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SOKWANELE

Enough is Enough

Zimbabwe

PROMOTING NON-VIOLENT PRINCIPLES TO ACHIEVE DEMOCRACY

We have a fundamental right to freedom of expression!

(www.sokwanele.com)

 

Tenth Day of Christmas: Looking for a “bumper harvest…”

Sokwanele Reporter: 4 January 2004

 

This article is a repeat of a story Sokwanele circulated last year on the 26th October 2004.

 

In May Robert Mugabe told Sky News, and the world, that Zimbabwe was on its way to producing a "bumper harvest". Accordingly the activities of the World Food Programme (WFP) were to be curtailed. Donor food was no longer required. Even the United Nations' own national food security assessment was stopped in its tracks. Henceforth the government would feed its own people without any outside help. So five months on one might well ask - Where is the bumper harvest ? How are the people faring, especially deep in the rural areas where it is very difficult for reporters from the independent media to penetrate ?

 

Just this week this writer interviewed an MDC Councilor from Binga; let's call him Isaac Moyo to protect his real identity. How would he describe the situation on the ground in the Ward he represents some 30 to 40 kilometers removed from the Binga Centre ? From our conversation it emerged that he was deeply troubled about the food security situation. The people of Binga are already suffering chronic shortages of staple foods, and that suffering is expected to intensify in the months ahead.

 

Councilor Moyo was full of praise for all the NGO's had been doing in his area prior to the scaling down of their operations. Just before the last rainy season for example CADEC the Catholic Development Commission and Save the Children (UK), the two NGO's most active in the Binga area, supplied seed maize to the people, and although some of the seed proved not to be ideal for that terrain and climate, at least it enabled local farmers to plant and reap a harvest. They also supplied seed for vegetables which were grown with some enthusiasm in local gardens. Overall it was not a good season for this remote district in which survival margins have never been that large. At best the harvest was patchy, but at least many households had some home-grown maize and vegetables. The same will not be true in the season ahead..

 

Apart from providing seed for the 2004 season both CADEC and Save the Children set up supplemental feeding schemes to help the most vulnerable in the community. CADEC supplied porridge to the under 5's in schools, to patients attending local clinics and to the frail and elderly. Mealie meal, sugar beans and cooking oil were provided to the most needy. For its part Save the Children laid on a regular monthly distribution of 10 kgs mealie meal to an estimated 80,000 households. As a result of these programmes the incidence of malnutrition was reducing in the area and the health of the people improving visibly. The local Council was mighty appreciative of this help and anxious to ensure that the programmes continued.

 

Yet all these positive developments came to an abrupt halt when the WFP was instructed to terminate its activities and local NGO's were informed they required express permission to continue with any relief or humanitarian work. A directive was issued from the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare requiring all NGO's to sign a memorandum of understanding indicating precisely the nature and scope of their operations and the intended beneficiaries. The approval of the District Administrator and the local Council would be required in future in each instance. In the case of the Binga Council which has a 16 to 5 MDC majority, that approval for the established feeding programmes was readily forthcoming, but still the NGO's could not proceed without the Minister's approval which has not been forthcoming. The memoranda of understanding submitted for approval are gathering dust while there is no indication that Save the Children or CADEC will be permitted to resume their feeding programmes.

 

ZANU PF's extreme sensitivity about issues of food does not apparently extend to health, hygiene and developmental projects. Save the Children were therefore permitted to continue the "livelihood" programmes they initiated last December, involving an AIDS awareness project and the provision of water and sanitation. But it is the enforced suspension of the NGO feeding schemes that has caused the greatest suffering on the ground and deepest sense of outrage among the people

 

"People in Binga are very angry", says Councilor Moyo. "When they were getting cooking oil and mealie meal (from the NGO's) we could see their health was improving. Malnutrition was reducing and there was more participation in (food-for-work) community projects. Now the people are suffering. There is no food , even for the under 5's, the elderly and the sick".

 

Questioned further Councilor Moyo revealed that people are dying in the area as a direct result of the suspension of the NGO feeding schemes. Malnutrition may not always be given as the reason for death but certainly it is hastening the deaths of a significant number of AIDS patients and others in the "at risk" category medically.

 

Furthermore with the first of the summer rains expected at any time now and hence the need to plough the fields in preparation for sowing, the people simply do not have any seeds to plant. Here again the invaluable work previously done by the NGO's can no longer be continued - at the cost of untold further suffering to the community in the months ahead.

 

Those seeking to defend the regime's reputation would no doubt point out that maize is available at this time at the Grain Marketing Board (GMB) depots in Binga and Lusulu. Councilor Moyo however counters that the Lusulu depot, between 80 and 90 k's south of Binga is only accessible over a very rough road and transport is always problematic. Furthermore while maize is now available at $Z 30,000 per 50 kg bag few local people can afford even this price. The price was in fact reduced from $ 40,000 to $ 30,000 per bag because it was not selling to hungry (impoverished) local people. Even at $ 30,000 per bag however it is beyond the reach of most of the local population. The irony is that at this subsidized rate it has become attractive enough for business people in Bulawayo to make the round trip to Binga, to buy up supplies for re-sale in Bulawayo. Once again the real losers are the rural poor who, until ZANU PF intervened to seize control of all food supplies, were being well cared for by CADEC and Save the Children.

