Feeling all left
out
WITH media attention shifting to
Zimbabwe's towns and cities, there's every danger that farmers are going to
start feeling ignored - not by ZANU-PF and its gangs of peripatetic war vets,
but by the people who care about the wrong that is happening in their country.
And while there is still immense Press interest in Zimbabwe, it has been revived
(and is concentrating on) the invasions that are happening in the towns and
cities.
That's natural enough, but a little
unfortunate for farmers. There are many elements that are necessary for
Zimbabwe's return to normality, but honest, open communications is a vital one
and unless the world knows what is happening… well, it will just continue to
happen.
When farm invasions became a long-term
reality for organised agriculture in February last year, farmers and their
organisations adopted a sensible, sound policy of openness. Critics will say
that's not entirely true, but for the most part they'd be wrong. After all, it
was that same openness that drew the world's Press to Zimbabwe. And it was the
Press that made the world aware of the heinous venality of Zimbabwe's rogue
regime.
But when invasions became a reality in
the capital, it took about two weeks for business organisations to respond. The
Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries eventually issued a strongly worded
statement predicting a descent into anarchy if the invasions weren't stopped,
but it was a strongly worded statement that didn't mention the self-styled war
veterans who're causing businesses so much grief, it didn't mention ZANU-PF's
duplicitous role and it didn't even mention invasions. Instead it spoke vaguely
of "external interference."
The CZI's initial response stands in
rather forlorn contrast to the way the CFU handled invasions when they first
began to interfere with organised agriculture.
So why the sudden need for secrecy? Any
Harare based journalist will tell you that finding a businessman to talk about
invasions is all but impossible. If you're lucky, someone will speak off the
record. Farmers, who're isolated and who, quite literally, live with their
families on their business premises, have and still do talk about their
experiences at the hands of intimidatory and often violent war vets.
But there are now small signals that
indicate that the same paranoia is beginning to infect Zimbabwe's rural
businesses. That's about the worst thing that could possible happen. Why?
Because a pliant and paranoid population is exactly what the puppet masters of
this madness want.
Realism never hurt - and the reality is
that Zimbabwe is set to join the ranks of pariah nations. It sits down there
with places like Libya, Cuba, Afghanistan and Iraq and secrecy and silence will
keep it there. There's another word for people who refuse to speak out, for
people who see merit in cooperating with the very people who're bullying them,
for people who think they can buy their way out of this mess: it's called
cowardice.
For a country with a tragic and
traumatic history, the current crisis ranks down there with the worst of them.
Classic Maoist tactics, driven by greed and fear, are taking the country
pell-mell into a crash and burn scenario, but there are still people out there
who believe they can talk or buy their way out of the problem - which is both
cowardly and foolish.
Zimbabwe is far from lost. It is not
yet an Angola or Bosnia. Its rulers have set in motion policies that could make
Zimbabwe either of those countries, but it can be prevented - and reversed.
Farmers know that open, honest talk has worked better than secretive
negotiation. Urban business still needs to learn this lesson, but it had better
get a move on because time is running out.
There are a great many people in
Zimbabwe standing tall and confronting the evil that they face. Some of them are
farmers, others politicians, lawyers and judges, some are trade unionists and
others are just ordinary people who refuse to be bullied into submission. Their
common thread is courage and honesty. There are others who chose to leave, no
doubt to return if and when "it all comes right" and that's fine under certain
circumstances, usually connected to stark economic reality.
But when Zimbabwe does rise from the
ashes it's made for itself, and it will, there'll be those who'll be called
collaborators - and they're in for a torrid time, not because this is the right
thing to do, but because that's human nature. The people who've hushed up the
board room invasions, who've lied about their cooperation with the regime and,
most of all, the people who've bought (or tried to) their way out of trouble
will find Zimbabwe a sad and difficult place to live - as will the ludicrous
exiles who left others behind to fight for decency.
And it is a fight. When Mr Robert
Mugabe buried his trusty lieutenant, Mr Border Gezi, last week he spoke loftily
of a "Third Chimurenga". Chimurenga is a state of war, and that war is being
waged against farmers, businessmen, workers and anyone affiliated with the
opposition. Anyone, in other words, with capital or education.
But it's a war that he must ultimately
lose, even if that seems doubtful now, because decency always prevails. And for
those who think there can be individual winners, who believe that making a plan
with their tormentors (which just means moving them on to some other unfortunate
victim) is sensible or even politic, there will be a time of reckoning - and it
may be sooner than most realise.
Brian Latham
Editor- The Farmer
RBZ tightens forex controls on tobacco buyers
Tea estates under threat
CFU's staff changes
Newcastle Disease threat
Tobacco deliveries remain low despite firm
prices
Chinotimba's comeuppance
Humans and the FMD menace
RBZ tightens forex controls on tobacco buyers
The Zimbabwe government, facing a
critical shortage of foreign currency, has introduced measures barring tobacco
buyers who have access to offshore funds for the purpose of purchasing tobacco
in the country for export, from accessing onshore funds unless permitted to do
so by the Reserve bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ).
Tobacco industry sources said although
it was more expensive to borrow money locally compared to offshore funds because
of the high interest rates in Zimbabwe, some buyers still preferred to borrow
onshore as they expected to cash in on the devaluation of the Zimbabwe
dollar.
