, the
apex body of employers' organisations, estimates that only
20 percent of all
able-bodied people are in formal employment.
Analysts say as long
as the economy continues its downward spiral, it
would be impossible for
employers to award hefty salaries to their workers
as the companies are
themselves struggling to stay afloat.
Zim Standard
THE Zimbabwe Congress of Trade
Unions (ZCTU) has
given the government until 23 February to address the
workers' grievances
and the economic decline or face a nationwide
strike.
The ZCTU special general council, which met on Saturday,
said unless
the government addressed pay concerns by teachers, doctors, Zesa
and tobacco
workers, it should brace for a strike.
The council
said all the concerns must be addressed by the 23 February
and failure to do
so, or the labour body would meet on 24 February 2007 to
"decide on the
dates of the next industrial action."
Efforts to obtain comment
from the Minister of Public Service, Labour
and Social Welfare on the ZCTU
threat were fruitless.
Zim Standard
By Nqobani
Ndlovu
BULAWAYO - War veterans have joined civil servants in
demanding hefty
pay increments, claiming their $25 000 a month pensions are
driving them
into "extreme poverty".
The Zimbabwe National
Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA)
last week said its members
expected the government to increase their
pensions to $400 000 and provide
loans for income-generating projects.
Junior doctors and other
health workers went on strike last December,
demanding substantial pay hikes
while teachers and university lecturers are
expected to join them this week
as they protest at deteriorating working
conditions.
Soldiers
and the police are also reportedly disgruntled about the
salary increments
awarded to them this month.
The spokesperson for the Bulawayo
ZNLWVA committee, Velaphi Ncube
said: "The pension is really unsustainable
with the country's current
economic situation.
"War veterans
have gone back to square one and are living miserable
lives. The government
should urgently release funds for us to start our
projects."
Toriso Phiri, the chairperson of the Bulawayo province ZNLWVA said:
"It is
painful, especially so when one looks at the contribution of the war
veterans. Besides giving us increased allowances, we want the release of
funds for projects speeded up."
In November 1997, under the
late Chenjerai Hitler Hunzvi, war veterans
forced the government to award
them $50 000 gratuities each and $2 000
monthly allowances. The release of
the unbudgeted funds by the government
has often been cited as one of the
reasons behind the economic crisis, now
in its tenth year.
Bouyed by the payouts, the war veterans went on to lead violent land
invasions in 2000 which precipitated the decline of the agriculture
industry. Their violent campaigns in 2002 ensured President Robert Mugabe's
controversial re-election victory against Morgan Tsvangirai of the Movement
for Democratic Change.
But as the economic decline continues to
accelerate with inflation now
hovering above 1 200 percent, the government
has failed to keep pace with
the war veterans' demands for better
pensions.
Andrew Ndlovu, who claims Mugabe asked him to re-organise
the ZNLWVA
following the Tsholotsho Declaration where its leadership was
implicated,
also noted that war veterans needed urgent help from the
government through
a massive increase in their pensions.
Dumiso
Dabengwa, a member of a committee appointed by Mugabe to look
into the
affairs of war veterans, said they were "yet to meet to look into
the
issue".
Dabengwa said: "I can't say anything now about the
pensions. We have
had one meeting so far. There are many things that have to
be sorted out
before other issues are addressed. We will meet in the coming
weeks to look
at that (pensions) and project funds."
Economist
John Robertson has warned that if the government increased
the war veterans'
pensions, this would further fuel a rise in inflation.
"The
government will have to borrow money to meet those demands. But
there is a
difficulty in doing that as it has a bad debtor's tag. The other
option is
to print money, which is very inflationary," said Robertson.
He
warned the move would trigger more demands for wage rises from
other
workers.
Nicholas Goche, the Minister Labour, Public Service and
Social Welfare
said he could not comment on the war vets' demands because he
was "on
leave".
Zim Standard
BY OUR
STAFF
HUMAN rights lawyers and media activists have welcomed the
High Court's
decision to block Registrar-General Tobaiwa Mudede from
withdrawing
publisher Trevor Ncube's Zimbabwean citizenship.
Ncube is the publisher of the Zimbabwe Independent and The Standard
and had
his passport confiscated by government on 8 December 2006 on the
allegations
that he was Zambian.
Justice Chinembiri Bhunu on Thursday ordered
that Ncube is a citizen
of Zimbabwe by birth and the withdrawal or
cancellation of his citizenship
was unlawful, null, void and of no force or
effect.
Rangu Nyamurundira of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights
applauded
the High Court's decision saying it protected the right to
citizenship as
enshrined in the Constitution.
"Citizenship
cannot be used as a tool to attack certain individuals
because they hold
different opinions. The judgment also fights government
impunity with
regards to the conduct of the Registrar-General. There was
some form of
abuse of office," Nyamurundira said.
Zimbabwe Union of Journalists
(ZUJ) president Mathew Takaona said the
courts' decision was welcome since
the case had the potential to cause
unnecessary suffering among journalists
at The Zimbabwe Independent and The
Standard.
"It's a welcome
development for the media and now there are no more
further grounds to
harass him. Now the security of the two publications he
runs is now assured.
As a union any threat to the newspapers will affect our
membership,"
Takaona said.
Rashweat Mukundu director of the Media Institute of
Southern Africa
said the case was politically motivated and should have
never been brought
before the courts.
"It has never been in
doubt that Trevor (Ncube) was Zimbabwean. The
case only shows the
vindictiveness of the Registrar-General (Tobaiwa Mudede)
and the government.
We believe the case was politically motivated because of
his
papers," Mukundu said.
He added that the case was a "sheer waste"
of State resources and
should be condemned out rightly.
Zim Standard
By Kholwani Nyathi
THE
Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (PWMA) is rejecting
donations worth
billions of dollars from the Zimbabwe Conservation Trust
which it accuses of
spreading negative information about the country's
wildlife management
methods at a time the authority is struggling to
maintain national
parks.
The trust claims that more than 80 percent of the wildlife
at
conservancies was poached in the aftermath of the 2000 controversial land
reform programme.
Edward Mbewe, the authority's spokesperson,
told a recent media
briefing that PWMA was not "desperate for the money as
we are finacially
fluid anyway". He said they had written to Johnny
Rodrigues who runs the
trust linked to the United Kingdom-based Hwange
Conservation Society (HCS)
informing him the authority did not want to be
associated with his
organisation anymore.