 

What is even more sinister is that by channeling all available grain through the GMB which has been politicized and militarized (with nearly all senior management now being drawn from the military), the ruling party have set up a system of food distribution from which at a stroke opposition MDC supporters can be excluded. "The next step", says Councilor Moyo, "will be that ZANU PF party cards are required by anyone seeking to buy maize". It hasn't happened yet he says in his district, but he is no doubt that such a system will be in place before the Parliamentary elections of March 2005. ZANU PF will then hold all the cards, and they know how easily a starving people can be persuaded to vote for whatever party they are told to vote for - even if that party is responsible for their wretched plight. Mugabe's bumper harvest is a myth of course, but then he was always far more concerned with a harvest of votes for himself than a harvest of food for his starving people.


Day 11: 5 January 2005
Tomorrow we look at another rural situation - Insiza in Matabeleland South - where, on the orders of the local ZANU PF member of parliament, a Christmas party intended for hundreds of AIDS orphans and poor villagers and a substantial donation of much need food, maize seed, medical supplies and clothing to the community, was cancelled at the last minute.

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4 January 2005

PRESIDENT TSVANGIRAI'S TUESDAY MESSAGE TO THE PEOPLE OF ZIMBABWE

The year 2005 is set to mark the end of a clash of two dominant political
visions, pitting the majority -- wishing to start afresh -- and an emotional
tyranny, with eyes firmly stuck in history.

With our usual vigilance and care, our sovereign desire for political space
and economic advancement could become a reality. We are poised for a grand
let off, especially after we register our national sentiment. The prevailing
mood shows a decisive resolve to cast off a status quo whose philosophy
thrust our nation into a deep hole during the past five years.

In 2005, the people shall lead our nation to a new setting, embrace a
genuine multi-party political culture, recognize the fundamentals of a
universal culture of political tolerance and work with everybody, winner and
loser, to bring about a new Zimbabwe and a new beginning.

Our position on the pending Parliamentary election is very clear. Our
members are clear on the type and form of an election that can pull the
country out of the long political impasse. All they need is an opportunity
to express their national sentiment and feelings without hindrance or
political pressure.

We represent that sentiment out of a genuine and patriotic passion to avoid
another five years of decay, another five years of confusion and another
five years of uncertainty. Our motives are driven by a legitimate wish to
stop our nation from danger. Continuous poverty and helplessness often leads
to recolonisation, limit choices and eat into our sovereignty. Desperate
nations expose themselves, seek allies and friends from the usually
questionable sources, work with tyrannical regimes and become dumping
centres for fake, dangerous goods and ideas.

Coming out of five regrettable years, Zimbabweans see the forthcoming
election as a means to an end, as a bridge to a new dispensation. For that
reason, our victory at a national election is an important step in our
efforts to engage all Zimbabweans and to stop the continued privatization of
our sovereignty. We must be at peace with ourselves and with our neighbours.
We must promote an inclusive society, reduce the traffic to the Diaspora,
reduce the burden to our neighbours and rejoin the international community.

Zimbabweans who still argue for the maintenance of the status quo say they
take their cue from a nationalistic ideology, with roots embedded in the
struggle against colonialism. They believe the leadership of the liberation
struggle, despite its glaring failure to adhere to the ideals of that
national project, has an historical sanction and a permanent veto on the
political administration and management of Zimbabwe.

We accept their presence in our midst on the understanding that they are a
fast-dwindling minority whose thinking feeds on nostalgia, political
opportunism and outright political greed. For that reason, they lack the
moral weight and legitimacy to impose the vision onto the people. Thus the
clash of visions, which is basically opportunistic and generational, is now
coming to an end. The conflict over the management and administration of the
national cake ends in 2005.

I know you are hurt each time greedy politicians blame all our misfortunes
on colonialism; when they try to explain their policies and acts of
brutality against you through history; when they attempt to evoke memories
of racism, inequality and even slavery as a cover up for their own bungling
and lack of good governance. A new Zimbabwe shall seek to steer away from
that view. We seek to promote a tolerant society with a temperate approach
to politics. Peace is possible. The seemingly perpetual struggle against
history must be discouraged. We must move on.

We are clear that the core national grievance in Zimbabwe today is a result
of the absence of essential institutional, cultural and constitutional
safeguards necessary to entrench the people's freedoms. We know that without
essential freedoms, without political space, no nation can prosper.
Together, we shall reverse 25 years of insecurity and open a new road
towards a new Zimbabwe.

The main driving force for change desires an extension of the gains of
Zimbabwe's independence. The new voices calling for political reform and
change see their agenda as part of broad struggle for social liberation.

We are watching every step the regime is taking in a poor attempt to steal
your voice. That shall fail because we now know them well. We are deep
inside. We know their strategies and plans, thanks to an increasing number
of patriotic Zimbabweans in their system. We have sufficient material and
determination to draw a line in the sand and block yet another round of
electoral fraud. In 2005, we are ready to hit the ground and stop the rot.

We are fighting for freedom from a parasitic elite, which merely replaced
the colonial administrator and sealed off public offices and public debates
from public control. Because of your untiring efforts to reclaim your
rights, the net is closing in on the regime.

