May I join the fray on CFU bashing - or not. I shudder to think where
we would all be without the JAG team, and the lively thought
provoking contributions of Freeth and Robinson.
The calm acceptance of
all the troubles by the CFU has isolated us all from each other. People have
turned against each other, and the lack of information breeds suspicions that
can only poison.
Jean Simon has suffered immensely, and if she still
believes in the CFU then that is encouraging - possibly she knows something
others have missed. But without dissent, and debate, we would be totally
lost, so I thank Robinson and Freeth for standing up - it is really not
easy. Whether you agree or not, you get to think again, and that can only be
healthy. There is not much else around that is healthy. Ann
Hein.
I hope all your subscribers appreciate what a vital role Justice
For Agriculture is playing, both by informing those who will listen of
the truth behind Zimbabwe's "Land Reform", and by keeping the hope for
a solution alive.
As an example of the necessity for information,
there was a discussion programme on Sky TV on June 24th hosted by Richard
Littlejohn on the subject of returning Zimbabwe to legality. Peter Oborne of
the Spectator was speaking in favour and had just made a secret film in
Zimbabwe called Five Days In May for BBC Panorama which had our cricket team
playing at Lords, interviewed Henry Olonga, cut to scenes of rioting in
Harare and showed an MDC supporter dying from torture.
So Peter Oborne
could be counted on as a solid supporter, but when the appalling George
Shira, a London-based "Mugabe sympathiser", who is often trotted out on these
occasions, deflected the discussion to the "land issue" Oborne started
apologising and said that there was indeed justification for "reform". No
mention of the murderous and obscene charade that has actually taken
place.
As for sustaining hope, Colin Powell's excellent and forthright
statement was issued the same day as the SKY programme.
Regrettably
George Bush did not echo his Secretary of State's determination and caved in
to Mbeki calling on him to be "pointman" and mediator on Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe's commercial farmers have seen their hopes dashed only too often. At
the very start I remember how we naively thought Mugabe would clear off the
farm invaders in March 2000 when he returned from Cuba, only to realise that
they were operating to his plan. Since then so many hopes raised followed by
so many disappointments.
Justice For Agriculture is weathering the
disappointments
magnificently!
Thank you,
well done. It seems it's who you know as usual! If not illegal, maybe the
writer could advise the bank and agent to assist many people in the same
position.
All
letters published on the open Letter Forum are the views and opinions of the
submitters, and do not represent the official viewpoint of Justice for
Agriculture.
The Herald MDC brought current hardships - minister
Masvingo
Bureau THE formation of the MDC brought about the current economic and
social hardships bedevilling the country, the Minister of State for
Information and Publicity, Professor Jonathan Moyo, said
yesterday.
Speaking at the official opening of an A-level learning centre
at Gwindingwi Secondary School in Bikita West, Prof Moyo who was the guest of
honour said the opposition party was sabotaging the economy so that people
would blame the ruling Zanu-PF.
"The MDC is determined to sabotage our
economy so that people blame President Mugabe and his Government. The MDC is
a threat to economic growth and development because they believe in economic
sabotage as a manifesto. They are saboteurs," he said.
He said it was
unfortunate that some teachers and youths were moving around saying that
Government was against democracy and multi party politics when it was the
ruling party that brought democracy.
Prof Moyo said the country was
facing the worst economic hardships since 2000 because the MDC was tainting
the country's image in the eyes of the international community.
"We
like democracy but we hate the MDC because they are working with the white
man who is powerful and whom we are sending away from our land.
"When the
MDC attend world meetings like the G8 summit, we thought they were going
there in good faith but they go there to campaign for more sanctions against
Zimbabwe and it's not only Zanu-PF that suffers but everyone," said Prof
Moyo.
He said MDC leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai had been openly calling
for sanctions to be imposed on Zimbabwe by South Africa but was not referring
to President Thabo Mbeki but an elite of Rhodesians who control the
South African economy.
Zimbabwe's international relations were at a
low ebb because of the opposition party that was against peace and unity in
the country.