HCS claims its
members raised, through the ZCT, more than 600 000
pounds to save animals
dying of thirst at the Hwange National Park during
the 2005 drought. It said
26 boreholes were repaired and pumps to supply
water to pans were
rehabilitated.
"We are saying no to aid that comes with strings
attached," Mbewe
said. "We do not deny that there is a problem of poaching
in this country
but it is not at the level that is being claimed by
organisations such as
ZCT whose agenda is to tarnish the image of the
country."
The ZCT claims in its website that: "It is estimated that
game ranches
have lost beetween 50 and 90 percent of wildlife to poachers
and larger
conservancies have lost around 80 percent. Some game ranchers
report that
they have no single animal left."
PWMA director
Morris Mutsambiwa said the authority would this year
focus on anti-poaching
activities.
Zim Standard
BY
CAIPHAS CHIMHETE
CROSS-border traders have become the saviours
of local retailers
supplying basic commodities following the virtual
collapse of the local
manufacturing sector.
A snap survey by
The Standard last week revealed that most retail
shops in the country are
stocked with basic goods from Botswana, South
Africa Mozambique and
Zambia.
The goods range from washing soap, toothpaste, and rice to
cooking
oil, commodities which were once readily available before the
Zimbabwean
economy started to decline in 2000.
Even established
supermarkets, among them OK Zimbabwe, TM and Spar are
stocking up with the
same foreign commodities.
A supermaarket manager in central Harare
said they contracted
"agencies", who import basic commodities on their
behalf.
He conceded that sourcing basic commodities locally had
become
"extremely difficult" as they were not readily
available.
"If we were to wait for local deliveries, the whole
chain would
definitely collapse. We don't get our deliveries that often. So
we have to
find alternative sources," he said.
A supermarket
owner at Machipisa Shopping Centre, who requested
anonymity, said he had
been buying basic commodities from importers,
including cross-border
traders, for resale over the past two years.
"I give them orders
before they leave for South Africa and I pay them
when they supply the
goods," he said.
Retail Association of Zimbabwe (RAZ) chairman,
Willard Zireva,
confirmed that his members were relying on imports but at a
low level. He
said low production levels were impacting negatively on the
association's
members.
"Local production is very low due to
shortage of inputs. Therefore
some products are coming through those with
free funds (foreign currency),"
said Zireva, OK Zimbabwe chief executive
officer.
Zireva said his members were facing the same challenges as
the rest of
the country and there was little the association could do to
assist them.
"Unfortunately, there are no mechanisms in place to
ensure product
availability and we can only sell what the manufacturers have
been able to
produce," he said.
Independent economist John
Robertson said the current scenario whereby
retailers depend on imports was
damaging to the country's economy.
"Bigger retailers are buying in
bulk from agencies who import these
commodities but the result is that it
kills the local industry. Apart from
that, prices will continue to increase
because they get foreign currency
from the black market," he
said.
The country's economy has been in free-fall over the past
seven years,
precipitated by hyperinflation, now at 1 281% as at December
last year.
Shortages of foreign currency, fuel and food have compounded the
woes of
most Zimbabweans who live on less than US$1 per day.
A
report by the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries last year said 1
000
companies have folded since 2000, throwing thousands of workers onto the
streets in a country where conservative estimates put unemployment at more
than 70%.
It is estimated that more than 200 000 workers lost
their jobs in 2006
alone as the hostile operating environment forced firms
to either scale down
operations or shut down altogether.
Zim Standard
BY NDAMU SANDU
RESERVE Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) chief Gideon Gono will cut a lone
figure this
week when presenting his delayed 2006 second half monetary
policy review
statement at a time confidence in the monetary authorities has
plunged to
its lowest.
The invidious position facing Gono is to convince most
Zimbabweans,
now resigned to their fate of shortages of foreign currency,
fuel and food,
that things will get better.
Announcing his
maiden monetary policy in December 2003, Gono said the
pain of adjustment
would be felt in 2004 than in subsequent years.
Gono said then: "It
should be acknowledged that much of the pain of
adjustment will be felt,
more in the year 2004, as our first year of
adjustment, than in subsequent
years, but as academics say, no pain, no
gain."
Gono also
announced a raft of measures that would see inflation at
170-200% in
December 2004 further plummeting to single digit band of between
5% and 9%
in December 2008.
But 37 months down the line, the pain is now
excruciating as
Zimbabweans grapple to make ends meet on generally paltry
incomes. Annual
inflation, at 1 281.1% as at December is racing northwards
with analysts
predicting that it will clock the 2 000% mark in the mid
term.
The three zeros banished in August last year are back with
much
vengeance, pushing prices of basic commodities to the roof: an
indication
that their spirits were not appeased!
Analysts
contend Gono's monetary policy reviews will not succeed
unless backed by
political and governance reforms.
"Zimbabwe is in a crisis
resulting, not in a failure of economic
policy alone . . . there is
political and governance failure," said Dr
Daniel Ndlela.
"If
he doesn't address the factors that converged to create the
crisis, there is
no such thing called turnaround."
He said the monetary policy
review should address the exchange rate to
narrow the gap between the
parallel and official rate which is breaking new
grounds every
week.
Dr Ndlela said: "When a nation is in a crisis and wants to
address the
exchange rate, it has to adjust it to the ruling black market
but Zimbabwe
cannot do that because it needs money from outside to back the
initiative."
Analysts say Gono has to give the market a clear
direction in the
interest rate policy to stem speculative tendencies on the
market.
"We need a clear interest rate direction to guide the
market. There is
uncertainty resulting in speculative tendencies on the
market," said
economist David Mupamhadzi.
He said given the
high inflationary pressures prevailing, there was
need to come up with
additional measures to control excessive money supply
growth fuelling the
inflation dragon.
On the review of the exchange rate, Mupamhadzi
concurred with Dr
Ndlela but added that there was need for clarity to guide
the market.
An Exchange Rate Impact Assessment Board announced by
Gono last year
is yet to be made public. The board, to be chaired by Gono,
was envisaged to
be drawn from major stakeholders such as exporters, major
importers,
officials from the ministries of Finance, Economic Development
and Industry
and International Trade and Bankers.