We lead the voice of the most productive segment of our population. The
majority are young and ready to drive the agenda for the nation. They do not
have an emotional attachment to an outdated nationalistic philosophy, nor to
a distorted view of the ideals of the liberation struggle. They grew up in
an independent Zimbabwe with no other experience other than poverty,
unemployment, insecurity and despair. Let me assure the nation that all is
not lost. We are determined to restore our core values and to start afresh.

The MDC and the entire democratic movement believe in the need for change
because we have never enjoyed our full individual liberties for a quarter of
a century. We have never been able to take for granted our personal safety
and security. In 2000 and in 2002, we exposed the regime's weakness. We made
tremendous advances and gave the people the necessary confidence to take on
tyranny. We have survived as a party and gained invaluable experiences.

The year 2005 offers a superb opportunity to define our destiny. The time
has come for a new order and a new political environment. We pledge to
provide the necessary leadership during this transition, guided by
non-partisan Zimbabwean interests, values and dreams. We pledge to respect
and work with the opposition in the new Zimbabwe. Our aim is to build a
platform for a meaningful new beginning and a new political culture.

Together, we shall win.
Morgan Tsvangirai
President.
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Daily News online edition

      A wish list for 2005

      Date: 4-Jan, 2005

      THE first priority would be an end to the economic crisis that has
plagued this country since 2000.

      The "lone ranger" strategy espoused by President Robert Mugabe is not
working. Economic ventures to the East have not yielded immediate results.

      The prospects of that scenario changing soon are less than slim. Only
a full-scale return to the international economic community can ensure the
restoration of our economy as the envy of many other African countries.

      Politically, there is a crying need for a more even-handed treatment
of the opposition, from the formidable MDC to the smallest husband-and-wife
parties which tend to spring up before a parliamentary election.

      Zanu PF has held power for so long it cannot justify the use of
violence to influence voters. What the use of force during election
campaigns has cost the country is incalculable, in terms of political and
economic allies.

      Zanu PF should accept, by now, that a "regime change" at the polls
would not be such a bizarre occurrence. Three political parties which
brought independence to their countries - Malawi's Congress Party, Zambia's
UNIP and Kenya's Kanu - have lost power in free and fair elections.

      Those events occurred only after international pressure convinced the
Stalinist ruling parties that their days as members of the international
democratic movement were numbered.

      Zanu PF remains a pariah party, unwilling to accept that it can no
longer perform for the Zimbabwean economy and its political development what
it did, albeit briefly, after independence in 1980.

      The party must, for the sake of our future, allow for a thoroughly
free and fair election in 2005. The alternative can result in a crisis too
ghastly to contemplate.

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Glitter Fades Out for Harare's Kaguvi Street

The Herald (Harare)

January 4, 2005
Posted to the web January 4, 2005

Melody Mbira
Harare

IT is one of Harare's oldest streets, a "First Street" of its days, former
host of the hottest hotels and was once the heart of the red light district
of the capital city.

This was Pioneer Street and soon after independence to present day Kaguvi
Street.

Kaguvi Street as it is still known had one of most famous landmarks in the
late 70s spilling into the early 80s, the likes of Queens Hotel as well as
Suraj Hotel.

The City of Harare having been built from the Kopje area, Kaguvi, then
Pioneer Street, was once the centre of activity before the CBD grew to where
it is today.

The famous Asian businessmen "MaIndia" literary used to rule the area as the
black Zimbabweans who during that time were still deprived of their right to
movement mainly frequented it.

Some of the oldest buildings are found there.

But all this history has gone and nothing is left to show for such an active
past as the street has been turned into auto repair centre and dump yard for
many wrecked cars.

The cars are repaired at almost every open space - even in the middle of the
road.

Driving in that part of the city has become a nightmare and there is now
talk that if you have not driven along Kaguvi Street, then you are not a
driver.

Menacing touts and mechanics are everywhere crowding the street and posing a
danger to motorists left with little or nowhere to negotiate.

With more than 20 auto-dealer shops most of them with backyard garages, it
is surprising how some people resort to using the street for servicing their
customers' cars.

Even when a passing car slows down, the touts are already in front waving it
to stop before they recite their long list of services while at the same
time posing a danger to their life as well as that of the motorist.

The area has been forgotten and the dealers have been left unwatched turning
the area into one of the dirtiest and overcrowded parts of the CBD.

Some sources say the "darkness" phase was born when the city began growing
and the area with its mostly old and run down buildings offered the lowest
rentals and thus prompting dealers to open businesses there.

The area gradually accommodated auto-parts and repair shops to service the
new market rising soon after independence, the source said.

Many people especially the black Zimbabweans started to own cars and this
made auto-dealing a more lucrative business. The trend gradually grew as the
area got more popular with motor vehicle owners and today it is a hub to
many cars - luxurious or otherwise - they are found all there.

And the legality of their operations?

"They are all illegal and we are launching an operation to clear all of them
and revive the street, said City of Harare spokesman Mr Leslie Gwindi.

Whatever activities are going on there, the street needs urgent attention to
bring sanity before it degenerates into yet another Siyaso - a place in the
high density suburb of Mbare, where various informal businesses most of them
illegal are conducted.