Some tobacco buyers said the move by
the central bank came amid suspicion that some tobacco buyers were borrowing
money for tobacco purchases locally thereby depriving the country of the
much-needed foreign currency.
Some tobacco buyers who talked to
The Farmer on condition of anonymity confirmed there were some buyers who
were borrowing onshore although it was expensive to do so. Such buyers were
doing so in anticipation of devaluation.
The Statutory Instrument published in
an extraordinary Government gazette on 24 April, the day tobacco auction floors
opened, states that only buyers authorised by the RBZ to access onshore funds
shall do so through authorised dealers.
This means that tobacco buyers buying
tobacco in Zimbabwe for export have to access the finance elsewhere other than
Zimbabwe. Those who have no access to offshore funds are required to sign and
submit a letter to an authorised dealer who the buyer wants to use to access
onshore funds confirming that they are not capable of accessing offshore
funds.
The dealer shall then advise the RBZ of
the name of the tobacco buyer and the amount the dealer wants to get. The buyer
is not permitted to access the money unless the dealer has been notified by the
RBZ that the buyer is now permitted to do so.
The dealers were also supposed to
comply with any directives issued by the RBZ concerning any foreign currency
that comes in their possession.
RBZ, however, allows tobacco buyers to
retain the export proceeds realised from the sale of tobacco in their own
Foreign Currency Accounts (FCA).
The authorised dealers are required to,
before the end of the working day every Tuesday, complete drawn down return
forms furnishing the RBZ of the preceding week's transactions.
Tea estates under threat
THE Zimbabwean government has said it
will acquire land in the high value tea and coffee producing Eastern Highlands
districts under its controversial fast-track resettlement scheme, a move that
could also affect some of the country's biggest holiday resorts and hotels.
Of the 374 farms most recently listed
for compulsory acquisition by the state are properties belonging to Tanganda Tea
Estates, a listed company that exports tea to Europe, as well as several coffee
estates. Zimbabwe's Commercial Farmers' Union (CFU) says the tea industry is
worth Z$965.7 million, while coffee is worth Z$924 million with both crops being
predominantly export oriented.
Mrs Pedia Moyo, president of the
Zimbabwe Council for Tourism (ZCT) confirmed that land in tourism areas had also
been listed for acquisition by the government. Zimbabwe's tourism industry has
seen over 10 000 jobs lost during the political crisis sparked off by
self-styled war veterans who continue to invade farms and tourism areas around
the country. According to the ZCT, 66 tourism companies have closed down since
the crisis began.
Fear of reprisal has stopped Zimbabwean
businesses from commenting on acquisition orders and invasions, but Mrs Moyo
confirmed that appeals would be lodged against the orders affecting hotels and
resorts, while Martin Cameron who is both managing director of Tanganda and
chairman of the Tea Growers' Association told Zimbabwe's Independent newspaper
that it was too early to comment on an appeal. He would not say how much land
was affected by the Zimbabwean government's most recent list.
CFU's staff changes
THE CFU this week announced key changes
in its management structure following recommendations of its restructuring
committee.
Dr Jerry Grant, hitherto deputy
director (Regions) takes over as deputy director (Commodities), a position
previously held by Mr Richard Amyot who resigned from the union last month. Mr
Malcolm Vowles, previously deputy director (Administration & Projects) takes
over as deputy director (Regions).
Newcastle Disease
threat
ZIMBABWE could be facing another
outbreak of the potentially devastating Newcastle Disease posing a serious
threat to exports of poultry and poultry products as well as ostrich meat. So
far, a total of 2 627 Newcastle cases have been reported, with 2 616 of these
being chicken deaths.
According to the Department of
Veterinary Services March newsletter, some 13 000 chickens were at risk at four
different locations in Masvingo province where the disease had been reported.
Two of the locations were in Masvingo district, Mukosi resettlement area at
Madzive and Bandara dip-tanks. Two other locations where the disease was
reported were in Chivi District at Tungwani and Chivi turn-off.
The veterinary services department
said; "so far the indications are that Newcastle Disease could be on the
increase in 2001 as already this year, the number of outbreaks already equals
those of the whole of last year." The situation, the department said, called for
close monitoring as uncontrolled outbreaks could result in Zimbabwe losing its
export markets for poultry and poultry products as well as for ostrich
meat.
Lumpy skin disease
The report which also refers to other
livestock diseases said the lumpy skin disease, which affects cattle, had been
reported in almost all provinces throughout the country. It said although this
was not a very serious problem for indigenous breeds of cattle, it could cause
serious losses in exotic dairy breeds in particular.
The number of affected cattle in a herd
following an outbreak could range between 5% and 50% and case fatality rate
could range from 1 to 75 percent with the biggest economic losses being due to
reduction in milk yields, loss of condition and permanent damage to the skin of
infected animals. Prevention was by vaccination, and if done properly, could
remain protective for up to three years.
There has also been sporadic outbreaks
of Anthrax in which some 8 000 cattle were at risk of infection throughout the
country, the veterinary department report said. A total of 56 cases were
reported and 10 000 were vaccinated in response of the outbreak.
In Mashonaland East, Anthrax was
reported at two locations in Marondera district at Mawire and Pfende dip-tanks.