For ordinary
Zimbabweans, the cost of living is escalating by the day
and they yearn for
the glory days.
Dr Ndlela concurs: "The pain is borne by people
now; that's why there
are many wildcat industrial strikes."
An
SMS circulating in Harare sums up Gono's predicament. It reads:
"Anonymous
voices call on Gono's bedroom, disturbing his sleep. Governor
asks, who is
this? The voices reply, tishu mazheyo tajoka zhachose bhigaz"
(we are the
banished zeros and are back for good).
Will Gono bite the bullet
and confront the exchange rate monster, or
will he modify his slogan:
Failure is not an option? This week could be the
defining moment for Gono:
is he a man or a mouse?
Zim Standard
Sundayopinion by Gideon
Gono
I have seen the page one and two
Apology and Retraction respectively
by The Standard newspaper of 21 January
2007 and my reaction is simple:
"Give me a man or woman who has never made a
mistake in his or her life and
I will give you the world."
I
have come face-to-face with numerous mistakes made by myself as well
as
various people in my 47 years of existence and almost 30 years working
life.
Some of those mistakes that I have witnessed have been
fatal or
near-fatal, while others were not so serious. This one by The
Standard
newspaper was near-fatal.
In both categories of
mistakes, I have come to appreciate that it is
not so much the mistake which
matters, but what one does after realising
that he or she has made a
mistake. Few own up to their mistakes while many
will always refuse to take
responsibility and, instead, blame others. These
two postures draw different
reactions in my book and I suppose, also, in the
court of public
opinion.
Despite the undeniable hurt, ridicule and public
condemnation that I
and my family suffered within and outside our borders,
we take comfort from
the realisation that the reporter, Caiphas Chimhete,
the acting editor Bill
Saidi and Group CEO Raphael Khumalo displayed
professional courage to
investigate further the truth and upon establishing
it, have apologised and
admitted that the initial story was
false.
It was clear that they had been taken for a ride and misled
by people
who had their own agenda. Most importantly also was the fact that
in
publishing the story, the team at The Standard harboured no malice
against
me, as they sincerely believed that the story was
genuine.
The paper and myself further witnessed during the week
attempts by
certain people who wanted to again mislead both the paper and
publishers
with new inventions and/or variations about the same car in an
apparent
mission to tarnish the Governor by creating a new angle to explain
their
failure to substantiate the first story.
Fortunately for
me, I had revealed all the paperwork to do with the
car and even invited the
Group CEO, the Acting Editor and the Reporter
himself to ride in the car
concerned, with me behind the wheel.
Against this background, I
have not found it difficult to forgive the
team at The Standard newspaper
and life must just go on. No sweat.
Furthermore, there will be no legal
action to be taken to clear my name as
the matter has been dealt with
satisfactorily and amicably.
There are more pressing issues of
national significance to do with the
state of our economy that must surely
take precedence of occupation than to
pursue a mission to settle scores
against one another.
It was His Excellency the President, Cde R G
Mugabe who in one of his
State of the Nation addresses observed that: "We
are all witnesses to the
futility of trying to turn around our economy in an
environment of pointless
conflict."
Indeed what Zimbabwe needs
more at this stage than at any other in its
development and turnaround is
"healing." Healing between and among
individuals and families alike, healing
and tolerance between and among
politicians and political parties, between
and among different economic,
labour and government players, the media,
civil society, churches and their
leaders, and healing between Zimbabwe and
some sections of the international
community, including multilateral
financial institutions.
Only through unity of purpose, forgiveness
of one another and the
desire and discipline to stand by the truth can we
truly move forward.
At the personal level, I welcome the existence
of multi-media
platforms of expression and scrutiny of public officials and
their public
conduct as this improves accountability and entrenches
transparency of that
conduct. I am on record, way back, as publicly stating
that the media is an
indispensable partner in the turnaround of our economy
and indeed in the
arena of social progress.
I welcome criticism
of my monetary and economic policies, as well as
my public conduct as long
as this is done genuinely and in fairness,
respecting obviously, my right,
as indeed the right of others, to one's own
privacy.
Let me
take this opportunity also to state that, as with any public
official, it is
not possible or even desirable that I respond to each and
every story
written about me, whether in newspapers or on the internet,
respond to every
rumour or bar talk in the market or speculation directed at
me. I take all
these in my stride as occupational hazards which come with
the
territory.
My silence or non-response to some of these does not
however always
make these stories gospel truth as some market players have
been prone to
think. The office of the Governor is a very busy one,
particularly this
Governor. Taking care of an economy with the highest
inflation in the world
cannot be a walk in the park or an 8 to 5
job.
Regarding the bank's position on The Standard story, I have
spoken to
the Board Chairman for Human Resources Mr Lovemore Chihota and
persuaded the
bank's Board of Directors to consider withdrawing their
intention to sue the
paper and rather, let the matter lie to rest. The Board
has agreed to put
the matter down to experience, for both the team at The
Standard and myself.
The same cannot however be said of UK-based
The Zimbabwean newspaper
which went beyond the bounds of the initial false
story to manufacture their
own trinkets to make the story seem authentic and
joined previous lies about
the fertilizer story into this one. Our lawyers
will be getting in touch
with them unless they take the honourable route
that would protect their
integrity and standing in the news-world and do
like the team at The
Standard has done. We await their next issue to
establish their position.
I thank all the stakeholders who
"saw-through" the offending
publication and declared the report "prima-facie
false" from the word go
because of their confidence in me and the office of
the Governor.
Indeed, if the car issue was true, I would have been
the first one to
make a public admission of the fact and would have
requested for public
forgiveness, but as we all are aware now, it wasn't
true, neither had the
thought ever crossed my mind about the need to acquire
such an expensive
car. I didn't even know that such a car existed in the
world. The speed and
cost factors would have made it inappropriate for me,
let alone Zimbabwe in
the first place.
The car that I drive
today, an S600 is both personal and within my
contractual entitlements and
duly approved by the Board.
In the same vein, let me add that I
have been working for the last 29
years and during that period I have
managed to acquire a number of personal
assets in the farming, real estate,
stock/financial and other sectors of the
economy, all of which were declared
to my Principals upon my assumption of
Governorship of the Reserve Bank of
Zimbabwe as required by the appropriate
Statutes.