"The MDC thrives on violence, they cannot mix with peace and
if there is peace there is no MDC. They are against unity, they do not like
everything that is national.
"That is the reason why they leave
Parliament whenever the President goes there, forgetting that he is an
embodiment of national unity," said Prof Moyo.
He said the MDC was
being arrogant by not treating sovereignty as a sacrosanct national value as
evidenced by its association with some former well known Rhodesians who used
to kill and maim blacks.
He paid tribute to the people of Bikita West for
wrestling away the constituency from the MDC in a by-election in
2001.
"Bikita West showed us the route back and Zanu-PF has not lost
any by-election that it once won but had been taking some seats from
the opposition.
"There is no way the MDC would take a seat formerly
controlled by Zanu-PF and they have been fooled by events in some urban
areas. If they think Harare is Zimbabwe that is their own problem," said Prof
Moyo.
He donated three computers worth $7 million to the school and
pledged to source the software.
Over $4 million in cash and pledges
towards the completion of the learning centre at the school was raised at the
ceremony.
President disburses $108m to history-making Warriors
By
Tendai Ndemera PRESIDENT Mugabe yesterday disbursed $108 million to the
Warriors team that led Zimbabwe to its first ever Africa Cup of Nations
finals in 23 years.
The funds were disbursed according to the number of
games each member of the squad had played with coach Sunday Marimo earning
the highest amount.
Speaking at a function he hosted to disburse the
funds, President Mugabe said the Government would create the correct
environment for things to happen in soccer.
"We are in this together
and you know we play our own political games with people like (British Prime
Minister Tony) Blair and we don't want him to score a goal against
us.
"The Ministry of Education Sport and Culture is going to take a very
active role in sport and Zifa must be accountable so that we rely on them and
they must not be corrupt," said President Mugabe.
He said yesterday's
function was important in that it was the first time he was honouring the
Warriors at State House.
"There have been calls that we should engage
foreign coaches but I have often questioned why we can't rely upon our old
players who once played the game here to coach the squad and today we are
honouring our own coach.
"Thank you Sunday - zviye iMhofu ipi iyi -
iShava here?
"I want to welcome you very heartily and express my
gratitude and appreciation that you have done us proud and with the leader of
the group Peter (Ndlovu), you know in the Catholic there is a belief that
when you die you go to Hell or Heaven and when you go to Heaven there is
someone who opens the door for you by the name of Peter.
"And Jesus
had disciples whose leader was also called Peter," said
President Mugabe.
He said when the Warriors were playing South Africa
on Saturday, he was enjoying the game and added that when he next meets his
counterpart President Thabo Mbeki, he would say his boys had embarrassed him
again in his backyard.
"We always joke about soccer when we meet
because it is an enjoyable sport," said President Mugabe.
And for
Zifa, which was at yesterday's function led by acting chairman Vincent Pamire
and members of the board among whom were Susan Chibizhe, Francis Zimunya and
chief executive officer Edgar Rogers accompanied by Lazarus Mhurushomana and
Ndumiso Gumede, the occasion must surely have proved that something was
coming.
President Mugabe said the country's soccer governing body Zifa
should be run by people of integrity with the ability to develop the
game.
He said Zifa should be run by people with managerial skills so that
those who play soccer will have faith in the administrators.
"Why
should there always be problems, njonga njonga (confusion) and corruption in
Zifa?
"Why don't we have situations like what we have seen in
cricket?"
He said people at the helm of Zifa should instead develop the
sport so that the fans and players continue enjoying it.
"Once you
sustain the management of the sport you are giving the players the spirit to
fight for victory but if there is constant fighting for positions and
stealing of money at Zifa we end up worried why we would have such people to
run it (the association).
"Those appointed to Zifa should serve the
players needs and that's what we want to see because when players are
participating they will be doing it nationally and not tribally or
regionally," said President Mugabe.
He added that those who come into
Zifa should know that they are managing the association for the nation and
not for a particular tribe or region.
He said when players failed when
turning out for the national team, the nation would always say they had let
the country down since they would be playing for the whole
nation.