In Mashonaland West, it was reported at Madzima dip-tank of Zvimba district. In
the Midlands, three outbreaks were reported at Negove, Bukuta and Chehungwe
dip-tanks in Mberengwa district.
The department said at least four
provinces had reported the occurrence of Dermatophilosis in cattle (Senkobo).
"Dermatophilosis is one disease whose importance is increasing in Zimbabwe," the
report said. The condition, described as a contact disease caused by a bacterium
and which effects the skin of cattle, has so far been reported in Mashonaland
East, Mashonaland West, Midlands and Matabeleland West.
In sheep, the disease causes what is
referred to as "lumpy wool" and "strawberry foot rot". No cases of sheep
infection have so far been reported this year.
In areas where this disease commonly
occurs such as Gokwe and Sanyati, it is referred to by communal farmers as
"elephant disease" bacause of the appearance of the skin of the affected cattle.
The skin becomes thickened, wrinkled and hairless like and an elephant's skin
and this may cover the entire body in serious cases. The affected animal loses
considerable weight and emaciated cases may die.
According to the veterinary report,
exotic cattle breeds were more susceptible while wetness of the skin (rainfall,
dipping etc) infestation with bont ticks, flies and other causes of skin injury
were important pre-disposing risk factors. The veterinary department warned that
Dermatophilosis was difficult to treat and control once it occurred in a herd.
Tick control, culling and use of 0.03 % copper sulphate may help to limit the
spread of the disease, it said.
Tobacco deliveries remain low
despite firm prices
TOBACCO deliveries to the auction flows
have continued to be slow as selling entered the second week as some farmers
continue to hold on to their crop, but prices for the flue cured tobacco have
remained firm while those for burley tobacco remain low.
However, bookings were expected to
start rising this week as the school holidays come to an end. Some farmers who
had closed for holidays after reaping were expected to open their grading shades
to start grading.
Burley Marketing Zimbabwe (BMZ)
managing director, Mr Bruce Searles told The Farmer that bookings for
deliveries were starting to peak up and the price for flue cured tobacco was
holding firm.
He, however, said the deliveries were
still slow and that for burley low quality leaf was being delivered. He said
burley might fetch a slightly higher price when better quality crop deliveries
start but would remain generally low due to the huge crop in Malawi.
Most farmers were holding on to their
crop in the hope that the Zimbabwe dollar will be devalued. Farmers want an
exchange rate of between Z$75 and Z$80 to the US$1 but the government has
insisted there will be no devaluation.
Tobacco contributes 30% of the
country's foreign currency making it the largest single earner. It was hoped
that the opening of the tobacco-selling season would ease the forex crisis,
which has led to persistent fuel shortages.
Some have opposed devaluation saying it
would further fuel inflation and increase government debt. However, companies
are accessing forex on the parallel market and passing on the extra cost to the
consumer. By allowing the parallel market to thrive, analysts say, the
government had indirectly devalued the Zimbabwe dollar and therefore those
following official channels as those in the tobacco industry were being
disadvantaged.
Chinotimba's
comeuppance
WAR veteran leader and self styled
commander in-chief of farm invasions, Joseph Chinotimba, who of late has led the
invasions of firms in Harare, was humiliated in front of workers and Zanu-PF
supporters when he attempted to "invade" the VIP podium during May Day
celebrations in Harare last week.
The garrulous Chinotimba had tried to
gatecrash the official podium reserved for organisers of the event, Zimbabwe
Congress Trade Unions (ZCTU) officials, and other dignitaries when a group of
people waving their palms, an MDC symbol, blocked his way. The war veteran
leader was accompanied to Rufaro Stadium, the traditional venue of May Day
celebrations, by a small group fist waving supporters.
Although there were no physical clashes
between the two groups, the situation became so tense and volatile that riot
police in attendance had to call for reinforcements. Mr Chinotimba was prevented
from approaching the VIP rostrum until after the ZCTU officials had
left.
He later, however, forced his way onto
the podium, grabbed the microphone and started addressing a group of Zanu-PF
supporters while most of the workers trickled out of the stadium, some of them
loudly denouncing him.
Addressing the workers earlier, ZCTU
President, Mr Lovemore Matombo, criticised the government for economic
mismanagement, saying this had resulted in deteriorating standards of living
among workers causing much suffering in the country.
He said the government was blaming
everyone but itself for the current ills in the country.
"They might blame Britain, they might
blame South Africa and United States but they can't continue to blame others for
20 years," said Mr Matombo.
He said what was needed were realistic
solutions to address the current problems.
Commenting on the current wave of firm
invasions, which have raised concern in the business community, investors and
international community, Mr Matombo said the war veterans were not solving any
problems and their solutions were only temporary. He said the so-called war
veterans would not intimidate the ZCTU.
It was wrong, he said, for the
government and the war veterans to accuse the ZCTU of not representing workers.
He said the ZCTU was a law-abiding body following the laws that were set by the
same government regarding labour issues. Therefore, he said, members of the
trade union movement were taking labour matters to the labour ministry in
accordance with the law but the ministry was taking years to resolve the
matters.
Mr Matombo said, "I takes seven years
for matters to be attended to. Does ZCTU employ judges? Do we employ industrial
relations or labour officers"?