Some
stakeholders think that I only started working at RBZ in 2003 and
not being
privy to my asset and liabilities statement then, and now being
driven by
ulterior motives, have seen it fit to portray a false picture of
misuse of
public funds on what are purely legitimate private and personal
acquisitions
and investments, some of which are beginning to mature now
after a long
period of gestation.
We must as Zimbabweans, stop pre-judging
others probably by our own
"way-ward" ways!
Zim Standard
reflections
with Dr Alex
Magaisa
By the end of 2007, Zimbabweans living in
Great Britain will have
experienced what is undoubtedly a very rare
phenomenon in their lives. For
most, it will be the first time in their
entire lives that they would have
actually witnessed change in the national
leadership when, as is widely
expected, Prime Minister Tony Blair departs
office by the end of the year,
giving way to a successor, and everything
appears to point to that being
Gordon Brown, the current Chancellor of the
Exchequer.
Blair has had his critics, not least because of the
on-going Iraq war,
but for most Zimbabweans, coming as they do, from a
country where the rule
appears to be that leaders remain in power for as
long as possible and
employ every available tool to do so, one can hardly
blame them should they
choose to applaud the coming of this rare phenomenon.
They are reassured
that it is possible for politicians to actually
relinquish power; that there
is life beyond politics. Blair has had his time
and he is now passing the
baton to another and life goes on. So the ordinary
Zimbabwean in Britain
waits in anticipation, like a child waiting for new
clothes that come only
at Christmas, looking forward to experience this rare
phenomenon, for the
first time in his life.
But is this change
in British politics likely to have any implications
for Zimbabwe, at least,
in so far as the relations between the countries are
concerned? It is very
difficult, if not impossible, to foretell the future.
But it is possible to
shape the future by improving the present. As Paolo
Coelho says, in The
Alchemist, "The secret is here in the present. If you
pay attention to the
present, you can improve upon it. And, if you improve
on the present, what
comes later will also be better." All too often, when
we discuss about
Zimbabwe, we tend to critique matters in retrospect. It is
easy because we
have the benefit of hindsight but it has limited practical
effect when we do
so without actually offering solutions about improving the
future. This is
why I thought it would be useful to attempt to tackle what I
identify as one
of the problems and consider possibilities of preparing the
current
situation, with a view to achieving an improved future for
Zimbabwe.
The solution is here in the present; we just have to look
around and
see events elsewhere in the world and identify opportunities that
can be
exploited.
It is clear that, in the last ten years,
while diplomatic relations
have been maintained and Britain has continued to
provide some aid to
suffering Zimbabweans, political relations between the
two countries have
largely been strained.
People can choose to
be dismissive of the crisis in the relationship
as an imaginary creation of
the Zimbabwean leadership. This is
understandable, because for years, people
have become fed up with the
incessant and embarrassing torrent abuse by the
Zimbabwean leadership, which
they direct at the British government. Even
where the criticism may be
valid, it is often undermined by the manner of
its communication.
Unsurprisingly, some Zimbabweans have come to see the
alleged "problem"
between Britain and Zimbabwe as nothing more than a
smokescreen created by
their own government in order to obscure or excuse
its own limitations.
There is, however, a second way of looking at
the relationship, which
is informed by realism. Those schooled in marketing
know very well that
often, perception is, in fact, reality. The same applies
in politics - one
cannot afford to ignore things simply because in his view
they are mere
perceptions. You have to confront what you define as
perceptions, in the
same way that you would approach what you classify as
realities. So even if
the Britain-Zimbabwe tension is a mere perception
created by the Zimbabwean
government, it would be foolhardy to ignore
it.
There are some people, and indeed other countries, especially
in
Africa, that have taken to this perception so that their stance is
informed
not by what Zanu PF opponents consider to be the real issues, but
by what
Zanu PF has defined as a bilateral dispute between Zimbabwe and
Britain.
This conflict in approaches is probably best exemplified
by the way in
which Zanu PF managed to harness the land issue into the
political equation
in the 2000 and 2002 elections when it faced its stiffest
challenge from the
MDC.
Undeniably, land was a long-standing
issue, but it was hardly the
immediate and most pressing matter at the heart
of people's grievances
against the government in 2000. However, Zanu PF made
it an issue or at
least created the perception that land was the immediate
issue, because it
saw land as a convenient rallying point to gain sympathy
locally and
internationally. Yet because it was an inconvenient matter, one
that it
considered a non-issue, the MDC adopted a non-committal and rather
ambivalent attitude to it. This failure to deal with the perception created
by Zanu PF, which had become the reality, goes some way to explain why the
MDC has continuously failed to gain the full support of fellow African
leaders. This matter also had implications for the breach in relations
between Britain and Zimbabwe.
Keen to divert attention from its
incompetence, the government
constructed the problem not as a crisis of
governance but a bilateral
dispute between the former colony, Zimbabwe and
its former imperial power,
Britain. Zanu PF has managed to create the
perception that everything bad in
Zimbabwe is due to the negative influence
of Britain. Admittedly, with the
benefit of hindsight, it is fair to say
that Britain might have handled its
relations with Zimbabwe over the land
issue a little bit differently, given
the historical circumstances
pertaining to that issue. Whatever its errors,
it is hardly fair or correct
to place such blanket blame on the former
imperial power. Unfortunately, the
perception created by Zanu PF makes sense
to others, especially in the
developing world and therefore draws sympathy
towards the ruling
party.
It is therefore an exercise in futility to dismiss the
apparent
conflict between Zimbabwe and Britain as a perception of Zanu PF
and its
misguided followers. Because it has believers it is real and
therefore must
be tackled. This is not to dismiss the powerful argument of
the need to sort
the domestic situation but I do not think it is necessary
to get bogged down
on what to do first. The resolution of the apparent
conflict has the
potential to unlock others avenues that are currently
blocked because of the
situation. I like to think that reluctant countries
and institutions allied
to Britain are more likely to open up and view
Zimbabwe differently, should
there be a thaw in relations between the
two.
The severely strained personal relations between Mugabe and
Blair and
the limited time remaining for Blair suggest that it is unlikely
that
anything tangible can be achieved between them. The question then, is
whether Brown might adopt a different approach to the Zimbabwe matter. It
seems to me unlikely for as long as Mugabe remains in power.