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NUJ

      Zimbabwe broadcaster under threat of death
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

     4 January 2005

      The NUJ has launched a campaign to save Zimbabwean journalist Adolf
Mukandi from being sent home to his death.

      The union has written to Home Office Minister Des Browne, asking him
not to deport the 36-year-old, who worked as a bulletin editor for the
Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation.

      Adolf fears if he returns home he will be persecuted by the same
security services that forced him to flee in 2002.

      "I'm frightened about going back to Zimbabwe because I know the
government will decide my fate," he said.

      "The government's hatred of journalists is well documented, and it
will be worse for me because as a former government journalist I was privy
to most of the regime's secrets. They are very aware these secrets are no
longer in safe hands.

      "If I go back home I don't know what they will do, but I know it will
be a dire result for me."

      He believes he was targeted after giving airtime to the opposition
party, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).

      "When I was a young man I was indoctrinated by my bosses to say what
they wanted me to say, rather than what was really going on," he said.

      "My bosses were in league with higher authorities who tell them what
to say. It was nothing but propaganda.

      "As I became more experienced I refused to do this because I was
concerned about protecting the ethics of journalism. This did not please my
bosses."

      "Deciding to leave my home and my family was a very difficult
decision, but sometimes your life is more important than anything else."

      Adolf, whose claim for asylum was refused, must report to the Home
Office on Friday, January 7. He fears he will be deported, even though the
UNHCR has advised the government not to send asylum seekers back to Zimbabwe
because of human rights violations.

      NUJ Vice President Tim Lezard said: "Adolf is a journalist who has
been forced to leave his home, his family, his job and his country because
he dared to tell the truth.

      "There is no free speech in Zimbabwe, with journalists being tortured
for writing unfavourable stories about Robert Mugabe's murderous regime.

      "Across the world in 2004 more journalists that ever before - 120 -
were killed for doing their job. We don't want Adolf to become one of the
first victims of 2005."

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IOL

SA man plunges to his death at Victoria Falls
          January 04 2005 at 12:04PM

      Harare - A tourist from Johannesburg died on New Year's Eve when he
fell 40m down a rock face at the Victoria Falls while trying to recover
spectacles he had dropped, Zimbabwe police confirmed on Tuesday.

      Inspector Casper Nhepera said Michael John Drake, 50, fell to his
death near the 100-year-old Victoria Falls bridge, which links Zimbabwe and
Zambia, after dropping his spectacles while taking photographs.

      Rocks and vegetation are notoriously slippery along the lip of the 80m
chasm, which is wetted continuously by spray.

      "He went down the gorge in an effort to retrieve his spectacles," said
Nherera. "During that process he slipped and fell 40m down the gorge. His
girlfriend accompanying him immediately informed the police who attended the
scene."
      His body was recovered by helicopter.

      Police have tightened security on both sides of the 1,5km long falls
after a spate of robberies of tourists in recent years. - Sapa-dpa

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IOL

Zim officials accused of trading information
          January 04 2005 at 01:43PM

      Harare - Zimbabwean authorities arrested a senior official in the
National Security Ministry on Tuesday, as dramatic investigations into
spying activities unfold.

      His arrest brings to six the number of people arrested for spying in
recent weeks.

      Flamboyant Zanu-PF member of parliament Phillip Chiyangwa, Zimbabwe's
ambassador-designate to Mozambique Godfrey Dzvairo, Zanu-PF director for
external affairs Itai Marchi, Zanu PF deputy director for security Kenny
Karidza and former Metropolitan Bank company secretary Tendai Matambanadzo
all face spying charges after being seized by Zimbabwe's central
intelligence organisation.

      They are accused of "trading information" about Zimbabwean government
activities through a spy network that was supposed to report on squabbles in
the ruling Zanu-PF party, it is alleged.

      While the case is being held secretly in a Harare magistrate's court
from which the public is barred, it is understood several of the accused,
who initially pleaded guilty, are now demanding to change their pleas to
innocent.

      If convicted, they could face up to 20 years in prison under
Zimbabwe's Official Secrets Act, a law that dates back to colonial days
under the Rhodesian government.

      Meanwhile a source said the unnamed security official would be charged
with failing to report information on the spy network.

      "This is a can of worms and it really shows that we need to tighten
our laws. For instance, this official stumbled onto the spying network and
did not report the matter because he underrated the implications of the
discovery," said the source.

      Under Zimbabwean law, it is an offence not to report a breach of the
Official Secrets Act.

      It has not yet emerged which foreign power the six were allegedly
spying for, though they were allegedly paid in foreign currency. - Sapa
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From The Herald, 4 January

Zanu PF chairmen get 5-year ban each

From Bulawayo Bureau

The ruling Zanu PF has extended the suspension of its six provincial
chairpersons who took part in the unsanctioned Tsholotsho meeting from six
months to five years. This means the six would be barred from holding party
positions for the next five years following a disciplinary hearing into
their conduct. Zanu PF National Chairman Cde John Nkomo yesterday confirmed
that the affected provinces were last week notified about the outcome of the
hearing conducted by the party's National Disciplinary Committee. The six
were initially suspended for six months in November last year pending a
hearing by the National Disciplinary Committee into their cases. Cde Nkomo
said the National Disciplinary Committee had confirmed the six-month
suspensions and extended them to five years. "I can confirm that the six
chairpersons have been further suspended for a further five years following
disciplinary hearings into their conduct," Cde Nkomo said. He said the six
chairpersons were afforded an opportunity to defend themselves, but the
committee found them guilty for their actions.