Commenting on the eve of May Day
celebrations, MDC shadow Minister for Labour and Social Welfare, Mrs Pauline
Gwanyanya, said the country was faced with a collapsing economy, loss of jobs
and company closures resulting in increased poverty.
In addition, she said lawless elements
of the ruling party had decided to take dispute settlement into their own hands,
creating the kind of insecurity that is prevalent among workers and industry as
a whole. She said workers needed job security, affordable means to get to work,
food and accommodation and reduced costs of education.
In particular, she said, there was need
to dramatically increase the minimum wages in the agriculture, domestic and
commercial sectors in order to redress the gross disparities between these
sectors and the rest of the formal sector employment.
MDC President, Mr Morgan Tsvangirai,
urged workers to be vigilant against being hoodwinked by any self-proclaimed new
messiahs who might claim to represent their interests through clandestine
dispute settlement mechanisms.
In his address, Mr Chinotimba said he
would continue to intervene in labour disputes between employers and employees
and gave a list of companies he had targeted.
Humans and the FMD
menace
WHILE concern over a human version of
Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) rages through Britain, local experts say that it is
possible for humans to contract the disease. But they say it is very rare and
not lethal.
Dr Philip Gilbert-Green, a Zimbabwean
veterinarian, told The Farmer that in 1978 he accidentally infected his
assistant, a government Animal Health Inspector, with the FMD virus on a farm
just north of Harare. "He developed small blisters in his mouth and felt a
tingling in his fingers and toes," said the vet.
The accident happened before the
introduction of modern vaccines. Previously to create immunity to FMD, vets
would remove fluid from blisters on an infected animal, dilute it and re-infect
a FMD free herd - a system some veterinarians consider more effective than the
modern vaccines used today.
While removing fluid from a bull's
hoof, Dr Gilbert - Green's hand slipped when the bull moved and the needle
pricked his assistant's hand, infecting him with the virus.
"It was a direct injection," said
Gilbert - Green. "Eating meat infected with the virus won't pass FMD on to
humans."
At one stage, the British thought that
the FMD epidemic that swept through the country might have come from Zimbabwe -
a rumour that was quickly quashed when it was pointed out that it was a Type C
virus which has never been reported north of the Limpopo. Zimbabwe, which has
world acknowledged FMD experts and, until the land invasion crisis, some of the
strictest FMD controls found anywhere, has Southern African Type 1, 2 and 3 FMD
virus.
The South African province of KwaZulu
Natal recently reported a Type C outbreak, the first such recorded in southern
Africa. Unlike Zimbabwe, South Africa has few controls on the movement of
livestock - while Britain has none, which local vets say is the reason the
epidemic spread so fast in that country.
Letter to the Scotsman
Terror in Zimbabwe
Anthony Tucker
(Letters, 3 May) stresses the dangers to the farming
communities from the
megalomania of Robert Mu-gabe, the president of
Zimba-bwe. He has destroyed
law and order, and dismissed the chief justice;
his thugs are terrorising
shops, even a hospital, with assaults, theft and
blackmail. Now embassies are
threatened.
A bill has legalised the theft and occupation of more than
1,000 of the best
farms in the world. The tobacco industry, the golden goose,
has been
de-stroyed, and many British citizens are destitute.
The
British government must call for the expulsion of Zimbabwe from
the
Commonwealth, and cut off all aid. Any almost destitute farmer
or
householder, wishing to leave Zimbabwe and settle elsewhere, should
have
their fares paid. In addition, Britain should pay the farmer, or
householder
the value of the property sold .
As dual citizenship is
illegal in Zimbabwe, anyone requesting it should be
supplied with a British
passport.
We are ashamed that Mugabe was not arrested in Belgium and
France during his
recent visits. He must be sent to The Hague for trial for
the genocide of
the Ndebele people 20 years ago, and for the present evil
breakdown of law
and order.
IAN MACADAM
Lorne Campbell
Court
Campbeltown, Argyll
09/05/2001 12:15 - (SA)
German aid group staff
released
Harare - Nine local staffers of the German aid
organisation HELP have been
released after being held in prison since last
Friday after being accused of
provoking public unrest.
A member of
HELP told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa in Harare on Wednesday
that the nine
had been released on Tuesday evening and would be examined by
doctors since
at least one had been beaten by police.
They had tried to prevent a HELP
warehouse from being plundered and had then
been accused of trying to prevent
a peaceful distribution of food. The nine
would now face trial on May
18.
HELP says that on April 19 up to 1000 people urged on by the
so-called war
veterans supported by President Robert Mugabe had plundered a
warehouse in
which about 150 tons of food meant for victims of storms were
stored. -
Sapa-DPA
Zim opposition loses battle to nullify
polls
|
May 09 2001 at 04:31PM
|
Harare - Zimbabwe's main opposition party lost a third legal battle on
Wednesday in its bid to have courts nullify the outcomes in 37 constituencies in
last year's parliamentary elections, a party spokesperson said.
The
latest ruling is the third loss for the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC),
which has won three cases while three have been dropped.
Both the MDC
and President Robert Mugabe's ruling Zimbabwe African National Union - Patriotic
Front (Zanu-PF) plan to appeal to the Supreme Court the cases they lose.