I
do not think Brown would risk the wrath of those in his country for
whom
rightly or wrongly, Mugabe is the personification of the Zimbabwean
problem.
That is why for the sake Zimbabwe, it makes sense to have some form
of
change in the Zimbabwean leadership. The prospect of two new leaders in
both
countries, a relatively new dispensation, possibly a fresh look at
issues
and perhaps the redefinition of new avenues for improving the
relations is
hard to resist.
There is reason to be hopeful. Throughout the
political and personal
stalemate between the leadership, the people of both
countries continue to
enjoy relatively cordial relations. In addition,
diplomatic relations
between the two countries continue to thrive, albeit in
difficult
circumstances. It would be harder if such relations had totally
broken down,
which in diplomatic practice is often registered by a country
withdrawing
its diplomats. It is notable that Brown has shown a willingness
to help
tackle problems in Africa. There are also real prospects for change
in
countries that have been closely involved in relation to the Zimbabwe
crisis.
The US will have a new President at the end of
President Bush's term
in 2008, South Africa will also have a new President
when President Mbeki's
term expires in 2009. This year Nigeria will also
have elections after which
a new President will hopefully, emerge. Zimbabwe
can maximise on these
changes to start things on a fresh slate. It is
unfortunate therefore that
Zimbabwe appears to be intent on retaining the
existing order until at least
2010. A leadership transformation could have
far reaching implications not
only in ushering a new phase of relations with
Britain but also other
countries that have kept on the sidelines as a result
of this political and
personal impasse between the leadership. By improving
the present, there is
room to have a better future.
* Alex
Magaisa can be contacted at wamagaisa@yahoo.co.uk
Zim Standard
Comment
NOBODY of any substance has ever suggested that Zimbabwe could
benefit
from debt cancellation. The reason is obvious: the country is
economically
out in the wilderness.
Yet if Zimbabwe normalised
its status with international financial
institutions and behaved with the
requisite decorum and honesty of a
mendicant, there is no telling how many
of the rich countries would
sympathise with its plea for debt
forgiveness.
The problem is one of pride, basically. It may even be
just plain
pig-headedness.
Malawi and Zambia have benefited
from debt cancellation. With all
things being equal, one can predict a huge
leap in development project
funding in these countries.
The
problem with Zimbabwean politicians seems to be this: they are
more
concerned with enjoying the fruits of independence than raising the
living
standards of the people.
It seems to the people that the
politicians expect them to endure the
same pain and suffering as they did
during the colonial era. Why? Perhaps
the politicians are no different from
every other African politician, except
a few: once they are on the gravy
train, they don't want any other
passengers.
Yet, when you look
at independence logically, and analyse the motive
which drove people to lay
down their lives, don't you sometimes wonder if
they weren't
hoodwinked?
In Zimbabwe, it is probably unrealistic to campaign for
debt relief.
Last November, the Minister of Finance gave the country's
foreign debt as
US$4,1 billion. If it was cancelled today, Zimbabwe would
theoretically be
US$4,1 billion richer.
Of course, knowing the
government's penchant for squander mania, there
is no telling what that
bonanza would be spent on - a new fleet of Mercedes
Benz saloon cars for all
the big shots perhaps?
Sierra Leone, nearly torn into shreds by a
civil war in which 50 000
died - compared with 20 000 in Gukurahundi - has
just had a foreign debt of
US$l,6 billion cancelled by the Group of Eight
industrialised countries.
Lebanon, devastated by Israeli bombs
during last year's stand-off with
Hizzbollah, has just had billions pledged
for its reconstruction by European
countries and the United
States.
Zimbabwe, devastated, mostly by the pride of its
politicians, is
unwilling to plead for help because, to some of them, it
would be "beneath
our dignity" to beg.
Meanwhile, independence
has been denuded of its meaning for many
citizens, some of whose relatives
died during the war. They scrounge for a
living, some of them from the
dustbins of the rich politicians, now resident
in such luxurious suburbs as
Glen Lorne and Borrowdale Brooke, while the
"people" for whom the struggle
was fought huddle in makeshift shacks after
being displaced by
Murambatsvina.
In Malawi and Zambia, there was a virtual revolution
when the Founding
Fathers of the republics, Hastings Kamuzu and Kenneth
David Kaunda
respectively, were defeated in free and fair
elections.
During the last years of these two leaders' rule, their
countries'
economies, like Zimbabwe's today, had declined
horribly.
As people wait for Gideon Gono's latest monetary policy
review, they
must wonder if he will bite the bullet and campaign to return
the economy to
the good old days of its recognition as one of the best in
the region, if
not in Africa.
Certainly, it could then qualify
eminently for debt relief, perhaps
offering the people a chance, at last, to
bite gleefully into the delicious
fruit of their independence.
But the politicians, living off the fat of the land as they are, have
to be
convinced first: independence is about ordinary people "eating
independence".
Zim Standard
sundayopinion by Bill
Saidi
EVERY country in the world must have its share of beggars,
people so
desperate they have to depend on the generosity of
strangers.
Africa, because it is the poorest continent on the
planet, has more
beggars than any other. Blaming this on the ineptitude,
corruption, greed
and selfishness of African leaders may be
legitimate.
But that doesn't go to the heart of the matter, which
is that the
people themselves must react to their poverty with the kind of
robust
determination that sends such leaders scurrying into forced
exile.
Africa has even exported its beggars to other continents.
The first
foreign beggar I ever come across was a Nigerian in London, in
1964, four
years after that oil-rich giant of a country gained independence
from the
British.
His tale of woe was simple enough, but
heart-rending as well: he had
come to Britain to study, but had run out of
money. He dared not return home
empty-handed. I was astonished: what did he
intend to do? Try and raise
money to continue his education.
I
know that I gave him some money, more out of shame than out of any
genuine
desire to contribute to his educational fund.
* 2007, it is
quite likely that Zimbabweans outnumber Nigerians as
beggars on the streets
of London.
These days, when I think of African poverty, I think of
how Nigeria,
with oil belching out of its ears, is still basically poor, its
people
risking life and limb to extract fuel illegally from pipelines, which
quite
often burst in flames and lead to many deaths.
I often
wonder what happened to that beggar, more than 40 years ago.