"But when you play for your respective sides you will be
representing your regions and the people would obviously identify you with
that region.
"We want a sporting nation, that's why in Government we have
decided that we must inject a policy . . . And we must make sure that the
policy succeeds in achieving what it is set up for," President Mugabe
said.
None of the Zifa board members were invited to the high table
where President Mugabe sat flanked by Minister of Education, Sport and
Culture, Aneas Chigwedere, Warriors coach Sunday "Mhofu" Marimo, captain
Peter Ndlovu and captains of industry.
Marimo received $6 million
while captain Ndlovu was the second highest earner of the money when he got
away with $5,5 million.
Team manager Rafiq Adam took home $4,85 million
while the Warriors' assistant coaches Rahman Gumbo and Brenna Msiska were
handed $4,80 million each.
The Warriors assistant captain, Kaitano
Tembo, received a cheque for $4,08 million while the other members who
featured prominently for the team during the just-ended 2004 Nations' Cup
qualifiers got amounts, which varied from $4,08 million to $1,36
million.
The other players such as Nyasha Chazika, Newton Katanha, Eddie
Mashiri, Ronald Sibanda and Walter Chuma, who featured for the Warriors in
less than two matches during the 2004 Nations' Cup qualifiers, received $680
000 each.
By Lovemore Mataire ZANU-PF
has already taken an unassailable lead in the Local Government elections,
winning the Bindura mayoral seat and 41 other wards around the country
unopposed at the close of nomination courts yesterday.
Cde Martin Danha
of Zanu-PF was duly elected executive mayor of Bindura.
All the 10 wards
in the town were also won by Zanu-PF after the MDC failed to choose
candidates by 4pm at the close of the nomination court.
A total of 158
wards were confirmed having received nominations yesterday with the exception
of Norton, Gwanda, Mutare urban, Ruwa and Redcliff.
Nomination courts for
mayoral and council elections sat to receive nomination papers between 8am
and 4pm yesterday in various parts of the country where council elections are
due.
The Registrar-General Mr Tobaiwa Mudede said the full results of
the nominations would be ready today.
"We would be able to give the
full report tomorrow (today) because at the moment the reports are still
coming," he said.
Zanu-PF won in all the 10 wards in Rusape and all the
11 wards in Chegutu unopposed while MDC won only three wards unopposed two in
Bulawayo and one in Kariba.
In Masvingo, Zanu-PF, MDC, the National
Alliance for Good Governance (NAGG) and some independent candidates were
nominated to contest in 10 wards.
Two mayoral candidates Mrs Cynthia
Khumalo of Zanu-PF and Mr Tose Wesley Sansole of MDC filed their nomination
papers in Victoria Falls with one of the 11 wards going to the ruling party
unopposed. The two parties will also be fighting it out in all the seven
wards in Hwange.
In Karoi, Zanu-PF won three of the six wards
unopposed.
Zanu-PF's Cde Tsitsi Muzenda will be facing an MDC candidate
in the Gweru mayoral contest while the two parties' candidates will battle it
out in 17 wards in the city.
In Kwekwe, Zanu-PF's Cde Sternford
Bonyongwa and Mr Henry Madzorera of MDC are running for the mayoral position.
In Chitungwiza, all the 24 wards will be contested while five Zanu-PF
councillors out of a total of 11 were elected unopposed in Marondera. Mayoral
and ward elections have been set for August 30 and 31.
Gwanda, Gweru,
Kariba, Kwekwe, Mutare, Redcliff and Victoria Falls will hold both council
and mayoral elections while Bulawayo, Chegutu, Chitungwiza, Hwange, Kadoma,
Karoi, Marondera, Masvingo, Norton, Rusape, Ruwa, Shurugwi and Zvishavane
will hold ward elections only.
In the council elections held last
September, the ruling party stamped its supremacy over MDC and other fringe
parties, winning in more than 700 wards where it was not challenged as
opposition parties failed to field candidates.