MDC spokesperson Learnmore Jongwe said his party was still waiting for a
copy of the ruling in the latest case, but that High Court Judge Paddington
Garwe had issued his ruling that Zanu-PF candidate Phillip Chiyangwa had duly
won the race for the Chinhoyi district.
| Waiting for a copy of the ruling in the latest
case |
The MDC had accused the flashy businessman Chiyangwa of
vote-buying, saying that he had run advertisements urging people to vote for him
in exchange for money.
The MDC, which was formed on the backbone of the
labour movement in 1999, took 56 of the 120 elected seats in parliament last
June, while 63 went to President Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF.
Parliament
also includes 30 seats whose holders are essentially presidential appointees.
Included among the three cases that MDC has won is the race lost by its
leader, Morgan Tsvangirai.
Justice James Devittie, who handed down that
decision, has resigned from the bench, effective in November, after serving for
five years.
| Compromised by... violence and
fraud |
The
opposition went to court charging that Mugabe's party's win in last June's vote
was compromised by widespread violence and fraud, much of it blamed on
self-styled independence war veterans.
Dozens of people were killed and
many were beaten in poll-related incidents and invasions of white-owned
commercial farmland as part of a controversial land seizure and redistribution
programme. - Sapa-AFP
Monday, 7 May, 2001, 14:57 GMT 15:57 UK
Zimbabwe denies reports of maize
shortfall
The land minister in Zimbabwe has denied reports suggesting the
country
would have to import maize because of a likely shortfall in the
local
harvest following the forceful seizure of white-owned farms as part
of
government land reforms.
The Zimbabwean agricultural body, Agritex,
had estimated that farmers would
be able to produce less than 1.5 million
tonnes of maize this year, compared
with over 2 million tonnes last
year.
But the minister, Joseph Made, said Agritex did not have adequate
resources
to carry out a thorough crop assessment.
He told the
state-owned Herald newspaper he had himself flown around the
country and seen
that there was plenty of maize in communal and resettlement
areas.
The
newspaper said the Grain Marketing Board was holding more than 300,000
tonnes
of maize in its strategic reserves and had also been instructed to
open
depots in old and newly-resettled areas, communal and indigenous
farming
regions.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service
War vets bashed in violent clashes
5/9/01 8:46:47 AM (GMT +2)
Daily News Correspondent, Masvingo
Two war veterans were seriously injured yesterday following violent clashes
between supporters of Zanu PF and the MDC in Masvingo, ahead of a crucial
mayoral election set for the weekend.
-------------
| Ex-fighters storm car parks
|
|
5/9/01 8:49:34 AM (GMT
+2)
|
Staff Reporter
About 50 war veterans
and Zanu PF supporters wielding clubs and iron bars attacked youths manning four
car parks in Kuwadzana Extension, Harare, on Sunday night.
-----------------
| Bulawayo acting mayor plans to build fuel station
|
|
5/9/01 8:38:46 AM (GMT
+2)
|
From Our Correspondent
in Bulawayo
BULAWAYO councillors
will today discuss an application by the acting
Executive Mayor David Ndlovu
for a $1,9 million stand to build a fuel
station.
[huh? what
fuel?...B]
-----------------
| Retrenched workers forced to join Zanu PF
|
|
5/9/01 8:39:20 AM (GMT
+2)
|
From Our Correspondent
in Bulawayo
Former Merspin Limited
workers in Bulawayo who were recently reinstated by war veterans, were allegedly
forced to join Zanu PF as a condition of their reinstatement.
-----------------
Mugabe won't step in to end
invasions
|
May 09 2001 at 07:55PM
|
By Basildon Peta
Harare - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe would
not intervene to end the current wave of invasions of businesses by self-styled
war veterans, a spokesperson for the government said on Wednesday.
Information Minister Jonathan Moyo said the Confederation of Zimbabwe
Industries (CZI), the country's biggest umbrella body for exporters and
manufacturers, should instead address the grievances of workers.
"The
CZI is continuing to exaggerate the crisis, but the war veterans have made clear
that they will not allow impostors to hijack the genuine grievances of workers
which they are trying to solve," Moyo told the Zimbabwean weekly paper the
Financial Gazette.
| 'Continuing to exaggerate the
crisis' |
"Instead of seeking President Robert Mugabe's intervention,
the CZI leadership should seek to meet the workers who have genuine grievances
and try to address them," he said.
The CZI has appealed to Mugabe to
stop the invasion of private companies.
The raids have triggered a
visible split within Mugabe's cabinet, resulting in the resignation of Industry
Minister Nkosana Moyo.
Other senior officials who have voiced muted
discontent include Home Affairs Minister John Nkomo and Vice-President Joseph
Msika.
The veterans, who are spearheading Mugabe's campaign for
re-election next year, have in the past two months raided several private firms
and kidnapped captains of industry whom they accuse of backing the opposition
Movement for Democratic Change or ill-treating workers.
| Looking at a possible evacuation of their
nationals |
In the ensuing disturbances, some companies have been forced
to close down, while others are downscaling their operations.
Political
observers believe that the plan to direct invasions to private companies was
hatched by the ruling Zanu-PF earlier this year to try to whip up support for
Mugabe, whose party lost virtually all urban seats to the MDC in the general
election in June last year. The presidential poll has to be held by April.