Did he
finish his education, or did he die a lonely, miserable death,
on a cold
London pavement, when the temperature was sub-zero?
If I am one of
those who accuse African leaders of creating conditions
which are not
designed to end our poverty, you have to forgive me.
In Hamburg in
the 1990s, I found a Congolese begging in the streets,
playing his guitar.
For a man who said he had played music with the great Dr
Nico, he looked
pathetic.
Falling on hard times in a foreign land is far more
devastating than
in your own country.
Recently, I have wrestled
with my conscience over the death of members
of the Sawa family, after
eating poisonous mushroom, called Death Angel, in
Epworth.
This
is now one of the poorest suburbs in the country. Ironically,
this place,
also known as Chiremba, was once famous as the home of one of
the most
progressive church missions in the country, apart from producing
the
legendary Epworth Theatrical Strutters, headed by the Kanyowa brothers.
One
of them, the pianist Andrew, died only recently in his 70s.
Today,
Epworth is riddled with poverty. John Sawa died at 64,
fortunate enough to
have escaped the tragedy of being counted among the
typical Zimbabwean male
of this millennium: our average life expectancy is
now 34
years.
He picked the mushroom that eventually killed himself,
his wife and
some of their children. There have been other deaths from
eating poisoned
mushroom in this country before; people have been warned
repeatedly about
this, yet in any country where poverty stalks the land like
a marauding
behemoth, who could blame John Sawa for trying to feed his
family?
I doubt that Zanu PF, whose annual congress last December
was a
disgraceful display of a lack of concern for the poverty plaguing the
country, would ever link the Sawa family's tragedy to its own tragic record
of misrule.
Yet, who would dither about answering the
question: why are
Zimbabweans poorer now than they ever were in
1980?
Those who answer "illegal sanctions" are most likely the same
people
edging towards obesity from feasting on rich food. If Zanu PF insists
the
poverty has little to do with its misrule since 1980, then it can
confirm,
for many of us, that after they were installed as the new
government in
1980, they had no well-crafted blueprint for the future
economic development
of the country - except, perhaps the
looting.
To be sure, there were years during which we all bubbled
with hope.
Now, all we can smell is the acrid stench of the deadly Death
Angel, Zanu PF
ought to do the same: it might shock the leaders out of their
self-satisfaction, self-absorption.
ZUPCO pensions: The cat is out of the bag MAY you please allow me to use
your wonderful newspaper to let the cat out of the bag on an issue
concerning pensioners of the once beloved ZUPCO.
I hope someone
in the Anti-Corruption Commission will come across this
article and perhaps
go further up the administration tree at ZUPCO and trace
the
problem.
As times are hard nowadays, ZUPCO pensioners are being put
through
hell as they try to claim their pensions. At ZUPCO head office,
they're
referred to Fidelity Life Assurance (FLA) to collect their cheques,
but when
they get there, FLA confirms they have the cheques but cannot give
them out
because they are waiting for the signatures of the ZUPCO board of
trustees.
These board members are almost always unreachable.
They're always in
some meeting. An informed source at FLA confirms that the
board members
refuse to sign the cheques because the amounts are just too
much for ZUPCO,
a company claiming to be making over $50 million a day on
its cross-border
routes.
The board has resorted to delaying
tactics in the hope that the values
of the pensioners' cheques will
depreciate and in a couple of years, they'll
be worth nothing. They haven't
paid monthly payouts to most, if not all, of
their pensioners for more than
five months. The pensioners are always told
the same story: the board is
still meeting to try to resolve the payment
issue. The pensioners are never
involved in these meetings. One wonders how
they hope to resolve the issue
if they don't involve all the stakeholders in
the meetings.
Sources at FLA state that the pensioner with the largest claim at
ZUPCO is
less than a million Zimdollars. This claim is supposed to be paid
out over
the next five years.
As the board continues to run rings around its
once cherished
employees (pensioners), the life savings of these pensioners
continue to be
eroded by inflation, I plead with Paul Mangwana and his
Anti-Corruption
Commission or someone else to do something about this form
of corruption
that is slowly gripping this country.
The
Voice of a ZUPCO Pensioner,
Beitbridge
ZUPCO
Responds:
Thank you for sending us the letter about the ZUPCO
pensioner.
Relevant departments are investigating the matter with a view to
offer you a
response and to solve the alleged malpractice. You will be
hearing from us
quite soon.
Richard Mlambo
Public Relations Manager
ZUPCO
Harare
------------
Government should appreciate doctors are
human beings too LET us not be
cheated by cheap propaganda that the doctors
have no interest in patients'
welfare at heart. They do have it in thought,
word and deed. This government
propaganda is only looking at the effects of
the doctors' strike. If the
government has the interest of the majority of
the people at heart, as it
claims, then it should accept and implement the
doctors' demands.
Doctors are also human beings who have feelings.
When they look at
what is happening in Zimbabwe today, it really hurts them,
just as it is
hurting the majority of intelligent Zimbabweans.
This is unlike the Zanu PF government's unintelligent supporters who
just
follow their party blindly at any cost.
Last year most people spoke
out against the Senate elections. They
said that instead the money should be
paid to civil servants because of
their very low salaries. This was ignored
because the Zanu PF government
wanted to give employment to its faithful
supporters.
Why did the government allow the Reserve Bank governor
to burn such an
exorbitant amount of scarce foreign currency to by such a
luxurious car for
one man, when there is no cheap fuel for workers? Does
this show that the
government has no money? No, the money is there. So give
the doctors their
legitimate dues. All intelligent Zimbabweans support the
doctors' strike
because it is very genuine.
The government
sho-uld stop using money on things that are not a
priority for the majority
of the people. The war was not fought to make a
few people live a heaven on
earth life.
DR Mutungagore
Mutare
------------------
What's going on at RBZ, Dr Gono? RBZ THE
response by the RBZ to the
article in The Standard on the purchase of the
governor's vehicle raises
more questions about what is really going on at
the RBZ. Why take three full
colour page adverts to respond? Why splash the
adverts in every single paper
in the country? Why have the response in three
different languages when the
papers are all in English?
The estimates are that this campaign cost the RBZ over $34
million. Since
the RBZ wants to be transparent, maybe it would like to share
with the
public the true cost of the campaign.