According to a letter read on Sunday before the Bulawayo Provincial
Co-ordinating Committee which accepted curriculum vitaes from cadres who
intend to represent the party in the March parliamentary elections, the six
were suspended from holding party positions for the next five years. Zanu PF
Bulawayo provincial spokesman Cde Mkhululi Dube confirmed that the executive
was in possession of the letter, which specified that the former Bulawayo
chairman Cde Themba Ncube, who was among the chairpersons who attended the
Tsholotsho meeting, would within that time, remain an ordinary member of the
party. Cde Dube said the letter stated that Cde Ncube had been suspended for
five years, but was free to remain an ordinary party member. "The letter
that we read at the meeting was from the National Chairman's Office and it
states that the suspension is with effect from 20 November." The measure
effectively made the suspended chairpersons ineligible for the forthcoming
Zanu-PF primary elections scheduled for January 15.

The affected chairpersons are Cdes Lloyd Siyoka (Matabeleland South), Jacob
Mudenda (Matabeleland North), Ncube (Bulawayo), July Moyo (Midlands), Mike
Madiro (Manicaland) and Daniel Shumba (Masvingo). The chairpersons were
initially suspended for six months pending the disciplinary hearings when
the party was preparing for its Fourth National People's Congress. Several
senior party members have also been punished by their provinces for taking
part in the Tsholotsho meeting. The Tsholotsho District Co-ordinating
Committee chairman, Cde Believe Gaule, and his Binga counterpart, Cde Eddie
Gagonde, were informed at a meeting of the Matabeleland North Provincial
Co-ordinating Committee that they had been suspended for also taking part in
the Tsholotsho meeting. The two were barred from participating at the
meeting and were told to wait for a disciplinary hearing to clear their
names.
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Zanu-PF Directorate to Vet Candidates

The Herald (Harare)

January 4, 2005
Posted to the web January 4, 2005

Harare

THE Zanu-PF National Elections Directorate will soon meet to vet names of
aspiring candidates who want to contest in the primary elections to
represent the ruling party in this year's parliamentary polls, Zanu-PF
national political commissar Cde Elliot Manyika said yesterday.

This follows the submission by the party's 10 provincial co-ordinating
committees to the secretariat of the National Elections Directorate of
curriculum vitaes of the aspirants who filed their papers over the weekend.

"The process was successful throughout the provinces and we will soon meet
as the National Elections Directorate to deliberate on the issue," said Cde
Manyika, who is chairman of the directorate.

He said the National Elections Directorate secretariat was still in the
process of receiving CVs from aspiring candidates.

The battle to represent Zanu-PF in the March general elections started on
Sunday with some prominent names not appearing on the list of nominees
expected to contest the January 15 primary elections.

Among those absent were Ministers of Information and Publicity Professor
Jonathan Moyo; Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Cde Patrick
Chinamasa; and Finance and Economic Development Chris Kuruneri (who is
currently in remand prison on externalisation of foreign currency charges).

Also absent from the list were Chinhoyi Member of Parliament Phillip
Chiyangwa (who is also in remand prison awaiting trial on spying charges),
war veterans' leader Cde Joseph Chinotimba and former MP Cde Tony Gara.

There were surprises in Marondera West where seating MP Cde Ambrose
Mutinhiri will be locking horns with his former wife Cde Tracey Muzuva
Mutinhiri.

In Goromonzi, incumbent MP Cde Herbert Murerwa - the Minister of Higher and
Tertiary Education who is doubling as Acting Finance and Economic
Development Minister following Kuruneri's arrest - was unopposed.

Speaker of Parliament Cde Emmerson Mnangagwa was nominated unopposed for the
Kwekwe Central seat as the other two aspiring candidates - Cdes Benjamin
Mabenge and Abediniko Undenge - were disqualified for not meeting the
criteria outlined by the party.

Also nominated unopposed in the Midlands province were sitting MPs Cdes
Flora Bhuka (Gokwe Nembudzia), Francis Nhema (Shurugwi), Joram Gumbo
(Mberengwa West), Pearson Mbalekwa (Zvishavane), Daniel Mackenzie Ncube
(Zhombe) and Jaison Machaya (Gokwe South).

In Chimanimani constituency, aspiring candidates are economic consultant Dr
Samuel Undenge, Cde Blessing Matsikenyere, Cde Charity Machiwaza, Cde
Misheck Beta and Cde Munacho Mutezo. The ruling party last week announced
the criteria for participating in the primary elections in which only
members of the provincial executives, National Consultative Assembly and
Central Committee are eligible to contest. Outgoing MPs who do not meet the
criteria and have no disciplinary cases against them are eligible as well.

A card-carrying member who is known as a fervent, consistent and active
supporter of the party as well as the party's aims and objectives and was
prevented from holding a position in any of the structures of the party by
virtue of his/her appointment in the service of the State, can also be
eligible after a waiver by the Zanu-PF National Elections Directorate.