Meanwhile, the British High Commission formally closed its library and
information centre in Harare on Wednesday, after threats by war veterans to
"deal with" embassies and aid organisations they suspect of supporting the
opposition.
The government has stated that it could not guarantee the
safety of embassies and non-governmental bodies which engaged in the internal
politics of Zimbabwe.
Last week, the Canadian high commissioner to
Zimbabwe, James Wall, was assaulted by a gang of veterans after he had
intervened to stop them from abducting Dennis O'Brien, a director of Care
International, a Canadian aid organisation.
Several foreign diplomats
have said they are looking at a possible evacuation of their nationals.
-
Another judge forced out -
Star
-
MDC gains in council elections -
DNews
-
Uganda grudgingly re-enters Lusaka
Accord - Star
-
Nigeria to push for US support in
DRC - Star
From The Star (SA), 9 May
Zimbabwean high court judge resigns –
report
Harare - A leading Zimbabwean high court
judge who nullified three parliamentary election results won by President Robert
Mugabe's ruling Zanu-PF party last year has resigned, the state-owned Herald
newspaper reported on Tuesday. High Court judge James Devittie said he would
leave his post from July after serving five years on the bench. "I find myself
unable to justify my continued stay on the bench ... I intend, in the immediate
future, to devote my efforts in the area of judicial and legal reform," Devittie
told the paper. Devittie's resignation follows that of former Chief Justice
Anthony Gubbay who was forced into early retirement in March. The government had
accused Gubbay, a white Zimbabwean, of bias in favour of the country's white
minority. Mugabe swore in a political ally Godfrey Chidyausiku as acting chief
justice.
Devittie, of mixed race, had overturned
three election results originally won by Zanu-PF in last year's parliamentary
poll, saying they were won through violence and intimidation. One of these ruled
in favour of opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai who went to court to get the
election result at his Buhera North constituency overturned. The government said
it respected Devittie's rulings but would launch an appeal. Human rights and law
groups have charged Mugabe's government with deliberately seeking to undermine
the independence and power of the judiciary. The International Bar Association
last month condemned the Zimbabwean government for intimidating the judiciary
and undermining the rule of law.
From The Daily News, 8
May
MDC wins council elections seats in
Mutare, Gweru
The MDC swept aside challenges by Zanu PF on Monday to win two
council seats in Mutare, and three in Gweru. In Mutare, Norman Togara, 41, and
Knowledge Nyamhoka, 29, of the MDC, won seats in wards one and four respectively
in by-elections held over the weekend. They faced John Mpamhanga and Edna Akino
of Zanu PF. In Sakubva’s Ward 1, Togara polled 620 votes to 403 for Mpamhanga. A
total of 1 054 votes were cast, with 23 ballots spoilt. In Ward 4, Nyamhoka
received 608 votes against 459 for Akino of Zanu PF. A total 1 073 people voted,
while seven papers were spoilt. There are about 12000 registered voters in the
two wards.
Togara, a salesman, said of his victory: "I knew I would win."
Nyamhoka, who works for a timber company, said: "I am very happy, but I expected
to win by a wider margin." At 29, he is believed to be the youngest councillor
in Mutare. Akino declined to comment, while Mpamhanga left immediately after the
results were announced. MDC activists broke into song and waved red cards to
celebrate their victory, while Zanu PF supporters watched from a distance. The
seats were part of eight rural and urban council seats at stake in Manicaland.
The MDC fielded two candidates in Sakubva, four in Nyanga and one each in
Chimanimani and Makoni. The other results were not immediately available.
The Ward 1 seat became vacant following the death last year of
John Mangenje, a city businessman. The Ward 4 seat fell vacant last year after
Davidson Tsopo, the previous councillor, was disqualified following a High Court
petition challenging the conduct of the Registrar-General’s Office during ward
elections. Both wards fall under Mutare Urban legislative constituency, which
was won last June by the MDC’s Innocent Gonese, the party’s chief whip. Gonese
said: "We are elated. This shows that people are yearning for change." Zanu PF
contested in only five rural wards after the party failed to submit on time the
papers for its candidate in Nyanga’s Ward 4 (Ruwangwe).
The MDC snatched three seats in tightly contested council
by-elections held in Gweru and Kwekwe over the weekend. Highfield MP Munyaradzi
Gwisai’s father, Enock Chikweche, won 462 votes against Zanu PF’s Reuben
Bvunge’s 319 votes in Ward 5 in Gweru. William Chanza of the MDC pipped Zanu
PF’s Bernard Rutsito, with 492 votes to 322 votes in Ward 10 of Kwekwe Urban.
Gideon Matimba (MDC) won 72 votes against Litmus Mukurumbira of Zanu PF, who
polled 54 votes in Ward 4, Kwekwe. Lovemore Siziba of Zanu PF polled 592 against
Danisani Saidi of the MDC (29 votes) to win the Ward 5 seat in Kwekwe Rural. The
results for the other by-elections in Gokwe South (wards, 21 and 30) and Gokwe
North (Ward 2) were not available by yesterday afternoon. Sylvester Majekuza,
the MDC’s organising secretary for Midlands North, described the voting process
and the results as fair. Daniel Mackenzie Ncube, Zanu PF’s interim provincial
secretary for information and publicity, could not be reached for comment.