The issue at hand, Dr
Governor, is neither whether you bought a
Brabus or an S600. To the average
Zimbabwean it's all the same. What the
public wants to know is whether the
Reserve Bank is allocating the precious
forex in the most transparent and
deserving manner.
In its response the RBZ is trying to
portray itself as a clean
institution in the way it conducts its business.
Why then did the governor
opt for a loan instead of the RBZ owning the car?
Was it not that the
Governor wanted to make it a big score? Who would not
have wanted a loan of
US$138 000 at Z$250? That's Z$34,5
million.
Any car dealer in town would tell you that a car
bought at
US$138 000 has an open market value of over $600 million. So
overnight the
RBZ governor made-whopping paper profit of over $550
million.
No wonder he opted for a loan. Is this car loan
scheme available
to all RBZ senior staff in order to enrich themselves
overnight?
If the RBZ governor has nothing to hide then he
needs to publish
with the same vigour a list of all his employees who have
benefited from
this scheme and the amounts involved. He must also publish
the list of
government officials not, to mention Minister Chombo, that have
been getting
forex at $250 to import personal luxury vehicles and
trinkets.
Is it any wonder why it has taken so long to
devalue the Z$ when
inflation is ravaging at 1 200% plus? Is it any wonder
why governor failed
to put in place a forex rate determination committee, as
promised in one of
his many empty monetary policy statements last
year?
My heart bleeds when people are dying in our hospitals
every
hour due to shortages of medication and equipment because there is no
forex,
or patients fail to buy prescriptions because medication is sourced
using
expensive parallel market funds.
Jobs are being
lost everyday because of forex shortages. Hotels
are at pains
everyday.
Explain to tourists why their charges are
completely out of sync
with the rest of the world.
All
this because the Reserve Bank governor and fellow senior
staff, not to
mention government ministers, want to make super profits
overnight. My
question to you Dr Gono, who do you think you are
fooling?
Tendai Manhanga
Harare
----------------
Driven to a point
where people will choose to fight rather than
suffer IT is hard to imagine
that when Zimbabwe won her independence in
1980, the country had the second
largest economy in the region.
No wonder the country
was given the food security
responsibility in the Sadc region in the 1980s.
All this is now history -
thanks to the powers that
be.
Today, the country is not only broke, but our
balance of
payments schedule leaves a lot to be desired. How we wish our
country could
go back to the post-independence transitional State based on
good
governance.
This could have been possible if
our leaders embraced
integrity, justice, equality and harmony. But, the
opposite is true as our
leaders sow the seeds of greed, self-indulgence,
corruption, recklessness
and hegemony; which are the sure ingredients for
the collapse of any vibrant
economy - exactly our situation
today.
As we begin the year 2007, we are better advised
not to
resign ourselves to fate. Since the beginning of the millennium the
political scenario in Zimbabwe has greatly changed, with some progressive
forces coming into the fold. The coming on board of the MDC, which was a
direct challenge to Mugabe's throne, proved to be the turning point in the
struggle for the people's right to democratise our
society.
Indeed, while this has not been the end to
self-struggle
for the restoration of the majority's right to
self-governance, what has
been achieved so far should be
commendable.
Indeed, the land reform programme which
has generally
failed, has accelerated the deterioration of our economy. By
destroying
agriculture which is the backbone of our economy, was as good as
killing a
goose which lays golden eggs.
I am
surprised that our leaders are not embarrassed by the
four figure inflation
rate, which is the highest in the world.
What we have
witnessed since 2000 to date is the trampling
of human rights with impunity
by a despotic government. Of course
parliamentary and presidential elections
were held in 2000, 2002 and 2005,
but in all instances Mugabe and his party
rigged themselves into power.
There will come a time
when the masses will have no option
but to fight back to reclaim their lost
pride ad integrity.
Let it be spelt out that Zimbabwe
is bigger than anyone
and that no one should be allowed to privatise
it.
Maunganidze Vhusani
Chipinge South
-------------
Raw deal for ZTV viewers
IT is with a heavy heart
that I took pen to paper.
The standard of programmes flighted on ZTV are
deplorable and sickening. To
say boring underestimates the situation. Gone
are the days since we last sat
glued to our seats watching
television.
The programmes are not
people-oriented and I think
there is need for wide consultations on the
issue. Since this is the only
broadcasting station in the land, I think
there is need to introduce
programmes that really give people value for
their money.
Family viewing time is now loaded
with programmes
that are sexually provocative. This really makes me wonder
what kind of
behaviour we really want to impart to our
children.
However, on a lighter note, thanks to
ZTV for
introducing church programmes on Saturday and Sunday morning. At
least
watching these wither our everyday
sorrows.
PIRF
Harare
------------------
ZBC ignoring rural folks I write
this letter to confirm
my disgruntlement with the unequal coverage of other
areas outside the
capital by ZBC and ZTV news
teams.
It must be appreciated that marginalised
and
disadvantaged groups mostly in rural areas have far more itching day to
day
problems that are not receiving any
attention.
In the Midlands Province areas or
resettled new
farmers have transport problems and health facilities are few
and far apart.
They also lack adequate farming
inputs.
To foster development in our country
let's have the
national broadcaster visiting and gathering such information
from all areas
and not just concentrate on urban areas. Infact, ZBC/ZTV must
establish
offices in our districts so that they spread their coverage
countrywide.
Papparazzi
Gweru
http://africantears.netfirms.com/thisweek.shtml
Saturday 27th January 2007
Dear Family and Friends,
A
large black snake showed up in my garden this week. I believe it was an
Egyptian Cobra and it seemed to come from nowhere and without any warning.
It's that time of year when animal encounters increase. It is wet, hot and
humid and there is thick, tall bush everywhere you look - including on
un-mown roadsides and uncleared drains in the residential suburbs of the
towns. I watched in horror as the snake approached my chickens. It raised
its head, began to spread a hood and I could not believe that the chickens
just stood there, completely still, seemingly paralyzed. The hens did not
move a muscle or make a sound as death literally stared them in the face. I
didn't wait any longer and soon the missiles began to fly. At last, perhaps
buoyed by the noisy support, the hens woke up from their stupor. Feathers
were ruffled, necks craned and a great clucking and alarmed babbling started
up, and carried on for a considerable time. Many missiles later the snake
retreated down a hole in the corner of the garden and now I know it's there
but can't do anything except wait for the next encounter. The garden is
tended, the grass is short and on the surface everything looks serene and
peaceful, but I know its just an illusion and that at any time all hell will
break loose again.