One-third of the 120 elective constituencies would be reserved for female
aspiring candidates in the ruling party who meet the stipulated criteria.
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Mail and Guardian

Zanu-PF bans six provincial chairmen

      Harare

      04 January 2005 16:04

After initially banning six provincial chairmen from party positions for six
months for holding an unauthorised meeting, Zimbabwe's ruling Zanu-PF party
on Monday extended the ban to five years.

The move, which comes less than three months before parliamentary elections,
was sparked by an "unsanctioned meeting" held in the western district of
Tsholotsho.

Zanu-PF national chairman John Nkomo confirmed the banning on Tuesday,
saying, "The six chairpersons have been further suspended for a further five
years following disciplinary hearings into their conduct."

The meeting, allegedly to discuss nominations for a new vice president, drew
the ire of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe. Many of the delegates, who
flew to the Matabeleland district in a quasi-government organisation's
aeroplane, have since fallen foul of the 81-year-old leader.

Over the weekend, three ministers, among them controversial information
minister Jonathan Moyo, learnt they would not be allowed to stand in Zanu-PF
primary elections ahead of the March poll.

Moyo is alleged to have organised the meeting, sparking anger in the ruling
party's "old guard." Also falling under the wrath of Mugabe was justice
minister Patrick Chinamasa and finance minister Chris Kureneri, currently in
prison and awaiting charges of misusing foreign currency.

Also barred from standing for election is reputed Mugabe relative and
flamboyant lawmaker Phillip Chiyangwa.

Chiyangwa, whose palatial Harare home boasts a helicopter landing pad, is
also in police custody after being arrested on espionage charges, allegedly
after spying for a "foreign power".

Among the so-called Mafikilozos (new comers) who have fallen from Mugabe's
grace are war veteran leader Jabulani Sibanda and Zanu-PF MP and former
journalist Kindness Paradza.

Meanwhile Zanu-PF said it would "soon meet" to vet names of aspiring
candidates in primary elections, said Elliot Manyika, head of Zanu PF's
electorate directorate. He said one third of all candidates would be
women. - Sapa
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UPI Intelligence Watch: Mugabe's espionage witch-hunt
By John C.K. Daly and Martin Sieff
United Press International
Published January 4, 2005

WASHINGTON -- Beleaguered Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe is turning on
his own inner circle. The arrest of prominent politician and businessman
Philip Chiyangwa on espionage charges now looks likely to prove the excuse
or catalyst for a wide-ranging purge of Mugabe's own ruling ZANU-PF party
and of the Zimbabwean Cabinet itself.

    Chiyangwa was arrested Dec. 15 and held incommunicado until he appeared
in court on Christmas Eve charged with espionage under Zimbabwe's draconian
Official Secrets Act. He was a figure of consequence in ZANU-PF as
provincial chairman of the party's Mashonaland West organization.

    Three other prominent officials face similar charges. They are Godfrey
Dzvairo, former head of consular services at the Zimbabwean Embassy in the
South African capital Pretoria, who had been named Zimbabwe's next
ambassador to its friendly neighbor Mozambique; Itai Marchi, ZANU-PF's
director for external affairs; and Tendai Matambanadzo, the well-connected
former company secretary for the Metropolitan Bank. A fourth prominent
figure, ZANU-PF's deputy security chief, Kenneth Karidza, is scheduled to
appear in court this Friday. Dzvairo's fall was particularly abrupt. He had
celebrated his promotion to ambassadorial rank only a couple of weeks before
State security agents pounced on him.

    Zimbabwean newspapers are calling the case the most sensational spy
scandal to hit the impoverished, landlocked nation in recent years. The four
men are already accused of leaking classified information to the CIA and
Britain's domestic security service, MI-5, in return for generous cash
payments. Another key figure in the alleged spy ring, Erasmus Moyo, a
shadowy figure formerly employed in the Zimbabwean Mission to the United
Nations in Geneva, is said to have disappeared in Europe after he was
summoned back to the Zimbabwean capital Harare.

    But the purge is not expected to stop there. Zimbabwean security
officials have leaked reports that at least two Cabinet ministers and other
government officials and prominent figures in ZANU-PF are under suspicion.

    Mugabe could use the well-publicized investigation and subsequent trial
to try and distract his restive public from the continuing miserable state
of the Zimbabwean economy. Intelligence analysts who monitor Zimbabwe also
suspect the aging president will draw on the case to justify giving more
wide-ranging power as to his Central Intelligence Organization and feared
Ministry of State Security to clamp down further on protest and dissent
nationwide. Zimbabwe is scheduled to hold new parliamentary elections in
March in which ZANU-PF faces a strong challenge from the main opposition
Movement for Democratic Change bloc.

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Zim Observer

      Mujuru dismisses rumours on women wearing pants
      by STAFF EDITORS (1/3/2005)

 NEWLY appointed first woman Vice President of Zimbabwe, Joyce Mujuru has
dismissed as unfounded claims by members of the public that she intended to
prohibit women from wearing pants /trousers, mini skirts and hipsters.

Mujuru known for banning the stagging of beauty pagents in the 1980s when
she was then minister of women affairs is romoured to have intended to
propose legislation barring women from putting on trousers, mini skirts and
hipsters spread like veld fire in the capital last week, with some men
welcoming the idea.

On the contrary, women who wear trousers saw the alleged intended move as an
affront to their independence.