From Midlands
Bureau THE Zimbabwe Defence Forces showcased its military might at the
weekend with a display of what its entire military arsenal in the country is
capable of doing in case of war.
Featuring the smallest calibre weapon
to the recently acquired state-of-the-art supersonic MiG 23 jet fighter, the
firepower demonstration at the Zimbabwe National Army's Lazy Nine training
ground in Shurugwi was meant to test military hardware in the country as well
as provide students and officers with a practical training
exercise.
The hardware included an armoured multiple rocket launcher
capable of hitting targets 22km away, a wire guided missile system, tanks, a
Hawk fighter plane and the Mi35 helicopter.
The entire arsenal was
fired at selected targets using live fire.
The last firepower
demonstration was held in 2000.
The weekend's demonstration was witnessed
by the Minister of Defence, Cde Sydney Sekeramayi, ZDF commander, General
Vitalis Zvinavashe, Zimbabwe National Army commander, Lieutenant General
Constantine Chiwenga and his Air Force of Zimbabwe counterpart, Air Marshall
Perence Shiri.
The commandant of the Zimbabwe Military Academy, Colonel
Thomas Moyo, who was the director of the demonstration, said the purpose of
firepower was to showcase the magnitude of firepower available to the armed
forces and its "devastating effects".
"The essence is to remind
commanders of the amount of firepower at their disposal that can with good
planning be brought to bear on opposing forces.
"The demonstration also
presents a wonderful opportunity for joint training which the two service
commanders have always advocated for," he said.
The director of army
training, Colonel John Chris Mupande, said the firepower exercise had shown
that the ZDF was a formidable force capable of defending the country from its
enemies.
"We are so strong that people may not understand our
capabilities," he said. An evaluation on the success of the exercise would be
carried out, according to Group Captain Beltim Chingono, director of
Operation in the AFZ.
As the economic situation
worsens in Zimbabwe, more and more people are leaving the country in search
of a better life. A survey shows many of those leaving are skilled
professionals.
A draft copy of the report by a government research
institute says Zimbabwe is losing thousands of professionals to other
countries every year. The brain drain, the report says, has reached
unacceptable heights.
Carried out by the Scientific and Industrial
Research and Development Center in Harare, the report says more than 479,000
Zimbabweans are working outside the country, with most of them in four
countries, Botswana, South Africa, Britain and the United States.
The
survey included professionals in various fields, among them
engineers, teachers, financiers, and medical professionals. Medical personnel
made up the largest percentage of those leaving - almost 25 percent. Those
who leave gave reasons for going into exile as economic, historic and in some
cases political.
Media reports say more than one million Zimbabwean
emigrants have left the country in recent years, but exact figures are hard
to get. A spokesman for the Central Statistical Office says not everybody
leaving Zimbabwe says they are leaving for good. As a result, there are no
clear figures distinguishing between emigrants and those who are leaving the
country temporarily.
Another reason exact statistics are hard to come by
is that many Zimbabweans simply leave the country by walking across the
border into a neighboring country, with South Africa and Botswana the most
popular choices.
Cash riots feared as Zimbabwe runs out of
banknotes July 22, 2003
Harare: The growing shortage of
banknotes in Zimbabwe has pushed the black market price of Zimbabwe dollar
notes up to as much as 30% above their face value in Harare - and up to 100%
in some rural areas.
Business people warn of cash riots if the
price of banknotes keeps rising. The problem is that Zimbabwe no longer has
enough foreign exchange to buy foreign-made Zimbabwe dollars.
Banknotes are now commanding a premium of between 10 and 30% in Harare, but
in some rural areas dealers are reportedly cashing cheques for half their
value, keeping the other half for themselves - a 100% markup.
The
demand for cash has risen in recent days as Zimbabwe's traditional payday
looms this week.
"If it doesn't ease soon, I predict we'll have
cash riots when businesses fail to raise the banknotes to pay their workers,"
said John Gardiner, owner of Zimbabwean food importer
Interna-Trade.