We have become a country full of illusions and
this rainy season the
tricks,mirrors and juggling acts are very battered
indeed. In many small
towns we seem to be moving perilously close to a
ticking time bomb.This week
on state sponsored TV came a headline report of
Kwekwe town being "on the
edge of collapse" as miners are digging right
under the railway lines. From
Bindura came news that the municipal
department responsible for housing has
been closed until further notice. It
seems that the receipts for money being
paid to the department differed
hugely between the top and duplicate copies
and a huge fraud has been
playing out to the detriment of the town.
In Marondera when the dustbins
had not been collected for three weeks
recently, the local Health Inspector
was contacted. He was sympathetic to
the obvious effects of uncollected
garbage at this time of year - the smell,
flies, mosquitoes rats and health
hazard but said there was nothing he could
do. The fuel intended for the
refuse removal trucks had been reallocated to
the army for land tillage. The
large government hospital, and in fact most
of Marondera town, continues to
have major water shortages. Public toilets
at the hospital outpatients unit
are closed but desperate patients continue
to use them as they wait for five
or more hours just to see a nurse as the
doctors are still on strike. The
toilet floors are apparently thick with
maggots and horrors you would expect
in a sewer, not a major provincial
government hospital.
And so the
appearance of things being under control in Zimbabwe is just a
shaky
illusion. Someone told me this week that there is bright light at the
end of
the tunnel. Its from an express train coming straight at us and we
are
standing right in its path, blinded by the light, unable to move.
Until next
week, thanks for reading, love cathy.
IPS
Moyiga
Nduru
JOHANNESBURG, Jan 27 (IPS) - This year's rainy season has brought
some mixed
blessings to farmers and aid agencies operating in Southern
Africa, which
experienced a spell of drought and famine last year.
In
most of the 14-member Southern African Development Community (SADC), the
rainfall on which most farmers rely -- unable to afford irrigation -- starts
in November and ends in March.
"We had a poor start to the season.
But since late December we have
experienced some good rainfall. This doesn't
mean that all is well. The
southern and eastern parts of the country are not
having good rainfall,"
Ajah Vashee, president of the Trustee of Zambia
National Farmers Union, told
IPS from the central town of Ndola by
phone.
"Some farmers, because rains started late, have had to replant
their crops.
This means extra cost for them," he said. "We hope that the
weather holds up
between now and mid-February."
"Despite the
uncertainty, we are optimistic that we will have reasonable
good production
this year in Zambia," Vashee said.
In its seasonal outlook update for
December-February 2007, the
Zimbabwe-based SADC Drought Monitoring Centre
says it expects above-normal
rainfall in the greater part of the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC). It
expects similar rainfall in northern Angola,
most of Zambia, the southern
half Tanzania, Malawi and Mozambique, most of
Zimbabwe, the eastern half
Swaziland and extreme eastern South
Africa.
Aid agencies are still waiting for the rainy season to pick up or
slow down
so as to determine the number of people likely to require food aid
this
year.
"Currently we feed 4.3 million vulnerable people and
school children through
food provision," Mike Huggins, a spokesman for the
United Nations World Food
Programme (WFP) in South Africa's commercial
capital of Johannesburg, told
IPS by phone.
"There are vulnerable
people, such as those living with HIV, and AIDS
orphans that always require
food aid in the region," he said.
Early last year, aid agencies were
feeding 10.3 million people across the
region prone to floods and drought.
"This figure has fallen to 4.3 million
because of the good harvest last
agricultural season," Huggins said. "It's
too early, however, to speculate
on this year's food demands."
One of the countries experiencing acute
food shortages, Zimbabwe, with a
population of 13 million, used to be the
grain basket of the region. But
production fell after President Robert
Mugabe seized land from 4,500 white
commercial farmers to resettle landless
blacks between 2000 and 2002.
White commercial farmers used to produce
the bulk of Zimbabwe's food. Now
the country is reeling under a runaway
inflation rate of more than 1,000
percent, and has become a net food
importer. Last week it imported 3,351
tonnes of wheat from South Africa,
according to the South African Grain
Information Service.
Apart from
South Africa, Namibia, Mauritius and Botswana, farmers in the
region face
difficulties in obtaining bank loans. Banks require collateral,
something
which poor farmers usually cannot provide.
"The biggest problem most
farmers have is the inability to borrow money and
produce food," Vashee
said. "The other problem is the functioning of the
maize
marketing."
Maize is the staple food in much of the SADC region.
"Sometimes you have the
crops, but you can't sell them," he
said.
Last year the Zambian government bought the maize surplus but
didn't have
sufficient money to back up the deal. "As a result, they are
still paying
the farmers," Vashee said.
Relatively wealthy Namibia,
too, is feeling the pinch. "WFP is facing a
shortfall of four million
dollars for its operations in Namibia through to
April, and needs a total of
nine million dollars through to the end of
2007," the UN food agency said in
a statement. The agency is looking after
90,000 orphans and vulnerable
children in Namibia.
"Across the region, excluding Namibia, WFP faces a
funding shortfall of 48
million dollars for programmes in Lesotho, Malawi,
Mozambique, Swaziland,
Zambia and Zimbabwe which assist about 4.5 million
people," the WFP added.
More rainfall is needed if the SADC region is to
overcome food shortages and
look after its vulnerable people, many of whom
are living with HIV/AIDS and
are too weak to farm.
"There are no
clear signs of declining HIV prevalence elsewhere in southern
Africa --
including in Botswana, Namibia and Swaziland. In Swaziland,
national adult
HIV prevalence is estimated at 33.4 percent. Botswana's
epidemic is equally
serious, with national adult HIV prevalence estimated at
24.1 percent in
2005. Lesotho's epidemic seems to be relatively stable at
very high levels,
with an estimated national adult HIV prevalence of 23.2
percent," said the
2006 UN Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) report.
"On the eastern
coastline, a dynamic epidemic is underway in Mozambique,
where the estimated
national adult HIV prevalence is 16.1 percent. HIV is
spreading fastest in
provinces linked by major transport routes to Malawi,
South Africa and
Zimbabwe," according to UNAIDS.