On Friday, Mujuru told reporters that the rumour was baseless and unfounded.
"Mutemo rudzii wandisingazive? (What kind of a law is it that I am not aware
of?)," asked Mujuru, who is currently the acting President. "Anyway, I don't
discuss issues like this over the phone. Ndinotaura zvinhu panonzwikwa
nevanhu (I only say things in public)"

The rumour was more rife at commuter omnibus stations, where touts took it
upon themselves to ridicule women putting on trousers, mini skirts and
hipsters.

Some touts were heard shouting: "This is going to end on January 1 when Mai
Mujuru acts and you will be true African women."

In the 1980s, Mujuru who , stopped the staging of beauty pageants.

Source: Daily Mirror
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Daily Mirror - Zimbabwe

Ex-political prisoners to receive gratuities

The Daily Mirror Reporter
issue date :2005-Jan-04

NEARLY 6 000 ex-political prisoners, restrictees and ex-detainees are
expected to start receiving their gratuities from government in February,
the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, Paul Mangwana
told The Daily Mirror yesterday.
In an interview, Mangwana said President Robert Mugabe had since signed the
Zimbabwe Ex-political Prisoners, Detainees and Restrictees Bill into law,
paving the way for the disbursement of the gratuities.
"We have done a statutory instrument to make the Act effective and the
gratuities would be made available once the new Act comes into force on a
date to be advised.  They are likely to receive their payments in February,
if everything goes according to plan," Mangwana said.
The minister refuted allegations that the funds were not provided for in
this year's budget, saying they fell under the category of pensions.
According to Clause 2 of the Act, only persons that were imprisoned in
Zimbabwe for six months after January 1 1959 in connection with the
liberation of Zimbabwe will benefit after being vetted.
The assistance by government of the ex-detainees will be in the form of a
one-off gratuity payment, health and educational benefits.
It is not the first time that government has pumped out money to veterans of
the country's liberation struggle.
In 1997, government awarded war veterans a one-off $50 000 gratuity and a
monthly salary of $8 000 each, a move that some analysts blamed for the
collapse of the Zimbabwean dollar against major currencies on what came to
be known as the Black Friday, on November 13 of the same year.
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Daily Mirror - Zimbabwe

MDC poll decision to be made next month

The Daily Mirror Reporter
issue date :2005-Jan-04

THE Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), Zimbabwe's main opposition party,
will make known its final decision on whether to participate in the March
Parliamentary elections later this month.
In an interview yesterday, MDC spokesperson Paul Themba Nyathi said the
party's supreme decision-making body would meet soon after the completion of
the consultative meetings meant to find out whether the opposition party
should contest the election.
He said the final decision would only come after the completion of the
exercise, whose deadline was set for mid or end of the month.
"The consultative meetings are still continuing up to mid or end of January.
Once the process is complete, we will then take the results to national
council.
"The decision on whether to participate or not has not been made because the
consultative meetings have not been completed," Nyathi explained.
He said President Robert Mugabe's government still had a lot to do in
implementing the Sadc protocol.
"A lot still needs to be done. As far as we are concerned, time is running
out and government should pull off all stops and make sure it implements the
Sadc principles," Nyathi added
The MDC's supreme decision-making body met in December last year over the
same matter and deferred its decision on whether to participate to this
month after it concluded that government had not fully implemented the Sadc
principles and guidelines on the holding of free and fair elections.
The opposition party suspended participation in all forms of elections in
August last year, claiming that the playing field was heavily tilted in
favour of the ruling Zanu PF.
When it met in December, the MDC's national council demanded the immediate
and unconditional release of jailed Chimanimani MP Roy Bennet, the
establishment of a "truly constitutional and independent electoral
commission", and unconditional access to the media, among other things,
before it could contest the election.
Speculation has been rife recently, with some quotas of the media claiming
the MDC had reversed its earlier decision of boycotting the polls.