Several Zanu PF candidates in Shurugwi (three wards), Zvishavane (one ward),
Gokwe North (one ward) and Mberengwa (two wards) stood unopposed after the MDC
failed to field candidates in those
areas.
From The Guardian (UK), 8 May
Judge blocks Zimbabwe terror trial
Court queries legality of act used to try Mugabe's
rival
Harare - The Zimbabwean opposition leader,
Morgan Tsvangirai, won an important first round victory against the government
at his terrorism trial yesterday when the high court questioned the
constitutionality of oppressive British colonial-era laws used to charge him.
The high court postponed the trial while the supreme court considers whether
President Robert Mugabe can even use the notorious Law and Order (Maintenance)
Act which has been wielded by every Zimbabwean government for four decades to
oppress opponents. If the supreme court strikes down either the entire act or
the section dealing with terrorism, it will not only end Mr Tsvangirai's
prosecution but possibly remove an important weapon from Mr Mugabe's arsenal in
his battle with all manner of opponents. The act has been used to prevent
anti-government demonstrations, to try to curb critical journalism and to
justify violence against dissenters.
Judge Moses Chinhengo delivered his blow to
the government's case on the first day of the trial: "It is common knowledge
that the Law and Order (Maintenance) Act is a piece of colonial legislation that
was introduced in 1960, before this country got a justiciable Bill of Rights in
1980," he said. "That historical fact suggests that in the new order, the act
will be sorely tested each time it is relied upon by the state to prosecute an
individual." No date was set for the supreme court hearing but if it upholds the
law, the case will be referred back to the high court.
Mr Tsvangirai is on trial for terrorism,
for a remark he made at a rally of his MDC party last September warning Mr
Mugabe to resign after the opposition came close to winning parliamentary
elections. "We say to Robert Mugabe, if you don't want to go peacefully, we will
remove you violently," he said. The prosecutor, Nathaniel Sibanda, told the
court yesterday that Mr Tsvangirai's words were an incitement to revolution.
"The charges are directed at mischief of the highest order, which is calling for
the violent removal of a lawfully elected president in a democratic state," he
said.
But many Zimbabweans see the trial as an
attempt to prevent Mr Tsvangirai running for president against Mr Mugabe. If the
opposition leader is convicted and given more than six months in prison he would
be barred from high office. Yesterday, Mr Tsvangirai praised the independence of
the judiciary despite attempts by the government to purge the courts of
"disloyal" judges. The supreme court is still considered independent with four
of its five judges resisting pressure to resign. The fifth judge - Zimbabwe's
new chief justice - was appointed in March after his white predecessor was
threatened until he took early retirement.
Judge Chinhengo said the supreme court
should decide whether the two sections of the Law and Order act under which Mr
Tsvangirai is charged infringe the right to free speech and the right to be
considered innocent until proved guilty. But the court could scrutinise the
entire act if it chose. It was introduced in 1960 by the British colonial
authorities to curb the activities of African nationalists pressing for the then
Southern Rhodesia to become independent. The law was made even tougher by Ian
Smith's white minority regime after its unilateral declaration of independence
as Rhodesia. The white government used the act to jail Mr Mugabe for 10 years
without a trial. Mr Tsvangirai's lawyer, Chris Andersen, was a minister of
justice in the Smith government - although not the one who sent Mr Mugabe to
prison. Yesterday he was challenging the constitutionality of a law he used
repeatedly before independence. Two sections of the act - forbidding public
gatherings without a police order and barring journalists from publishing news
that might cause "fear and despondency" - have already been struck down by the
supreme court.
Mr Mugabe's information minister, Jonathan
Moyo, said the government would respect the high court ruling. "We respect the
institution of an independent judiciary and we look forward to the outcome of
the supreme court case," he said. "It is interesting that so many international
journalists came here for this case. We do not want to see an international
media kangaroo court saying there is no rule of law in Zimbabwe. We hope they do
not try to politicise this case. It is not a politically motivated case, it is a
criminal case." But there are few in Zimbabwe who believe that.
From The Daily News, 7 May
War veterans attack
envoy
James Wall, the Canadian High Commissioner to Zimbabwe, was
assaulted by rowdy war veterans when he tried to stop the abduction of Dennis
O’Brien, the Canadian director of an aid agency CARE International, from his
Harare office. Walls said he was pushed, shoved and ordered to clear the way for
the veterans to deal with O’Brien over a labour dispute with one of the
non-governmental organisation’s former workers. O’Brien has since protested to
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the assault. Another complaint was also
lodged with the police. "They didn’t listen to me, they pushed me aside and
forced O’Brien into a pick-up truck and drove to the Zanu PF provincial office,"
said Wall. "I followed the truck and on arrival I tried to follow O’Brien into
an office but I was physically stopped." Wall’s protest followed a similar one
from the German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer who has written to the
government, highlighting the raids on the offices of the Friedrich Ebert
Stiftung, the theft of food aid owned by a charity, HELP, and threats to a
German flower company. "These events may negatively impact on the good and
friendly relations existing between Germany and Zimbabwe," he said.