The shortage of banknotes has created huge queues,
many stretching for over a city block, outside city banks and building
societies. Most banks limit withdrawals to a maximum of Z$10 000, about R30
at the commonly used black-market rate.
Mavis Majongwe, a
bookkeeper with an inner-city grocery store in Harare, said in an interview;
"The situation couldn't be worse. Even when I have money in the bank, I can't
get it out because the bank hasn't got any cash."
Supermarket
chains admitted selling banknotes to their bankers for 10%, but refused to be
named, fearing government intervention.
A Harare administration
manager said the demand for cash had reached unprecedented
levels.
Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe last week injected
Z$12 billion into a cash-dry banking sector in an attempt to ease the
crisis, said a central bank report.
The move coincided with
Finance Minister Herbert Murerwa announcing the introduction of a Z$1 000
note, just days after Zimbabwe's official inflation rate of 364.5% was
announced.
The country's state-controlled Herald newspaper reported
that the situation was even worse in rural areas.
"I sold my
cotton and got a check for Z$1.3 million," cotton farmer Tinotenda Chimombe
said. "When I went to the bank, they said they had no money. I then went to a
supermarket and I was told I could buy goods worth only Z$700 000 and since I
had no option, I complied," he said. - Foreign Service
Only Africa can stop cycle of war and
poverty July 22, 2003
Conflict and wars in Africa have
become the biggest barriers to the economic success of the
continent.
The economic fortunes of Africa are dependent on the
support of the World Bank and its ally, the International Monetary Fund.
Though these institutions are still despised by the affluent in African
society, they remain the only source of finance immediately after any
conflict.
As other financial institutions shy away from
conflict-riddled African countries, the World Bank uses the opportunity to
expand its research networks and takes the risk.
Until Africa
solves its own conflicts decisively, it'll continue to beg for funds from the
West.
Most of Africa's four main regions are involved in one sort
of conflict or another. Incessant civil wars have become a way of life
in Liberia. The Ivory Coast, until recently, was engaged in an
unnecessary conflict.
Burundi competes for attention in the war
stakes as well. Sudan has an ongoing conflict with rebels in the southern
part of the country. Zimbabwe adds its own form of conflict to the
menu.
Recently, as though competing for the latest in war fashion,
the army deposed the elected president in Sao Tome and Principe. Like a
movie, the army waited for the president to jet out of the country and
suddenly all radio stations were occupied by defence force personnel
announcing the takeover of the country with no regard for democracy or any
respect for human rights.
Personal fiefdoms and aggrandisement
are the chief reason for wars . As soon as the war or conflict is
resolved or somewhat resolved, begging queues to the World Bank
lengthen.
Since there is no certainty that another conflict won't
erupt, the price of loans increases to cover the risk. With high interest
rates comes a depreciating currency to attract foreign savings. This
inevitably raises the prices of goods and services in the
country.
Growth stagnates as a result of punishingly high interest
rates. Unemployment increases, with the potential to provoke conflict
again. Democracy vanishes as the state tries to contain potential conflict.
And so continues the cycle.
The New Partnership for Africa's
Development and the African Union will be faced with these "permanent"
phenomena for a while. African countries have failed to learn from Botswana,
one of the few states not tainted by conflict. Nigeria is a world leader in
corruption. South Africa is among the leaders in the World Cup of crime - and
violent crime for that matter.
While the world needs to be
considerate in forgiving debt to African states, Africa needs to take
responsibility and limit borrowing and allow common sense to reign supreme.
There is just no room to extend the blame to previous colonial masters for
the conflicts in Africa. - Mandla Maleka
.. Mandla Maleka
is the chief economist at Eskom Treasury. The views expressed are solely
those of the author and do not reflect those of Eskom Treasury
JOHANNESBURG, Jul 22 (IPS) -
South African President Thabo Mbeki is reported to have told United States
President, George W Bush, that Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe will leave
office at the end of this year.
In return, Bush has pledged up to 10
billion dollars in US assistance to rebuild Zimbabwe once Mugabe has left, or
is removed, from office.