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Daily Mirror - Zimbabwe

Mpofu to stand against Gumbo

The Daily Mirror Reporter
issue date :2005-Jan-04

FORMER Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) chief executive officer Alum
Mpofu, who resigned his post in 2002 in huff after he was allegedly caught
in a "homosexual act", will stand against State Enterprises Minister Rugare
Gumbo in the Zanu PF primary elections for the Mberengwa East constituency.
Gumbo is the incumbent legislator for the constituency.
He will also stand against his former subordinate, Makhosini Hlongwane, who
was ZBC Newsnet's bureau chief in the Midlands and Matabeleland, and another
candidate.
In Chirumhanzu constituency, incumbent Member of Parliament will face a
stiff challenge from Edwin Muguti, a medical practitioner who has been
conducting a community outreach programme in the Midlands, and four others.
Mberengwa East and Chirumhanzu are the only constituencies in the Midlands
not reserved for women where primary elections will be held.
There will be no primaries in nine of the province's 16 constituencies.
These include the Speaker of Parliament, Emmerson Mnangagwa who is vying for
Kwekwe Central.
The others are sitting Members of Parliament, Daniel Mackenzie Ncube
(Zhombe), the ruling party's chief whip, Joram Gumbo (Mberengwa West),
Minister of Environment and Tourism, Francis Nhema (Shurugwi), Minister of
State in the Vice-President's Office, Flora Bhuka (Gokwe/Nembudziya), Deputy
Minister of Mines and Mining Development, Jason Machaya (Gokwe East),
Pearson Mbalekwa (Zvishavane) and newcomers former Gweru mayor Francis
Chikwira and businessman Enos Size, who will stand for Gweru Central and
Mkoba respectively.
Five constituencies -  Gokwe West, Gokwe/Chireya, Gokwe/Nembudziya, Vungwi
and Silobela - have been reserved for female candidates.
Gokwe/Chireya has the highest number of aspiring candidates (five), while
Gokwe West and Vungwi have two each.
 Silobela has four, while Gokwe Central has three.
Meanwhile War veterans' leader, Joseph Chinotimba said political vendettas
were behind the decision to bar him from contesting in the primary
elections, adding that as far as he was concerned, he was still the party's
aspiring candidate for Glen Norah.
He said he would soon appeal against the Harare provincial coordinating
committee's decision that saw the seat going unopposed to former Harare
commissioner Cleveria Chizema.
Chinotimba, together with former Local Government Deputy Minister, Tony
Gara, who was eyeing Mbare constituency which was clinched by Politburo
member and newly appointed Harare commissioner Tendai Savanhu, had their
names left out by the province after vetting on Sunday.
 The move comes in the wake of a vote of no-confidence, which was passed on
the duo, on allegations that they had attended the Tsholothso meeting.
Yesterday, Chinotimba said: "As far as I am concerned, I am still the party's
candidate for Glen Norah. The decision to bar me was done by individuals who
have vendettas, and I am going to appeal.  I am still the candidate.  We
have a clever President, and he will deal with the matter."
Gara said: "No comment."
In Mashonaland West, where the vetting exercise was extended by a day,
acting provincial chairman, John Mafa said it was still early to comment on
whether there had been any major changes.
Asked if there were any measures to accommodate members such as, Kariba MP
Isaac Mackenzie, who had their seats allocated to female candidates, in line
with the party's quota system, Mafa said: "It's finished!  There is nothing
much they can do.  The seats have other people now."
He said that there were no special criteria adopted to decide which seat
would go to a woman candidate, adding that the decision was reached from
suggestions made by individual members.
In Manicaland, it is understood that the Minister of Justice, Legal and
Parliamentary Affairs, Patrick Chinamasa, did not submit his CV for
consideration, even though he was eligible to stand. Chinamasa was elected
to the party's central committee last month.
Former governor Oppah Muchinguri made her submission yesterday and will
stand in Mutasa South.
The Zanu PF's national commissar, Elliot Manyika, said the party's election
directorate would meet next week to assess CVs submitted to the party's 10
provincial coordinating committees by the aspiring parliamentarians.

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Daily Mirror - Zimbabwe

Mudenge kicked out of farm

Clemence Manyukwe
issue date :2005-Jan-04

FOREIGN Affairs Minister Stan Mudenge and Deputy Minister of Water Resources
and Infrastructure Tinos Rusere, have become the latest high-ranking Zanu PF
politicians to lose farms, with the police moving onto their properties in
Chartsworth, Masvingo, on allegations that the two are multiple farm owners.

The two join Local Government Minister Ignatius Chombo, Youths Deputy
Minister Shuvai Mahofa and former Mashonaland West Provincial Governor Peter
Chanetsa, who have lost farms as the government implements its
one-man-one-farm policy.
About three months ago, a farm which had earlier been allocated to the
secretary for Youth Development, Gender and Employment Creation, Thompson
Tsodzo, was gazetted for acquisition by the lands ministry.
However, Tsodzo claimed that he had surrendered the property when he had
acquired another farm.
In separate interviews with The Daily Mirror, both Mudenge and Rusere
confirmed that the government was repossessing the farms on allegations that
they owned them.
Mudenge said the Ministry of Lands, Land Reform and Resettlement had
recently written to him notifying him that they were taking over the farm in
question. He said he replied to the letter notifying the ministry that he
had no interest in the property.
Mudenge said: "They were saying I owned the farm, but I wrote to Minister
Nkomo (The Minister of Lands, Land Reform and Resettlement) telling him that
the property does not belong to me. I never applied for that farm. I was
said to be the owner, and I don't know where they got that from."
Rusere said the farm in question, Victoria,
belonged to his son, Cosmas.  He said people who saw him visiting his son at
the farm could have falsely informed the lands ministry that he owned the
property.
"The farm they are taking belongs to my son. It's not mine. I always visit
him and they might have concluded that it is mine," Rusere said.
Until recently, Rusere was the ruling party's acting provincial chairperson
for Masvingo, a post he relinquished when he was appointed to Zanu PF's
central committee at the party's congress last month.
The police reportedly moved onto Mudenge and Rusere farms last week and
ordered that farming activities at the properties should stop forthwith.
Nkomo yesterday refused to comment on the matter, saying he was busy.
A special lands team dealing with illegal occupation of land, has been
established in Nkomo's ministry and is headed by top civil servant Willard
Chiwewe.
Deputy Police Commissioner Godwin Matanga is responsible for the eviction of
the illegal occupants.
Matanga and his team have so far been to Mashonaland West and Matabeleland,
where some settlers have been forcibly removed, while their shacks have been
burnt down.

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