Wall said he rushed to the CARE offices after a distress call
from workers who told him that two veterans were about to abduct O’Brien. On
arrival, he said, he advised the war veterans that it was wrong to force a
Canadian to the Zanu PF office. They pushed him aside, bundled O’Brien into a
truck and drove off to the Zanu PF office. He was held there for about two
hours. Contacted for comment, Joseph Chinotimba, chairman of war veterans in the
Harare province, said it was unfortunate that Wall was assaulted. He said the
veterans failed to appreciate who they were dealing with. "Baboons are the
same," said Chinotimba, speaking in Shona. "If you see them destroying your
maize field you just beat them up indiscriminately. Not that I support what they
did, that was bad because it reduces the dignity of the High Commissioner." CARE
is one of the largest aid agencies in Zimbabwe, with a mostly Zimbabwean staff
of about 120 working on poverty alleviation, health, nutrition and emergency
relief programmes.
Meanwhile, Malcolm Boyland, the managing director of the
Avenues Clinic in Harare, together with his family, have gone into hiding
because of excessive demands from war veterans. Boyland said the clinic has
already paid out $6,3 million. "The war veterans came to us in April together
with some ex-workers," said Boyland. "We negotiated with them and signed an
agreement in the presence of an official from the President’s Office that we
were paying the workers. They came back last Wednesday and demanded that the 30
ex-workers be reinstated and be paid their bonuses for the past six years. We
said enough was enough. We were not going to do that." Boyland, 48, said on
Friday he received a telephone call ordering him to report to the Zanu PF
headquarters by 4.30pm. Yesterday, Boyland said he was still considering going
to work today because he feared for his safety. Chinotimba said the labour
dispute at the clinic was to be resolved today. Boyland, of Brighton, Britain,
came to Zimbabwe last year to take over the running of the clinic.
From The Daily News, 7
May
Moyo wants nation to know why he
resigned
Nkosana Moyo wants President Mugabe to tell the nation why he
resigned as the Minister of Industry and International Trade last week.
Yesterday, Moyo told The Daily News from South Africa he would ask the President
today to make public the contents of his resignation letter. "I will ask if he
has any problem with making the contents public," said Moyo. "I wrote him a
personal letter in which I went into detail on the issues of concern to me. In
that letter, I was making proposals on the issues that needed to be tackled. I
respect the fact that I wrote a letter to an individual and the release of the
contents of that letter is dependent on that individual, who is the President.
If the President is happy about it then he will ask Jonathan Moyo to make it
available to the nation through the Press." Jonathan Moyo is the Minister of
State for Information and Publicity in the President’s Office.
What if Mugabe decided to keep the letter under lock and key?
Moyo was asked. "I am not anticipating that. I don’t want to anticipate but
let’s be more positive. I think he is the one who should decide what he wants to
do with the letter because it is a personal letter," Moyo said. He said his
working relationship with Mugabe was good and he would not want to antagonise
him because he still wanted to be able to talk to him, listen to him and
contribute to the development of Zimbabwe. Speculation is rife Moyo resigned in
protest against rampant lawlessness which he had publicly denounced. He deplored
hate-mongering and confrontation, saying the two maladies had destroyed the
country. Morgan Tsvangirai, the MDC leader, praised Moyo for his "principled
move" in resigning. Tsvangirai said: "He has done the right thing . . . I hope
people in the government who still have some integrity and credibility, will
follow his example."
From The Sunday Herald (UK), 6
May
Heroic African journalists to talk
‘freedom’ in Scotland
Young Scottish journalists will get a chance to find out what
it’s like to be between a rock and a hard place after publicly defying political
bully boys when two of Africa’s most courageous reporters fly into Glasgow to
mark International Press Freedom Week and the Tenth anniversary of the Windhoek
(Namibia) Declaration on Press Freedom in Africa.
Mark Chavanduka is the editor of "The Standard" in Zimbabwe and
his colleague Mukalya Nampito is editor of the Zambian-based "Legal resources
Foundation News." They are guests of Amnesty International UK Journalists’
Network and after visiting Glasgow and Edinburgh will speak on Africa and Press
Freedom at two Scottish venues - The Pathway Lecture Theatre, University of
Stirling (Tuesday May 8 between 4pm-6pm) and at the Scottish Centre for
Journalism, University of Strathclyde, the following day between noon and 2 p.m.
An Amnesty official said "This is a wonderful opportunity for Scottish
journalists to hear what two outstanding and very courageous journalists have to
say about the state of play in their countries and their continent . Journalists
are not treated with kid gloves when they run foul of politicians. We have a lot
to learn about African courage and resilience".
In April 1999, Mark Chavanduka became a household name among
British journalists when he learned at great physical and mental cost that the
pursuit of truth can be both traumatic and brutalising. He and his senior
reporter Ray Choto were flown from Harare to Johannesburg with the financial
help of Amnesty International and then on to London where they received eight
weeks treatment at Helen Bamber’s Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of
Torture in Kentish Town. The story they brought with them to Britain was a grim
catalogue of their treatment at the hands of Zimbabwe’s security forces - Robert
Mugabe’s much feared Stasi-trained Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO). The
two men had reported a failed military coup late 1998. Mr Chavanduka, 39 and Mr
Choto,35, were illegally picked up by the police and then detained by military
intelligence officers who subjected them to what independent medical examiners
said was "sustained severe torture" to force them to name the source of their
report. Attempts by the Zimbabwean authorities to stop he two men from flying to
London were blocked by a judge who went on to incur the fury of President
Mugabe.