Mbeki, who is at the cutting edge of Africa's
Marshall Plan to pull Africa up by its bootstraps, needs the money. Together
with Senegalese President, Abdoulaye Wade, he is the chief architect of the
New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad), which will cost an
estimated 60 billion dollars to roll out.
Mbeki has, up till now,
pursued a policy of gentle persuasion and ”quiet diplomacy” on Zimbabwe. His
emissary, Nkosazana Zuma, the former wife of South African deputy president
Jacob Zuma, and left-wing maverick ANC member of parliament Pallo Jordan
(once a vocal critic of the Mugabe regime), who is also the chairman of the
South African foreign affairs portfolio committee, have consistently repeated
the mantra that respect for sovereignty is a fundamental pillar of South
Africa's foreign policy.
Moreover, they assert, ”the Zimbabwe crisis has
to be resolved by Zimbabweans themselves”.
Analysts, former liberation
organisations and commentators are divided about Mugabe. Steven Chan, a
former adviser to the Mugabe government and ex-diplomat at the Commonwealth
Secretariat that facilitated the negotiated settlement at Lancaster House in
the United Kingdom which eventually led to the Mugabe leadership of the
country, says that the Zimbabwean president ” has ultimately been bad for
Zimbabwe”.
But it is the economy that has been catapulted into the
limelight. Goodson Nguni, a banker in Harare, refers to the present crisis as
” hyperinflationary”. Zimbabwe's Reserve Bank has recently decided to
release billions of Zimbabwean dollars into the money market this week.
Increasing the money supply is a pointless exercise, economists say, because
there is ” too much money chasing too few goods”.
And in a twist to
the tale of white capital in Zimbabwe, a group of white sugar farmers has
just taken a subsidiary of Anglo American Corporation to court for
participating in ”theft and plunder” of their assets by Mugabe's supporters.
They allege that black farmers are ”looting” their cane crop and selling to
Anglo's unit, the Hippo Valley Estates.
Mugabe's back is against the
wall. Even the former South African liberation organisation, the Pan
Africanist Congress of Azania, has been tellingly silent over the Mugabe
issue. But it is the ruling African National Congress (ANC) that will
continue to call the shots on Zimbabwe. For the moment, it is resolute that
Mugabe has to go willingly. If he does not, and instead is removed from
power, the Zimbabwean Defence Force is likely to assert its authority and
continue the trail that Mubage has blazed. The generals, all Mugabe
appointees, will likely remain loyal to their leader.
At the same time,
the ANC is not convinced that Morgan Tsvangirai - leader of the opposition
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) - is a credible alternative to Mugabe.
Despite Tsvangirai's former trade-union involvement, his ”liberation”
credentials are considered thin at best.
South Africa's Mbeki seems
committed to a gradual resolution to the Zimbabwe crisis. But he needs
international support to get Nepad up and running. His Nigerian counterpart,
Olusegun Obasanjo, has thrown his weight behind him and will stay on course
if the international community continues to throw money at the African
partnerships envisaged in Nepad.
While Mbeki needs Bush, preferably at a
distance, the southern African neighbourhood seems set to go down if Mbeki
does not facilitate a speedy resolution to the Mugabe question.
A
regime change seems unlikely in the near future. Mbeki's strategy of creating
conditions for a reform of the Zimbabwean state and its power arrangements
could well founder if he continues to leave the economic and financial
decision-making exclusively to the dictates of a leader who has been in power
for 23 years, and who has lost the plot.
Mugabe may well have embraced
socialist ideals in the 1970s and the first half of the 1980s, but the
considerable distance that he has travelled from human empathy, solidarity
and human rights makes a mockery of his previous allegiances.
Mbeki
may well have to face, sooner rather than later, the choice of either dumping
his touchy-touchy disposition to Mugabe, or prepare South
Africans, Mozambicans, Angolans, Namibians, Zambians and Botswanans, for
the eventuality of absorbing the spillover into their countries of refugees
and the possibility of a gruesome civil war that is smouldering in
Zimbabwe. (ENDS/IPS/AF/SA/IP/BJ/SM/03)